After surging across the United States, the wave of plastic surgery shows are finally crossing the border. But it is with a transformed face that it strikes Quebec.
ofExtreme Makeover To Botched Passing by Skin Decision – Before and After, 90210 And bridalplastyphysical transformation reality shows have monopolized the airwaves of specialty channels for years in the land of Uncle Sam.
The genre took time to invade the Belle Province. Broadcasters, however, seem determined to make up for lost time, as three of them have filled their schedules with original productions that examine the issue in recent months.
“The curiosity of Quebec viewers had not yet been satisfied,” observes Anne Fortin, content producer atInjections and scalpelsa documentary series currently broadcast on Canal Vie.
Plastic surgery has always fascinated people. We judge, we wonder, we want to know.
Anne Fortin, content producerInjections and scalpels
Directed by Mathieu Arsenault and Mathieu Vachon, the second season ofInjections and scalpels confirms that in medico-aesthetic care, nothing is impossible. Or almost. Last week, the series produced by Trinome & filles (presumed innocent) detailed the forehead reduction of a 25-year-old woman.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Journalist and director Karina Marceau
For Karina Marceau, who pilots and produces rebuild the body on AMI-télé, the “fundamentally television” nature of the subject partly explains its appeal. “We live in a culture of the image, specifies the journalist and director. The image is omnipresent. And year after year, it gets worse. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY AMI-TÉLÉ
scene of rebuild the body
Having required two and a half years of work, this immersion series focuses on functional plastic interventions, that is, those performed due to an accident, illness or congenital condition. Since January, you can follow the journey of half a dozen patients, including Marc, a truck driver from Saint-Hyacinthe, who obtained a facial prosthesis after suffering from fulgurating sinus cancer.
Information takes precedence
Quebec productions that deal with plastic surgery differ from American programs articulated around the same theme, we observe. In Botched, for example, we are hot on the heels of two rich Californian doctors who are repairing damaged body parts following failed procedures. We exhibit deformed breasts, deformed noses or lips swollen to the point of bursting.
“These shows show the rough bottoms,” says plastic surgeon Benoit LeBlanc, who can be seen in Injections and scalpels. They want to strike the imagination. They want to shock. The programs in Quebec seem to have a slightly more informative side than entertainment. Of course there has to be an entertaining component, otherwise no one would listen. But those from the United States are sensationalists. They want to make a fuss too much. »
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
The Dr Benoit LeBlanc
Same story with Luc Rousseau of Zone 3, producer of Plastic surgery: rebuilding life, an original series that examines patients who are victims of cancer or accidents wishing to return to a normal existence. “Our series has nothing to do with shows of failed operations. We have never shown how we can keep eternal youth. Those who watch us, it’s because they are interested in advances in medicine, in the human side. »
I like to think that in Quebec, viewers are demanding. I like to think they want to learn, not just satisfy their voyeuristic needs.
Luc Rousseau, producer of Plastic surgery: rebuilding life
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ME AND CIE
scene of Plastic surgery: rebuilding life
Breaking taboos
The abundance of plastic surgery shows could break many taboos and preconceived ideas about people who undergo this type of procedure. At least that’s what content producer Annie Fortin experienced when she started working on Injections and scalpels.
“Before, I was at the other end of the spectrum, full of prejudices. I thought we were just going to attract dancers as participants. In my mind, plastic surgery was often crude: big breasts, big buttocks… But when I started meeting patients, my vision changed completely. There are many reasons to consider plastic surgery. Sometimes people cry with joy after the operation because they have been taken away from a terrible complex that they have had for years. »
It is an extremely human subject and zero superficial. I thought it was the opposite.
Annie Fortin, Content Producer‘Injections and scalpels
According to Karina Marceau, who herself underwent three plastic surgery operations after suffering from thyroid gland disorders, we must salute the “educational” value of Quebec productions. They help fight clichés, she insists. “Neophytes think that a plastic surgeon just redefines breasts. It’s wrong. They can reconstruct all kinds of body parts. »
The Dr Benoit LeBlanc has also agreed to appear in Injections and scalpels to break down stereotypes. “I saw it as a chance to demystify surgery, to show the aspect a little less glamorous, to show something other than a series of patients with megaprostheses.
“About 15 years ago, people thought it was just very rich people trying plastic surgery,” he adds. But it’s wrong. Less than before, anyway. Today, the people who access aesthetic services are Mr. and Mrs. Everyone. »
AMI-tele presents rebuild the body Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Episodes are available for catch-up at amitele.ca and will be rebroadcast later in 2023 on ICI Explora. Canal Vie broadcasts Injections and scalpels Mondays, at 7:30 p.m. Moi et Cie has ordered a new season of Plastic surgery: rebuilding life.