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beccaelizabethI have now watched three episodes of Alphas, and I find myself somewhat conflicted. There's the ep with the stated obsessive compulsive Ghost, the ep with the we're told paranoid chess player, and the ep with Anna of the assumed autistic spectrum disorder. So what we have thus far are three varieties of mental illness and disability, explicitly diagnosed as such, and they're the bad guys. And this Red Flag group, they're using language about supporting neurodiversity which is very familiar from autistic pride etc, and they're the bad guys. And they're objecting to drugs intended to make sure no more like them are born, which is one thing some real world research is aimed at, making sure only the right kind of brains get born, and it creeps me the hell out because I got born and my brother got born and we don't want to be eradicated, so hello, fair point. And yet? They're the bad guys. And to prove they're the bad guys? They're the suicide bombers.
I don't know if the writers of Alphas are aware of the research pertaining to representation of people with mental illness on television, but it is ridiculously often about how they're a danger to themselves and others, as Gary quoted the phrase in the last ep. Very often how they're a danger to others. So to have three eps in a row full of mentally ill murderers and suicides? Is the furthest thing from original. I have a couple of reports I refer back to about representation of disability and mental illness, I don't remember the links, I have the reports on my computer. Ofcom on The representation and portrayal of people with disabilities on analogue terrestrial television and Shift: What's the Story? Reporting mental health and suicide. The Shift report on journalism says "The linkage between violence and mental illness is exaggerated. A survey found 27% of coverage about mental health was about homicides and violent crime. Millions of people have mental health problems – very few are violent. Only five out of a total of 600 homicides a year are random attacks on members of the public by someone with a mental health problem." It goes on to say "One of the most damaging public misconceptions about people with mental health problems is that they are dangerous and unpredictable - 34% of people in England think that people with a mental illness are likely to be violent." There's a ton more. I've quoted that report before and I likely will quote it again, though it's getting older now. Because the same patterns in reporting keep turning up. And in fiction... I can't find the numbers, but how much fiction do we see that links violence and mental illness? And yet, the report says the truth is "People with severe mental illness are more likely to be the victims than perpetrators of violent crime. One study found one in four were attacked in the course of a year and were 11 times more likely to be victimised than the general population." So when fiction concentrates on people with mental illness as the bad guys they're basically inverting the problem. They're portraying victims as perpetrators. How is that remotely okay?
I haven't got numbers to hand about autistic spectrum disorders in the media or in relation to crime, but from all I've read it's the same, more likely to be victims. I can't prove that with references though.
But if Alphas is taking the language of neurodiversity and mental illness and making it about terrorist cells and violence, there's something very wrong about that. It looks like it's taking an existing politics of survival and painting it evil.
The only reason I'm conflicted is, the characters see the problem. The story has a lot of crazy people in so far, but they're not necessarily wrong. The paranoid guy was about to be subjected to brain surgery he didn't want, so his reaction had serious cause. The drug really would stop Alphas being born. And the main non Alpha guy has noticed they maybe had a bit of a point. It's the old Magneto problem, where killing people and blowing stuff up is a bad thing, but from where they're standing they're not the ones that started it. So, maybe it's going to go with moral complexity and finding a middle ground.
... but why is it using our language to do it? Neurodiversity has a meaning already, and it doesn't mean mutant superpowers. Same with synaesthesia and hyperkinetic, words used for alpha superpowers that don't mean any such thing. I'm trying to think of a word for that redefinition other than appropriation, and it's not coming to mind.
Plus in the first episode the idea that every power has a down side seemed reasonable. Headaches or crashing after a short burst of energy, fair enough. But it's turning into every superpower has a disability. Or, thus far, every disability has a superpower.
... do I need to get into why that's a major *facepalm* ?
... suffice to say, I'm still waiting.
Having two characters at least initially identified as autistic spectrum and with superpowers of pattern recognition is... interesting. I mean, pattern recognition is a known strength, though not to the extent of seeing cell phone signals or being a universal translator. And I did like that she had assistive technology of a logical sort. Plus the way everyone's reactions to her turned into trouble seemed solid storytelling, and the way Gary gets in a tangle. There's interesting story there. I just... the whole savants myth? Gets *old*. But the idea of autistic behaviours as a non verbal language comes straight from autistic people, so, you know, yaays.
Oh, just found an interesting article on autism that leads off with that. Cool.
So... the good part is they're smart, active people with their own agenda, getting things done, while being underestimated. The bad part is the things getting done include coordinated campaigns of murder and bombing. And really, what? What's up with that? We don't do that!
But add superpowers and apparently you get supervillains. Who knew?
So that's my problem with it. Inclusion of a lot of people with mental illness and mental disabilities... as bad guys.
But obviously there is a flip side to that, since the whole good guy team have their issues too. If everyone's mentally ill or disabled, then being all hero or villainy is just having a widely diverse world. People with disabilities being all the kinds of people! Right?
... except in any show with one good guy team and a villain of the week, the bad guys? Have the numbers.
I kind of like the team though. You know, ignoring the specific misused words applied to them. We've got a Hulk, a Sentinel who listens to other people too much, a dude who can go all John Woo if he stays zen, a woman who can talk people into things if she can get them to look at her, and the panopticon guy who sees through all the cameras and hears through all the phones yet connects to none of the people. Plus their pshrink. It's an interesting setup.
... The angry strength guy is a black guy and the stay cool precision guy is white, but they've been treated pretty equally thus far. And why is the woman with the hypno power also beautiful? I mean, if she's doing it with her brain, why need that? Because: television.
I'll be watching more eps, but with some trepidation. They're either setting out to walk a tightrope or they haven't noticed the fall. Either way could go bad.
(also? I have had three hours sleep. Whenever I go to bed someone wakes me up with a jump, including the postman, but now people doing bang clang things in the underneath garage... ah, which turned into engine revving, so at least makes sense. but does the world have something against quiet? I miss sleep! I've been awake nearly 12 hours and it's only 3 in the afternoon and I haven't felt awake all day! *big sigh* )
I don't know if the writers of Alphas are aware of the research pertaining to representation of people with mental illness on television, but it is ridiculously often about how they're a danger to themselves and others, as Gary quoted the phrase in the last ep. Very often how they're a danger to others. So to have three eps in a row full of mentally ill murderers and suicides? Is the furthest thing from original. I have a couple of reports I refer back to about representation of disability and mental illness, I don't remember the links, I have the reports on my computer. Ofcom on The representation and portrayal of people with disabilities on analogue terrestrial television and Shift: What's the Story? Reporting mental health and suicide. The Shift report on journalism says "The linkage between violence and mental illness is exaggerated. A survey found 27% of coverage about mental health was about homicides and violent crime. Millions of people have mental health problems – very few are violent. Only five out of a total of 600 homicides a year are random attacks on members of the public by someone with a mental health problem." It goes on to say "One of the most damaging public misconceptions about people with mental health problems is that they are dangerous and unpredictable - 34% of people in England think that people with a mental illness are likely to be violent." There's a ton more. I've quoted that report before and I likely will quote it again, though it's getting older now. Because the same patterns in reporting keep turning up. And in fiction... I can't find the numbers, but how much fiction do we see that links violence and mental illness? And yet, the report says the truth is "People with severe mental illness are more likely to be the victims than perpetrators of violent crime. One study found one in four were attacked in the course of a year and were 11 times more likely to be victimised than the general population." So when fiction concentrates on people with mental illness as the bad guys they're basically inverting the problem. They're portraying victims as perpetrators. How is that remotely okay?
I haven't got numbers to hand about autistic spectrum disorders in the media or in relation to crime, but from all I've read it's the same, more likely to be victims. I can't prove that with references though.
But if Alphas is taking the language of neurodiversity and mental illness and making it about terrorist cells and violence, there's something very wrong about that. It looks like it's taking an existing politics of survival and painting it evil.
The only reason I'm conflicted is, the characters see the problem. The story has a lot of crazy people in so far, but they're not necessarily wrong. The paranoid guy was about to be subjected to brain surgery he didn't want, so his reaction had serious cause. The drug really would stop Alphas being born. And the main non Alpha guy has noticed they maybe had a bit of a point. It's the old Magneto problem, where killing people and blowing stuff up is a bad thing, but from where they're standing they're not the ones that started it. So, maybe it's going to go with moral complexity and finding a middle ground.
... but why is it using our language to do it? Neurodiversity has a meaning already, and it doesn't mean mutant superpowers. Same with synaesthesia and hyperkinetic, words used for alpha superpowers that don't mean any such thing. I'm trying to think of a word for that redefinition other than appropriation, and it's not coming to mind.
Plus in the first episode the idea that every power has a down side seemed reasonable. Headaches or crashing after a short burst of energy, fair enough. But it's turning into every superpower has a disability. Or, thus far, every disability has a superpower.
... do I need to get into why that's a major *facepalm* ?
... suffice to say, I'm still waiting.
Having two characters at least initially identified as autistic spectrum and with superpowers of pattern recognition is... interesting. I mean, pattern recognition is a known strength, though not to the extent of seeing cell phone signals or being a universal translator. And I did like that she had assistive technology of a logical sort. Plus the way everyone's reactions to her turned into trouble seemed solid storytelling, and the way Gary gets in a tangle. There's interesting story there. I just... the whole savants myth? Gets *old*. But the idea of autistic behaviours as a non verbal language comes straight from autistic people, so, you know, yaays.
Oh, just found an interesting article on autism that leads off with that. Cool.
So... the good part is they're smart, active people with their own agenda, getting things done, while being underestimated. The bad part is the things getting done include coordinated campaigns of murder and bombing. And really, what? What's up with that? We don't do that!
But add superpowers and apparently you get supervillains. Who knew?
So that's my problem with it. Inclusion of a lot of people with mental illness and mental disabilities... as bad guys.
But obviously there is a flip side to that, since the whole good guy team have their issues too. If everyone's mentally ill or disabled, then being all hero or villainy is just having a widely diverse world. People with disabilities being all the kinds of people! Right?
... except in any show with one good guy team and a villain of the week, the bad guys? Have the numbers.
I kind of like the team though. You know, ignoring the specific misused words applied to them. We've got a Hulk, a Sentinel who listens to other people too much, a dude who can go all John Woo if he stays zen, a woman who can talk people into things if she can get them to look at her, and the panopticon guy who sees through all the cameras and hears through all the phones yet connects to none of the people. Plus their pshrink. It's an interesting setup.
... The angry strength guy is a black guy and the stay cool precision guy is white, but they've been treated pretty equally thus far. And why is the woman with the hypno power also beautiful? I mean, if she's doing it with her brain, why need that? Because: television.
I'll be watching more eps, but with some trepidation. They're either setting out to walk a tightrope or they haven't noticed the fall. Either way could go bad.
(also? I have had three hours sleep. Whenever I go to bed someone wakes me up with a jump, including the postman, but now people doing bang clang things in the underneath garage... ah, which turned into engine revving, so at least makes sense. but does the world have something against quiet? I miss sleep! I've been awake nearly 12 hours and it's only 3 in the afternoon and I haven't felt awake all day! *big sigh* )
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Date: 2012-01-13 12:52 pm (UTC)"Shattered is a Canadian police procedural series created by Rick Drew. The main character is a detective who suffers from dissociative identity disorder" (wiki)