Not again! That ubiquitous plot motif!

I have never before written two blogs in one day, but this evening I was vaguely looking through `Whats On` and found a series recommended by The Times produced by the Israeli Lior Raz – who was in, and wrote some of Fauda.

Here is what I read: “In the series, set in Tel Aviv and New York, Raz plays tour guide Segev Azulai, whose life is turned upside down after the death of his American wife, Danielle (Kaelen Ohm), in a mysterious hit-and-run accident in Tel Aviv. Distraught, Azulai decides to do whatever it takes to search for his wife’s killers, who have fled to the US.”

I find it beyond belief that I seem to be the only person to note the incredible popularity of this story line. Time and time again, male hero launches a series by celebrating the death of a wife. Well, not ostensibly celebrating – but the real men I have known who have truly lost a wife at a young age, do not seem to have the inner resources to be able to be hero, romantic lead, detective, all in the months immediately following their loss.

Please, someone else notice this too. Writing the woman out of the story so the male hero is free to engage with a new woman means two things. One, there are fewer parts for actresses. Two – the reality of what it is like, for men and for women, to be in long-term committed relationships, hardly ever gets explored. What a shame.