The Rehearsal's Problem is Traditional Masculinity

Nathan Fielder's second season unearths the male communication crisis

Flight Risk

I want to briefly open by saying that if you haven't yet seen The Rehearsal Season Two, consider giving it a try before reading this. You don't even need to have watched Season One as each is fairly self-contained, though it will offer an introduction to Fielder (and his character?) in addition to context on his methods and the reasoning behind them.

If you're entirely new to the work of Nathan Fielder, my one-line pitch would be that he lives, breathes and thrives on the line between reality and unreality, fiction and nonfiction. I've written before about how my favourite speculative fiction stories challenge my basic understanding of how the world works; between his deadpan humour and the hard to discern differences between himself and his character, Fielder embodies this fascination. I was first introduced to him through his show The Curse, which I highly recommend and want to write about eventually.

Rehearsal Spoilers Ahead. Unlike its predecessor, Season Two of The Rehearsal is fully devoted to a single issue: communication breakdowns between airline pilots which lead to otherwise preventable crashes. Fielder was certainly working on this idea for years, but the timing of the season's release is pretty remarkable considering the many widely-covered aviation incidents we've seen in 2025.

Fielder approaches the issue from a variety of amusing angles – including attempting to experience Captain Sully Sullenberger's life from childhood – but quickly focuses in on two key factors that seem intrinsically tied to the cockpit communication breakdowns he is investigating.

The first issue is one of authority: co-pilots fearing to question the actions of their (often more experienced) captains because their careers are on the line. The second is about the pilots themselves: any diagnosed or divulged mental health issue is liable to have a pilot's flight license revoked. Which, as Fielder brilliantly sums up in the final line of the season:

Art for The Rehearsal Season 2, by trytobehappy

"So, if you're here, you must be fine."

Clearly, pilots don't have mental health issues: if they did, they wouldn't be allowed to fly. My recap can't do the show justice in how cleverly it challenges this idea, but to give it a try: Fielder reveals in episode six that he has spent the past two years training for and acquiring his own pilot's license. He also does his due diligence in getting tested for anxiety & depression. Episode five & six also question whether he might be autistic.

But he wants to continue flying, so the end of the season shows him ignoring the message that his test results are available. If he doesn't officially have anything wrong with him, he can do his job. It's objective vs. accepted reality, with lives on the line.

And (sorry it took so long to get here) isn't that exactly what traditional masculinity is all about? Men don't have feelings, let alone mental health issues. If they did, they wouldn't be men. If you're here with the boys, you must be fine.

It's no coincidence that just 6% of pilots are female. As The Rehearsal demonstrates, female pilots are subject to frequent and intense harassment. (And again, risk their jobs by objecting too harshly to a commanding officer.) Nathan notes the skill with which pilot Mara'D has learned to deflect and deter this harassment, but this remains a horrifying norm to have to accept.

On the other side of things – and as the show places in direct contrast to Mara'D – are pilots like Jeff, who exude toxic masculinity like it's 1950. It feels obscene to look in on the change-resistant workplace culture of this industry, which makes me confident Fielder knew what he was getting into to some extent. But, of course, Jeff and his ilk are 'fine'; whereas someone seeking help for their mental health absolutely wouldn't be.

Art by Levi Hastings for Buzzfeed News

Boys will be boys

If the existence of feelings and mental health issues is inimical to traditional masculinity, opening up or asking about them is unfathomable. (Not to mention potentially career-ruining for pilots.) Society's concept of pilots adds to this an aura of stoic superiority, maintaining which necessitates never being the first person to talk: you have all the answers and absolute control, so why would you ever need to open your mouth first?

Given that, is it any wonder that Fielder never observes pilots talking to each other when not absolutely necessary? Regulations, their culture and our societal ideal of them require them to be perfectly self-sufficient, enlightened beings. Any hint to the contrary and they're gone.

Of course, Fielder spends the season trying to pick away at this delusion from a variety of angles. He finds an incredible communicator in Mara'D because she isn't playing the game, and has in fact learned to work around those who are. Half his trials involve encouraging male pilots to communicate with the women in their lives, I think partially because their work life so clearly stunts their skills in that area.

Clearly the pressure on pilots to remain this way is coming from all angles, so will require changes on multiple fronts. Fielder mentions talk therapy as a potential starting point, and I personally think that's absolutely true. Ultimately, perhaps just following the way our society down traditional masculinity a few pegs would offer a path forward.

Official Poster Image for The Rehearsal Season 2

What about Season One?

I spent far less time with Season One than most, yet I can't help but feel that masculinity is also at its heart. 'Orange Juice, No Pulp' feels very reminiscent of pilot Moody's conversation with his girlfriend Cindy, while 'Gold Digger' in some ways mirrors the very same communication issues between male pilots. As for the masculine angle in Nathan's role as surrogate, surrogate father in the whole Angela debacle... That's for someone else to analyze.

I really appreciated not only how the show cleverly points out this deeply concerning issue in the aviation industry, but also how Fielder subtly begins to explore his own mental health throughout the season. It's fascinating to see how he's able to meet Jeff's toxicity with a straight face while also being extremely open about his own internal journey. I'd love to hear (or experience through subtle hints) Nathan talk about his relationship to gender some day. But he's an onion as much as any ogre, and that's probably at least a dozen layers away.

Any parallels to traditional masculinity that I missed from the season? Would love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks for reading and until next time <3