CeeBeeGee

I guess but just think of how they could've hooked a new generation with some well-written and -delivered commentary on someone like, say, Christopher Bowman. A complete mess in so many ways but MAN, could he deliver when he felt like it. They should just ditch Tara and Jonny and hire Aunt Joyce David Lease. THAT one can pique your interest, knows how to write a narrative.

Right? Because if we're going to celebrate 100 years of US Figure Skating--the glory days when we dominated the competition (especially in Ladies') is in the past. Sasha Cohen and Kimmie Meissner were the last gasp of wholescale dominance--Ashley Wagner pulled out the Worlds silver in 2016 and good for her, but it remains to be seen if anyone can truly compete with the Russian baby ballerinas. Mirai's "I don't GAF if I didn't skate my best, it's only the Olympics, when can I book Dancing with the Stars?" attitude sure doesn't give me any confidence. (And please don't @me--I was a Mirai fan, I LOVED that 3A, but that interview left a very bad taste in my mouth.) So if you're going to celebrate 100 years if US Figure Skating--let's see some Michelle Kwan, some Christopher Bowman, heck, even some Tonya Harding and Nicole Bobek. All World and/or Olympic medalists.

That scene was so adorable and funny--Mando patiently trying to explain over and over and then his deadpan frustration when inevitably the Baby touched the two wires together. That's The Mandalorian's "Starbucks cup left on the set" moment.

I immediately suspected something was up when the guy said more than once (several times, I think) "let the kid watch..." He was way too eager. As soon as they knocked the Baby into the maw, I was seized with such rage I had to pause the stream. Do NOT fuck with the Baby! How dare you!!! The Aran sweaters--what a great joke! And yes, Mr. and Mrs. Frog were sweetly adorable. Loved the Baby's awe as he stared at the tadpole.

Thanks, Umbelina! Also I have a history blog and wrote about Diana's funeral in more detail when William got married. Here is the link if you're interested.

The spiders were absolutely horrifying. Full-on nightmare fuel.

I also wonder that about Skull Island in King Kong--it supports a giant ape, a T-Rex plus a bunch of other predatory dinosaurs, a giant crocodile, a giant bear--where the hell do they find that much food? Is there a special Skull-Island-only oxygen-rich atmosphere? It makes no sense. God, no! I love The Last Jedi and quite liked The Force Awakens. I haven't re-watched TROS but I enjoyed it (and if I glumly admit it's not great). And when the prequels are playing on cable, I usually turn to them. It's just nice being back in that universe. I do however dislike all the connections--Anakin built C-3PO, Yoda knows Chewbacca. That's just cheesy. No, the creature on the asteroid is called a space slug.

I have always been Team Diana and quite critical of Charles's behavior in the marriage. That said, his response to her death impressed me. It was absolutely insane of the Queen to dismiss the massive public reaction that was happening in England, completely tone-deaf and frankly callous. I get the desire to stick to protocol but these were extraordinary circumstances. I well remember the Sun's plaintive headline: "SHOW US YOU CARE." Charles correctly recognized what a PR disaster it was shaping up to be--I hate how the movie The Queen tried to undermine what he did, I remember the Blair character saying something dismissive like "what's he banging on about?" Uh, he's trying to honor the dead mother of his two sons. I completely agree. Kate had it tough until Meghan came along. It's truly incredible how racist some royalty fans/media are. I'm glad Harry did what he felt he had to to protect his family. Yupppppp. Kitty Kelly is far from an unimpeachable source. I read that book as well and afterward wished I hadn't--I found it appalling and sordid. The week she died, my mother and I stood on line to sign a condolence book at the British Embassy in DC. There was a gay couple in front of us, they were clearly devastated. It's hard to imagine how horrifically stigmatized AIDS was in the '80s--Ryan White, a young teenage hemophiliac, received death threats and someone actually shot into his home because he wanted to attend school. People would scream at him "we know you're gay" on the street. Diana's handshake and later hug were truly revolutionary, and an example of how powerful a platform royalty can be and how it can be leveraged to help people.

Yes, Eugenie was born in March of 1990. They probably didn't want to have to deal with babies with so many characters crammed into the set. I agree, Camilla was just being pragmatic. Fantastic moment. My thoughts as I watched this episode: "She has resumed her affair with brazen disregard" Charles, you ignored her fucking phone calls!!!! You blew her off time and time again, whilst you cavorted with your mistress. You shit all over the gift she gave you, even as she explained how (as she thought) she learned you didn't like public gifts so this was private. She was making an effort--a sustained one--but ultimately FFS everyone needs some kind of comfort, some kind of validation. Jesus CHRIST. No wonder the BRF is worried about the show (Jezebel had an article with the headline "The Crown is undoing the decades-long rehabilitation for Charles and Camilla"). I'm seriously HATING show-Charles. Absolutely LOVED Philip's shushing of Charles as he turned on the TV. Charles looked so uncomfortable at the rugby game whereas Diana was just another mom there. "What an ugly, avaricious piece of self-advancement that is..." Seriously, what the FUCK??? What the hell is WRONG with you, Charles? His hypocrisy and self-obliviousness are utterly staggering. Charles staring at Diana while their respective "teams" were planning the NYC trip was pissing me off. He's acting like such a bully toward her. You'd think someone who'd been properly bullied at boarding school would've learned some kindness--you know, that quality about which he's always whinging to his sister or his mother. Thatcher's recitation of various world leaders commiserating with her seems suspiciously self-serving. I admit, I have little familiarity with the English system of self-government but didn't she challenge her predecessor as the Tory leader in exactly the same way, leading to her becoming PM a few years later? This is just business as usual, yes? The scene where Diana was remembering crying out "I'm in hell--they treat me as if I were mad..."--is that Hewitt? I didn't get a good look at him in Avalanche. What I noticed when she hugged the boy, was that she seemed to need to hug as much as the boy did. She was a very tactile, directly emotional person and that spoke to people. God, Charles, fucking LISTEN to Camilla. She's a thousand times more aware because she's not blinded by privilege and raging jealousy that SHE'S not the center of attention. I can't even repeat his shitty, calculated insults to her in that last meeting. I absolutely detest Show Charles. He is figuratively (and literally, with that grotesque stoop) warped by his inability to see anything other than from his exquisitely privileged perspective. To reduce her loving gesture to that boy, that boy suffering from a deadly virus that has led his community to shun him--to mock that embrace, to call it a calculatedly vulgar antic? Jesus H. Christ. And oh my GOD, screaming--literally screaming--at Diana because she hurt poor Camilla's widdle feelings? That the fucking hell is wrong with you? Why should Diana GAF about that? Bellowing like a thug BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT THAT. So? What the hell is wrong with you? Why in HELL should Diana care if, because she hugged a little boy afflicted with AIDS, Camilla is somehow impacted by that? "If you hurt her [no, Diana succeeding at a difficult task has nothing to do with Camilla], you hurt me"--why should Diana care about that? You've made it very clear, you don't want her, you don't love her. Jesus H. Christ, what a useless, feckless POS. "I suggest you take it up with the people who arranged it." YOU MADE IT HAPPEN. Jesus, will you EVER get off the endless goddam "I'm a viccctimmmm" wheel? YOU proposed. YOU pursued Diana. You were 13 years older than she was. You absolutely knew what you were getting into and what the stakes were. YOU. YOU have the primary blame for this situation. God, I actively despise him at this point. SHOW Charles. I have more nuanced feelings re: IRL Charles. I was proud of her when she finally stopped herself from purging after the fight with Charles. Good for you, girl. He's not worth it. "It's the marriage. I have done my best..." NO. YOU. HAVEN'T. Fuck you, Charles. Elizabeth reading him for filth was...*chef's kiss*...unbelievably gratifying. Philip was really very sweet with Diana--I like him the most this season. I loved him saying "we all think he's nuts" but I wonder how Philip (or Elizabeth, for that matter) would react if he had heard the vile things Charles was saying to her. His optimism is sadly misinformed.

Some shy people love to perform--it's a way of them getting to step outside of themselves. I knew a guy in high school who was pathologically shy--like literally could not bear to hold a conversation with people. But he loved doing theater. My thoughts while watching this episode: For all of Charles's predictable churlishness about Uptown Girl--did he consider that Diana's success likely vastly increased the take for that particular charity (the Royal Ballet)? It was a Gala, after all. I bet donations went through the roof that night. God, he's despicable in the car afterward. I know this is more Show Charles than IRL Charles (who was cool in a small reception afterward but didn't dress her down--yes, the Uptown Girl duet really did happen) but FFS dude...It's okay for you to perform Shakespeare but not for her to perform dance? He's so jealous and threatened. Philip and Elizabeth's repartee at the breakfast table was priceless. The avalanche sequence seemed so abruptly edited (in contrast to, say, the Aberfan disaster last season which was perfectly paced)--I looked it up and apparently the show had to end filming early due to the COVID lockdown in March. Olivia Coleman's and Tobias Menzies's acting in the scene when they're told the preliminary news about the accident is *fantastic.* Very impressed by Anne's efficient ticking off of the salient points of her debriefing to the Queen. She would've made a good intelligence officer. The "suitors park outside of her office...in and out, in and out" seems...off, and kind of slut-shame-y (in an episode that truly demonizes Charles, at that). It may be that is Anne's incorrect assessment of the situation, because later on Diana says to her therapist (I'm guessing that is who he was) "no more little flirtations." So she makes it seem as if Hewitt was the only one with whom she truly crossed the line. Philip's conspiratorial wink to Diana was sweet. I am loving Tobias Menzies in this role. The spectacular hypocrisy of Charles raging *to his mistress* about Diana "even thinks about straying...ambushing me like that" is so rage-inducing, I can understand why IRL Charles and Camilla have turned off replies to their Twitter accounts. FUCK YOUUUUUUUU CHARLES. You're an incredibly privileged person and yes, there are challenges to your life but the few things you HAVE to do aren't that hard. You had to marry; you had to beget an heir. Is it *that* fucking hard to try to make your marriage work? *That* beneath you? You're not even trying. The sadness of that string score during Diana and the kids singing "Crazy Little Thing Called Love"...that poor kid. I will say, I'm super impressed at Charles's gift to Diana. That goodwill is immediately erased at his shitty reaction to her gift, even if it's behind her back. Charles, Diana probably didn't want a book, even if it was about her family seat. But she was gracious about it because she recognized the intent. Why do you have to mock her to your sister, and assume bad faith? She goes out of her way to explain to you where she's coming from, that this gift isn't "public." Sure, it's a little cheesy but it's mostly incredibly sweet to go to all this effort. Why can't you recognize that? Why do you have to call it "monstrous. Awful"? Charles, LISTEN TO ANNE. It's especially rich that you're complaining about a lack of kindness when just a minute ago you were complaining about having to be kind. Diana had studied ballet for a long time and was considered a strong dancer (her height was what killed a possible career in ballet). I'm pretty sure she could execute a clean pirouette! (That was probably the actress maybe not having much of a background in dance.)

And that prick Plushenko was wearing his mask under his nose, like the asshole he is. (Cannot stand him.)

The scene with the four siblings was priceless! It was a big event! My mom and I woke up early that morning, had a proper English breakfast and enjoyed the whole thing. I'm embarrassed to admit, I actually wrote a letter to Sarah saying good luck from this American. Sarah was seen as a breath of fresh air, "Jolly Hockey Sticks." I am woefully unknowledgeable about British politics in the '80s so this episode was an eye-opener for me. The montage where over and over and over again, Thatcher kept sending back the document (with her goddamn theatrical sighs) was literally enraging. How do you struggle over condemning fucking racist South Africa, for God's sake?

Andrew was a smokeshow when he was younger. He looked a lot like his great uncle, the dashing Duke of Kent, who died during the war. I never thought Edward was that attractive but others have thought so.

They're not showing it but Margaret, notwithstanding her party girl activities, was actually very religious and even composed a few prayers. (What I've seen, she was a decent writer.) At one point she was indeed exploring Catholicism. Yes, HBC is fantastically charismatic--I've loved her ever since I first saw her in Lady Jane in the '80s. When Margaret and Dazzle were collapsed on the couch together, the framing of the shot placed a photograph dead center right above their heads--it was a boy and a girl, obviously her two children, David, Lord Linley (at the time) and Lady Sarah. I wish we could see a bit of them, Lady Sarah was the head attendant for Diana at the wedding. Yes! Absolutely fantastic series. A wonderful way to revisit history at the beginning of the 20th century. My thoughts as I watched the episode: Margaret coughing just like her father. She had a terrible, lifelong addiction to cigarettes. Elizabeth trying oh-so-tactfully to alert Margaret as to Dazzle's orientation was hilarious reminiscent of Mrs. Patmore trying the same thing with Daisy about Thomas. "Thomas is not for you....he's a troubled soul!" Philip saying about Andrew and Edward "they were conceived in reconciliation"--Andrew has frequently been referred to as the "reconciliation baby" and it's speculated that is why he is supposedly her favorite. There are actually five counsellors of state--the ones ahead of Margaret at the time were Philip, Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward. They made an exception to keep on the Queen Mother (making six) after she was widowed in 1952. Diana said that the period when she was pregnant with Harry was when she and Charles were the closest, which seems to contradict this. HBC's acting in that first session with the therapist--incredible. God, she is a national treasure, WHEN is she going to get knighted already? "P, R, S"--I've never actually paged through Burke's Peerage so I'm not really sure how the information is organized, but likely they were looking up their cousins under their mutual grandfather's title, the Earl of Strathmore. The Queen Mother was the 9th of 10 children by the Earl and the two sisters were, as the episode says, the children of her older brother, the Hon. John Bowes-Lyon. (Fun fact--my mother's family is distantly distantly related to the Bowes-Lyons--we are from Clan Lyon. Well, our ancestors are 😉 Dazzle praying out loud as Margaret was lurching all over the road, being pursued by the vengeful cyclist, was amusing. This episode sure does take some liberties with what really happened. The fact is, the QM had no say in what happened to her nieces (and I believe sincerely thought they were dead)--that was all down to Fenella, the mother. As to the "reported dead" thing, the story is that she was not great with forms and either neglected to send them back to Burke's who assumed they were dead, or she filled them out incorrectly. But still that all goes back to the mother, not the QM. Sure, you can criticize the royals for not visiting them once they found out about them in the '80s but not the rest of it--certainly not the institutionalization which was very much What Was Done at the time. They appeared to be well cared for, which is the important thing. The whole "we had to hide it because of the hereditary principle" is strictly a conceit for the show. Again, the QM had no say in whether or not they were institutionalized. It is true that their existence was something of a secret and it's true that Prince John (one of my favorite "hidden" royals, there's a wonderful miniseries about him) set a precedent for this. He was the youngest child of Margaret and Elizabeth's grandfather, George VI, and was diagnosed with severe epilepsy--they think he might have also been autistic. As his condition got worse, he was sent to live in his own household away from the family. Man, if Margaret is this upset about her cousins' institutionalization, wait til she finds out about the Monster of Glamis! (Family secret 😉 "A system that ignored five members of its own"--no, the other three were Katherine and Nerissa's cousins on the other side of the family. They were no relation to the royal family. Just gonna point this out--if you're that upset about their treatment, Margaret, why not go visit them? Once again, this series sure doesn't seem to like the Queen Mother much. It's starting to piss me off--I'm no particular fan of hers but she was a goddamn hero during WWII. She was not responsible for either the institutionalization or the fact that they were reported to be dead--all of that goes back to the mother and the other siblings. We can feel that the QM and M & E should've visited--fair--but she/they didn't know their nieces/cousins (and there were MANY since the QM was the 9th child of 10). She really doesn't deserve this hatchet job.

But the Queen was considered kind of hot when she was younger. Paul McCartney talked about how they all had mad crushes on her, she was considered a dish.

Champagne Charlie is kind of a shit person in general but he has certainly revamped the family finances.

Disgustingly, there was even an uncle of Diana's who announced TO THE PRESS "Diana, I can assure you, has never had a lover." *vomit* Lady Fermoy absolutely was #TeamRoyalty and not #TeamDiana. She sided with the royals when the marriage ended. (And she sided with her son-in-law during her daughter's divorce proceedings and even testified against her.) "Diana, this is not a game! Our situation is precarious. You know the money's gone!" "Oh Granny stop, you'll give yourself a nosebleed." Yes, she switched the first and second names. My notes as I watched: The opening montage with the news about the successful proposal was well done. Oh. My. God, Charles. Telling Diana to ring CAMILLA??? What the hell is WRONG with you, man?! Oh my stars, her high-ruffled collar with the bow around it!!! We ALL wore that look, the bow looped around the collar, in 1981. Hello, my 8th grade self. The black sheep sweater!!! That lunch was off-the-hook insane. To be fair, I do think at the beginning of the conversation Camilla was genuinely trying to help here (in the show, that is--I am far less charitable toward IRL Camilla), not lord it over Diana. But that look--that look of mute fury Diana shot toward Camilla when she casually revealed "we talk most days...." Emma Corrin is absolutely nailing it as Diana. That poor kid. That poor, poor kid. She had absolutely no idea what was going on when she accepted the proposal. Camilla's territoriality when they started talking about Highgrove is so, so, so inappropriate. Not only is Diana the fiancee--YOU ARE MARRIED. Back the fuck off, let them breathe, cut Charles off if you have to and focus on your own damn husband. Watching poor Diana heave into the loo is awful. "I Vow to Thee My Country"--oh God, all the feels. That hymn, Diana's favorite "since school days" accompanied not just her wedding but her funeral. Dayum, Margaret offering up truthbombs. Loved her "not just for the sake of the monarchy, but for the sake of them as human beings." Her train was muuuuuuch longer than that.

Right? You're not her teacher, Charles. And Traviata is romantic. Not everyone knows about Vittorio Emanuele Re D'Italia. That is how many Americans hunt--drag the scent through the fields to give the dogs a reason to get excited and the riders to get to gallop over uneven terrain. Basically it's all an excuse to get dressed up in hunt gear and then eat a huge boozy breakfast afterward. God, Charles and Diana (especially the way she's selling herself to him/them--country girl, loves the mud, likes opera, enjoys blood sports) together is like watching a slow-motion car crash. Poor little Sloane Ranger, she had no idea... That conspiratorial half-smile between Lady Fermoy (Diana's granny) and the Queen Mother was true--they were good friends and supposedly were both pulling for the match. (But this has also been disputed.) But Granny lecturing Diana about how important this visit was "for the family" is bogus. The Spencers were doing just fine--the title had been in the family since the 1700s and and Althorp House (their seat) went back even further. Sometimes they even looked down on the Windsors because of all their German ancestry. And I don't think that Diana necessarily "passed the test with flying colors"--nobody was that enthusiastic about her, as I recall, it was more "well, she'll do--she's got the requisite background [in every sense of the word] so you'd better snap her up." Specifically Philip told Charles if he wasn't going to propose, he had better end things and Charles misinterpreted this as an order to propose to her. Peter Morgan sure likes his stag metaphors! Also on the nose was the conversation between Philip and Diana ("Shouldn't we try and get closer?" "No, we'll never get another shot"). I am pretty sure Diana never went stalking with Philip, or that he was openly vetting her through conversation, but the scene was very sweet nonetheless. (I loved her insistence that the wind was from the left.) She did however go fly fishing with Charles in that colorful sweater so I'm wondering why they didn't show that instead? I absolutely detest trophy hunting. Yes, I realize the hunters at the beginning shot the stag first and Philip was in a way doing him a mercy but everyone was a little too gleeful about it. Stop murdering animals for fun and showing off their heads. "You've been a great sport." *awkward pat on the shoulder* God, I'm cringing in vicarious mortification. Charles, your game suuuuuucks. Loved Philip in his tartan! He is the Duke of Edinburgh, after all 🙂 Thatcher preparing for her Night of the Long Knives sacking of her cabinet by donning her armor jewelry was well done.

Whyyy did they not include that? That is classic Anne! Not sure if she was jealous per se--I think she made her peace with the situation--but she wildly misplayed her cards with Charles. He ended the relationship after she gave a very indiscreet interview with the press. I was absolutely dreading the bombing. I had to stop the stream because I was hyperventilating so much. My mother is very sad over that bombing--Dickie, as a cousin to the Romanoffs, had a lifelong tendresse for Maria Nicolaevna, the third Grand Duchess. He always kept a picture of her in his bedroom. When the '79 bombing happened, my mother saw it as full circle--the same violence that destroyed the Romanoffs coming back to destroy the Mountbattens. I kind of loved the Charles/Diana first meet-cute as long as people understand it was nothing like that (no costumes). She was nicknamed Duch specifically because there was a family joke that she was going to marry Andrew who, as the second son, was expected to be given the title Duke of York (as indeed he was). Even if Charles didn't know Diana, he knew her family, and her family knew his. Thanks for the Margaret Thatcher clips--I was thinking it was a very exaggerated performance but it sounds pretty true to form. ETA: How cute was Diana's ruffled high collar shirt? That was THE fashion staple of '81-'82. Can't wait til they show her famous black sheep sweater!

I love that story. Jane's pathetically brief life was rife with abuse and a removal of her agency, so the one time she was able to put her foot down, I'm glad she did. That whole attempted coup by Northumberland makes me absolutely furious. The movie Lady Jane invents and changes a lot but it sure captured the tragedy of her whole situation.

Brandon SHUT THE FUCK UP. Have you no sense of loyalty toward your twin sister? Dylan and Kelly stabbed her in the back. After her initial reaction (which was perfectly understandable and honestly should've gone on longer), she's been above and beyond gracious ever since. Stop being a dick. Ohhhhh FUCK he is a sanctimonious prick with Lucinda. Right after saying "because I feel bad about that" (spoiler--no, you don't) you accuse her of having "a convenient philosophy about everything."

I had never seen this episode before and caught it on the DVD (it's not on CBS All Access). I like it! Brinda and Dylan's making up was adorable and very real-feeling. They are manifestly so much better than him and Kelly--they seem to have a genuine emotional connection whereas, as someone so astutely pointed out, Kelly and Dylan's connection is about the thrill of cheating. That opening shot of Brinda's denim legs on top of Dylan's denim legs made me giggle--how very '90s! And ugh, the colossally terrible luck of falling asleep and missing curfew, after convincing the 'rents to let you go. The whole struggle between Brinda/Dylan trying to assert their tentative independence and Jim's very reasonable "hey, you want to play, you need to toe the line" is painfully real. This is the story at age 17. BRANDON, STAY OUT OF IT. Jake is kind of a negging dick to Kelly. Ohhhhhndrea omg THAT SWEATER

The Shakers were so cool! I love their plain, austere aesthetic and would totally go to a lecture about them. Scrunch sox rock 🙂 HOW STUPID IS FELICE to make out in the hallway when she knows her daughter is at the hotel? And gaslighting her afterwards? Cindy's talk with Donna was sweet but Felice is an idiot.

Okay, Brandon rolling his eyes at ANYONE for "going on" about an issue is absolutely fucking rich. Brandon, your poor twin has had to put up with your braying for YEARS now. Remember embarrassing her and your parents and your crush when you brayed at your dad's client on said-crush's behalf? Remember the days-long brayoff for Donna's graduation? Maybe STFU when she expresses her opinion on animal rights and testing. What the hell is up with that RA? People are allowed to listen to whatever song they like, even if they're playing it over and over. It can't be too loud of course, but that didn't seem to be very loud--it sounded as though it were the music itself that was the problem. Isn't there a drug den you could be shutting down? Damn, between the RAs who hit on the freshmen and the busybodies, that floor just can't win. OMG that picture of Muntz with the moobs. My EYES. Lucinda has some serious boundary issues, between sleeping with a student and making a pass at a potential angel. She is a hot mess. I actually love Brinda's cropped sweater and braids! Very cute.

Right?! Who TF cares about a couple of freshmen??? This is a huge campus, the football team is what unites them. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. THIS. Oh my God that opening sequence was fucking torture to watch. He is so. fucking. SMUG. I want to punch him through my computer screen. He has had exactly two sex partners before he got together with Lucinda--Emily and Cheryl--and he cannot possibly be that good in bed. Also--arguing that Helen of Troy was a proto-feminist is...iffy. She was objectified quite a bit, literally a prize to be fought over--in The Iliad about the only thing she actually does (IIRC) is to review the troops for King Priam. I guess you could argue she was able to woo Menelaus back and that was her using her sexuality but...Medea seducing Jason would've been a better choice.