DearEvette

They have Mekia Cox on this season as Tiana. No way they would return Rapunzel with a black actress. That would make *gasp* two black princessy types in one season. And *gasp* they might possibly share a screen. Can't have that.... I mean, this is ABC and even on a channel like ABC that is miles ahead progressively from, say, CBS, the WOC female multiples is distressingly low. Has Olivia Pope ever interacted with another black woman who wasn't her psycho mother? At least Bailey and Cristina on Grey's had their own relationship separate from Meredith. But the three WOC left, Bailey, Maggie and Stephanie barely ever interacted. (And don't get me started on the terrible (lack of) romance storylines for those three, I could write a novel). Heck, even Bow in Black-ish doesn't have any black girlfriends. But since she spends most of her time dodging insults from Ruby, I guess that counts.

Admittedly of the early books, only the first one really stands out in my head. So I am not sure if the intent of them early on was supposed to be received as whodunnits? I do know that somewhere about books 5-ish and on -- I started to notice her playing with format. Hence, in some of the books you know who the killer is right in the first chapter or very early on. In some cases the reader knows who they are but Eve doesn't and in some cases both the reader and Eve knows. One of my favorites is one where they all know the identity of killer because he is some big-deal assassin who is on every most waned list ever but no one has ever actually seen him (or her) so nobody knows what they look like and thus have been hard to catch.

I really think that she thought she could actually manipulate the NYT list to make it to #1 and thus artificially create the buzz that being #1 would in turn make real buzz and then that would translate into movie success. So I agree with you there. She wanted her success trajectory to be like Twilight or 50 Shades. The Huge book, the huge buzz and then the movie. She simply tried to pre-plan it through fraud. Honestly, she might have gotten away with it just that way except she wasn't tuned into YA book twitter. So I am not so sure she is as social media savvy as KK. I think do think she tried to use it to her advantage but I don't think this turned out quite the way she wanted it to. Her come out of nowhere success is exactly what made them so suspicious. The corners of romance twitter and YA twitter are like a small town. They all follow each other and retweet each other and they immediately tune into and amplify anything issue based the treads on their areas-- the recent Linda Howard madness for instance is another example of it. If she had been cultivating them for awhile or part of that community for awhile they might not have been so immediately suspicious. But she didn't so they immediately circled the wagons on her. Which is how she got shut down so quickly. If she does actually profit from this notoriety it will not be because she planned it just this way, imo. She will have lucked into it.

I love how she often takes one for the team. LOL.

All the crap that Issa and Lawrence went through had to happen so that last conversation had the resonance it did. For that I love the storytelling structure of the season. They had me for about a second with the fake-out until they got to the pregnancy. It had the feel of a series finale not a season finale and looked they looked a little too happy. I like Aparna and am glad she shut that shit down with Lawrence. With his jealosuy and extra-ness he was basically pulling a Tasha on Aparna. But she at least was more upfront about it than he was and just got the fuck out. Aparna also did what Issa tried to do. Lawrence wants to vault right to the top with a fantastic idea. But she attempts to temper his expectations with reality. Maybe work on an existing project first within the culture of the company so you can see what to do and what not to do. But he is not feeling that, it is the same reaction he had to Issa when she tried to get him to find a job and work on his app on the side. Issa whole work thing was a mess. But I blame the supervisor. Instead of talking to Issa to really suss out the situation, she immediately jumped to blame and disappointment. She could have at least acknowledged that Issa was in an untenable situation with the VP and given her some guidance on how to work with it. Even if you are in charge in the field, there are reasons you have a supervisor and it is just for that type of guidance . Yes, the inability to make a quick pivot decision while out in the field could (and probably should) have some bearing on her decision or not to promote Issa, but her immediate reaction was so immediately condemnatory that it makes me think she held Issa to a higher standard than she did everyone else. Y'all know that is Fred's baby. Tiffany being so extra at Derek's birthday now makes so much sense. The best part of Molly this entire episode was 1) her seeming acceptance and comfort at being in therapy now and 2) her Moroccan dinner with Issa. I am not gonna lie, I was girlfriend jealous that whole scene! But the rest. Nah. Molly we are done. I was on your side but your insistence on making the worst possible choice for yourself is making me downgrade you to (almost) Lawrence levels of exasperation. Meanwhile Kelli is moving on up. Everything about Kelli this season has been gold. Her breakdown of the whys/why nots of working with blacks versus the whites had me cackling. Watched the entire Due North and it was really hilarious Regina Hall is a treasure. And if "I hate Slavery!" doesn't become and internet meme, than I don't know the internet. I wish Dear White People had made Defamation available like Issa did with Due North. Great season. Can't wait to see what happens next.

Sigh. And CBS will most likely cast it with former NCIS or CSI cast offs or actors from their CW stable of shows who are currently not starring in anything.

Issa, I think, IIRC came across a post on facebook of Daniel's and they chatted and she went to the club where he was dee-jaying. This was in the aftermath of her being really disappointed that Lawrence was disinterested in doing anything for her birthday, he just wanted to stay home watch movies. So she went out with Molly instead intent on accidentally on purpose running into Daniel. She invited him to be the career day speaker at one of the schools and I think the kids really responded well to him and she got the heart eyes. But even so, I think she was backing away from him resisting the temptation he represented, but then the Broken Pussy video showed up online and she went to him in desperation to see if he knew who uploaded it and could they take it down. She slept with him on a wave of nostalgia and good energy after he gave her the opportunity to spit some rhymes in his studio and doing a bunch of "remember when we used to..." reminiscences.

I think Tiff, Derek, Kelli et. al. are all Issa's friends. Lawrence is friends with Derek through Issa, not on his own. I figured that is why Dro and his wife were there because the friend-line is through Issa, Molly, Kelli and Tiffany, not Lawrence. Hence Chad is Lawrence's friend, not Issa's and he wouldn't be there.

Not to get involved in the carrot cake wars (.. but really carrot cake FTW!) Imma have to call foul on Red Velvet -- because to get the red color you either need to use red dye (ick) or some random red vegetable juice, usually beet (double ick).

I actually like Aparna. And thinks she would be good for Lawrence. Yeah she shouldn't have invited herself and yeah he really shouldn't have taken her up on the offer. But I still cut her slack. Weirdly, I spent a lot of the previous episode distracted by trying to figure out who the actress reminds me of, kind of a cross between Alicia Keyes and Eliza Dushku. re: Molly. If she chooses Lil Rel because they click then that would actually vindicate her decision on NOT choosing Sterling K Brown. I mean, they are both probably good on paper with SKB getting more points for attractiveness. But if she doesn't click with SKB then it is the right decision for her not to force something that isn't there just because. Also I can't remember but is this the first time we've seen 'A' from Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl on Insecure? I always love it when they pop up.

Maybe it is her personality to be a non-communicative wallflower, but if this were the case I wish she had just said all this. Instead she pouted and froze Issa out. Girl. use your words! I find Lawrence terrible because of an aggregation of things not just this final blow up. I think he's justified in feeling angry that Issa cheated. But like Derek and Issa both pointed out, he doesn't want to own up to his own culpability in the degradation of their relationship. He checked out of the relationship for two years and refused to contribute. We know she was supporting him both financially and emotionally during that time, but what was he doing to support her? Cheating is just one way to hurt your partner, Lawrence's refusal to be present in the relationship for years on end is another more insidious way to hurt but it tends to get a pass because it isn't as definitive as cheating. Water can wear down rock just as easily as a hammer can break it. However, it isn't just that. He knew Issa wanted him back, he came back and fucked her and raised her hopes and then stepped on those hopes because he knew by doing so he could hurt her. But it was also how he treated Tasha. And then he has the nerve to call Issa a ho when he allowed himself to be bought into a threesome by two randos for a six pack of beer. I get that their break up put them both in a tailspin and the look on both of them in the aftermath is just not good. But I have more sympathy for Issa because at least her actions are only hurting herself whereas Lawrence's actions seem to splash onto and hurt other people -- Issa, Tasha and even Aparna who he put in an awkward position.

Man, Tiffany is the worst. She is a braggart who likes to parade her good fortune in the face of people who aren't as lucky as her. She is married so she feels she automatically has one up on her three single friends. Funny how she was OCD she about her table settings but allowed Lawrence and Aparna to sit, messing up hr careful table. I truly believe the only reason she did that was because she knew it would make Issa uncomfortable. That is how shitty a person she is. Kelly, otoh, is the best. All her lines were funny. "Clearly they were having a sale on denim." Ha! I read she ad-libbed that. Issa and Lawrence at this point have reached toxic levels. But as far as I am concerned Lawrence is just terrible. He built up this whole fantasy in his head about Issa and Daniel and let that propel him in to lashing out at her in ways designed to make her notice. First blocking her -- which yeah they were broken up but in these times of social media currency blocking someone sends a special type of message especially since he knew she was still somewhat hopeful of getting back with him -- and then pointedly bringing Aparna to a party that is populated largely by Issa's circle of friends. I am dying to really know the specifics about Dro and Candace's relationship. It just feels off to me. Granted I don't know the first thing about open relationships but I can't help but thinking that boinking another woman in a bathroom while your wife is in the another room is ok.

I agree with everyone that Issa needs to get off her hotation rotation. She is bad at it. Like really bad. I actually fast forwarded through the Nico scene because I was so embarrassed and sad for her. My heart can't take it anymore. I am not surprised that Issa is rather unsophisticated about sex. She's supposed to be in her 20s, right? And she's been with Lawrence for five years. And she's basically socially awkward anyway Added to that, I think on the whole black women trend a little more conservatively when it come to sex, despite stereotypes to the contrary. re: blowjobs. Sex has a mental as well as physical component. Not necessarily emotional, but mental. How you feel about what (and who) you are doing can have a powerful physical affect on you. I can say that I was rather indifferent about blow jobs until I met my husband. I did them, but more as a matter of sexual performance than sexual pleasure. But my husband makes them really enjoyable. He is vocal and a dirty talker and he is really, really into it. So he's single handedly transformed how I feel about them. I like them now and not just because he likes them but they've become a an enjoyable part of sex for both of us. And finally, I feel for Lawrence (for the first time in a long time) about not getting valuable feedback at work because he is black. Been there. And it was in the same benign way he is being treated. His workplace stuff is an interesting contrast to Molly's. Even though hers can be seen in a more sinister light, his is just as bad because he isn't getting the type of development and feedback he should be getting at work because of race.

Hella late (ha!) on this epi but everybody in this episode pissed me off. - Lawrence - You don't get to be mad about who Issa is seeing after you left her and told Molly there was no hope of getting back together. It is a shame when Derek knows Issa better than you, the man who was with her for five years, two of which you never apparently left the house. - Molly - what are you, twelve? Girl get a grip. I am rooting for you but your immaturity in, well, everything is starting to shine a little too brightly. - Frieda - unless Issa is your superior and you don't have the power to gainsay her, then the last time I checked you have a mouth and should be able to use it. She's not your mule, she doesn't have to carry your water. if you see an injustice then you say something, don't wait for her to do it and don't get all passive-aggressive about your "disappointment" in her if she doesn't. - Issa - I know it is really nice to get back into the sex game. I am only imagine how bad the sex must have been with a man who was unmotivated as Lawrence for the past two years. But hon, safety first. You know better than to text and drive. That shit really pisses me off because I had a friend who died when he was hit by some texting while driving twat.

There are no graphic details of murder or sex (so far) and I am more than half way through it. However the book is dark so it would depend on the individual maturity of the reader. I think a 14 yo could read it, but i think that might be tick young for some of the themes of the book. The main character's father is a serial killer (now in jail) and the main character, Jazz, was brought up with his dad giving him tips in what/ what not to do in serial killing (of women). Jazz often is afraid that he might become a serial killer too (but the book makes it clear that that is just a thing he has in his head, not because he has a tendency). He teams up with two friends to solve a series of murders copy cat to what his father did. The scenes with the friends & girlfriend is typical teenage stuff and lightens the book. but this book is squarely in suspense thriller territory.

White as default is pervasive in all areas of popular media. It is the reason behind the long-standing tradition of white-washing. I find it most noticeable in books. When reading authors will always describe a character of color with their race: A tall black guy, a pretty Asian girl etc. But when they describe a non-POC it is just a tall man with brown hair. The lack of the word white means that you automatically know this person is white. One reason I love the Ben Aaronvitch Peter Grant books is because every white character is always described as 'white'. It seems an odd thing to notice, but it is so glaring it jumps out so much because of it's absence everywhere else. (and also these books rock and the river goddesses in London are all portrayed as black) women.

I am reading I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga. I read a description in a review on goodreads where someone calls it a cross between Dexter and Scooby Doo and made me sit up to take notice. It is YA (which I normally don't read) but I am really enjoying the trio of friends who are trying to stop a serial killer. And the main character is the 17 year son of one of the most notorious serial killers ever caught who is desperately trying to atone for his dad's sins.

Some folks on twitter. But it sounds like one of those things where it was mentioned in a recent interview, a few people commented negatively or made jokes, then some blogs made a THING about those people who did say something negative -- you know the kinds, those that make a story solely out of scraping tweets. Which sparked MORE people to weigh in including those defending her choice. So basically any old day on twitter.

It sounds like the show is proactively trying not to do that. They must have gotten some feedback or when they recast the role with her in it, they made a conscious decision to not to go there. There was an article in TV guide that addresses that issue and seeks to reassure that she is a Warrior of God sent to help, but that she had her own mission and her own story so her purpose isn't just to be there to help the white guy. It'll be interesting to see if it actually succeeds or if the writers just can't help themselves and the character slides into that trope anyway.

I've never read that about him pitching that for Inara. Sigh. I love Firefly. It is problematic in so many ways, but I do love it. But I have always thought that for a show that was a space fantasy, the conception of the paid companions showed lack of imagination. In my mind, if you are going to create a society that legitimizes sex work, then you should go all the way and make it a society where people also view it legitimately and without the scorn and shame attached. He had the opportunity to suppose a completely different mentality about it, but instead he went a very trite route. It was made worse by the fact that Mal threw around the word 'whore' quite a bit. So to read this pitch just makes it even more worse. Because according to this it takes a brutal gang rape for a guy to think of the woman he scorned as a whore to treat her like a lady? Rape as redemption? Like what the actual fuck?

I believe what she is saying in true for two reasons: 1) In the article she indicates she's quoting from written letters. So it isn't just her (verbal) word against his (verbal words). 2) she published it on The Wrap which is a digital news organization that is considered a legit press site. I don't think they would have opened themselves up to potential charges of libel to let her publish this through them if they hadn't been assured that what she is saying isn't just the rantings of an angry, bitter wife. It would strike me as very naive for a Hollywood publication to publish something that is rather damaging to the reputation of a powerful player in Hollywood and not have vetted it thoroughly.

I finally went to go see this with some girlfriends -- we all wanted to see it together and our crazy schedules!!-- but we LOVED it. and I am not surprised this is doing well, I mean this is wheat the fifth week? and our theatre was pretty full. And it was across color lines and everyone was laughing out loud. And yeah, Tiffany Haddish really was the star of this. Not surprising, I read an interview with the four of them in Essence magazine before the movie was released and even in that print interview she stood out. I love that she really committed to her role as the crazy friend but didn't go over the top to caricature. Some other observations: - Tiffany's clothes were great -Queen Latifah's hair was great, I couldn't wait to see what style she's have it in next - Honestly, I thought Jada was the weakest link in the ensemble. Her performance kind of made me think of Tiffany Haddish's Groupon Swamp Tour story. She seems so above it all. - Loved the sight gag of Dena riding on the lap of the guy who was their bike taxi. It was funny because both her and his expression was telling how much they were both enjoying it. And then his smile at her when she got off his lap. LOL, - The little cheeky nod to Set It Off, the movie that Queen Latifah and Jada were in together about 20 years ago. BTW, LOVED that movie. - All the cameos of the performers at Essence Fest and the idea to set it at Essence fest in the first place. - Larenz Tate, man he looks like he is aging backward!

Language and culture are living things though. They naturally evolve. It isn't just an American thing either. The English that was spoken in the Middle Ages isn't the same English that was spoken in the 1900s. The slang of the 1800s isn't the slang of today. Idioms and dialects exist all over the world within every region even within micro-regions. Language patterns change base on many different factors, new words evolve and people even adopt other language's words into their own lexicon mean a meaning is better conveyed. It only makes sense for people who are not native speakers of a language not to be up on the different idioms and cultural movements of that language or its people. There should be no negative connotation to that on the part of the speakers of the language or the ones who don't understand it.

Oh man, the mention of Sanford and Son made me think of the bit where Jack helps Tracy through his therapy on 30 Rock.

I only watched the runway part of this, so I have idea of the personalities involved. I LOVED the winning look. They are right, the cut & fit and the strategic use of the pattern of the fabric was really nice. Really surprised that that one dress that was gold with the weird horn like shoulder pads wasn't a bottom. You can't tell me that if someone showed up with that dress on at an awards RC they wouldn't show up on every worst dressed list? I also agreed with the judges that the one twin who was in the bottom, could have had a stunning look if she didn't pair that really nice top with those raggedy ass looking shorts. But even so she was still better than gold-horn dress. I thought the chick who was in bottom 2 failed because she was trying to camouflage her model's size 100%. I also loved how Zac, I think it was, pointed out that her own person style is really striking. He's 100% correct. If she had done something in a really ethnic print with something bold and dramatic, selling it like her model was off to the BET awards or something, then she would not have been in the B2. And finally, I thought the auf'd designer deserved to be off. Again i agree with ZAc my first impression was 'Pink Clown' when it came off the runway. It was shapeless and swallowed his model. And it looked tacky to boot.