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Earlier this month, Netflix dropped all 12 episodes of its new showInsatiable.
Even before its debut,Insatiablewas already a social-media lightning rod.
When we got to episode five, my daughter said, I actuallyreallylike this.
Its not just a weight-loss story.
Its not just a revenge story.
Its not even exactly about rage.Insatiablehas three main plotlines.
Patty feels like a loser, but wants to be a winner.
AlthoughInsatiabledoes offer some flawed characters filled with rage and revenge, the show is about personal desire.
In my view as a fat woman, no.
The show puts a great deal of care into handling that aspect of the story.
Pattys body-image issues are treated with compassion and the character consistently explores the difference between internal and external beauty.
IsInsatiableperfect in that respect?
Early in the series, Bob Armstrong announces, Skinny is magic.
But Pattys relationship with Christian is terrible and terrifying.
Onscreen, successful fat actresses are few and far between.
I wrote a book,Fat Girl on a Plane, that features a weight-loss arc.
So, what if youre not a happy fatty and you have a story to tell?
The ability to discuss how you feel about your body will be one more form of thin privilege.
I thinkInsatiableis relatively successful in tackling that issue.
Weight loss doesnt fix Patty Bladell; it breaks her down even more.
Are fat people perfectly represented inInsatiable?
Dee is one of my favorite characters in the show, and Kelley steals almost every scene shes in.
Viewers that reject weight-loss stories who go on to watchInsatiablewill find plenty to dislike.
Insatiablestrives to address itself to both those that society classifies as winners and those it considers losers.
Kelly deVos is the author ofFat Girl on a Plane.
