"...I am interested in making a good case for distortion, as I am coming to believe it is the only way to make people see..."
Flannery O'Connor
The above quote is mostly attributed to Flannery O'Connor, one of our culture's most influential and outstanding writers. The diminutive Southern woman was a devout Catholic and suffered the pain that comes with Lupis, the difficult disease. No wonder, many say, that her short stories are laced with all manner of violent and insufferable scenes and people.
Distortion, especially in this day and age, attracts attention. To manipulate that attraction in the interest of advancing positive and humane ideas is possibly pure genius. "First," as the old joke about the farmer who struck his mule goes, "you get his attention."
It was with this idea in mind that I watched the first episode of a new fantasy series called "Carnival Row."
I must admit in the first few minutes I reacted the way I typically do to many productions that rely on fantasy. I'm into historical detail and a serious message. The responsibility of the storyteller is to say something. Something worthwhile in my book. When a young pixie looking woman was running from some unknown army firing at her she suddenly sprung wings and flew away. I almost gave up right then, but there was something about the look and feel of this new series that kept me watching. A few minutes later I got it. I realized what was going on. This fantasy world was a symbolic representation of the divided, racist, phobic world we currently occupy. Only the names have been changed but the discriminated and the discriminators are all there. The show has something to say about immigration, islamophobia, and intolerance. The distortion is where the fantasy intersects with the goal of making people see.
In one scene, one of the wing-endowed pixie women, who works as a prostitute to survive, is shown with one of her "clients." In the middle of a passionate embrace, she deploys her wings creating a most unique climax to this scene. It certainly gives new meaning to the term "flying fu..k."
It will be fascinating to see where this series goes and where the parallels lead.
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