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Chosen One of the Day: The Handmaid’s Tale satire in Dear White People
Netflix’s Dear White People is no stranger to satirizing popular television, as proven in their earlier seasons, but the creative team has truly outdone themselves in Season 3 with a very relevant look at popular white feminism dystopian television in their take on The Handmaid’s Tale.
In the first episode of this latest season, Sam (Logan Brown) is playing escape from life byway of this faux prestige drama in which we meet a white, blonde woman named for the month of July — a reminder that Elisabeth Moss plays June in the original. “When people would say my name,” July narrates, “they’d think of summer. Now, I’m Greg’s Womb.”
The Hulu series has come under criticism of its portrayal of women of color and the realities they face, and Dear White People knows it. “Injustice in America. Who could’ve guessed?” a Black woman (August) wearing a darker shade of the telltale Handmaid bonnet and capes says directly into the camera. Her eyes turn to the side as July laments “Land of the free…” without a hint of irony.
What I’m really saying is that this satire is almost too perfect to be a sendup of the thing it’s satirizing, because I’m not sure I could tell the difference between this show and the actual show if you paid me.
