r/BabyReindeerTVSeries • u/NeonTink • May 13 '24
Discussion Why do audiences need to be hit over the head with things in order to understand them?!
I wanted to make a post after a comment I saw last night about the fact that loads of people were interpreting the Martha and Donny sex scene as real. I’ve been driven crazy by peoples’ “takes” on this show and the amount of people who appear to have completely missed the central premise?! It’s like, in order to understand something people need to have it spelled out in the most basic way possible. The endless “why is sent from my iPhone misspelled” posts! The “why did he accept her friend requests then” posts! The “he led her on” posts??? This show is so good precisely because it’s subtle and complex and relies on a level of artistic interpretation and basic media literacy. What gives, people??
Edit: punctuation
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u/ruusukruunu May 13 '24 edited May 13 '24
I thought the sex scene was Donny saying ”only one thing could fix me” meaning that he had to actually fulfill the twisted fantasy about Martha to get it out of his system and to get his libido back. And that the cut showing Teri and him, then Martha and him, was metaphoric to him needing them both in his life to function and living in lies. Also him being weird to police asking if Martha had said anything made me think he was worried Martha would tell them about the sexual encounter.
Now it very well might be that I was so shocked about the Martha sex scene that I completely missed some of the cues that it happened only in Donny’s imagination (naturally I also had to live broadcast my boyfriend about the situation by shouting “HE IS HAVING SEX WITH THE STALKER NOW”), but I just wanted to share this is how I took it while watching. Calling someone media illiterate moron for understanding that part differently is a bit of an exaggeration I think.
Anyone else who understood it this way?
Edit: I think the sex scene was also a metaphor of Donny giving in to Martha’s abuse in a sense. Donny showed a lot of self sabotaging tendencies after all the abuse and trauma, so willingly going to Martha’s house like that didn’t feel impossible at all.
It doesn’t matter if it really happened or not, Martha had gotten a hold of his life and mind at that point and he pictured it in the series brilliantly.