EarlGreyTea

If I did not know this was a documentary, I'd have said it was a high caliber scripted drama. The producers could not have picked a better year, better narrative arc, or better group of students than this particular one. The show had everything - richly drawn and scrappy underdog characters with interesting (and often tragic) backstories; the rivalry down the street; a compassionate coach who had something to prove after a recent loss; complete narrative arcs with certain team members proving themselves; and a dramatic ending complete with last-minute changes (a la Matt Saracen filling in for Jason Street in the Friday Night Lights pilot). I loved it. If it gets a season two (and frankly, it should, even though many of the most compelling characters are moving on), I bet they let them actually film the Daytona championships. That was weak sauce and I bet the president of the organization is kicking himself given what a hit this show is turning out to be. I see no problem with Morgan staying another year. The poor girl clearly needs the stability of Monica before she feels she can strike out on her own. With all she's been through, I'm not surprised she wants to stay.

Agreed. Jenn was WAY too forgiving. I think I'd have bought the relationship more if they were the ones who were sisters. Jenn went out of her way WAY too many times for someone who barely reciprocated. I'm trying to think one of thing Kat did for Jenn that equaled anything Jenn did for Kat, but I can't. I could buy it better if Jenn was Kat's older sister. Then her generosity would make more sense. Not that friends can't be like sisters, but there was too much self-sacrifice going on. Also, Jenn seemed to get over not being able to skate way too quickly. That arc was over and done with in about 5 seconds. That was annoying too. I'd be interested in Dasha helping her become a coach. That's organic and interesting and would give them both something to do.

See, out of the many outlandish things on the show, I could buy this one completely without having to see too much of the relationship between Jenn and the doctor. The real relationship here is between Jenn and Kat, and all of that resentment and fighting over the last 10 episodes- THAT'S the real groundwork that led to Jenn siding with the doctor. This was just one time too many that Kat and her family got one over on Jenn. Jenn can only take so many hits in one year. So as disappointing as it was, I DID find it realistic. Frankly, I thought Jenn forgave Kat a little too quickly in the last episode, and the friendship was much too one-sided for my taste. I very much enjoyed this show, but I was kind of tired of the fact that all the POC characters and their dreams and desires were sidelined for the main characters'. Marcus I could take or leave, but Jenn and Alana were really likable and deserved more airtime than they got. This is one case where I can buy that they look too close in age. Kaya is playing 21 or so, and if January was, say, 18 when she had her, I can buy it. What I can't buy is the Kaya and Willow as sisters. I thought the show covered up their lack of resemblance due to different fathers rather cleverly, but it was still jarring. Overall I liked the show and would watch a season two, but yes, it was very rushed and too many storylines happened at once to give them all justice. Overall, I was very impressed by the chemistry between the two leads. I initially wrote Justin off as too one-note in the first few episodes, but they gave him some real depth and his love for Kat seemed real.

I did NOT see the subplot with the doctor and Serena coming. I guessed that she wasn't with one of the twins, but didn't expect it to be him. I'm glad they didn't make the characters kiss or do a love scene, because it would have been too icky. I'm peeved - can't Jenn have ANYTHING that isn't someone's sloppy seconds? Justin and Kat have great chemistry. Can't believe he was the one-note character from the first episode that I wanted to write off initially. I like the depth he's been given. I did NOT expect Kat to say she wasn't sure she loved him.

That was intense. I think this episode wouldn't have had as much impact had Kaya not laid such groundwork in earlier episodes of a sober, determined person. Her episode was much more jarring as a result. I like Kat, but I've always found Kaya likable in whatever she does. It's clear Kat is going to pay the price for her episode. I wouldn't root for her as much if she got off scot-free. I wish the show would have shown us more relationships between the secondary characters or even more of Kat and Carol. There are a few good scenes here and there, but overall I think the canvas is too cluttered and has too many storylines going on at once to really give all of them justice. And yet I like all of the secondary characters enough to not want them all to disappear.

I rather liked the coach's scenes with Carol. It's too bad they initially portrayed him as a creep, because I liked his empathy with Carol and Serena. The scene with him kind of joining Carol in her obsessive cleaning was well done. But the initial scenes of his implied creepiness have ruined him, unless they backtrack really fast.

I think he's got some hidden crunchy/Mother Earth BS tendencies. That's why he and Kristin get along so well, he's just more stealth. A few years back, he and Kristin published some goat's milk formula recipe for babies or something, which ended up on PEOPLE.com until it was pointed out that goat's milk can kill infants when prepared improperly (or something like that). That to me says more about Jay's inner beliefs more than a million episodes of fake Very Cavallari.

I love it so far. Gorgeous scenery. I love all the running through the snow. Kaya's best roles are where she doesn't have to say much. She's turning in a very sober and lovely performance. It's so jarring from her IRL persona, which is generally upbeat and goofy. How old is Kat supposed to be, though? Predictable stage momming storyline, but January Jones is compelling in the role so far. Justin is falling flat for me right now. Boring, stock rich boy character paired with Kaya's more compelling character and performance. I hope I'm wrong and both the character and actor become more interesting.

Victoria Pedretti was a revelation, and for me, made this season much stronger than the first. Even before her brand of crazy was revealed, she made Love seem like much more of a real person than Beck ever was, and not as insanely self-destructive. Much of that, of course, is owing to the strength of Pedretti as an actress over Lail. Her eyes are just so expressive and you could buy her as a real person. Beck was such a cypher. I now want to re-watch the entire season, knowing what we know about Love now. All of the scenes in the storage locker were amazing. Penn finally had someone strong to work off of, and it showed. They really pushed each other in those scenes. For my money, they had more chemistry overall than he had with Lail. I feel marooned on an island in my dislike of Peach. Shay Mitchell played the hell out of her, but I couldn't stand Peach. More than once I rewound just to hear Penn's voiceovers. HYSTERICAL. I thought Love was lying about the pregnancy. And since her husband's illness was never specifically named...

Agreed. Kristin also becomes doubly annoying when around Kelly, so it’s for the best. Their friendship seems more superficial, anyway, than Kristin’s friendships with Biegs and Pip. For one thing, they’ve only known each other a few years. Based on the previews, what I gather the feud was about: it seemed that there were rumors of Jay and Kelly having an affair, and Kelly didn’t work hard to dispel those rumors. These aren’t spoilers, just my speculation. If this is so...yeah, that’s a friendship wedge for sure. I did think they interacted a little too much without Kristin for my liking, but at the same time Kelly could probably do better. Kristin no longer follows Kelly on Instagram.

I like Lauren. Well, about as much as I can like any of these close-minded bigots. There is something sober and vulnerable about her that I find appealing. I've really only seen her in short episode clips, but I did watch the birth episode. I thought she seemed perfectly composed through the whole thing, no drama antics of any kind. I was surprised to see how attentive Josiah was. He generally was the ideal doting husband you'd want in labor and delivery. Maybe his attentiveness was performative, especially for the cameras, but to me, a viewer who's not seen much of their relationship, they seem to have a real connection. Whether that is true in reality, who knows. If there is a hell, it is being in labor with two failed epidurals and Michelle's voice in your ear for the rest of eternity. I will never forget Josh seeing fit to take a short nap when Anna was in labor with Mackynzie, while Michelle, Jill, and even Princess Jessa, if I recall correctly, stayed up with Anna. And finally, I hope Lauren pronounces Bella Milagro as it's supposed to be pronounced, with an accent. I applaud her for it, especially when she does it in front of of Jim Bob "I say hola in Nepal" Duggar.

Sorry, y'all, I found Caesar oddly endearing. Obviously we've had plenty of wolves in sheep's clothing on this show who turn out to be total pricks, but so far this guy is likeable for me. I would not in a million years have guessed that he worked in a nail salon. I'd love it if my husband could do my manicures for free. I wonder how much he makes in a year to be sending her $800 a month. That's rent for a lot of people. ...But yeah. He's being scammed big time. I felt bad when his face visibly WOMP WOMPed when the producer asked him if he thought she was sending videos to other men.

I agree. The stylist for the Tell-All needs to be put on retainer by Nicole, because every time they get ahold of her she looks great. I know she's lost a few pounds, too, and it looks good. I can't be bothered to care about Pedro and Chantel's drama, since it was clearly an hour-long promo for The Family Chantel. You're not sucking me into that. I do have SOME standards.

What kills me about all these photos posted of Colt is that he has actual potential to be attractive. Nice eyes, nice hair, and his features are angular enough that they would look good if he lost a few pounds. Like most of us, he would look attractive with a certain amount of weight loss. You can see it the most in the mirror selfie above, where he's taken actual care in his clothing. The potential is there. Now I'm off to wash my eyes with bleach.

Father Andrei was worth the price of admission. What a thoughtful, gracious man, although I absolutely reserve the right to change my mind on that one (I've already been burned by Andrei this season). Maybe the language barrier was a factor in his likeability, but he was perfectly gracious about everything and even called Andrei out for making conflict. His eating the burger with a knife and fork was funny. Having said all that, it was lunacy to pay $600 for 17 hours or whatever it was, unless of course production paid for it, in which case go for it. Jay is a moron with no concept of the long con. All he had to do was stick it out for a few years, play nice the whole time, then divorce, at which point he could go hog wild. Whether he screwed the girl in the barbershop or not, he must have really, really pissed off his boys to make them turn on him like that. Barbershop talk is usually sacrosanct.

See, I dislike Libby's family - a LOT. I was Team Andrei all last season. But there was no need for Andrei to start whispering to Becky during the shower within earshot of Jenn and quite blatantly pulling her aside in the middle of things to complain. An adult would have waited until the party ended - or been civil and kept his mouth shut, especially since Libby wanted annoying-ass Jenn to be there. While I agree that it's good to keep the guests of honor in mind when making a guest list, did Andrei really expect a sister to leave out one of her siblings at a family gathering, particularly since every other sister was apparently there? Does Becky strike Andrei as the type of person who would do that? I think not. Andrei's original sin was taking Father Libby up on living in that house rent-free. For someone who bleats on about making it on his own and not wanting the family around, it was a spectacularly bad move to live off his father-in-law, no matter how short of a time. You have no idea how much I hate defending Family Elizabeth - they're obnoxious, smug assholes with no concept of boundaries.

I thought the same thing at first, but I was pretty impressed with Tony and the co-owner, despite their offices (I suspect maybe it helps people feel less intimidated). They were cool as cucumbers and totally professional. If I had to bail out a loved one, Tony's demeanor would be very soothing. In other news, I hate Andrei for making me side with Family Libby. Christ Almighty, they grated on me all last season, but no way in hell would I let someone dictate who I would have in my home. He is slowly isolating Libby from her family and it's not fun to watch. Having said that, Jen is unbearably smug.

I love that they brought the pastor back. I secretly hoped we'd see him again after last season. I hope he'll pop up again - in small doses, of course. When he gave the link to his church's donation page, I howled! And even the simple lines were funny. "Glenn okayed it. Hallelujah."

Not sure how I feel about the development of Andrei and Elizabeth living in one of her dad's properties rent-free. There is NOTHING more expensive than free, especially with her band of dysfunctional, self-important, smothering family members. I'm a bit surprised at them accepting her dad's help at all. However, Elizabeth is as much the problem, especially if she's letting them run roughshod over them a la Chantel. And if he wanted to get away from their influence, living in his FIL's property is not the way to do it. Bad move, Andrei.

Are we supposed to think Brittainy is a bad person for valuing her job and the company over a shallow ass friendship with a bunch of vapid, incompetent employees? Good Lord. Reagan's always been a bit of a backstabber, and she can go the way of Shannon as far as I'm concerned. Kristin is totally unwatchable when she's with her friends. I'm not sure why I watch this show when I actively dislike everyone on it, with the possible exception of Jay. Except that he willingly hangs out with this band of fools, so.

Dina is the hottest woman on the show (closely followed by Amy in that gorgeous dress). Those khakis they always make her wear do her NO favors. Also love how Garrett lovingly drew her boobs. The gentleman doth protest too much. "My friend," my ass! A few of the party guests starred in "Real Women Have Curves" with America. It's nice to see her with them again. I wish Lupe Ontiveros was still around to play a relative of Amy's. Please stop pairing up Cheyenne with Mateo. It's tired, it's been done, and both of them play off straight man characters better.

Someone once said Derick resembled a dehydrated Aaron Rodgers. Or was it a tumble dried Aaron Rodgers? EDIT: Someone beat me to it. Jill's Easter dress or whatever was posted above was very cute. A little baggy on top, but she seems to like it that way. At least it doesn't have the unfortunate effect of making her look bigger. Clothes that make even small women look big should be burned for their poor craftsmanship.

I thought this was the worst episode yet. I've had enough of Kristin's screaming with her friends. I'm glad everyone gets along (with the possible exception of her and Jay), but I don't want to see it on my screen. More Kaylee and less Matt, please. She was supposed to be the show's shit-stirrer, but all I've seen so far is competence and the ability to absorb the constant shit talking with class. What was the explanation given for why they weren't in the main house? I was confused at that. Of COURSE Colby is a singer. It wouldn't be a Nashville show without a couple of nobodies trying to sing. I would like to tell you I enjoyed her song, but I could not understand a single word.

Kristin - and Brittainy, to an extent - is very dismissive of her employees. On the one hand, I can see why. Most of them are gossipy, clique-y idiots who can't fill a box properly. And who cares if they don't like Kaylee? And they're in their early twenties, an age where you're more sensitive and prone to drama. But on the other hand, employees need to be feel that they're being heard, that they're valuable, etc. And being on the floor and doing the work means they have insight that the higher-ups don't. Example #1 is when Brittainy said to shipping that they needed to do the shipping manual ASAP, because "taking a photo doesn't take long." On the one hand, she's right. But on the other, it's dismissive of the work it actually does take to put a manual together. It's a delicate balance between holding an employee's hand and acknowledging their efforts. And nobody in management on this show seems to realize that. It's clear that the drama necessary for a reality show is harming day-to-day operations. Matt should have been out the door in a real business, but since he brings drama for the show, he stays.

I really can't take any more of Kelly and Kristin's constant screaming laughter in their interviews. Also the whole stilted convo with that guy was so forced, cringey, and fake. Why must we have fake ass storylines featuring Kelly, the one person who has nothing to do with the business? Of COURSE he was an actor/model. Probably hired a la Wirth to pretend he gives a damn. I can't stand Kelly's vapid ass, but even I felt bad at her not being able to get a word in edgewise. Colby only apologized to Kaylee because she got called out. Guarantee that if Kristin hadn't put the smackdown on her, she would have continued talking shit behind Kaylee's back and encouraging the other employees to do it too. She's only sorry to have been called out and seen as not nice. Can you imagine being retired at 35? I'd go nuts continuously fixing up the house. That pasta Kristin made looked SO good.