“Mother, May I Have a Kidney?” It’s spelled out in the title. With such an attention-grabbing question attached to a lean, six-episode series, each entry ranging anywhere between 12 and 17 minutes total, it speaks to the breezy ease with which to digest such a show, as disposable and straightforward as it may be.
Doug (Doug Andrews) needs a kidney. We learn this swiftly, as quickly as it’s revealed how dismissive his high-and-mighty mother, Rhonda (Tina Benko), has treated him all his life, seen best in an opening scene where an outwardly uncaring Rhonda soon dismisses a young Doug’s (Ace Wild) nosebleed. Unsurprisingly, such treatment may very well lead to a division between the two, and as we catch up in the present with the now-adult Doug as he awaits unspecified test results, his situation immediately turns dire; after disclosing said results to his fellow costume designer Leslie (Darius de Haas), his longtime creative partner, the other shoe drops following Doug’s subsequent revelation.
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Not only is a new kidney needed, but Rhonda is the perfect donor match.
A text message conversation with the woman immediately goes nowhere. A visit to Rhonda’s last known address reveals that Doug’s parents moved years prior. The only way to potentially track her down is through Doug’s sister, Rachael (Charlotte Ray Rosenberg), who Doug admits may despise him as much, if not more, than his estranged mother. Fortunately, finding Rachel proves easier, yet his subsequent meeting with Rhonda goes as expected, with the latter seemingly failing to understand the gravity of Doug’s dilemma, and a history of neglectful behavior begins to surface. Not only has Doug endured a lifetime of various ailments, but his mother may have dealt with her own generational trauma, which, when coupled with an eroding marriage, may very well serve to showcase how similar the two may be. And yet, will Doug ever receive that kidney he so desperately needs?
All involved handle their roles well, with the level playing field established early on and upon which no single cast member strays from doing what’s required, no more, no less. Dialogue that could carry the label of exposition sheds such a moniker just as fast, and a subplot involving a budding relationship between Doug and someone he meets via a dating app doesn’t lend much to the story at large. However, it’s just as easy to overlook. Each individual episode carries a graphic-heavy title sequence that may very well be one of the show’s more creative elements, and you’d better believe that the requisite flashback episode will eventually make an appearance, necessarily filling in several plot holes and leading to an unexpected moment that tees up some much-needed laughs in the episode thereafter.
Finding any additional juice worthy of squeezing from such a brief trip into the world of a sick man and his difficult parent may be foolhardy with regards to a show such as, “Mother, May I Have A Kidney?”, but when it’s over as fast as it began, it may not matter at all. There’s little about which to complain. Will Doug get that kidney? There’s only one way for us to find out. [B]
“The Scout” is currently playing at the Tribeca Festival.
