Aw

[snacky]

Here's an article claiming MM has an underlying conservative message:
www.troymedia.com/2016/10/04/hidden-conservatism-murdoch-mysteries/

I was instantly disappointed. But then I read the whole article: it's mainly coy left-bashing with only one line about how MM is conservative. He claims that MM is conservative because the protagonist, William Murdoch, has a Catholic background and respects religion.

The author of this article claims to have watched all 9 seasons, and yet he missed the entire point!

The reason Murdoch Mysteries is so interesting is that William's conservative upbringing is continually challenged: his character must grow in order to adapt to the modern world. In some cases he even overshoots his time - as in his 2-professionals modern marriage where they make decisions together. William got past that his wife had an abortion: he's not out in the streets joining anti-abortion protests: he didn't even turn in the one doctor he discovered to be performing abortions.

William was against sabotaging the labor movement and seems to like Emma Goldman. In fact, he never met a professional woman he didn't like - from pub-owners to archaeologists. (One possible exception is female detectives: maybe that brings out a competitive spirit in him).

Anyway, here's a much better article about the politics of Murdoch Mysteries:
www.vice.com/en_ca/read/i-actually-learned-the-truth-about-stephen-harpers-character-by-watching-his-favourite-show

[Hodge]

Oct 5, 2016 2:15:49 GMT snacky said:

Here's an article claiming MM has an underlying conservative message:
www.troymedia.com/2016/10/04/hidden-conservatism-murdoch-mysteries/

I was instantly disappointed. But then I read the whole article: it's mainly coy left-bashing with only one line about how MM is conservative. He claims that MM is conservative because the protagonist, William Murdoch, has a Catholic background and respects religion.

The author of this article claims to have watched all 9 seasons, and yet he missed the entire point!

The reason Murdoch Mysteries is so interesting is that William's conservative upbringing is continually challenged: his character must grow in order to adapt to the modern world. In some cases he even overshoots his time - as in his 2-professionals modern marriage where they make decisions together. William got past that his wife had an abortion: he's not out in the streets joining anti-abortion protests: he didn't even turn in the one doctor he discovered to be performing abortions.

William was against sabotaging the labor movement and seems to like Emma Goldman. In fact, he never met a professional woman he didn't like - from pub-owners to archaeologists. (One possible exception is female detectives: maybe that brings out a competitive spirit in him).

Anyway, here's a much better article about the politics of Murdoch Mysteries:
www.vice.com/en_ca/read/i-actually-learned-the-truth-about-stephen-harpers-character-by-watching-his-favourite-show

I think people will always see what they want in a show and given who this guy is, or was, the opinion doesn't surprise me. Read the second article too and wasn't terribly impressed by their view either.

[lizmc]

If the author was a speechwriter for Stephen Harper, I wouldn't put much credence in his take on the series. Harper and his staff had a rather warped perspective on reality. Plus, Troy Media strikes me as being something of a right wing propaganda outlet....it certainly isn't a major player in Canadian media......

[Hodge]

Oct 5, 2016 5:16:49 GMT lizmc said:

If the author was a speechwriter for Stephen Harper, I wouldn't put much credence in his take on the series. Harper and his staff had a rather warped perspective on reality. Plus, Troy Media strikes me as being something of a right wing propaganda outlet....it certainly isn't a major player in Canadian media......

Exactly!

[snacky]

Oct 5, 2016 4:24:02 GMT Hodge said:

Oct 5, 2016 2:15:49 GMT snacky said:

Here's an article claiming MM has an underlying conservative message:
www.troymedia.com/2016/10/04/hidden-conservatism-murdoch-mysteries/

I think people will always see what they want in a show and given who this guy is, or was, the opinion doesn't surprise me. Read the second article too and wasn't terribly impressed by their view either.

True. In hind sight I wonder if the famous Stephen Harper episode will turn into more baggage than benefit? Let's have a Trudeau guest appearance!

~ Elisa

[lizmc]

Oct 9, 2016 23:47:11 GMT snacky said:

Oct 5, 2016 4:24:02 GMT Hodge said:

I think people will always see what they want in a show and given who this guy is, or was, the opinion doesn't surprise me. Read the second article too and wasn't terribly impressed by their view either.

True. In hind sight I wonder if the famous Stephen Harper episode will turn into more baggage than benefit? Let's have a Trudeau guest appearance!

~ Elisa

The Harper appearance was a number of years ago and he has been out of office for about a year now (he isn't even an MP anymore, having resigned his seat this summer), so I think we are well past there being any negative follow out for the series. 

I can see Justin Trudeau doing a turn.....he does have acting experience, having played Talbot Papineau in a TV movie about Vimy Ridge before he entered politics, although since one of the insults the Conservatives keep throwing at him in an attempt to dismiss his credentials is that he used to be a drama teacher, so he may be hesitant to do any acting for that reason........(I should explain who Talbot Papineau was.....he was an up and coming Quebec Politian and strong Federalist who many saw as a natural successor to Sir Wilfrid Laurier.  He enlisted in the army in the First World War and was killed during the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917......he was also the grandson of Louis-Joseph Papineau, another Quebec Politian, who led the Quebec arm of the 1837 rebellion for proportional representation. As it happens, Justin Trudeau represents the riding of Papineau in Montreal in the House of Commons.)

[synapse]

I would not put too much weight on that opinion. It's just that, an opinion, and we all have our own. I actually really enjoy the character growth in William, I particularly liked the first two seasons (there are clashes between real world experiences on cases and his religious upbringing almost every episode, and all are pretty profound). Also, he at the very least respects (and mostly also admires) most female professionals he encounters (as snacky pointed out), maybe except Madame Eloise in season 8. Even there, Julia softens his view by spelling out the added difficulty of being female to the feat of succeeding in business.