BLACK LIST EVALUATIONS - The Matriarchy

Strengths

The world of this script is fascinating and well developed over the course of this first episode. It works so well because it’s authentic and plausible from the beginning, positing a version of this story where the threat isn’t just the men these women fled, but also the women themselves—not because any of them are necessarily bad or subversive, but because they have human emotions and conflicting desires. Lottie is depicted as perhaps the most overtly manipulative of the group, but even she is acting out of genuine love for the man she had to leave behind—never mind the circumstances under which she left him, of course, because rationality only goes so far when human emotions are concerned. Their solution is brutal, but it’s impressive how much the script is able to sell the audience on the necessity of that brutality. The opening of the pilot is its most effective moment, though, capturing a ton of raw emotions—Ma’s grief, the community’s anger—while also establishing the whole premise of the show and rules of this world in one brutal and efficient moment. Characters are diverse and varied, not just ethnically but in their perspectives and personalities, furthering the sense of depth in this place.

Prospects

The world of this show has a lot of potential, recalling the isolated and violent societies of shows like SONS OF ANARCHY and OUTSIDERS, but taking this traditionally masculine genre and inverting it to focus on a women-led society. It avoids easy tropes and assumptions that might spin out from that premise, though, instead creating a world that feels realistic in its complexity and full of interesting potential for conflict. It’s the kind of hard-edged, gritty show that could work well on a prestige cable outlet like HBO or FX, or on a streamer like AppleTV (there’s some similarity to SILO, for example).

Strengths

The script's opening does a great job of grabbing the audience's attention and making us eager to learn more about this strange community with this barbaric punitive system. The scene of Marshall's arm getting cut off is done quite well and difficult to watch. While we don't quite understand what's going on at first, the writing is assured in a way that makes us confident things will come together. The cut on p.13 to beaten and bloodied Marybelle, which then leads to the upsetting scenes of young Deshawnda and Priya, is startling and effective. The delineation of our main character turning from Marybelle into Ma is a smart way to imply she's turned into a different person, a protector instead of a victim. The confrontation with the first group of men who come to the compound is a memorable scene. On p.39, the image of “nearly fifty women” slowly emerging from their cabins with weapons to take on the approaching men is striking. The gun loaded with birdshot is a good fake-out, and it somehow makes Ma's warning “This one ain’t loaded with birdshot" even more menacing. Lottie causing Henry to hit Marshall so he'll be on her side (which we know really affects him) is heartbreaking. The hint of the men's rebellion is a strong ending.

Prospects

While this could probably be developed for either a premium cable channel / streamer or a traditional broadcast channel, the unconventional story and the violence make it more appropriate for the former than the latter. Since the story is told almost entirely from the women's perspective and is very female-centric, the target audience would probably skew towards women as well. The fact that much of the show takes place on the compound means there would be a limited number of locations. Therefore, this show could probably be made for a relatively low budget.