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TV TATTLE

Emily in Paris, The Undoing and Insecure annoyingly omit texting history

  • "How can this problem exist in 2021?" asks Zak Jason. "Texting has been part of our daily, hourly lived reality for some 20 years. It’s one thing for a show to dumb down the nuances of emerging technologies like facial recognition or quantum computing, or to get too carried away with physics-defying tech in sci-fi. But to bungle texting, a basic interface that Hollywood creators and audiences alike pull from their pockets to look at dozens of times each day, is inexcusable, and unnerving to witness. Today, seeing Emily inexplicably receive an initial text from Doug is as disorienting as if Doug inexplicably wore nothing but pasties and a Kangol bucket hat. The obvious answer is that these shows are trying to avoid distractions. Directors know that after spending the day hunched over a screen and trying to detox in front of a bigger screen, audiences are reluctant to spend much time squinting to read a text. Why devote a precious 10 seconds to ensuring the audience can read some inconsequential past messages about ordering pizza and the texts that matter to move the story forward when you can get in, get out, and cut back to actors acting? But the attempt to avoid distraction with brevity only introduces a slew of new distractions."

    TOPICS: Emily in Paris, Insecure, The Undoing, Mobile Apps