For Childish Gambino/Donald Glover fans who are looking for a new show to dig into this spring, look no further than the show Swarm. Forewarning, though, the show is not for the faint-hearted or squeamish. The story revolves around a woman named Dre and her dark obsession with the singer Ni’Jah. Without spoiling anything, Dre’s obsession with Ni’Jah causes her to act erratically, putting her in multiple strange situations with other people as her obsession spirals out of control. Now to focus on the specifics…
Dre
It’s rare for me to watch a TV show where I dislike the main character so much. Childish Gambino cleverly and creatively created a main character that is almost unbearable to watch at times. If you think you’re going to find yourself with a new comfort character, let me be the first to tell you that you won’t. Dre will never make the choices you want her to; she is painfully awkward and always plotting the downfall of the characters you actually find yourself liking. But while acknowledging Dre’s faults, I also have to give credit to Childish Gambino, who created a killer that you can’t wait to be caught, which is shocking because we live in a world where people are creating likable serial killers. That was one thing that separated this show from all the other shows about various killers. It makes sense that someone who is going out of their way to kill other people wouldn’t exactly be the most sociable person.
Fan culture
While the show never explicitly mentions the singer and fan base they are alluding to throughout the series, it’s fairly obvious when the fanbase in real life is called the Bey Hive, and the one in Donald Glover’s show is called Swarm. Beyonce, people. I have to say this reference and allusion to what happens when fangirling goes too far was my favorite aspect of the show because of how relevant it is today. Beyonce is not the only singer in the world who has fans who would potentially kill for them. Fans and their obsession with the artist’s life have reached a point where it seems fairly concerning. Just because you enjoy an artist’s work and like their persona doesn’t mean that you actually know who they are or truly really know much about them. You only know as much as they let you see or find out. It may feel like you have a personal connection with them because of their work, but fans would do best to keep in mind that they have no real personal relationship with their favorite artists unless they happen to know them in real life. This speaks to things that are deeper than the show, but this even ties into cancel culture and the betrayal fans feel when their favorite artists say or do something that doesn’t align with the image of them that was created in their heads.
Billie Eilish
I’m not the biggest Billie Eilish fan in the world, but I do enjoy a couple of her songs. I wasn’t aware that she did any acting until I was surprised to see her cameo in Swarm’s first season. Billie was phenomenal. Out of all the characters that viewers have been introduced to, she has remained my favorite; not only does her character do a great job of drawing people in and connecting with them on screen, but Billie’s acting was alluring and seductive, and without giving her role or motives completely away, I feel as though she played her role perfectly. Great job, Billie Eilish, and I hope to see her in more roles in the future.
Overall thoughts
Swarm isn’t my favorite show I’ve ever seen, but it was something new and creative. I rated it four stars on Letterboxd because it kept me entertained, wasn’t something I felt had been done before, and was also created by one of my favorite artists. Overall it was an interesting show, and I’m curious as to whether a second season will follow due to where things left off during this season. I know finals season is coming up, but so is summer, so if you have free time and haven’t already checked the show out, I recommend it and would be curious to see your thoughts about it.