Frisson

I agree that"Fast Car" is a sad song, but I thinkTracy Chapman's "Behind the Wall" is so hopeless that it's the one that really gets me. Aimee Mann's "Give Up" is not a song I can hear if I'm already sad. It will push you over the edge.

One of the criticisms aimed at the show was that the titular character seems to take a backseat. Like "Orange is the New Black," I think it's clever to provide an entry to the world of the show with this bland main (white) character, and end up showcasing a diverse cast made up of characters with interesting backstories. I did think that Marco was in a difficult position most of the time, but still managed to not be that sympathethetic a lot of the time. I thought Kublai and Chabi were great characters, and I, too, was glad that Hundred Eyes made it to the end.

Schmidt not knowing how to do laundry and having to have NICK as his "trainer" slayed me. Sangria brings out the best in all of us.

Out of all of her incarnations, Sarah is the one I understand being attracted to least with the weird accent. Mara's so naughty!

I know that Audrey says she doesn't think of using Duke until she sees the collage of baby pics, but it really seems like bringing him along to find the Troubled guy had one intent from the beginning.

Nathan's face falling when Audrey explains she has to give the dog away because "It wouldn't work out" breaks my heart every time!

I was bummed out by the poor Trouble of the Week having to be abducted by aliens to end it for everybody else. Does he imagine he's being probed? Did the grandfather ever come back or was the grandson destined to a personal Troubled hell, too?

I think the samba wouldn't have felt kind of slow if it weren't for the music. It seemed to hurt the choreography's potential by making it seem like they wanted to go faster but were weighted down.

Can you clarify the theories you are encountering and feeling a need to push back on? At its most basic, I think the genre entails at least two people who are romantically interested in each other but have at least one obstacle that keeps them from eternal happiness in a series of comical events. I think a recent trend questions whether the two people who like each other know the other well enough to bother with a movie's-length worth of keeping them apart, or if our culture and the genre itself have conditioned certain expectations in romantic endeavors by perpetuating this meet-cute, live happily-ever-after cliche. For example, "Don Jon" recently contrasted a man's expectation of women based on porn vs. a woman's expectation of a man based on romantic movies and all of the issues that arise from such. Of course, I'm interested in the definition of romantic comedy because most romances I enjoy include a bit of tragedy. There is as much crying as laughter in many of the romantic movies I enjoy, like "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and "P.S. I Love You."

I imagined Rachel McAdams as Amy because she is intimidatingly beautiful, accessible when needed, with a major bitch streak ready underneath. I agree that Patrick Wilson could be stoic and have the face you want to punch.

Another use of that neon yellow and another instance of me not getting her design aesthetic. It looked so ugly! I couldn't believe it wasn't in the bottom while Sean's was.

I forgot Amy Adams. When she smiles, it's a little too wide, and you can see her gums. She also seems to have an "aw, shucks"-ness about her that I don't believe.

Lizzie Caplan. I didn't particularly enjoy Janice Ian in "Mean Girls" as much as everyone else seemed to because she wasn't an amusing cliche like the titular characters. As time has passed and I've seen her in other things, I realize that is it is the actress. She is attractive until she opens her mouth. Something about the way she talks and moves her mouth annoys the crap out of me, and it seems like she always plays characters the same way, even if they are supposed to be different.

I found the scene with Wayne very affecting as well. After he told her that he had seen his death or something like that, I thought he was going to die while hugging her. Something about the way his expression changed made it seem like her sorrow might be too much for him? Someone in a previous episode thread had theorized that the show would be more interesting if it focused on Nora's character, and I think they were totally right. There is something about the character/actress that is very compelling; she is a more interesting and sympathetic character than Theroux's character while still doing the same exasperated, grieving act with some smart ass thrown in. I was practically delirious when he came by to ask her out but wanted to yell that he hadn't gotten her number.

The thing that I have loved most about the show was the dreary atmosphere. With that, I didn't see a way for the show to end without Linden killing herself. When she talked with the boy and told him confessing would make everything okay, I thought she would shoot him and herself. Since another thing I loved about the show was the relationship between Linden and Holder, the ending was more satisfying than I was expecting and the line about home was perfect. I was glad that they included a time jump because they both needed to move on for a while and let Linden figure things out away from the job. I think the shortened time to develop each mystery made Seasons 3 and 4 more satisfying than the first. Few shows have depressed me and made me revel in its darkness like this show has.

I couldn't stop laughing at the panic-stricken look on Holder's face when the girlfriend dropped the p-bomb. Like he needed any other things on his mind. Did the markings on the kid's back imply abuse from the parents or the school? I have so many questions, so it feels like another season is keeping up this show's tradition of keeping me sad and confused so far. I liked the alpha-female showdown in every scene with the superintendent and Linden. Holder's smirky enjoyment of it increased my own.

Do we know Fausto's background? He might qualify as a monster without a background to warrant it.

I couldn't help myself so I read the interview. In it, Potente says she was only supposed to be in a certain number of episodes, and then her role kept expanding. I wonder how much of a plan is in place for the season before they start if that's the case. Off-topic: Franka Potente likes all the same shows I do!

I wondered if Jenna already knew Michael because she was all over him! Not that I blame her.

I felt bad for Carrie when he loudly declared how tired he was of her schtick already. Self-awareness is not his strong suit. Juxtaposed with other designers who seem to have really humble or difficult upbringings, Mitchell sounded like such a drama queen when he talked about his own background, carefully avoiding any specifics.

I loved her designs initially, but she reminds me of a Chihuahua. I don't want to see her break down every week.

I'm excited to see how she uses color. Her draped top was lovely although I could never pull off that particular color. Shallow: I think she's pretty.

Sandhya kind of reminds me of Patricia from a recent season (can't remember which one...last?) in that once she explains her thought process behind the clothes, they are more interesting. Also, her work seems very hit-or-miss, and other designers "don't get it". I'm excited to see some new things, with color (!), and I think she will bring some interesting designs. Her winning design looked hideous in the workroom, but once it went down the runway, I could see why it was in the top.

In theory, her point of view was interesting, if a little judgmental. Seeing her dresses though, made me flash back to the 80's and old ladies.

While I did agree his shorts were not the best, I wanted to see more from Jefferson based on his portfolio. I'm irritated that Mitchell's shorts won this battle.