The Companion

That plane scene was hard to watch. Totally heartbreaking and awful. Homelander was not wrong. There was no way to save them. But to turn it around at the end, and to turn on tears that never showed up on the plane? It was creepy and amazing. That poor dolphin. This show is pretty messed up. Hughie seems pretty up for a date given that the woman he loved just died (guilt hallucinating notwithstanding). You can see the tension building with his experience with Starlight vs. the concept that the superheroes are all bad. The Spice Girls speech cracked me up. Also Frenchie's assertion that the woman could be a Spice Girl. Not that I am surprised Homelander is involved, but it was interesting to get confirmation that he was directly involved in the Compound V ring and that he was gonna be pissed. Maeve really does seem redeemable, doesn't she? At least she still has a conscience, even if she doesn't/can't stand up to Homelander.

I am so intrigued by the underlying menace coming from Homeland. The way he discounts the lives of mere people, including casual murder. The real creepy way that he was put off by the baby. The controlling way he spoke to Queen Maeve. There is this low-grade malevolence that I am excited to see develop. I am struggling a bit with Starlight. I think it would be better if we saw some really impressive superhero work to justify why she is staying with the Seven. I know it was a dream of hers, but as things get worse and worse it is hard to understand why she is sticking with it. If we at least got to see her making an impact, it would be a lot more understandable. I guess she has the same weakness as the others: her reputation.

We had the same conversation in our house. Not sure what it says about us. Yeah, for someone who thinks he reads people well, maybe telling the guy who just lost his girlfriend that he can go back to his life isn't the most insightful comment. Then again, he was feeling pretty confident now that Homelander showed up.

Okay, now this is what I want. A fake out death only to have him become a snarky companion with Lucy.

I don't think Johnny has to be paired up at the end of this to have a "happy ending." If he is, we all know who his true love is: Lucy. Maybe she will get a corporeal form. I know there are a lot of Johnny-Dutch shippers on here, and I knew watching last night that y'all would be upset. I have said it before, but I LOVE the non-romantic close relationship Johnny and Dutch have, and I would be super disappointed if they got together. My best friend is a guy. He is basically my brother. It is frustrating to never see relationships like that portrayed. I love him deeply and we have been through hell together more than once, but romance would never be where we ended up. Dutch and Johnny have always reminded me of us. It would feel lazy to me to write them as friends for years only to have them become more than friends. I don't think the fact that they were together in the fake world means there is some sort of unrequited love. After all, Pree and Gared are the cutest, and we aren't ascribing any meaning to Gared's relationship. It makes sense that Johnny and Dutch would be paired because they have lived together side by side for years. Ok, beyond the ships. I continue to think Jaq is an incredible actor. As someone who usually hates the way kids are written in sci fi, I am surprised that I constantly want more of his story. He and DSK were fun to watch. I also have to commend this show again for writing characters complex enough that I can go from wanting nothing more than to see them destroyed to rooting for them. DSK and Khylen being prime examples. I figured the rain was a backup but thought Dutch would get caught in it. I am glad we don't have to start over on the "this isn't real" plot. I really enjoyed Zeph in this episode and I hate knowing that she has so much sadness waiting for her when her memories return. I also enjoyed Killjoy Pree. We know he has that underlying danger/edge, and it was fun to have that played up. I have face blindness and it is embarrassing how long it took me to figure out it was him. Lol. It wasn't until he talked for a bit and I heard his voice.

I have to wonder if the same would be true for viewers today. Would people be more about team good feeds/drama?

This is off topic, so I am not going to belabor the point, but I used the Huffington Post article because it was a good consolidation of a lot of good information. How about Harvard, recognizing the limitations of trying to rely on BMI to determine health and discussing it as one factor, rather than determinative?: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-useful-is-the-body-mass-index-bmi-201603309339 Being obese or overweight increases your risk for certain health issues, but it does not always equal unhealthy and it isn't even close to the best way determine health. More critically, if people who are obese and overweight are more likely to have certain health issues, reducing weight bias is critical. If obese patients are not going to the doctor, or they are being discriminated against or they are not being properly treated because the assumption is that 100% of their medical issues are the fat on their body, we are actually exacerbating the problem.

You won't even know I am there.

Yeah, I am going to have to push back on this. Having fat on your body is not equal to being unhealthy. There is nothing inherently unhealthy about having fat on your body. Being fat is often correlated to other issues that do relate to health, but there is nothing to indicate that Jessica is in any way unhealthy. In fact, she expressly talked about running and dancing as activities she does. Here is a good article about obesity, health and why normalizing larger bodies is actually a VERY good thing: https://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/everything-you-know-about-obesity-is-wrong/

For some reason I thought he adopted her (people keep saying he is her adopted father but I guess they mean through a forged birth certificate). It does change the legal analysis, but I still think there are multiple ways they might have circumvented it and I don't know that her Aunt is really going to complain anyway.

I took that to be El remembering the letter. The scenes were interspersed with her staring out the window, so I believe it was intended to be a flashback. The spoilers drive me insane, and it is one of the things I dislike about streaming seasons. We can't binge watch because we have a 5 year old, but I also don't like to binge watch because I don't have time to process the episodes, and therefore end up missing stuff. Also, I like some anticipation. With something like GOT, where it is one episode at a time, I can stay off the internet for a day if I miss it for some reason. With this show, you have to binge watch it, or you are going to have some level of spoiler. I went on no major news sites and looked at no major television sites other than these forums by episode. Still, I got pushed articles on Google and similar sites that spoiled Robin's coming out and a major death (with pictures that made it clear it was either El or Hopper). How hard is it to had something non-spoilery in your headline and picture? From a practical standpoint, Joyce is the best choice. She is the only one who understands what El has been through. I don't even know if El has met everyones' parents, and she certainly has no pre-established relationship with them. From a legal standpoint, there are a couple of answers. The first is that Hopper "legally" adopted El, which makes him her father. End of story. Adoption terminates all legal rights with regard to her birthparents/mom. While it varies from state to state what has to be done to name who you would like to care for your children should you die, typically it is as simple as a clause in a will. The Courts will honor that designation almost every time. They still do a best interest of the child analysis, but El, as a 14 year old, would have also had a lot of say in that. That is, of course, assuming that it ever went before a judge. Given that the government also has a vested interest in keeping El low profile, it is very possible that a friendly judge or even forged papers are the real answer. However, I think that this could have done above-board without too many extra steps. I know Hopper is a bit of a mess, but I would find it harder to believe he hadn't accounted for this. Specifically, as a law enforcement officer, he would have been very aware of the potential that something happens to him. Beyond that, it would have come up during "adoption" arrangements (it came up when we adopted our son), and if there is one thing he pulls it together for it is looking out for his daughter's well-being. There is nobody Hopper would have put before Joyce, given that he relied on her heavily for parenting advice and she knew El's history. Abuse is complicated. People often feel loss and grief when losing an abusive spouse or parent. It isn't at all uncommon. Beyond that, I think we can take Max's word over the course of the season when she defended Billy that there was something beyond fear and dislike between them. They are both victims as well, and that would have formed a bond, whether or not it was a healthy one. Agree. I can't see anyone else as a reasonable choice. I also can't see El choosing anyone else. It IS 1985 and we are talking about a girl who has almost 0 presence in public records. I don't know if she was attending school, but the first public record of her that we know if is the birth certificate that was forged and given to Hopper. As I note above, I suspect the legal custody considerations were taken care of during the cover up stage, but even if they weren't, Joyce probably wins on a best interest of the child analysis and would have likely been named by Hopper anyway. Also, I will note that there are plenty of children being cared for by someone without legal custody. It really only comes up when medical care is needed, during school registration (and maybe not even that in 1985), etc. It blows my mind that these kids are so young, particularly Millie. She is so incredibly talented. It reminds me of the GOT kids. I thought they were eating the chemicals to break down their bodies into goo. Wasn't that the implication, supported by the fact that they stopped when they had built a sufficient amount of mass for the mindflayer? The air ducts didn't expand. They were two very different systems. The air ducts that Erica had to crawl through were regular commercial air ducts in the mall connecting the ice cream shop with the storage room. The air ducts that Erica and Dustin crawled through were in the compound below the surface. They were more typical of industrial air ducts with fans and access for maintenance below the floor. I could not watch. The emergency surgery was what got me, even more than exploding rats and melting people. I realized I might be too obsessed when I saw my son's Stay Puft Marshmallow Man toy and wondered why he was cosplaying as Steve. Assuming that Hopper was actually legally recognized as adopting El, they wouldn't have any superior legal rights. Beyond that, how would they know? El doesn't have some strong desire to live with them, and she doesn't know them at all. Being biologically related to them doesn't really make them the better choice over a family that she knows and trusts (and also a family who understands the trauma she has lived with). This, I think, is a critical question. Did opening the gate on one end of the world give them some way to open it on the other? Did they biologically engineer their own? The critical difference was that they were walking down a straight path in the first instance, and they were crawling through a maze of airducts having to stop so that Dustin could disable the fans in the second. It would take way more time to crawl through the air ducts. They built the mall, which would have sufficiently covered a pretty substantial construction project. They also owned several properties throughout the area that were fairly remote, which also could have been used to cover their operations/provided for additional exits. I loved this season. It was more intense and definitely more horror. I enjoyed the ensemble aspect and the fact that we got away from a plot where it was about one character being in mortal peril/suffering substantial trauma. Steve and Dustin continue to be highlights for me. I love both of their characters. There is something particularly delightful about Dustin's unapologetic nerdiness and sunny optimism. I thought Maya Hawke/Robin was a great addition and breakout star this season. I enjoyed her character and her relationship with the Scoops gang. Being gay in the 80s was a minefield, and I actually thought her coming out was handled really well (down to the look of nausea and fear). I enjoyed that she got a good scene at the end of this episode. I will happily hand wave Hopper back to life. I am still reeling from a character death in another show, and I need some sci fi resurrection please. :) But, if that is the end, I did love it.

I suspect Jackson thinks he is a nice guy, and the behavior is tied to that self-image. In some sense, he is an superficially nice guy, right? I bet he opens doors and says ma'am and can't stand to see a woman cry. Like he is trying to be nice but is so far stuck in how own perspective that he has no idea that he isn't. The nice only lasts until it conflicts with what he wants (and even then, he will try to let the clingy little ladt down easy, so what else could you want?). Jack is just an asshole douchebro. I laughed at this, but I also wanted to cry. Can we get a cringe reaction?

I loved this episode. I love this season. The story has been really great and spooky and gory, but the meat of it has included a lot of character development. I wish I could say I was surprised about Robin or even that I figured it out, but there were like 3 articles about "that character's sexuality" or introducing an LGBT character pushed to me, all of which were paired with pictures of Steve and Robin. This is what I hate about streaming. You get spoilers if you don't stream the entire season (an impossibility with a young kid and not how I prefer to watch). Nonetheless, I loved the entire scene. It felt so organic and right. I loved Steve's reaction. Even though I know there were some shippers, the show is already paired off enough in my opinion and I love the establishment of this firmly in the friend arena. I also love that Robin could represent character development for Steve on the relationship front without them ever dating. He went from being all about Nancy, who he honestly didn't even know, to having a more meaningful relationship and understanding what matters in a relationship (a friend in this case). The entire sequence of them drugged up was hilarious and actually well done. They were so annoying and self centered and giggly in that way that is 100% recognizable if you have corralled your drink friends into the car. The horror sequences felt like throwbacks in the most amazing way. The cabin? The funhouse? They definitely felt like throwbacks to some of the 80s and 90s horror tropes. I loved Alexei and was really bummed to lose him. The actor has the best smile, and it made it really hard to watch him go from victory to being shot. I guess I am in the minority, but I have enjoyed Hopper and Joyce as a team. Joyce has been given so much more to work with this year, including finding some assertiveness that is fun to watch. I like them as a team, and I even didn't mind the direct scene in the car. Hopper is so clearly insecure about Joyce and it was a good way to get them past that hurdle. Obviously, the scene in the mall was amazing. Loved that Erica still didn't believe her brother could be involved.

Things got real this episode! I really love this season so far. It has been really well done. I found myself way too tense during the hospital scene. I love how they have let El start to have friends and branch out. She is so isolated. The little moment where she didn't know what a roller coaster felt like was really great. Echo how fun it was for Steve to get to do something. I loved the entire sneak sequence.

I feel like high schools and colleges do a really bad job preparing students for making the choice about their major. When I was in high school, the focus was on getting into a good college and not on what you wanted to do. In college, there was a lot of talk about trying different things and finding what you were interested in, but no real focus on what the major would mean for your job prospects. I majored in communications because it was a broad degree with lots of applications in the real world (spoiler: nobody had any interest in my communications degree) and minored in marketing with the absolute conviction I could do creative at an ad agency (spoiler: my minor got me unlimited interviews at commission only sales jobs). Ultimately, I did find a good job, and after returning to Law School, have found my place in the world. But, I rarely use any of the skills I learned in college and my expectations in no way resembled reality.

I agree on both fronts here. They are definitely at that cringe-inducing first love stage where they clearly love each other more than anyone has ever loved anyone else and adults just don't get it. First romances, by their nature, lack perspective. Neither party has done it before and both likely have unrealistic expectations of what love is. I also think you are right that part of Mike pushing boundaries had to do with a lack of recognition of Hopper's status as father, and possibly some residual resentment. Totally agree. I like the way the show isn't just glossing over that grief (as so many other shows do). Bob was a great character. Stable, normal, maybe a little bit boring but in the nicest way. He was supportive and ultimately sacrificed himself for those he cared about.

I loved that, though. It was so typical of their age. That and seeing El use her powers on the robots established some much needed normalcy. Last year, she and Hopper were struggling to figure out how to work together and she was super isolated. This year we see a ton of growth, including typical snotty teenage behavior. Assuming things are about to get crazy, it was also probably a very necessary reset to establish some normalcy. The moment between Hopper and Joyce was great, as was the fact that she was still mourning Bob. I appreciated the flashback because it made it clear it was grief and not just guilt. Agree with the above that the mall scenes were amazing. I also loved the very real issue of stores closing. This show does such a good job of capturing the time period. This episode felt like it did a ton of ground work. I am excited to see where the season goes.

It's so hard to keep the gross habits of the hamsters straight.

I think that was Amanda and McRae? I just remember more than one couple deciding not to use them anyway. My recollection is that Bayleigh was allergic to latex.

I am surprised we haven't had more BBabies given the amount of hookups. Her miscarriage came around the time I had my own, and it broke my heart for her. I hope she is doing better. FWIW, while I am still grieving mine, I am also 25 weeks pregnant with a baby girl today! Just in case anyone was dying for an update. Lol. I am not a touchy feely person. I suspect everyone would see me as standoffish because I didn't lay on top of everyone. Oh, my sweet summer child. I appreciate the effort? She isn't wrong. People were pretty harsh. I think a lot if it was Swaggy's ego, though.

The struggle to find a good sports bra is real. There is nothing worse than doing the fake in-place jog in the fitting room while shopping for a sports bra, spending a trillion dollars on it, and then trying to work out only to find that your boobs won't actually stay in place during a real workout. I swear my boobs have a mind of their own. Doubly so now that I am pregnant.

I am impressed with the level of paranoia that is already evident.

Jack, Nicole, Ovi and Holly. DE: Jackson

Exactly. Maybe it was just a weird editing thing, but it made no sense in context. ETA: it has just now occurred to me that maybe the designation would identify the person, and maybe they didn't have consent from the ex so they were being cautious.

He was going WAY too hard. He needed to calm down. Hey, the girl power alliance lasted like a full 30 seconds this year. It really is the only way to improve on Jason Momoa. Jason Momoa PLUS mimosas. I'll be in my bunk. I like most of the cast on first impression. I look forward to finding put how secretly terrible they all are over the next few weeks. It was a weird twist to only have two cast members know each other and then because one dated the family member of the other (also, wtf with the opaque reference to a "family member"? Was it your cousin? Aunt? Mom?).