CeeBeeGee

I'm thrilled that ACS did so very well last night--Best Directing for a Limited Series, Best Actor in a Limited Series, Best Limited Series. THRILLED. And they should've won more--IMO the two votes for Best Supporting Actor/Actress for a Limited Series vote was split. (And WHY was not Cody Fern on the ballot?) I'm so happy for everyone on this team. But I do wish more of them had remembered the victims in their speeches. Ryan Murphy remembered but his was the last speech of the night and he had no guarantee ACS would win Best Limited series. He also also named some of them--he skipped over Lee and William. He and Darrin both should've fully remembered the victims. This amazing, poetic and insightful series was built on their tragedy, their murders.

I've been re-watching old gymnastics meets on YouTube. Re: 2012 US Nationals (and the trials--I remember them, although they are currently not on YT), I have a question. What in HELL was Nastia thinking, not getting around to full runthroughs of her bars routines until the week before Nationals? What in God's name did she and Valeri expect? She made an utter fool out of herself--it's excruciating to watch those bars sets. I say this as a fan of Nastia, I've always liked her gymnastics. But what the hell? A WEEK. Didn't she decide to come back almost a year prior? (I remember she tweeted during 2011 Worlds "let the journey begin" or something like that.) But she didn't start full runthroughs until a week before Nationals? Also in the What was Valeri thinking category: for God's sake, Valeri, stop making Bross do the Patterson! She can't land it. Watching her sit that down over and over was also excruciating. She deserved better.

I'm rewatching the movies today on Lifetime. I actually like the second Cathy in Petals but...she is clearly a redhead! It's not carrot red but it is quite noticeably red hair. It takes me out of the scene at the party--one reason Cathy is able to convince everyone she's telling the truth is that she strongly resembles her mother. Not with this cast!

LOVE Gannon. From our mouths to NBC's ears--please keep him! He won't. He can but he won't, because that is American men's gymnastics in a nutshell right now. They qualify well, they airpunch like crazy afterward but they never actually deliver. It's maddening because they have the talent. If they were genuinely not able to medal, I wouldn't mind so much. I absolutely loved Grace McCollum's zero-fucks-given face whenever she was preparing to go on. She was in beast mode for sure. I quite like her gymnastics. Thrilled that Riley has now had two strong meets in a row! As they said, SImone is competing only against herself--and getting the highest bars score of all is fantastic! Gutted for Ragan. She needs to rest and recuperate this season.

Shoush was young. Rest in peace, awesome gymnast. Her floor routine in Seoul was incredible.

Oh my God, I FLOVE this floor exercise! I watched most of Euros but not the floor final--I understand she took the bronze. Fantastic choreography!

Okay, cool. Smart to pull out, when Nationals is what's important. Still tho, congrats to Simone! Loved the BBS write-up, they are consistently hilarious.

So thrilled Riley competed cleanly!!! Now STAY HEALTHY Very sorry for Ragan--NBC didn't show her floor or vault but since she wasn't in the top ten, I'm assuming those did not go well.

I'm thrilled it received so many nominations, although I'm gutted for Cody. Darren and Judith are very strong shots, I feel.

Neither were very good. The idea that Tootie just blew everyone out of the water by virtue of her being THAT much better at her audition is ridiculous. She had a modicum of surface energy but didn't connect with the character at ALL. You have to do more to sell "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair" than just walk around, pointing at people and bopping your mushroom haircut. And she wasn't good with the ballad "Some Enchanted Evening" either--where's the hope? Where's the sweetness? "You may meet a stranger..."--let's see the romance, see the coyness--you're singing this to the man who's courting you--is he the stranger? She just kept lurching around the stage. It drives me crazy because South Pacific is my favorite R&H musical, and Nellie is a fantastic role. She is sweet and likable but also genuinely FLAWED but turns it around. There's so much to play there--this is one of the few musicals that won a Pulitzer, after all--but Tootie touched on none of it. And it has to be said--I am all for non-traditional casting but you can't do it with every show. You cannot cast Nellie with a black actor, because her entire arc is about her overcoming her Little Rock WHITE WOMAN racism. She can't handle that Emile has two non-white children and that's why she breaks it off. The show should've just chosen another musical--heck, they could've done Oklahoma, it would've been more appropriate.

Oh my God. The blood, it runs cold. One of my absolute favorite episodes! Brilliantly acted and directed, especially that last long sequence between Blair and Jo. "I keep thinking 'If only I had said this, if only I had just done that.' I never knew there was so much wrong with me before Chad." "Maybe there wasn't--before Chad." And that last GREAT conversation: "I want to go. But I don't want to want to go." *stiffens resolve* "I don't want to go." It's episodes like this, where you can explore the complexity of these two girls' relationships--that though they are "rivals," they know each other deep-down and have each other's backs--that justify the show. In the '80s you simply didn't have shows like this. ETA: I also loved the writing in that script. Mrs. Garrett saying "That doesn't sound like love--love is supposed to make you feel good" stayed with me as a teenager. (And I loved Charlotte Rae's hilarious take in the background when Chad first compliments Blair's long blonde hair and then says "maybe you should chop it all off. Rae's jaw dropped open, it was very funny.)

No, I totally get that. I'm not saying "he has to be gay because he got an erection around a boy," it's more like I was very confused because I misinterpreted that scene--I put in the context of: earlier he couldn't get hard with the internet woman, plus he talked about rumors of his being gay (which read to me as the show foreshadowing something), finally he gets an erection around a boy. I interpreted all three of those events as connected to each other, but I guess not. I started watching "Beyond the Reasons" and I'm very concerned about why the show has Tyler being a school shooter. In the special they defend the rape scene by saying the viewer is forced to empathize with him, and then he goes on to see him planning a school shooting and even though that is obviously horrible, you see his humanity earlier (something like that). They explicitly linked bullying to school shootings which is simply not statistically valid. There are far many more examples of mass shooters being motivated by racism and misogyny, sociopaths who are angered at being crossed (a girl turns them down, they don't make the team, expulsion) or sociopaths who wants to "beat Columbine" and achieve notoriety. After Parkland there was a lot of "next time, let's reach out and notice people's pain"--the shooter in that case wrote such charming things on his backpack as "I hate n******" and was open about hating Jews and gay people. He's the bully, not the victim of bullying. I have no problem with the show showing Tyler as a different kind of shooter--my problem is how the special tried to draw a correlation between school shootings and bullying..

And yet another icon of Broadway musicals appears in this show--first Brian D'Arcy James, of Titanic and Shrek (in fact a dear friend of mine appeared with him on Shrek), Kelli O'Hara star of a million shows, and now Anthony Rapp, famous for Rent. Did I miss something? Alex and Jessica are kind-of dating? I thought he discovered he was gay when he and Zach were wrestling and he got a hard-on.. Awww (Clay's getting a brother! Justin's getting a home!). And....ohhhh, shit. (Justin's got a stalker.) Monty, you're pathetic. "Tell me what you want me to do"? Grovel some more, why don't you? JESUS WHAT THE FUCK Jesus. JESUS. That is fucking horrific. I don't like Tyler and at first I assumed he was mouthing all the right responses but he did seem sincere when he was talking to Monty in the bathroom. That is absolutely tragic. WHY IS THIS SHOW DOING THIS TO ME? Justin, NO! Put that shit down! Jesus, I can't believe Tyler was able to lie so convincingly to the mother. He must have been in incredible pain. Jesus. What is up with the redemption arc of Bryce? Dude's a rapist. Come on. The cluster of love and comfort in the middle of the dance floor, when one by one each of Hannah's friends wordlessly came to Clay, is lovely. "Don't call the police"??? What the fuck, Clay?! That said he has balls of steel to try to talk down Tyler. I am glad a massacre didn't actually happen, but that seems more soapy than realistic. Yes! Extremely dangerous message to send. It's been disproven over and over (read Dave Cullen's book Columbine for more on this) that most school shooters are not victims of bullying--that more often than not, they are the bullies. I loved the #metoo montage at Bryce's sentencing, thought it was very well done. One of the themes of this show is rape culture and misogyny--how little things, casual misogyny and sexism, leads to greater offenses like Bryce and Marcus grabbing Hannah, which lead to rape. All the little things are winked at/normalized--it's all part of a spectrum.

Baby Bryce is empathetic, kind and tactful. Too bad he grew up into a monster. It's nice to see a family that is a good blend of loving and communicative, that discusses past mistakes and ways to move forward. So many TV families are over-dramatic. Justin and Hannah are adorable together. God, is there anyone with whom she doesn't have insane chemistry? Even Bryce was charming and un-thuggish with her. Freeze the screen at 19:23, when the coach is scolding Bryce. There are a couple of angles around that time where he looks EX-ACT-LY like an older Bryce--same nose, same cheeks. Which I guess is appropriate since the coach is likely more of a father figure than Bryce's own dad. The kid playing Justin is NAILING his courtroom scene. Just beautiful, heartfelt acting. Is this series eligible for Emmy Awards? He and Derek Luke are good enough for them. Sonya makes me want to punch her smug face right through the screen. I think it's really cool that Cyrus and his sister talk to a therapist. Tyler is (as always) a POS for mocking that. Tyler, nothing says "punk rock" like a guy in a sweater being hustled away by his clueless parents. You're not exactly Sid Vicious. I love how one by one, Not-a-Rapist Jock (Scott?), Clay, Zach and Tony step forth and Monty's bravado is intact but when Alex limps forward on his cane--shit just got REAL. That's a total dick move, Alex's dad--and I loved it. Well played. Justin has incredible courage to risk himself like that. I doubt he'll even go to trial, his testimony is too important--he'll get a plea bargain. Welcome to the team, Scott! Well-spotted, ElectricBoogaloo. Jesus, that was a dumb move.

Yes! I straight up cheered when Alex BROKE his cane on the dude. Way to step up! Loved it! In general I am not crazy about the term "out if his league" but it really does apply here. Tyler, Mackenzie is cute, aware, friendly--she is indeed way out of your league. You did nothing wrong, sweetie, and you are way too good for him. They are giving Bryce the Owen Labrie treatment (prep school lacrosse player whose mug shut showed him as the jockstrap rapist he was, but showed up for the trial looking like Harry Potter, complete with dyed brown hair and glasses). "Can't he just...be those things?" Mom knows what's up. No effing way Monty--ass-kissing Monty--is able to take down Zach. Zach has at least 3-4 inches on him. Oh my fucking GOD HOW STUPID ARE YOU CLAY??????? You left the box in the back seat of your car?!?! "Real power" oh shut the fuck up, Tyler. Just shut it. Only a weenis confuses guns with power. Bryce playing the Poor Little Rich Boy card. Good for Mom for calling him on his shit. The single most disturbing image of this scene is that tracking shot down to Bryce's erection as he remembers raping Hannah. Jesus.

Anyone who walks past a gay couple and uses that word deserves a beating. The guy probably figured he had nothing to be afraid of--they're just a couple of pansies, right? Tony was not having it. And WTF, Clay? Did you "get yourself in the situation" of being beaten up? No, they chose to do so. Rapists choose to rape. It's not something that just happens inevitably. Porter is going rogue, I love it. The principal warned him to have no contact with students but he knew Justin needed help and advice. In color-me-shocked news, Tyler is again a flaming asshole. I rather like Cyrus and am glad he stood up for his sister. Tyler, you stupid shit, you should God on your knees someone as nice and cute as Mackenzie bothered to talk to you, much less show interest in you. How dare you humiliate her like that?

Very astute reading of the scene. I didn't realize what had happened until I read this post--then I went back and parsed it much more carefully. Interesting! Thanks for this post! He is but, kids at that age are not exactly nuanced when it comes to displays like this: displays of power, of lover, whatever. He's a 17 yo meathead, he's not going to cite Machiavelli's The Prince, he's going to brag about Daddy's money. FUCK TYLER. He is SHIT. Fuck people who murder animals* for sport and afterwards call their friends over to gawk. I despise him. He's a fucking Nice Guy, he's a stalker and a pervert and now he murders animals for sport. The fact that he was bullied doesn't mitigate this. I was horrified when I saw that needle in Justin's arm. Oh my God. That was genuinely horrifying. (And as obnoxious as Clay has been this season, I feel for him with all the puking that's been going on in his bedroom.) *Plus I think that was a crow and they are super intelligent. They are really the coolest birds.

Jeff, we miss you!!! Marcus was an idiot to think Bryce would help. What I found interesting about the CHloe/Bryce scene was that he specifically--if hastily and perfunctorily--asked her for consent. I guess those little talks they've been having with the athletes are sinking in. Now they need to teach "enthusiastic consent" because Chloe was anything but enthusiastic. He's really getting on my nerves lately. That last scene, when he looked into the living room and said something snippy and the stomped upstairs--fuck off, Clay. Your parents are doing you a major solid by taking in Justin (as Mom said, she could've been in huge trouble as an officer of the court). And poor Justin--he has his flaws but his context is quite tragic--do you really begrudge him this taste of normal family life? Fuck off, Clay. The school's lawyer is making a strategic mistake, IMO. She herself comes off as a bully--forcing a girl to out herself? That smug demeanor? She could elicit the same testimony while appearing professional, regretful but ultimately believable. I doubt if a real-life jury would respond well to her approach. WTF, Clay??? Let Skye recover in peace! She is not your tape recorder!

Zach and Hannah are sweetly adorable here. What a shame he couldn't laugh off his friends. Tyler and his friend both are scaring me. Tyler has gone from self-proclaimed victim to this arrogant, strutting jerk. Can't say I'm surprised about Alex's newfound sexuality. Man, the team gets bigger every day! Courtney, Alex... ...I'm also wondering if there's more to the story of Jessica's rape--did Justin have more to do with it than just essentially allowing Bryce to rape her?

He is such a fucking, ass-kissing sleaze. First he gropes, Hannah, then sets up Clay, then he commits perjury for his rapist "friend." Please please PLEASE let him go down with Bryce. I'm really nervous about this situation! Clay's already been set up once with drugs, what if Justin has more paraphernalia with him and his parents find it? Although I am finding Justin's Linda Blair imitation amusing. That was ridiculous. THEY ARE TRYING TO HELP YOU, CLAY. Stop being such a brat.

Yes, they were talking abut detonators. The show is clearly hinting at Tyler being a future school shooter. Whether this will actually come to pass remains to be seen. Tyler's immediate creepy focus on Mackenzie in the kitchen didn't reassure me. Tyler, just because a girl is reasonably nice to you doesn't mean she HAS to be your next GF. OMG. I could NOT figure out what was listed on that postcard. I finally decided he was living in "DAKLAND." I couldn't read it! Fascinating discussion on the NoCal specific use of "hella." I got that word from The Real World back when they were casting from that area--Malik used that word a lot.

The Kelli O'Hara character (who is staying with Hannah's mom)--RAGE. How fucking DARE she wash that dress? I would've thrown her out of the house. Of all people, of ALL people, she should've known how gross an invasion of privacy that was, what a huge betrayal. What a cruel thing to do, whether or not she was intending to be cruel. Jessica is still sleeping on her parents' floor? It's been months, can they not break out the wallet for a new bed for her? I never understood why so many commenters said that Hannah was a drama queen. Skye? Skye is a drama queen. And it's really tasteless to fondle your BF under the table when having dinner with his parents. Shoutout to whoever commented on their having sex while Clay's parents were below. My parents would've knocked the tar out of me had I tried that. Proud of Courtney for stepping up, although it was disgusting of the defense attorney to force her to make that revelation.

YES. Clay, Skye is not your Hannah-lives-this-time chance. It's entirely commendable that you want to help her and that you've obviously researched self harm and ways to help treat but you're just a few months removed from a severe trauma yourself. I agree, this screams codependency. Tyler is gross. It sucks he was bullied, and he does get my sympathy for that but his obsession with Hannah is disturbing. His trying to excuse his covert photography pf her by saying "I was trying to process what I was seeing"--GROSS. Dude, no, you weren't. You were being a creeper. I just detest Nice Guys.

He was incredibly believable as a sociopathic rapist, to the point that I'm worried about his career. He was horrifyingly believable. I passed someone at work today who looked like him and I was shuddering. An excellent actor. I was devastated watching the actual act--in fact I watched it through my fingers and turned away several times. I have suicide in my family and it is key to show the reaction of the parents/survivors. Oh my God, Hannah's poor parents. Her poor, poor mother. That denial. "You're okay. You're okay." It's just so awful. They will never get past this. Suicide is the gift that keeps on giving. People never get past this. That was definitely a concern of mine. As much as Hannah suffered throughout the series, she was always rocking her cute little scarves and berry lip color (shit, EVERYBODY at Liberty High loved that berry lip! Hannah, Clay, Tony...!). Actual depression is smelly and off-putting and untelegenic. I would've liked to have seen Hannah's depression rendered more realistically. FUCK Tyler. He is scum. As Truth says, it would be one thing if he acknowledged he'd fucked up but when Hannah said something he 1) asked her out, and 2) when she said no, he blasted the pic of her and Courtney. After that he whined about how he was a victim. So Tyler is a Nice Guy. That guy, that guy who says because I am not a jock,not conventionally successful with chicks, somehow I am a victim and beyond reproach. No, dude, just because you're not nailing the chicks doesn't mean you're not part of the problem. Fuck Tyler. That is actually pretty cool that they cast a gay actor to play a straight character. Until fairly recently being known as gay would immediately typecast you as a gay actor, and it would've been impossible to read for a straight character at an audition.

Yes, her getting him to hold it seems significant. She can then shoot him and claim he was trying to shoot her and she was able to get ahold of the gun.