Stiggs

I kept thinking the same thing! That actor is very Grace Kelly, especially with that particular get-up. (Still wish the mom had flipped off Serena, lol. Perfect set up!) Adding to the Canada love, here. I have always wanted to go to Toronto - my husband traveled there a lot for business and was always thrilled to go back. He said any time he sat down by himself at a hotel bar he had a new BFF in seconds because someone would scope him out as a lone US business dude and they couldn’t bear to see him drink alone in their country, lol. He loved it. I feel like I am a post-liking fool. Such great discussions! This episode was a bit of a turning point, I feel, and my stomach is knotted to think of wtf is coming up...

Heh, I think you and I could watch a lot of TV together, lol. I literally watched Intervention right before I watched this ep. :) "I won't love you to death...but you've been through some shit. Here's some vodka." I expect Moira to be almost 100% self-destructive right now. To think of what it had to take to get from where she was to where she is — so many demons to exorcise once the dust settles, so to speak. I'd like to have more of a window into her daily routine, if she has a routine, if she and Luke really are "killing each other" like June mused in that lovely, jacked up little moment where she learned two people she loved were together and safe. And I've now totally talked myself into the fact that they're going to kill off Nick just when I think we're starting to figure him out. And man, Ann Dowd can be on screen for two minutes and still win the episode. Mad skillz, that one. Such a great cast (I agree that the women in the cast are stronger actors — though creepy Joseph Fiennes makes me physically ill, so that's talent.).

I was happy to hear Moira say "war criminal" out loud - and why can't we hear more from Moira? WHY? - because that's exactly what Serena is. She is guilty of genocide, rape, all the bad stuff. And the actor playing Serena is kind of amazing because she can make this horrific war criminal seem human at times - though when/if (I hope when) we see Serena hanging on the wall, Imma cheer. Real loud, yinz. Just as long as her disgusting husband is with her. June's reaction to finding out Moira was safe was beautiful to watch. And I loved that it inspired her - not the message of love from her husband (which was lovely, don't get me wrong), but she was inspired that her best friend did the "impossible" and escaped, and therefore, she can do it too. Loved it. I agree that June's "fuck it/girl power" moments get watered down the more she has, but I think in June's life, she probably goes between "it's hopeless" and "I can do it" a million times a day. I mean, it's not like she can distract herself with the internet for hours, lol. Lots of time to think and rethink and rethink and rethink...

My mind wandered to "before" Aunt Lydia possibly being someone who has always been religiously devout - though not to Gilead's brand of religion - and that perhaps when she was made godmother, she took her role super more seriously. Then the baby died for whatever reason (maybe this happened once birthrates started plummeting?), and she took it personally, like her praying didn't work, felt rejected by god. Then someone comes along and tells her no, it's not her fault, it's the unwomen, the sinners, etc., THEY are killing the babies, and that sounds good to her and she jumps in with both feet. I obviously have put a lot of thought into Aunt Lydia, lol, but that ONE LINE felt like a huge clue to her mystery. Joseph Fiennes used to be so hot, and I'm sure he's still a handsome man, but he's doing his job way too well because he makes me want to freaking puke. I gagged over his beard. I had to look away. His beard? He just makes me THAT sick. Ugh. Eden...I can't wait to see where this is going, unless it winds up with Nick on the wall. I don't think that'll happen - I feel like June and Nick are way savvier in How to Gilead and could find some way to throw her off at the pass, so to speak. Man, this show owns me, lol. I don't know if Luke is an alcoholic, but if I were in his shoes I'd drink my face off on the regular, so I have no judgment. The variety of emotions he had in his few moments with Nick were fantastic. Very strong scene for both of them.

The free bar was killing me, lol. And Nick is the most killable character at this point - not that I want that. I am really enjoying him this season, but his death will be tragic and probably heroic, and if June gets out of Gilead, what do we do with him? Does he go with her and start a throuple? I mean, obviously there are other things they could do with him, but he's totally killable. I'll be sad, though. :( Bawled my face off when they started singing America the Beautiful, and when Moira had her sign. And I agree - the way they are playing Serena, if she didn't have a "baby" on the way, she would have thought more about Hawaii. She's stubborn AF so I'm not sure if she'd admit to being wrong, but I think it would have been a longer conversation. The guy representing the US government was kinda of awesomely, old-school, American-like. Like a George Clooney character. I loved the scene with the woman and the kid on the elevator, but it would have been PERFECT had the woman flipped Serena off as the doors closed.

I had a friend growing up whose mother was like this - for like, a summer softball game, my mom would be sitting there in cut-off jeans and a tank top and my friend's mom would show up to our rural little league game wearing a strapless sundress, heels, full makeup, gigantic sunglasses — she was always like that, done up and dressed to the nines to matter what. I thought she was glorious and my mom thought she was ridiculous, lol. But the whole time I watched Katherine getting ready I was like...that is almost the least practical outfit one could wear to a toddler birthday party. The shoes were killer, but have no place near finger paint and pizza, heh. I have never been a Whitney fan, but I'm really enjoying his, "5 minutes, everyone!" role this season. He's there to tell people what to do, and occasionally drop a conversation bomb then sit back and watch the jackery unfold. All the while looking like your uncle who was once very proud of his Fiero.

I am here all day for Craig in face paint. Loved how the grown ups participated in the merriment. :) Shep and Katherine were kind of adorable. And glad she knows better than to date Shep, heh. Those are some cute kids, man.

I totally believed her. I think she really, really believes all of it and is disheartened that everyone else around her is totally faking it. If she's faking her devotion then I'm hoping she's a super secret double-agent who once worked for the FBI — who is really 40 but was a great agent because she has Ralph Macchio face — and her mission is to kill Fred and frame Serena. Otherwise, I kind of like her as a true believer. At this point, I think the only other one is Aunt Lydia.

Spot on. And I would give up cheese forever for an episode focused on the pediatrician Martha. I sat here and bawled when she put on the stethoscope. Her few moments on screen were as powerful as Janine's few moments - the highlights of the ep for me, in an episode with tons of "moments." This SHOW.

So many interesting takes on Nick. I see him as a survivor/hustler who has ambiguous morals but a tugging need for doing what he feels is the right thing. He’d have drinks with Hitler if it served a purpose he felt was worth it. That said, I feel like Nick is constantly in a state of pants crapping and that Eden scares the shit out of him in a number of ways. I did enjoy the brief moment of Serena being human and being nice to June. I knew it would all be shot to hell, but it added layers to layers. Fred is disgusting. Janine is the sanest person in Gilead. Oh, and the interaction with the guard...the way June spoke to him. Makes me wonder if, after time, the guards start seeing the handmaid’s as humans, no matter how hard they try not to? Or this particular guard will be hanging on a wall at some point... Can’t wait for next week!!!!

Yup - she got screwed and was keeping her trap shut. I was sitting here waiting for the MVP to jump from the bench and slay the drunk dragon, and she just sat there looking dejected. Dang you to heck, Elizabeth and JD!

One Day At a Time is another example, and Alice - they were the working poor. I think the thing that Roseanne did that was great was it didn't solve problems. Sometimes life is hard and it sucks and you still have a happy Christmas anyway. That's life. I feel like a show without Roseanne would never work, and a show with her would never work. There are just some things you say or do that have a permanent stank you can't get rid of no matter what, and Roseanne has that stank now. Of all the shit she's pulled over the years, this is her stank. It's such a shame.

Goodness. I tried thinking of what my group of friends would do under similar circumstances, but none of my friends would put up with Thomas so neither he nor Ashley would even be there. But let's pretend we do hang with that fool and his fool...I'm pretty damn sure that my fun-loving, brunch-loving, wine-meme-loving middle class (mostly mom) friends would have destroyed Ashley (verbally) and called her an Uber. I personally think all of the ladies really held back - then again, I am a hillbilly so maybe that's just hillbilly talk. :) Naomi, you let me down. Katherine would have appreciated it if you had JD'd Ashley, heh. Timing, girl. Katherine mentioned how two years ago the other women wouldn't have given her the time of day, but I think that Danni has always been sympathetic, and Naomi and Chelsea came into the scene post most of the worst drama and were generally nice to Katherine as well (please tell me if I am forgetting something). Cameran was a shit to her, ditto for Landon - but I really wasn't bothered by Landon being mean to Katherine because Katherine was nutso to her first. And Katherine has obviously had extremely questionable behavior, to say the least, but I love a good comeback. Make amends, do the right things, be accountable, straighten shit out and move forward - it's not easy, and I'm rooting for her and her kids. (WE WERE ALL ROOTING FOR YOU!!! Oh, Tyra...) Thomas - there's no hope. He has too many misfiring cylinders. Austen reminds me of the Misfit Elf.

The handmaids not even getting their real names at their funeral gutted me. Like the last dagger they could throw. June calling Serena by her first name was everything. That one moment had so much power. And Serena making a mocking comment about how shooting Marthas hardly makes them feel safe gave me a weird sense of hope for June. Serena sometimes sees her as an actual person, maybe. I know - I am going to regret the moment I thought Serena might have a human feeling left... Unpopular opinion - I love Nick this season. Last season the actor was a little uneven, but this season I think his barely contained OMG FUCK FUCK FUCK state of mind is well done. He is juggling more Gilead balls than anyone - I actually felt bad for him when the supreme evil bad guy got killed, even though I’m glad that sicko bit the big one. But he was Nick’s best connection. Luke? Really? Sigh. Stop being a dick. I defended you last season! Lol More Moira and Little America please!!!! Moira’s slow cry when she saw those pictures killed me. Man, I love Samira!

OMG. Will you marry me? I quote that on the regular and only a few (very cool) people ever recognize it, lol. That movie is a masterpiece. Mr. Sensitive Ponytail Man... Ashley makes me gag almost as much as Thomas. If Kathryn doesn’t want her at the party she needs to suck it up and respect that. Right or wrong, not her decision. I wouldn’t invite that woman to a BOGO sale at Payless. Gizmo!!!!!!! My word, Shep is a mess. Get yourself together, man. And get a decent haircut while you are at it.

Just like Angela Landsbury is Jessica Fletcher, Tom Selleck is Thomas Magnum. (I promise I'm not 110 years old. I've just had a crush on Magnum since I was 10, heh.) I'm sorry, but this reboot looks horrible. The ONLY way they could have pulled this off was with an actor who has even a fraction of the charm that Selleck had - and wow, they failed. I swear, I would have watched the hell out of a show about papaw Magnum.

OMG, I'm there with you. I literally cheered - and it's fucked up, man. I'm all out of sorts knowing that yes, there are circumstances when I actually would applaud a suicide bomber. Nobody can say that this show doesn't make you think, man, lol. My god. I watched it at 7AM and I felt like I needed a shot of vodka after. (I walked my dogs instead, lol.)

The season finale was a great as the pilot was crappy. So glad I kept watching. That was kind of delicious. I did not like Rory's boyfriend Logan, and it took me years to not think Cary on The Good Wife was icky, but for some reason, I really like the actor in this role. The cowboy doctor is so cliche at this point, I really watched just to exercise my eyeballs with constant rolling. But I like Conrad, and I agree that he and the rest of the cast built a great chemistry and I was rooting for all of them. Unpopular opinion - I kinda like Dr. Theo Huxtable. I'm a complicated woman, lol.

I think Jax is deplorable on so many levels, but I can't get mad at him about yelling at Sheana because Kristin was right - his anger was way displaced and extra because of his grief. I lost my husband about six months ago and to say the grief has been a rollercoaster is an understatement, and my sporadic anger has shocked me. There've been a number of times when I wanted to rage at someone for no good reason and I had to, like, take a walk. If I had Sheana around, I probably would not hold back, heh. She's kind of the worst. But, so is Jax. I just maybe understand what that was all about. God, I related to Jax. I feel dirty. I never, ever - and I mean EVER - want to hear about Ariana's and Sandoval's sex life again. EVER. Please. Please, Baby Jesus no. I can't... Stassi's hair was on point. But what the hell is up with all of the velvet on everyone? Was George Costanza the stylist? Brittani is gorgeous but a style nightmare. Someone fit her for a bra, stat. Loved Kristen's hair. And if I looked like Lala I'd never wear makeup. She's so beautiful without it - with it, she's straight out of a Slaughter video from 1990. (Maybe that's her goal?)

Yup! In real life, I'd be all, "Sew pillows after work, slacker," but in Southern Charm world I'd be all, "So you like to sew pillows? Fascinating!" lol

The only things I could think about when Thomas brought his girlfriend eggs in bed was why was there no bacon or toast and gross, they were going to get eggs in the sheets. I think I tuned out everything they said after Thomas joked about sprinkling plan b on her cheesy eggs. The man is revolting. I agree that Naomi needed to tone it the hell down at the shower, good LORD woman, but I don't get mad at her because she's 25 and when I was 25, I was a loud-mouthed idiot, so I don't feel like I can judge. I got a really uneasy feeling watching Elizabeth - everything JD said once they arrived seemed shady and creepy, and Elizabeth was giving off hostage-y vibes. Given what we know about what was going on between them at the time, I shudder to think of the conversation that led up to Elizabeth deciding to do the shower pop-in. She didn't even know there was a theme, so it doesn't sound like it was something she had planned on going to or being part of, and they came into it with the big can't stay, busy day story. I don't think JD wanted to show up Naomi specifically (it's not all about you, Noom), but I do think he wanted to make a point that see? He can't be that bad, because look, the poor, sad woman got out of bed and went in public with him! Good husband! Craig is by far the least offensive of the men. He seems to regard women as actual humans. I don't think that can be said about the rest of them. Shep has his moments, but he's super comfortable in the old boys club. I want Patricia to throw a 60s Palm Springs party for me. She can invite or not invite anyone she wishes as long as I get a vag cake.

I live in the Tampa Bay area. Our douchebag quota is full - please stay away, Jax. Unless you want to move into the Ft. Harrison Hotel in Clearwater. Go ahead - take the personality test... Stassi was on fire this episode. The scenes in the hotel room with Kristin cracked me up. LVP on the horse was one of the most ridiculous things I've seen in a long time. At first glance, I thought she was riding side saddle, and now I kinda wish that was actually true.

I love reading the other comments about ER, because the only thing in this episode that caught my attention (other than Red Halstead's beehive) was when Reese showed the patient the knife and all I could think was, "It's the knife that killed Lucy and made Benton run to fix Carter! Why did they need such a big knife to cut the cake?!?!?" I made the mistake of bingeing ER on Hulu - it really highlights how much this show is just kind of a joke. This episode was like the shadow of a fart of the worst episode of ER.

I live in the Tampa Bay area - when I moved here 18 years ago, I thought Scientology was a weird celebrity thing. I soon learned otherwise. (The St. Pete Times did a really great job exposing the cult. My friends in other areas thought that I was WAY too against the cult. They're all learning now, too.) The corporation I used to work for had a private airline hangar that celebrities often used - and it took me a while to realize that the majority of them were scientologists, and that they were usually with John Travolta. The ladies who worked at the hangar LOVED him. He seems like a very sweet and kind man, which is why it's so hard for me to reconcile that with his involvement in this cult. Most of the celebrities I have no sympathy for - him, for some reason, I do. Cruise can suck it. If you stack him on top of Miscavige you almost get a whole man. I had no idea Haggis was once executive producer of The Facts of Life. I love him even more now, lol. This is such a great and important show. Kudos to Leah and everyone involved for being so brave. This is one of those gigs where like, the sound people have to really think, "Is it worth it? Will I be fair-gamed?" Not sure if I could do it.

I love me a man who looks like he drives an El Camino and listens to Dan Fogelberg on the regular, so I'm loving these Canadian intervention dudes. Andrew is still my favorite, but I would totally sit around with Jesse listening to 70s light FM. And I do appreciate how structured Jesse is with his interventions, and how he spells it all out. Ugh, those poor daughters. I cannot imagine how horrible it is for a kid to lose a parent to something like this. I hope Sam stays clean. I hope the cycle stops with her.