It didn’t take long at all for Turn of the Tide, known locally as Rabo de Peixe, to enter the Top 10 of Netflix’s most-viewed shows in several countries, but just as quickly, the complaints started pouring in.
The Portuguese thriller set in the archipelago of Azores has everything an international hit requires — a dramatic, compelling narrative, great cinematography, and relatable characters trying to make ends meet. Of course, it also has plenty of traditional Portuguese elements to make native viewers proud, allowing fans from all corners of the world to get better acquainted with the country and a few aspects of its culture. Unfortunately, the show gets a major thing wrong, enough to spark uproar online.
Turn of the Tide almost completely erases the accent of the people it’s trying to portray on screen, Azoreans, by having actors from Continental Portugal play all the main characters. This is a typical issue in most local productions and one that viewers are tired of, especially when there are so many talented artists from all regions of the country. Naturally, folks have taken to sharing their grievances on social media, pointing out the irony of the series being named after the place it misrepresents, Rabo de Peixe.
Married to an Açoreana here… So far, very unhappy with the portrayal of life in the islands and wants to know why people from Rabo de Peixe all sound like they’re from Lisbon. 2 thumbs down for lack of authenticity.
— CD Barros (@CDBarros8) May 29, 2023
The subject might sound silly to outsiders, and maybe it really is, but Portuguese people have very strong feelings about how the media portrays (a lot of the time stereotypes) folks from certain regions of the country, especially those in which non-Lisboner accents reign supreme.
Another issue some have brought up is the difficulty a lot of actors from the Islands face when trying to find jobs in their field, solely due to their accents. Portuguese media rarely writes TV show roles for people from Azores or Madeira, so when the opportunity knocks on the door, it’s sad to see Islanders being denied their chance to shine.
All that said, there’s a counter-argument to be made about how, if Azoreans were playing the main characters in Turn of the Tide, the vast majority of Portuguese speakers would need subtitles to understand their own language. Rabo de Peixe’s accent is just that strong. Is it worth sacrificing proper representation in favor of the majority’s comfort, though? The Portuguese are still deciding.
