![]() Michaela Cole is an actress I have been aware of before even Chewing Gum, as I had my Casting Director offer her a role in a small indy we were involved with (Which she gratefully declined as CG was happening at the time) but I always remembered her, due to the uncanny similar energy and physical presence she had to someone I knew once whom sadly is no longer with us. There is so much more I could say about this show and while its not flawless and there were a couple of moments (walking into the sea in Italy) which risked borderline on the ridicule and felt like I was suddenly in a different show, fortunately these were few and the its positives far outweighed those moments. Who would have thought it would serve such a role in my life. This show helped me on the road to healing from that awful experience and for that Ms Cole, I truly hope, one day, I get to thank you in person. I am sure I still would have thought as highly of this show, as I do, had I not been the victim of a serious sexual assault during its broadcast, something which, for someone of my age, was not only extremely difficult to deal with, as it was to discuss with even my closest friends. Frequent flashbacks to Arabella school years give the present narrative some clever twists and unique contexts, especially to old school mate Theodora (Webb, just excellent) who now runs a support group for victims of assault, someone who is probably the most ill suited person on the planet to do so. Just when the show starts to feel in comfortable territory MC will throw a hand grenade into an already complex subject and the issue of sexual consent is something which is under constant examination throughout the show and rarely has it been tackled as well, nor honestly, as it has here. There's no good guys or bad guys in this show, only people, real characters, defined by their actions. If Cole had focused on Arabella alone, it might have been hard for the audience to stay with her on this journey, but equal perspective is given to best friends Terry and Kwame (Opia & Essiedu both SUPERB) whose lives are impacted by some of Arabella's poorer choices, but may themselves have also played their part in the circumstances which led to Arabella being sexually assaulted. These events cause her life to slowly unravel as she tries to discover what happened on that fateful night but neglects her own friends issues in the process, often with dire consequences. As she struggles to focus on work she finds herself dealing with a sea of overwhelming emotions after a night out that she only remembers through nightmarish flashbacks, which leads to her recollecting images of a serious sexual assault. While trying to live up the expectations of both her agent & publicist, who are trying to define her image for her, rather than her organically discovering it on her own. I May Destroy You follows the life of London blogger Arabella (Cole) propelled to sudden fame by a hit best seller, she's trying to find something relevant to say for the difficult second album. There's a small list of films and television shows that have profoundly affected me either because they have created an awareness on a subject I was previously completed misinformed on (Hillsborough) or have impacted me so deeply I became an activist (And the Band Played On) while others have just connected with me on an emotional level for more personal reasons and in the case of IMDY, it was certainly the latter and partly about timing. It's brilliant and has left me excited for Coel's next project. It's about consent, the shades of grey, the acceptance/lack of it, how we understand it and how it's interpreted by the aggressor and victim.How sexual assault survivors cope with the aftermath and then have to exist with daily life. They didn't understand that it's not meant to be a whodunnit or sanitised portrayal of sexual assault according to how society expects victims to behave. I can only say that those people appear to have completely missed the story being told. I'm confused by the lower scores claiming it should be a thriller or that the characters are one dimensional when we see the depth in their nuanced facial expressions and fleeting moments of raw honesty between friends. yes, people get wasted, do drugs and shock, horror they talk to their friends when on the loo. better yet don't compare it to anything at all. It's witty and real, covers some of the darker life scenes that aren't ordinarily placed on the screen. It's not a sitcom or light comedy, it's devastating at times, yet humorous. It's not meant to be girlfriends or SATC and it doesn't pretend to be. Some hard hitting scenes mixed in with Michaela Coel style dark humour. Loved it! As a young British woman from London it's very relatable, from language to interactions.
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