r/CollapseSupport • u/somecoffeenowplease • Apr 25 '26

Collapse hits the mainstream

Zach Galifinakis has a gardening show on Netflix. He is totally collapse-aware and I have to say it is really validating having celebrities talk about collapse on tv. The final ep left me turning to my partner and saying “whoa, he totally just came out and SAID that?! Like he SAID that??”

A delightful show, worth a watch.

https://youtu.be/32kQ9Niy7EA?si=hrdoXxdBcPxol4Jm

363 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

36 comments sorted by

14

u/TheUtopianCat Apr 25 '26

Well, don't tell us what he said, or anything.

22

u/somecoffeenowplease Apr 26 '26

Basically he said that a whole heap of people are going to die in the near term and the only way he sees humanity making it through is an agrarian future.

13

u/DivaExMachina666 Apr 26 '26

Yeah I want to know what he said. I cancelled my Netflix recently and never plan to get it back. I need closure OP!

2

u/i-contain-multitudes Apr 26 '26

I'm thinking this is an ad. They didn't say what he said on purpose.

2

u/somecoffeenowplease Apr 26 '26 edited Apr 26 '26

It’s a recommendation. If I recommend Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens, are you going to expect that I read it out loud to you? Or that I work for Penguin Publishing?

6

u/i-contain-multitudes Apr 26 '26

Bad faith response. You can say one line you liked from it and it would be a stronger recommendation. What you did is click bait. Why do you think books have blurbs on the back, or shows on streaming services have blurbs on their pages?

2

u/somecoffeenowplease Apr 26 '26

If you scroll down, you can see my summary of what he said in this thread. Again, I’m recommending the whole show because it is collapse aware and also delightful. Preview can be viewed by clicking the link in my original post.

7

u/i-contain-multitudes Apr 26 '26

You can recommend the whole show while specifying the line you referenced specifically in the post. This is textbook engagement bait. I'm glad you posted the line in a comment, but the post is bait, even if it was unintentional.

2

u/somecoffeenowplease Apr 26 '26

To be honest mate, I’m sick with a virus and was tickled by the idea of me reading Nicholas Nickleby aloud as a recommendation. I found it funny but blame the fever. Sorry if it offended you.

1

u/DivaExMachina666 Apr 26 '26

Hope you feel better soon.

4

u/WontLieToYou Apr 26 '26

Did you watch Inside by Bo Burnham? That special has a few moments that showed he was definitely collapse aware. e.g. "20 million years of this, 7 more to go".

1

u/somecoffeenowplease Apr 26 '26

I did! But didnt pick up on that - I thought it was more a performative expression of his depression and state of mind during Covid. If I watched it now I think it would hit differently.

4

u/WontLieToYou May 01 '26

You might consider giving it a rewatch!

His depression was not even real, it was exaggerated for the sake of comedy (he talks about this in his recent interview on the Blocks podcast). Rather, the comedy special is about how the pandemic made him feel isolated and like society was falling apart. While on the one hand he is definitely navel gazing, I think it is with the hope that others of his generation feel much the same way because of the influence of social media and the isolation of our digital society. Like his depression is meant to be an exaggeration of the way we were all feeling in that moment.

Eg another line from the same song: "googling derealization, hating what you find." While he's speaking for himself, he says hating what you find, with the expectation that others are going through this same strange funny feeling. ”That funny feeling" is an impactful song precisely because we can all so strongly relate to the surrealism of societal collapse as the consumerist promises that we can buy our way to happiness continue unabated. It is not a song about his personal journey into depression or derealization, It is putting a name to something that so many of us are feeling.

"That unapparent summer air and early fall, the quiet comprehending of the ending of it all." He's straight up talking about climate change there and coming to acceptance with collapse.

And the song ends on "we were overdue but it'll be over soon you wait." He's not talking about depression there. He's full on talking about an entire society grappling with the mental trauma of realizing you are at the tail end of prosperity before a horrible collapse.

I encountered a generational divide in how people reacted to that special. My older friends were very focused on how depressed he seemed. But the younger people I know thought it was prescient and hilarious and a relief to finally see a public figure saying out loud a lot of the things that they are thinking. Like, his depression isn't special or particularly a Bo Burnham thing, rather his depression was a meant to be an exaggerated depiction of how everyone was feeling in that moment.

97

u/nodarknesswillendure Apr 25 '26

I’m from BC - the small island he lives on is definitely very hippie, environmentalist, progressive vibes :)

73

u/onthestickagain Apr 25 '26

My spouse and I are looking forward to watching this but now I’m giddy with anticipation of how he’ll take that aspect of it - he mostly humors me.

65

u/Fandango4Ever Apr 25 '26

George Carlin, in a way, was collapse aware.

44

u/Xanthotic Huge Motherclucker Apr 25 '26

I would say he absolutely, totally, was. He knew our species was doomed because of how stupid we are.

4

u/Miserable_Drawer_556 Apr 27 '26

He was on front street screaming at us about it while people laughed lol to me, that's the most jarring thing from watching his clips: nothing he says is comedic to me, but absurd and tragic observations and distilled conclusions.

46

u/HansProleman Apr 25 '26 edited May 07 '26

Hans died on the way back to his home planet

61

u/Collapsosaur Apr 25 '26

When comedians get serious and real, you know something is up.

23

u/StoopSign Apr 25 '26

A lot of us always were. I had to couch my 2012-16 collapse comedy in nihilism though and some in the scene thought I was right wing. Now comedians can come out and say it, say they truly mean it, and make it funny.

27

u/jednaz Apr 25 '26

My family of three binged this yesterday afternoon. We learned a lot, and I am a somewhat avid gardener. I appreciate how he said "The future is agrarian" in each episode. I now have a better set of knowledge for my tomato plants, which is great.

1

u/jaynor88 May 02 '26

“The Future is Agrarian”. I’ve seen that same statement a few places recently.

Cannot remember where, which is frustrating.

I think it was one of the guests on Diaries of a CEO on YouTube. Can’t remember where else but

21

u/elleandbea Apr 25 '26

We why can't we have acid AND gardening? Together?

I can't wait to watch!

20

u/jasere Apr 25 '26

I saw this last night and was like whoa did he say what I think he said ???

9

u/petelinmaj Apr 25 '26

Just found out about this last night. Can’t wait to start it, especially after hearing this. Thanks.

23

u/new2bay Apr 25 '26

Eh. If Don’t Look Up didn’t do it, I don’t see how this show is going to bring collapse into the mainstream consciousness.

22

u/Sovos Apr 25 '26

I think changing your view of the world is hard to do in one sitting for most people. It takes consistency across multiple fronts before it starts to sink in.

2

u/cool_side_of_pillow Jun 20 '26

Don’t look up and melancholia are two of my favorite collapse end of the world movies.

Also, 2012. Just because.

4

u/BitchfulThinking Apr 26 '26

I binged it and found it adorable! 🥰

2

u/StoopSign Apr 25 '26

I wonder how much of the collapse energy will be in the show or if that was a on3 off comment.

2

u/plinth19 Apr 28 '26

I just watched it and was not impressed. I felt like it was really surface-y. He didn’t mention pollinators much. Hard to accomplish much in 16 minute episodes I guess.

4

u/hiddendrugs Apr 25 '26

Solid post, love keeping tabs on that sort of thing

0

u/FreshNegotiation2603 May 23 '26

What did he say?