“#1 Happy Family USA” opens on September 10, 2001 — a day like any other.
For the Hussein family, that means Rumi (voiced by Ramy Youssef) wakes up to put on his new, oversized, knock-off Michael Jordan jersey. (Instead of the No. 23, it’s double zeroes, and instead of “Bulls” it says “Balls.”) Before he can complain, his father scolds him for costing the family too much money. (A written breakdown of his monthly expenses includes $4.71 for “video game electricity,” $5.61 for fruit roll-ups, and $314.05 for “Poke-Man” cards.) His sister Mona (Alia Shawkat), meanwhile, does nothing wrong. Her expenses are the lowest in the household, which makes her daddy’s favorite — “I love you the most,” he says, kissing her on the forehead. Rumi’s mom Sharia (Salma Hindy) tries to defend her son, but she’s got her hands full with her own parents. Grandpa is a religious purist, demanding to put on the Quran over breakfast and promising his own daughter she’ll “rot in hell” alongside her mother (his wife), who he berates for watching too much TV.
The vibes are… not great, but they’re also undiluted. It’s a house filled with love in the form of chaos, and it’s easy to spot everyone’s routines and priorities, just as it’s easy to see how they’ve all adapted to accommodate one another. When Hussein (the father’s full name is Hussein Hussein) delicately asks his mother-in-law to turn off the TV, in order to conserve energy and save money, she whips the power cord against his face without taking her eyes off the screen. Mona is gaming her dad’s system by manipulating the electricity panel to lower her own hours (thus currying his favor), and they all do their best to ignore grandpa’s antiquated ramblings, knowing it’s better to let him jabber on than to try to correct a stubborn old man’s indelicate opinions.
But their routines, their customs, and their lives are about to change. As everyone watching already knows and as the Husseins are about to find out, the difference between living in America as a Muslim family on September 10 and living in America as a Muslim family on September 11 is stark. Existing biases are magnified and neutral positions turn hostile. It’s the era of “see something, say something” (without any clarity on what either “something” should be), the surveillance state (with no end in sight), and Fox News (rest in hell, Roger Ailes).
On top of reviving the acute feelings of fear, confusion, and anger tied to the years immediately following Osama bin Laden’s attacks, “#1 Happy Family USA” arrives at a time when similar sentiments among immigrant communities are once again peaking. Reports of unlawful searches, detentions, and deportations overwhelm the news cycle. People are being advised to flee, if they have the resources, or stay away, if they’re already out of the country. Are we on the precipice of a constitutional crisis, or is it already here?
So… who’s ready to laugh? Well, ready or not, anyone willing to sample “#1 Happy Family USA” will have a hard time holding back. Created by Youssef (“Ramy”) and Pam Brady (“South Park”), the Amazon Prime Video original has no business being as funny as its first season proves to be. Bombarded with jokes, spoken and visualized, while bolstered by colorful, period-appropriate animation (in a note to critics, Youssef said, “We had to downgrade our computers to get the look we wanted”) “#1 Happy Family USA” wields its black-comic wit with sweeping breadth while still honoring the pain and terror felt by Muslims and immigrants trying to survive in America without losing themselves.
Most of the episodes are centered around Rumi, a not-so-subtle avatar for Ramy Youssef, who in 2001 was also a young Muslim boy living in New Jersey with his Egyptian parents. Rumi wants what most kids his age want: to make the basketball team, to fit in at school, and to have sex with his teacher, who he’ll eventually marry (after she gets out of prison — you know, because of the statutory rape).
But after 9/11, Rumi descends into “a social death spiral.” During show and tell, his classmates ask him why he hates America. They disinvite him from parties, and even his friends struggle to understand what he’s going through. Rumi tries everything to get back to the life he’d had before. He learns about code-switching from his friend Marcus, who’s Black. He tries to trick his family into moving away, thinking life would be easier anywhere else. He even enlists help from President George W. Bush, after he’s “caught” illegally downloading music and prompted by a pop-up to contact “curious_george_bush43” via AOL Instant Messenger.
His father isn’t doing any better. Hussein (also voiced by Youssef) was a surgeon in Egypt, but now he’s the proud owner of a halal cart, which he parks outside Fox News headquarters in Manhattan. Only now, no one wants to eat “foreign meat,” so he agrees to appear on TV as “Halal Harry” in the hopes of proving his patriotism. Really, that’s all Hussein can focus on anymore. When he leaves the house, he shaves his bushy beard into a thin mustache, slaps on a polo with khakis, and breaks his religious principles to drink beer like “a real American.” (The animation captures the family’s transformations with a glitchy electric current, like their brown complexion and colorful personalities are getting zapped right out of them, so they can fit in with the white outside world.)
As over-the-top as his behavior can be, you can’t blame Hussein. He’s under constant surveillance at home thanks to a new neighbor who just happens to work for the FBI (perfectly voiced by Timothy Olyphant), and his brother has already been taken in by the authorities, sans warrant or explanation. All this makes Sharia’s refusal to refute her identity all the more admirable — and nerve-wracking. She wears her hijab everywhere, outside the house and within, including at work. Luckily, her boss (Kieran Culkin) is supportive — dancing on the line between appropriate consideration and cultural appropriation — even if his reassurances are far from universal.
“#1 Happy Family USA’s” clean episodic structure allows it to take the familiar shape of its animated peers — a consistently funny, animated family sitcom for adults — while still still standing out through its distinct perspective and story. One episode sees Hussein trying to make friends with Dan, his new neighbor, except the stakes are much higher than your typical domestic drama since Dan might also be living across the street to spy on Hussein and his family. Another episode sees Mona running for class president, but the tension doesn’t boil down to whether she wins or loses; it’s centered on the fact that she’s gay and feels like she has to hide it from her family even more than her classmates. A different entry follows Rumi as he joins a Satan-worshiping rock band, but the goal isn’t just to extricate him before he does lasting damage to his vocal chords; it’s to understand the painful emotions he can only convey through growl-singing.
Amid the onslaught of jokes — I haven’t even found time to mention Lamby, a heart-meltingly adorable lamb the family was going to sacrifice before she started talking to Rumi, but who still, very much, wants to die — “#1 Happy Family USA” makes time to acknowledge the darkness driving its dark comedy. The Husseins are living in fear — fear of being deported, harassed, or worse. That fear forces them to assimilate, which can lead to them betraying their core ideals. It’s a difficult and confusing time for anyone, but even more so for a developing kid like Rumi.
“#1 Happy Family USA” may prove too difficult for some audiences to sit through. Far be it from me to tell anyone what their comfort level is in the year 2025, but judged by the high bar it set for itself, as well as the subjective impression of this very white critic, the animated comedy is an impressive feat. Funny and sad, exaggerated and honest, Youssef and Brady’s series offers escape and catharsis, all at the same time.
Grade: B+
“#1 Happy Family USA” premieres Thursday, April 17 on Amazon Prime Video. All eight episodes of Season 1 will be released at once.
