Issa Rae now crying foul that Hollywood switched up on black content

[Mr Hate Coffee]

Is it racism or just low quality, niche shows that happen to be black getting canned?

The only one that seems unjustified was lovecraft country but other joints like rap shyt & black lady sketch show are a different story.

Lovecraft Country was ass too. It started to get real new blackish with the gay themes. And this is after having one of the GOAT pilot episodes. After episode 1 I stood up and clapped like that Jamaican man in that gif.

 

[Ol’Otis]

I remember how cringe her “blood” next door neighbor was on insecure.

Her perception of Black Los Angeles is fukked up

 

[duckbutta]

Is it racism or just low quality, niche shows that happen to be black getting canned?

The only one that seems unjustified was lovecraft country but other joints like rap shyt & black lady sketch show are a different story.

One of the most shea butter trash shows in the history of black television

One straight black character sacrifices himself primarily over some asian chick built like a 12 year old boy
The only black character portrayed as a hero gets fukked in his ass by a white guy
One of the only black women on the show who isn't a swirl baby has a relationship with a white woman pretending to be a white man. Oh and there is literally and episode where she gets to be a white woman.
The other straight black character just dies for pretty much no reason
Out of the 4 people who survive in the end, one is asian, one is a swirl baby, one is gay.

 

[Lootpack]

Lovecraft Country was ass too. It started to get real new blackish with the gay themes. And this is after having one of the GOAT pilot episodes. After episode 1 I stood up and clapped like that Jamaican man in that gif.

Cardi B’s music blastin’ out of nowhere in the 1950s all the while ol girl rams a heel up a white man’s ass. Wild show.

 

[Peter Popoff]

Starz or BET+ is the way to go.

 

[Primetime]

Maybe audiences are trained to appreciate mindless content like the Powers instead of art, good writing, good acting, etc...

I think a lot of black creators and writers put themselves in a box where they can only create a "black show." So the shows start bleeding together, they become insular and struggle to maintain audiences beyond whatever the targeted demos are (hood nikkas, gay men, black women, etc). All of whom seemingly want trashy, regressive television with no real substance so that's all we get. The more you chase that audience the more you run the risk of being dropped by them whenever the next show that's even trashier comes out. And since you don't have anything else to fall back on (awards, prestige, etc) your shyt just dies.

Where is the prestige show with a black showrunner? And why, when black creators are given the money/reins to do something, we get slop? A few years ago it was nonstop trauma porn shows like Lovecraft Country. Now it's a bunch of regressive crime shows that don't even pretend to do anything interesting or different. Or it's some generic sexual identity show that feels more like a collection of stereotypes than anything real. Where is the black Ozark. Or the black The Bear. And by "black" I'm not referring to that box, I'm talking about a show with mainstream appeal and critic prestige that happens to have a black lead and black showrunner. With some actual good writing, not some bullshyt hashtag twitter dialogue to go viral.

This is probably closer to the truth than people realize.

As a breh, i'm much more drawn to "Elliot" in Gangs of London, Idris Elba as "Luther", Omar Sy as "Lupin", the upcoming "Maximus" in Fallout adaptation, Boyega in the Book of Eli prequel series, even a more comedic character like "John Doe" (Anthony Mackie) in Twisted Metal...

...than i am whatever emasculated, effeminate, either gay or flat out Tyrese from baby boy derivative we often see peddled in some of these "black" shows about the culture programming. And of course, not just in black shows... it feels so commonplace that instantly if i even sniff elements of it in a breh character (supporting role or otherwise), i'm out.

 

[Mission249]

It's a little different when you're already an acclaimed artist who was given a blank check at HBO and put out some work that just wasn't it.

That's different than black artists who are never given a chance.

If we're being honest Issa's work hasnt been hitting since Insecure. I knew Insecure wasn't just a "black show" when I heard some Asian people at lunch talking about an episode.

But Rap shyt was never gonna be it. Issa will definitely come back tho. She has it in her. Maybe a failure or 2 will light that fire again.

 

[Sbp]

Her perception of Black Los Angeles is fukked up

She's Senegalese she shouldn't be representing us

 

[Tasha And]

This thread, and the replies specifically, really makes me see how timely American Fiction is.

One of the posts in here literally sounds like Jeffrey Wright's character wrote it

 

[Jaguar93]

One of the most shea butter trash shows in the history of black television

One straight black character sacrifices himself primarily over some asian chick built like a 12 year old boy
The only black character portrayed as a hero gets fukked in his ass by a white guy
One of the only black women on the show who isn't a swirl baby has a relationship with a white woman pretending to be a white man. Oh and there is literally and episode where she gets to be a white woman.
The other straight black character just dies for pretty much no reason
Out of the 4 people who survive in the end, one is asian, one is a swirl baby, one is gay.

Glad I didn’t watch that bs wtf were they thinking.

 

[CHICAGO]

Rap shyt was a terrible show

Very much interested in a Diallo and Bashir show - sad that southside got cancelled

SMH

SOUTHSIDE GOT CANCELLED?

THAT SHOW WAS VERY CHEAP TO MAKE
SO THERE WAS DEFINITELY RACISM
INVOLVED.



​

 

[L. Deezy]

Well, she not looking at the reality. That strike cost Hollywood a ton of money. These successful white shows creates budget for black shows. Hollywood gotta re'up the white money to help fund back the black shyt.

 

[Piff Perkins]

This is probably closer to the truth than people realize.

As a breh, i'm much more drawn to "Elliot" in Gangs of London, Idris Elba as "Luther", Omar Sy as "Lupin", the upcoming "Maximus" in Fallout adaptation, Boyega in the Book of Eli prequel series, even a more comedic character like "John Doe" (Anthony Mackie) in Twisted Metal...

...than i am whatever emasculated, effeminate, either gay or flat out Tyrese from baby boy derivative we often see peddled in some of these "black" shows about the culture programming. And of course, not just in black shows... it feels so commonplace that instantly if i even sniff elements of it in a breh character (supporting role or otherwise), i'm out.

You know what's wild to me man. They can't even treat gay shyt with any real craft or thought either. You either get "after school special" shyt, or super stereotypical inclusion - the gay best friend, the gay side character, etc who is very flamboyant (because boy do you want them hyping your show on twitter). I'm not saying there should be no super gay dudes on television, I'm just saying if I was gay I'd be embarrassed if that was the only image I ever saw on television.

I feel the same way about a lot of black characters on television. You get the (fat) black girl as the best friend. You get the (biracial) girl boss who is all business and doesn't have time for love. You get (tall and brolic) black guy who isn't smart but just loves to support a woman emotionally, or the problematic black guy who is comedic relief. When "inclusion" is the dominant creative focus of black showrunners, there's not much time spent crafting compelling characters or arcs. What you're left with are characters meant to mimic the actions/morals/goodness of the viewers the show hopes to attract. The twitter audience of fat black woman isn't going to praise a fat black woman character who is flawed, complex, does bad things, etc. They want to see themselves slaying, being funny, having relationships with attractive men, being successful, etc. That is what #inclusion has come to mean for television, instead of telling compelling stories or creating compelling characters. And waaay too many black people have bought into this stale bullshyt instead of demanding better television, roles, etc.

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

Well, she not looking at the reality. That strike cost Hollywood a ton of money. These successful white shows creates budget for black shows. Hollywood gotta re'up the white money to help fund back the black shyt.

It ain’t even about the strike. Streaming is having the same reckoning as tech - they need profits and money isn’t cheap to borrow anymore, the days of blanks checks to bankroll damn near any show are over. Streamers (and OTA networks) need shows they can bank on which means niche black shows aren’t gonna cut it.

 

[O.G.B]

Nobody wants to see these non FBA actors/actresses pretending to be FBAs in FBA geared movie/TV content.