friends don't let friends perform accents
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“I have a lot in common with the producer/main character, Sharon/Melanie. We're around the same age and our parents immigrated to the US from Iran. We are progressive, feminist, and we're both artists who are deeply invested in the cross between fiction, non-fiction, and sound. We both also have Iranian parents who we love dearly who are hard to communicate with, but who don’t get along all that well.
I liked The Heart and I was excited about this podcast based on the strength of Mashihi's Man Choubam. I really wanted to like this podcast but soon into episode 1/the prologue, I was already disappointed by the confessional desperation to provoke.
I didn't want to keep listening but the surface similarities of our identities are so close that I couldn't help myself. The redeeming qualities of the show are the high production values, the sound mix and design is strong so it's easy to keep going. That's why I gave this podcast 2 stars. But beyond that, the show was incredibly painful for me to listen to and I binged it mostly so I could get it over with.
Melanie/Sharon is judgmental of herself, but also of everyone around her. She wants to connect with people but then shows unrelenting disdain for them. Boyfriends are not spared, lovers are not spared. Any event that happens all comes back to Melanie/Sharon’s neuroses, and her desire to use the podcast production as some kind of public therapy. I was never able to fully empathize with the main character(s) because she manages to turn every single thing that happens in the world into something about herself, even her brother’s baby announcement party. Her narcissism is exhausting.
Melanie/Sharon says she cares deeply about connection to community but there are few moments of positivity or celebration. I’m super cynical and critical, so I thought I was ready for it but this approach was beyond even me.
All the family members are portrayed through an exaggerated performance of accented re-enactments which just serves to emphasize that the only character who truly matters is Melanie/Sharon. I'm not an accent acting zealot, I recognize that there is a place for a carefully placed moment of accented dialogue. If it was just a few moments of the script, I can concede that it could have the light-hearted and humorous effect that was clearly intended. But through the overly dramatic POV of Melanie/Sharon, these characters become stereotypes and lose all their integrity. I can’t believe a whole crew of seasoned professionals put so many ears on this show and no one stopped this stylistic choice.
There were so many moments like this, where the story feels self-indulgent and exploitative, a strange self-loathing immigrant minstrelsy. Even in the moments when Melanie/Sharon is self-deprecating, it doesn’t feel like there is a potential of growth or transformation, just an attitude of superiority about the experiences that identify her. If there is a season 2 of this show as Mermaid Palace and Radiotopia aspire to do, I hope Sharon Mashihi can embrace a healthier, more ethical, gracious, and generous approach to continuing this story.”Read full review »
korsi_lover via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
12/21/20
More reviews of Appearances
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“One of the best podcasts I’ve listened to all year. I literally laughed and cried. Parts of the story made me think of lives and experiences far outside my own little bubble, while parts were painfully relatable. Very well done!”
Em1837483025 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
11/26/20
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“So good. The kind of podcast I sent to my friends and then went nuts waiting for them to listen so we could talk about it. Thank you for sharing this story.”
Jazzglow via Apple Podcasts ·
Canada ·
01/03/21
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“I have never listened to a podcast that moved me this much. I appreciate how deeply vulnerable and personal it is and how much nuance, attention to detail and risk taking went into it. Thank you for making this.”
evangeline_etc via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
02/19/21
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