Manosphere Nonsense Website Doesn’t Realize It’s Incels Talking Nonsense About the Odyssey

Look out, folks are being weird about Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey again. And, we have to reiterate that the story isn’t really “history.”

On social media, a couple of big accounts made the case that the dislikes for The Odyssey are skewed 3-1 negative. This is old-school Internet trolling by another name. You can make dummy accounts on YouTube pretty easily. Or, just downvote a movie and keep pushing.

In fact, YouTube actively encourages this behavior from the most boisterous parts of their userbase. These bad actors take advantage of the fact that negative attention and engagement counts for the same points in the YouTube algorithm.

This is all absolutely aided by TikTok and other social media platforms embracing the same kinds of attention-driving algorithm. So, instead of offering anything in the way of a real critique beyond “they changed some elements of the story in this adaptation.”

Not a single person whinging online about The Odyssey has pointed out that there seems to be more dramatic departures from the original text hiding in this film. Instead, it’s a steady stream of complaining about Lupita N’yongo playing Helen of Troy or Elliot Page existing.

That’s where we are, and the people at the levers of power on social media like this level of controversy to draw in irate people. After all, some experts would argue that angry people are the easiest to take advantage of. And, isn’t that the easiest engagement to come by, after all?

We’re locked on a cursed cultural merry-go-round. In the shadow of a goofy government avoiding it’s actual issues, there’s plenty of time to get angry at a Black actress portraying a pop culture character. I could be talking about any blockbuster made in the last 30 years.

Why Are People So Angry About The Odyssey?

The thing about The Odyssey is that it’s not completely “set in stone” real. Yes, the book itself exists and it’s a dramatic retelling of some events that occurred. But frankly, it’s not handed down from the hand of god directly.

Here on The Mary Sue, we summed it up pretty clearly. “There is really no “definitive” adaptation or telling of The Odyssey: in part because it’s a fictional world that has inspired so much of other fiction,” we said in a previous piece. 

And, as the site has noted in the recent past, Nolan has argued this point during multiple interviews. Take his appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The themes in a story like this are universal and have bled into the groundwater.

“They are the original superheroes,” Nolan began. “Even comic book culture, whether you’re talking about Marvel or DC or all the rest, a lot of it comes directly from the Homeric Epics.” 

“The thing about Homer is, nobody knows if that was a person. Homer in a way is the George Lucas, maybe, of his time… Homer is the Marvel of its day, that’s the thing,” the filmmaker added. “It’s very directly this desire for us to feel or believe Gods could walk amongst us, and I think the modern comic book is kind of our expression of that.” 

What to do now?

How do you even place “historical accuracy” on a book like this. Just like other famous texts, it’s like trying to nail jelly to the wall. The original text, it’s meanings, and themes shift in the light. What one era of scholarship argues about The Odyssey can be directly contradicted by the academics that come afterward.

All of this is true. But unfortunately, it’s not going to make the yelling stop! We wish it would. However, just last weekend, this entire crowd was emboldended to continue being silly on the Internet. And, when they don’t prevail, they just ignore it and move onto the next target.

(Photo Credit: Universal Pictures.)

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