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Times Have Changed
On TV anyway
I was watching Deadloch with my hubby and enjoying trying to solve the puzzle of the murderer, when my hubby said the show didn’t really have anything for him so he wasn’t enjoying it as much.
I did notice that the show had a larger-than-usual number of lesbians in it, which is explained in an episode, but other than that oddity, nothing stood out of place for me. The dynamic of the two main detectives was good, the characters seemed well-rounded and interesting, and the murder mystery was tantalizing.
When I asked him to clarify, he said that there were no male characters that he could identify with. They were all idiots, cheaters, loudmouths, and buffoons. None were smart, sweet, or intelligent.
I paid closer attention and had to admit that he was right. While some male characters were sweeter or less “assholish” than others, none were the usual Great Well-Rounded Man that’s seen in most shows. Instead, there were Great Well-Rounded Women.
Once I saw that, I couldn’t unsee it. The show had completely flipped the gender stereotypes I was used to seeing on TV. So much of my viewing life has been spent noticing the woman on the screen is beautiful but dumb, sexy for no reason, or cast as a mom, wife (usually a ball-and-chain type wife), or maid. Mostly, the woman dies so that the man’s…
