ElectricBoogaloo

RIGGA MORRIS will never not be funny. I still laugh every time.

Same. I loathe the flailing arms (I have a dance background so I expect the arms to stay in an intentional position - waving them around so you don't fall over is like the visual equivalent of nails on a chalkboard to me). But even when it's done well, the rest of the body position is just so ugly. You're squatting with one leg out. There's no way to make that actually look nice. And I know it's the squatting that makes it ugly to me because I have no issue with the way à la seconde turns look. I looooooved watching rhythmic gymnastics back in the olden days. I even had one of those ridiculous Get In Shape Girl ribbons at one point. I definitely remember they used to show whole competitions on tv. In the last few Olympics, they have barely shown any coverage. I remember they made a big deal when there was an American who made it to individual qualifications but obviously unless there's a chance that an American will medal, no one in the country will want to watch the sport so let's not bother showing more than, say, the final routine of the girl who won the gold. It's so frustrating. I love watching rhythmic gymnastics on YouTube. There are so many great routines!

This is due in large part to the fact that counties like China and Ukraine had mandatory ballet training for all of their gymnasts. It makes a huge difference in so many ways, from little details like full pointed feet (not just curled under toes) and épaulement to major things like connecting skills gracefully and actually being able to dance rather than just do a series of staccato poses in between tumbling skills on beam and floor. Gymnasts with good dance training have graceful hands instead of the crazy splayed out claw hands that I see on so many gymnasts these days. My sister's gym had a very small dance studio with mirrored walls and ballet barres. Their ballet classes were only once a week (far less than the Chinese, Ukrainian, Russian, and Romanian gymnasts had to do) but they were mandatory for anyone who was above the baby classes. Elena Shushanova was a great example that you can be a powerful tumbler as well as a graceful dancer. I used to love watching this beam routine. Svetlana Boginskaya's ballet training is why her feet are pointed every time they leave the beam! ETA: Watching the Lilia routine above reminded me how much I miss compulsories. I hate that they got rid of them.

It wasn't just that she lied about her age. It was all the additional lying that came with it. In a post above, someone mentioned Charles being surprised that Liza knew "Take My Breath Away." There were several instances like that before he found out her real age and she always had to come up with some lie about why she knew something that was assumed would be unfamiliar to someone Kelsey's age.

No, her father is American and lives in the United States. He was shown in previous seasons. The one I remember is when they had a big family dinner and he was telling the story about how he met Delilah's mom. It's been that way since S3.E12. Like many women do, she changed her hair once she decided her relationship was over. Based on the major roots Sophie has been sporting, her blonde comes out of a bottle these days!

S1.E3: Mocatriz Original air date: 6/13/21

Ugh, I'd forgotten that this show does so many team challenges. I really hated that the very first challenge was a team challenge. Let me see what they can do individually first! And how were the team captains supposed to choose people since they knew nothing about their work? We didn't even get to see all of the arrangements that they made to determine who the team captains were. I was just laughing during the introductions. I'm sorry, Jimmi, but I will not be referring to you as Bel Fabio. And Jenny Magic is a flower shaman? Okay then. Kiara was clearly a much better leader and communicator. Lufti's team was frustrated and standing around asking him for direction so that they could work. I liked the designs that Kiara's team did but I agreed with the judges that their scale was off. There wasn't enough size distinction between the pawns and the bigger pieces in the back row. Even though Lufti wasn't excited about getting the pastel colors, he ended up doing a good job with them. I think what got him the win was that his king, queen, and bishops were much larger than the pawns so it looked more like a cohesive chess set than Kiara's did. Show, you have access to all of these beautiful flowers so why are you using cheap red and blue dyed carnations for the judges to vote for which team they like better? I liked that the losing team had an individual challenge afterward. That seems like a much fairer way to choose who to eliminate than last season. I mean, unless someone failed egregiously at basic technique, everyone on the team was just doing what they were told so it seemed unfair when they got eliminated in the previous season. Based on the fact that Rachel and Melissa got absolutely no screen time in the first half of the episode, I was sure that one of them would be eliminated. I actually liked both of their designs so I was glad they were safe. Between Jimmi and Kiara, I would have eliminated Kiara because I don't even know how to describe what she made. Jimmi's incorporated several elements from the box he was given and I liked the colors and height which gave it some drama. Awww, I loved how excited the chess club kids were about the flowers!

Reminder: part 2 is now available on Netflix!

Looking at the scores from nationals, no. Bars: Beam: Floor: Vault:

The list for Olympic trials is up! For the women, it's essentially the top 17 AA at nationals plus Riley McCusker, which bumped Sydney Barros (who finished 18th) out of trials. Simone Biles Skye Blakely Jade Carey Jordan Chiles Kayla DiCello Amari Drayton Kara Eaker Addison Fatta Shilese Jones Emily Lee Suni Lee Emma Malabuyo Grace McCallum Riley McCusker Zoe Miller Ava Siegfeldt McKayla Skinner Leanne Wong For the men, it's the top 10 AA at nationals plus top 2 in event finals for a total of 21 gymnasts. A few people just barely missed making Olympic trials. Genki Suzuki finished 11th in AA and 3rd on high bar. Colt Walker finished 12th in AA and 3rd on parallel bars. Cameron Bock Allan Bower Brandon Briones Alex Diab Gage Dyer Vitaliy Guimaraes Ian Gunther Paul Juda Riley Loos Brody Malone Sam Mikulak Akash Modi Yul Moldauer Stephen Nedoroscik Robert Neff Eddie Penev Colin Van Wicklen Matt Wenske Donnell Whittenburg Shane Wiskus Alec Yoder ETA: Whoops, I don't know why my page didn't refresh and show me that @healthnut had already posted a link!

I found it kind of annoying that after Liza's secret was out, they decided to use Charles and Maggie for the Old People Don't Know What Stuff Is representatives. This week it was Charles not knowing that House of Cards is now problematic and Maggie/Cass discussing Venmo. I get that older people aren't going to know about all the latest fads/newest technology, but they should at least make the examples more realistic. Lots of people in their 40s and 50s use venmo. Anyone with access to the internet knew about the huge Kevin Spacey scandal which caused the final season of House of Cards to be changed.

Promo: Original air date: 6/17/21

The only thing worse than emo Hope is angry Hope. I get you're mad that your boyfriend dumped you and ran off, but maybe quit taking it out on everyone else? Great job making the cult extra culty, show. The only thing missing was taking their money and turning them into sex slaves. I know I'm supposed to like Finch for bucking the system and then showing mercy to Jed, but I still find her really annoying. Awww, MG is still playing superhero even without his sidekick Ethan. I laughed when Doran showed Alaric MG's notebook and his only comment was that MG needs a better superhero name.

Josie: Maybe you can help me with something. Hope: Does it involve punching things? Josie: Lizzie, where have you been? Lizzie: It's a long story. The haiku version - Hope was right again. Dorian: You used to hunt vampires, Ric. I thought you knew how dangerous rippers can be. I guess you've changed. Alaric: I'm trying to. Assuming the worst of people has only ever brought out the worst in me. Andi: So you don't harbor any negative emotions? Hope: I just don't need your help controlling them. Andi: When we aren't in control, it's difficult to trust those who are. Hope: Oh, no, I don't trust you because you're a fraud. Andi: No supernatural ever worked for Triad. We were imprisoned, locked in cells and forced to do their bidding. Locator spells, concealment spells, even torture, all the while being drugged to stay compliant. Lizzie: Well, maybe your sob story would land a little better if you weren't doing the same thing to every witch here. Andi: Said the self-indulgent daddy's girl who's never had a real problem in her life. Dorian: You're not gonna believe it, Ric. Wendigo. Alaric: Come on, it's never a wendigo. Alaric: MG needs to work on his superhero name. Josie: I don't think I can do this. Lizzie: I thought you loved drama class. Just act like a brainwashed idiot and get me on that stage. Hope: Should we tell ghost stories by the fire while we wait for whatever horrible thing's gonna come crawling out of there? Josie: I know a scary one. "The Tale of the Crappy Friend Who Told You You Deserved to Be Dumped." Alaric: You could always come back to school, especially now that the wendigo trashed your Batcave. Lizzie: We are tripping balls, man! Lizzie: I came here because I thought I was messed up, but look at me. Look at my fur. I am a badass panda.

The most important thing I learned from this episode is that funerals need a good MC!

I think that it was significant. They both realized that Charles was never going to fully trust her because she lied to him for so long. When they first began dating, they were caught up in finally being able to act upon their feelings which was exciting. That was compounded by all the sneaking around. But between Charles testing Liza by not revealing he knew about the Inkubator offers and then being upset when Liza said she wouldn't have told him she had submitted his manuscript to Yaddo if he hadn't been accepted, it became clear that Charles has some deep-seated trust issues with her. I'm of the opinion that if you can't trust the person you're with, you shouldn't bother being together. It's not fair to either person. Charles will always be suspicious and Liza will always be walking on eggshells, neither of which is healthy. It creates a very unhealthy power dynamic where Liza would always be trying to prove that she is being honest and worthy of his trust. It's similar to relationships where one person has cheated and the other person can no longer trust them. Beyond that, the reason that they broke up hadn't changed - he is still the kind of guy who wants to get married and Liza said that she wasn't interested in doing that. No matter how much you love each other, that isn't going to change your mind or the other person's mind about something like that.

There is some amazing food in Vegas (both on and off the strip) but I'm guessing that Ava is eating at the buffet in her hotel because it's included with her room. A lot of the food in Vegas is expensive so $11 coffee in LA wouldn't be shocking to Ava. The last time I went to Las Vegas was a few months before the pandemic. The driver who picked me up from the airport asked where I was from. When I said I live in California, he said that was good because I wouldn't be shocked by how expensive everything in Vegas cost.

The main reason I don't think that Eladio is making up the DeMarcos is that they are paying for this treatment so Brooke would see their names on whatever payment was used (credit card, check, etc). I guess if Eladio is super delusional then it's possible that he went to the trouble to create accounts with fake names to fool her, but in this case I think the most obvious answer is what's real - the DeMarcos exist and are paying for his sessions.

Taylour Paige discusses Zola Some tidbits

Jaboukie Young-White, Issa Rae Team for ‘Gang’s All Queer’ Series at HBO

S2.E1: Blind Bouquet Original air date: 6/10/21

Have any of these people ever seen human beings in motion? Based on their sculptures, I would say NO. Meghan said she took dance classes as a kid, but she created a ballerina in a position that was completely unnatural. She also claimed it was an arabesque but when the knee is bent, that is an attitude, not an arabesque. Ballet also has very specific arm positions, which do not include "throw your hands in the air and wave 'em like you just don't care." The supporting leg should have been straight but I think it was bent due to the weight. The torso shouldn't have been leaned back either. Overall, it looked like someone caught in a slip and fall. I did love the way she made the skirt with flowers though. Ryan said he was a cheerleader. My sister cheered in high school and college. We used to watch the annual cheer competitions on ESPN every year. Not once have I ever seen a male cheerleader with his leg in a turned out passé position as his sculpture had. In cheer, the knee would be facing forward, not turned out to the side. He lucked out with the bamboo onto the megaphone. He should have left the face alone because it looked terrible. The head was slightly too small for the size of the body. Marie's basketball player was awful. The pose was not basketball specific. It looked like a guy with his hands up. The headband looked terrible and the right arm was anatomically incorrect so it looked really bad. The hands were also WAY too big, like freakishly so. But for me, the biggest problem was that if you took away the basketball hoop, it was not clear at all what the hell she made. There were problems with everyone's creations this week so I would have said no one won this challenge. By process of elimination, Marie had the most problems with her sculpture so she was the right one to go home.

Michael Urie is the host of a new reality show called Clipped. It's a topiary competition with Martha Stewart as the head judge. We have a forum for it here.

Well, that was anti-climactic. Despite the fact that this was a double episode, it felt like almost nothing happened. Couldn't we have achieved that in a regular half hour episode? The most unbelievable thing in the episode (of which there were many) was that Josh has enough money to buy an entire building in Williamsburg. I'm just glad that Charles and Liza didn't end up together. Realizing that their relationship couldn't weather everything that they'd been through was the most realistic thing in this entire episode (well, that and the dinner bill when Maggie and Cass went out). Also hilarious: Charles telling Lauren to just do a small inexpensive dinner for the Empirical anniversary and then ending up with all of that.

Redmond: Let's cut to the chase. Azealia doesn't like the big publishing company model. She likes how you're breaking it. Tearing down the old patriarchal structure, blah, blah, blah. Azealia: Yeah, I love this deal where you drop a new chapter every week. Charles: I love it too. And it's as old as Dickens. He used to serialize his novels in the London newspapers. Kelsey: I'm not sure the Victorian era is the best reference for what we're doing here. Azealia: Whatever. I just cannot go back to that old-school publishing model. Charles: Then let us offer you an alternative that we have been developing - a paid app where the chapters drop weekly. Or whatever time frame suits you. With audio narration as an option. It is an e-book and a podcast wrapped up together, and we would launch the app with you. There's a huge incentive to being first. Like House of Cards, Netflix. Redmond: Yeah, let's keep House of Cards out of this. It didn't end so well. Redmond: Yeah, the app thing's really got her fired up. It's like you reinvented the wheel. Liza: Thank you. Redmond: I said reinvented. Charles is right. Dickens did it first over a hundred years ago. Liza: And podcasts are really just radio. Liza: Did you ever think you'd be investing in Broadway? Charles: I'm not sure this is investing. It's more like creative extortion. Charles: As a condition of my investment, I told Redmond that he would have to cut you from that number. Liza: What did he say? Charles: "For a price, anything is possible." You see? What'd I tell you? It's extortion. Liza: I just got some crazy news. I did something behind Charles' back that hopefully he'll be happy about. I submitted his unfinished book "The Miseducation of Henry Cane" to Yaddo. And, Maggie, he got in. Maggie: Yadda yadda what? Liza: Yaddo, the prestigious writers' colony. Everyone from John Cheever to Philip Roth, Jonathan Franzen, Flannery O'Connor, they've all spent time there. The list, it goes on and on, and... Maggie: Wow. Well, obviously, we have different definitions of the word crazy. Denise: Honey, get out of your head. Call [Max]. Lauren: Okay, I know. I just want to find the most romantic spot for our reunion. Liza: Ooh, why don't you"Sleepless in Seattle him? Invite him to meet you on the top of the Empire State Building. Lauren: No, I mean my generation's romantic spot, but- Denise: Serendipity. Because it is serendipitous that you two bumped into each other. Plus the frozen hot chocolate. Kelsey: Uh, what's the 20% participation to the Triboro Building Corporation? Isn't that you? Rob: Yeah, that's my piece for putting the deal together. Kelsey: You're not an investment bank. You just sent the email. Rob: Exactly. Rob: You know that if I was offering this deal to a guy, there wouldn't even be a question. Kelsey: What are you saying? Rob: Just that I feel like you want special privileges for being a woman. No offense. Kelsey: Oh, none taken. But you can take your percentage and shave it up your misogynistic ass. Kelsey: I have the absolute worst taste in men. Liza: Yeah, I know. Kelsey: Charles, the day I met you was the luckiest day of my life. You took a chance on a young girl with little more than enthusiasm and an English degree from a second-rate college.