The following article contains spoilers for Atlanta.
It seemed odd that a show like Atlanta had spent its first trip to Amsterdam chasing down urban legends about Tupac and dealing with the modern awkwardness represented by the Sinterklaas’ “Black Pete”, so perhaps that is why episode 8 brings the gang back to the city of canals in a more light-hearted comedy journey seen through Al’s eyes.
That is because for foreigners, the established perception of Amsterdam is often that of a wild place rife with both legal and illegal drugs, window shopping for sex workers, and both an established network of museums and a thriving art scene. Of course, Atlanta is too smart to indulge in the city’s most obvious talking points, instead, it lets Paper Boi decide what he wants Amsterdam to be all while finding time for its usual takes on modern society.
It all starts off like many stories should, with a cup of coffee as Al, Darius and Earn (Van remains MIA) pass the time in the city and it first becomes obvious that money has become an elephant in the room for the crew. Paper Boi’s European tour has been an absolute success, and Darius now constantly expects Al to pay for stuff, it’s really almost always been that way, but it seems like Al is finally getting annoyed by this or at least now wonders what it really means.
Al’s viewpoint is all that matters in this episode, whether it’s his musings on European sauna culture or his desperate need to get away from being recognized, this is a 100% Paper Boi adventure. Nevertheless, it’s Darius’ idea of eating some Nepalese Space Cakes, a legendary marijuana desert said to trigger the senses unlike anything else that gets things going; Al is as skeptical as usual though he still agrees to pay for them because, of course, Darius doesn’t have a lot of cash on him.
The trip stinks of disappointment for Al as both men have the usual “are you high yet?”, though it doesn't take long for viewers to see those pricey cookies are doing their intended job. Al’s main concern is being paranoid and not wanting to be seen, as he loses Darius he’s forced to run away from a pack of British tourists, and even a local sex worker takes his photo. Everyone wants a piece of Paper Boi, Atlanta’s pride.
Perhaps it’s the sight of 3 lads grabbing a woman’s baby and tossing him around like a football that should be the dead giveaway that Al is very, very high, if not, him walking completely disoriented into an acting performance should do the trick. As he steps inside a museum, Al encounters one of those memorable Atlanta characters, Lorraine, a snide but beautiful fashionista who’s not one bit shy to criticize the rapper, his lyrics, his hat choices, and financial future.
The dialogue between the two fits the bill of the episode, because Amsterdam and Van Gogh may not be the go-to surrealist icons but that seems to be the tone for Al’s trip, or rather “New Jazz’s”. And it doesn’t get any more surreal than the Cancel Club, host to everyone and everything from obnoxious Dua Lipa fangirls to grown adults dressed as furry animals, and even Qui-Gon Jinn himself.
Action hero Liam Neeson is the one who puts the Atlanta flavor in this episode, as he basically asks Al “What are you in for?”. Al is clueless, but like many, he’s familiar with the Taken star's much-publicized racist “transgression” back in 2019 though he’s not really offended by it because Paper Boi is too much of a Taken fan.
Atlanta tackles the topic of cancel culture from all fronts in this 4-minute sequence, that of the Black man that could be offended by Neeson’s comments; the actor’s struggle to cope with backlash from thoughts he had decades ago and his own attempt to use that as a symbol for personal growth; Al forgiving Neeson because he feels he shouldn’t be canceled; Neeson’s hatred over being attacked by an angry internet mob; and, ultimately, Neeson’s realization that, as a white man, “we don’t have to learn anything if we don’t want to”.
Donald Glover penned this episode with Hiro Murai in directing duties, meaning this is as raw a take one is going to get from Atlanta’s creator on a topic like cancel culture, in which he tries to inject some nuance by extending an olive branch to Neeson so that the two can mock the incident. It might not be to everyone’s liking, but Atlanta made its name on being the Blackest show it can be and this is this particular Black man's way of seeing these issues.
After New Jazz and Lorraine leave the two have a fight, she calls Al’s biggest fears over his career, life, friends and family to paralyze him as he succumbs to the ground only for viewers to realize he’s the passed out tourist he walked past earlier.
When Al wakes up the first person he sees is Earn, he asks the mandatory questions about his master recordings only to find out what one suspects from the start, his cousin is taking good care of him. Paper Boi checks out and puts an end to this very bad trip, thus leaving fans with a very important lesson: be careful with what you eat in Amsterdam.