Look, if you think The War Between the Land and the Sea is woke trash, there’s something wrong with you. For one thing, we’ve only had two episodes out and nothing very culture war-y has happened.
Fair warning that this article might have some spoilers for episodes 1 & 2 of TWB.
Most negative reviews I have seen for the show suggest that the slow-paced plot and some of the more overly-explained sci-fi elements make for a boring viewing experience.
I get it. I kind of agree too. When the UNIT boffins start talking about “mycelium networks” you do feel like you’re falling asleep a bit.
And a slow plot isn’t for everyone. This isn’t Torchwood, where we had Jack and the team running into action-packed danger every week. This is a slow-burn story of diplomacy (so far).
I love that kind of story, but it isn’t for everyone. Fair enough.
But to say The War Between the Land and the Sea is woke? That’s just dumb.
Some reviewer seemed to think that Salt changing sex at will would inevitably lead to some future lecture from Russell T Davies about “trans ideology” – two things about this.
For one, chill out and leave trans people alone, you weirdo.
But also, maybe save any whining about the existence of other people for when you know all the facts. Did she change sex or was there a body-swap? Is “she” a “she” at all, or are all Sea Devils some mix of the two? They are a different species, after all.
This is sci-fi, and I think we need to chill and just enjoy the show. Unless it bores you, then fair enough.
As to other accusations of “wokeness,” I think we can explain away the issue of the villains being capitalists destroying the planet as not being an issue at all. They are killing the planet. They don’t care. They are the villains. What is there to complain about?
Okay, maybe some of the presentation. As I said in my review, the “capitalists” are very Disney-villain at the moment, which does pull you out of the story a bit.
This show is not “woke” – it’s just a show. Labeling it so because you don’t like it is fine, but untrue. Science fiction has regularly explored themes of capitalism (Alien – 1979, anybody???), gender (Star Trek), and environmentalism (fucking everything).
You don’t need to dumb yourself down by calling anything you don’t like “woke” – just accept you’re not a fan of the slow plot, or you don’t gel with the dialogue, or the characters annoy you, or whatever, but let’s move on from this nonsense.
