Sense 8: The must see show...

I recently completed watching a show called “Sense 8” which is from the Wachowski siblings who brought us “Matrix”, “Jupiter Ascending”, and “Cloud Atlas” to name a few.  They are type of directors who don’t just want to reproduce the same old thing for people to consume and come up with an inventive and imaginative way to tell a story.

Their work doesn’t always connect with some people though, which is why the siblings have recently taken the route that many blockbuster directors who have had recent bombs do –go to TV.

It worked very well for M. Night Shyamalan who after bombing with After Earth turned to TV and struck gold with his TV show “Wayward Pines” (which I strongly recommend you binge watch because the story is just so compelling).

Getting back on track, basically the Wachowskis realised that the movie format wasn’t working for them and so they went to Netflix to try telling their imaginative stories.

In my opinion, this was a damn brilliant decision.

Sense 8, which the Wachowski siblings executive produce alongside J.Michael Straczynski, telling the stories of 8 strangers from across the globe who become connected to each other.

As viewer, you embark on a 12 episode journey with these characters and each of their narratives as they help, console and teach each other.  They have to learn how to cope with being able to have access to the knowledge, emotions, feelings and senses of 7 other people.

I have compiled a list of reasons why more people should be watching Sense 8. I am not going to lie that if you want something that will give you all the answers from episode one then you might struggle watching the show. The show takes the first half of the season building the relationships with each of the characters and establishing their own lives (which is no small feat). By the time the action gets rolling, you really feel connected to their story and your investment is rewarded.

1. Stereotypical Race Representation

The show delivers characters who you have seen across a few TV shows but never in one show, never mind them even interacting with each other. The show includes characters from America, Korea, Iceland, India, Mexico, Kenya and Germany.  The cast varies in nationality, skin colour and language. The show tries, and succeeds to break down the stereotypes of characters that we usually see. You have a representation of Nairobi (Kenya) that depicts not only how gang dominated the country is, but also how complicated the characters that live there are.

They aren’t just stereotypes that we see on screen but rather people living complicated lives. The same goes for the Korean character, Sun. 

Sun is working in a pharmaceutical firm run by her father and brother. You see that she smokes and she is not scared to beat someone’s ass, but yet, she sacrifices her freedom to protect her brother. Their narratives are something we would never typically see in an American produced TV show, never mind the fact that these characters even interact with each other.

http://thelionmutters.tumblr.com/post/132082213124/netflixsense8-kala-can-i-ask-you-a-question

2. Unlikely Character Interactions

Sun (from Korea) interacts not only with Capheus (from Kenya) but also Kala (India), Lito (Mexico) and Riley (Iceland). This is just how one character interacts with characters from across the globe within the show. Each character gets to “visit” (as the show calls it) the others sometime throughout the span of the 12 episodes, and as a viewer it is a joy to witness. Interactions between characters of colour or interactions with characters of different nationalities (that you would never typically see happen) occur frequently on Sense 8.  This show doesn’t just do it to be a gimmick, but does it to tell a story, with exciting outcomes. As a viewer of colour from South Africa, I appreciate seeing someone like Capheus and his best friend interacting on screen because while I might not be from Kenya, there are some bits of their story that I as an African can relate to.

http://thelionmutters.tumblr.com/post/132077948359/netflixsense8gifs-you-are-the-spirit-of

3. Interconnectedness

Sense 8 succeeds for me because it deals with how interconnected we are.  We all want to believe that there is someone out there in the world that can relate to us, be it romantically or just another person.

Sense 8 takes that ideal and transcends it.  Two of the characters sometimes are dealing with the same emotion in a different way but the show puts them together and when you witness how they learn from each other and are talking about their various challenges it is becomes captivating.

Sometimes someone close to you could be going through something that you went through already, and since you might know exactly how they feel, you can still relate to them. Sense 8 excels in this regard.

One of my favourite sequence’s comes from episode 4 where the Sense 8’s are singing “What’s Up?” by 4 Non Blondes. They all share the experiences but in a very different way. Some happy, some sad, and one being drunk, but it just works in depicting how interconnected they are to each other.

There is some dialogue that Kala says in episode 7 that I just love because of how it describes their connection:

“If I was trying to describe this feeling - the sensation of experiencing the  warmth of the sun, the smell of jasmine and marigold; while at the same time being soaked by a downpour at an outdoor cafe. Taste of strong coffee still in my mouth...I would say the word miracle sounds particularly appropriate. Wouldn’t you?”

http://thelionmutters.tumblr.com/post/132075070824

4. Queerness

The show also impresses me for how it fearlessly tackles LGBT themes, which I adore. Lito is a closeted telenova star living with his boyfriend Hernando. Nomi is a transgendered woman who has been with her girlfriend for a long time. Sense 8 doesn’t just have one LGBT character to fill some type of quota, but rather it has two whose stories are depicted equally as those of the heterosexual characters on the show. Sense 8 shows that LGBT live lives full of love, struggle and heartache. It is a complex depiction of the lives of those with the LGBT community that don’t fit into any particular mould.

http://thelionmutters.tumblr.com/post/132078957159

5. Sexuality

Sexuality is EXTREMELY apparent in this show. We see the transgendered woman making love to her girlfriend within the first episode of the show, but it is really in episode 6 where this particular aspect of the show takes off because it does this to show how connected the Sense 8’s are. When two of the Sense 8’s simultaneously happen to be having sex, and another is feeling horny, it ended up having a ripple effect which the show handles by showing some of the Sense8’s engaged in not an orgy. But an orgy that is simultaneously taking place in Germany, Mexico and USA, all while none of them are in the same place. It is less trippy than what it sounds. They feel each other’s pleasure to such an extent, one of the Sense 8’s who is in America orgasms while working out but another Sense 8 in Mexico exclaims that “I just had one the best orgasms of my life.” It is really just a spectacle to watch, and it is really enjoyable to watch because you understand their connection to each other in a way that you may not have before.

http://thelionmutters.tumblr.com/post/132078534909

6. Religion/Science

The show does not shy away from show religion either. Kala in India is shown to be a scientist who is also a devout Hindu. We are often shown scenes in which Kala prays to the Ganesha (a Hindu god) to help her with a particular problem that she is seeking clarification on. It is refreshing and as someone who knows very little about the Hindu religion, it is extremely exciting and engaging to watch.

In episode 7 she says:

“My love for science doesn’t preclude my faith. For me, science is another language we use to talk about the same miracle that faith talks about.”

Also with the whole idea of 8 people being connected, the show deals with how it has an impact on science. The Sense 8’s are suggested to be another form of homosapien, and it goes onto much further elaboration than I will here. The show isn’t pitting these two sectors against each other but rather, allowing them to work in cohesion with one another as it pushes the seasonal arc forward.

7. Romances

The show has the longstanding relation between Nomi/Amanita at the start, and the reason why their relationship is engaging because you see a gay woman of colour in a long term relationship with a white transgendered woman; Lito and his boyfriend Hernando are the two Mexican gay men also committed to each other. The show then has the romance of Riley (the DJ from Iceland) and Will (the police officer from USA), in the fore front driving the story following their newfound connection. Their story has major consequences for the plot and is lovely to watch.

http://thelionmutters.tumblr.com/post/132078417269/martinlydias-every-pairing-i-love-15

Kala’s romance saga proved to be equally exciting for me as you have an Indian woman who is about to get married to a guy who is perfect for her, but can’t help falling in love with the German diamond thief (who enjoys being naked) but also has a heart of gold. I loved becoming engrossed in their love story because they represent two people who couldn’t be more different from each, yet can’t help taking a liking to each other.

8. Flaws

Of course like any show, Sense 8 is not without its flaws. Sometimes throughout the show the 12 episodes does feels like a limit given that if the show had more time, they may have been able to flesh out the connections a bit more. There’s also one or two times when Sense 8’s who have never met, take to meeting each other without much fanfare, and like it’s no big deal.

Maybe the show could be saying that some of the Sense 8 took to their newfound connection to strangers with ease, but that seems like a stretch. Sure we do meet some people who feel like we have known them forever but sharing thoughts and feelings with them would at least be a “WTF” moment regardless of who you are.

The villain of show also needed to be more 3 dimensional and less like a guy who wants to just kill them. Hopefully the second season of the show will get into giving the villain a substantial expansion if we are to truly feel threatened for the Sense 8’s. What made him want to kill the Sense 8’s? Power? Control? Or Scientific reasons?

The show did a good job of interweaving of the stories of the Sense 8’s but they could be handled better. On occasion when watching it does feel like the show is struggling to find a way to connect the characters but for the most part, it does well.

Some people have complained about how the show excluded some of the non-white characters from the orgy scene. However this may have been a scheduling issue or logistics. The show films across the globe and as a result, they may not have had all the actors present and available at all times. Perhaps not everyone was available to shoot the orgy scene, or opted out of being the scene for personal reasons but this seems like a minor flaw given how the show is doing more for representation of non-white heterosexual characters than almost half the TV shows from America these days.

Despite its flaws, Sense 8 is a show the likes of which is hardly if ever seen. I finally get to see complex characters of colour and sexuality and not just the typical white characters that are so often fed to us from Hollywood.

I strongly encourage each and everyone to give the first 6 episodes a watch. If after that you aren’t feeling the show, then at least you tried.

As for me, I will impatiently wait for season 2 to find out more of the story about these interesting and never before seen 8 characters.

I hope that Season 2 stays focused on these 8 characters and not want to introduce too much too soon.


Theo Over and Out.

PS - Here is the trailer to Wayward Pines if you are interested. (BUT ONLY AFTER SENSE 8 !!!!!)

A Week in Cape Town's Student Protests... #FeesHaveFallen

A week in student protests...

Footage: http://www.iol.co.za/

It was also announced on Friday by President Jacob Zuma that there would be a 0% increase in student fees in 2016.

http://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/zuma-says-0-increase-in-fees-1.1934941#.Vis_v64rJBw

Theo. Over and Out

South African students protest for #FeesMustFall: Do I care?

Picture: Adrian de Kock

I didn’t care about the #FeesMustFall...

As bad as that sounds, I didn’t care because I just thought it was another step in the revitalised student protest movement which focused on something inconsequential.

My awareness of the whole student protests started with #RhodesMustFall...obviously I was aware of what happened in 1976 following my 5 years of History in high school, but I did not care about the movement in its current form.

When it started, students were focusing on the Cecil John Rhodes statue, and what it stood for, and throughout my whole four years at UCT, I went by without as much as a clue that this was such a sore point.

It was only following my graduation and subsequent employment did I come to learn that actually this is something monumental.

Many saw the statue as a symbol of oppression and also the fact that the institution that they were studying act created an environment where being white was an advantage. 

Being someone of colour at the university made you feel like you were walking on sacred white ground. It made you feel like you should be grateful to the white people for allowing you to be on it, instead of feeling like you had the right to be there.

This was the very feeling that I got from UCT during my time there, but I didn’t pay that feeling any attention because my main focus was that I going to the Number 1 University in Africa. How lucky was I?

So when the whole movement started to decolonise the University, I understood the student’s point but I couldn’t care about it because the entire conversation became about statues and the whole true message was lost on me.

I guess my upbringing as coconut (coloured/black on the outside, "white" on the inside) did its job. That being said, I don’t regret or have issues with my upbringing because it allowed me to do things that I may not have been able to.

That aside, the whole student movement was just another issue.  

However, the events of the past two days (I was off on Monday), have forced me to sit up and take note.

Since Monday students across the country have been protesting about the proposed raise in their tuition fees. At first thought, you go “Okay, given how expensive life is, it was to be expected that fees would go up to... No big deal.”

And for most of us there is pretty much where the train of thought stops.

However, I was educated and enlightened on Wednesday following an interview that a Cape Times reporter and I did.

They usually say that all it takes is for one person to raise their hand and affect change.

Sascha Egelhof, a student from Stellenbosch University, is that one person for me.

She might not realise it, but she had caused a change within me.

.

The reason why Sascha’s story connected with me is because it made me remember something about myself. I had lived a bit of her story.

When she spoke about:

"...I know that there are other students like me, that don't have the ability to voice their problems. that are almost ashamed of the fact that they are unable to afford their tuition.

Other people who can afford these things, and don't worry about any financial problems are like "oh let's go go, and have a glass of wine." I am like 'oh I can't because I don't have any food in my fridge..." 

It made me think back to my days of being the poor friend and how my friends would pay for me because I couldn’t afford it.

My single parent mother of three boys had to provide rent money, food, electricity, travelling expenses (for her and for me) and also my tuition fees for UCT. For the income of a Personal Assistant to stretch as far as it did was a miracle.

The only way I was able to get through university was because:

1. I was on financial aid for my entire degree.
2. I was able to get a boost from a my mother's work bursary in my first year
3. My mother also had to take out a loan to help with funding and keeping me in university

I didn’t realise how much of a big thing it was because my mother doesn’t like talking about finances and also she wanted me to focus on getting an education. I was ready to get a job but my mother didn’t want that to let it distract from my education.

To this day, my mother us still paying off that loan...and the lack of fees was why I couldn't do my Honours degree actually.

I was able to make it through university and get my degree because my mother was committed to my education, and also because of financial help...but it did not come without financial hardships.

And yet, my story is one of the success stories. I am privileged.

There are many stories from those who have faced similar or greater difficulties than mine. There are hundreds of more stories from those who have been accepted into university but had to drop out because they couldn’t afford the university fees.

When my mother and I was talking about the fact that students across the country and are protesting for the right to education, she started crying because the students who WANT to educate themselves and create better lives for themselves, are unable to because they simply can’t afford it.

All that these kids want it to be able to attend an institution of higher learning and to build lives that their parents (and themselves) have been dreaming of for years. But they can’t.

Why?

Because tuition fees are already leaving the students with crippling debt by the time that they graduate, and now a proposed 11.5% increase in their fees would guarantee that they will never be able to have the education they deserve.

When you are living from hand to mouth like a few of these kids in the Fees Must Fall campaign, fees for tuition can easily become seen as a luxury, and not a need.

Education shouldn’t be a privilege, it should be a right.

But with this proposed raised, the message from those in higher education is that clearly education should be a right of those who can afford it and not those from the middle and lower classes who want to learn and succeed in life, but don't have the large sums of money to afford it.

The Fees Must Fall movement is the voices of those who come from poor or middle class backgrounds taking a stand saying that education should not be available to only those who can afford it but that it should be available to all regardless of race and class.

Another student from Stellenbosch Khadija Bawa, also made me see the bigger picture when she explained how difficult the situation really is:

We live in country where without a degree from a university or tertiary institution then your options of being able to create a better live for yourself and the future generations is near impossible. It is a common held belief that if you want to become a success then you need to have a university degree, but how are you supposed to do that when you can’t afford to pay for your education?

I saw a post on twitter this week:

Ended the call with tears in my eyes. 1976 in 2015

#UCTShutdown #UCTFeesMustFall #WitsFeesMustFall pic.twitter.com/WtszWLPVxp

— Rethabile Makoanyane (@Makoanyane_R) October 20, 2015

The reason why people fought in 1976 was so that their kids could have an education that would allow them to better themselves but yet here we are with a generation of kids who are still fighting for the same battle to get an education.

Whatever happened to this @MyANC_ ? #ANCMustFall #ZumaMustFall #FeesMustFall #NationalShutDown pic.twitter.com/zYf7bqbvXo

— DarronDiesel (@DarronDiesel) October 21, 2015

I care about #FeesMustFall because if I was still at university, I would have been forced to drop out. There is no way my mother would have been able to pay that. I would not have been working in the environment that I am today, and not have had the experiences which have forever shaped my life.

I do have one issue with the movement which is that they want are disrupting other kids from continuing with their education. I understand their frustration because they want their voice to be heard but how many more people are they isolating from their movement because their actions??

It is difficult for me because I find myself split into two minds about this. I know that I would have been studying and preparing for exams because of how important my education was to my mother. Yet this is a necessary action.

That being said, there is this quote that keeps coming back to my mind, the source is believed to be Voltaire, but no one really knows...The quote stuck with me because it suggests that maybe a little disruption is necessary...

“I don’t agree with what you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

No one can deny that this is huge (possibly revolutionary) movement taking place. The question you have to ask yourself is where you find yourself standing in this movement?

There is no right answer. Only the answer you feel is right for you...

Theo. Over and Out.

Why am I not enough?

Staring into your eyes,
your sideways glance gives away everything.
Your silence speaks.

I see you retreating,

nonchalant, complacent, unaffected.

How dare you disturb our universe?

Between two extremes;
Leaves just pain, heartache, 

tears.

I want to be mad
and I can not.

We had planted seeds in our garden of love. 

Now I have only me,
and a thought that plagues me:
Why couldn’t I be enough?

Why couldn’t my love
be enough?

Why am I not enough?

Mental Health Awareness

 You are ill, and while there is nothing physically wrong with you, you continue to suffer in silence.

This is the struggle for many people who are suffering from a mental illness across the country. October is Mental Health Awareness month in South Africa, and it is a issue that needs to be discussed, as the stigma surrounding mental illness still unfairly persists.

Many individuals, families and co-workers, and the broader community are affected by it, and yet, many still treat mental illness as a taboo subject.

Very few South Africans seek treatment for their mental disorders, seeing it as problem that cannot be overcome. In actuality treatment is available at the nearest clinic, hospital or healthcare provider.

I asked some people to share their thoughts on why it is important to speak about mental health and this is what they had to say.

Chloe:

"Talking about mental health is so important. I have a form of OCD called purely obsessional OCD, and for the longest time I thought that there was something completely wrong with me, and that no one would understand what was going on. Eventually my mum convinced me to see a therapist. It took a few different therapists and much uphill from me (because I thought that seeing a therapist meant there was something wrong and broken about me), but I eventually got the right diagnosis. Being on anti-depressants has helped me in more ways than I can count. I am so much happier now, and able to deal with the intrusive thoughts in a much more productive way. Looking back on it, if there wasn't such a stigma around mental illness, I would have gotten help a lot sooner, and I would have been more receptive to that help. I think it's so important to let people know that seeking help for your mental health problems is brave and wonderful, and that looking after yourself is the most important thing you c an do"

Nabs: 

"I think it is important to educate yourself about mental health illnesses. As a person who looked after someone with dementia it is very important to educate yourself so that [you] can look after the person accordingly."

According to the Psychology Today website: 

"Depressive Disorders is not a passing blue mood, but rather a persistent feeling of sadness and worthless and a lack of desire to engage in formerly pleasurable activities. A complex mind/body illness, depression can be treated with drugs and/or therapy."

I want to make a distinction clear before I tackle something personal. I am a bit reluctant to discuss it because I don't to disrespect or trivialise those suffering from depression.

The only reason why I am tackling this personal experience, is because it is why I find talking about mental health to be very important.

A few years back, I was in a depressive slump. I felt hollow and like I was living my life a state of grey. I wasn't always sad but it was like a invisible darkness that clung to my soul and no one else could see.

I remember there were weeks that I would feel like I was broken. I wondered what it would be like if I was gone. Would anyone miss me? I figured that for all intents and purposes, I was already nonexistent so it wouldn't have been any different from how I felt.

There is another instance that I will never forget because it still give me chills thinking back to that moment.

I was lying on my bed staring at the wall, and that was all I did for about three hours. I was alone in my room. No music, no nothing... just staring at the wall feeling numb and like nothing mattered.

I feel asleep sometime, and woke up when someone needed me. After that I just tried to fill the void I felt with series or movies because it distracted my mind from feeling numb.

I came out of my depressed slump as soon as I started facing my truth - I was gay.

Now here is why I made that distinction at the start.

I suffered from a depressive slump, I was not depressed.

Depression is a condition.

I live a life experiencing all the joys and sadness of life, but for people suffering from depression they have to face the battle of getting through everyday feeling unmotivated and a seemingly never-ending pit of sadness.

Depression, like many other mental illnesses, can be treated but there is such a stigma around mental illness in this country, and the world, that those who often need treatment don't get it.

THIS NEEDS TO STOP.

A friend, directed me to her blog post titled: "When Darkness Descends..." which I highly suggest you give a read because she honestly speaks about her struggle with depression.

For now I will just quote this piece of it:

"Some people just don’t understand depression. They don’t know how to deal with someone who has it. The feeling of loneliness… the isolation can be worse than the illness. Then there is the uncertainty…that you leaving normal life for some other place. All too often, we are told to snap out of it. We are shamed into thinking there is something wrong with us and thus sufferers fail to seek treatment. It’s time that society stops treating depression this way. We need to raise awareness.

...Depression is treatable but getting help is not as straightforward as simply throwing meds down your throat. Meds is only part of the equation. Getting well and staying well involves eating and sleeping right, diet and exercise and having a support group.

Don’t be afraid to reach out. Someone will be there for you."

Posts like hers highlight why just how important it is to speak about mental illness.

So many people need to realise that there is nothing wrong with admitting that they are suffering from depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, and other mental illnesses.  There is nothing to be ashamed of.

This past week, I've taken to reading about bipolar disorder

.

I felt compelled to find out more about it following time I spent with someone who has Type 2 bipolar disorder. This person was actually the one who made me realise how important it is to be aware and speak about mental health

.

One of the post's that I shared was commented on by a friend. A friend who I had absolutely no clue had bipolar disorder. She left this comment on the post which forced me to actually sit up and think about how we treat people living with mental illnesses.

Tk: "What I cannot stand is referring to people as bipolar... Or any other mental illness because I think it contributes to the whole stigma of us being defined by our illness, you know? I'm always like okay yeah, I have bipolar, not I am bipolar. Cause I'm me first before anything else... Is that just me or do other people feel that?"

Me: "I think it is ignorance and a lack of understanding for the large part. I make that mistake sometimes. Often people suffering from a mental illness are described by the condition instead of being a person who happens to be suffering from a mental illness. It is unfair and unfortunate but it is the stigma and lack of knowledge around mental health issues."

As someone currently not suffering from a mental illness, I am trying to educate myself on these matters. There might be some things in this post that may be offensive to those with mental illness or I might have used the wrong terms so please feel free to educate me in the comments section below.

Mental Health needs to be discussed without stigma or judgement. I really hope that at least one person has learned something from this post.

I am including the details for the South African Depression and Anxiety Group known as SADAG, because if you need to speak to stranger who will understand what you are going through, then they are certainly the people.

Number: 011 234 4837

Read more at http://www.sadag.org

Love yourself, and please take care of yourself.  If you need someone to talk to then please contact SADAG or contact me.

Theo. Over and Out.

Sidebar - To elaborate on the whole accepting my truth as gay thing - I still needed 4 sessions with a councilor to properly adjust, but this just highlights how important it is to speak to someone about what you are going through. Speak out.

In closing I will leave you with this comic strip from Buzzfeed. Love Buzzfeed.

Source: Buzzfeed