DearEvette

I think I read somewhere that the kids were born in '79 and the present day of pilot was 2015. At least it was shot and shown in 2015 to be bought by NBC.

I know the problem with me with the revelation about Jos's past-- and I do blame the writers to a large extent -- is that it is such a badly done retcon that it just makes her actions so damn dumb. I can't get over them. If you go back you don't see a woman who was hesitant to get involved with a new man because of the past hanging over her. You don't see someone who is constantly shying away from commitment because she is married. That only came out when she saw the ring in the latter part of S12 when it was obvious they had decided to write this story for her. Most damning really is the conversation she had with Alex when she found the letter about Izzy's eggs. "I love you and you love me, but when I look ahead...Am I just the let's get a dog girl? I am wondering what you think we are, what you want?" And "She was worth it to you but when I ask you if you want to have babies, you are all..'Duh... I dunno" Alex: "She was my wife, we were married!" Jo: "That's my point, what am I?" Alex: " She had cancer." Jo: "So I have to get sick to figure out if you are gonna go all in with me?" Those are not the words of a woman who already has a husband, those are the words of a woman who wants a life commitment from her boyfriend. The whole tone of that entire conversation was a woman who wanted more. And a woman on the run, who is hiding, who is worried about creating a commitment because she is already married would not have had that conversation. Human nature is such that when you don't like character on a show you blame the character for their bad actions, but when you do like the character you blame the writers for their bad actions. I don't like Jo at all, but I do blame the writers. But all said and done, with what they gave us on screen, she looks like a liar and hypocrite who could have known better about getting involved and making someone fall in love with her. And on a final note from the writers, I think making her a domestic abuse survivor is a manipulative way to make her instantly sympathetic to make her lies palatable. It is the same thing they did with Melly on Scandal.

Yeah. that is what I am hoping happens as the story plays out. All in all it is a good thing that the pilot left us with so many questions and intriguing possibilities. It gives the narrative room to maneuver. The one thing you don't want to come away from a show is thinking 'How can they sustain that over 22 episodes?" I can that this show has all sorts of scenarios to play with and that makes it nice to anticipate watching.

I don't think the questioning is that he hired someone, but more along the lines of how does a PI even reasonably go about finding someone who anonymously left a baby at a firehouse. And from there, proving that this guy is actually Randall's father. There are a lot of suppositions that could be made about what happened off screen: it wasn't anonymous, he actually gave his name when he dropped the baby, there was a note left with Randall, there were security cameras etc. But the show didn't bother with any of that. For me the details do make a difference in this instance because of how absolutely sure Randall is that this guy is his father; so much so that he invites him into his home with his children.

As long as they also take April's dumb ass brother with them. I think I groaned out loud when he showed up.

Finally watched this. Ooh, I really enjoyed it. Kylie Bunbury was luminous. Ali Larter was bad ass. Mark-Paul Gosselaar was fab & funny. The look of it was great (watching Queen Sugar has given me a more critical eye about tv photography). The first outing was painful to sit through. I'm in. At least til Fox fucks it up somehow.

Frank has such a handsome face when it isn't covered with all that hair! My god, he's totally hot! Too bad he's gone all Travis Bickle to go with the hair cut. Unpopular Opinion: I have never really liked Oliver. Him deleting the Stanford stuff and wanting to so bad to be one of "them" and then breaking up with Connor because Connor is too, what, good to him? Just no. So Michaela and Asher as still banging? Ok. Not awful but not wonderful. I am sorry but that scene with the University President was all kinds of wrong. I would have found it more realistic is they were "transitioning" her on the basis of her personal life. Analise's life outside the school is basically a dumpster fire. I could totally understand the school wanting to distance itself from her for that. But citing the performance of five students in one class for one semester as a basis for concern makes no sense. At the post-secondary and post-graduate level of education, the professors don't get blamed for the bad grades of a handful of students. The students would get warning letters, put on probation or outright suspended or dismissed. The professor swans on and continues about their business unscathed. And if Analise is tenured and her reputation up til last year was so great in student performance, the K5's bad grades wouldn't even register as a blip on the radar of the university let alone the president.

Awww... Bill Nunn. He was such a good character actor. I remember him mostly of course as Radio Raheem from Do The Right Thing and also as Duh Duh Duh man from New Jack City. RIP.

But that personal chatter and making everything about them is a hallmark of the show and has been since its inception. I think Grey's would only be abut three seasons long so far if every patient wasn't there just so our Docs could make it all about them! I totally get that Maggie's character can be annoying. I wince at her sometimes and I genuinely like her. She's definitely not the kind of person I could ever be, But I also get what SR is trying to do with the character. Maggie is younger than folks in her job would normally be, a medical wunderkind who was most probably a geek of some sort who was typically asocial. She doesn't do social cues well. And she is a A-type personality who is neurotic and trying desperately to fit in with her new found sister. Kelly McCreary does a good job of making Maggie this person. I think that one episode S10? coming from Maggie's perspective did a great job of showing her mindset. But I also think a lot of viewers had a knee jerk reaction to a new character getting so much face time and on top of it she isn't a "cool" character. So I do get the annoyance factor. This isn't directed at you @Deanie87, just because I quoted your post -- LOL. But I personally think she gets a fair amount of shit on minor things where other characters get a pass on big things, that's all. And even though i can see why she can be eye-roll worthy I can't help but be compelled to defend her. It helps that I kinda see her as a puppy who just wants approval and acceptance.

That is my suspicion too. I mean we went from a picture "I found him" to "You're my dad!!" What real proof did Randall really have before confronting the guy? Or for that matter I would love to know how did they even find the bio-dad in the first place? But it would be another twist for Randall to realize that this dad isn't his real dad either. Also I can't help but think he is a bit shady because the preview That just sets my radar off. I could see him being an opportunist. But we'll see. I am liking the trajectory of all the stories so far. Curious to see what the fallout of Manny-gate is for Kevin -- will it actually be a positive thing? The public is just unpredictable enough to like that. Also curious too see how Kate & Toby's relationship goes. Also if she becomes committed to the weight loss, and how that will work with the actress in real life. Obviously is she loses weight IRL then the character will too. Very interested in seeing how the kids grew up. And oddly I am finding Milo Ventimiglia kinda hot with that beard when I never gave him a passing glance before. And finally, I want to see the sibling relationship dynamic in present time. I realize the pilot had to keep them away but I am real curious as to what their relationship is.

Not only that, but whose ever camera phone video they were watching , the person didn't turn it landscape (my pet peeve) and you saw like, their personal calendar on the side and stuff. Nice touch.

Pitch got major buzz after the upfronts. In fact, IIRC, it was originally not suposed to air until mid-season, but the reaction at the upfronts was so strongly positive that Fox moved it up in the schedule. But Fox, imo , doesn't promo well. I only heard about Pitch becuase of critic buzz. Meanwhile, NBC was saturating the airwaves with their big buzzy new show, This Is Us. But I like Kylie Bunbury and have done so since she was in Twisted. And then she was also excellent on Tut. Glad to see she si getting more exposure on a network show.

I hate the whole idea of the triangle too. Have ever since it was first hinted at last season. But I don't blame Maggie. I do think she is socially awkward and it is clear she never went through the regular adolescent rituals of dating. So she has an air of real arrested development. I mean she is super young and a head of a cardio, I think i read somewhere that she was basically a Dougie Howser. So it isn't really a bad thing to be interested in someone and not know how to make your interest known. But the real issue is Meredith, imo. She is the one in possession of all the information. She knows that Maggie likes Riggs, all she has to do is just freakin' tell Maggie that she and Riggs slept together. Or maybe giving Riggs a heads up "by the way, Maggie has a little crush on you so this is kinda awkward here." Withholding something so simple that could head off later complications is what really strikes me as childish. It would be so refreshing (so it probably won't happen) if when Maggie finally does learn about she says something like "well why didn't you just tell me you were involved with him?"

I know she eventually told Steph, but Steph had to practically beg it out of her. Jo was packing to run away and quit the program when Stephanie caught up with her. But the Webber thing in the beginning of the episode was really odd. She was "I don't know, I don't know"and wanting him to leave and then she ran out of her own house while he was still trying to get her to talk. I know that she was drunk but damn, something like that should have sobered her up real quick. And she had to realize people assumed that DeLuca was hurting her so the longer she stayed silent the worse it got. Meanwhile her conversation with Alex where nobody could finish a sentence is just bad soap opera writing. It is designed specifically to maintain the misunderstanding.

Maggie was annoying for sure. But her little bit of selfishness does not deserve the outpouring of hate she seems to be getting. I mean everyone was asking about what happened to DeLuca and Meredith knew. No it isn't about Maggie but at the end of the day Meredith was willing to cover up an ass beating that could have made him lose his sight and he was someone Maggie cared about. Also by making it about their family and relationship, Maggie's hurt wasn't necessarily about this particular situation so much is was about Meredith having no issue outright lying to Maggie's face. Meanwhile Alex beats a guy to shit. Jo lies like it is a career that owes her a pension, and Meredith is busy covering stuff up and they get sympathetic understanding. I don't completely blame Alex because after all he was working from a deluded assumption that DeLuca was forcing himself on Jo. But still he seemed to have little remorse even when he thought maybe it was consensual. Hey, I even like Alex quite a bit, but that is every kind of fucked up there is. And remember this is the guy who basically shamed Chest Peckwell into not going to the police because no one would believe him. But at least in the end he took responsibility. I do 100% squarely blame Jo. I know she is popular on this board but I can not stand her. Her number one concern is keeping her secret and running away. It is not like she is in imminent danger of being discovered by her husband right at this point. So her instinct to run without clearing up what happened and leaving both Alex and DeLuca in the stew of the mess she made is a total punk ass move.

I got the clear vibe in last episode that Ralph Angel probably was babied to some extent. We still don't know what the family dynamic was for them growing up. What exactly Earnest' relationship with them was. And obviously something went pear-shaped with RA for him to have gotten into drugs and gone to jail and to have absolutely no knowledge of the farm. I can't 100% blame him for his lack of knowledge only for his naivete.... ... And his stupidity and his pride. Because refusing the help of a an experienced farmer when you don't even know enough about your crop to see when it is bad is just dumb. But honestly, from a story telling standpoint I love that this element of him was included. I like that it isn't going to be easy for him. And it is good that he is making rookie mistakes. He'll learn better this way. I knew RA would fuck it up it was just a matter of what degree. I was very skeptical when they were talking about Charley leaving him that money, my hope is that he doesn't mess the money up, but if he does it is through ignorance and mismanagement and not something more sinister. I am hopeful because so far Ava Duvernay hasn't been going with the cheap storytelling. Frankly, I was more upset with Nova. She's my favorite and I applaud her reformer zeal. But I hated that she was blowing off RA. She knows he was over his head. And it broke my heart when RA called her out on her neglect of him when he was inside. Hopefully this is another corner turned for them. Meanwhile, Nova's married boo is so fine.... sigh. As much as I despide Davis, I want Charley to triumph in everything. She is so steely. She is a baller. But I also want her back in NOLA. And I knew Micah's girlfriend was trifling last week. Finally, I loved her line delivery when she found out the hooker's name was Goldie. The utter disdain dripping from her lips was great. LOL.

Justin Hartley -- Oh I loved him since his days on Passions. Fox and Whitney forevah! Or at least til I stopped watching daytime soaps. Speaking of ... I loved his drunk scene it hit just right medium between self-pitying and self-righteous. I also liked the smallish scene of Russell cracking up comparing his own life to a sitcom.

Not the best to open with. I think the idea of the Johnsons going to Disney was a good one, but the execution just felt like a big commercial. I did like Bow, Ruby and Pops though. Their storyline was fun, especially Bow wearing the Minnie Mouse ears. TER's whole look with braids, the ears and then later the Mickey Hands was just perfect. One thing I do appreciate is that the show allows Diane to get her comeuppance every once in awhile. I love her to pieces, but karma does come back and bite her. It keeps the character from becoming too precious. So her losing her glasses and not being able to see whatever the hell was so indescribable (and Jack gloating about it) was great. And I admit, I sympathise having lost my own glasses on a water ride once. Season 2 was very strong. C'mon Season 3, don't let me down!!

That "anachronistic" discussion about black folks being around in the 80s made me think of that scene in Psych:

I think the NBC aired promos were deliberately misleading to get you to just approach this like a family drama in the vein of Parenthood of Thirtysomething. I think going in blind to the twist and having it come out of the blue was something they were really going for. And of course, casting Sterling Brown was another element to the mislead. I mean even if you did begin to suspect you still has to wonder how he fit in? That was my impression going into last week. But suddenly the big promo push was on and I had read a couple of posts by critics who mentioned the twist at the end and called it intriguing. And then NBC started talking up the 'drag out the hnakies' stuff. So really until last week, I thought the same as you.

Aw, I missed the rest of the cast but I love Jake and Holt together so much. I love how his boss totally thought he was a stoner. So funny since of course Holt is the exact opposite. I also loved how awkward he was with pretending to be a straight widow who was married to a "strong, female woman with nice heavy breasts." The episode itself was only so-so but the Jake-Holt stuff was worth it.

i liked this. But I must be an unfeeling monster because I didn't cry once. Didn't even get a tingle in my nose... I guessed the twist about 20 mins before the end. There was a background shot of a woman wearing this plaid skirt and I thought it looked dated and then I started paying a attention to the hospital setting and it just didn't look high tech enough. What finally did it is when the show very pointedly didn't show the picture of Randall's adoptive parents, even though normally we would have gotten a look at the photo. Birth dad seems sketchy. Randall shuldn;t have said how much he paid for that car... I like Toby. He's funny and feels natural. I love that he immediately took a selfie with Justin Hartley's character (man I need to look them up on IMDB). And the Alan Thicke line.

I had initially heard of it in passing a month or so ago, but it was amidst the all the other reboots etc. etc. that come along and I tend to ignore. The main thing that makes me actually want to see this is because I love sci fi, I love POC in sci fi -- I would have loved the whole Robinson clan to be black, but I don't mind the idea of them being an IR family since an IR family would look more like mine that a homogeneous one would -- and genuinely like Toby Stephens. He's got an interesting face and a presence I enjoy. Whether or not I really tune in will rely on the rest of the cast. I get attracted to stuff these days based on cast more than premise, honestly. Just like I totally plan to check out that other new sci fi show on Netflix 'Altered Carbon' solely on the basis of Renee Elise Goldsberry being cast as a main. Although I must admit nothing would have enticed me to check it out if it had been re-imagined as a police procedural...

Dang it! I might actually watch the Lost In Space reboot they are doing on Netflix. The first Robinson family member cast was Taylor Russell, as Judy Robinson the oldest daughter. Taylor is a WOC (yes, there were people on social media complaining about being PC and casting a "blackwashing" the family Robinson). But now they've just announced Toby Stephens is cast at her father John Robinson. I like him in Black Sails. And so now I am intrigued about who they'll cast as the mother. Someone on Tvline suggested Sharon Leal. I would totally cosign that casting.

It seems like Ava was in close contact Natalie Baszile as she was adapting the changes and Baszile was really ok with it. Her point about adapting the book into a tv series vs. a movie is well taken. You can only sustain a book's premise over a multi-episode , multi-season tv show for so long before you do end up having to introduce changes that diverge it from the source. A self contained two hour movie may have been closer to the book. And the reality with traditional publishing is that different types of rights to a single work have to be negotiated separately when you sell a book to a publisher. The 'book' is usually just the published, printed work, not the electronic or digital rights, and not the reproduction rights, trademark, intellectual property etc. A lot of times those are owned by the publisher and can be optioned out separately and the actual writer has little control over how the work becomes adapted in other formats. Big names can and do negotiate stronger contracts wrt controls over their works. And a lot of times contracts can stipulate a period of time when the all the rights revert completely to the author so they have sole control over the work in all formats. But a lot of times, once it has been optioned and sold for film or tv the writer has to sit on the sidelines like the rest of us and hope the adaptation doesn't lose all the spirit of the work. But yeah, she sounds like is rather pleased. And even with the changes it has increased her book's profile quite a bit. Here is the full interview.