Every Wednesday, Anaïs Bordages and Marie Telling decipher for Slate.fr the news of the series with Peak TV, a newsletter coupled with a podcast.
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If there is one thing that is not about to stop, it is our tendency to question the moral and ethical significance of series. While the value of representation is an increasingly strong argument in cultural analyzes, we also wonder more and more frequently about the voices that we should amplify, or not. Such controversy surfaced last week with the release of Mrs. America, prestigious drama that focuses on a white American anti-feminist, Phyllis Schlafly. The series has thus been criticized for its overly indulgent portrayal of a conservative, racist and intolerant woman.
What strikes us is that we seem much more demanding with the ethics of our series characters when they are women. When Roger Ailes, sexual predator and former Fox News CEO, starred in The Loudest Voice, this obviously did not shock as much as when the film Scandal was interested in the experience of its victims, also conservative and racist women. Succession, which is inspired by the Murdoch family and features delightfully monstrous characters, is almost unanimously adored (including by us).
In recent weeks, we have not seen any indignation over the fact that the hero of the documentary series Tiger King, convicted of conspiracy of murder and animal abuse, has become a real object of pop cultural fascination. Phyllis Schlafly, too, is both fascinating and repulsive. Should we for all that condemn the work which attempts to describe it?
Because of the pandemic, the world of series is completely upset: seasons shortened, releases postponed (Fargo, The Handmaid’s Tale), canceled shoots (Lord of the Rings, Succession) … What are the long-term consequences? Will it still be possible to binge-watcher new series at the start of the school year?
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The close-up: “Mrs. America ”(Canal +)
How could a woman vote for Donald Trump? This question was the subject of many conversations across the Atlantic when the populist billionaire (who had boasted “To catch women by the pussy”) garnered 53% of the vote among white women nationwide, when many already imagined a woman in the White House. It is to this contradiction that Mrs. America is interested, returning to another major moment in American political history: the battle around theEqual Rights Amendment (ERA, a constitutional amendment for gender equality) that plagued feminists and conservatives in the 1970s.
On the conservative side, a key figure: Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett, always perfect), a Republican mother, who sees the campaign against the ERA as an opportunity to match her electoral ambitions. The first episode is entirely devoted to her and shows her both victim and beneficiary of a patriarchal system dear to her heart. As the season progresses, the series never demonizes Schlafly but emphasizes his hypocrisy, privileges and prejudices. No sorority with her: her alliance with other women is purely opportunistic and always tinged with contempt.
Facing her, the series details the dynamics of a feminist movement far from being monolithic. We find figureheads like the now legendary Gloria Steinem, played by a Rose Byrne at the top of her game, but also Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), the author of the cult essay. The Mystified Woman, and Shirley Chisholm (Uzo Aduba), the first black candidate in the Democratic primary who struggles to get the support she deserves. The series gives each episode one episode and shows the dissensions and debates within a still very white feminism, forced to come to terms with frustrating compromises and which neglects intersectionality. The whole cast is remarkable and you could watch these women chatting for hours. An ambitious fresco which already stands out as one of the best series of the year.
We also look
Devils (OCS) – A sluggish financial thriller that doesn’t have much to tell.
#BlackAF (Netflix) – The creator of Black-ish, Grown-ish and Mixed-ish stars in his new series about a very privileged African-American family which is making a documentary about a very privileged African-American family. There are some great jokes, but the meta concept is a bit exhausting.
Quiz (ITV) – A great mini-series about a real cheating affair in the “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” English. The cast is a who’s who of our favorite British actors and actresses with Matthew Macfadyen (Tom in Succession), Sian Clifford (Claire in Fleabag), Mark Bonnar (Chris in Catastrophe), Michael Sheen (you know him), and Aisling Bea (who we loved in This Way Up).
The Plot Against America (OCS) – The last episode of David Simon’s excellent miniseries has just been broadcast, the opportunity to recommend it to you again.
The crush: Jay Ellis (Lawrence in “Insecure”)
Issa’s ex has come a long way since season 1, and since becoming the best version of himself, we admit that we find it hard to concentrate every time he’s around. the screen.
Peak heat: well every time he takes off his t-shirt, because we like simple pleasures.
After sales service
We answer all your questions to help you in this quarantine.
«I really want to be caught up in ultra addicting entertainment but without the fuss, what do you advise me?» –Marie
At the risk of repeating ourselves, we can hardly do better than Buffy for a brilliant mix of entertainment, action and feel-good. But something tells us that you may have watched it eight or nine times already. If so, we really advise you to try The Magicians, a funny, addictive and completely helmeted fantasy series, the humor of which draws a lot from Buffy. You can move quickly through the first half of Season 1, before the show really hits its stride.
For other shows that handle the art of sexual tension as well as that of silly twists, immerse yourself in the outrageous drama of The L Word, revel in True Blood and his universe of vampires, fairies and werewolves all more doggy than the others, or try again Wynonna Earp, a supernatural and feminist western where the villain is a redneck demon called Bobo.
If you want to get out of your comfort zone, why not give it a try The Walking Dead? The first seasons are excellent, and nothing like a story of zombies to get out of everyday life. For a little less of the supernatural but still as many capillotracted adventures, dive back into Newport Beach, one of the best teen dramas in history that will appease you with its beautiful and ultra-privileged characters, its absolutely perfect nostalgic soundtrack and its idyllic landscapes of Californian beaches. It’s also a good time for a rewatch of Lost, THE addictive series par excellence. And if seeing people in the sun gets you down, it might be time for a marathon Game of Thrones.
“What do you advise me for series on Netflix and OCS, knowing that I love both sexy and existential series like Transparent, Fleabag, Wanderlust, Looking…?» –Mathieu
“Sexy and existential”, this is precisely what we have planned for our epitaph. On Netflix, we recommend you Easy, a brilliant anthology on sex and couples’ relationships. But also Russian Doll, because we can’t do more existential than the story of a woman who relives her death dozens of times and sexier than the stunning swag of Natasha Lyonne.
On OCS, there is of course The Leftovers, a magnificent reflection on mourning and love which gives pride of place to the tattooed muscles of Justin Theroux. We’ll never stop singing the praises of Sharp Objects, moist mini-series on a woman (Amy Adams) who returns to the traces of a painful past – all staged by Jean-Marc Vallée. There is also Euphoria, which mixes teenage crisis, depression and excessive sex in ultra-luscious packaging (with, as a bonus, more cocks per second than any other series), Mrs Fletcher, on the sexual awakening of a quadra, and of course Watchmen, the most brilliantly what the fuck series of 2019 and one of the best productions of recent years.
These texts appeared in the bimonthly newsletter (weekly during confinement) Peak TV.
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