You may have heard critical roaring about Netflix’s new series, Insatiable, about a bullied girl (Debby Ryan) who loses 70 lbs because a freak accident causes her jaw to be wired shut; during her resulting popularity at school, she vows revenge on everyone who wronged her. With a bunch of eating disorder and pedophilia “humor” thrown in. It certainly sounds misguided, but as if — done correctly — it could at least be a satirical take on… well, any number of things. The problem is, per a number of critics, it is NOT satire done correctly, or even competently. Between this and the execrable Heathers — which TV Land used a school shooting as an excuse to yank entirely, and I suspect it will never more see the light of day — it seems as if people assumed striking the go-for-broke tone of Glee and Popular would be super easy, and were woefully mistaken. (Even those shows didn’t always get it right.)
But don’t take my word for it, as I’ve not seen the episodes themselves: Check with Vulture’s TV critic Jen Chaney, who watched all twelve episodes, or Sonya Saraiya at Vanity Fair, or behold this from the two critics at the New York Times: “I was admittedly apprehensive going into the first episode based on the trailer, but once I watched it, I was shocked to realize that an insensitive representation of bullying and obesity might actually be the least of this show’s problems.”
Here is said trailer:
The commenters on YouTube are of course begging Netflix not to cancel it, and accusing everyone of being too sensitive. But reading the comments on YouTube is something nobody should do. But what do you think, from what you’ve heard and read? Are you curious enough to give it a chance, or altogether too aghast?
