Something I thought of while writing but didn't have space to mention: Disney is having this same issue with their new Star Wars content. It's easier to make imaginary evil look exciting and interesting! Darth Vader has had some of the best content and focus in the Disney era, as has Kylo Ren. Andor's exploration of the Era of the Empire also falls into this category as well, since its focus even with the heroes is on showing the moral complexity and gritty reality of war. But (in my opinion), Disney has also struggled with making the Good desirable and interesting in Star Wars, at least as compared to the earlier films. The best and most interesting heroes have mostly been morally complicated, which again is fine in individual cases but begins to be an indicator of something else if it is the focus or only example.
“Imaginary evil is romantic and varied; real evil is gloomy, monotonous, barren, boring. Imaginary good is boring; real good is always new, marvelous, intoxicating.”
--Simone Weil
Tolkien got this; sounds like the ROP folks are still learning the lesson.
Oh I love this! Yes, in imagining evil, ROP is doing precisely that. I can't help but think that Tolkien's personal experience of so much evil (in fighting in World War I and watching World War II, for instance) and his deep faith helped him to portray "real evil" and "real good" like this.
I didn't realize the SECOND season had come out. I'm completely okay with just ignoring this travesty. If we'd all done that from the start, Amazon might have learned their lesson.
Yes, the second season aired in 2024! Like I mentioned in the newsletter, I found it on the whole to be an improvement over the first season (which I still enjoyed, but which was also far from perfect). But it's not for everyone, and while I'd encourage folks to give it a chance, ignoring it may still be the best choice for some haha
The second season was good. Better than the first, really. But this article hits it right on the head in my opinion. I felt, when watching, that I wanted MORE from the Good side. The "flatness" described here is certainly felt enough that it detracts from the show somewhat. I still enjoyed the show immensely. And look forward to more. However, the focus on the Evil is upsetting.
I am looking forward to Season 3 (I just wish there wasn't a year between seasons, but that's a different discussion). I agree with your assessment, but I wonder if not bringing the good characters to the fore is intentional on the part of the showrunners to make things seem hopeless. I don't agree with that and I do wish they would make the good characters and heroes more effective and instrumental to what is going on. Could also be that the limited peeks we've been given are meant to instill that feeling of hopelessness, and perhaps what actually takes place in the show will give us the prominent goodness we are hoping to see.
Regardless of how the actual season plays out (and I do think your concerns are very real there), I think it's worth noting that the Big Evils are visually distinctive and more visually similar to their Peter Jackson counterparts - it's just plain *easier* to mass-market a show as "here is a show that has characters you will recognize in very short teaser trailer."
Something I thought of while writing but didn't have space to mention: Disney is having this same issue with their new Star Wars content. It's easier to make imaginary evil look exciting and interesting! Darth Vader has had some of the best content and focus in the Disney era, as has Kylo Ren. Andor's exploration of the Era of the Empire also falls into this category as well, since its focus even with the heroes is on showing the moral complexity and gritty reality of war. But (in my opinion), Disney has also struggled with making the Good desirable and interesting in Star Wars, at least as compared to the earlier films. The best and most interesting heroes have mostly been morally complicated, which again is fine in individual cases but begins to be an indicator of something else if it is the focus or only example.
“Imaginary evil is romantic and varied; real evil is gloomy, monotonous, barren, boring. Imaginary good is boring; real good is always new, marvelous, intoxicating.”
--Simone Weil
Tolkien got this; sounds like the ROP folks are still learning the lesson.
Oh I love this! Yes, in imagining evil, ROP is doing precisely that. I can't help but think that Tolkien's personal experience of so much evil (in fighting in World War I and watching World War II, for instance) and his deep faith helped him to portray "real evil" and "real good" like this.
I didn't realize the SECOND season had come out. I'm completely okay with just ignoring this travesty. If we'd all done that from the start, Amazon might have learned their lesson.
Yes, the second season aired in 2024! Like I mentioned in the newsletter, I found it on the whole to be an improvement over the first season (which I still enjoyed, but which was also far from perfect). But it's not for everyone, and while I'd encourage folks to give it a chance, ignoring it may still be the best choice for some haha
The second season was good. Better than the first, really. But this article hits it right on the head in my opinion. I felt, when watching, that I wanted MORE from the Good side. The "flatness" described here is certainly felt enough that it detracts from the show somewhat. I still enjoyed the show immensely. And look forward to more. However, the focus on the Evil is upsetting.
Glad to hear that I'm not alone in both enjoying the show overall but wanting more from the Good like you say!
I am looking forward to Season 3 (I just wish there wasn't a year between seasons, but that's a different discussion). I agree with your assessment, but I wonder if not bringing the good characters to the fore is intentional on the part of the showrunners to make things seem hopeless. I don't agree with that and I do wish they would make the good characters and heroes more effective and instrumental to what is going on. Could also be that the limited peeks we've been given are meant to instill that feeling of hopelessness, and perhaps what actually takes place in the show will give us the prominent goodness we are hoping to see.
Regardless of how the actual season plays out (and I do think your concerns are very real there), I think it's worth noting that the Big Evils are visually distinctive and more visually similar to their Peter Jackson counterparts - it's just plain *easier* to mass-market a show as "here is a show that has characters you will recognize in very short teaser trailer."