This show just isn’t subtle, is it?
And neither was the original series, so that’s kind of a perfect tie for the new show to run with. Rod Serling’s stories were often thematically tied to issues of racism, and this show has tackled that (bluntly, I may add, though it felt purposeful). This time, however, it puts the color of skin in the backseat to a degree and instead focuses on humanity as a whole.
I’m not spoiling the twist of this one. Just deal with that. It’s a crucial reveal and it contains a fun reference to “Eye of the Beholder” that I just won’t ruin for you.
Anyway, on to the talk. Our story begins with spoiled, pampered mother Eve. She’s the mother of two twin girls and wife to a businessman of unknown occupation. The life she leads is frustrating. See…Eve turned in her maid, Ana, to the INS. After eleven years of friendship (or so Eve considered it), she betrayed her maid to the government. This shines a spotlight on their home and hijinks ensue.
The issue of Immigration is complicated for most American’s, but it involves dehumanization. Ignoring the real humanity of those we are trained to see as “other.” My generation was taught, by many that came before us, to see an illegal immigrant as people who came to take advantage of us instead of real people with real struggles. Painting this issue in caucasian pallets may create an issue for those more inclined to feel a sense of defensive emotion, but it works on all of Serling’s levels to wondrous results.
This is a short review for me, as I don’t know how to talk about this without ruining parts of it, but the lack of subtlety is the strength here. Living in a world where refugee children are gassed should alleviate the complication, and yet it doesn’t. This episode is going to come under a lot of fire for its topic, but I think this is an important issue to discuss. My grandfather was an immigrant, and everyone else’s ancestors were as well. It’s important to continue to see people as human beings, and this episode begs that. I think the closing narration is a big…overkill, but it’s solid as a rock in the interim. “Point of Origin” is a great episode and completely in line with the original intent of the series. Anyone that hesitates at the message needs to take a long, hard look at the people in their lives and decide whether or not they’re human. They are, by the way, but you might have to cut through the rhetoric.
WRITE DRUNK; EDIT DRUNK 