I think it's fine and fun to discuss s3's mischaracterizarions or bad plot OR if you feel completely the opposite and loved those aspects of it, because all of those are just petty fandom things and ultimately dont matter. Whatever, we move on.
But the race stuff is seriously so egregious. Whether it's intentional or ignorant, it shouldnt have happened. It shouldn't have happened on a good tv show and it shouldnt have happened on a trashy tv show. And ultimately that's the most important discussion happening around the finale. Armand being a cartoon villain sucks but Armand being a vessel through which to do antiblack violence while white characters are exempt from the conversation, literally not even in the room, is all I can think about.
It's difficult for me to see people saying "yes I agree the racial optics could have been handled better, but..." and then discuss the plot and the characters seperate from that. I feel like we all just saw a car crash and some people want to talk about how at least the weather is nice. It isn't illegal and I'm not angry AT YOU I just feel. Like. Idk when I think about TVL now that's all I am thinking about. I'm not getting that taste out of my mouth any time soon.
More than anything, I’m manifesting for Jacob, Assad, and Delainey to be cast in a million things with writers that care and are respectful to them and the characters they play, and for them to gain the success and notoriety that they all deserve for their immense talent and fantastic work ❤️
Sorry that I thought every character talking like a caricature of themselves was some how a stylistic choice to show the biased perspective of Lestat and how he distorts the personality of other people to fit his narrative, turns out it was just out of character, bad, racist and misogynistic writing after all. My bad for being delusional lol.
edit: there is something wrong with the captcha of the contact form. I have linked another site that "Contact Us" will open into an email contact form. I'll also put this link below.
Any TV show deserves criticism; it's how writers grow and improve, but TVL deserves real fucking criticism for a lot of things. It can be really easy, however, to dip into hate mail - which will not be treated seriously by the company or show runners - so here are some tips on how to write a critical review that will be taken seriously. I recommend, even if you enjoyed this season and the finale, you write your own critical review - it doesn't need to match the examples I list below.
An email address will need to be provided for the form, so if you have/have had an AMC account, be sure to use that one. I also am unsure if there is a character limit, so try to keep the review concise and 2000 words or less.
Your goal is constructive criticism
I know, this feels like playing nice, or giving them flowers they may not deserve, but the people receiving the review will not know you participated in good faith unless you show your work. This is basic communication 101; you need to communicate that you see TVL as a work of art, and show that you did engage with the material with intent to understand. Lie, if you have to, but pure vitriol will not be taken seriously.
Before you start writing the review, identify:
1 or 2 CREATIVE decisions you liked. This could be actors, costume, set design, original content, dialogue, music, ect. These are things that make the work artistic. Map them out, and treat them seriously: for example, I really liked that the gift to walk in sunlight is a skill that can be taught, and doesn't come from age.
1 or 2 ADAPTIVE decisions you liked. This could be how they condensed something satisfyingly, an ambitious change that you think was compelling, character choices that surprised you, ambiguous details that have you thinking, or things you thought were interesting and were disappointed they did not explore more. Adaption is an art, so let them know how the art impacted you. For example: I really liked the choice to have Magnus be depicted in a music video first, and return as an aggressive and haunting muse. I think it was extremely effective, and I would have liked to see more music-video style narration.
1-2 points of strong criticism. It is easy to dogpile on a whole bunch of flaws, especially when you are irritated, upset, disappointed, or disgusted. Take a deep breath, and make sure your criticisms are substantial. I think everyone who reads this post should make one of these points reference the offensive and poorly framed racialized dialogue, and the striking and hurtful orientation of Louis as a character punished by the narrative.
The conclusion should include actions you wish to see taken to prove the creative team has considered and respected our critique. One or two requests are enough, and I will share my example at the end.
Once you have clearly identified your points, you can move onto the next step
Organize your points
Part of what makes a successful critical review is how it summarizes and analyzes a text's strengths and weaknesses, which means you won't just be writing bullet points. In academia, this would be an introduction and paragraphs based around topics abc, but we don't have to do that. These will be organized into "sections," but that's more to prevent rambling than to grade you. I'll include examples of what I would say, but don't be afraid to use your own voice and just use my words as inspiration.
I'll give you guys 3 methods you can choose between:
Concerned Viewer
If strong criticism scares you, this is a good option.
Start with a short introduction using casual language: "Hi, I am a fan of AMC's Immortal Universe, and I wanted to reach out to share some concerns I had watching the latest season of 'The Vampire Lestat.'"
Next, mention one of your negative points, and follow up with a positive point: "When watching the adaption, I was struck by the realization that ___. This disappointed me so much, because the story and themes could have added so much more to the world and characters, but I don't feel ___. I was happy that some elements made it through, such as ____. I would have loved more moments like this."
The next section should be this, but reversed. Start with a positive point, end with a negative point: "____ really stood out in their performances this season. ___ and ____ stuck with me for days after I watched. I was, however, distracted from complete enjoyment because of _____."
-- I will address the conclusion under a different header --
End with: "I would love to continue to watching The Immortal Universe franchise, however I do not feel comfortable returning to the franchise unless these criticisms are taken seriously. Thank you."
Analyst
This is a good structure if you have very precise critiques that extend beyond surface-level impact that you want to convey.
Start with a strong overview of your impressions of the season. Briefly address one good point and one bad point. You will return to these later: "Dear writers and producers of 'The Vampire Lestat,' as I have tuned into this season weekly, I found myself increasingly dismayed at ____ which damaged my enjoyment of ____ and I wanted to convey my impressions to all concerned parties, to avoid a repetition of this experience."
First section should include your weakest points. You're leading them into the criticism. It is good, also, to describe what story-telling elements you were paying attention to: "I was most excited to see the portrayal of ___ to explore the themes of ___. I was, however, distracted by ___, and found my attention torn between enjoyment and confusion."
Next section should hit your most appreciated moments, but why the flaw you chose made this feel lacking, despite your appreciation: "I was most impressed by ____ which landed with me in ways I didn't expect [fill in details]. However, the ____ were not only distracting, they completely circumvented my deep appreciation for ____ [fill in with details].
-- I will address the conclusion under a different header --
End with: "I am disappointed in the result of this project, despite how interested I was in the story being told. Unless these points are seriously addressed, please do not consider me to be a returning viewer."
Offended Viewer
If you cannot find it in yourself to be polite or logical, you are not a problem. There are ways to structure your argument to convey that emotion without having to "play nice." This will be if you can't seriously commit to the positives from above, but you should still mark things you COULD have enjoyed if the other things didn't ruin your experience.
Start with a direct address (don't name names - yet.), and then give a summary of your issues: "For those at AMC who take criticism for 'The Vampire Lestat,' I have some things that need to be said. ___ and ___ were flaws of the project that ruined my enjoyment, and taxed by emotional and intellectual well-being because I tried so hard to give this adaption a fair chance."
Next section, start with the creative/adaptive things you were looking forward to, and then transition into the moments/episode when you realized that they disappointed you. If you can name the scene, do so. Precision will get you everywhere.
Next section is when you really beat the drum. Name head writers of the episode that pissed you off, detail 2 or 3 moments that you cannot in-good-conscience accept as art, and then provide the summary of what the show seemed to tell you while depicting these things. Tell them what the story impressed on you, because a message delivered ignorantly is still as painful as a message delivered intentionally. Make sure they KNOW what you took from the story.
-- I will address the conclusion under a different header --
End with your earnest disappointment and frustration, and what guided you to this show in the first place: "I expected to enjoy this season. I wanted to respect the changes and experimental approach. I wanted to see ___ and ___, but I did not enjoy it, and my opinion of the project is forever changed because of it."
Conclusion and Action
I put this under its own header because any activist will tell you that you get the most reward out of being united, and if our demands are the same, or are similar, we are more likely to see the results we want. Giving them actions to prove they have listened will also tell the audience if it's worth it to tune into the next season.
You can shift this to be in your own words, with your own criticism. You can even choose different actions. This is just my example, to help you see exactly what I mean.
I do not expect to find myself returning to 'The Vampire Lestat,' unless I have proof that the criticisms I outlined here have been heard and understood.
First, because of the failure of the narrative framework to build a substantial critique of racism -- that included racially offensive dialogue and insults directed at Black characters -- I will not return to The Immortal Universe unless two or more Black writers are hired to share their voices in the creative space. I do not trust the creative team to further address the topic of anti-blackness without them. Second, I request a public and published acknowledgment of the creative missteps, and the insult they have given, so that I have evidence that the creative team is interested in audience feedback.
I know some people are probably not interested in returning and I get you, but I encourage you to lie anyway. Executives speak in numbers, much to my absolute disdain, so if they know they could do something to get you BACK, they will have more incentive to actually do it.
So lie: lie for the fans who want to return, for the actors who want to return, for AMC to treat us seriously, and because it's fun to give a little lie to people who won't be harmed for it. Does AMC really deserve our total truth?
You can screenshot this post, share it on other social media platforms, discord groups, group chats, whatever you need. You can do it without crediting me. Just get the word out there, so AMC's creative team is aware of the impact of their massive fumble of the season.
This isn't about personal taste, it's about solidarity and refusing to accept anti-black writing without calling it out.
Alright the finale needs to reel me back in because there are so many things they could do to render this entire season garbage to me, schrodinger’s season of television fr
does anyone else’s moral ocd manifest in the form of you scrutinizing the way that YOU feel about pieces of media, e.g. you really enjoyed something but you see other people saying they disliked it for reasons x and y, and you suddenly feel you have to justify to YOURSELF in your own head WHY you liked it and WHY it’s okay that you liked it and yet still feeling like for some reason your opinion and their opinion can’t coexist because you simply MUST be wrong and therefore a bad person and also stupid. or is it just me
the best analogy imo for ocd is mosquito bite. its so itchy its driving you crazy and you know scratching it will make it itch so much worse later but you need it to stop right now and scratching it feels so good and even when you dont want to scratch it and you feel like you could handle the itch you cant even stop your hand from scratching the second you stop focusing on not scratching. except ☝️ what if it was inside your brain and instead of an itch it was terrifying overwhelming distress
Body Horror: Things that cannot happen in real life.
EX: The Thing, stomach mouths, eyes on hands, etc
Gore: Fresh injuries, often severe.
EX: Severed leg, gutspill, deep gashes, etc
NEITHER: Healed injuries and burns, congenital differences, missing appendages, etc. If I could theoretically go to the store and see that character browsing the isles- It isn't body horror or gore. That's just a person.
*AND the amount of people that tag, not just fictional characters, but real human beings as body horror is staggering. Its not solely a fandom issue, ableism and bigotry against anyone that looks sufficiently "different" is prevalent in real life and has devastating consequences.
Burn scars are not body horror, that includes chemical burn scars.
Prosthetics are not body horror.
NOT having prosthetics is also not body horror.
There is no disability aid that is body horror.
Congenital differences + disabilities are not body horror.
AND acquired differences + disabilities are also not body horror.
Real people are not body horror.
If you are uncomfortable or scared because someone looks different than you that is YOUR PROBLEM. It is your responsibility to get over it, or at the very least not make it everyone else's issue. Play the quiet game.
yousharknotpass
tangentwithtanner
baratheonpilled
snowghoul
theartofmadeline
dailybridgerton
