You come home from school with your homework finished, make a nice cup of hot cocoa, and sit down in front of the TV. You’re not in the mood for The Summer I Turned Pretty and you don’t feel like scrolling through Netflix for an hour. But suddenly, you remember your friend’s recommendation to watch Making It, a crafting competition reality show co-hosted by Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman. Each of the three seasons (filmed between 2018 and 2021) feature up to 10 skilled craftspeople using their creativity to complete exciting challenges – from pet houses to original toys to bedroom designs. They face off in two challenges every week – a faster craft and a master craft. Their goal? To win $100,000 dollars and the title of “Master Maker”. “But we’re not making a big deal about the cash,” Poehler and Offerman say at the start of each episode. “Because the real prize is a job well done”.
What makes Making It different from AGT, Project Runway, or Nailed It? Like The Ringer mentions in their review, the show is fun, lighthearted, and feel-good. whether you’re watching Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman compete in “Pun-Off”, “Guess That Tool”, or “Snack or Craft”, or seeing everyone come together to help a maker finish a craft in time. The show is honest and real – dramatized rivalries and selfish competition have no home in the Malibu farm where the crafting barn sits. The comedic hosts never cease to complain about having to send a maker home each week – everyone is so talented and no one wants to leave the welcoming community they have formed through friendly competition.
Something else that stands out in Making It is its relatability. Many makers explain that they’ve come here to inspire others – they want viewers to watch the show and realize that they have those same materials lying around, and they can make it themselves! When watching the Great British Baking Show or something, the delicious dishes will certainly make your mouth water, but you likely won’t have the expertise, materials, or experience to make it yourself. And while watching experts face off for huge sums of money is fun, it’s arguably more fun to watch them do so with materials like pool noodles, felt, wood, paper, and other junk drawer-worthy materials. Making It inspires the creative spirit inside all of us, and leaves us with a good feeling inside, rooting for the makers and laughing at Nick and Amy’s hilarious antics.
