'Cup of Joe' Review: The Jonas brother compensates lack of quality travel content with celebrity presence
The Jonas Brothers completed their last global tour that spanned some of the most fascinating and hottest travel destinations around the world. Before the show, Joe Jonas decided to explore these cities on his own, taking a friend to tag along and see what he had never seen before, one city at a time.
And thus 'Cup of Joe' was born. And now, with Quibi hosting the show in its signature bite-sized episodes, you can take a peek into where Joe went.
But that’s what ‘Cup of Joe’ has really turned out to be; a mere peek into what otherwise could have been an experientially intense journey and akin to a personal travel video rather than a travel series. For context, here's what happened on the three premiere episodes.
Episode 1: Amsterdam
Joe Jonas’ wife, Sophie Turner, joined her husband on the opening episode. The couple celebrated Sophie's 24th birthday in their favorite city by starting their day at a locally popular bakery.
Coldplay lead Chris Martin popped in (on a video call) to wish the English actor on her special day. Later, Joe and Sophie walked the streets, joined a Dutch painting class, and drank and dined at one of Amsterdam’s best haunt.
Episode 2: Berlin
Joe explored the city of Berlin with David Hasselhoff. They drove around in the KITT car from Hasselhoff's iconic 80s TV series (but with modern features), while he mentioned how he became a pop culture icon in Berlin.
They explored the Hoff Museum, the Berlin Wall, and finally, Joe had an evening of drinking and dancing at a local pub with his Scottish singer friend Lewis Capaldi.
Episode 3: Barcelona
Joe invited his brothers, Kevin and Nick Jonas, to spend the day in the city before they hit the stage for their tour show in the evening. The brothers biked through the streets of Barcelona, sampled local food, cooking on the streets while a chef judged their culinary skills and participated in a local festival.
‘Cup of Joe’ might be a travel show, but it appears to be more like a speedy ride through every city, without walking the audience through its sentiments. Not that there are significant trivia about each place, but they are all similar to every other travel show ever made.
And making it all about his friends and family, Joe strips off the "local" factor from the content, which, to say, is signature to a travel series — not to mention the lack of the right ingredients in Joe that make for a convincing travel show host.
In simple words, the show lacks meaty travel-related content but fares well on the celebrity factor. With popular faces to share the screen with Joe, it seems to be a hard attempt to up the ante on the content without a strong base.
Episode 4: New York City
Joe heads to NYC, this time with comedy writer, producer and actor Tina Fey. Despite having visited the Big Apple several times, Joe finds things he has never explored in the big city, like playing handball with a local group, taking the stage for standup comedy or making a pizza in the city's iconic pizzeria.
So, he joins Tina for a self-made pizza lunch at Don Giovanni's where Hollywood legends had done improve and dined. He takes a few tips from Tina over lunch and later, delivers some funny lines at the New York Comedy Club.
Episode 5: London
In this chapter of his travel series, Joe Jonas visits the bustling city of London with the 'Pussycat Dolls' lead singer Nicole Scherzinger on his toe. Currently a Londoner, Nicole takes Joe through a busy and ancient local market, sampling away bites of fresh cheese and seafood.
Later, Joe hits the local Anchor Pub for a classic London-style pastime, takes a walk along the Thames and looks over local skateboarders as they show off their skating skills.
Before he heads back for his evening concert, he stops by the Spurs Stadium and spends time with Tottenham FC star Ledley King, and manages to score a practice goal.
Episode 6: Austin
It's time for Joe to explore the state capital of Texas, where he meets with Hollywood celebrity and Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey, who also happens to be a local resident and a professor at the University of Texas, Austin.
After a quick overview of the city’s transforming vibes and growing culture, Joe heads to a local saloon for a classic Texas-style afternoon. He joins local Austinites in a game of Chicken Sh*t Bingo" which reminds him of how they "Keep Austin Weird" or as the city’s slogan says.
Episode 7: Paris
In the penultimate episode of the series, Joe Jonas is seen headed to Paris, where he meets with Formula 1 racer and friend, Lewis Hamilton. While you would expect him to see the romantic side of the City of Love, Joe takes a whole new route and explores the wild side of the city. From trying his hands at the local game of pequante, watching parkour artistes at work, to becoming an "insect on wheels" and zooming through the paved roads of Paris, Joe sees Paris through a fresh lens and makes you see Paris differently.
Episode 8: Los Angeles
For his last stop of his travel series, Joe revisits Los Angeles with Jack Black. He and Jack conduct a bus tour and takes us down the famous streets of the City of Dreams, then walks the Hollywood Boulevard, disguised as, well, themselves.
Later, Joe meets Tom Cruise impersonator and stunt man, Jerome LeBlanc, visits the Art District and reminisces his trips to LA as he stands atop the Hollywood Hills. And what do you know! Joe Jonas also officiates a wedding in a local donut shop, reinstating the fact that anything is possible in the wild and crazy Los Angeles.
‘Cup of Joe’ might be a travel show per se, but it appears to be more like a speedy ride through every city, without walking the audience through its sentiments. Not that there are significant trivia about each place, but they are all similar to every next travel show ever made.
And making it all about his friends and family strips off the “local” factor from the content, which, to say, is signature to a travel series; not to mention the lack of the right ingredients in Joe that make for a convincing travel show host.
In simple words, the show lacks meaty travel-related content but fares well on the celebrity factor. With popular faces to share the screen with Joe, it seems to be a hard attempt to up the ante on the content without a strong base.
There were little feel-good moments, sprinkled throughout, but with a mere seven-minute of screen time, it is almost impossible to hold onto them, making it difficult to take home a piece of the experience.
'Cup of Joe' is now streaming on Quibi.
