lasu

Obviously we all are entitled to our own opinions, but for those of you who thought bringing Devin's dad into it was wrong, what would you have done in John's place? Should he have had to continue to endure Devin's harassment rather than go low? In normal circumstances, I would absolutely agree you don't bring someone's dead loved ones into it, but Devin was the one who created very non-normal circumstances, his harassment was RELENTLESS. I am no fan of John's, but I think he honestly showed extreme restraint, and didn't go nearly as low (or physical) as he could have. Why? Do you think Corey's body slam of Tony doesn't warrant an eviction for violence? Devin certainly didn't do anything to get kicked off (his behavior was crazy, but well within the rules of this game), but we have seen numerous people in the past get bounced because of a partner's behavior. I don't see why this would be any different, especially since I see it as an especially egregious act of aggression.

This was seriously an action packed episode! I was completely unspoiled so I was shocked when the body slam happened. Like, I'm pretty sure I exclaimed out loud. It really seemed like it did come out of no where. Tony is a moron, but damn, that was an insanely aggressive move and Tony could have been really hurt. I was glad that Devin immediately changed his tune when he saw the footage. He immediately admitted what he was seeing. I think Devin was obviously wrong for stalking John like that. I firmly believe he was channeling a lot of grief in that moment. When you are in that amount of grief, getting "angry" at an "enemy" can feel damn good. I know they had bad blood before this, but I think John was wrong that Devin was doing it for camera time, he was doing it because it felt good. That's why it doubly hurt when John brought it back to his dad. He had a moment's escape from that grief, and John brought it right back home. That said, while I understand Devin's actions, he was more in the wrong. He was trying to provoke John to lose control in a very specific way (hitting him and getting kicked off the show). Instead, John lost control in a way Devin didn't plan. While I certainly believe we are all responsible for our own actions, Devin really pushed John. John lasted much longer than I did without losing his cool. There wasn't anything I could see that he could do to escape the situation. It looked like he had honestly tried to get away, and couldn't. This isn't the real world where Devin's behavior would have been stopped in some form or another, either by getting in your car and driving away, going home and closing the door, or shit, call the damn police. I'm not a fan of John's, but when he said in his talking head he was about to lose control, I expected MUCH worse. I thought he was going to do physical violence for sure. And as soon as Devin's dad was brought up, I cringed. Hard. It's interesting though, John actually pulls back. He starts to say something about Devin's dad, and then he slightly modified what he was saying and said he hoped the apple fell far from the tree, and then everything else he said was actually shit talking Devin directly, saying that Devin was a shit person following the cameras when he should have been home in mourning. It was a low blow, still. But, Devin was the one who A) made his dad and how he is playing this season for his dad his storyline, B) then relentlessly harassed someone. If he had not introduced his dad as a storyline (I'm not saying he was wrong to do so), or had John actually talked shit about the dad, I would have cried foul. But as is? Nah. It was a low blow, but them acting like he crossed some line...well, I think he smudged the line. But I certainly don't think what John said, in the context of Devin's behavior, was worse than Corey body slamming someone, especially in the context of Tony's behavior. Yet Corey snubbed John, and I'm sure that is why John was laughing and smirking. Keep in mind, I watched this on the 15th anniversary of the last time I saw my dad before he died, and I still think Devin got what he deserved. Nelly? You are usually a lovable moron, but YOU WERE THE ONE RAMPING THINGS UP. GAH! All that and then trivia? Yes, please. Although I like it when it's random trivia and they say crazy things.

I expounded more above, but basically it was a feeling I got from her memoir (there were parts I felt weird about reading, like it wasn't intended for a white audience) combined with the block party storyline.

FWIW, none of my unease watching the show came from it being an all black cast. I've watched lots of "black" shows before and never questioned if I should change the channel (I've been resisting Atlanta just because my mom recommended it. I am both 43 and 13). This was just the first time I've ever wondered if the *showrunners* wanted me watching. And again, even if the answer had been a resounding NO, WHITE GIRL, GO HOME, I wouldn't have been mad about it. I know my presence can change the mood of certain rooms. Do y'all think white folks would be welcome at the block party? I totally get that one of the other factors with the block party is that she is trying to do it in their own neighborhoods. But what if they got a big enough artist that it would draw lots of white people? Do you think that would be welcomed because it would help the event make enough money to be successful or resented because it was supposed to be FUBU? Again, I wouldn't be mad, but I think honestly, it's rarely occurred to me not to go to something, even if I knew it was going to be a predominantly black event. The only time I can ever think I've shied away is the opening weekend of Black Panther.

LOL, I promise not to watch while wearing my MAGA hat. I also promise I don't have a MAGA hat.

Oh, I enjoy it a great deal. My point wasn't whether or not I enjoy the show, it's whether or not Issa Rae wants me to watch it. And I'm ok with it if the answer is no. I'm not going to start demanding that white characters are given bigger storylines, nor do I complain or even care about how white people are portrayed on the show. I understand it's a show told from the perspective of a black woman, and I understand the target audience is a black one. But my question is if the show runners would prefer not to have a white audience. I probably wouldn't have even questioned it, had it not been for reading her memoir earlier this year, because there were parts of that, like I said, that I really felt uncomfortable as a white person reading. Not because it wasn't catering to me or I didn't understand, it just felt like I was snooping.

OK, so...let me start by saying this is one of my favorite shows. But, I'm concerned I'm like the Man in Black over on Westworld, and this show isn't meant for me. I felt this a bit as well when I read Issa Rae's memoir, like some of it was not meant for eyeballs attached to a white person's head. And then this episode really hammered home the idea of the "for us, by us" about the block party, and it made me wonder: should I be watching this show? I can't be clear enough, I'm not mad about it. I'm not up on my high horse demanding the show make me feel more welcome as a white person. It just made me pause and wonder.

Zach to Joss: You need to handle your whore girlfriend. lasu: Ah, Zach, there you are! Perhaps you can name all the Disney Princesses, but there's that misogynistic asshole we all know and don't love! And I'm on the team that definitely things the "teaching you a lesson" definitely had to do with gender. They were BOTH being the same amount of stubborn. You can say that she has more people than he does, but if she votes against her alliance, they could turn on her. I don't see where she doesn't have just as much incentive to not vote against her friends as he does. And while they both were being sanctimonious about it (and Amanda acting so shocked he would go into elimination rather than give in to her was pathetic), but that he felt she should have learned and will know better next time was gross. He was being just as stubborn as her! How is one of them in the wrong and not the other? Ugh, and now I have to go bathe, because I just took Amanda's side. And I was honestly cheering her on when she was like, TEACH ME A LESSON? YOU AREN'T MY DAD, YOU AREN'T TEACHING ME ANYTHING.

I think I have an unpopular opinion in that I think Hunter is wrong, not Ashley. I have no love for her, but she didn't owe him honesty on who she is or is not sleeping with. Yes, she lied, but he had no business asking in the first place. So for him to act so bent out of shape is unfair. You can't just ask me anything you want and expect total honestly no matter how private the question, and then deem me a terrible person if I don't tell you everything you want to know. His sense of entitlement is off putting, especially because I don't believe he's actually as mad about the lie as what the lie was about - her sleeping with someone not him. I can't stand her, but the way he's acting made me actually hope she would take her toys and go home, just to punish him.

I thought he was funny and a dick. Everyone can have their opinion. Even if it's true the majority of people think he's a dick, it doesn't make differing opinions less valid.

Well, technically they could have won, but the chances were obviously incredibly slim. But, they had six plates. Had everyone else completely crapped the bed and only finished five, and CM finished her six, their team would have won. Again, as we saw, incredibly unlikely, but it was also (to a lesser extent) unlikely they wouldn't have come in last. If you are interested in learning more about what is and is not shade, I highly recommend the Shade Court archives: https://jezebel.com/tag/shade-court My favorite example of shade comes from RHBH when Erica and Kyle went to...Greece? Kyle had given Erica a caftan the season before, and wore it during this trip. Kyle said something like, Oh, that's the dress I got you, it looks great on you! And Erica responded, I know! I'm so happy to have somewhere to wear it! I died, because that is serious shade - Kyle didn't even know she had been insulted.

Well, that's why people think she's mean. Her GBM to Rachel was just out of line, IMO. When you are gratuitously rude, people are going to label you as mean. It makes you less likable as someone to root for, which is what we are seeing from people here on the board. If she was JUST reserved, I wouldn't have any problem with that. But she was a dick in her message, and wrong to boot. You can play hard without being an asshole. She just chooses not to. Nashville, thank you so much for typing all that out! That's exactly what I was looking for, so thank you! I was thinking when it was said she was raised in a gymnastics camp, that it was like some gymnasts whose parents completely turn them over to the camps and just leave them there. Not that her schedule and training weren't apparently pretty brutal. Though she definitely wouldn't have been keeping that schedule the whole time - no way was she doing homework until the wee hours in 1st grade, but I can imagine as she got older, her school workload continuously increased. And I have so many questions! Not that anyone can actually answer them! But if the point of all of this was just for Angela to get a scholarship to a great college...how much did they likely spend over 13 years of top tier gymnastics training?? Probably enough for quite a bit of college, I'm guessing. And why would her parents think it was ok to have her essentially barter her childhood to pay for college? To me, it hardly seems different than if you literally put your child to work for wages to pay for college, ESPECIALLY if the child didn't like or want to do it. Seems crazy to me. It seems to me like parents living out dreams through their kids, and not letting them have regular childhoods because of it. But also, how did Angela never make friends with her regular classmates? I understand not becoming super besties, but I had lots of friends in school who I never saw outside of school. I wonder if it was because she was so focused on other things, she was just too tired, or what? I also wonder why she didn't mention gymnastics at all in her bio when it was such an incredibly huge part of her childhood and molding as a person. She mentioned trying out for the football team, but not gymnastics. (I'm not trying to say she's WRONG for mentioning one and not the other - I'm just intrigued as to why.) Her bio also intrigues me because she either picked a persona to go with, or doesn't seem very self-aware in her bio. She seems more self-aware as I've seen her on tv, so I wonder what gives.

I saw that someone said she spent her entire childhood in a gymnastics camp, but she definitely went to a regular high school, according to her CBS bio. She doesn't mention gymnastics at all in her bio (though I know someone posted a video of her, so I'm certainly not disputing she was to some extent a gymnast). She does mention she was a professional pole vaulter and that she trained at an Olympic camp for track and field. I don't watch the live feeds (don't mind reading about them though!) so I'm just trying to get an idea of how extensive her gymnastics training actually was, and how long she actually spent living at a gymnastics camp.

Again, what is her upbringing? People are saying she was raised in a gymnastics camp, but nothing in her bio indicates this. Is this something she has talked about on the live feeds?

I agree with this. I don't have a problem with someone being reserved or guarded. But she was awful to Rachel in her goodbye message, despite being wrong about what Rachel told her. She was also extremely smug about Bayleigh being the hacker, and again she was wrong. It's just not a good look. Did she? I know we have video of her doing gymnastics, but her bio says she trained at an Olympic Camp for track and field. It also says she tried out for her high school football team, so it sounds like she went to a regular high school. So, she would have definitely had opportunity to be a mean girl, though I can't say if she was. But this quote from her is kind of damning: "I think naturally girls are threatened by me. I have a really big presence." I've never been a fan of women who think it's ALL OTHER WOMEN who have a problem and not themselves.

I spent way too long thinking about Angela's body during the last episode. Intellectually, I understand her body is perfect. I seriously cannot find a single flaw. But emotionally? There's just something...I don't know. Something not perfect? I don't really understand. It's not because of my feelings about her personality, but I can't figure out what it is that just doesn't do it for me. (I'm not shaming her in anyway for her looks, it's just driving me crazy I can't quite put my finger on what it is.) Edit: I'm an NC native (it's always better on top!), and I despise Myrtle Beach. It was great when I went for spring break in high school, but past that? No reason to go. All of the other beaches in both Carolinas are gorgeous and you should absolutely visit, just not Mytle. It's overgrown, overcrowded, trafficky, and touristy.

I'm glad so many other people caught that comment from Nicole. I am currently working on getting out of an emotionally abusive relationship, and I literally recoiled when Nicole made that comment. Absolutely not ok.

Weirdly enough, I was disappointed. I was interested to see how he would do. He should have dominated at comps, since most of these are baby games compared to The Challenge, but he wouldn't have had automatic alliance-mates like he did there. While I don't like him, I do respect that he tends to be both smart and savvy, and I would have liked to see how he fared.

That's why I think she was smart to let it play out in the episodes, even if one does think she had the clout to have it edited out. And thank you, I thought someone had said Adrienne was threatening to sue Brandi, but I could figure out what she could sue her for.

I think it's tough to say with certainty she could have forced them to edit it out. She might have enough clout for that; she might not. But I do think she handled it the smart way, letting it air since it was likely going to become tabloid fodder one way or another. I think she might have seen less support from her audience if she had asked Bravo to edit it out. I'm sure many people would have asked why she did that if she had nothing to hide. Can anyone refresh my memory on what legal recourse Adrienne had against Brandi? I know Brandi was an asshole for revealing Adrienne used a surrogate, but how was it actionable since it was actually a factual statement?

Perhaps she could have asked; she certainly couldn't have forced them. I think that Bravo might have been more willing to edit since Adrienne's was about children, not willing participants on the show. And she may have seen how it actually did play out with Adrienne--editing out what Brandi was saying did NOT kill the story. She may have felt letting those two idiot hang themselves was the best way to have her name cleared. Regardless, she's the victim and Phaedra is the one in the wrong, period.

I, too, laughed at Theresa saying, "we don't know, we don't know!" in response to Siggy asking if Kim D built concentration camps. Honestly, I cracked up. But seriously, isn't that about a million times more culturally insensitive than what Margaret said? But I bet Siggy doesn't say ONE WORD about it. Because she's a hypocrite. And an asshole.

But Janet Jackson's pregnancy is highly unlikely to have happened naturally. I'm not mad at her about it, but science and money made that pregnancy happen.

Is Brad being with Britni really so skeevy? I don't like her very much, but she's 26 and he's 37, both definitely adults (though both seem pretty immature to me). That fits the silly 1/2 of your age plus 7 formula of figuring out how young you can date. There was less of a margin (based on that formula) when he met Tori when she was 20 and he was 26.

Wrong thread!