O Brother Where Art Thou

The latest Herald Time Out had a write up about an upcoming homemade drama, The Cult. Besides my usual grizzling about the complete lack of any mention of writers, something struck me about the large cast: where are the brothers or sisters?

Here’s a screen-grab:

Okay, there’s maybe a sister at the far right, peering around a tree but this is New Zild drama, right? And if they’re gonna namedrop Lost, I believe that show has:

  • two black guys,
  • a Korean couple,
  • an Indian guy,
  • a couple of Hispanics,
  • and an Australian.

Here’s a quick run-down of the Mamea Household’s Box Watch-list:

  • Law & Order now has three black detectives;
  • Dexter and The Closer each have a black cop, a Hispanic cop, and an Asian technician (Dexter) or cop (Closer);
  • Battlestar Galactica has a Hispanic leader, an Asian pilot and a black bad cylon;
  • The Wire‘s ethnicity is slanted towards blacks;
  • Better Off Ted has a black scientist;
  • Dead Like Me has a Hispanic reaper;
  • Fringe has a black supervisor;
  • Law & Order UK has a black lawyer;
  • Desperate Housewives has a Hispanic couple.

Meanwhile, if The Cult‘s publicity shot is anything to go by, its cast has:

  • no brothers, and
  • maybe a sister

– but since she’s hugging a tree maybe she’s the comic relief – or the first one to die.

If this is ‘New Zealand on air’, I don’t recognise it.

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4 Responses to “O Brother Where Art Thou”

  • JaberWocky Says:

    Cult members are typically white people. Same with serial killers. There will be some brother’s floating around in the background I’ll bet. Probably as cops. This show looks tp be a bit of a sexed up version too, which is lame, but I’m just going by the publicity shot.

  • d f mamea Says:

    i’ll allow that cult members may be typically white – but what about the Destiny Church and its ilk?

    as for serial killers, a typical trait is that they um, hunt within their own ethnic group. they’re a melting pot, too, y’know.

    and yeah, i expect some non-white faces will be in The Cult in supporting roles but seriously: why couldn’t any of the Liberators be non-white?

    and what the fuck is up with that woman behind the tree?

  • JaberWocky Says:

    I don’t know about the tree, Dave, but if she is a sister, she could be hiding from a taniwha. Kidding. Will be interesting to see how this turns out. I’m gonna google for a tv spot.

  • d f mamea Says:

    nice one, JaberWocky – so you’re saying they are gonna squeeze in a taniwha for an indigenous riff on Lost‘s polar bears?

    i’ve just figured out The Woman Around The Tree: she’s neither a Cultist nor a Liberator but… A Token One.

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