There was quite a bit of chest beating about bias with regard to the ABC drama Bastard Boys broadcast over the last two nights. Certainly the show is unlikely to do Greg Combet’s electoral chances any harm at all. But was it just a simplistic script about class warfare, as Chris Corrigan alleges?

Phil at Larvatus Prodeo got a wideranging discussion thread up and running about bias before the show broadcast, and it’s still going.
Chris Sheil at Club Troppo has some analysis up and a great discussion thread has resulted there as well.
David Tiley at Barista analyses the show as a scriptwriter as well as looking at the politics.

I found it very powerful in bringing back the utter shock at seeing those bullyboys in balaclavas with attack dogs locking out the wharfies. I thought the script did a fair job in pointing out that the wharfies were, at the time, a bunch of rorting rogues badly needing reining in. I was fascinated as it was shown how thoroughly the unionbreaking conspiracy cocked it up so that the public grew more and more sympathetic towards union members whose rorts had been a national joke, and it was a timely reminder of just how deeply members of the Howard Cabinet were in it all up to their ears.

The ending seemed a little flat, because it seemed to be crying out for a sequel, perhaps the story of the Howard government’s creeping industrial reforms leading to the travesty of WorkChoices and how that’s going to end up toppling Howard’s government. Maybe they can make that one next year?

Categories: arts & entertainment, culture wars, Politics

Tags: social change