Opinions on The Good Doctor and Aspie Representation

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Do you think that The Good Doctor expresses life on the spectrum accurately/fairly/well?
Yes 40%  40%  [ 4 ]
No 10%  10%  [ 1 ]
In some cases, but not others 50%  50%  [ 5 ]
Total votes : 10

BrilliantLife
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03 Feb 2018, 2:20 am

I've just started watching it and even from the first scene (Where he's following an imaginary line on the ground) I fell in love with it. So much of what he does I can respond to "That's me! I do that!" and even the things I cannot personally relate to, I can see great care in representation! It makes me laugh, and the jokes kind of feel like inside jokes that only I get - Jokes I can finally really get!

But I want to know everyone else's opinions. First of: Do you think this is an accurate portrayal? What do you think is inaccurate, or could be done better? What is too much, and what isn't done enough?

Second: Do you think that it is mean-spirited towards the portrayed character? Do you think this is glorified bullying, or representation of real reactions in life towards us? Do you think they skipped out on research, or is more of NTs grasping at straws with the disability character?

I really would like to see what y'all think!


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Zaarin
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04 Feb 2018, 8:51 pm

Disclaimer: I only watched the first episode and felt so disenchanted I felt no inclination to watch more.

That out of the way, I felt the show was inordinately patronising, and as much as I loved Freddie Highmore's earlier work I felt he did a poor job of portraying someone on the spectrum. There were moments I liked (like when the director explained to the board why he felt an autistic doctor would be an asset to the hospital), but overall I felt neither the writers nor directors had any clue what they were talking about. Shaun felt like a checklist of symptoms to me. Maybe the show does better in subsequent episodes, but I was sufficiently put off by the pilot to not come back.


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BrilliantLife
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04 Feb 2018, 10:46 pm

That is fair, and partly I agree. There are parts that I feel are particularly cynical and harsh for no reason, just to prove a point. Though his physical portrayal of the "checklist" symptoms aren't that terrible. There are moments that I feel are a bit excessive and straying into weird territory, like the "He takes everything ever said ever literally" creates way too much drama and isn't actually... a great plot device?

Though I have to admit, the optimistic, naive part of me just likes being thought of. Most "representation" is either NTs trying to show "lowfuntioning" Autism, or well... Rainman. I like Shaun.


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Zaarin
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05 Feb 2018, 2:24 pm

He might have grown on me more had I watched more than one episode, I admit. It's true that very few shows have great pilots. And, of course, we're all individuals with unique experiences, so what I find to be an inaccurate portrayal may seem more authentic to someone else who's had different experiences than I.


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fawnboy
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08 Sep 2018, 1:50 pm

I LOVE The Good Doctor!
I am currently half way through the first series and fall more in love with each episode.
It's not very well known here in England, I only stumbled across it by chance. As a House, M.D. fan I decided to check it out as it was by the same creator, and I was not disappointed. It's similar in all the best ways (interesting cases, lovable characters, touching indie music).
Despite watching originally for Shaun (whom I love and relate to a lot, so much so that I can look past his over-done traits, like the "taking EVERYTHING literally" as someone said earlier), I have grown to love each of the characters. I'm so invested in this show lately 8O
I think what pleased me the most was that this character with his autistic-given talent of savant syndrome was specifically talked about as having autism, and the problems that entailed. With similar characters on mainstream shows (i.e. BBC Sherlock) the traits are all there but without naming the condition, and it seems like it's being taken for granted, just to have a quirky and genius character. The Good Doctor avoids that pitfall, and for me, feels like the positive outweighs the negative. I'm glad I found this show.


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ASPartOfMe
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09 Sep 2018, 1:17 pm

The bad.
He has what I call a checklist of Autistic traits. Autistic people generally do not have all the traits and if they do not every trait will be noticeable.
Still to a degree playing off of the Rain Man stereotype of a male savant.

The good.
He is not another character that is that is slightly awkward.
Everything does not always work out for him, his autistic traits cause him problems as well as helping him as in real life.
His coworkers are ableist at times as in IRL.

General Comments.
While his portrayal is flawed it represents a significant advancement. He is the first autistic network TV lead character. Up until very recently network executives usually did not acknowledge their characters were autistic.


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