What? A Black Musketeer ?

[FredPuli43]

In the new drama about the Three Musketeers, shown on the BBC, one of the three, Porthos, is black, by Jove ! This is political correctness gone mad ! It is sheer multi-cultural tokenism ! Surprised if none of you haven't noticed (one in particular)

Is this not important ? (Well, it isn't to me, but there we are) It may be a sign that black people are beginning to pass without comment, whatever their job.

What do you think?

[emmie]

very sweet. ^^

[LazyGun]

I genuinely had not noticed. Unless the entertainment you are offering is supposed to be a faithful, historically accurate, slavish recreation of a book, or of history, why should it matter to anyone?

It is an entertainment, which, rather like Merlin, or Robin Hood, made no pretensions to historical accuracy. Rather, the original characters and stories were a stepping off point for a modern day adaptation, and all the better for it, in my opinion.

As for the white male Dr. Who - you might have legions of Dr. Who fans outraged were you to alter the established characteristics of the Doctor - but actually, there ought to be no bar to, say a black Dr. Who or a female Dr. Who, come to that - Its Science Fiction, after all, and involved a fictional process, regeneration - they could change the rules anytime they liked.

[jno]

One for all and all for one,
Muskehounds are already ready,
One for all and all for one,
Helping everybody,

One for all and all for one,
It's a pretty story,
Sharing everything is fun,
Thats the way to be.

One for all and all for one,
Muskehounds are already steady,
One for all and all for one,
Helping everybody,

One for all and all for one,
Can sound pretty corny,
If you've got a problem, chum,
Think how it could be.

Chorus
(da da da, da da da)
They cross their hearts and pray,
(da da da, da da da)
They cross their swords night ending,
(da da da, da da da)
They drink a beer and swear they're faithful to their king,
(da da da, da da da)
No matter what you say,
(da da da, da da da)
They're never far away,
(da da da, da da da)
They're always ready to fight or to sing.

[LazyGun]

I googled this, following all the comments about it - it meant nothing to me - and now I wish I had not ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR9J2ITspyU

[China Doll]

'or a female Dr. Who, come to that '

^^^^ I would love to be a female Dr Who - Frankly, I would be brilliant! :c)

You may well finish Fluffy and Fred off with that jno... poor Fred's thread is torn at the seam.

[emmie]

it doesn't have to slavish but some degree of accuracy to a book would be good, most of these modern productions are nothing to do with recreating the times gone by, or rarely. they are made to be light entertainment.
personally i like Robin Hood as i imagine him to be, and it wouldn't be a man with an American accent, a la Kevin Costner, seeing as how America as such didn't exist when Robin was supposed to have lived.

[LazyGun]

@Emmie "t doesn't have to slavish but some degree of accuracy to a book would be good,"

Why? Its an adaption, not a faithful recreation, nor has it promoted itself as being such a thing - then and only then can you complain it is not following the book.

[douglas9401]

A black musketeer?

He'll be the dark tan yin.

[emmie]

the current Musketeers programme is not following much of the Three Musketeers book from what i have seen and others comments on here and in the paper, so it's done for light entertainment, not accuracy.
I don't care when Dickens stories are changed, sexed up for want of a better word, because that is what the makers think will be popular, for modern audiences, which quite frankly takes the audience for dimwits, not being able to follow a much more complex story, which i am sure most could.

[LazyGun]

"the current Musketeers programme is not following much of the Three Musketeers book from what i have seen and others comments on here and in the paper, so it's done for light entertainment, not accuracy"

Exactly. So why should it matter in the slightest that one of the characters is black/mixed race?

And why do you think that modern day adaptations "take the audience for dimwits"? I hardly think that the modern day adaptation of Sherlock is "dumbed down", for instance...

[emmie]

One of the few good things on tv of late has been Sherlock, it may bear Arthur Conan Doyle name, but this is a very modern twist, more NCIS meets Morse. With original screenplays, i doubt much of what has been on in the last three series bears much relationship to the original stories.
I think they are designed to entertain, enthral, and capture the imagination, witty, beautifully played and the on screen chemistry with the two leads inspired.

[giveup]

Still prefer Dogtanian.

[emmie]

i like that Lenny Henry tackled Othello and the current offering Fences, good for him, and that some actors don't conform to that black stereotype of gangster, hip hop types that sadly pervade some of our crime dramas, however i think the BBC is especially adept at this cross over roles, i didn't like Merlin, not just because i found it clunking, the leads were amiable enough, but it didn't really know where and when it was set, an being something of a devotee of the legend found it rather trivialised what is rather a wonderful story.

[emmie]

diveb, that's the point, the current offering the Musketeers isn't really based on the books, still some seem to like it.

[Ric.ror]

I think he's lovely

[Ric.ror]

Tell you what I did find strange - Kenneth Branagh's adaption of the scottish play had a black actor as Macduff (he was best thing in a lackluster production IMHO) with a white young actor as his son.
Same with the Doctors father in the National's production of Frankenstein - Benedict Cummberbatch with a black father !!!!!!

[humbersloop]

lol Fred, Dumas was mixed race then, so why not Porthos now?

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/the-role-of-race-in-the-life-and-literature-of-alexandre-dumas-the-episode-that-inspired-the-man-behind-the-musketeers-9065506.html

[anotheoldgit]

This type of thing could become much more popular.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/30/fantasy-hollywood-black-models.