Spinning Out

[apgold]

0.00 star(s) Rating: 0.00/5 0 Votes

Title: Spinning Out

Genre: Drama

First aired: 2020-01-01

Creator: Samantha Stratton

Cast: January Jones, Kaya Scodelario, Willow Shields, Evan Roderick, Mitchell Edwards, Will Kemp, Kaitlyn Leeb, Amanda Zhou, Sarah Wright, Svetlana Efremova, David James Elliott

Overview: Kat Baker is an up-and-coming, high-level single skater who is about to turn in her skates after a disastrous fall. When Kat seizes an opportunity to continue her career as a pair skater with a talented bad-boy partner, she risks exposing a fiercely kept secret that could unravel her entire life.

 

[fzztsimmons]

I'm on episode 6 out of 10, and I love it, but I love trash so my taste is questionable

If you're looking for a super realistic figure skating programme this probably isn't it. It's a teenage angst drama that is set around people who skate rather than an ins and out look at the sport. But I guess if that's what you're looking for, you wouldn't be watching a netflix show.

However from what I've seen it's been decent-ish in reflecting skating (the jumps are correct, the terminology is fine, the process is accurate) and I appreciate they're not going for something outlandish (e.g. going to the olympics - the main characters are aiming for Nationals) with the storyline. I also think the skating shots with the body doubles have been good. Also the premise of the switch to pairs skating makes much more sense when you get the context and backstory from the show.

Warning though, it is quite dark - heavy focus on mental illness, medication and dysfunctional families and questionable/abusive parenting practices. Also scenes of self-harm and general injury/blood. It's not a light and fluffy show.

TL;DR if you want a decent show about figure skating this probably ain't it. If however you want trashy angsty drama whilst also enjoying some figure skating on the side, I recommend it :agree:

 

[fzztsimmons]

PS. I said this on reddit - between the identicalness of kaya scodelario to tessa virtue and how the guy is basically a blonde scott moir and jesus, the freaking red-headed russian coach!! not a single person can convince me that the producer did not just binge watch tessa & scott's reality show, thought it still needed more drama, stumbled across some weird virtue/moir fanfictions and somehow this netflix show was born.

it is so trashy and i love it

 

[pearly]

Thoughts until now (ep 3 maybe):

1. Wow, we have gotten old if January Jones (who I first saw in Love Actually) is playing mom to a 21 year old.
2. The town they live in has a population of 7000 people, yet the stands are full for the competition where she falls and hits her head. But hey, at least there were no spotlights.
3. Who over the age of 10 trains in a skirt?
4. Also, that's a ballet outfit she's wearing, not a skating one.
5. She nearly quit skating and won't jump anymore since her fall, but decides to skate pairs. Because that's less dangerous than jumping on your own?
6. The other pairs partner has all her triples, but struggles with the triple Toe. So our heroine decides to show the pairs guy she's the right partner by landing a 3T, even though she hasn't been jumping triples and is popping her doubles. Okay.
7. She has no coach, but still pays for ice time. Also, it's normal for a skater to just come to practice and play their music when they so desire.
8. The skating not done by doubles is decent, but still not close to good (crossovers, stroking etc) and we're pretending they're about to make nationals and Olympics.

That said, I agree with the OP - the show isn't very good, but it's watchable. I'm glad there's the whole mother-daughter relationship/mental illness/new coach & minor skater story as well because the skating part of the story isn't very realistic or well done. I wonder if doctors, laywers or police officers feel like this when they watch a show depicting their respective fields.

 

[apgold]

PS. I said this on reddit - between the identicalness of kaya scodelario to tessa virtue and how the guy is basically a blonde scott moir and jesus, the freaking red-headed russian coach!! not a single person can convince me that the producer did not just binge watch tessa & scott's reality show, thought it still needed more drama, stumbled across some weird virtue/moir fanfictions and somehow this netflix show was born.

it is so trashy and i love it

She does look a lot like Tessa. Originally, Emma Roberts was supposed to play Kat, but dropped out. Emma looks nothing like Tessa, though.

Thanks for your take on the show - trashy is a good word to describe it, lol.

 

[Ulrica]

It's an entertainment show to watch when there's nothing else to do and one doesn't want to actually think that much. I binged watched it lol. Nothing special, but it's not actually bad, I'm glad they touched subjects like mental health and the abuse that can happen within the power dynamics of coaches/doctors and skaters. I liked the obvious nods to some skaters in the costumes, like the costume Kat was wearing when she hit her head, it looked a lot like Alina's Black Swan, and her tango dress looked a lot like Tessa's Moulin Rouge. Also, one of Jenn's dresses looked a lot like Yuna's Adiós Nonino.

 

[el henry]

I have not seen “Spinning Out”, but I doubt that the inaccuracies would bother me that much.

I enjoy courtroom dramas even though most of the speechifying and action bears absolutely no resemblance to a real courtroom. And Spousal Unit, the classics professor, has no problem watching “sword and sandals” movies even though their relation to Ancient Rome or Greece is tenuous at best. ( A more realistic depiction of the ancient Western world was HBO’s series “Rome”.)

Since you asked

 

[vesperalvioletta]

I'm a few episodes in and it's your typical skating melodrama. So far I've found it quite similar to the Cutting Edge series. Edgy boy meets stereotypical ice princess and together they resolve their issues by learning to trust one another through pairs skating. There's a token Russian coach. The usual.

Being a skating fan, I have to laugh when they talk about Kaya Scodelario's character Kat as a "once-in-a-generation talent" next to the actual quality of the skating, but it's still fun and mindless to watch. I'm not totally sold on Johnny Weir's role in the series since he's such a distinctive personality, and its hard to separate him as he is in real life from his character on the show. The JVN cameo cracked me up though, and I think the actress who plays Leah looks a lot like Stanislava Konstantinova.

 

[apgold]

Title: Spinning Out

Genre: Drama

Creator: Samantha Stratton

Cast: January Jones, Kaya Scodelario, Willow Shields, Evan Roderick, Mitchell Edwards, Will Kemp, Kaitlyn Leeb, Amanda Zhou, Sarah Wright, Svetlana Efremova, David James Elliott

First aired: 2020-01-01

Overview: Kat Baker is an up-and-coming, high-level single skater who is about to turn in her skates after a disastrous fall. When Kat seizes an opportunity to continue her career as a pair skater with a talented bad-boy partner, she risks exposing a fiercely kept secret that could unravel her entire life.

 

[gkelly]

Also, it's normal for a skater to just come to practice and play their music when they so desire.

That's normal on the midmorning sessions I often skate on, mostly adult skaters.

Perhaps also for elite skaters on sessions with <10 skaters.

On crowded sessions, there are more formal procedures.

 

[louisa05]

I'm watching it now. On Episode 6.

So much crazy with the skating stuff. I mean, OMG! Serena landed a 3-2 combo, she can win Nationals!!

And Kat could pay for coaching and costumes and ice time with $2200. What kind of discount rink is this? (At least they acknowledged on the side that the costume actually did cost more than $700).

I also like how every single skater at the rink seems to have their own coach devoted solely to them. And on my television right now, Kat, who couldn't land a triple until right before regionals, is just sure she is able to throw in a three jump combo in the free skate that they've never practiced. No problem.

But as someone said above, at least the lights are on for competitions and they acknowledge that there are 2 programs. And it is entertaining.

 

[LynsJ]

Currently on episode 5. Typical Netflix drama/angsty show but worth a watch. [emoji846][emoji960]

 

[Mamamiia]

That's normal on the midmorning sessions I often skate on, mostly adult skaters.

Perhaps also for elite skaters on sessions with <10 skaters.

On crowded sessions, there are more formal procedures.

I think coaches and skaters can play program music any time during a freestyle session if no one else is waiting in the line.

 

[sallyhatchet]

I think this show is terrible but I am still 100% here for it. The dialogue is so cringey. There are tropes everywhere. Literally every second is a new drama. I'm enjoying drinking to it and being like WTF all the time. My husband has been kind of half watching it with me while doing other things and he keeps being like - so is this person supposed to be like a villain and I'm like no they are just all terrible to each other all the time.

Also I watched Skins back in the day and so I'm practically watching this as if Effy Stonem took up ice skating hahahaha. Kaya is perfect for this role, it's basically Skins on Ice.

I would be very curious to hear what some actual skaters think about the show!

I'm only on episode three but I kind of am finding what level they are supposed to be at confusing? Like having the goal of making it to nationals in two years sounds like they are at a much less elite level but then there are mentions of going to the olympics and Kat says something like she might as well because otherwise what is she going to always make money as a waitress, but if she is only at the skating level where she hopes to make nationals I don't see her making money from skating? Also the way the moms and other skaters act make it seem like a more fraught competitive situation - but for all I know it's like that, I've never skated myself! I certainly hope most rinks aren't this toxic though, lol.

 

[louisa05]

I'm basically live posting this now...

So Kat and Justin skate at sectionals and just leave the rink after their scores and as they are leaving (in costume!), Jen is taking the ice as the final skater of the day, but she skates ladies singles. So apparently, skaters just go in random order regardless of discipline and all have the same judges.

Yes, it made for love triangle drama...but really?

 

[Ducky]

I think this show is terrible but I am still 100% here for it. The dialogue is so cringey. There are tropes everywhere. Literally every second is a new drama. I'm enjoying drinking to it and being like WTF all the time. My husband has been kind of half watching it with me while doing other things and he keeps being like - so is this person supposed to be like a villain and I'm like no they are just all terrible to each other all the time.

So, basically Gossip Girl on ice.

 

[ManyCairns]

Speaking of January Jones and age -- The lead actress looks likes she's pushing 30, not anywhere close to 21, so she doesn't look like she could be January Jones's daughter even if Jones's character had had her when a teenager. But if I had Netflix, I'd watch this with expectations adjusted per everyone's comments!

 

[ladyjane]

Hahaha. I have not yet watched it, but it sounds like quite fun and interesting. Trashy perhaps, irrealistic as far as the skating is concerned, but at least it touches on some real issues, bipolarity, mental health issues in general and the need to hide them, etc. I never expect a skating film or series to be realistic anyway as far as the skating is concerned, so if there's some nice skating present, it's a bonus. I'll be going for it (after finishing with another trashy series; hihihi).

 

[Lunalovesskating]

They put the plot of 3 seasons into one season and did not even think these plots fully through, but just throw them out there for shock value..

 

[icybear]

Just watched the first episode. Looks mediocre in potential at the moment. At least the competitions were held in bright lights and not in spotlight. Thank god they got that simple fact right.