Chief Queef

The "feminine" argument is a bit silly. Plenty of women are not stereotypically feminine in their self-presentation and have no problem finding boyfriends or husbands. I think what people mean to say is just that Heather's demeanor is harsh and cold, not warm and nurturing like you'd expect a wife to be. And although I don't care for either of their personalities, I'm not willing to write them off as terrible people yet since this show has a history of making bad matches and then passing blame on the participants. Personally I think Heather just doesn't want to be on the show. I noticed regret dawning on her face as the wedding approached in the first episode, before she even met Derek. It's a stupid decision and a waste of time to come on this trainwreck show and actually expect to get a decent match out of it, and I think she probably realized that early on in the process but couldn't back out since she signed a contract and is now just gritting her teeth through it. I don't blame her for hating it, but at the same time I don't feel sorry for her either (or anyone else on this show) since they knew exactly what they were signing up for.

Eh, I'll roll with it. It's a fun campy network show and I've seen worse/sillier exposition in sci-fi...ahem, Prometheus anyone? I still have a ton of questions (how did they get the dry goods and stuff to last that long? why the brutal repression and public executions?) but I'm sure the show will answer them in time...or, you know, not answer them and leave giant gaping Shyamalam-ish plot holes. Either way I'm still having fun! One thing I found interesting was how Wayward Pines leadership refers to the abbies as "devolution of humankind" and "less than human." There's really no such thing as "devolution", only evolution, so in reality the abbies are MORE than human as the next phase in human evolution in response to climate change (or whatever rapid global shift the show claims caused the mutation). But the fact that management is choosing to refer to them that way, along with the town's political repression and the uniform demographic makeup of the people they selected for freezing, makes me think this is actually a giant eugenics experiment and Pilcher's end goal is more sinister than just sustaining the human species.

P.S. Am I the only one who finds Jon Snow's prettiness distracting, and not entirely in a good way? I feel like hair and makeup should rough his look up a tiny bit more. His hair is just SO luscious and glossy I find myself wondering where he managed to find L'Oreal products on the Wall? I also realize this is a dumb thing to complain about, lol.

WOOOW! Just when this show was starting to suck, they brought me back. The White Walkers ROCK and I'm now very curious about their back story, their plans and motivations, and how all the show's human characters will (or won't) band together to stop them. Also love how much info everyone provided on the thread about the actress who played the wildling lady! She really stood out to me, I found her incredibly charismatic, strong and sexy. I only wish we could've seen more of her. Unpopular opinion: I do not find A Man handsome or attractive, I find him rather annoying. Ditto for Jorah. It's so nice to have Dany and Tyrion finally together. Is it just me or were they flirting a little? It also made me realize I really only care about their storyline and Jon Snow's. The show has way too many boring, extraneous storylines and they need to start trimming the fat soon. I truly don't give a crap about the Reek or the Boltons and I'm sorry a formerly interesting character like Sansa has been pulled into their massive orbit of suckage.

I've always found the "historical accuracy" argument pretty weak for a show that also features dragons, napalm attacks and the freaking walking dead as everyday occurrences. It's not a period drama, it's a show set in a fantasy world with some allusions to medieval Europe. And even if rape is a commonplace occurrence in this world, that doesn't mean viewers aren't allowed a critical response to WHEN and HOW it is portrayed. On a show where naked female bodies are routinely portrayed as mute, sexualized scenery objects complete with leering porn-y camera pans, I think it's a reasonable expectation that viewers will be somewhat suspicious of how the writers (who are 100% male this season afaik?) choose to portray sexual violence against women. And at the end of the day it's a 21st century show marketed toward a 21st century audience - of course contemporary sexual politics are relevant to the discussion! That said, I think we actually are seeing some growth with Sansa. She's gotten an admirably quick read on Ramsay and has already begun using his weaknesses against him. I also don't think her revenge, when it comes, will be in the form of a big crazy feminist moment of kicking Ramsay out the window or whatever. I think it'll be through trickery and subterfuge designed to tear the Bolton family's solidarity apart from inside. And apart from Cersei's (cheap and telegraphed from 10 miles away) comeuppance, I didn't find much to enjoy about this episode. Right now I'm questioning the writers' decision not to check in on some characters (Bran, Hodor etc.) at all this season while devoting TONS of time to uninteresting characters like the Boltons. Meanwhile some storylines (i.e. Dany at Meereen) have moved at a snail's pace, while others (Dorne) have developed in ridiculous ways. Imma need GoT to get it together before it becomes yet another victim of the dreaded HBO curse, where formerly great shows suddenly go to shit around season 4/5.

As far as I recall from reading Traci's book (and from her Wikipedia) she grew up in extreme poverty, was raised by an abusive father, and was repeatedly raped and molested. The suggestion an underage girl who likely saw porn as her only escape from a horrific life a) possessed full agency over her career and b) wasn't a victim in any way, makes me pretty uncomfortable too.

I think it's possible for Sean to both be a "player"/hook up with a lot of women AND be as awkward and dorky as he appears here. His personality may be off-putting but superficially he's a good looking guy with a decent job. I could totally see women pursuing him for casual sex, and then not sticking around long once his personality comes out. But then once he's faced with building real intimacy in a long-term relationship, especially with a woman like Davina who wants to be pursued by a man, he's out of his element. I also agree with everyone saying the experts' advice might help new couples who are in love, but it's useless with these people because none of them can stand each other. No matter how they rationalize it, it's obvious by their behavior and body language they have ZERO chemistry or interest and are just gritting their teeth and sticking out their 15 minutes. It's very telling that the "best" couple, Jaclyn and Ryan, have the potential to be friends at most. I doubt the others will even speak to each other after their contracts expire.

Ugh, this show is such a pile of crap. I'm only watching now to mock and to see what sort of tortured editing shenanigans they'll pull at the end to maintain the lie that "the experts make great matches." Because NONE of these people have any chemistry or compatibility in the slightest.<br /><br />Sean...oh my GAWD, I couldn't stop giggle-snorting at his "I'm Christian Grey sexual!" line. What heterosexual man in human history has ever busted out a line like that? I think he's either closeted gay or just asexual. I find it impossible to believe he's this smooth ladies man in real life who just happens to come across as a wimpy awkward dork on TV. I can't stand Davina and think she'd be a nightmare even in a "normal" relationship with all her prickly insecurity, but his issues are definitely overshadowing hers right now. I went from finding him mildly cute the first episode to feeling my skin crawl every time I see him now. Something ain't right with that dude.<br /><br />I find Jaclyn and Ryan less irritating than the other couples, but their personalities really aren't compatible. She's a brash aggressive girl and he's a boring homely dude. I could see her with an equally extroverted alpha-male type guy, and I could see him with a passive woman with less ambition who's happy living in his mom's basement. I think it's commendable they're both making an effort and they seem to care for each other as people (if not in a sexual way) but it's obvious they're better off as friends.<br /><br />And Ryan and Jessica will never make it. The reason she "has an emotional wall up" is because she's picking up on the VERY obvious fact that he doesn't like her. I think Ryan sees Jessica as beneath him - the type of girl he might holler at in a bar and maybe have a fling with, but not wife and mother material. He seems spoiled and clearly has a high opinion of himself, and I think he imagines himself married to a woman with the looks of a supermodel and the personality of his sainted grandmother. Whatever dude, good luck with that.<br /><br />There's really nothing to salvage with any of these couples. If any of them choose to "stay married", it'll only be to extend their 15 minutes for another season. This show is so pathetic and bottom of the barrel.

Wait, did Sean just use a hammer to pound a SCREW into the wall? And it looked like he really tore up the drywall%u2014it'll take some serious spackle to get the security deposit back on that short-term lease. I could not cope with someone who can't handle basic household tasks and can't even have a disagreement without emotionally shutting down and regressing to his childhood bullying. Davina is no prize either but that dude is a MESS. The therapy sessions were bullshit. I hate this "the experts fixed all our problems in 5 minutes!" narrative, it's so disingenuous and scripted. And Dr. Joseph freaks me out. His advice is odd, his speech and delivery are odd, he looks odd, and he looks even odder when he smiles. I'm still not convinced he isn't a sentient robot who terminated a kid at prom and stole his tuxedo jacket.

I don't understand why there needs to be a clear-cut bad guy in the Jessica/Ryan situation. She's clearly passive-aggressive, a poor communicator, and has trouble letting minor issues go. He's clearly arrogant, immature, and has trouble handling conflict without throwing ridiculous tantrums. Neither of them seem like evil people and of course they both have the capacity to change for the better, but it's highly doubtful they'll do so in three weeks without serious editing shenanigans involved. NO ONE should be fighting that bitterly with someone they barely know and have no emotional history with, which makes it clear they're a terrible personality match and can only bring out the worst in each other. Lots of people have had relationships like that and it's embarrassing to think back later on how shitty you both behaved. Of course the experts will try to spin it otherwise since their totes amazing Matchmaking Sciencez never fails(!), but it's pretty obvious. And I don't think the experts picked the original 6 because they were so well-matched. They picked individuals who seemed like good TV and THEN matched them up. We even saw them debating who they were going to match with whom during the casting special. I don't think there's any science involved at all; they'll just pick people who seem like they'll bring the drama and then edit them to be even more dramatic.

The whole "ghetto mentality" conversation is making me uncomfortable on multiple levels. Hell of a lot of projection going on around here, but I'll leave it at that. That said, these people have to be contractually obligated to stick this dismal "experiment" out for the whole running time, right? Right?! Or there's at least some kind of cash prize at the end? Because I can't think of another reason any sane, rational human being would sit around and allow a giant man-baby in a fucking purple velour tracksuit and Khloe Kardashian eyebrows to berate her and scream at her to read a book. I'm not even a fan of Jessica's bitter passive-aggressive act, but COME ON. Dude takes douche-lord to the level of performance art. Meanwhile Davina and Sean are boring and drippy as ever with zero chemistry, and Ryan was apparently so excited and ready for marriage that he didn't even realize it might entail moving out of Mommy's basement? The "experts" really pulled a doozy for this season. I don't see any of these couples having what it takes at this point and think they'll end up having to bribe/coerce a few of them to stay married until the show wraps.

I really enjoyed the documentary; as someone who's never been a huge fan of Kurt Cobain (although I own and love the "Unplugged" album, I never got all the hype around him) I felt like I gained a deeper understanding of both his immense talent and his inner demons. The footage of him high off his ass and nodding out while holding his baby was haunting and disturbing, and the animations of his journal entries were fascinating if a little heavy-handed at times. The one big impression I got from the documentary was that his fame and talent probably hastened his death rather than delaying it. It's clear he was deeply hurt by the negative media attention his family received, and I think the people around him might've taken his crisis more seriously and staged an intervention if he wasn't attached to such a huge gravy train. How can you look at a person emaciated, distressed and covered in sores and think "hey let's let him keep going like this, what could go wrong?" It seemed like the heroin, the depression and the self-loathing became part of his aura as a rock star rather than the huge red flags they'd be for an ordinary person.

Ok so I've never actually seen this show so please don't eat me alive. And I usually love these historical drama type things, but it turns me off how the headlines for every recap and review of this show (and not just on this site) are all "RAPE" "WOMAN BEATEN" "THIS WEEK ON OUTLANDER: MISOGYNY" "MORE RAPE" "DOES THIS SHOW HAVE TOO MUCH SEXUAL ASSAULT?" ...sooo what's up with all that? and why is it such a popular show if that's the content? are there redeeming factors I'm missing? or is this basically just Game of Rapes?

Co-signing on Mance's death being unnecessary. He couldn't have even discussed Stannis' deal with the Wildlings first? These folks have been fighting for a long time, is it impossible to think some of them might be okay with signing up for one more battle in exchange for sunny retirement homes? The fact he made his choice so quickly and without consulting anyone made it seem more like a point of personal pride rather than consideration of everyone's best interests. Oh well. Feeling Varys/Tyrion's scheming and plotting so hard right now and looking forward to their trip to Mereen which will hopefully give that dragging storyline a boost. How many boring throne room scenes do we need to establish that Dany is better at conquering than she is at ruling? Also, I wonder whose payroll her boy toy is on? He's certainly full of "advice" lately, all of which she seems to take with zero grains of salt. Did she learn nothing from that whole mess with Jorah? And why is she so surprised her kids are throwing tantrums after she locked them up in a damn cave for a month? Get it together Khaleesi. And, umm, Missandai and Grey Wolf? You don't need a dick to pleasure a woman or have a relationship, kids. Don't you have any lesbian friends who can enlighten y'all?

I'm still having a hard time remembering these people's names. I haven't noticed Sean as creepy yet but I missed the massage table scene. To me he's cute but sooo obviously just there for the cameras. I feel similarly about Davina and her constant offense at his inability to read her every emotional fluctuation. Their drama seems fake and forced. Ryan reminds me of Vaughn 2.0. I don't think he's a bad person but his behavior is immature and asshole-ish. Jessica has accommodated him so far but I think her patience will wear thin quickly. I don't think he understands what real marriage entails and will continue throwing tantrums every time something disturbs the romantic fantasy he's created around his grandparents' relationship. He's just silly to me. I actually think the friend zone couple has the best chance of making it. At least they enjoy each other's company.

Isn't Nia also a rape survivor? I recall this detail coming up while MTV was promoting her Portland season. If so, this makes her ongoing pattern of bizarre sexual aggression toward Jordan even more disturbing. I'm going to play armchair psychiatrist for a second and wonder if he resembles her attacker in some way, or if she's repeating traumatic patterns in an attempt to gain some control. Either way she freaks me out and I'm glad her gross behavior, her internalized misogyny and her many "issues" are off my screen. Ugh. Also does anyone feel like this franchise has been attracting more and more messed-up people in recent years? Witnessing so much abusive, aggressive and addictive behavior isn't all that entertaining to me.

I've seen them all, and the tedious dragging out of plotlines leading up to the finale has been a consistent problem with the show's pacing. It's similar to the "give a minor character screentime and development immediately before killing him/her" pattern they've established. Sure we all know that's 'how it works', but it's formulaic as hell and that's deadly for a narrative that runs on suspense and adrenaline. And the main issue I have with Jessie isn't that she's not "badass" enough, but that we haven't been given enough reason to care about her or time to become invested in her and Rick as a couple. From her first appearance it felt like they just threw her in as a generic love interest and started lining up plot points to bring them together. It also seems odd he's taking such a huge risk to chase tail now when there are other attractive single women who've been around all along, have more of an emotional bond with him and are WAY less of a liability to his family's security. "Recklessly thirsty to get laid" has never been part of Rick's characterization before, and I'm really hoping this is leading up to some super cool plot twist because it feels way OOC for him otherwise.

I'm surprised nobody mentioned the two deaths were obvious throwbacks to Romero movies. Aiden's death in particular was nearly an exact reenactment of an iconic scene in Day of the Dead. Those scenes may be shocking for TWD but they're nearly cliché in classic zombie movies, which usually have long periods of calm punctuated by over-the-top gory deaths bordering on slapstick (i.e. frail decomposed corpses easily tearing apart human bodies like wet paper bags full of ketchup). I will miss Noah—Aiden not so much—but I found the visual nod pretty cool. And they had a tight run of episodes there but it feels like the writing is losing focus again. The Alexandria plotline is dragging a bit long, I think. They need to either explain how such an apparently inept and cowardly group has survived for so long or get to the big reveal already. And I don't think they can telegraph any louder that CDB have been out on the road for too long and are now baddies. Pete may well be abusive but Rick and Carol's plot to kill him is clearly driven more by personal motives than by any legit evidence. And FPP is an unstable ungrateful snitch but he isn't wrong about any of them. All the pawns have been in place for quite awhile now and the writers need to freaking play them already. And yeah, I'm not invested in Jessie or her storyline at all. Sorry show, I'm not giving a crap just because it's a random semi-cute blonde white woman. But at this point I don't see Richonne happening anytime soon and I think all the butthurt Twitter fans should move on to shipping Eugene's mullet and his new dubstep party bus.

Thank you to those who pointed out this show has always been insanely misogynistic. I used to watch it regularly back in the day and let's not forget all the conversations about "trimming the fat" as a code for eliminating women, the sexist and homophobic bullying of Ev and other women on the Island, and the constant atmosphere of sexual harassment. Let's not forget certain (very popular) male cast members are no longer on this show because they RAPED an unconscious woman with a toothbrush. Zach and his disgusting tirades of abuse are nothing new and would fit right in to past Challenges. I still consider this show a guilty pleasure but it boggles my mind that any the women give these sexist jackasses the time of day, let alone date them. Their self-esteem must be in the toilet.

Oh my stars. I was about to watch this episode, but I'm gonna take a pass since I nearly retched just reading about the sweat drinking thing. I do not ever need that mental picture in my head. And I never liked Nia but now she is dead to me. DEAD. Actually can I just ship LeRoy and Sarah together as partners? They're the only people I'm finding likeable right now. Zach is a waste of oxygen and the ultimate butterface. Someone should sue God for putting such a stupid potato head on such a hot body. I cannot understand how scumbags like him and Bananas score all these women. And speaking of which, leave Nany alone! I can't with these grown-ass women slut shaming harder than a middle school locker room. As a feminist the levels of female insecurity and thirst on this show make me cringe.

I agree, the Penguin is so much more charismatic and fleshed out than the other villains that it makes their scenes together awkward at times. Falcone and Maroni are run-of-the-mill Mafia baddies and Fish Mooney is a scenery-chewing "muahahaa" cartoon villain. He outshines them already and it doesn't fit with the "young aspiring boss on the come up" role he is meant to occupy on the show. Like, how does no one recognize him as their biggest threat?

I don't think Barbara is intended to be likeable. She nearly gets herself and her partner killed by her own stupidity, and then in the very next episode she abandons and cheats on him? She's an asshole. As a queer lady I'm usually cheering for any and all lesbian action on TV, but the actress is playing her so blank and wooden I can only imagine her as awful in bed :-( And whoa, the Penguin is the man on this show. He's certainly got a skill for getting all his little pawns lined up. I know it's a comic book show but to me it stretches the bounds of credibility that nobody is trying to kill him right now. He's SO past the point of being a no-name henchman and SO obviously a looming threat. I thought these people were supposed to be crime lords? Give them some brains maybe? And to me Harvey Dent was wasted in this episode. He's onscreen for half a minute before showing his hand? We get it, show, he's Two Face. Chill.

Wow...this episode rocked! The show struggled with some lameness for a few seasons and I drifted away for awhile, but they've really pulled me back in. And am I the only person in America who yelled "TAINTED MEAT!" while pulling my dinner out of the oven tonight? Gotta say I'm team Father McShady on the "Lord's House" business. I'm not even religious, but would it have killed them to march the Termites outside and do their heinous bloodbath thing in the yard? That's a big ass mess to clean up, plus it's a CHURCH and there's little kids there! This doesn't speak well for Rick's group in terms of retaining a shred of humanity and civilization. How long before they're also reduced to eating people? Didn't really understand all the "Gareth is smoking hot" fuckery on the Talking Dead? Sure the actor isn't objectively ugly, but even leaving the eating babies thing aside Gareth was annoyingly smug and smarmy and talked too. damn. much. He needed to go and he will not be missed. Speaking of which, does ANYONE care about Beth anymore? I seriously forgot she was even on the show. She can stay gone too. Still don't understand why Tyreese continues to clutch his pearls every time blood is shed. Did he miss the "zombie apocalypse" memo?

I don't think Del looks wrong for his role at all. If you look at competitive strongmen even today they're usually just large and bulky (and often appear "fat" off season), not ripped and defined like bodybuilders. There's a huge difference between functional muscle and vanity muscle. Plus he's meant to be aging and at the end of his career, so I can totally see him looking flabby yet still able to perform feats of strength in a low-rent freak show. And I don't think anyone believes the twins could be medically separated with either of them surviving. Don't they share most of their lower spine and organs? I feel like the animosity building between them is just setting us up for a gory attempted self-surgery scene, especially since this season of AHS has been relatively low on the "horror" stuff so far (with the exception of Twisty who makes me pee my pants every time he sneaks up behind someone!) And coulrophobia is a very prevalent condition, and hardly limited to children. Although clowning as a modern practice started in the 18th century, most of the familiar trappings of clowns (white face paint, pranks etc.) are much older and rooted in medieval carnival practices, and the clowns back then were based on "liminal figures" or minor demons who occupied the passage between life and death. So lots of historians think their original intent WAS to be terrifying and even though they've been watered down over the centuries as amusements for kids, such ancient fears don't die easily. And it's nice to see Walter Bentley in a prominent role. I'd heard he had serious drug problems that derailed his career when he was younger, but I always thought (ever since American Beauty) that he was a very talented and charismatic actor with an interesting face, and I think he deserves a comeback.

Great premiere! TWD has been guilty of being boring in the past (something an action adventure show with zombies should never be), but the opening scene on the killing floor had me genuinely stressed and yelling at the screen! And I felt bad for the poor semi-anonymous cannon fodder dudes who got bled out...what a crappy way to go. I don't think the rape/abuse flashback was intended to make us feel sympathetic toward the Termites. There was no sympathy to be felt there, they were crazy child-killing cannibals and they needed to go. I think it was intended to a) contextualize how they became so crazy, and b) serve as foreshadowing of the possible fate of Rick's group, who still see themselves as "good guys" as the Termites once were. One of the show's main themes is the longer you survive the ZA, the more brutal and animalistic you're forced to become until you lose your humanity entirely—even if you were a kind, peaceful person before the ZA. They already illustrated that with the Governor, and it's not hard to see the Rickettes have advanced well down that path themselves. And I'm glad Tyreese eventually grew some balls with that creepy Termite in the cabin but he made sooo many stupid mistakes along the way. If you're going to kill an enemy, kill him. Do not have a nice chat with him first and tell him your baby's name. Do not tie his hands loosely in front of him when you could tie them behind him and, I dunno, secure him to something so he can't lunge at you or your baby. And if you insist on tying him in a stupid way, for god's sake do not leave him within arm's reach of your baby. The whole scene annoyed me because it was either a poorly written plot device (which I thought the writers had mostly stopped doing?), or Tyreese just had crappy survival instincts, which doesn't make sense either given how long he's survived. It seems like the show still wants to give us sympathetic characters who are struggling to adapt, when...dude. That ship sailed several seasons back. Most of the people still alive are thieves, rapists, murderers and/or cannibals. It's okay to kill in self-defense. And I'm fine with them never "redeeming" Carol. I like her badass Rambo missions and I'm happy to see a character who was originally written as a useless drip going through a developmental arc and adapting to the situation. She's not "bad", she's just ahead of the curve and way ahead of characters like Tyreese, who just now seems to be noticing he's in the middle of a ZA and people aren't as neighborly as they used to be.