Yorkton This Week’s editorial staff takes readers on an explorative journey around the Internet, searching out the best in videos, podcasts, webcomics, music and anything else that catches their collective eyes which might interest our readers.
Queer Eye wants to save the world.
A revival of the old makeover show Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, the new Netflix version has bold goals. It wants to go beyond just being about getting men in nicer clothes and teaching them how to cook a dish. That’s the basic premise of the show, trying to give confidence through a new haircut and a nicer living room, but it’s clear from the opening moments that the show has much grander ambitions than just being a standard makeover show.
When the new “Fab Five,” Bobby Berk, Karamo Brown, Antoni Porowski, Jonathan Van Ness, and Tan France roll into town, they’re still on a trip to improve the life of a nice man – though not necessarily a straight man, because gay men also need confidence-building make-overs. But they’re also here to make people cry – everyone on the show cries – and possibly deal with a problem in society.
The best example of this is the third episode, which begins with the crew getting pulled over. Karamo Brown, the black member of the crew, is visibly nervous, especially when asked to step out of the truck. Then it’s revealed that the cop is the person who nominated their next target, Corey, a NASCAR-loving, Trump-supporting police officer. Later in the episode, Corey and Brown have a conversation about police brutality on the way home. It would feel a bit forced – it’s clear that Corey was chosen to set up this moment – but the two men do have an awkward but genuine conversation on the subject.
That conversation outlines what the series wants to accomplish, and every episode has a big learning moment between a cast member and the man they’re trying to improve. It gets dangerously close to being cheesy, but it also gives the show a sense of purpose that other shows in the same genre don’t have or even want.
I was prepared for a show with a lot of life advice about shoe selection when my better half decided to put it on. I was surprised that the ambitions were much larger than that. It wants to bring Americans together and help them realize their differences are not insurmountable and that they shouldn’t wear cargo shorts. It’s making over a man, but trying to make over a country. That makes it a bit of an interesting experiment, and the bold ambition gives it a little bit more heft than it would have otherwise.
—Devin Wilger
Stark animation and live action
When it comes to being surprised by something on the ‘Net, the web series AIDAN 5 certainly did it for me.
Set in the year 2064 AIDAN 5 reveals a society where human cloning has become commonplace.
Set in a futuristic city, AIDAN 5, is at its heart a sci-fi detective take which chronicles the journey of detective James Aidan who must unravel the mystery behind the serial killings of his own clones.
Several things set AIDAN 5 apart as being something special.
To begin with the story starts from a strong foundation. The series is based on an award-winning film festival short by Tim Baldwin and John Jackson.
From there AIDAN 5 the series was created by Ben Bays, Tim Baldwin and John Jackson.
The story is a gritty, noir one which is bigger and more intricate than you might expect from episodes that average between five and 13 minutes in length in the 16 episodes on season one.
Next comes the acting.
Bryan Michael Block, who stars as James Aidan, and also had his hand in the writing of all 16 episodes, is fantastic in the lead role. He reminded me a lot of Vincent D’Onofrio in his run on Law & Order at least in terms of delivery.
Maya Sayre is Aidan’s partner, Morgan Riley, herself a clone, and again she is excellent.
Interestingly, the stars and all others on this series did it because they wanted to be part of the project. It was pulled together through volunteer efforts and no budget.
And then there is the approach taken in terms of look which really makes AIDAN 5 memorable.
It is filmed only in black-and-white, but then the production team integrates the live actors with sets which are comic book like sketch art. It comes together as a dark and gritty, futuristic noir world that stands out because of the artistic look.
The web series was short listed for Best Original Series at the 2010 Vimeo Awards, and was an official entry at 2010 Dragon*Con Independent Film Festival and GenCon Indy. The original 48 Hour film won 2nd Runner Up at Miami International Film Festival and was screened at the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Block.
To view the entire first season, and to learn more about the production, visit the official site: www.Aidan5.com.
— Calvin Daniels
