Subway Takes is publishing episodes they filmed in Berlin’s U-Bahn, and the results are both amusing and unexpectedly revealing.
The show itself needs almost no introduction since it’s become a mainstream online phenomenon. Subway Takes features comedian and musician Kareem talking to NYC personalities who share their “takes” during brief subway rides.
He ventures outside of New York once in a while, and after London and Paris, has now turned up in Berlin.
The U-takes started with a masked party-goer declaring that “It’s actually good for you to party for 72 hours.” Next came local comedian Aurel Mertz with a pedestrian and mildly funny take about exercise. The party-goer made a return appearance after the aforementioned 72 hours of partying. And the latest episode features an American investor affecting an exaggerated German accent.
These three characters could not be a better reflection of the city of Berlin and where it’s at. A guy stuck in a party, unable to get out; a Southern German guy slumming it here until it’s not ‘fun’ anymore; and an investor mining the city for cash and clout. These are the people who shape the city, and for all of them, this place is a playground.
What I take away from these Subway Takes is that Berlin is a place where nothing matters and everybody is passing through. Could they have even found a real Berliner to talk to? That’s a question that’s probably best not even asked.
