Submission (TV series)

Last updated
Submission
Submission poster.png
Submission promotional poster
Genre
Erotic thriller
Created by
Starring
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes6 (list of episodes)
Production
ProducerSaskia Slade
Running time24–37 minutes
Release
Original network Showtime
Picture format 1080i (16:9 HDTV)
Audio format Dolby Digital 5.1
Original releaseMay 12 (2016-05-12) –
June 16, 2016 (2016-06-16)

Submission is an American erotic thriller mini-series created by Jacky St. James and Paul Fishbein, starring Ashlynn Yennie, Justin Berti, Victoria Levine and Raylin Joy. The series premiered on Showtime on 12 May 2016. [1]

Contents

Synopsis

The series follows the journey of Ashley (Ashlynn Yennie) from being in an unhappy relationship to her exploration of BDSM when she stumbles upon an erotic novel.

Cast

Main cast

Recurring

Development

The series co-creator, Jacky St. James, mentioned that she was unhappy with the way BDSM was portrayed in Fifty Shades of Grey , which she considers "passed off an abusive relationship as an honest interpretation of the BDSM lifestyle". She hoped to create a more nuanced view of the BDSM world with the series. In an interview with GQ, she described the series as, "imperfect people in BDSM relationships." [2] The lead actress Ashlynn Yennie also echoed the creator's sentiment saying, "Fifty Shades of Grey was not a correct portrayal of the type of sex that people practice. It made it seem like it was for people that were messed up or dark and it’s not at all." [3] She hoped that the show "can shatter that glass ceiling of false belief and show the world what it truly means to trust, communicate, and finally feel free to talk about what you want and don’t want sexually in a consensual and healthy way." [4]

The trailer for the series was released on 29 April 2016. [5]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateUS viewers
1"Slave" Jacky St. James Jacky St. JamesMay 12, 2016 (2016-05-12)55,000 [6]
Ashley (Ashlynn Yennie) is stuck in an unhappy relationship, but finally breaks up with her boyfriend. After the break-up, she moves in with her friend Jules (Victoria Levine). The next day while searching for the job she walks in on the cafetaria owner Raif (Kevin Nelson) and Dylan (Raylin Joy) having sex. She is embarrassed, but Raif ends up offering her a job as a barista. Later she finds out that Dylan is Jules' roommate. Ashley stumbles upon the erotic novel SLAVE by Nolan Keats and pleasures herself to it.
2"Control"Jacky St. JamesJacky St. JamesMay 19, 2016 (2016-05-19)106,000 [7]
Dylan catches Ashley reading the book and invites her to the book club to discuss the book. Although initially hesitant, Ashley agrees. Raif tells Ashley that he thinks Dylan is crazy and reveals that she had sex in the cafeteria bathroom a few days ago with a complete stranger (Sydney Black). In the bookclub, women discuss the book and talk about their fantasies. Later that night, Ashley sees Dylan taking Chelsea, one of the book club members, handcuffed and blindfolded in her car. She gets worried and calls Jules, but she doesn't pay attention. So she calls Raif at her home, Raif assures her that Chelsea will be fine and they end up having sex. Dylan takes Chelsea to a dungeon, ties her up naked and blindfolded, and introduces her to Elliott (Justin Berti).
3"Smut"Jacky St. JamesJacky St. JamesMay 26, 2016 (2016-05-26)119,000 [8]
Elliott engages in bondage with Chelsea, which she enjoys. Jules and Dylan tease Ashley about her encounter with Raif, while Ashley feels awkward about her relationship with Raif. Ashley also attempts to get her security deposit from her ex-boyfriend, Vincent (Spike Mayer). At Jules' 25th birthday party, it's revealed that Jules is not having an affair with her boss, Tomas (Brent Harvey), as everyone thinks, but her boss's wife, Scarlet (Nika Khitrova). Scarlet is smitten by Ashley's beauty and asks her if she'd be interested in posing nude for her. Dylan tries to recruit a woman for Elliott, but Elliott is interested in Ashley, to which Dylan says she's "off limits", but Elliott refuses to listen. Elliott, while talking to Ashley, claims that Nolan Keats is in fact his own pen name, but Ashley doesn't believe him. Elliott secretly steals Ashley's underwear and makes Hayley (Gia Ramey-Gay), who he picked up at the party, wear it while having sex with her. At the end of sex, he exclaims, "Thank you, Ashley", to Hayley's shock and dismay.
4"Master"Jacky St. JamesJacky St. JamesJune 2, 2016 (2016-06-02)98,000 [9]
Ashley receives a manuscript of Nolan Keats' next book, Owned in the mail and believes that Elliott is, in fact, Nolan Keats and thanks him for the book. Jules is shocked to hear that Tomas and Scarlet are renewing their vows and she angrily confronts Scarlet. Raif apologizes to Ashley about his drunken behaviour at the party and they agree to remain friends. Elliott asks Ashley if she'd be interested in a submissive experience with him, she agrees and as a part of the task, she agrees to go to work without wearing a bra. Meanwhile, to help Jules, Ashley agrees for a nude photoshoot with Scarlet so she can confront her about not leaving her husband, but Scarlet is ambivalent about leaving him because he has really helped her career. Dylan feels neglected from Elliott and tries to find ways to surprise him, only to get Elliott even more angry with her. Elliott finally invites Ashley to his house and they have sex.
5"Safeword"Jacky St. JamesJacky St. JamesJune 9, 2016 (2016-06-09)122,000 [10]
Elliott "punishes" Dylan for disregarding his wishes. Later Dylan inquires about Elliott's other escapades, Elliott reacts angrily to it and breaks off his arrangement with her, bringing her to tears. Elliott takes Ashley to his dungeon, establishes a safeword and introduces her to submissive sex. Jules confronts Scarlet about not leaving Tomas and after the discussion agrees to enter into a polyfidelituous relationship with Tomas and Scarlet, and they have threesome. After her initial nervousness and fear, Ashley decides that she wants to experience mummification. Dylan accidentally finds out about Elliott's letters to Ashley and is heartbroken. In her anger, she emails one of the old videos of a sex session of her and Elliott with another girl to blackmail him.
6"Domination"Jacky St. JamesJacky St. JamesJune 16, 2016 (2016-06-16)116,000 [11]
Elliott is disturbed when he receives threatening email from Dylan, who threatens that unless Elliott agrees to loan her to her, she'll expose him. Elliott tells Ashley that as a part of a submissive experience, she would be loaned to another dominant. Initially baffled, Ashley reluctantly agrees as a trust-building measure. During the submissive experience, Dylan puts her through pain, but she manages to complete it without using the safeword. Traumatised by the experience, she vows to Elliott that she'll never go through it again. Jules is not satisfied with her threesome and complains that threesomes are overrated. Raif disagrees and recounts his experience of a threesome with two older women, Melanie Masterson (Cherie DeVille) and Roberta Johnson (India Summer) and claims he satisfied both of them, however Ashley and Jules laugh him off. Jules realizes that she loves only Scarlet and cannot be in the relationship with both Scarlet and Tomas and breaks off the relationship. Dylan decides to move out of the house and while leaving she reveals to Ashley that Elliott is not Nolan Keats, just his copy editor; Ashley is heart-broken. She informs Elliott that revealing the secret was her ultimate act of domination. The series ends with an angry Ashley breaking up with Elliott, Jules now working for Raif in his cafe, and Dylan at the doorstep of the real Nolan Keats.

Reception

Ratings

The series debuted with low viewership of 0.01 share and 55,000 viewers. [6] However, the second episode almost doubled the viewers at 106,000 viewers and 0.02 share. [7] The series continued its rating growth with 0.03 share and 119,000 viewers in the third week. [8] The series finale accumulated the rating of 0.02 and 116,000 viewers. [11]

Critical reception

Uproxx praised the series saying, "[Submission] is trying to change the way we look at late-night erotica". [3] SheKnows also praised the show for its BDSM portrayal and said, "While Fifty Shades of Grey the movie failed to arouse interest for many, Submission is taking viewers deep into the world of BDSM — and it doesn't seem to be afraid to go there." [12]

Related Research Articles

<i>Flipping Out</i> American reality television series

Flipping Out is an American reality television series that debuted on Bravo on July 31, 2007, and ended on November 20, 2018. The show is centered on designer Jeff Lewis in Los Angeles, California, his executive assistant Jenni Pulos, his housekeeper Zoila Chavez, his business manager and boyfriend Gage Edward, and his other assistant(s) and helper(s). In 2014, Flipping Out was nominated for an Emmy award in the Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program category.

<i>Million Dollar Listing New York</i>

Million Dollar Listing New York is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on March 7, 2012. The show follows the lives of several luxury real estate agents as they represent property owners in New York's five boroughs. It is a spin-off of Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles.

<i>Review</i> (TV series) 2014–2017 Comedy Central series starring Andy Daly

Review is an American mockumentary comedy television series starring Andy Daly as professional critic Forrest MacNeil, who provides reviews of real-life experiences. The series was developed by Daly, Jeffrey Blitz and Charlie Siskel, and is an adaptation of the Australian television series Review with Myles Barlow. It premiered in the United States on March 6, 2014, on Comedy Central, and ended on March 30, 2017, with a total of 22 episodes over the course of three seasons.

<i>Bring It!</i> (TV series)

Bring It! was an American dance reality television series that debuted March 5, 2014, on Lifetime. On April 28, 2014, Lifetime announced an additional 10-episode renewal of Bring It!. Additional episodes returned on July 23, 2014. The second season premiered on January 23, 2015. New episodes aired on July 31, 2015. The third season premiered on January 1, 2016. On December 1, 2016, Lifetime renewed the show for a fourth season, which premiered on January 13, 2017. Concurrent, Lifetime added a traveling tour, Bring It Live! Lifetime renewed for the show for a fifth season, which premiered on March 2, 2018. However, according to Dianna Williams, the show has not been cancelled, due to the fact that some girls graduated off the team and Coach D has moved to Atlanta to open up a third Dollhouse.

<i>Bringing Up Bates</i> American reality television show

Bringing Up Bates is an American reality television show on Up TV. It is centered around Gil and Kelly Bates, their 19 children, and extended family.

<i>Baskets</i> (TV series) American television comedy series

Baskets is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on January 21, 2016, on FX. The series was co-created by Louis C.K., Zach Galifianakis, and Jonathan Krisel; Krisel is also the showrunner and director. Galifianakis stars in the dual lead role as Chip Baskets, a failed professional clown in Paris, who instead becomes a local rodeo clown in Bakersfield, California, and his twin brother, Dale Baskets. Galifianakis, C.K., M. Blair Breard, Dave Becky, Marc Gurvitz and Andrea Pett-Joseph serve as executive producers, with FX Productions as the production company. In 2017 C.K.'s production company Pig Newton had all ties to the show and FX cut after C.K. admitted to sexual misconduct with five women. On May 24, 2018, FX renewed the show for a fourth and final season, which premiered on June 13, 2019. The series ended on August 22, 2019.

<i>Mutt & Stuff</i> American childrens television series

Mutt & Stuff is an American children's television series that aired on Nick Jr. The series premiered on March 6, 2015, with an hour-long pilot and began airing regularly on July 10, 2015. It was created by Sid and Marty Krofft and Bradley Zweig. It stars Calvin Millan, the son of the series' producer Cesar Millan.

Imposters is an American dark comedy television series. The show premiered February 7, 2017, on the Bravo cable network with a 10-episode season. Announced in April 2015 as My So Called Wife, the series follows con artist Maddie, played by Inbar Lavi, who gets involved in relationships with men and women before leaving them "used and robbed of everything – including their hearts". On April 17, 2017, Bravo renewed the series for a second season, which premiered on April 5, 2018. On June 1, 2018, Bravo canceled the series after two seasons.

<i>Little Women: Atlanta</i> Reality television series about women with dwarfism

Little Women: Atlanta is an American reality television series that debuted on January 27, 2016, on Lifetime. It is the third spin-off series to Little Women: LA. The series chronicles the lives of a group of little women living in Atlanta, Georgia. For the third season, Briana Barlup & Emily Fernandez moved to the show Little Women: Dallas concurrent with their move to Texas.

<i>Summer House</i> (2017 TV series) American reality television series that premiered on the Bravo Network

Summer House is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on January 9, 2017.

Unikitty! is an American animated television series developed by Ed Skudder and Lynn Wang for Cartoon Network and produced by The Lego Group and Warner Bros. Animation. The series stars the character of the same name from The Lego Movie franchise

<i>Growing Up Hip Hop</i> Reality television series

Growing Up Hip Hop is the original installment of the Growing Up Hip Hop reality television franchise on WE tv. The series premiered on January 7, 2016, and chronicles the lives of the children of hip hop legends. Its success has led to the creation of spin-offs Growing Up Hip Hop: Atlanta and Growing Up Hip Hop: New York. The series is executive produced by Datari Turner Productions and Entertainment One Studios. On March 11, 2021, WE tv announced the show's return for a sixth season which premiered on May 13, 2021.

<i>Teen Mom: Young and Pregnant</i> American reality television series

Teen Mom: Young and Pregnant, is an American reality television series that premiered on March 12, 2018 on MTV. It is a spinoff of the Teen Mom franchise, which itself is a spinoff of MTV's 16 and Pregnant series. Teen Mom: Young + Pregnant is a docuseries similar to the original 16 and Pregnant format. It follows the lives of different teenage moms: Brianna Jaramillo, Kayla Sessler, Rachel Beaver, Kiaya Elliott, Madisen Beith and formerly Lexi Tatman, Jade Cline, Ashley Jones and Kayla Jones as they go through pregnancy and become young mothers.

How Far Is Tattoo Far? is an American reality television series hosted by Nicole Polizzi and Nico Tortorella that premiered October 11, 2018 on MTV. It is the US version of the UK series Just Tattoo of Us. Each episode features pairs of friends or family who have each designed a tattoo for the other. The tattoo isn't revealed to the recipient until the end of the show; keeping them and the viewer in suspense.

<i>Dark Side of the Ring</i> Canadian documentary television series on professional wrestling

Dark Side of the Ring is a Canadian documentary television series produced by Vice Studios. The series focuses on controversial subjects and events within the realm of professional wrestling.

References

  1. ↑ Lordygan, Kerr (3 May 2016). "2016 summer TV premiere dates". Rotten Tomatoes .
  2. ↑ "How BDSM Went Mainstream on TV". 28 December 2016.
  3. 1 2 Mark Shrayber (19 May 2016). "Showtime's 'Submission' Is Trying To Change The Way We Look At Late-Night Erotica". Uproxx .
  4. ↑ Ashlynn Yennie (28 May 2016). "My BDSM Journey: How I Became Empowered Through 'Submission'". The Daily Beast .
  5. ↑ Cole Delbyck (29 April 2016). "The Trailer For 'Submission' Puts The Sex In 'Fifty Shades' To Shame". Huffington Post .
  6. 1 2 Mitch Metcalf (13 May 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.12.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com . Archived from the original on 16 May 2016.
  7. 1 2 Mitch Metcalf (20 May 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.19.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com . Archived from the original on 23 May 2016.
  8. 1 2 Mitch Metcalf (27 May 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.26.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com . Archived from the original on 30 May 2016.
  9. ↑ Mitch Metcalf (3 June 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 6.2.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com . Archived from the original on 5 June 2016.
  10. ↑ Mitch Metcalf (10 June 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 6.9.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com . Archived from the original on 12 June 2016.
  11. 1 2 Mitch Metcalf (17 June 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 6.16.2016". Showbuzzdaily.com . Archived from the original on 18 June 2016.
  12. ↑ Sarah Long (24 May 2016). "If Fifty Shades of Grey was too tame for you, you've gotta watch Submission".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.