Conspiracy theories backdrop to explore characters in ‘Inside Job’
In “Inside Job,” certain celebrities and politicians are revealed to be members of a race of shape-shifting lizard people that secretly live alongside humans. These reptoids help fund the work of the shadow government, which in turn ensures that the Earth stays at their preferred climate.
That’s just one of the routine conspiracies being handled by Cognito Inc., a “company” enacting the will of a shadowy cabal of ancient elites who control the world.
Created by first-time showrunner Shion Takeuchi,
Netflix’s latest adult animated series shows that even those coordinating cover-ups and surveilling the masses can’t escape workplace mishaps and drama.
At the center of the show is Reagan Ridley (voiced by Lizzy Caplan), a brilliant but dysfunctional scientist who is ill-equipped to handle standard social niceties. As the series begins, Reagan is anticipating a promotion that would put her in charge at Cognito Inc. — though things don’t turn out exactly as she hopes.
“The show is about Reagan’s personal journey,” Takeuchi said. “The idea of someone who is extremely logical and pragmatic and working in a really cynical company that is the deep state, and still wanting to make the world a better place is an interesting irony.
“She is a character that doesn’t sound, talk, look or act very much like a leader. I wanted to see, how does one become a leader in those instances?”
Despite the ways that once-fringe theories have increasingly spread into the
mainstream in recent years, “Inside Job’s” timely arrival is more of a coincidence. The long production timeline involved in animation meant Takeuchi was developing the core concepts of the show before debunking conspiracies became a routine necessity of the news cycle.
“I didn’t love it,” Takeuchi said of watching conspiracy theories becoming more prevalent. “It’s been a wild ride watching all this stuff unfold. I’m having the same experience as anyone else. But I guess it’s confirmation that we’ve all been feeling kind of similar things in the zeitgeist.”
“To be clear, I don’t actually think there is a shadow government,” said Takeuchi, whose previous credits include writing on the series “Gravity Falls” and “Disenchantment.” “I just want people to know where I stand on that one.”
From Bigfoot to the moon landing, most of the conspiracy theories “Inside Job” touches on are familiar classics. Takeuchi describes the process of figuring out what conspiracy theory works with what story as an “intricate dance.” Researching for the show’s episodes involved reading up on conspiracy theories because it’s impossible
to tell which ones will fit with which story.
The characters revolving around Reagan include Brett Hand (Clark Duke), her attractive and mildly competent colleague who is all heart, as well as her alcoholic father, Rand Ridley (Christian Slater), a brilliant scientist who lacks sensitivity or self-awareness.
Rand “is like the dark future that (Reagan) has if she doesn’t learn some of the emotional skills that Brett has,” said Takeuchi. “That’s what makes the core trio interesting for me.”
As much as the show is about Reagan’s missions with her team, many of the stories also involve Reagan having to deal with her (recently divorced) parents and her relationship with them. “Inside Job” allows audiences to laugh at conspiracy theories again. But as fun as they are, ultimately they just provide a backdrop to explore the characters and how they navigate the world.
“I use comedy as a way to work through difficult emotions,” Takeuchi said. “A lot of what’s happening in the world right now is scary stuff. Hopefully, through the show, we can work through it together.”