Stream It Or Skip It: ‘It’s Bruno!’ On Netflix, Where A Brooklyn Block Is Seen Through The Eyes Of A Man And His Dog

Netflix has certainly been leaning on the short-form series lately, where episodes are under twenty minutes, and sometimes closer to ten minutes. I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson and Bonding all demand little time and try to give you a satisfying viewing experience in less time than a network sitcom. The latest of these series is It’s Bruno, about Solvan “Slick” Naim’s relationship with his actual rescue dog Bruno. Read on for more…

IT’S BRUNO!: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: “This is the story… of a man” — we see a shot of a young man — “and his dog” — we see a shot of the dog. Then we see slow-motion escapades between that man and his dog.

The Gist: Malcolm (Solvan “Slick” Naim) loves his puggle Bruno (played by Naim’s actual dog, Bruno) more than anything in the world. He gives Bruno the best food — premium turkey meat — and lets him eat at the table. When he walks Bruno around his block in Bushwick, Brooklyn, he’s very sensitive to slights. For instance, when a woman pets Bruno without asking, Malcolm reaches out and pets her granddaughter, asking her why the dog shouldn’t feel any less annoyed by that behavior.

When he gets to a corner, he meets his “nemesis” Harvey (Rob Morgan) and his dog Angie. They get into an impromptu obedience competition, and Bruno loses when Malcolm can’t get him to respond to “down.” He goes to the bodega to get turkey, but Leslie (Kathiamarice Lopez), the owner, says he was the only one who bought it, so they don’t get it anymore. He reluctantly goes to the supermarket, where he’s told to keep Bruno outside. That’s when a kid unties Bruno and makes off with him. Malcolm gets Bruno back but almost gets in a scrape with the kid’s dad.

But, right now, Malcolm is concerned with two things: Beating Harvey the next time they meet at the corner, and keeping this dirtbag named Charlie (Sam Eliad) from calling Bruno by the name of “Charlie,” which it seems the dog responds to it.

Our Take: To appreciate It’s Bruno!, it helps to know a little bit about why rapper Slick Naim is making the show; he wrote, produced and directed it. According to People, Naim got Bruno from a rescue shelter five years ago, and he thinks the dog is so awesome that, in 2015 he made a 10-minute short that has Naim and Bruno trying to go to the supermarket. So four years later, Naim is still enamored with Bruno, and Netflix has money, so It’s Bruno! was born.

To say that the show is low stakes is an understatement; in one episode, Malcolm tries to find the hipster that is not picking up after his dog. In another, he meets a girl named Lulu (Shakira Barrera) but wonders if she’s into him or Bruno. The episodes are short, like much of what Netflix has been offering lately (Special, for instance, is from the same studio, Stage 13, as It’s Bruno!); all are under 20 minutes. And the episodes are really just an exploration of a Brooklyn neighborhood that hasn’t been completely gentrified yet, so it has its share of quirky characters, including Malcolm.

That’s the part that keeps you watching; as we get to know the people on Malcolm’s block better, the oddness of the show’s format — which can generously be described as “student film meets Spike Lee” — becomes secondary and you just want to spend more time with them. And, of course Malcolm and Bruno make a heck of a buddy team.

Sex and Skin: Besides seeing Bruno’s peep in a lot of shots; nothing.

Parting Shot: Malcolm gets tired of seeing Charlie call Bruno “Charlie”, so Malcolm whacks him with a stick.

Sleeper Star: Bruno, of course. That’s one cute puggle.

Most Pilot-y Line: When Malcolm runs into Carl (Donnell Rawlings), the local crackhead who’s the proprietor of “Carl’s Cart,” Malcolm calls him “Crackhead Carl.” “The shit I smoke does not have to be put in front of my name,” Carl says. “What if I called your dog ‘Ball-lickin’ Bruno’?”

Our Call: STREAM IT. It’s Bruno! won’t take up a lot of your time, and Naim’s stories about his Bushwick neighborhood are entertaining. And Bruno is hella adorable.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, VanityFair.com, Playboy.com, Fast Company’s Co.Create and elsewhere.

Stream It's Bruno on Netflix