Lamar Reviews - "Baby Reindeer" (Airdate 5/17/2024)

No, this is not a story about a lost reindeer that is found by a daughter who is estranged from her father, and nursing it back to health, delivering it to the North Pole, so that at the last minute Santa can save Christmas, and in doing so brings them back together for a very warm and happy ending. NOT AT ALL. Yes, this is a critically acclaimed series based on a true story that is written by, produced by, and stars Richard Gadd, depicting his own experiences of being stalked. I wish it had been the former scenario because it would have been much more fun to watch than this.

That is not a slight against Baby Reindeer, it is a well-done series that took an immense amount of courage to write, produce, and star in, much less actually live through. For the viewer it also takes some courage to watch.

Gadd plays Donny Dunn, a Scottish comedian trying to be successful, despite the fact that he is not very funny.

He works at a London pub and one day a middle-aged woman named Martha comes in a sits down and orders a tea but can’t pay for it, so he gives it to her. She tells him that she is a very successful lawyer and owns multiple houses. In his mind he thinks, “how is she a lawyer but can’t afford a cup of tea?” That should have been a sign to run.

But, that one act of kindness changed his life forever. For the next few years, Martha Stalks him. Over four and a half years, the woman sent him 41,071 emails, 350 hours’ worth of voicemails, 744 tweets, 46 Facebook messages, 106 pages of letters, and a variety of weird gifts, including a reindeer toy, sleeping pills, a woolly hat and boxer shorts.

Donny is not only a victim of stalking, in his quest to become successful he is mentored by a TV writer that really doesn’t help him at all.

There are 7 episodes around 30 minutes each,

Rated TV MA for language, violence, sexual situations including rape. It is very uncomfortable.

This is not your normal show about stalking. This takes a turn you don’t usually see. It shows the many sides of a stalking situation. Martha is played by Jessica Gunning, and she does a fantastic job of portraying a stalker with multiple dimensions. One minute you hate Martha, the next you are terrified by her, and the next you feel very sorry for her. The same goes for Donny. You want him to get relief and then he does something totally stupid that you can’t quite understand, and then you sorta do. I can’t explain a lot without messing up the Baby Reindeer experience. Sheri watched it and said “you gotta check this out!” Max called and said he was thinking about watching it, what did I think. I said I was avoiding it like the plague. He watched it anyway, and said I needed to watch it too. His only advice to me was, “If you can make it past episode 4, you are home free!” I’m giving you the same advice.

It is a great show and I’m glad I watched it. I will also never watch it again. Richard Gadd went through a traumatic experience and had the courage to share it. The very least I could do was watch it. It is the most original thing I think I have ever watched. My Score: 6 Very Uncomfortable Budweisers