Question for all the international Sense8 folks out there: how do you feel about the portrayal of the sensate from your country? (If there is one, of course.)
I’m German (though not from Berlin), and I keep trying to figure out if the way I feel about the portrayal of Wolfgang is similar to how people from the sensates’ other various countries of origin feel about their respective sensate.
I was very surprised when the German sensate was the one who ended up with the mob storyline. “Mob” is pretty much the last thing that comes to mind when I think of Berlin. I guess my sensate from Berlin would have been a mid-thirties hipster woman who works in digital journalism, has a black sash in Wing Chun, a certification in holistic nutrition, and a side income as a dominatrix.
But I did look into the mob situation in Berlin, and apparently it actually exists. And the eastern European mob does play a part in it. So the only part of Wolfgang’s machinations in Berlin I’d still have to peg as unrealistic are the constant shootouts. Berlin does not have this many shootouts, and definitely not ones that feature a grenade launcher. Not that people in Berlin don’t like to kill each other, they just usually don’t use actual guns. Apparently car bombs are more of a thing.
Wolfgang’s character, his behavior and poise, definitely read German to me. So do those of the other German characters he interacts with. A big part of that is the fact that Sense8 casts actors according to the characters’ nationality (as in, they cast Germans to play Germans). It’s kind of fun to see a bunch of so quintessentially German people and places getting scenes in an internationally set and distributed show.
So how do you feel about your country’s sensate? Is their portrayal, and the portrayal of the setting, realistic? Did the storyline choices for the character surprise you or bore you? Are you happy to see your country on the show or would you rather the Wachowskis had left your nationality alone?
