candall

Okay, I don't pay strict attention while this is on, so I must have missed something. Can someone please instruct me? James is an elevator repairman, which seems to me to be one of those high demand/high specialization/high risk/high money jobs. Why did he think he could move to Indonesia and support himself with a banana chip job for his father-in-law? The banana chip gig looked pretty basic, which doesn't usually translate to big paychecks. Did he think he'd go in as upper management or something? He's complaining about living in his in-laws' house, but he showed up with no money, a monthly car payment and a big car repair debt on top of it. Where else could he afford to live? He's lucky their daughter loves him and he's not sleeping in the kitchen, eating scraps. They're really drawing it out, but James is homeward bound and whether Meitalia goes with him isn't going to make any difference to his travel plans.

I feel like I've summitted that mountain myself, just by tracking down this forum. What the hell? CBS is pulling out all the stops on this thing--90-minute episodes with the Survivor juggernaut lead-in, multiple broadcasts of the premiere, a gigantic production budget. And it looks terrific. I like the broad mix of people, the challenges are freaking hard, the discomfort is real. (I cringed when someone mentioned the mosquito situation when they were all already stretched out in their dinky little burritos on the cold, cold ground.) If this show hits, there will be subsequent seasons, but it will never be as interesting as it is right now, when neither players nor watchers have a clue about what's coming next. I love that we have @CiscoPug on board. It's so fun to have a connection to one of the participants. So they just told the applicants it was going to be "an adventure"? YIKES. Taxi! .

I agree with this. I feel mad on the kids' behalf! So basically all that "consult the children" was just bullshit lip service. Joanne even says, "Sean and I were so wrapped up in our little world, in our own little bubble, that neither one of us really thought about the fact that we may be hurting the people we love the most, by keeping the truth from them." You got married on the sly and you kept it a secret from everyone for years. Uh, okay, kind of rude, extremely self-centered, but whatever. I think the real damage is caused by all the talk about how the kids have to schlep over to Ireland to give ol' Sean the stamp of approval before things proceed. Her oldest son probably feels like a fool, having told Sean that he believes his mother is waiting to hear his opinion. She doesn't care what her son thinks! She married the guy two fucking years ago!

Did they run out of name-brand cheftestants to take on "The Titans"? I have enjoyed seeing the likes of Scott Conant, Michael Symon and Marcus Samuelson stretching the competitive muscles they may not have flexed in a while. I didn't catch Kaleena Bliss's credentials except that she was a cheftestant on Beachside Bingo Brawl, which I didn't find interesting and didn't watch. And the judge for this episode is described in the guide as "Bobby's protege." Oh, okay, whatever. Meh. Do better, please. You're losing us.

A superiority complex is never pretty, but I can see why Tucker is feeling pretty proud of himself. He's been so adept at winning challenges, he's been comfortable squandering a couple in favor of someone else, plus "America" voted him that Instigator title. And I personally would have kept the $5k prize instead of swapping with The Hat. Of course, I may have to remove Big Brother from my dvr if Tucker keeps up the ground glass in my ears of that AI Assist voice.

Well, no, but I thought she was going to schlep over to meet the parents in that plunging v-neck onesie with her flattened breast creases shouting howdy. I am now really enjoying the Ingi + Corona segments. He's just a big good-natured doof whose dial goes from 0-3 and every time he opens his mouth, Corona's eyes narrow and sparks shoot out. Fun times! ##### I heaved a huge sigh of relief that the Turkish guy and the woman with too much plastic surgery called it quits with a minimum of bloodshed. But that's not going to be the end, is it? 🙄 ### Statler, you seem at least moderately self-aware. Does driving around in your van/home/office seem like a thing you'd ever be comfortable with? ### What's that guy's name in Thailand? My primary feeling toward him is: GFY. There seems to be no one in his entire life he has not let down, including the dog.

I liked Cedric initially, but when he became HOH, his three choices were so cowardly, I had to roll my eyes. He just chose people who had already been on the block--the previously wounded. Then after the veto, he wussed out of his deal with Tucker and made the less offensive move, meeping about "MY GAME!" It's not surprising that he would stand there and wait for someone else to take the risk on which steppingstone to try. Now I just sit here waiting for him to go home and hating the way he wears his hat.

Corona doesn't seem aware that not all cultures manifest their emotions the same way as Americans. Ingi is responding to her the same way as other Icelanders I have known. He's interested in what she's telling him, responding positively but pretty low-key. He's not going to go Cuckoo For Coco Puffs, no matter how much she pokes at him to get a rise out of him.

Why did I start watching this show again? I have no patience for any of these people--they're foolish and/or delusional. The Icelandic man might be okay. At some point, didn't I hear him suggest he and whatshername Corona don't yet know each other well enough for permanent commitment? Maybe the Irish couple will be good-natured and realistic and lots of fun. 🍀

I was critical of Season 1, but I loved the two-hour Season 2 opener. I think they did a good job showing the personalities of several cheftestants, eg. the beach bum sushi chef who has secret high-end Italian experience, the nice guy who just puts his head down and cooks great food without any drama, the woman who had to watch her capo mess up the fish she herself felt more experienced to handle. The villain is clearly the hipster in the beanie. He tried to be clever with his first dish (Fail) and he was lightning quick to throw potato-scale girl under the bus, even though no one had sought his opinion. I gave a hard eyeroll at potato-scale girl when she claimed to know the farmers who grow the wheat for her pasta. Lobster fisherman, sure, but I'm pretty sure there aren't any artisanal wheat patches on Long Island. Did you see Alex stick her fork into the lobster spaghetti dish? The whole thing came up out of the bowl in one clump. Also, I feel angry at people who can't take two seconds and deliver a swift knife slice to the lobster's head before they drop him in to boil alive. Anyway, I enjoyed the premiere and I'm disappointed it's going to be one hour from now on. I'd watch a double! : )

Okay, I can be the only one in the Elizabeth Faulkner Fan Club--I'm pretty loud. 🔊 I enjoyed it, watched it twice. It seems interesting and I'd be happy to give it my two-hour Sunday night TOC block. I hope the emphasis doesn't swing completely over to "We've been cooking for ten/twelve/sixteen straight hours! We're exhausted! Blllll blll bbbll babblebabble" (I'm calling out Chris D on whether he's worked in "a few three-star kitchens.")

Two hours for Part TWO of the reunion? Wow, they're sucking the last drop of juice out of this disaster movie. Wait, say what now? There's still "Denver: A Look Back" coming up and a "Where Are They Now?" episode next week?? Do you think the post-season would've been longer or shorter if there had been one single scintilla of success in any of the matches? I zipped through the two hours, pausing for a minute or two, and then fast-forwarding on. Every time I stopped, a man was speaking in a fairly reasonable tone, to which a woman immediately retorted "You're LYING!" I don't know what the truth is, or even what the issues are, but I can understand how frustrated and desperate one might feel if confronted by a series of lies spoken in calm, credible tones. But I think the main way to arm yourself in that situation is to maintain dignity and do your best to appear credible yourself. Anyway, I bet the woman we glimpsed in the Chicago preview regrets her decision to dress in confrontational fuchsia. I saw that and thought, "Uh oh, there's already trouble afoot."

Chekhov's roof. #### I'd be okay if Reenie stayed home. All her dialogue with Colter is level 8 sarcasm against his earnest furrowed brow. .

But Michael's a lot, too, and Chloe dealt with his brand of funkytown a hell of a lot more gracefully than most people. I miss the early days when Michael threw on a skirt and fluffed up his big cluster of grapes hairdo and Chloe would just gulp and saddle up and out the door they'd go. To me, the whole thing spun out of control when Chloe revealed her farm animal sanctuary plan, powered by five foster kids "at a time." And she wasn't talking some pie in the sky retirement dream, either. She professed to like the big backyard in that house they fake-toured because the backyard was big enough for goats and sheep and little lambs eat ivy. Who could ever wrap his mind around a thing like that except someone else who had dreamed a similar rescuer/caregiver dream his whole life? I like Michael well enough, but his immediate goal is a closet big enough for his sneaker collection. Back to the drawing board, "Experts." What system are you guys using to match these couples, rolling dice or tossing darts? .

Sunny: "I'm feeling really positive about Ben and I's relationship right now." ☢️ I think the deal with the galley is that the chef regularly creates mayhem through his disorganization and surfeit of dirty pots and pans, which the interior crew cleans up (maybe partially, maybe totally.) But because they're shorthanded, no one was available to tackle the dirty dishes and it took the chef several hours to clean up his own mess. Couldn't care less about Ben and Sunny. As usual, I am dumbfounded that these pretty children spend their days in aquamarine paradise, have room, board and clothing provided, rake in $1000/day in tips on top of salary and still have the nerve to complain. .

PAPYRUS!

Justin "carb-free" Hartley, the whole adorable dog situation, and . . . Robin Weigert!! Tell me she does not polish and elevate any project she touches. Love her. ❣️

Austin: "I thought tonight was going to be the night, but you always make me reject you." Yeah, Austin, "Why do you make me do that to you?" is classic abuser lingo. ### Was the ceremony to present Brennan's medal held off-camera? [/s] I can't believe Brennan earned so much credit for sticking with his wife through a long stint in the emergency room. Maybe if he'd accompanied an injured stranger to the hospital after a crash during a shared activity, okay, but doing anything otherwise in these circumstances is unthinkable.

Well, it's too bad Brennan can't at least like Emily as much as Austin likes Becca. (If I got those names right, it'll be the first time.) Or, who knows, maybe Ballcap Austin has a bit of a decent streak that Brennan prefers to manifest by being a big jerk. When "Dr. Pia" came in for the Emily/Brennan session, Brennan sat down on the couch and Emily plopped down right next to him. Man, it was like a rocket booster lifted him off that couch. He could not move away from her fast enough. And then, if you want to talk body language, Brennan arranged his leg along the couch cushion so his knee was pointed toward his wife and then put his arm up on the back of the couch, bent up at the elbow. The guy built a Berlin Wall out of body parts. I think he hates her. .

To me, the best part of Australia MAFS is that every two or three weeks, everyone gets together and the couples reveal cards where each has marked whether s/he wants to stay together or split. If they both agree to continue, great; if they both want out, sayonara. BUT if only one wants to keep on working on it, they have to gut it out together until the next gathering. That's pretty fun--has the unhappy partner come around or has the other partner given up or will there be another round of awkwardness and torture? New couples rotate in to take the place of the couples who quit. (One time, one of the "new" couples was a man from an earlier unsuccessful couple and a woman from a different earlier couple. Gasp!) With the US version, they'll produce 25 boring episodes showcasing couples who haven't wanted anything to do with each other since Day Two. I usually wind up skipping the last part of each season--it's interminable. ### I agree that all the pearl clutching and dismay from Dr. Pepper et. al about Michael's situation is pretty laughable, considering the poor rate of success they've had.

Wow, we are SO LUCKY that the Archangel Ballcap is on deck to let us know who's going to heaven and who's destined for hell. What were the chances for celebrity casting of this magnitude? #### And again, whyyyyyy can the US producers not take a tip from MAFS-Australia? When a couple breaks down beyond repair, they exit stage left and a new couple shows up for us to examine and pick apart. Everything stays pretty fresh and you look forward to the next episode--no flogging these stumblebums who either loath their new partner or can barely keep the tears contained. At least there's no outright monster this season, like that she-beast from a couple cycles past who kept showing up for the pot-lucks. She still gives me the twisties.

I think the Dougie/Asher history is that Dougie and his pals kept Asher around to have someone to torture and bully. Asher recalls all this torment in a positive light--e.g. that they cared enough about him to show him some "tough love," etc. Asher fondly reminisces about various instances where Dougie and the others were mean to him. "Hey, remember when we __________________ and you did _________________ to me for a joke?" Eek. Since I invariably root for the underdog, I should be sympathetic to Asher, but he's so petty and superficial and oblivious, I can't get it going. There's hardly anyone on this show who isn't just horrible. I guess that's what makes it so interesting. I definitely look forward to each episode when I see it appear on my dvr. Let's see how these vapid Hollywood faux environmentalists can be even more offensive!

I'm happy for Christine and I feel sorry for all the others. After all those years as the basement wife, Christine now looks happier and prettier in every episode. I hope this new guy is a sweetheart and that he adores her. I hope her children rise up and call her bless-ed, or whatever that bible quote is. I think Janelle is barely able to keep herself from screaming, "How can I have been so stupid to not have ANY money of my own?" She sees that Christine did something right, to have a house she was able to barter against her Coyote Pass interest. Meri inherited a nice B&B property, Robyn's living in a McMansion and there's Janelle--supposedly the finance brain--trading up from water cans and a chemical toilet to a shitty little crackerbox rental apartment with a sad little shrimpy boxed Christmas tree. Yikes. Meri is just heartbreak on the hoof. She's never getting back these many years of delusional Kody-goggles and she's never going to be able to think about her life without some measure of feeling like a fool. Sympathy for Robyn is where I diverge wildly from most posters. I think Robyn is about two minutes away from losing her shit because she sees she's about to be stuck all alone with a really nasty piece of work. It's become more and more obvious that Kody's a small, mean man--vain, petty, selfish, greedy, thoughtless, immature. He's cruel to his wives and vindictive toward his children. And millions of people are overjoyed to watch her go down in flames, bound to this asshole. Geez, I'd be crying all the time, too.

I couldn't say whether I liked Kendra. I became too obsessed by the little hair knob on the top of her head to develop a relationship.

Nope. No. Huh uh. I can grit my teeth and power through many of the insults Bill launches at my sensibilities. Because exposure to other perspectives is important and because sometimes he provokes me into examining my own ideology. But I'm not holding still for Ted Cruz. .