Fans of 'Reservation Dogs' have questions about owl eyes being blurred out in some episodes of the display. Why are owl eyes bad? Here's what to know.
The significantly acclaimed FX display Reservation Dogs follows 4 Indigenous teenagers in Oklahoma named Elora (Devery Jacobs), Bear (D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai), Willie Jack (Paulina Alexis), and Cheese (Lane Factor). The staff is grappling with the death of their friend Daniel and wrestling with the idea of transferring to California, like Daniel wanted. The display's many positive evaluations have led them into a second season, with one necessary disclaimer: No owls were harmed in the making of this show.
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Episode Three of Season 1 deliberately blurs the eyes of the owl statues at Uncle Brownie's (Gary Farmer) house. The owls go back in the premiere episode of Season 2 as neatly. Why are owl eyes bad on Reservation Dogs? Let's dive in.
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Why are owl eyes bad in 'Reservation Dogs'?
Among its many accolades, Reservation Dogs is notable as the first display on television to have a nearly entirely Indigenous manufacturing crew. As such, you need to observe that culturally, owls constitute various things to other teams of folks, particularly inside Indigenous communities.
In an interview with NPR in 2021, Native journalist and movie critic Vincent Schilling explains how happy he was once with Season 1 of Reservation Dogs and the "Indigenous Easter eggs" in the show. Vincent says, "Well, there's ... there's a scene where they see an owl. And they're like, oh — oh, gosh, oh gosh. And then [series creator] Sterlin Harjo even, like, pixelizes the eyes of the owl."
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Vincent further explains to interviewer Noel King, "Yeah because in many Native cultures, the owl is a harbinger of evil (laughter). So ... and you wouldn't know that, you know, unless ... you're involved in the Native community."
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A Reddit thread concerning the Season 1, Episode 3 scene in query additionally highlights that different Native cultures view owls in different ways. One Reddit user says, "Comanche/Kiowa here. If [owls] look at you and talk it means death for someone close to you. Different in every tribe, but generally, bad medicine."
Another person in the same thread provides, "Plains Tribes like the Osage consider owls to be omens of death. ... Sgili or screech owls are the only ones who may be considered bad only because they are associated with shapeshifters."
However, in different Native cultures, owls can be indicators of ancestors looking to make touch, or they can be symbols of insight, magic, or fertility, in line with The Focus News.
Many enthusiasts of the show have praised the pixelation of owl eyes, now not best as a hysterical visual gag but as a nod to the Indigenous community.
New episodes of Reservation Dogs are now streaming on Hulu on Wednesdays.
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