The Netflix series with the one-word title Eric is drawing my interest because it's set in the 1980s, so there will be some nostalgia, and because it's about a missing youth -- 99% of the time, it's a woman or a girl.
But...it stars Benedict Cumberbatch, hated for his role in the aggressively queerbaiting Sherlock and the execrably heteronormative Doctor Strange.
Oh, well, let's give it a try.
Scene 1: The ten-year old Edgar -- is that a 1980s male name? -- has been missing for two days. His Dad addresses him on tv: "I'm sorry, buddy. Prove to everyone that you're not dead. Come home" Sorry for what, dude? Did you do something?
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48 hours earlier: Edgar wanders around backstage as his dad and others film Good Day Sunshine, a marionette show with full-sized human figures. The puppeters sit under them, apparently visible on screen. Their closing motto is "Be good, be kind, be brave, be different." In the Reagan-Thatcher 80s? As if!
Edgar waits while Dad Vincent -- Benedict Cumberbatch -- criticizes the producers for trying to "switch it up" with a beatbox number. The director explains, "We need to get some elementary school viewers, the cool kids."
"What's next? Slime?" That was a Nickelodeon thing. He insults his fellow cast members until they make excuses and leave.
Meanwhile, Edgar wanders around wardrobe. He cuts some aquamarine fur from a muppet "for Eric."
Scene 2: Dad Vincent grabs Edgar, snarling, and pushes him across the street, against traffic, and onto the subway. Edgar tries to discuss his idea for a new character, a monster named Eric. But Vincent isn't paying attention; he's glaring at some beatboxing teens. The kidnappers?
Nope. Next Dad makes Edgar wait outside while he buys booze in a liquor store. Customers glare at him. Uh oh, here's where he vanishes.
Nope. Next he angrily insists that Edgar race him home, through the busy streets of midtown Manhattan. Uh oh, here's where Dad zooms ahead and Edgar vanishes.
They make it home ok.
Scene 3: Edgar's Mom, who has a man's hair cut, complains that the city is going to close another homeless shelter. Where are they supposed to go? Edgar goes up to his room, decorated with art and comic books, while Dad criticizes Mom for withholding sex, and Mom criticizes Dad for being a drunk. Whoa, drama.
Upstairs, Edgar can hear them arguing and yelling "Fuck you!" at each other. He escapes into his art.
Scene 4: At dinner, Edgar tries to talk about his puppet idea again, but Dad Vincent is too aggressive: "Sell me on it! You're not being enthusiastic enough! Don't be a wimp!" Emotional abuse, Dad.
Edgar goes up to his room again and puts on headphones, but it doesn't help. He still hears the parents arguing: "You're out all night!" "Fuck you!" Is this going to be paranormal? Is he going to escape into Eric's world?
Mom comes in to hug him and check under the bed for monsters. They discuss how much they love each other. My parents never once spent five minutes whining "I love you so, so , so, so much!" when I was trying to read a comic book and fall asleep.
Scene 5: Morning. Dad makes French toast to smooth things over, but Edgar is still afraid of him. Closeup of one of those "missing kid" milk cartons.
Edgar heads out to school. Men glare at him. A guy in a van glares through his rear-view mirror. Maybe he'll be kidnapped now? I'm tired of the misdirections.
Edgar is played by Ivan Morris Howe in his first screen role, but he has done theater, including "Oliver." Looks rather femme.
Cut to the police station. Detective Ledroit comes in. A woman asks "Who's the lucky lady?" due to his after-shave. That's heterosexist! How do you know that he likes ladies? Oh, because he gazes at you with a sultry expression for five minutes.
Adequately heterosexualized, he can go on to the Missing Persons case.
Wait -- the Detective is played by McKinley Belcher III, who is gay in real life and has a husband. Why isn't his character gay?
Scene 6: Vincent at the studio. Today's filming is big deal, with network suits watching, so he promises to not have a meltdown or tell people to "fuck off." A coworker notices that he's bleeding, but he covered it with a headband. Uh-oh, Vincent killed his kid.
When the filming starts, Vicent goes off script: "Let's play a new game. It's called 'Spot the Pile of Trash.'" He stomps off, gets ten messages to call his wife, ignores them, gets some fan photos taken, snarls at the network suits. Just fire him, and get someone else to voice the puppet.
More after the break