ProudMary

Great episode for the kick-off of the new season! Fifteen minutes in, I was already ready for Jen Carroll to go, but that woman sure knows how to cook seafood. I couldn't argue with her skill there. Kevin is one of my very favorites and his EC dish looked incredible. I was so disappointed (and worried for him!) that the taste didn't match the appearance. The judges and the guest judges really looked to be enjoying each other's company at that beach dinner. It seemed like a fun evening. I felt badly for Joe. He was the team Captain and yet he let Malarkey push him toward a flatbread on the open flame. Obviously, he was responsible for the overabundance of ingredients, but I think he should have relied more on his own instincts. I want to eat both Stephanie's and Gregory's dishes. Right from the get-go, Lisa seemed to have eliminated the horrid attitude that we saw in her first season. She was talented; she was just SUCH a bee-yotch! I figured she'd be an asset to her team. Food looked good. I really thought LeeAnne was a goner, between charred fish and under fried tempura, but she'll always be a favorite of mine, so I hope she gets to stick around a while. There are SO many chefs I really like this AllStar season. I'm really looking forward to seeing this progress. How ironic that as this new season of everyone's favorite culinary competition begins, we are at a time where most of us can't enjoy a dine-in meal right now. 😞

I'd heard that there was heavy pre-St. Patrick's day partying in downtown Charleston so I expected to see a post like this indicating that the Southern Charmers would be involved. 🙄 If they really were shooting, then the producers are also truly awful people. 😠 Their downtown partying would have ended yesterday though. Effective today all restaurants and bars are take-out and delivery only. No sit-down service at all and groups are limited to less than 50 people, per executive order by the Governor. I feel for the local businesses; not so much for these selfish idiots.

The initial conversation between Lenny and Brannox was an excellent scene and for a few moments I was thinking, "First season, The Young Pope; Second season, The New Pope; Next season, The Two Popes;" but it certainly didn't turn out that way! I did believe that the fanatical Lenny worshipers could engage in such a violent, diabolical plot. Sadly, they were capable of horror in their unrelenting quest to uncover what had truly happened to Lenny. In my opinion, Sorrentino wanted to show that fanaticism in any major religion can lead to violence. The one thing that bothered me--although it may have made for a good scene--was Voiello praying TO Girolamo, whom he considers a saint. As a (mostly lapsed) Catholic, I have had several in-depth discussions with Christians of other denominations who've told me that Catholics don't know how to pray properly because they pray TO saints. This is wrong. As Catholics, we ask the saints to pray FOR us. Litany of the Saints shows this (call and response prayer,) "St. Peter, pray for us; St. Paul, pray for us; St. Andrew, pray for us; St. James, pray for us; St. John, pray for us," and so on. The Hail Mary says, "Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death." In showing a Cardinal(!) praying this way, Paolo Sorrentino just made my conversations a lot harder! I did like that we got a glimpse of what the future held for many of the secondary characters, making it acceptable should this turn out to be not just a season finale but also a series finale. I do hope there will be another season though. I'd absolutely like to see what a Voiello papacy looks like.

As for the musical episode:

FYI: Tonight's Finale episode (Ep. 9) is supersized. It runs from 9:00 p.m. to 10:10 p.m. EDT.

FWIW, TV Grim Reaper has the show listed as "Likely Renewal." https://www.tvgrimreaper.com/2020/03/02/predictions-week-24-indebted-is-likely-to-be-canceled/5277/

Lucifer's Tom Ellis Finalizes Deal for Potential Season 6 at Netflix

Missy: "I could have had a new Barbie?!?!" 😅

Oh hell, I hope she has it on eBay already! Someplace public so Carlton can see that she wants NO part of him. What a dick move that was with the ring, designed to make Diamond feel even more uncomfortable than she had to have been already. I guess it's already something of an unpopular opinion, but I really liked Amber as a blonde. I think it suits her well. Not that anyone was looking at her hair for very long with her boobs staring us in the face the whole reunion! I'm not so sure. Prior to the reunion, I thought they may have had a fairly decent chance at a successful marriage, but them being married for only a year and already having "divorce" be thrown into the conversation doesn't bode too well. Lauren and Cameron have a puppy and we didn't even get to see photos?!?! Do better Netflix! How great that they've already been up to Maine a few times and also celebrated Thanksgiving with both families at the table. It may only be a year into their marriage, but it sure sounds like they're off to a great start. 🥰

From 100,000 Airplanes: President Bartlet: The President stood up, he said "We will land a man on the moon before the end of the decade." Why shouldn't I stand up and say, "We are going to cure cancer in ten years?"

Can't. Stop. Laughing. 😂 That scene and that line about the Church's properties had me thinking about an old song, George Harrison's "Awaiting on You All." George had the Church nailed 50 years ago.

I'm an intelligent woman, but very literal. Symbolism often goes right over my head; so this season has been an interesting exercise for me. 😄 I am usually able to discern what Paolo Sorrentino's trying to convey, but the final scene of this episode, with a naked Lenny standing in a drained pool, staring at his Papal robes hanging across from him, definitely has me scratching my head. 🤔 Theories please! Voiello is truly an amazing character; the star of the show for me. I wonder if we'll ever know for sure exactly what happened to Pope Francis but I sure was intrigued by Bauer's "It wasn't us" and having the timing coincide with comatose Lenny moving his finger! I enjoyed Lenny's conversation with the nuns but as for "The Cardinals should do your laundry just as you do theirs," how about if everyone just does their own damned laundry? 😅

Damien gave me the creeps. I think Giannina dodged a bullet here. He seems very controlling to me. Giannina seems headstrong and independent. IMO, Damien was sublimating a lot of anger that he couldn't dominate her as he wanted to. I think he may be an abuser. She's MUCH better off without him. I was pretty sure that Amber and Barnett would go through with the wedding. They seem pretty well matched to me. Whether it lasts is another story. I don't think anyone believed that Jessica would say "I do" to Marc; not even Marc himself. She really fell for Barnett and should have left the show after he rejected her. Instead, she led Marc on just to keep herself in front of the cameras. Not cool. Kelly is a fool. She had everything that makes for a good, lasting marriage in her relationship with Kenny: A partner who loves and respects her, great communication between them, both of them on good financial footing, seemingly wonderful parents and siblings on both sides who seemed to embrace the partner their child was choosing (it's tough to make a marriage last when in-laws are an issue.) But, she wanted the "infatuation" that she had with a previous boyfriend. Yeah, that's important early on but that alone can't sustain a strong marriage when the other pieces are missing. She'll be hard pressed to find another relationship seemingly as strong as the one she and Kenny developed over the course of the show. I figured that Lauren would ultimately go through with the wedding. I'm sure she would have preferred to have a longer engagement, but I think she would have ultimately come to the same decision. Side note: I LOVED her father! Actually, both of her parents seemed very genuine. Something has seemed just a little "off" with Cameron, but I think it may just be discomfort in front of the cameras. I bet he's different when it's just the two of them. I think they might just make it. I hope so.

Hale Appleman playing Eliot playing Margo was astonishingly good. He's amazing. Also, an honorable mention goes to Arjun Gupta as infected Penny. He's had to play several different versions of Penny over the years and I think the depth of the differences in his performances tend to fall under the radar a bit.

This had been bugging me too. From certain angles he looks a bit like Bradley Cooper and other times I think he looks like Eddie Vedder.

5‘Love Is Blind’: Netflix Announces Reunion Special, Which Will Post on YouTube From the article: Although details on the special are slim, it appears that the Atlanta-based cast of 20 participants will be a part of the reunion special, along with hosts Nick and Vanessa Lachey. The reunion was taped last week, and is expected to clock in at about an hour. Per Netflix, the special will answer burning questions such as which couples are still together; whether any castmembers have any regrets; what it was like to watch the show unfold in real life; and why certain unexpected twists and revelations happened.

My issue isn't with the performances of Rob Corddry or Michaela Watkins, it's with the way the writers have written Forrest and Delia (and even Addie.) I get it; the whole family is "extra," but the writers need to dial it back somewhat. It's not funny; it's truly annoying and it makes me wonder why Wade, Ben and Michelle are friends with these people.

Yes, Jeff's use of quotation marks in "normal" life has me wondering about that too.

From Ms. Mojo

Miky Lee, who was an Executive Producer on Parasite. From 'Parasite' to BTS: Meet the Most Important Mogul in South Korean Entertainment

A point with which I vehemently disagree.

In your original post you wondered why Cynthia Erivo was playing Aretha when Aretha had wanted Jennifer Hudson to play her. It didn't sound as if you were aware that there was a scheduled project where J-Hud would be doing just that. Aa someone who has watched the previous seasons of Genius, I'm looking forward to Cynthia Erivo's portrayal of Aretha. The casting people have done a great job in both the Einstein and the Picasso seasons. I have no reason to believe that they haven't gotten it right once again. Kobe was an Oscar winner himself, qualifying as worthy of inclusion in the montage. Bernie Taupin was actually the one who accepted the award and gave the acceptance speech. Elton John said a few short words after Bernie finished, basically just thanking his kids and telling them he loved them. I think your vitriol is misplaced here. 🤔

There are actually two upcoming properties celebrating the life and career of Aretha Franklin. Cynthia Erivo is playing Aretha in the Nat Geo TV series Genius. Jennifer Hudson will be playing Aretha in the film, Respect set to be released late this summer. And the Academy made the correct choice, IMO. Also worthy that year was Heath Ledger, who was nominated for Brokeback Mountain. Seriously. The Irishman was shutout; The Two Popes was shutout and Laura Dern's was the only win for Marriage Story. It seems the Academy is not budging on its anti-Netflix stance. (Edited to add: They did award Best Documentary to American Factory, also a Netflix film.) I actually thought Marriage Story was a very good film. Adam Driver was excellent. I have not yet seen Parasite but I'm thrilled to see that after 92 years the Academy finally realized that an internationally made film in a language other than English can actually be the best picture of the year. It's a big step in the right direction. Laura Dern is actually not a second generation Oscar winner. Each of her parents had multiple nominations but never won an Oscar. Bruce Dern has 2 nominations; Diane Ladd has 3. In addtion to the other multiple generation Oscar winners already named upthread, there's also Liza Minnelli and her father, director Vincente Minnelli.

Teaser trailer: