rubyred

So I've seen people mention that the sinkhole is in DTLA -- it is not, it's at the intersection of Fairfax and Wilshire, where the glorious architectural renovation of the Peterson Automotive Museum is prominently featured. As an LA resident who has been avoiding that stretch of Wilshire for YEARS due to the ongoing construction on that building (and others), I ugly-laughed seeing the red and metal structure CGI-twisted in slow mo. This intersection is part of "Museum Row." So what has also been, presumably, hithered, is the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Craft Contemporary Museum, and, since they deliberately showed it, the La Brea Tar Pits. Side note, the official office of SAG-AFTRA is a neighbor to the Tar Pits, although to my (admittedly untrained) eye, they did not avail themselves of a large quantity of union members for the cast. Thanks to whomever noted that the Dad is played by Eoin Macken. For the longest time I studied his familiar/not familiar face, and then realized he was an off-brand Juan Diego Botto (Good Behavior). Why not just hire the actor you want him to look like? But yes! There should be food, not from McDonald's but from the long string of artisanal food trucks that line Museum Row during weekdays!

I’m trying but I’m baffled by the directorial choices. I can’t blame the actors because they don’t have much to work with, but would an emotional beat here or there hurt? All of the kids’ parents are now dead, which is stated flatly in exposition, but no one seems upset? And yeah, did Mother blow up Tempest’s spot? I couldn’t tell if they were shocked, didn’t know, or just never talked about it. Maybe I’m looking away from the screen at the wrong moments but how do you go from “you never talk to me” to “I can’t be a parent/why not / you know why” to duck-duck-goose in ten seconds flat? Also not loving credulous Campion and his artfully mussed hair. I like Paul better.

One little factoid that surprised me is that Sarah apparently had the brand “for months” according to Lauren, and Nippy hadn’t seen it?! One other thing with Mark, he liked having such a high position in ESP but even more he was Keith’s only male friend. So he was, like, cool by association because he hung out with The Fonz. Bonnie deserves better , particularly to never be called “my boo” again.

What an insidious POS Raniere is.

Yes, that struck me as well, mamadrama. They deliberately chose people whose innate characteristics (self-congratulatory delusional narcissism, I said what I said) totally clouded any ability to think critically. Of course it's easy to sit on my sofa and watch Keith ooze around dropping pearls of wisdom and recognize them as: word salad negging gaslighting but enough about me, what about YOU but in the context of seeing his initial meeting with Allison Mack (cringe), you can see she was lapping it up, even as it made absolutely no sense. All he does is mirror back to these people what they want to hear about themselves and their role in the world. And not for nothing, what good exactly did NXVIUM (sp, sorry) DO? Even Barbara Bouchey, who I liked, claimed that they had, but they never show any of that. What WAS all this ass-kicking world-changing stuff? I want the receipts. These are the kind of people who consider themselves "allies", but prefer to do their world-changing from boardrooms and private compounds, and don't actually have any experience with the world they're trying to save everyone from. Noblesse oblige, indeed.

Guys I need your guidance. I’m an unexceptional heiress with $150M to burn, but I want to change the world. Should I: 1) get my MSW 2) support women’s shelters 3) lobby for universal healthcare 4) fund a cult

Yeah no, Show. Aside from the cheating, gaslighting, abandonment, sexual relationships with patients and general tom -fuckery, Sam knowingly blackmailed his OWN SON into killing his pregnant sidepiece. But it’s all understandable because: damage. No.

I knew Birkhead was going to go nuclear when Annalise called her “basic.” Laura Innes’ eyes got so flat and cold... Agree that there’s probably something more to the Hannah reveal than (just?!) incest , mostly because of what Vivian said. She got away from the family, not just Sam.

I started to suspect during the previous episode (psycho child) and had it confirmed this episode: all the good dialogue and acting opportunities are being given to the patients. It's not that the leads aren't charismatic or can't act - they are just so poorly written, the plot lines so transparently...transparent -- they just don't have anything worthwhile to work with. Frankly other than Max I don't think the writers really care about them. They still haven't found a way to make Bloom's curmudgeon the least bit engaging. I don't think they even realize how little they've explored Helen. They show everyone else's lives, but they're content to just tell us about hers. Usually in the form of exposition that she has to deliver herself. And Iggy is the WORST, on so many levels. I wish that bloodstain had looked a little duller. It looked fresh, and huge!

Mona has got to go.

I agree with those who aren't feeling that Galvin is working as a romantic interest; he starting crossing over that manipulative/gaslighting line again when he basically pressured Macy into accepting his help, characterizing it into a situation where she's closing him out "again". And unfortunately she caved to that. Made me uncomfortable. Their relationship is so poorly drawn that his "sacrifice" on her behalf has no true emotional stakes. Which makes her then having sex with him seem even less romantic or sexy and more like a reward. Which, ugh. In short, I hope he dies.

Can someone explain why people keep acting like the revelation that Annaliese once tried to adopt Wes is such a big "dun dun dun?" So the fuck what? The woman had just been in a tragic car accident that resulted in the death of her newborn baby; all of that can be easily proved so what's so evil about someone, acting out of grief, trying to adopt a child? I don't get how that would open up any questions about Wes' death; why would that make her a suspect? I'm confused about why this is so scandalous. It doesn't look good in terms of optics, I guess, but it's so easily swatted away by basic common sense and human compassion that I don't get why Annaliese is so worried about it becoming common knowledge. Can someone explain the nuance to me? I hope if there's another season it opens with the K...4 I guess? discussing how they suspect Laurel disappeared herself and Christopher. Just let.them.go.

Kudos to Freddie Highmore, that meltdown scene was hard to watch. I wish the show would fish or cut bait on Reznick's character. They started out with her as a clear antagonist/bitch, tried to walk that back with a few "humanizing" episodes (didn't work, IMO), returned to the jealous bitch trope (sucking up to Han, pissed at Claire's success), THEN pulled out the "but WWJD?" oppositional side. Ordinarily I like complex characters who have conflicting beliefs, thoughts, and actions, but all along this character has come across as a list of bullet-point characteristics dictated by plot and actor contract minimums. I don't entirely fault the actress (although...erm) -- the writing doesn't help has done her no favors. But hey - at least we didn't have to watch another Leah Dancing montage!

Oh god all my shows are taking a turn for the worse. The special effects!!! of Tartarus were a joke. Charity and Harry was a disappointing swerve. Macy and Galvin -- ugh, will they never learn about this character? It's not funny that he's okay with Macy being a witch but not if she's a virgin - aka not DTF at all times. That is not the definition of a "joke" or a "funny beat." Parker still doesn't modulate either his voice or his expression. Hunter was more interesting, and played by a better actor. Parker's dialogue is even worse. Maggie the empath deliberately dampening her feelings was so freaking dumb. Almost as dumb as loving Parker after two weeks of dating. Hanging by a thread...

This show is not turning out to be the show I thought it was. Aside from the lack of focus on Shaun (you know, the Good Doctor), they refuse to cut bait on Lea and Resnick. I don't mind Lim and Melendez - it seems more appropriate- but for a very handsome man Nicholas Gonzalez makes smiling seem so...hard. Park I like; I don't see chemistry with his ex-wife, but she's completely underwritten so who knows. Andrews needs to have his wife in there to bounce things off of, Hill Harper had a do a lot of face acting that didn't seem organic to the character. Tamlyn, where ya been?! I found it strange that Resnick kept calling Claire "St. Claire" when we've seen Claire do sketchy things over and over. For the "right reasons," maybe, but still sketchy. I wish they'd stop trying to make Resnick happen. I still think they waited too long to humanize her and I simply do.not.care. Lea....gah I can't even get into it.

Andrews helped Melendez figure out the Danny Ocean manoeuver for the transplant, with the laundry chute and the zero-pressure (?) janitor's closets and the blueprints and whatnot. Loved Glassman calling out Lea. Hated that he apologized. Hated it even more when she called him "Glassy" again.

I am...so relieved. I was wondering if my cold, black heart had made me immune to the Greatest Love Montage between Georgia and Max, only to come here and find my people *sniff*. Loveyouguys. The writers tried to throw a Hail Mary to convince us about that relationship and boy howdy, it was as bad as her flashback wig. I actually muted all the flashback scenes. Did all of them have title cards like "Good News Bad News"? Oy. Another thing that irks me about the show is that Dr Adderall is played by someone who appears to be a good actress, but the character SUCKS. The thing that gets me about her is her sense of entitlement. How dare Floyd not want to be with her, she wants to be with him. How dare anyone question her competence when they know she's on Adderall? Big mistake with the Poor Little Rich Girl "reveal" (not this ep), too. Way to make me feel empathy, show. I'm kind of baffled that this show has been such a success, given the mess it is on so many levels. And where do they go from here? Everybody's gonna go all kumbaya and work together, with Eggold in a bald cap supervising from a chemo chair?

Yeah it's weird. Also, I guess the fact that Galvin's mark doesn't give Macy pain (as it does Parker) indicates that she may not be a ...bad... half-demon? Assuming demon = darkness, or darkness = demon. Which would be pretty literal but face it, this show does not specialize in subtle nuance. I think the three of them should ask the Book of Shadows to indicate an impartial, reliable narrator who can tell them what's going on. Both the Elders and the Sarcana have their own agendas and the sisters don't seem to have good critical thinking skills.

Sorry if this has been answered elsewhere, but has anyone ever suggested (on the show) that they try to track down that witch Melinda was talking to when pregnant with Macy? She seemed to know what was going on in Melinda's life. Is she a dead member of Sarcana? Or has that character/beat/plot point been dropped? I am hoping that Galvin finding out about the Three puts the kibosh on any potential romance. Oh, and the wrong demon brother got sucked into Hell.

I don't think they did a good enough job showing this, but re: Macy's Struggle-kinesis; I think she couldn't initially do anything about the zip-ties because the amulet had already started sapping her powers.

This episode threw me a little; I wasn't expecting such a somber tone for a mid-season finale. And that tone and pace continued throughout the episode. There were a few "twists" - the Melendez/Lim hookup, which I didn't see coming but found to be surprisingly intriguing. Melendez and Lim are more on a level playing field than Melendez/Claire, so the pairing made sense. Amazed that Claire made it through the episode without major DRAMA. That EMT was getting way too many lines to live. At least it was the best attempt so far at fleshing out Resnick into actual human being status. Glassman telling Lea she's not as cute as she thinks she is. Was that a wink to the audience? Problem is...Glassman isn't as cute as he thinks he is, either. Overall, it was a downer. Merry Christmas!

I understood and expected Charlie's initial reaction to Nate, but I thought she was unnecessarily harsh with him later. It's not his fault that she took Amaya's shape, give the guy a second to adjust. And I never even cared about Nate/Amaya, I always thought they were just an obligatory "hot characters hookup" trope. This show, though. I was just about to dismiss it as a fun but not especially inventive episode, when Hank started warbling "Sweet Baby James." Not gonna lie, I sang along.

Ryan Eggold is better than this show. I think they are trying to distract from the nonsensical medicine by showcasing his talent. I see you show, tugging at my heartstrings by having Max listen to Luna's heart. I see you! Who's cutting onions? I have zero sympathy for doctor characters who endanger the lives of others by refusing to admit their own issues/pathologies. See Bloom, Glassman (TGD) et al. And who also abuse their position to put underlings in impossible situations to save their ass. What would happen to that nurse if someone noticed he was covering for Bloom's fuckups at work? Liked Helen's interaction with Dr. Panthoki. This new hairstyle for Max's wife ages her, and highlights her resemblance to The Pained Princess Charlene of Monaco. If the show is doubling down on his marriage so they can do a slow burn for him and Helen, fine. But at least work on the wife's character so she seems like an understandable angle to the triangle.

There's a lot of work to level the playing field still to be done, but I think we're still heading for Claire/Melendez. My proof is that Melendez cracked two-and-a-half to three smiles this episode. They're trying to lighten him up.

I have never seen the actress playing Grace before, so I have nothing to compare it to, but IMO it's such a clear case of someone being cast for their pretty, pretty hair. The writing sucks, but a better actress would be able to neutralize it. I wonder if the writers realize how unsympathetic Grace comes across, that it seems obvious that she's been looking for an out so she can hook up with hot, hot Danny again. I don't think they do. And what a thankless role, and waste, of Daniel Sunjata. Generally I'm sympathetic to Ben, but I am not sympathetic to characters who insist on putting themselves in the line of fire, endangering themselves and others, for reasons. The first thing that popped into my head when Ben hallucinated the peacock was "uh oh, polar bear!" Why did they introduce a piece of Autumn's backstory (the "arrests") and then drop it?! I was intrigued, like was her identity stolen or something? Yeah, I'm more interested in a rando passenger day-player than the leads of the show. Uh oh. Maybe it will be Olive who calls Grace on her shit.