Laverne Cox Shines in the Heartfelt Southern Comedy ‘Clean Slate’
Laverne Cox leads an appealing ensemble in the refreshingly upbeat, proudly queer comedy series "Clean Slate."
In Prime Video’s new single-cam comedy series Clean Slate, Laverne Cox stars as Desiree, a glam New Yorker who retreats back home to small-town Alabama, hoping to reconnect with her car wash owner dad, Harry.
Harry, portrayed by veteran comedian George Wallace, is eagerly expecting the arrival of his long-estranged son, so he has some right to be shocked when he opens his door to find Desiree. Apparently, up till now, she’s shared no news of her transition. “I’ve always been Desiree,” she explains. “May I come in?”
At that point, not every average red-state dad would just roll with it and say, “Yeah, come on in.” Some would, and that’s what Harry does, despite his misgivings.
With Harry’s simple gesture of acceptance, Clean Slate, created by Cox, Wallace, and Dan Ewen, signals the show intends to lead with love. Whatever rocky road lies ahead for father and daughter, their journey begins with a show of respect that feels most welcome in the world right now.
It also feels true to Harry’s character as a kind-hearted, churchgoing regular Joe, who’s not exactly progressive, but isn’t the least bit hateful either. While Cox certainly commands the screen as lead, Harry, gruff but warmly sarcastic, is the heart of the show and, not surprisingly, given Wallace’s standup chops, usually the one landing jokes.
Clean Slate is a cozy comedy filled with colorful country folks clashing in low-key conflicts. Occasionally, guest stars like Nene Leakes (playing herself) roll into town, but the rapport of the main cast is the show’s strength. The fact that Clean Slate is about and stars a trans woman isn’t treated as something revolutionary, which is great.
Desiree’s mere existence isn’t threatened, so stories can focus on how this self-assured woman, who is trans, will try to pick herself up after a professional setback, reconcile with her only living parent, and maybe even find romance.
Jay Wilkison co-stars as Harry’s de facto right hand at the car wash, Mack, a single dad to too-precocious tween Opal (Norah Murphy). Wilkison lays the aw-shucks charm on thick, but Mack, generally written against type, offers a few surprises. And the chemistry between Wilkison and Cox simmers nicely as city girl Desiree and good ol’ boy Mack circle each other.
The complications feel contrived, but the series dives into real and thoughtful conversations prompted by this interracial, queer-coded pairing. The show also takes a nuanced view of religion, following Desiree’s pursuit of spiritual solace within the local church.
There, she faces the stiffest bigotry portrayed on the show, from staunchly anti-LGBTQ Pastor Hughes (Keith Arthur Bolden). Yet, the church is also where she finds some of her staunchest allies, like family friend Ella (Telma Hopkins, who is “ha-ha hilarious”), and Ella’s son, Louis (D.K. Uzoukwu), the church choir director.
Like many a church choir director, Louis is proceeding ever-so slowly on his own coming-out journey. In a fine show of queer sisterhood — and an important step towards this show not being all about Desiree — she makes it her mission to see childhood bestie Louis truly find himself (and a boyfriend).
The biggest barrier Louis has to self-acceptance is his own self-doubt. That might be a little of what’s holding Desiree back, too. She’ll just have to figure that out, and the best part about Clean Slate is that it grants her a safe, loving space to do so.
Clean Slate (★★★☆☆) debuts all eight episodes of season one on Thursday, Feb. 6, on Prime Video. Visit www.amazon.com.
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