Maelstrom

I’ve been thinking this too... Isaac’s allergies are dangerous for those around him! 😆

"Penniless" can mean very different things to different people. For Hetty's social set, I assume it's more along the lines of not be able to live in the manner to which they are accustomed. And possibly having the family name tarnished by losing their fortune would be as devastating a blow. Just my spec. And because it can't be said enough, this was by far the best episode of the season and probably one of the best of the entire series. Just brilliantly done.

Or worse, build a bunch of condos to rent out as AirBnBs? 😱

I agree Rose's pregnancy hasn't had a big impact on what we've seen on the screen. I was just thinking that it had to be at least a consideration in the writers' room, that maybe she would be limited physically on what she could/would do, and they'd have to write accordingly. And I'm not saying this was the case for Rose but I have read of some actresses needing reduced shooting time during pregnancies, which would obviously affect the scripts. Though I bet we can all agree the wardrobe budget must have been increased this season to account for extra coats and sweatshirts. :D As for Sheila, obviously any storylines for Flower had to be shelved this season, though I'm looking forward to more Flower next year. And she is one of my favorites - I find that she and Pete bring a lot of heart to the show that the other ghosts, while hilarious, don't necessarily replicate, and I do feel her absence in that respect. JMO, of course. :)

I haven't watched all of today's airing but it's listed in my DVR as the Gala, and in the first hour I saw no signs of the Gala. Way to go, NBC. (Any signs of Adam's LP? Yes, I am stupidly optimistic) I love Jason Brown more than any other skater I've ever watched, but I too have had to mute his LP music all season. Groban's a big no for me, and I just can't hear Impossible Dream without thinking of the movie American Dreamz.

For me the disappointment comes from the fact that I know this show can do better, because they frequently have in the past. Somehow it's harder to take when something great lets you down rather than when something generally mediocre continues to be, well, mediocre. My 2¢, FWIW. That said, I do think the limited/rushed preproduction time due to the strike, along with the complications of Sheila and Rose's pregnancies, are a big part of why this season has been IMO largely subpar. So, I'm still hoping season 4 can get back on track.

Not quite sure what to think of all this - I don't want to immediately jump on the doom and gloom bandwagon, but all these bts changes don't give me a great feeling, so... 🤷🏻‍♀️ Found an article with some additional not-promising tidbits but I have no idea if this site is remotely reliable or if this is all pure spec pulled out of thin air, so take with a barrel of salt: https://knightedgemedia.com/2024/04/christine-boylan-jabbar-raisani-showrunner-netflix-avatar-the-last-airbender-season-2-exclusive/

Thank you, this has been bothering me too. And it's not just Carol, I don't even recall Pete saying anything about what Laura must be going through, how sad little Pete will grow up without grandparents, etc etc. The show is taking a very shallow approach to Carol's death, one that's purely for the gags, and it's rather disappointing. I much prefer the early seasons Carol who, while far from perfect, at least came across as a loving mother and a more or less decent person. Other than that, this was one of the better eps of the season. "What about unicorns?" "Oh, they're totally real."

Hmmm... I wonder what this means for the show going forward?

I didn't even bother with Easter Bloom since it looked to be on the religious side from the ads, and that's an automatic no for me (along with Amish movies and most royal movies). Recently caught a rerun of Sand, Sun and Romance (I think that's the title?) with Paul Campbell and Tricia Helfer - that's always a fun movie! Paul's pretty impossible not to like, and it's kinda fun to see Tricia in a rom com considering I usually see her in scifi-fantasy shows as a villain, lol. Also, Cancun is gorgeous.

I actually enjoyed Shifting Gears. Cars aren't my thing at all but the story held my interest, and I found the characters likable. Her final paint job was pretty cool looking, too. I think part of the reason Tyler seemed so slight and short was because he's so frequently paired with Lacey, who's barely over five feet tall IIRC and would make anyone look like a giant in comparison, lol. Found a great interview with Tyler - apparently Hallmark has launched a mentorship program for women directors (founded by Ashley Williams! I almost feel bad making fun of her for so many years now) and this was their first effort. And the director was none other than Crystal Lowe, aka the nerdy girl from Signed, Sealed and Delivered. Hollywood is such a boys club I really give Hallmark credit for giving more opportunities for women behind the camera as well as in front of it. https://people.com/tyler-hynes-celebrating-women-hallmark-channel-movie-shifting-gears-exclusive-8619400

Wow. 🤯🤬 And NBC expects me to give them *more* money to reward their fucking terrible coverage? Keep dreamin'. Sounds like I'll have to fire up the VPN.

I haven't gotten to watch the men yet - did they not show Adam's LP on broadcast?

What, just because this show has family wreaths instead of family trees?

Don't give these hacks any ideas! 🤢

Three years late to the party, but I just discovered this show last week - and I think I'm done with it already. I gave up on season 1 partway through, after learning that Deborah won (because I just couldn't with her) and now after watching this molten hot pile of bullshit, I don't think I'll waste any more time on this show. Sending Jason home even though he attempted to meet the challenge requirements, and keeping Chris who openly defied the challenge because he didn't want to do it? No. Just no. This show isn't worth my time or the spike in my blood pressure it's apparently going to trigger. Too bad, because there are a couple of people here like Kat and Nao whom I've really enjoyed. I want to watch cool, talented people make cool, amazing things - I don't want to watch egotistical snobs thumbs their noses at challenges they decide are beneath them and get rewarded for it! If I want to watch glassblowers make cool things, I bet there are countless Youtube videos that are all bullshit free. I've enjoyed reading everyone's comments here, though! 🙂

Me: Listen Steve, I’ve never been a gal to rewatch a thirty year old Frasier rerun for the hundredth time rather than watch GH. I’ve never been somebody going, “Hey, I can’t stand to watch another episode of this shit-fest today.”

Unless Flower (or any of the ghosts) can walk through solid earth I don’t see how walking out of the well is an option.

Just coming here to post that! Ozai's evil clearly wore off on DDK 😄 And I think Ozai would be disappointed that he didn't manipulate them more and get them to concede their utter defeat. Here's a fun one about their approach to bending And about the creatures

I almost expected the scribe to turn around before leaving to flash a big thumbs up at Aang, lol. Heck, for Zuko that's a big beaming grin! 😄

HA! The PCPD wishes they were on the same level as Hitchcock and Scully. At least H&S actually solved crimes back in their heyday.

Right? It would be so much fun. I also thought about one of those drinking bird toys just for the sheer absurdity of it 😄 One bob for yes, two for no.

Don’t throw the cakes out, Jay! Find somewhere to sell them, or give them as gifts/bribes to the neighbors. Maybe June and Allie like cake! Also, I’m thinking there should be wind chimes or something in every room that Trevor can poke for some rudimentary conversations with Jay - one jingle for yes, two for no. Could make for a fun gag.

Overall thoughts: I feel this remake was a really good adaptation of the original animated series. There were a few missteps and decisions I don't really agree with/fully get why they were made, but there were enough things I loved for the positive to far outweigh the negative. The Good: Casting for most of the main characters. Dallas Liu, Gordon Cormier, and Ian Ousley were all so perfectly cast it's like the animated characters were brought to life as flesh and blood people. All three so perfectly and believably embodied their characters and I loved watching them. Gordon especially impressed me, since he was so young when this was filmed and he so perfectly captured all of the facets of Aang's character. He had a lot of big moments to play out, and he blew me away in every one. And a big kudos to Dallas - Zuko is such a complex character who's just as important to what makes AtLA what it is as Aang, and I wasn't sure if anyone could do what Dante Basco did with just his voice. But Dallas really stepped up and delivered every episode. I wasn't sure about Paul SunHyung Lee as Iroh initially just because his voice and general vibe seemed so different from Mako, and it was hard for me to imagine anyone embodying Iroh like him. But holy crap I take it back, because Paul was absolutely freaking fantastic and a total scene stealer. He made me tear up so many times, and I love him for it. If only we all had an Uncle Iroh! The adult cast of supporting actors in general was wonderful and all perfectly cast, and Daniel Dae Kim turned in a chilling performance as psychopath Ozai (not that any of us doubted he would). The obvious love for and knowledge of the original showed through in so many details big and small, and it just made me so happy to see those little moments and hear those lines taken directly. The fleshing out of Zuko, his twisted dynamic with his father and his loving, supportive dynamic with Iroh was one of the things I was most hoping we'd see, and this didn't disappoint. I also really, really loved the extended interactions between Aang and Zuko, and all I'll say on that is that I really really need to see seasons 2 and 3 happen. Please, Netflix. Dallas and Gordon just captured those scenes so beautifully. And I really loved seeing more of Iroh's backstory especially with Lu Ten and how that loss changed the course of Iroh's life. I've always felt that Lu Ten's death was a turning point in the lives of the entire royal family, because so much change resulted from it (Perhaps in the future we could have flashbacks with Lu Ten? Please?) Visuals were stunning and so realistic looking BlueSpiritBlueSpiritBlueSpiritBlueSpirit holy crap just as awesome as I could've hoped and so much was taken shot for shot and I loved it so much! The Less Good: Episode 5 in the spirit world was largely a misstep IMO. The general tone was somewhat incongruous with the rest of the show, and personally I feel it introduced a lot of story elements that just frankly didn't need to be there. And in turn things that should have been given focus (such as Heibai's storyline) were lost in the shuffle. The lack of adventure of the week/road trip vibes - I fully understand why they changed that, because 7 1/2 hrs of live action in the streaming age of the 2020s is a totally different creature than 10ish hrs of animation on a kids cable network in the 2000s. But diminishing that aspect also diminished lots of little opportunities to develop Aang, Katara and Sokka's personalities and also show their growing bond. It's a hard line to toe, and while I think this version did the best they could with the time/budget they were given, I do wish we could have gotten more fun adventures. The Hmmmm Bumi. I'm still torn about this since we know there's still more story to come, and so I know it's too soon to judge. But I can't help but feel that the changes made to Bumi's character were a disservice. Here has come across IMO as mean, unbalanced, largely toothless character instead of the weird but hugely powerful ally he was in the original. Totally agree with Lugal's (potentially spoilery) thoughts about Omashu. Time will tell where they take Bumi from here, but... hm. Though I have to give Utkarsh credit for his performance, I love him on Ghosts and I thought he did a good job with what he was given. The focus on the devastation of war, and its effects on the world of Avatar was a realistic and mostly well-written aspect of this version that I largely appreciated. However, by season's end I did feel like that aspect was emphasized at the expense of others, and a little more balance (Avatar pun!) wouldn't go amiss in future seasons. Katara was the weakest of the main characters, sad to say, and she was my favorite in the original. I do think part of it was Kiawentiio not being perhaps as strong of an actor as Gordon, Ian or Dallas. Part of it though, is the character just didn't get enough focus to get a strong sense of her. Disappointing, though hoping that this will change in future seasons. Really hoping for a renewal, because I want more! Bring on seasons 2 and 3 Netflix!

This was a good episode and a solid finale. I would say overall it felt as though there was more focus on the action of the battle than on the big character moments, and I personally would have been fine with the fighting being trimmed down a but. Though I gotta say Koizilla looked a lot cooler than I thought, they did a fantastic job with the effects there. Zuko didn't get quite as much screen time as in the original but I loved his goodbye scene with Iroh at the beginning, and his comment about Lu Ten being fortunate to have Iroh as a father (I forget his exact words) was a lovely touch too. Interesting that the original had Iroh explicitly tell Zuko he sees him as his own son since losing Lu Ten, but that was dropped here - I understand it though, since this version has made a point of showing Iroh's unspoken love for Zuko in many instances, so that we didn't need it spelled out. Also, didn't the original finale have Zuko's famous line that Azula was born lucky, but he himself was lucky to be born? Interesting that was left out. And of all the lines they did keep, it was Zuko calling Katara "You little peasant," lol. Zuko's people skills *are* legendary, after all. And his final scene with Zhao, oh, ouch. Those are some hard truths, and to hear them from Zhao of all people. Poor Zuko. No wonder he's messed up. Ditch your abusive dad! Go with your loving uncle and maybe a few new friends instead. Ken Leung did a brilliant job of playing a very unlikeable man. "I'm only gonna kill the moon!" Like, duh, don't be silly! Excellent actor, horrible character. Aang's standoff with Zhao was so well done, and I loved that Iroh heard his speech, and saw the sacrifice Aang made. I've enjoyed that this version has had them connect in more scenes. Iroh is, as always, a joy to watch. The female water benders ready to fight was a powerful scene, even if Pakku did only let them do repairs. I appreciated Pakku's final scene with Katara, about forgetting that water was the element of change. Katara finally felt like the Katara from the original, but honestly I'm really surprised she's already a "master" when so little focus was given to her learning to waterbend. It's a bit of a disappointment, since her journey to learn bending is a big part of her character development. Same with Aang, though I suppose I could hand wave that he's spent the season learning what it is to be an Avatar, rather than mastering the other elements. Still though. Bending's important! It's in the title! Momo!! Thank goodness they healed him, I am not up for any of our adorable creatures being hurt. Yue's sacrifice and Han's rewritten-but-inevitable death were both just as tear-jerking as expected, and I thought Amber Midthunder did a wonderful job in her final scenes. I loved the Spirit Grove! Just like the original, I want to live there. The map of the Northern Water Tribe the Fire Sage showed Zhao in flashback looked gorgeous and I'm sorry we didn't get a better shot of it to freeze frame. Glad Kuruk showed up again. There's a big bad comet a-comin'! But Bumi's captured already? And the Fire Nation has airships already? Hmmm... Thoughts on the season overall to come.