Overshadowed By Controversy Cleanup

A single controversial story element overshadowing a larger narrative can still fit OBC, IMO.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.

I don't think that counts, because it has to do with the final product itself.

TBH, you're coming across as a single-issue wonk here. If they were overshadowed by anything (and I agree with the arguments that they're not), Weinstein being a sexual predator is certainly more infamous than the Magic Roundabout situation.

• The Masked Singer, despite being beloved as it is, has come under fire several times regarding some controversial celebrities on the show. These include Republican politician Sarah Palin, infamous YouTuber Logan Paul, and former NYC mayor and attorney to Donald Trump Rudy Giuliani (the latter of which actually prompted panelist Ken Jeong to leave the set at the end of his unmasking episode due to his personal dislike of him).
  • Giuliani's stint on the show is a special case, as his involvement was revealed by entertainment news sources over a month before his unmasking was scheduled to air, owing to the celebrity's very contentious nature. It got to the point where, after the unmasking was made public, the show began to pretend that he was never on the show to begin with.

This doesn't seem like a case of the show being OBC, but rather some contestants being controversial.

The Weinstein Company is already listed as OBC, I believe. No specific work is overshadowed by simply being released under its name unless it's connected to other circumstances. Magic Roundabout is just bad anyway, its Same Language Dub being more baffling than controversial.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.

Since the controversy started in January I think there's enough time past to put this under Live Action TV, let me know if this is too biased or needs edits since I believe its controversies are more well-known than the show itself:

• Real Friends of WeHo would have been just another run of the mill MTV reality show, had it not attracted two big controversies even before airing.
  • The first was the questionable casting of Todrick Hall, who the previous year was mired in various controversies, from sexual harassment to not paying his backup dancers and a widely-criticized stint on Celebrity Big Brother which saw him lose a lot of fans.
  • The second (and probably the one that turned off the remaining number of people willing to give it a chance) was its attempt to attract viewers by airing immediately after RuPaul's Drag Race, thus pushing the beloved Untucked aftershow an hour later ^note  This isn’t anything new as a lot of new shows would follow a more popular show to try and attract viewers willing to tune in after. However this is normally done as the more popular show is winding down airing so that it doesn’t see heavy competition. WeHo, in a bold yet ultimately misguided marketing attempt, paired itself with DR as the season was just starting, which as will be explained was a terrible move all around which would normally make sense as their primary demographic fell under the LGBTQ+ spectrum that Drag Race attracted, had the suits at MTV not decided to sacrifice DR's runtime, cutting it down from 60 minutes to 40 minutes worth of TV without commercials. For a show that was already hit-and-miss when it came to properly editing its contestants, this became even more apparent as this particular season of Drag Race boasted 16 queens, the most in one season so far. As such, various beloved aspects of the show, from Ru’s walkthrough to the judges’ deliberations had to be cut or shortened, with many queens (and sometimes even Ru himself) feeling invisible, only becoming prominent in their elimination episode, while challenges and runways felt rushed especially near the start when there were more queens. Current and former contestants would show their dismay at the condensed runtime and the normally divided Drag Race fandom became united in hating on WeHo. This effectively lost WeHo any remaining goodwill, and fans showed their disdain by petitioning its cancellation and tanking it in ratings with many skipping it over once the episode is done and only coming back to watch Untucked, effectively dooming it to one season.

I'm not knowledgeable enough about either WeHo or Drag Race to say whether or not the controversy is applicable, but at the very least the second bullet should be cut down, as in its current form it's a huge Wall of Text.

Be kind.

I can see how Drag Race fans would be upset about episodes being shortened or Untucked being delayed, but I'd like to see some evidence they blamed this show, rather than grouching about the network or Drag Race itself.

We do have a Drag Race cleanup thread now, although it's only just started - might be worth asking there?

(I'm a fan, but not watching in the USA and completely oblivious to this)

Edited by Mrph1 on Jul 7th 2023 at 7:39:34 PM

Someone edited the Music section to add a quote from Dave Chappelle to Jussie Smollett's entry. I can't comment on that beyond Chappelle being controversial himself, but this was added to The Tramp Stamp's entry:

• The song also features the racist chorus "I'd rather die than hook up with another straight white guy," which is ironic as all of the band members are heterosexual Caucasians.

I know about The Tramp Stamps controversy, but only because of the accusations that they were plants and that "I'd Rather Die" seemed to condone doing it with drunk guys.

Would the Chappelle entry be potentially Rule of Cautious Editing Judgment?

This was added to Led Zeppelin's list on OvershadowedByControversy.Music some time ago:

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• The band's offstage debauchery and dreadful treatment of women is well known. Also, dreadful treatment of underage girls, as Jimmy Page pursued a fourteen-year-old groupie named Lori Mattix. A Google search of "Led Zeppelin" and "groupies" reveals some disgusting, disturbing stories.

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I do think that Page's relationship with Mattix might count given how a lot of conversations I see about Led Zeppelin lately bring her up, but the wording of the entry itself could use some rewriting. How would this sound as a rewrite?

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• After the onset of the Me Too movement, which resulted in renewed scrutiny towards rock musicians' histories with underage groupies, guitarist Jimmy Page's musicianship and achievements were eclipsed by the discovery that he had a lengthy romantic and sexual relationship with 13-year-old Lori Mattix. While Mattix made dubious (and in some cases debunked) claims about trysts with various '70s rock stars, the sizable amount of photographic and anecdotal evidence confirming her relationship with Page meant that it would redefine his public image the most.

Be kind.

I don't wanna be that person but that entry calling the lyrics racist for (presumably) jabbing at a white dude performing poorly in bed is... :/ at best

Stan GaruKaru for clear skin

IDRK what it's trying to say, but yeah it's a weird take. That song is objectively trash and the Tramp Stamps are nowhere near as PC as they pretend to be, but the real issue with that line is that it was trying too hard to appeal to the stereotypical Tumblr demographic (which had the SJW stereotype still attached to it)

Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness

I approve of Bowser bros rewrite of the Led Zeppelin example.

Ukrainian Red Cross

I'll change back The Tramp Stamps' entry then.

Any thoughts on having the Chappelle quote on Jussie Smollett's entry? I feel it might be ROCEJ because of Chappelle's controversies regarding trans people.

Alright, swapped it in and cited this thread.

Be kind.

• Overshadowed by Controversy: The film is now likely best known for the Disney+ release being digitally altered to cover a shot of Daryl Hannah's bare rear end, launching a vitriolic debate over "censoring" the movie (even though the original version was still available several other ways). Things got even worse when a couple months later X-Men: Days of Future Past was released on the service with its shot of Hugh Jackman's bare ass intact, leading to many calls of a Double Standard.

Does this look worth keeping on YMMV.Splash even ~7 months after Disney+ undid the censorship?

I don't know a lot about the movie but I remember the controversy and I don't see people talking about it much anymore. I don't think it overshadows the movie—you can probably cut.

Edited by themayorofsimpleton on Jul 13th 2023 at 3:36:52 PM

TRS Queue | Works That Require Cleanup of Complaining | Troper Wall

Yeah, it faded too quickly to make a meaningful impact.

YMMV.Family Guy S 8 E 18 Quagmires Dad

• Overshadowed by Controversy: The episode received backlash from several LGBTQ+ organizations and The Parents Television Council. They criticized the episode for mishandling the issue of Transgender people with the mishandling shown through Ida’s effeminate behavior before her surgery, Lois throwing the food Ida brought over into the trash, and Brian vomiting for half a minute when he found out that he slept with Ida. Other people had issues with the episode include showing Quagmire getting an erection when he embraces Ida and the brutal assault scene involving Quagmire beating up Brian.

This reads like a relabeled Unfortunate Implications entry without a source. And that trope was recently deemed Flame Bait.

Plus, it dosent feel right with me having an episode meant to be controversial be labeled as OBC.

Thomas fans needed! Come join me in the the show's cleanup thread!

I feel that episode still qualifies but the example needs a rewrite. I’m not familiar with the controversy myself.

Why waste time when you can see the last sunset last?

How about this?

• Overshadowed by Controversy: The episode's ham-handed attempt at transgender representation generated a backlash from LGBT+ groups so severe that it's the only reason some people are even aware the episode exists.

Ukrainian Red Cross

I agree that it's infamous enough to count as an OBC, and yeah that rewrite looks a lot better.

Meh, I feel like this episode is mostly just known as another episode of Family Guy rather than LGBT+ people hating it. I don't think general audiences really cared that much about the controversy.

Also, your proposed entry is using Weasel Words.

Edited by PlasmaPower on Jul 23rd 2023 at 9:10:10 AM

Thomas fans needed! Come join me in the the show's cleanup thread!