The Sympathizer. Downey? Izzat you?

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

Weekly drops. The first one played well for me.

'The Sympathizer' challenges U.S. 'savior complex' in Vietnam War, stars Hoa Xuande and Sandra Oh say
The stars of the HBO series say that the show reframes the narrative to center the plight of Vietnamese people who lived through it, rather than on the sacrifices of American soldiers.

The fall of Saigon has been a commonly depicted subject across Western media, but the portrayal in the new HBO drama series “The Sympathizer” — in which panicked families attempt to flee Vietnam under heavy fire — barely features any American GI. And that’s no coincidence, cast members say.

Hoa Xuande, who plays the main character only known to viewers as “the Captain,” and Sandra Oh, who plays his love interest, the sharp Sofia Mori, said that the show is meant to challenge dominant perceptions of the war. It reframes the narrative to center the plight of Vietnamese people who lived through it, rather than on the sacrifices of American soldiers.

“Depictions of the evacuation, especially through the American media … is the GI soldiers pulling ‘helpless’ Vietnamese people to the helicopters,” Xuande said. “It’s that savior complex that Americans have … that they’re at the forefront of this story helping, Vietnamese people who couldn’t apparently help themselves.”

/snip
more at https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/sympathizer-sandra-oh-hoa-xuande-rcna147587

[Voltaire2]

1. First episode was awesome.

I didn’t recognize Downey until the credits ran.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

3. Same here. I was already on my way to IMdb to see wo was doing such a great job portraying Claude.

[Cuthbert Allgood]

2. I'm assuming it's based on the novel.

Great book. Have to give the series a shot.