Avaleigh

Another person who still likes the show checking in. I don't agree with Bill on a lot of issues but I still find his show to be entertaining. I like that he has a variety of guests and the majority of them have interesting and thoughtful things to say. Regarding the rightwing guests, I'm with RealHousewife in that I would rather listen to some of these personalities on his show as opposed to adding to the ratings of somebody like Tucker Carlson or Laura Ingraham. I totally get why he would have KConway on the show. Of course I wish that he'd been more aggressive and made the points that have been made here, but at the same time I like that he allows his guests to talk and doesn't shout them down when he disagrees with them the way somebody like Sean Hannity does. I also disagree that Bill is somehow the equivalent of a right wing commentator now because he regularly rants about cancel culture and woke politics. A lot of my husband's family are right wing Trump supporters and to me there's a huge difference in their ideology vs. Bill's. What really annoyed me about this episode was that Bill didn't mention Officer Brian Sicknick. He spends the end of the show trying to get people to feel sympathy for that woman but doesn't even bother to mention the officer who died because a bunch of people like that woman decided that they wanted to overthrow our democracy. That didn't sit right with me and it comes across like Bill doesn't really get the magnitude of what happened on January 6th.

I'm happy for Karen and repeat my earlier statement that she's easily the most artistic of the US ladies. I also agree with the poster that she hasn't been rewarded enough in terms of PCS. That being said, I'm definitely in the minority because I would have chosen Amber to go to Worlds if I'd had a vote. I think she should have been given the chance to gain some international experience in a big competition like Worlds before the Olympic season. She's improved so much, I feel like she really earned her spot. I guess the only way they would have sent her is if she'd hit the triple axel in the short. Hopefully this will just make her more determined. When I think of how Karen has fared internationally, I'm not sure that I agree with the train of thought she and Bradie together are our best chance to increase the number of spots for the ladies. No medals from the Grand Prix ever, no Four Continents medals, no medals at Worlds. Not even a medal at Skate America when she was only against other Americans. Karen was fourth and Amber was fifth at Skate America. They really are comparable when it comes to international results, Karen has just had more opportunities than Amber. Also, Amber doesn't have the underrotation issues that Karen sometimes has on her jumps. Anyway, I hope that Karen and Bradie have perfect skates at Worlds. It would be awesome if the US could send three ladies again.

I thought the competition was exciting and I was so happy for the skaters who did well. First the good--I'm so happy for Bradie! She nailed it and even though she isn't one of my super favorites, she's proved again and again why she shouldn't be counted out. I like the way the program built itself up and thought she really sold it especially in the second half. Amber was my favorite of the night. It was so awesome to see her do well. A silver medal right before the Olympic season? She has to be beyond thrilled. So great to see Karen back in it. Artistically, I actually think that she's the strongest of the US ladies. Her spins, the layback especially are the best in the country IMO. Alysa had a lot of energy. She actually had my favorite short program of the ladies and I think overall she's really improved in terms of presentation. I could see how disappointed she was when she saw her scores but I'm glad they aren't overlooking downgrades and underrotations just because of her status as being one of the best hopes the US has for the Olympics. Hopefully she'll be able to clean up the jumps and get back the triple axel by next nationals. I hope that Lindsay works on the speed, artistry and personality. There's definitely potential there but my god is she slow! She also looks so expressionless in the eyes like she isn't enjoying herself at all. The choreography was so minimal and underwhelming. Hopefully she takes the steps to really address her artistry because she has a lot of good qualities in terms of the jumps and spins. The bad and sad--I'm so bummed for Mariah. No way did I predict that she wouldn't even make the podium. I feel like this was her best shot. This isn't to say that she won't have more opportunities over the next couple of seasons or so but she really missed an opportunity here and I can't exactly see it getting easier. Starr...I'm always rooting for her and I always walk away disappointed. I can't even comment on how frustrating that short program was. I hope Gracie finds something else that she loves doing. It's like she can't envision a life where she isn't competing. Hanna Harrell--that was a 1992 Leticia-Hubert-at-the-Olympics style meltdown. It's unfortunate because she has so much potential. More potential than most.

I'm glad that Alysa is still competing even though she won't be trying the triple axel. Some people in her position might have withdrawn. She sounds like she's more focused on delivering a solid skate and isn't worried about what people will think if she doesn't win again. I was worried that this would be a tough one for her emotionally, but she seems like she's in a good head space. There aren't going to be any surprises with the men but I do look forward to watching Jason and Nathan. In dance we know the two top teams just not the order. (I'm really hoping Chock and Bates win again.) The ladies though I feel are kind of up in the air. Amber, Bradie, Mariah, Audrie, Karen, even Alysa all have a reasonable shot at this. It's more exciting to watch when the results don't feel like they're already set in stone. I'm pulling for everyone and I want all of the skaters to have a great skate but my personal hope is that Amber gives the performance of her life. She's so fun to watch when she's on. It would be awesome if she could get some high level experience before the Olympic season. I hope so too but I'm not holding my breath. I was really bummed when I read they cancelled Canadian nationals. How disappointing for all of those skaters. I was especially thinking of Piper and Paul. All those years of coming in second, they finally win last year but they don't get a chance to add another win before the Olympic season due to things that are out of their control. Must be frustrating.

I like that Dave and Jonathan are at least talking about skating. I might not agree with everything Dave says but I appreciate his enthusiasm for skating since there's so little (American) interest in the sport these days. I also like that he covers the Russian drama (even though his "Russian" accent is annoying AF.) There aren't many places I can go for that. Also, to be fair, he doesn't have to worry about what NBC thinks about any given topic so he has the freedom to be a little bit more controversial and that can be refreshing at times. I liked Johnny and Tara when they first started on NBC but I feel like Tara doesn't really have a mind of her own. Johnny is so obvious about who he prefers that it's a little frustrating after awhile.

Did anyone watch Russian nationals? I'm so happy for Anna. Considering how stiff the competition has been the past few years, three national titles in a row is an incredible achievement even with the absence of Kostornaia. She was breathing so heavily after the short I was worried about how she'd make it through a long but I thought the performance was great. Ridiculous that she can do a 3lutz/3loop so late in the program and make it seem effortless. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of Trusova, I thought she was unfairly placed in the short program. Daria had a very noticeable error in the step sequence (including a hand down on the ice) and Kamila had a straight up fall (not to mention a dodgy looking edge on the lutz) but the GOE and PCS didn't really reflect this. Elizaveta Nugumanova was very strong in the short too but it seemed like she was low balled because she isn't one of the chosen ones. I really like Kamila but I wasn't super into them choosing Bolero for her this season. Still, she definitely brought her A game and it's hard to imagine her not being chosen to be on the Olympic team when the time comes. If they give her the right programs her natural artistry will truly have the chance to flourish. She definitely has the best spins right not out of the Russian ladies. Really bummed for Elizaveta. I thought she had her mojo back. I should've known based on how shaky she was during the warm up. She didn't completely give up but once she missed both of the axels it was like her heart wasn't in it. I like Kolyada but he can't hold a candle to the Japanese and American men IMO.

She totally bombed. Four falls plus other errors. I hope Eteri isn't off smirking somewhere. I'm so happy for Elizaveta! People always count her out and even though it still is a longshot for her to finally make Olympic team, I don't think it's out of the realm of possibilities. It would be nice to show other female skaters that elite competitive skating doesn't have to end once you're no longer a teenager.

Fair enough. I guess I'm being too greedy.

Interesting to know. I guess I don't agree with the showrunners about which subjects are relevant to those who wear the Crown. I also wish that they'd given themselves more hours per season to work with considering so many interesting stories end up not being told. Obviously they can't get to everything but would 12 hours per season really have broken the bank? Or stretch the minds of the showrunners creatively? I guess this is a little OT but it kind of annoys me how 10 episodes seems to now be the standard for quality shows when it used to be 12-13.

I love this show so much but every season I feel like there are missed opportunities like this. I think it was a strange choice to not have made a little more of a story about Andrew and the Falklands War. What made the showrunners think this wouldn't be interesting?

I enjoyed this episode and liked each of Elizabeth's conversations with her children. It was sad to listen to the bullying Edward went through. My only complaint here was that there wasn't more of a callback to the episode Pride and Joy from season 1. They've always indicated Elizabeth was hurt that Margaret was her father's favorite and I thought it might have been interesting to have her reflect a little on that in this context now that realizes she has a favorite too.

This is the story I was talking about: “I was once on the Royal Yacht Britannia in the South Pacific and the Queen was hosting a dinner for a local prince,” wrote Burrell. “Dessert was served. The prince forgot to watch what the Queen did—instead, he popped the grapes into his finger bowl, then some cherries, then when the cream and sugar came out, he poured them in too, making a kind of fruit soup. I was standing behind the Queen looking horrified. He was about to raise the bowl to his lips to drink it when he looked at the Queen and realized he had made a terrible mistake. Not wanting to make him feel awkward, she picked up her finger bowl and took a sip. Now that’s class.” https://www.readersdigest.ca/culture/dinner-with-the-queen/ I think there is a similar story though with Queen Victoria.

I thought that Elizabeth was doing her best to make the situation better by telling the others to leave the room and change for dinner. There was nothing to be done to erase the initial awkwardness that the Thatchers would have felt once they entered the room and saw that they weren't properly dressed. They would have felt uncomfortable whether the others pretended to notice or not. So Elizabeth did what she could to make it less awkward by having everyone else immediately change so that the Thatchers would feel less out of it. To me this showed that she was trying and did care about making them feel more at ease. This sort of reminds me of a story I once read from (I think) the former royal butler Paul Burrell about the Queen hosting a dinner someplace on the royal yacht Britannia. Some foreign dignitary made the mistake of putting fruit into his finger bowl and drinking it and just as he was starting to realize that he was getting it wrong, the Queen picked up her fingerbowl and took a sip so that he wouldn't feel uncomfortable. Margaret didn't care about putting people at ease but I think Elizabeth did/does, both in real life and on the show.

Yes. You've perfectly described how I feel about her voice. I agree about the huskiness and the slowness when she speaks. The hesitant delivery is almost frustrating at times. I agree too about Charles. The lack of overall energy is a puzzling choice to me. Thatcher definitely had energy and her own brand of charisma, and it isn't coming across here at all to me. I'm sure that Gillian Anderson will win all of the awards and everything but I wish she and the showrunners had made a few different choices here.

So glad this show is back. I've really enjoyed the first two episodes. That being said, I am very much in the minority because I'm not blown away by Gillian's portrayal of Thatcher. She isn't terrible or anything, but based on the interviews and speeches I've seen, I don't think the voice or delivery are right. I also find her body language to be very odd. I feel like Thatcher is being portrayed as if she's in her 70s instead of in her 50s. I'm also in agreement with those who find it difficult to believe that Thatcher would have been so clueless on her first trip to Balmoral. Nothing about that felt believable to me. Not only do I think that she would have done her research, but there would have been plenty of people who would have given her the right advice. Making a few small mistakes on their first trip to Balmoral is fair enough, totally understandable, but they went really OTT with the fish out of water aspect in an effort to contrast the Thatchers with Diana's perfect visit. Even with those complaints, I've enjoyed all of the scenes with Thatcher and Elizabeth and look forward to seeing more.