6 reasons why you should be watching Sense8
If you’re as sick as I am of hearing people complain that there’s nothing good on the television anymore, and you’ve already recommended the usual shows, there’s one that might have slipped under your radar. Sense8 is a unique show with a grand feel, and with the announcement that season two is confirmed, now is the time to feast your eyes on this visual and aural slice of genius. Why is Sense8 so good? Simple.
1: The Story
It’s smart and mysterious. There’s a constant awareness that the story knows exactly where it’s going but is in no rush to get there. And despite the steady pacing, it never feels too slow and every slow scene merely serves to drive the characters forward. Produced and written by the Wachowski siblings (of Matrix fame) and J. Michael Straczynski (of Amazing Spider-man, Fantastic Four, Superman, Wonder Woman and Before Watchmen fame), it’s clear that Straczynski has managed to keep control of the storytelling failings of the Wachowkis. Certainly there are parallels with The Matrix, such as the ‘instant learning of groovy skills’ element that was one of the coolest elements of the good Matrix film.With the cinematic talents of the Wachowski brothers combined with what Straczynski brings from the narrative structuring and pacing of comics, Sense8 plays on your emotions like a master DJ or classical composer, lifting you up and then slapping you down.
2: Love
Love drives the story forward. For all of the characters, their defining storyline is based on that emotion. Between major and minor characters, all are driven by love of something or someone. The rough safe-cracking gangster in Berlin who would do anything for his friend, the Mexican actor with the secret and even Noni’s twisted mother are all driven and dictated to by their interpretations of what love is and should be. The core element of Sense8 is the fight between choice vs inevitability; not doing what you’re told and never doing what’s expected, which is exactly what the series as a whole achieves. So much importance is given to the concept of love, and what better or more important subject could there be?
3: Diversity
There’s a growing movement to have more diversity in all elements of popular culture. Whether you agree with the principle behind that or not (and why wouldn’t you?), Sense8 delivers on the diversity and then some. From the Nairobi-based bus driver with the Jean Claude Van Damme obsession buying AIDS drugs for his mother, to the Hindu Tina Desai in Mumbai struggling to deal with an impending marriage she’s not certain about, to the macho Latino actor hiding a secret that will destroy his career, Sense8 piles on the differences between lifestyles and people and countries, and revels in the glories of them all. There’s so much representation here that even the most rabid SJW will be appeased.To go along with the diversity on show, every character has agency, background and depth. It’s so rare to find a series where every character is so very interesting. Each has their own sense of humour, and you feel it when they’re in pain because you learn to know these characters very quickly. No easy choices have been made with Sense8 and there are no unintentional cliches. For example, with Tina Desai it would have been very easy to have her fiancee be a horrible misogynist, but he’s likeable, kind and patient. Even after a major turmoil in his life, all he cares about is her. The interactions between the major characters are often so fun that you can’t help but break into a broad and uncontrollable smile. These interactions are never predictable, and you become so familiar with these characters that you want them to meet and interact with each other, mostly because they’re all so very different. And when it happens, it’s television gold, with the sheer and unabashed joy and revelry in the delight of new experience.And yet the characters aren’t without flaws. Noni is often quite pretentious and needy (occasionally bordering on San Francisco cliche)and Lito Rodriquez is so incredibly selfish. But these are character flaws rather than issues with the writing or the acting.
4: Your ears will thank you
Throughout Sense8, music and sound is so incredibly well used, with intricate touches that are often overpowering. Music reducing in volume as onscreen headphones are removed from the actors head, although not a new idea, is just one example of where music pushes story forward. The choice of music as well, perfectly chosen and masterfully placed, prove that diversity in cast, character and location are just part of the puzzle. Every sense is explored for the audience, both visually and right down to the beautifully layered audial tapestry. The “What’s Going On” scene is worth the price of your Netflix account alone.That’s not even taking away from the fact that the soundtrack uses what they call a Brainwave Symphony...oh yeah, it’s really a symphony created by eight different brainwave patterns that are turned into the haunting music that echoes throughout the series.
5: It’s on Netflix
Netflix quality has come to mean a very specific form of television. Well written, diverse and endlessly intelligent no matter the genre. From prison drama/comedy Orange is the New Black, Marvel’s Daredevil or political intrigue in House of Cards, Netflix have learned from their source materials, be it adaptations of novels, biographies, comics or dystopian cinema. And by keeping to the core elements of what makes stories work in the first place, they’re going from strength to strength.
6: Sex
It would be foolish not to comment on the sexual relationships and incredibly tender sex scenes that take place in Sense8. From the intimate moments between Noni and her life partner (Martha Jones from Dr Who!), to the intensely erotic orgy that just wouldn’t have been allowed on television even five years ago, the beauty of sex is as much an important characteristic of the series as the all-pervading appreciation of beauty. Sense8 glories in the complexities of human existence. So much of each scene is about what’s important to each character, about what’s important in life, and enjoying moments rather than goals, but that you should never stop striving for more.
