[S03.E12: My Final Gift to You]

Ryo was so stoic and accepting of his death at Two's hands, it made me relent towards him a little. No sniveling or excuses. As Four, he certainly would have voted for "kill" if another crew member had done them dirty like that.

[S01.E06: Ashes, Ashes]

I dislike how subservient Madame Gao has become. She used to be frightening and sinister. (Also, the actress is so tiny I'm surprised every time I see her standing next to someone.)

I guess we were supposed to be in awe at how slowly and lavishly Alexandra ate her meals. We certainly didn't see anything else that explained her iron rule over The Hand. She and Dorothy Gale, just wanting to go home.

[S01.E05: Take Shelter]

6 hours ago, pootlus said:

When sad piano was playing as she was lying down in Matt's bed, I was all "WTF? She was a terrible human being when alive, don't use tired music cues to try and make me feel sympathy for her now."

Now, now. You're forgetting about the TRUE LOVE!

I did feel a little bad for Elektra being used, resurrected, mind-wiped and indoctrinated by an evil cult. Not that she wasn't an assassin before...

Maybe I just have some residual sympathy for the actress having to do that birthing scene covered in goo and slipping around the floor on her knees for hours.

In general, I want my heroes to be smart and able. Somewhat flawed, sure, but I don't respond well to protagonists who constantly screw up, are too depressed to function, or otherwise act like bleeping idiots. Danny and Matt. I'm not saying heroes can't make any mistakes, but I definitely prefer my escapist fictional characters to be clever and do things I can't rather then reflect my own neuroses back at me.

[S16.E01: One Size Does Not Fit All]

I can't feel bad for the models. They need to be willing to undress backstage at runway shows and walk in front of audiences in often-flimsy clothes with no underwear. Fitting models especially are used to having male and female hands all over them.

It's funny to me how the judges who are also designers just can't help but feel the fabrics, lift flaps, tug at seams, etc. Heidi's a little more circumspect than someone like Zac or Isaac, perhaps from her decades of being on the other side.

The judges' up-close sniff and sneer segment is honestly my favorite part of the show. Plus Tim graciously announcing each model as if he's presenting her at a debutante ball.

[S01.E01: The H Word]

11 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

...loved seeing Jessica is still as acerbic and snappy with them as ever.

Also that she doesn't give a shit about cleaning up and repairing her apartment.

On 8/18/2017 at 5:14 PM, AudienceofOne said:

I actually really liked this episode. It was such a relief to have the first episode of a show set everything up properly.

I enjoyed it too, but was thinking that even with an hour of exposition, nobody who just started watching would be able to figure out what was hell was going on. It's probably impossible to do with five previous series, but even as a regular viewer I appreciated the review.

I'd mind-flushed Iron Fist to make room for pie, so the few touchstones for Colleen, K'un-Lun and The Hand were like, "Oh, yeah yeah yeah." I then read the Wikipedia episode summaries and barely made it through those. Oh, Danny.

[S16.E01: One Size Does Not Fit All]

1 hour ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

Am I just confused about what the definition of "modest" is?

I was, too. I looked at 10 or so websites that advertised modest clothing (which was a trip down religious alleyways), but most of them seemed to agree that it means some type of sleeve, no cleavage, no cutouts, and nothing above the knee. But tight and clingy are fine, especially in evening wear.

[S03.E12: My Final Gift to You]

At least Ryo is back on the Raza now and next week's preview

Spoiler

shows him still alive. Surprise! I'm eager to see how he'll be incorporated into the crew, if he is. Another memory wipe? Can't see anyone trusting him again otherwise.

Android's struggle with dual allegiances will be really fun to watch. I adore her so I'm easy.

Maybe Five's sister's adoptive family will turn out to be ... Derrick Moss and his dead wife? Commander Truffault?

Would the sister and Two's daughter be about the same age? Can't remember if we've been told how old Two is, or if normal aging even applies to her because, nanites.

[Faux Life: Things That Happen On TV But Not In Reality]

So many throne rooms. Monarchs on TV idly spend their days lolling about on gold and velvet thrones amidst a roomful of guards, just waiting for someone to either bust in or be brought before him/her.

[Party of One: Unpopular TV Opinions]

4 hours ago, cpcathy said:

My UO is that I'm not going to bag on Jimmy like everyone else does, it seems to be the cool thing to deride him and complain he's not funny, yada yada.

Goodness, I'll go you one better on wildly unpopular talk show opinions: I like Jay Leno and preferred him to Letterman.

[S16.E01: One Size Does Not Fit All]

May I tell the judges and Tim to shut the shit up about who someone's "girl" is, already? I mean, obviously she's a girl because nobody over 30 matters in fashion, but she also has very narrow range of available professions, most commonly a NYC gallery owner.

It goes unsaid that the world's female attorneys, librarians, clerical workers, police officers, physical therapists, accountants, shop assistants, etc. all have no choice but to shop at J.C. Penney. Ain't nobody here designing for adult CUSTOMERS!

[S16.E01: One Size Does Not Fit All]

Do the judges get to see the designers' portfolios before the season starts? If not, they had no idea that ChaCha's scrunchies dress was actually quite restrained for him. It's not like tent/trapeze dresses aren't a thing, but he could've at least tapered and fit the sleeves better, or left them off entirely. Still would have lost, of course.

Nina mentioned that the only body part on display was the model's back, (deliberately?) overlooking the shortness of the dress and her legs showing to the upper thighs.

I hope this and Batani's mess indicate that the judges are over their "embellishments in lieu of design" phase.

[Project Runway Quotes: "But What About Andrae?"]

Ayana, re referring to someone as fat: "The words really don’t matter as long as plus-size model is not seen as a problem-size model.”

[S16.E00: Road to the Runway Season 16]

The show is certainly going for edgy and (ugh) fresh this season. It should be fun to watch but made me wonder if someone like Nick Verreos or Laura Bennett would have been given the time of day, seeing as they design well-tailored clothes for adults.

She seemed like a sweet person, but I understood why the women who tried out 6-7 times had never been selected because her designs had nothing new to offer. Going personal with those ugly black and white splotches made her "interesting," I guess.

[S16.E01: One Size Does Not Fit All]

13 hours ago, CoyoteBlue said:

African Print Lady - Flat grey with butt-ugly raggedy flopping grandma-looking appliques running down her butt crack to hide the GAPING HOLE in the back. Good lord. Thanks so much for the closeup of the giant hole, camera guy. You almost gave the girl a colonoscopy. I had high hopes for her, but maybe the fabrics *were* doing all the work for her.

I liked her clothes during the introduction episode but thought at the time that there's no way I (picture Rose Nyland) and other Caucasian women could wear them without perhaps feeling like we were appropriating another culture. I wouldn't wear sari fabrics, either. So then she didn't use African-inspired prints this time (I wonder if Mood's selection is limited?) and had one of the worst construction fails I've ever seen. I'll miss your beautiful face and smile, Batani, but I hold out no hope that you'll last.

[People Of Earth - General Discussion]

2 minutes ago, Corgi-ears said:

Wait, what? Ennis the gay farmer? (I think the actor playing Ennis is still in the Broadway production of Kinky Boots, btw -- probably why he seems to have been written out.)

Yikes on me! Who was the old guy Margaret was sleeping with -- wasn't he one of the group?

[This Just In: New, Cancelled, Returning, And On-Hiatus Shows News]

At least Netflix has accurate statistics for user views and dropouts to make renewal decisions. They don't ask for any demographic data except if a user is 12 or under in order to restrict content, so apparently they don't even care that I'm not in the almighty 18-49 range.

I don't begrudge them their financial decisions to cancel low-viewership original content, just like the networks do. (But then, I didn't like Sense8, or Gypsy. I do heave a somewhat gusty sigh when they remove old series like X Files before I'm done watching.)

Streaming is kind of a mess now. The CW, Comedy Central and CBS pulled out of Hulu in the last year and they may be in trouble as a company if they continue to lose licensing for current shows. That's one of the big draws for cord-cutters.

It'll be interesting to see how CBS does with its own platform. How much money did they spend on infrastructure, plus having to build (or outsource) an entire customer/technical support and billing system, all for a very limited number of shows? They've gotta be taking a bath.

[People Of Earth - General Discussion]

It seems like the show is leaning towards Chelsea going back to her repentant husband and Doug not being allowed to leave the priesthood, which is my least favorite option. Be together or apart, please. Continued thwarted mooning will make me cross.

I've kind of forgotten why I liked Kurt so much since Don has taken on the role of interacting with humans. It'll be interesting to see where the writers take Kurt. 

Don's repeated memory wipes of Chelsea were great -- yeah, dude. No good way to break that news.

Also, bring back Ennis! Are he and Margaret still loving it up?

[Jimmy Kimmel Live - General Discussion]

I got a little teary during Jimmy's monologue about Trump. He always pokes fun at politicians but is not really a political satirist per se, so it was even more affecting. Good for him.

There will be other nights for the Bachelor in Paradise skits and whatnot.

[S02.E01: Thetans in Young Bodies]

3 minutes ago, SanLynn said:

And I agree with all of you who are commenting on Mike and how pained he's looking so far. I respect him for taking this opportunity to make amends and face up (possibly in a way he never has before) to the abuses he was a part of. I do also worry about what this is doing to him. 

Despite the anguish he (and Leah) suffer listening to all these stories, I hope in the end it does provide a small measure of comfort that he's helping get all the ugliness out in the open. Aaron Smith-Levin has said that Rindah took a pay cut to do the series (compared to what he was making working at Aaron's company), so we know it's important to him.

And no, Scientology, it's not "AfterMoney." It's a docuseries on basic cable. I certainly hope the production company negotiated a substantial increase from A&E for season two, but nobody's buying a private island or anything with documentary money.

[S09.E10: Drill, Baby, Drill]

9 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Sadly, most teams failed at matching each other's tattoos, let alone making the tattoos look like the original photos.

With both artists working off the same template, it's interesting how much variation there was in the finished product. Even a few of the proportions were off, so it wasn't just shading application or scratchy lines. Same outcome when the show has done this in the past with designs other than portraits.

How could Empire not have won? As one of the judges said, it was hard at first glance to even tell them apart. (And that's my perfectly unbiased opinion. Call me, Tommy!)

[Season 2 Reddit AMA: 8/15/17]

Some of the questions and answers. I edited a few of the questions for brevity.

Q: How are you now treated by Scientologists in Hollywood?
Leah: They ignore me and walk out of rooms.

Q: Do you think Scientology will ever be reformed into a less corrupt church? Do you think Free Zone Scientologists will have influence in the future of the church?
Leah: No!
Mike: Because Scientology policy cannot be changed. By definition if you take away Scientology policy, you take away Scientology.

Q: Why do you think it has been so difficult for Scientology members who abuse former members not to end up charged with crimes that land them in the courts?
Leah: Because victims have been afraid to speak out due to Scientology's policies of attacking anyone who do speak out.
Mike: They also hide behind the protection of the 1st amendment pretending to qualify as a charitable humanitarian organization.

Q: Have you tried to get your smear sites taken down?
Leah: I'm not interested in their juvenile tactics
Mike: Such as name calling and ad hominem and them never adressing the actual abuses.
Leah: Especially with what's going on today an organization calling itself a religion would be better served taking care of the victims of its own abuse.

Q: What do you think draws people towards becoming Scientologists?
Leah: In the past people were drawn, because they were looking for something new. Currently, it’s only the second or third generation that are growing up in it and have no choice.

Q: If there was one thing you wanted to say to your eldest kids, what would it be?
Mike: I will always love you. I hope one day you will be able to forgive me for putting you into a world you did not choose

Q: You’ve suggested that some of the things you learned in Scientology are useful skills while other things you learned are lies, often used to control you. Now that you’ve been out for a while, how easy is it to tell whether a particular thing you learned in the church is helpful or detrimental to you as a person?
Leah: Still dealing with it.
Mike: I think I have it sorted it, but I'm not totally convinced that's true.

Q: Can I ask both Leah and Mike, what is the ultimate endgame you could wish for? That Scientology be destroyed?
Leah: I don’t want it destroyed. We want the abuses to end, and the destructive policies that destroy families abolished.

Q: How were your first weeks out of Scientology? What did you do and how did you feel?
Mike: Wow, they were great. I felt liberated, but sad that I knew that I had said goodbye to my entire family. I felt greatly relieved that I was able to contact others who had left who took me in when I had nowhere else to go. Thank you Tom DeVocht and Ronnie and Bitty Miscavige.
Leah: Scary, and I felt like even though I was in the real world more than most I felt like I was on shaky ground. I had been taught that without Scientology in my life I would fail so I had a lot of doubts and fear. I was dealing with a lot of loss, I lost all my friends in one fell swoop.

Q: What did you think of the movie "The Master"? I read that Tom Cruise had an argument with the director cause of Scientology implications.
Leah: I don't think it was any kind of implication. I think it was very clear that the movie was about L. Ron Hubbard, but Scientologists will argue about anything, that is the truth.
Mike: I didn't see it.

Q: How do gay men and women fare in the church of Scientology? Are they at a bigger risk to psychological damage by heterosexual members?
Leah: So the answer to the question is yes. There is a lot of psychological damage done to men and women who are gay because Scientology has written about it in Dianetics as well as Science of Survival and The Chart of Human Evaluation. L Ron Hubbard wrote that homosexuality lands on this very low position on this chart. Where homosexuality is charted and labeled as covert hostility. If you're in this covert hostility band, per L Ron Hubbard, Scientology teaches that you are the worst kind of person. You are sadistic you are a back stabber. Scientology considers homosexualtiy as an aberration, which means something to be fixed.
Mike: In Scientology the goal of auditing is to move you up the chart of human evaluation. By definition is it intended by Scientology that you will be cured of your ills through Scientology auditing.

Q: Where do you get your nails done? They are amazing.
Leah: Thank you so much and I love that you love them! However, I have made the mistake of giving up my resource up to my friends, and my friends get the credit who have stolen the combination. So, I no longer give up my sources!

Q: Do you think David Miscavage is following this AMA?
Leah: Yes and his girlfriend/assistant Laurisse. Enjoy, assholes!

Q: I have a family member who has been in the Church for a number of years now, she has essentially distanced herself from most of us because we could be considered SPs. What are some ways to reach out to her and show her we care about her?

Leah: You have to fight for her. You have to fight. I used to say be kind, just be there for them, but that doesn't work. You have to shove the truth in their face you have to say, "Look at what's been going on and it's your responsibility to look." The only Scientology language I would use to people still in is, "What's true for you is what you have observed" and "Look don't listen" and "Think for yourself" and I would say to them, Why are you not allowed to look on the Internet? Why can't you watch the Aftermath? Why can't you watch Going Clear? If Scientology is so perfect they should be able to confront what is being said about Scientology outside of Scientology. That is the argument I would use to Scientologists.

Q: What has been the biggest change and challenge in your life since speaking out against your former church?
Leah: I think the challenge has been trying to effectively help people. It's not easy to sit and listen to people's pain and not be enraged when we just want to help in doing something. I think the hardest part is just listening. It's very hard for me to not have the power to actually bring justice.
Mike: For me confronting the things I have done in the past that have resulted in pain and suffering to people is probably the most difficult part of this journey.

Q: Do you think Scientology will continue to grow once David M has died?
Mike: Scientology isn't continuing to grow while David is alive! it's shrinking.
Leah: Yes, one of the people that David is holding in Riverside county, they will be able to take a shower, put on a suit and take over.

Q: What was your best and/or worst experience when working on your new series?
Leah: The best part is seeing our contributors get the support on social media. Seeing that is really the best part. Everyone who comes on knows the policy of Scientology they know that the second this airs they will get a hate site created about them, they know their family and friends will disconnect from them, yet they are embraced by strangers.
The worst part is seeing and hearing the devastation that people are still going through 20 - 30 years later.

Q: Do you or Mike ever feel you are/could be in imminent danger due to their attack policies?
Leah: Imminent danger? No, never.
Mike: Speak for yourself!

Q: In an interview before you left Scientology, you were using Scientology jargon and speaking about your daughter as if she was an adult. Your daughter still used a bottle at 4 years old and it was filled with barley water and sugar. I trust your daughter is no longer drinking from a bottle, but what impact, if any, did raising your daughter in Scientology have on her and on your relationship with her? Did you need to relearn parenting since leaving Co$?
Leah: She tried it once as a baby and spit it out to the dismay of my Scientology friends who told me to force it on her because it was L Ron Hubbard's policy. I didn't use the Scientology jargon while raising my daughter. One of my Scientology friends wrote a report on my because I wasn't using Scientology terms around my baby. Sofia doesn't remember Scientology, but she does ask me why her Scientology aunt (by marriage) can't talk to her.

Q: Do you think that Scientology will ever change their views on psychiatry?
Leah and Mike: No!
Mike: Absolutely not. That is perhaps the most fundamental doctrine of Scientology which sets up the us versus them mentality. Within the bubble of Scientology it is psychiatry that is attempting to destroy man's hope for salvation. Plus L Ron Hubbard said it so it must be so.

Q: Could this show not backfire on you, meaning someone getting so angry they do something stupid and source it back to you? Have you thought about that?
Mike: Anything that happens Scientology already blames us. Before the show was even on the air they were blaming us for any action against the church.

Q: Hi Leah, I got an autographed picture of you years ago (thank you) and with it was information on Scientology. Did you know they were sending these things to your fans?
Leah: I think that was something that I was doing and agreed to do for Scientology so yes and I am sorry and you're welcome.

Q: Do you think that Scientology is dying in the Internet age, due to so much information about the nature of Scientology being available at people's fingertips?
Leah: Absolutely. and also because it doesn't work.
Mike: Dianetics said it could cure cancer and it didn't work so they died off and then there are people who reached the highest OT level and they died off

Q: What do you think about young actresses are preaching feminism and equal rights when they're also part of the church? Isn't it counterproductive?
Mike: Hypocritical

Q: Do either of you remember a long time ago when John Travolta was on Oprah and they said he'd explain Scientology when they came back after the break but then it was never mentioned again? I was wondering if every single interview they do is monitored?
Leah: I don't mean to call people out, journalists or talk show hosts, but if people agree to that sort of thing, they're subscribing to Scientology's rules.

Q: What would happen if you were cast with a Scientologist on a show or movie? Would they be unwilling to work with you completely, or is it just somehow dealt with?
Leah: Well, I would do it, because unlike Scientologists I'm not a bigot, but Scientologists can't work with me.

Q: Do you think your efforts will result in any meaningful departures from Scientology or are you focused on informing potential converts?
Leah: Meaningful departures mean to us, any person -- and yes that has already happened -- and if you're referring to a celebrity I couldn't care less how many celebrities stay in it. Our concern are just people.

Q: What do you think will ultimately take down the Church of Scientology, what is the Achilles heel?
Mike: Its own activities.

Q: I'm just going to get straight to it. Is Tom Cruise a good person?
Leah: No! Just going to get straight to it, no! There is a public persona of the guy who looks at you directly in the eye and shakes your hand and hugs you and is an attentive person to you and there's the person behind the mask who is a completely different person. Someone could say we all have that -- what we are to the public and who we are behind the scenes, but the people who are around Tom and work for Tom, not even people who are Scientologists, they will say he is diabolical. People who've worked with me will say I can be an asshole - all actors can be. That is different. He's very similar to David Miscavige, they could be twins.

Q: Last season ended with a trip to the lawyers office. Will we see an update on the progress you have made with legal strategy?
Leah: Things have happened but for legal reasons you won't be able to see it on camera. There are things happening behind the scenes.

Q: If you could sum up Scientology to someone that hasn't studied too much into but is intrigued, how would you do so?
Leah: If they were intrigued I probably wouldn't waste my time.
Mike: If they were intrigued I would tell them to look at both sides of the story. Don't just look at what Scientology says look at what people outside Scientology say too

Q: My girlfriend grew up a Scientologist and even though she hasn't been involved with them in over 20 years she still receives mail all the time.
Leah: If you are unfortunate enough to put your information on a Scientology piece of paper you will receive mail until you die
Mike: And beyond.
Leah: Scientology uses statistics and one of the stats of the week is how many pieces of mail they send out. Even Scientologists complain about how much mail they get.

Q: My question is for Mike: After you left your position with Scientology and began to expose things, how long did it take people to truly believe that you actually left and how hard was it trying to make things right with the people you tried so hard to public destroy?
Mike: Wow, I don't know how to answer that... to first part of that question, that's for people to decide whether to believe me or not. As for the second part that's an ongoing process and this show is a part of that process.
Leah: Mike is taking responsibility, unlike Scientology.

Q: I know you don't talk much about Xenu or anything regarding that, since that's not the focus of your show. But will you get more into it this season?
Leah: Yes and we're going to try to. It is our intention to expose all that Scientology sells, and Xenu is a part of that. We're going to talk about the upper levels of Scientology that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Q: Do you think the "church" will ever recognize all their doings?
Leah: No.
Mike: Not a chance. They believe that what they are doing is right and that they are justified by the greater good and the amazing things they are doing for the planet and mankind.

[Season 2 Reddit AMA: 8/15/17]

[S02.E01: Thetans in Young Bodies]

The preview was already pretty wrenching and it didn't even get into the treatment the kids received in Scientology. Buy stock in Kleenex!

[The Sinner in the Media]

Variety: The Sinner is 2017’s No. 1 New Cable Series, according to Nielsen delayed viewing data.

In Live+3 ratings, the series is number one in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, and total viewers, among new cable shows this year, excluding mini-series. Two episodes into its eight episode series run, the series grew in its second week in adults 18-49 by 7% to 1.4 million, adults 25-54 by 5% to 1.6 million, and adults 18-34 by 4% to 543,000. Over its first two episodes, the series is averaging 3.5 million viewers per episode.

Is that good news for a possible second season, wherein Cora remembers more shit?

[Atypical - General Discussion]

On ‎8‎/‎13‎/‎2017 at 1:07 PM, bybrandy said:

But I don't see what the bartender sees in Elsa.

I had the same thought. There's no accounting for sexual attraction, but I would have believed it more if he wasn't so attractive, she wasn't so much older, or she combed her hair once in a while. Maybe Nick's pattern is to hit on every woman alone at the bar, but the show presented him as being very sincere in his liking for her.