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GaimanitePkat t1_j0vt950 wrote

Reply to comment by Cornualonga in Rydell High is back in a first look at 'Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies' by galaxystars1

The article also mentions that they're going to make sure to include characters of color (who were left out of the 70s movie) and tell stories of "social justice".

Once again we have to hit that sweet sweet nostalgia g-spot while also acknowledging that the time periods and media we're so rabidly nostalgic for had some pretty unsavory aspects.

Pick one. Either accept that you can't make a 1950s show with 2022 morals, or stop clinging to outdated properties for recognition.

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tomservo88 t1_j0wjpot wrote

> The article also mentions that they're going to make sure to include characters of color (who were left out of the 70s movie) and tell stories of "social justice".

Is that not just Hairspray?

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OneGoodRib t1_j0woloy wrote

There's a time and place for both. Like, Hallmark has a movie set in the 50s about the Rockettes that features a few black actresses when the first black Rockette didn't join until 1987 but the point of the movie is just about following your dreams, so it not being totally historically accurate in regards to there being women of color in the group in the 50s is fine - because it's a tv romance movie.

But if you're specifically making a show about "social justice" that's mean to have a message beyond "follow your heart" then you need to try to be historically accurate or else the story doesn't make sense.

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Cornualonga t1_j0wsyr7 wrote

But as some have pointed out rightly, you do face the problem of making things in the 50s seem much more progressive and better than they were. People already wax nostalgic about how great things were in the 50s. People aren’t great with subtlety and context.

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DonQOnIce t1_j0w5n8q wrote

I think this series looks cheap and lazy, and this comment is not me assuming this series will be any good. But I feel like pushing back slightly on the idea that you can’t make something like this with a 2022 lense. You can certainly examine both social justice issues and the unsavory elements of the time together. In fact, you probably have to look at one to get into the other. This is also less than 70 years ago, not hundreds. There were plenty of people with progressive views at the time.

But, like I said, I don’t think this particular series will do that well at all and this is more of a general comment.

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armless_tavern t1_j0whe4h wrote

I agreed with you mostly, then agreed entirely with your last sentence. I think the attempt could be made to have an engaging theatrical story mixed with relevant social analysis… but this is GREASE we’re talking about.

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DonQOnIce t1_j0yh7jk wrote

Absolutely. This just isn’t it (I assume, I’ll eat my words if they actually come out swinging). But generally it’s possible.

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erinraspberry t1_j0wkov2 wrote

I agree. Instead of making an origin story in 2022, why not make a new era of pink ladies in 2022? Theres so much you could explore there in addition to cameos by former Grease stars

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GaimanitePkat t1_j0wlu9g wrote

If you want to include people of color, why not have it take place in Cuba, Jamaica, Bangladesh, Columbia, Nigeria, Korea... I think it would be very interesting to see a Grease-like story retooled to fit a different culture rather than yet another "American High School for Hot People".

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DaftFunky t1_j10d3hy wrote

Why does every show need to preach about social injustices and problematic issues in society? Especially ones that take place in time periods like the 50s

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rhinosyphilis t1_j0x7vtc wrote

At the point that we’re at, I think we’re mostly looking for stories that aren’t in the MCU.

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