Crime
Wayward
Wayward tries to make a statement about intergenerational trauma, but it comes with a lot of content issues that will make the show a nonstarter for many.
Mavis Beaumont has a “passion for fashion.”
And right now, she’s living the dream. Mavis is working on a gig styling for an Essence photoshoot, and her long-term boyfriend, Jacque, might get her a job as a lead stylist.
With her career taking off and her boyfriend’s giant apartment to come home to, Mavis’ life couldn’t get any better.
That is until she catches Jacque cheating on her.
Although he begs her to forgive him, Mavis has too much self-respect for his pleading. With the help of her best friend, Khalil, Mavis moves out, intending to start a life of her own.
It’s not easy starting over. Her new roommate is strange, to say the least, and Mavis suffers many a bump in this new chapter of her life. But many of the characters Mavis meets change her perspective and develop her personality. And although she has a rocky start, Mavis quickly takes her career further than she ever dreamed.
Moments in Survival of the Thickest adeptly address some important issues. Mavis and many of her friends are Black, and they experience and overcome racial prejudice throughout the show. In one scene, Mavis, Khalil and his girlfriend discuss moments when they’ve experienced racism, and their discussion could spark an important conversation for viewers.
But while some of the messages are positive, many themes support a worldview that is inconsistent with a Christian perspective. Before their breakup, Mavis was living with her boyfriend. And after Jacque cheats, Mavis still has a messy relationship with him. Furthermore, Khalil is infamous for casual sex and low commitment. Although he changes his “one night stand” lifestyle in preference for having a steady girlfriend, he still has a physical relationship with her (and many of their intimate moments are shown).
I can certainly get behind stories about female success and empowerment. While I’d guess that’s what the creators of Survival of the Thickest are aiming for, their depiction of what it looks like to be a strong woman feels more indecent than inspiring. Though I admire Mavis’ quest to forge her own path and help women find peace with their body types, I dislike the harsh profanity and sexual themes that accompany her journey.
Let’s break this down a bit.
A major theme throughout Survival of the Thickest is body positivity. Mavis is a plus-sized woman, and she wants to help women like her love their bodies. In one scene, a potential client insists Mavis incorporate a corset into her look. Mavis refuses, saying that her passion is to “dress women and help them love their bodies.”
That’s great. And if the show stuck to that sense of female empowerment, it would be looking pretty good.
Unfortunately, Mavis and other women in the show go through some sexual self-discovery as well. Although Mavis claims she isn’t interested in casual sex, she finds herself in sexual situations, and we often see the details of these passionate moments. And I can’t stress enough that many of these moments are very graphic. Later, Mavis juggles different relationships, and while she attempts to be as honest as possible with the men, her motivating force is doing what makes her happy.
Survival of the Thickest also advocates for all “types” of women. In one scene, in which Mavis gets a gig styling a new lingerie line, Mavis explains that she wants to hire different types of models including different “gender expressions” and “trans women as well.” Furthermore, one of Mavis’ new friends is a drag queen named Peppermint (who identifies as trans in real life and appeared in RuPaul’s Drag Race).
Finally, there’s Mavis’ friend, Marley. You’d think her success in the corporate world would be enough to convince the audience she’s an empowered woman. But the show takes it a step further. Marely consistently makes derogatory comments toward men that are played off as jokes. While Marley grows from this prejudice as the show develops, if the roles were reversed, these comments would be seen as bigoted rather than empowering.
If you’re looking for a show with positive female role models, Survival of the Thickest gives us a flawed picture. While the body positivity message constructively demonstrates the beauty of different body types, the show also asserts that other differences (including gender identity differences) should be enthusiastically applauded. I hope in the future, there will be a story advocating for different body types without these content concerns. But for now, Survival of the Thickest is a show that needs to go back to the drawing board.
Mavis must start her life from scratch after a betrayal from someone she trusts.
If you hoped the profanity in the title would be the last of the language concerns, I’m sorry to disappoint. This episode contains profanity aplenty including a use of the n-word, 12 uses of the f-word and 14 uses of the s-word. There are also several uses of “a–,” “b–ch” and “d–k” and misuses of God’s name. We also hear single uses of “h—,” “d–n” and “p—y.”
There are a myriad of sexual concerns. Men and women alike make crude references to female anatomy, including when a woman compares her body to a drumstick emoji because “it’s meaty on top, nubby on the bottom” and “very delicious.” Throughout the episode, characters passionately kiss, and several times we see characters engaged in sex. Once, we see a woman wearing only her underwear, and there is also a scene in which a woman wears nothing but a shirt. While nothing critical is shown, the shirt just barely covers the critical areas.
Characters are not afraid to speak explicitly about sexual experiences, and in one scene, a character talks about owning a sex toy. In one scene, a song called “Booty” underscores the action. Part of this sequence includes Mavis doing unusual and suggestive dance moves.
In one scene, a woman catches her long-term, co-habitating boyfriend in the act of cheating. We also learn that Mavis’ male best friend, Khalil, regularly spends the night with various women only to ditch them later. At a bar, a man flirts with Mavis.
A woman has a cat named “Cocaine Xavier,” and she jokingly suggests that Mavis “snort” the cat. There is a scene in which Mavis goes to a bar to drink. As the night goes on, she gets drunk, and we see her vomit as a result.
In one scene, Mavis punches a man and later fights a woman; both of Mavis’ opponents are presumably unclothed, though we don’t see anything. Mavis crudely talks about using the restroom, and later, we do see her in the bathroom (though nothing critical is seen). For a split second, a pride button can be spotted on a woman’s purse and a male character wears eyeliner.
While I’d guess there are more wholesome places to get these positive messages, Mavis, who struggles with her weight, learns about body-positivity. There is also a scene in which a woman candidly explains her feelings about a relationship, and the man is grateful for her honesty.
With support from her friends, Mavis starts a new job. Meanwhile, Khalil realizes that he might be growing out of his current dating habits.
Throughout the episode, characters make plenty of sexual innuendos, and men and women alike crudely refer to female anatomy. In a couple of scenes, Mavis wears a lowcut top, and there are also scenes where a woman wears a robe that sometimes shows her underwear. Two people have sex, and the scene leaves little to the imagination (though technically nothing critical is seen). After this sexual encounter, the couple lies in bed, and the woman wears only her underwear. A woman is referred to as a “ho,” and Mavis’ friend asks her if she has started a job as a stripper. Another character accuses her coworker of enjoying seeing women at strip clubs.
Before walking into her ex-husband’s funeral, a woman asks Mavis how her cleavage looks. As the scene proceeds, the woman publicly describes her sexual relationship with her ex-husband. The woman throws a sex toy into the casket, and as she leaves, a character starts a chorus of “Amazing Grace.”
A woman talks about being divorced. Another woman explains that she is not interested in anything serious and would prefer if her relationship with a man remained the single one-night stand. A man realizes that people view him as a “f— boy.”
Mavis takes her friend to a drag restaurant. Drag queens come to serve them, and later, we see a drag queen perform a sexual dance in a tight body suit.
Plenty of profanity is heard, including five uses of the f-word and its variations. There are also several uses of the s-word, “a–,” “b–ch,” “d–n” and “h—.” We also hear nine misuses of God’s name, once paired with “d–n.”
A character refers to someone, saying they are “high as a kite,” and a woman claims she is passionate about “emasculating white men in corporate America.”
One of Mavis’ clients feels uncomfortable with her body type, but Mavis inspires her to be proud of the body she currently has.
Wayward tries to make a statement about intergenerational trauma, but it comes with a lot of content issues that will make the show a nonstarter for many.
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