History Of Swear Words premiered on 5th January 2020 on Netflix. Hosted by Nicolas Cage, the docuseries focuses on the origins, pop culture usage, science, and cultural impact of 6 curse words namely fuck, shit, bitch, dick, pussy, and damn. Entertainers such as Sarah Silverman, Nick Offerman, Nikki Glaser, Patti Harrison, Open Mike Eagle, Joel Kim Booster, DeRay Davis, London Hughes, Jim Jefferies, Zainab Johnson, Baron Vaughn, and Isiah Whitlock Jr. are seen in various episodes throughout the season.
What The * Beep *
2020 was a rough year and you must have cursed the year enough but if, while or after cursing, you ever thought – wait, what is the origin of this slang that I’ve been saying for this whole damn year then here’s your answer: 6 episodes of about 20 minutes long telling you the origin, use, and everything on the surface about these cuss words. And what is the swear word you would start the series with? It obviously has to be fuck, a cuss word that suits every emotion and occasion!
“I love the word fuck so much, it’s just so versatile.” – Kory Stamper, Lexicographer
Swearing is cathartic and there’s no denying it. It brings power, pain, relief, humour, and satisfaction and people have sworn for years! The docuseries provides a good amount of information in its short time-frame; from movie clips to timelines to personal interviews with various comedians and experts on the matter, the series is truly one of a kind. History Of Swear Words is not too serious and neither does it push you into a deep pool of information that makes no sense to a layman but rather, it is quick-witted and fun.
Every episode takes an all-angle look at a range of swearwords, a lightly irreverent tone that prohibits the use of racial epithets or other offensive button-pushers. Did you know that there’s a part of your brain where you store slangs and when you stub your toe or anything happens, your mind stimulates that response leading to cuss words which give you more power to go through a hard day/year/situation and even injury? No? Me neither and it’s amusing to me, honestly.
Nicolas Cage adds to the amazement of History Of Swear Words with his hosting skills. He casts a charming spell of intrigue and fun in even the most mundane words and can turn a four-letter outcry into an obscene opera. It goes without saying that if you’re trying to make a miniseries about the nuanced phenomenon of swear words, holding in both their honourable scholarly and historical roots and their forbidden-yet-famous generational charm, you’re hard-pressed to find a better host than the Cage himself.
Stream It or Skip It
STREAM IT! History Of Swear Words is a stream-worthy series and why didn’t anyone think of it before? There is ample information in 20-minutes but not in big chunks and with no heavy words for which you’ll want to seek help from either a dictionary or Google! The series is simple, fun, and informative. There are other words we’ll want to know the origin and contemporary use of but maybe that’s all for season 2!
History Of Swear Words is now streaming on Netflix.
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