Since its premiere in the second half of April, the miniseries baby reindeer (Netflix) has become a surprising global phenomenon. In just three weeks it has reported around 22 million visits, is in first place among the most viewed on the platform and has unleashed theories, analyzes and opinions of all kinds, including that of popular culture luminaries such as the writer Stephen King, surrendered to a story that addresses both bullying, trauma and loneliness.
“Unlike most episodes of streaming series, which can feel bloated at 50 minutes or even longer, Baby Reindeer episodes, each about 30 minutes long, are like short, quick stabs administered by a very sharp knife. It’s the best thing I’ve seen in my life“, described the author in The Times, enthusiastic about a fast-paced production that only unfolds for seven episodes.
“The series that disturbs the world”has been another of the adjectives stamped by the media, a way of simply framing a story that has not left anyone indifferent.
It is the story of Donny Dunn (Richard Gadd), a bar employee who has recently arrived in London, but whose biggest dream is to make his way as a comedian in the demanding – and at times humiliating – scene of the English capital. When he is at work serving dishes and beers from the bar, he meets Martha (Jessica Gunning), a sad-looking client with teary eyes who approaches the place, revealing to him that she is a lawyer full of legal successes and enviable contacts.
Donny doesn’t believe her too much – she doesn’t have any money, he offers her a cup of tea as a courtesy – but there is something that strikes him from the first minute. Her shrill laughter, swollen with self-confidence. For a comedian who chews on failure every night, the bait is ideal.
From there they weave a relationship that grows into encounters, laughter and the mutual need to be together. But for Martha, Donny’s presence becomes the sole axis of her existence. She sends him 80 emails a day and suggests starting a family. She follows him to her stand-up performances and comments on Facebook photos of her from a decade ago. She becomes, strictly speaking, a stalker. A danger and an ordeal for her life.
It is also a narrative inspired by a real drama by Gadd, who had previously told the story in a 2019 monologue that earned him an Oliver Award.
Within the success of the production, the real Martha –Fiona Harvey- has recently appeared in The Daily Mail newspaper to deliver her version of events: “Now she is using Baby Reindeer to harass me. I am the victim. He has written a damn show about me.” She even stressed that she is considering filing a lawsuit against Gadd and that she has received death threats.
Whatever the case, millions of spectators take the stage and watch the story with fascination, enthralled by a script where sadness, pity, the desire for triumph, bullying and loneliness are intertwined in a toxic relationship. For the same reason, why has Baby Reindeer captured the world?
For critic Gonzalo Frías, everything has to do with a core element: “The level of emotional disinhibition of the two characters is shocking and has struck a collective chord. They are not shy or afraid to show what they feel without any filter. That is key for a world like today, where the great epidemic is loneliness. There is a projection of the spectators towards what the characters experience. “That has been explosive.”
Then he continues: “Martha feels so alone that she just wants to connect with someone. It’s the only thing she’s looking for. And when that happens, she takes it as a true love letter. Like a total surrender. How many of those stories don’t we see every day in bars, on the subway or anywhere?
Series critic Isabel Plant also believes that there are a couple of fundamental points to understand the explosive success of the miniseries: “In favor of baby reindeer There are a couple of things. The first is that Netflix has standardized its productions, it has a large number of releases, but they are all of quality that do not leave the mold much, it is like a wholesale supermarket. Within this wholesale supermarket, it has a couple of premium products. AND baby reindeer falls into that category. Because? Because it is completely original, if compared in terms of theme with any other premiere in recent years. “We hadn’t seen MeToo from the male perspective like we see it here.”
Then he continues: “It also has the added value of being a true story, people like nothing more than then Googling that story, it’s fascinating. The story of a stalker is very entertaining, it is incredible. It has that real story and it has an original point of view on issues that we have been talking about as a society: abuse by a man as a victim and not as a perpetrator; see a transition as someone in adulthood reconsiders her sexuality. It has many current themes that it incorporates into this kind of thriller-comedy, but also with a protagonist who questions his own behavior, not only when it comes to re-victimizing himself, but also has nuances. Not that he deserved the abuse, but why human beings behave the way we behave, I found that exploration very interesting for a main character, and outside of what we are used to seeing. They are topics that are current, such as harassment and victims, but seen from a new perspective. Without being a big Netflix premiere, it became something that everyone is talking about.”
Daniela Lagos, series critic Worship, also gives his perspective: “Probably one of the things that stands out the most is that it is a story that, despite being simple, seems impossible or at least very improbable, then when we find out that it is all true, it becomes even more captivating. In addition, there is the component of a person reliving their own story, plus very good performances and great management of tension and drama that makes it a perfect series to put play on the first episode and not stop until it ends.”
Álvaro Ceppi, screenwriter and director of the film and audiovisual production school at the Diego Portales University, believes like Frías that Baby Reindeer connected with the audience’s everyday experiences: “Here it is a small story, which begins as an anecdote. minor, but it ends up transforming a life. That identifies a lot. “We all have chapters that seem of little importance in our lives, but that end up triggering a giant earthquake.”
It also focuses on the character of Donny Dunn and precisely on the worlds he represents: “He is a super unheroic character, like we all are, who struggles with his past traumas and the difficulties that everyday life brings. Also like him it happens to all of us. In that aspect, it has a tragicomic aspect, but later it acquires dramatic edges. For a series to maintain its narrative, it has to show several layers, start from something and develop into a deeper drama. It has to be an onion that is peeled little by little. And here it is absolutely achieved.”
Ceppi also believes that there is a post-pandemic sensitivity that can explain the penetration of baby reindeer. “There is a feeling after the pandemic of helplessness, in which people were left lame with their feelings, that is why they cling to these stories. “It’s good to see it on a screen.”
“There are three central elements of why this series is wonderful,” introduces Marcelo Castañón, screenwriter and co-author of the television series. Like life itself (Mega), who also declares total fervor for Netflix’s commitment.
He then elaborates: “One, he is relentless in telling the story. The way of approaching the subject, which is usually treated with great delicacy, with great care and even a certain fear due to the times of political correctness that exist today, this goes totally against that.. There is an old saying that says ‘characters must be created with love, and then treated with hate’. This case is the best example of that. “The series treats the protagonist very badly.”
“This has to do with the second point, that we do not bond too much with the protagonist; the story is so powerful, the guy can even be unpleasant and you don’t agree with his actions; when he tries to justify his actions, even then one does not agree. Still, the story is too powerful and too relentless, too gripping.”
“Thirdly, an added value is the morbidity that has aroused. It has to do with a kind of true crime for fans, trying to find out who this girl was, who was the screenwriter who had abused him. It is not only the phenomenon itself, but also what he generated by knowing that it is autobiographical. That involves the viewer too much, investigating what happened to that.”
