When I heard that YouTube's Miranda Sings was transitioning into more traditional media, I was intrigued. Her platform online used to entertain me several years ago, but the content soon fell repetitive and stale, and therefore lost its entertainment. With a new door open from Netflix, I wondered if Colleen Ballinger could reach new distances with her character than she previously could. In some cases, she did. In others, she did not. "Haters back off" follows Miranda Sings and her attempt into fame, giving large glimpses into her dysfunctional domestic life. Angela Kinsey ("Bethany") and Francesca Reale ("Emily") are strong actors and characters throughout, being lovable and balancing out from the "crazy" of Colleen Ballinger ("Miranda"), Erik Stocklin ("Patrick"), and Steve Little ("Jim").
Due to Miranda and Jim's negative nature as characters, they are often the antagonist of many of the situations in the show. From the word "go" you feel sympathy from those the duo encounter and you soon grow to dislike both of them incredibly because of this. "Haters back off" tries, essentially, to protagonise its main antagonists, which does not work. After few episodes, it goes from Miranda and Jim being silly in real-life situations to being annoying and rather repetitive. The sympathy you feel for Kinsey and Reale's characters and the way they tackle Ballinger and Little's characters forms them into stronger personalities that make you want to continue watching. Both Kinsey and Reale have great potential in the show, yet are overshadowed by the stupidity and annoyance of Ballinger and Little. Whilst watching the show, I found myself wanting to see more of the performance of Kinsey and Reale, due to their likable tendencies as characters and actors. In order for the show to work in the future, the writers need to shed more light onto the supporting cast like Reale and Kinsey, instead of forcing annoying plots from Ballinger, Stocklin, and Little.
The final episode, however, swaps a lot of these themes around, unsuccessfully. Miranda is left with a successful YouTube channel, yet she is overcome with sadness due to the fact that she pushed everyone close to her away. The show only makes you feel bad for her due to the fact that this is the only time you see her with real, human-like emotions. At the end of the series, I was left admiring Bethany and Emily due to them finally leaving their destructive lifestyles, and I was left wondering how their situation could expand. I did not care for where Jim went, or what happened to Patrick (despite the conspicuous bicycle ring in the final seconds of the episode).
In conclusion, I felt that "Haters back off" still has potential that it failed to reach in its first season. With characters like Miranda, Bethany and Patrick developing into more "real" people, you're left with a want to know how they continue and what they have to offer. Although, in order for this show to succeed, we need to relate and appreciate the protagonists. A show that makes you dislike the characters is, ultimately, a show that makes you dislike the show. With actual emotions coming from all characters right at the end of the season, you want the show to continue just to see how the characters expand as people.
Due to Miranda and Jim's negative nature as characters, they are often the antagonist of many of the situations in the show. From the word "go" you feel sympathy from those the duo encounter and you soon grow to dislike both of them incredibly because of this. "Haters back off" tries, essentially, to protagonise its main antagonists, which does not work. After few episodes, it goes from Miranda and Jim being silly in real-life situations to being annoying and rather repetitive. The sympathy you feel for Kinsey and Reale's characters and the way they tackle Ballinger and Little's characters forms them into stronger personalities that make you want to continue watching. Both Kinsey and Reale have great potential in the show, yet are overshadowed by the stupidity and annoyance of Ballinger and Little. Whilst watching the show, I found myself wanting to see more of the performance of Kinsey and Reale, due to their likable tendencies as characters and actors. In order for the show to work in the future, the writers need to shed more light onto the supporting cast like Reale and Kinsey, instead of forcing annoying plots from Ballinger, Stocklin, and Little.
The final episode, however, swaps a lot of these themes around, unsuccessfully. Miranda is left with a successful YouTube channel, yet she is overcome with sadness due to the fact that she pushed everyone close to her away. The show only makes you feel bad for her due to the fact that this is the only time you see her with real, human-like emotions. At the end of the series, I was left admiring Bethany and Emily due to them finally leaving their destructive lifestyles, and I was left wondering how their situation could expand. I did not care for where Jim went, or what happened to Patrick (despite the conspicuous bicycle ring in the final seconds of the episode).
In conclusion, I felt that "Haters back off" still has potential that it failed to reach in its first season. With characters like Miranda, Bethany and Patrick developing into more "real" people, you're left with a want to know how they continue and what they have to offer. Although, in order for this show to succeed, we need to relate and appreciate the protagonists. A show that makes you dislike the characters is, ultimately, a show that makes you dislike the show. With actual emotions coming from all characters right at the end of the season, you want the show to continue just to see how the characters expand as people.