Why I Wont Watch 13 Reasons Why Again
In 2017,xiii Reasons Why, a teen drama concerning the suicide of a immature woman called Hannah Baker debuted on Netflix. Through cassette tapes, Hannah told her story, including the fundamental situations which, the show implies, led to her decision to die by suicide.
13 Reasons Whywas controversial from the start. In TheNew Statesman, Neha Shah criticised it for being both sensationalist and reductive. Notwithstanding the show also received generally favourable reviews for its portrayal of contemporary teenage struggles through a diverse cast, and, as a viewer, I institute the storyline compelling enough to keep me hooked even when I found myself disapproving of it.
In a very measured statement, the Samaritans offered guidance for viewers the day before Flavor Ii premiered. They stated that much of the testify'due south content might well be triggering, especially for those who have experience dealing with self-harm, simply stopped curt of advising confronting watching it. Instead, they suggested anyone who struggled with the issues the shows portrays should seek assist by calling 116123, or emailing jo@samaritans.org.
The statement also reminded readers that, in fiction, "issues are oftentimes exaggerated for dramatic event".
When Season Two arrived, and I was stuck in bed with tonsillitis, I thought I might give information technology a get. Here are thirteen reasons why I wish I hadn't.
1. Suicide is once again reduced to a plot device
Nosotros know from Season One, episode ane, that Hannah took her own life. The method wasn't relevant to the plot, and neither was the camera lingering over it. The second flavour follows on from a second suicide, albeit a failed try, and while it stops brusk from showing usa every detail, there's never really whatever effort to truly probe what is going on, every bit the character conveniently develops amnesia. Suicide is, once once more, reduced to a plot device.
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A note to the producers: including a disclaimer at the starting time of the new season and pointing viewers towards assist at the end of each episode doesn't make up for the testify itself.
2. Flavor Ii repeats this error with rape
Season 1 focused on the circumstances in which a immature daughter died by suicide, whereas this flavour instead looks at how i of the main characters raped multiple girls in the school. The first flavour included two rape scenes, which are repeated in this one. The show certainly attempts to portray rape civilization, albeit clumsily. The baseball coach character reveals he is aware of what the boys do, just maintains it'southward all a witch-hunt, and besides, they've got a big game to win.
Meanwhile, the two most prominent assaulted girls (who are still alive) don't think their attacks well, if at all, due to their being drunk or drugged.
The actors do their best to embody the impossibility of their situation in wanting to seek justice merely knowing they won't be believed. Alisha Boe, who plays Jessica Davis, in particular does a good job of expressing this turmoil. But the narrative focuses on a court case, rather than her trauma. Once again a deeply agonizing incident looks like a handy plot device.
iii. It'south exploitation, not exploration
For all the criticism of the first season, the rape scenes and suicide were not as needlessly graphic as that found in the 2d season'southward finale. A concrete assault is followed past a drawn-out shot of a teenage boy being sodomised with a broom, while being called a "faggot".
The scene is there to shock, and information technology achieves that, but there is no insight into the victim's mind, nor any real, conceivable established motive for the assault. The main perpetrator received little screen time, and his victim was pretty inconsequential to near of the season. To trivialise assault in this way, particularly with the homophobic overtones, is more than simply lazy or careless writing: it's dangerous.
4. At that place is no payoff
If you are going to discipline viewers to scenes similar the above, you really should be thinking most the terminate game. Yet the narrative leads to a series of anti-climaxes. Worse still, at that place is a transparent endeavour to create apprehension for a potential 3rd flavor past a school shooting. The whole sequence achieves nothing (spoiler: the shooting never happens) except trivialising one of the well-nigh pressing bug facing high school students in America.
5. There is no life beyond the source cloth
The Handmaid'south Tale is currently providing a masterclass in how to blot everything from your source material to create a new narrative that feels like it came from the author themself. Season 2 of13 Reasons Why tries hard to rewrite the characters, but information technology comes off as rushed and this leads them into making other mistakes, such as…
vi. …Yet glamourising suicide
In Season Two, suicide is a ways to haunt people both literally and figuratively, every bit Hannah follows Clay throughout the season, talking to him and affecting his behaviour even after her death. Equally the Samaritans statement noted of this dramatisation: "This is of course very far removed from the reality of suicide. When a person dies by suicide their life is over forever and in that location are no longer opportunities to get aid or plow things effectually."
7. The polaroids don't help
The first flavour was problematic, to say the least, but its tight structure and 18-carat mystery made it gripping. Season Two attempts to replicate that through several smaller mysteries (who'south sending polaroids? who's sending threatening letters? who's putting up pictures in the school?), but none are nearly developed enough to remain interesting or memorable. Moreover, some of these polaroids depict rape. Another small manner of reducing assault to a plot device.
8. It undermines the skilful bits of Season One
Retconning: to retroactively revise a fictional piece of piece of work. Meet JK Rowling's Twitter for examples.
Through the story of Hannah, Flavour One critiqued the way men and boys destroy women and girls' reputations. Nonetheless Season Two introduces a retroactive storyline about Hannah and Zach'due south secret summer romance. This is underdeveloped, and as well manages to be at odds with a lot of the message of the previous season. The other characters struggle to explicate away the massive plot hole.
9. The cast is bloated
In Season 1, the loftier number of characters was tolerable because they all felt necessary to the plot. In Season 2, most of the characters testifying in court contribute virtually nothing to the story or indeed the court proceedings. Then many characters competing for screen time makes the show'southward failure to handles sensitive subjects almost inevitable.
x. It's a trial to picket the trial.
The trial has very little to do with its own premise (suing the school for not protecting a student), and instead provides a venue for clunky expositional monologues. Hannah bullying a girl at a previous school, her father having an affair, her secret relationship – they're as cursory every bit the polaroids this flavour uses as its motif. Such snippets of exposition don't allow the testify to explore the truth of teenage pain – one of Flavor One'due south redeeming qualities.
11. There are too many episodes
Critics argued that the first flavor could have been shorter. Their advice was not heeded: the structure and pacing in the second flavor is far messier. While the first season had a clear and clever plot device (the thirteen tapes meant 13 episodes), this season lacks any such direction. It struggles to observe its purpose between overlapping plotlines and priorities. These stunted plots compound and contribute to an overall narrative that fails to give its fragile bailiwick matter the time and attending it needs to avert being harmful.
12. And yet it feels rushed
Despite it existence overly long and meandering,thirteen Reasons Whydoesn't actually requite enough fourth dimension to the mental states of the sexual assault victims at the heart of its story. The commencement season's challenge was presenting the build up and aftermath of a suicide without glamourising it. The second flavor feels more than like dealing with the aftermath of the first season'due south criticism, while lacking a true narrative of its own.
13. It confuses story with backstory
In the beginning flavor, the tapes were entirely backstory: we knew Hannah killed herself equally a result of them, simply they still managed to push narrative forrard. The trial doesn't achieve this. The story never seems to develop or motility forrard until it'southward suddenly over, much similar the season itself. All we, the audition, are left with are repeated, lingering portrayals of sexual attack and suicide. And so nosotros are left with a vague, splintered picture of the supposed reasons why, just, sadly, never the reasons why not.
I wouldn't hold out promise for Flavour Three.
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Source: https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/tv-radio/2018/06/13-reasons-why-you-shouldn-t-watch-netflix-s-13-reasons-why-season-two
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