ribboninthesky1

I didn't realize this was a thing. On a related note, I'm usually easier on child actors than adult actors, as I think they have time to develop their craft. Every child can't be Dakota Fanning or Pierce Gagnon (who is scary good as Ethan on Extant, and puts most of the adults to shame) and presumably talented coming out of the womb. Up to their teenage years, I generally don't perceive a child actor as bad on screen. Mind you, that's distinct from whether or not I like the character. I'm rather meh on child TV characters.

I admit, I feel considerably less sympathy for Bankowski than I should, despite my feelings about the death penalty and that he shouldn't have been executed, for a few reasons. He said nothing while an innocent 16 year-old young man was incarcerated for 11 years. He was presumably the one who orchestrated the robbery, and stood by while a teenage girl was raped then murdered, and a mother and father were murdered. It's possible that he saw what happened after the fact, but then I'd have to ask, where was he the whole time Eric Zales was raping and murdering? It's been said that the family died slowly because they were stabbed multiple times - this wasn't death by gunshot. So, he couldn't have stopped Eric at any time? Really? I fully own my racial sensitivity on this point, that he and Eric Zales targeted the sole black family in a white neighborhood. So I may be projecting my feelings about Bankowski on Adam, but I suspect that Adam is less conflicted over Bankowski than he initially was. One of the things I like most about the grandmother is, despite Christine and her father's best efforts to pretend otherwise, it's clear that she loved her granddaughter. I get it, the mother was, and is, a self-absorbed twit, and her abandonment was wrong. But it would appear that the grandmother largely accepted Christine with open arms, even if she didn't like her father. At least with the father, I somewhat empathize with his bitterness. Christine, on the other hand, just comes off acerbic and hostile for no (revealed) reason. Especially for someone who only bothers to interact with her grandmother when she wants money or information. Like mother, like daughter, I suppose.

Hmmm, you may be on to something. I saw Good Will Hunting before School Ties, but part of my dislike for him is that I've also felt like being a good guy was the act. But mostly I've never thought he was all that great an actor, which is heresy, I know. He's been referred to as a chameleon when, in the roles I've seen, he's different versions of bland and blank-faced. So, not that different from his old friend, Ben Affleck. Which isn't inherently bad, as I think most actors have limited range. But when I think chameleon, it's definitely not him.

That's fair, and is likely the popular opinion, which is why his movies don't do that well in the US anymore. Unless he's promoting a film, is he putting himself out there? How is he in the public's face? Legitimate question on this, since I'm often purposely oblivious to press and public appearances for celebrities.

I like him as an actor as well. It seems like a lot of the (American) public dislike of him relates to his association with Scientology. And yes, no doubt that the religion is strange and twisted, but as an atheist, I don't think it's less so than Christianity, Judaism, or Islam.

Can't forget Oha busting out "Queen to Be" - I'll never forget how random it was, and how passionately he sang ("Completely free from infection!"), only to deadpan at the end. It cracks me up every time.

When I really thought about it after reading it, the entire premise and set up was based on luck. Lucky for Amy that: Which brings me to Tableau's question - In any case, this may be one of those instances where the movie is likely better than the book.

The actor who portrays Adam is hit or miss for me, but I thought he was kind of a miss with the reveal fallout and confrontation with Papa Page. The scene was well-written, but he didn't quite bring it the way that Clarke Peters did. I do appreciate the reminder that Bankowski wasn't innocent AT ALL, even if he wasn't a murderer. That said, I like what this show does with the racial politics and complexity. It's being explored, but not in a VSE/after-school special kind of way. Still, I feel for Adam, he allowed himself to be played for pretty much his entire career. I get where Billie is coming from - him doing the right thing now would cost them everything. That a rich white asshole got away with murdering a black family is a painful twist of the knife, and I suspect that's why he's struggling with letting go. One thing I'm grateful for is my initial fears of the murdered black family being corrupt in some way were unfounded. They were just innocent, that's it. And that's enough. That's really meaningful for me, given the most recent major stories of black victims of white violence and how that's often handled by the media. Poor Clark. He's surrounded by self-absorbed idiots related to this case, yet he's the one who gets potentially put into a coma. And yes, he needs a lady. When Christine is seemingly the only person available to come see you at the hospital, that's a problem My sympathy for Terry dissipated a bit, though I get that he's stuck in the past because, ironically, he was a pawn in a game of racial and political chess. Yay, got to see the grandmother again. Her comments on Stanley Zales were very interesting, and I wanted to hear more. If only her granddaughter wasn't such an ass. I wish this show was more well-known, if only to increase its chances of renewal. But I'll keep watching, no matter what. It's one of my favorite shows of the summer.

The teeth, perhaps?

Ha! Good times. He's aged quite well.

Ha! Eh, he'll be alright. I feel more sorry for him than anything, because nothing about the women currently on the show indicates that they're open to dating and "finding love" across racial lines. Might as well address the elephant in the room. But then, I didn't watch the first episode, so maybe he and Money are more romantic than they appear. On this episode, she didn't seem all that into him.

Heh, I missed those previews. He may well be a sweet-talking ladies' man in another context, but not within this franchise. Ironically, he doesn't strike me as one who would be a Barry White fan. He may not even know who he is, ha.

Agreed on Dylan vs Chris B. Sarah kept talking about how she and Elise were BFFs, so I assume that's why she didn't give Dylan the rose. Chicks before Dicks? But yet, she went on a date with him? Mind you, I don't understand how they're BFFs when we saw Elise talking about Dylan to every woman except Sarah, even before the date. Perhaps it was just editing. Anyway, the other guy, who whined most of the episode about Lucy, was just happy to stick around. Hey, they can join together in their delusion that they're above all of the BS...while on TV, in a show that's basically about hooking up. Are the contestants being paid? I assume their accommodations and necessities are covered, but I can't figure out why anyone would sign up? Maybe they thought the destination and accommodations would be luxe?

Not disputing him being a fan favorite, though I assumed his casting on this show was leaked pretty early on during the Bachelorette airing. Would TPTB have had time to gauge viewer interest before casting him? In any case, he and the others from Andi's season really benefited from being on the season just prior to this show. I'm skeptical he would have even been cast at all, if not for that. Other than Graham, they're the only men I recognized. Thinking on it further, perhaps a black man hasn't made it as far on the Bachelorette as he did. Minority women have fared better than minority men, so I can see Marquel being a standout in that regard. And by minority, I mean racial, not ethnic.

Wait, people are really doing that? Wow...okay, to each their own. I've never seen the film in its entirety, so I didn't even know the house existed. I hope no one lives there? If so, that's intrusive, IMO. I admit, I'm kind of skeptical of grief jacking - as long as the loved ones of the deceased can grieve in peace, it shouldn't really matter what the general public does. I hope that's the case, but it's also why I've limited my media coverage. The TV media will do what it typically does. I was gonna mention this in my original post, but it was long enough, so I deleted that part. Plus, I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing - grieving is a way for the living to cope with losing the deceased. It's never been beneficial for the deceased.

I understand where you're coming from, and it's a valid question. On top of what you mentioned, I think the sudden nature of his death also contributed to the grief. As far as the general public knew, Robin Williams, despite his personal problems, didn't struggle with mental illness (though I've never understood why the media/general public never seem to acknowledge a correlation between substance abuse and mental illness). I also think Robin's star rose long before social media, where a celebrity's personal life is much more highly scrutinized, and by the time the media largely reported on Robin's issues (i.e. his 2006/7 interview with Larry King), media and the general public already had his persona imprinted, and didn't see beyond that. I've avoided much of it just by not watching much TV, and the social media pages I visit have expressed sadness, but it's not been OTT. I think Robin being so well-known, and that much of his more popular work was more family-driven, a lot of people of a certain age were sincerely touched by his performances. I wasn't one of those people, but as long as no one tries to tell me if or why *I* should grieve, I'm okay with giving people space to do their grieving. In a couple of weeks, maybe even next week, the (TV and social) media cycle will have moved on.

I just watched this episode (well, most of it), and I don't know - I don't see Dylan as a meathead. He handled Elise as well as he could. I can appreciate frankness, but I think he initially did what most people do when they're not really interested in someone: try to let them down easy. Plus, Dylan strikes me as introverted, and that rarely, if ever, plays well on TV. For my part, I don't think he really gave a damn that Elise made out with Chris - he just didn't seem keen to the shenanigans that Elise pretended to feign innocence about. The irony of Chris Bukowski railing on any other guy's appearance is...interesting. If we're going strictly on physical appearance, I'll be the oddball and admit that I'd take Fat Damon over the original Damon any day of the week, and twice on Sunday. Could Marquel BE any more of a token minority on this show? Maybe I should read some spoilers, because I do not believe this dude has any chance of staying long-term. Especially after criticizing the only woman who pretended to be interested in him. At least original recipe tries to throw a couple of tokens in the group of 25, you know, to not make it so obvious that they're tokens. But I never watched the Bachelor Pad shows, so maybe they mixed it up a bit there. Lawd, this show is soooooo low rent. I remember when, years ago, comparisons were made between this franchise and the VH1/MTV derivatives, and how funny it was that the Bachelor was "classy." Alas, I don't care enough to find the article(s). At least the re-enactment was hilarious (the primary reason I tuned in), and seeing a man assume "the birthing position," and the crew person lose her shit trying to describe the incident will crack me up to the end of my days.

I had a sense of what the movie was about before watching, and it was still disturbing. But then, I'll never understand how an adult is "sexually attracted" to a child.

Speaking of Dennis Hopper scenery-chewing, if I catch Speed on TV, I'll stop to watch it. I always crack up when Tom Hanks awkwardly dives into the water to "rescue" Daryl Hannah after they've escaped from the facility and are trying to get away. Plus, he's just overall funny in that movie. Also, knowing how old the movie is makes me feel slightly decrepit.

Ah, I never found sharks particularly interesting (I may be one of the five people in the US who hasn't watched Jaws). So, yes, I'm glad to be clueless on this front. @Shannon L., hopefully, you get some TV reciprocity at home!

This is why I ultimately didn't feel that sorry for him. He'd been reading the situation completely wrong for awhile (though he still seemed to think otherwise, months later, while watching the show), and that's not counting the premise of the show that he knowingly walked into. I neither know or care about Nick's feelings on sex, but I did wonder, if sex in this context was so meaningful to him, why he wouldn't have waited until official confirmation from Andi in the guise of her verbalizing her feelings? He never said he felt he had to have sex in order to be chosen - he assumed he was the one. So, what difference would a day (or week, whatever) have made? I wondered the same about Andi as well, but she has no sympathy card to play. Ultimately, two adults chose to have sex within the context of the show, knowing very well what it could (or could not) mean. Either of them could have refrained, but chose not to. But then, I've never felt sorry for women who have sex with the Bachelor, either. It's the height of naïveté, at best, stupidity at worst, to have sex with someone within the context of the show, and then claim expectations of monogamy if they're not the F1. Just...what?

Sorry, it was the Oscars, not the Tonys. My mistake! They all sort of blend together for me, heh. Anyway, I didn't start out hating the song, I was perfectly indifferent to it. Then, friends and family sent me "cute" Youtube videos, and that was that.

Sometimes, it pays to be clueless - what the hell is Shark Week? Programming about sharks? I dare not google this.

I never watch award shows, but I remember reading about Adele Dazeem a day or so after the Tonys on TWOP and wondering who the hell she was. Then I saw the video, which will never NOT be hilarious. Anyway, I liked her until Let It Go. It's not really her fault, since she was just doing her job, but good gravy, the song is the very definition of viral, and I want to take it out back and beat it down until it's wiped from the consciousness of its victims (i.e. those who hated the song as much as I do). Thankfully, the Internet has a short memory, long past. I assume Hugh Jackman? If so, this is the funniest description of him I've read to date. I like him, but I understand how he can annoy others.

I like her, as she seems self-deprecating. But I also feel like her attributed hotness has more to do with being Latina than anything else. I've seen her without all of the make-up, and...well, it's good she wears make-up. But then, I am usually baffled at what Hollywood considers beautiful. Maybe it's because I don't wear make-up, and thus do not appreciate its enhancing effects, but it's hard for me to buy into someone being beautiful if you look like a foot (or Casper) when you're bare-faced. And while this usually applies to women, it goes for the men as well. Anyway, I feel for her, because it seems like the only reason she makes money is because she plays up the feisty Latina stereotype. Then again, she may be laughing all the way to the bank.