I really don’t think you’re looking at the bigger picture here: you complain that the actress who played Soo Lin is British born, but the BBC is an organisation funded by the British public via TV licence fees. Considering the right-wing discontent currently rearing its head in Britain, what with UKIP surging forwards in the polls and the anger surrounding immigration and everything, giving any sort of public funded role to any actor or actress who isn’t a British citizen could create real issues for the BBC if people pulled them up for not using British licence fee money to fund and help British actors and actresses. The Daily Mail (big surprise) has already had a pop at them about the fact that all the Strictly Come Dancing professionals are foreign born. As an organisation, the BBC does a lot to promote ethnic diversity, last I checked it was currently hiring 12% or so ethnic minority staff, the national average is about 8%. But it’s the British Broadcasting Corporation, of course it’s going to focus on showcasing British talent.
Secondly you complain that Chinatown is portrayed all mystical and the like, and thus, Chinese Londoners are portrayed all mysterious and the like. I don’t know if you’ve ever actually been to London’s Chinatown, but it’s a tourist destination. Just like Camden Market plays up its alternative credentials in order to attract tourist, Chinatown plays up its own ~*mysterious*~ elements in order to lure tourists and their money. Chinatown is Chinatown, it has absolutely nothing to do with the everyday life of most Chinese Londoners. Linking them together is like linking every Cockney out there to the Pearly Kings and Queens. It’s an aspect of a culture, not the culture as a whole.
Furthermore, Sherlock as a series does not accurately represent standard London life, not at all. It doesn’t represent the standard Londoner: it portrays an Oxbridge educated, very monied upper-middle class fantasy. You would not be able to jump in and out of taxis like that and drive around/across/near centre of London, not without serious congestion issues/a bottomless wallet. You would never have an empty flat on Baker Street, no matter how bad the damp. You’d fix the damp and laugh yourself to the bank. You’d rent it with the damp. Its central bloody London, owning property there is like owning a fully-functioning goldmine. All the derelict properties that show shows, my God. You can sell a bloody garage in the posh areas of London for a quarter of a mil. Maybe you get empty spaces like that in urban decay areas like Elephant & Castle, but they are damn sure not running around the Heygate Estate. Those parts of London are terrifying, you’re on edge riding through them on the overground. You definitely wouldn’t run around them on your own, in the dark.
Most importantly however, the police would never in a billion years let a random guy anywhere near anything vaguely related to a case. Never. It’s just entertainment, it doesn’t accurately portray anything; not London, not Chinese culture, not Scotland Yard, nothing. Mycroft and the government, Irene and the royal family, it’s all ridiculous. It’s an adaptation of a certain aspect of British culture fictionalised taken to a ridiculous, but entertaining, place. Just like it’s an adaptation of Chinese culture fictionalised taken to a ridiculously place. Getting offended about the totally inaccurate portrayal of Chinese culture is a bit pointless when the whole show is ridiculous in a lot of aspects. It’s like the police force getting offended that they portray the police as unable to solve their own crimes: it’s not meant to be a genuine portrayal of the real Scotland Yard, it’s just an adaption and fabrication needed to create the entertaining scenario in order to advance the plot.
Writing for television has always been about writing within limits and budgets. However, the ‘Chinese culture’ shown in The Blind Banker is an insulting stereotyping dressed up with ‘mystical orient’ crap, and there is no excuse for it, even if they cast foreign actors. And considering they have to write for British-born actors, why couldn’t Thomson write a story with British-Chinese characters who are just that – characters, not stereotypes?
Culturally, British-born asians are no different from British-born whites other than appearance :/ You can write about an international smuggling gang, sure. But, as usual with Thompson, he could have executed this idea with much more finesse. Let me counter your points:
- I’m happy the BBC are trying to be diverse, ethnic diversity is great! But the Chinese characters in The Blind Banker did no good for the Chinese living in Britain. Nothing. In fact, as has been pointed out again and again, the stereotypes were insulting.
- You are right, Chinatown has nothing to do with the daily lives of Chinese Londeners. But contrary to reality, in The Blind Banker, Chinatown was central to their lives. It’s the only place where you see Chinese characters in the show. Soo Lin lives there, when she’s not wearing a cheongsam doing tea ceremony with Chinese pottery in the museum… *major side eye*
You can be ridiculous without being racist. Did you find the stereotypical portrayal of Chinese culture, and the tropey 2D Chinese characters, entertaining? Really? Going by comments and reviews, the Blind Banker is the least rewatched, least entertaining episode of the show so far.
They made a massive mistake with this episode, and there is no excuse for it.
Look, there’s a very simple bottom line to this.
Millions of people are being hurt by the way they are portrayed in media. They are being hurt by this show and other shows, by TV, books and movies. They tell you so, on their blogs and Twitters, in print and on TV. They feel this, it hurts them, it hurts their children. They explain why and how it hurts them. They show you examples of the consequences they suffer.
So if you are convinced that it’s more important to defend your favorite TV show than to address that pain and try to discuss what’s happening and how we can fix it in the future, that makes you an asshole.
When someone comes to you and tells you that they’re hurting, and you deflect or mock or attempt to silence that person, then you have just committed a monstrous act. I don’t know about you, but nobody in my family would ever accept me giving a suffering person such a response.
You don’t have to be in the conversation. If your favorite TV show is your escape-space, then follow the blogs that don’t talk about race, use XKit to filter the posts on that subject. Skim past. Everybody needs their safe space. If this show is yours, then fair enough.
But don’t try to tell anybody else they shouldn’t talk about it. Don’t try to tell the people who are being hurt that it isn’t a problem or that they shouldn’t tell people how they feel or talk about how to fix it.