‘Little America’ Recap: ‘The Manager’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM. YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

When we think of America and the American Dream, a fair number of people immediately let their minds turn to the iconic image that Norman Rockwell painted for the cover of the Saturday Evening Post, wherein dear ol’ dad is slicing that turkey at a family dinner. Because this nation and said dream are synonymous with that slice of Americana, where everyone lives in a suburban paradise with a lovely house surrounded by a white picket fence, and where 2.5 kids enjoy an idyllic lifestyle free from worry or concern or strife. If anything, those are wonderful images, ones that persist simply because they truly do evoke thoughts of a wonderful future and a comfortable life.
 
But the fact of the matter is, that particular line of thinking and dreaming is outdated when it comes to our country and the American Dream. Because the state of the country has changed since the 1950s and its grand dream of Americana. For so many more immigrants have come here to forge a better life and unfortunately, the cultural divide present in the United States is forcing them to work harder for their dreams of freedom and prosperity and thankfully, there are storytellers out there, working to bring their plight to the masses and Apple TV+ is one of the networks supporting that. For their series, Little America, takes the time to chronicle what the American Dream really looks like in modern times and that particular edict makes the series premiere of this show, ‘The Manager’, a poignant and powerful tale.
 
Now in this particular story, we are introduced to an Indian family that runs a hotel in the state of Utah and they are elated to be in the United States carving out their own path by way of a small business, and while it may not be a 5-star hotel catering to the nation’s elite, they are proud of what they have because it belongs to them and they control its destiny and its fate. And the freedom they enjoy by being small business owners brings them joy and it allows for Sarita and Krishan to raise their son with a sense of pride since he can now understand the value of a hard day’s work and what it means to dedicate one’s self to a cause, which are lessons that will come in handy in young Kabir’s life when his family is put to the test.

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Because when Kabir turns twelve, his parents run into quite the problem with their immigration paperwork, to the point where they are sent home to India, leaving him with a caretaker and a seemingly impossible task ahead of him. For the family’s dream was to keep this hotel going and it will be up to Kabir to make that happen, and this part of the story is downright inspirational. Because this boy goes to great lengths to keep the hotel running, all while working behind the scenes to see if he can convince someone in the Federal Government to bring his family home and well, what made this entire story so powerful and so outright moving, is how oddly relatable it turned out to be when all is said and done.  
 
After all, strife and challenge are part of the modern American Dream. Because in the past twenty years families in this nation have endured incredible hardships and that’s forced children to step up when parents are ill or out of work and these tough times have shown us what we are truly made of and what we are genuinely dedicated to. Which makes this story, a wonderful tale in the ongoing chronicles of the American Dream. For this is another story of Americans just trying to get by and survive in times in strife and seeing Kabir rise to the occasion is powerful and humbling for certain and it sends out a subtle reminder that we are all in this together. 
 
In the end, this really was quite the incredible series premiere for certain. One that was surprisingly based upon a true story from the early 2000s, a time where immigrants from that region of the world were viewed in poor light. And knowing that this story and the ones to follow are based off of a series of stories published in Epic Magazine makes this series more poignant than ever. Because that means it is going to offer up an honest slice of American life in the 21st Century, and it is going to remind us that those who come to this nation in search of a better life, are no different than the ones who grew up here. Because we are all Americans in the end, and we are all searching for our own version of the American Dream where there’s peace and happiness, and knowing that this series is going to focus upon that, will make the forthcoming journey worthwhile and it should be interesting to see what beautiful and inspiring stories await us in episodes to come. Until next time. 

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