aradia22

Yeah, I feel like they really want to do an X-Men but the Magneto argument really doesn't work here. Taking this seriously, since humans develop much more slowly than farmed animals, that would pretty much mean sticking to brain tubes, right? Because it would make more sense to harvest child brains. Again, so much of this is poorly thought out. I miss Vivian and her Zombie Island. They should have cashed out that idea instead of killing her. This is an interesting angle. It makes me think of True Blood. Everyone really just accepts that a fictional concept is now reality and there's no way to make a synthetic version of the food source? Why? There were so many other ways they could have gone besides Fillmore Graves and the coyotes. To me, Vivian dying in the helicopter was when things really started going off the rails. I know they can control the Romero zombies now but have they still not been fed? I can see them turning on Martin/Beanpole.

How is Clive the Acting Lieutenant if he is still investigating cases with Liv? Who is in charge of the department every time he goes out? It's been business as usual. Zombie foot soldiers, huh? I don't hate this new guy as a villain. He's better than Blaine's dad/Brother Love and Stacey Boss and so much of the nonsense we've been going through. He reminds me of Blaine in the beginning when he evaded capture by intelligence and not just plot armor. But it's too late. This is not a guy who shows up out of nowhere in the last season. The way he's operating, he should have been more like Vaughn du Clark. We should have known about him earlier. The whole noir thing just made the episode ugly and harder to watch. So much drama on karaoke night! I mean, good for Candy, I guess? But she was such an undeveloped character. I feel like we knew more about that woman who bonded with Major in his Chaos Killer days. Given their terrible spy skills why would Ravi and Liv break into her dad's house without back up??? I know they're pretty safe as main characters on the show but still. WHERE IN THE HELL IS THIS PLOT GOING?

I swear they didn't used to be this inexplicably awful. Same. She also acted a little nervous while the dad was all enthusiastic when they handing over the tapes. The only mystery there was why they bothered with the detail of the falsely accused girl, Velma, wanting to be an actress and being able to cry on cue. I thought maybe she was somehow still involved in the plot but it had gone wrong. But nope, turns out they only needed her acting skills to get a confession from the mom. As though a regular innocent pleading with a detective wouldn't have been convincing enough??

I love stuff about pageants so I liked the brain this week but the rest of the episode continued to be nonsensical. Ravi searching for vials is just a waste of time. There's no urgency there. It doesn't even need to be on screen. I don't know what's going on with Don E. and Darcy. Are they doing a Natural Born Killers/Bonnie and Clyde thing? This last minute character makes no sense. Speaking of which... still don't get what's going on with Martin. And I have no idea how to feel about Liv's brother and mother because it's been too long. If I cared more, I'd rewatch some season 1 episodes but I worry it would just make me remember when the show used to be good. They seem to be flirting with the idea of Martin turning good and helping Ravi make the cure since apparently he's the only one making drugs who knows what he's doing (basically their lame version of Walter White) and not just winging it. It could be a neat Deus Ex Machina I guess but with him being Liv's dad it becomes a weird thing where if she'd just reconnected with her real dad sooner and maybe before he became a zombie extremist, they could have found a cure in season 1. Which feels... stupid. OK, I got a laugh of Peyton and Ravi sneaking around in the dark... and somehow not noticing Blaine just sitting there. Why was Dottie inexplicably not scared of being attacked by the general's daughter and her boyfriend in full Romero mode? She was just filming with her cell phone. A human should have been scared. I thought they'd be annoying and have Peyton and Ravi not go in the house. At least one mystery is solved.

This was pretty dull until the end. I have to give Martin/Beanpole credit. Having the doctor checking senators scratched and scratching certain politicians is a better plan than anything except Blaine's plans from time to time. It's certainly better than what the good guys have been cooking up lately. No idea why they're giving Don E. a love interest. It would have made more sense if the matchmaker had stayed long enough to tell him about her. Or even if Liv could have said something more. How would the matchmaker have known about a girl in college who lived outside the city. That's not really how matchmaking works. This plot is barely holding together but I'm intrigued enough to see where they go.

This episode was hella confusing. I barely remember season 1 so I have no idea what was going on with Liv and her mom. I vaguely remember something with her brother and then they were estranged and written off the show. And now there's suddenly something about her dad? I don't remember that at all. Who cares if her biological father is the new villain? This is a mess. Justin's story held little more weight. I know he dated Liv very briefly and generally he's been Major's friend but they've been using the other cast members at FG to report to Major so Justin has barely been on screen. And now he's a traitor. The hell kind of writing is this? So they just dropped the Michelle thing? Or at least it's 30/1 odds.

S4E2 Team Phi Phi: The two heels had much better makeup skills than the faces. They were also better actors. The fight choreography was pretty good but I'm not sure how much of it they came up with and how much was suggested by the wrestlers. Team Willam: Again, love her but Willam's makeup skills were not there. The hairline, the jawline. She looks hard. This team was good but they played it more violent and realistic than campy and broad. Team Chad: Some terrible acting from the faces. The heels were giving me great 80s glam rock/Divine energy.

I know people from the show have spoken about this but I really appreciated that even though they showed the body, they didn't fetishize the death or bother with her killer or showing the violence. None of that is important. Candy is what's important. But it's a big shift watching shows like Pose and Harlots that are created by the communities they're representing. Weren't they both part of the House of Abundance early in season 1? I can connect the dots for myself and pretend that they were closer before Angel joined with Blanca. I do agree that this was a weird episode to follow the body disposal last episode but it stopped bothering me once we got to the funeral and I couldn't stop crying. I didn't think it was about her mom being validated for her love if we're talking about not shooing her away from makeup and whatnot. I feel like it was more about her mom still misgendering her and being uncomfortable and then finally being confronted with Candy's body and the reality of her. And realizing that she had lost so much by not seeing her as who she really was when she was alive. I agree it was a leap for her to suddenly see Candy as her baby (unless we really think Candy's ghost was visiting and having full conversations) but it's a TV show so I'm willing to go with having this revelation now instead of finding a way to check in on this character and bringing the actress back in 3 or more episodes when it would make more sense for her to make peace with this. I think the moment with the dad came across as sweet. Kurt's dad on Glee. The dad of the blond guy in ACS: Versace. Ryan Murphy loves these sweet, supportive dads. (Let's ignore the mess of Nip/Tuck.) I think he supported his son as much as he could. The show was unclear on when/how Candy came out but apparently there was some estrangement. I didn't doubt that he loved her though. With him it seemed less like he'd rejected Candy and more like he was meeting someone he loved but hadn't seen in a long time. Side note: I refuse to believe Angelica is 38. She looks INCREDIBLE. I think perhaps the character is supposed to be younger than the actress. I always got the sense that Candy was young and immature. That would mean she hadn't been estranged from her parents for as long. Did outsiders really start attending the balls when Vogue was released? That seems doubtful. Pray complains about tourism but I feel like straight people would still have felt uncomfortable in even gay clubs until at least the late 90's. And this would be an even more specific queer space that included transwomen and POC. Obviously people have been seeing drag shows for years but I don't think it went that mainstream until Drag Race. Were droves of outsiders really going to a ball the way they might go to a show featuring Drag Race performers today? Wouldn't they be more likely to just go see Madonna on tour? Do heroic fat men even exist? Or, if not heroic, at least non-villainous main characters? I can't think of any off the top of my head. And he's been trending even more towards gym bodies so even the skinny guys are disappearing. There are too many TV shows for me to know what's going on and the Emmy's are kind of nonsense anyway, but I would love it if Billy and Angelica are recognized. I appreciated hearing more from her in this episode. Because to a certain degree everyone "poses" and if you're good at something it seems like everyone (at least in the main cast) gets rewarded. But having Candy explain that she wanted to perform as much as be a pretty face went a way towards explaining how she's been acting. I think the body category was more about her insecurities but I can see how an attention-seeking personality like Candy would want the approval that goes to the flashy dancers and those who can vogue. That does not explain why she didn't participate in those dumb skits (Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella, etc.) At least in the context of the show, I do think Candy had something of a point. Not about competing in the wrong categories, but about interruptions. Even though Pray shut down Elektra when she announced her new house, she still finished talking and she had enough clout that no one was laughing at her. And how many times in season 1 did someone from Evangelista run on stage to whisper something to Pray and then suddenly they were doing that or having a battle. I do think Pray plays favorites with Evangelista and even though I understand it from a TV show perspective, it's worse in season 2 with him just talking about Angel's modeling or Blanca's nail salon at the ball. Is he also talking about everyone else's jobs and personal successes?

I do feel like the last two episodes have been slightly irresponsible about AZT. They're looking at HIV treatment from a contemporary perspective. In 1990, it had just been approved for a few years and I doubt dosage and all of that had been perfected. But it's not really the show so much as the nurse. I don't know what kind of medical professional would be pushing a drug like a miracle cure like that with no hesitation. Blanca and then Pray Tell had valid concerns. It's been a long time since my college Immunology class and I'd have to look it up again but the mechanism by which AZT works is not refined. It's not like taking a vaccine with antibodies specific to a virus. It targets the basic mechanisms of cell function. That's no joke for people who already have compromised immune systems. I'm not saying they shouldn't take the drugs. But it should be more like the way chemotherapy and radiation are treated in media when talking about fighting cancer. You're making the choice to try to have more time but it's not a guarantee and you could in fact have less time because of the strain you're putting on your body.

I have to say, I don't think Janet Mock is a great TV writer. And I'm not sure pairing her with Ryan Murphy is the right way to go. The Our Lady J episode last week was much more balanced and consistently strong. That said... SHIT. I cried buckets. I mean like, tearing up, that slow, silent cry, and full on tight chest, snot, ugly crying. Even when it first happened, I didn't feel anything. I was actually kind of annoyed at the show for killing Candy instead of Lulu or one of the lesser actors. But then we got to the funeral and I was like... it had to be Candy. As much as I was upset with them for not fully realizing that character's/actress's potential, that was kind of the point. And it was certainly a fitting send off. For all Candy was shortchanged in season 1, this was a display of all that actress is capable of. Seriously, I could not stop crying. I can't say for sure but that hokey device of having Candy's spirit visit with everyone and then the triumphant performance at the end has Ryan Murphy's name all over it. And God damn it if it didn't work for me. When Candy was talking to Pray, I thought that was a little too easy. To say that Pray saw himself in her and was trying to protect her but was also a little threatened by her and jealous didn't ring true. He walks down the street with a cane like a classy version of a pimp. It's not like he's not living his life proudly. It felt like in Glee where the bully was secretly gay and had a crush on Kurt. Not every homophobic person is actually gay. The idea that you can only hate people who reflect back things you don't like about yourself is simplistic self-help nonsense. For example, it makes more sense for him to be threatened by someone trying to break the rules and dismantle a system he feels he is the caretaker of, a tradition/organization that is such a refuge and support for so many people. If there are no rules, there's no structure and you break the illusion. It doesn't mean anything to win. You might realize how trivial it all is. Like, you have to believe in it or you realize gymnastics is a useless skill that people are torturing themselves to be the best at. Candy had great moments with everyone but Lulu and her parents really got me. Fuck, I can't even talk about it, it got me so good. And that final performance was just perfection. I feel like the earlier scenes at the ball were fine. I think the balls have been a little lacking because they're too glossy. I feel all the production values. It doesn't feel real. But the final scene was perfect because it gave Candy the moment she deserved. But obviously it lived in the world of symbolism and dream sequence. So it made sense for it to be this glorious production with all the lights and sparkle. I feel like there needs to be a distinction between the regular balls and the moments that need to stand out for story purposes like when there's a battle or Blanca wins Mother of the Year or something. Does that make sense? Like, they film everything the same way and it shouldn't always look as good as it does. Anyway, I saved it on the DVR so I can rewatch parts of it when I'm not crying through it. God damn it. When this show is good, it's fantastic. Shady but I Elektra barely spoke this episode and I don't remember Damon having any lines. I don't think it was an accident that they benched the weaker actors. Also, if the actor playing Ricky hasn't gotten a different job, I don't understand why he's with Elektra's house. Still makes no sense. If you date someone in college and you break up, you don't transfer schools. He had relationships in the house with people other than Damon.

S4E1 Oh my God, Willam look so different. Still pretty but she's definitely come a long way since season 4. Her eye makeup is so natural (for a drag queen) and her lips are so thin. She's basically just doing 80's pretty girl makeup. That first wig is... unfortunate. The personality is the same, though. Love her. Are they going to have queens from Puerto Rico every season going forward? The apocalypse photo challenge was obvi inspired by Alexander McQueen. I don't know if Mike Ruiz was off his game or they intentionally chose bad photos because the dolls were giving better poses than the photos would imply. Every time I see Chad Michaels, I think it's Detox. Willam had the body but that look was a mess. With a different wig and definitely with the makeup she does now, the outfit could have worked. Phi Phi piled on a lot. The colors of the makeup didn't really go with the colors of the outfit. Lashauwn's look was very pageant but I enjoyed it. Chad Michaels' look was very grande dame but well executed. The Princess created a cute look but I'm not sure it fit the challenge. Kenya's makeup and body looked flawless but everything else was whack. Loved Latrice's look. It was nice to see a plus size queen who could make an outfit. Alisa's look was very circus. I didn't get it. Milan's look was fabulous. Surprised because she didn't make an impression on me the rest of the episode but this was fierce. It was distressed but not messy. Very fashion. I appreciated what Jiggly was trying to do but that's a lot of aluminum foil. Dida had a nice look but the outfit only emphasized the lack of a waist. Madame LaQueer looked good but it was much more jungle fantasy than post-apocalyptic. Sharon was a lot but it definitely fit the brief.

S3E14 I don't know how I never noticed it before, but Raja doesn't really move like a woman. Or, at least the idea of a graceful woman that the others manage to conjure. It wasn't just about choreography. She's great at posing and strutting down the runway. But just moving all her motions are very stiff and straight armed. In silhouette, I finally noticed how masculine it looks. Manila should have won season 3.

A quick search on Google Maps makes me think that maybe there were just huge jumps in the pricing based on the neighborhood. Usually in period novels, Mayfair is the neighborhood of choice for a wealthy. But it's not that far from Golden Square. Which is not that far from Greek Street. All three are roughly equidistant. So maybe we can just assume that each neighborhood means the modern equivalent of jumping into a different tax bracket?

As soon as I heard that I assumed it was because Wet n' Wild had some deal. Either they're going to release makeup inspired by Pose or they were just totally open to the show using their logo and whatever else in the display. I agree that Wet n' Wild is ubiquitous but it was the fact Angel dropped that line about them having the best eyeliner that made me suspicious that the brand had given approval. It was one of those things like the mentions of Anna Wintour or Isaac Mizrahi. They don't feel organic to the time period. Whose favorite designer is Isaac Mizrahi??? Yes! I'm embarrassed to say I know that the Cher Lloyd version of the Neneh Cherry song and not the original. Amazing point. It was supposed to be a fancy restaurant too so I imagine they were in the phonebook. Someone at the photo shoot could have figured it out. Haha, yes. Based on my days of watching procedurals like Bones, this seems like one of the worst options they could have picked. My sense of things is that the show is very heavily influenced by Paris is Burning but it's not a one-to-one comparison. That is, characters are composites and details about real people's lives can be assigned to characters at random based on what the writers thinks fits best.

This episode was relatively well written. I liked that Angel didn't win the contest. An easy ticket to success would have been too simple. But hopefully she can find a way to work at her dream. The Papi/Angel romance was a little sudden. A kiss and suddenly he's like it was love at first sight? But they're so cute, I can forgive it. Elektra looked KILLER in her dungeon mistress outfit this week. WANT. Where do I buy it? The old school curls are a much better look than the tight pony. Candy was HILARIOUS when they went to her strip club. I loved the whole caper. Was it a little lighthearted for this show? Yes. But it reminded me of all the best movies of women doing crimes and taking revenge and being in covens. Candy's bright 80's makeup was fabulous. I was happy to see Angel get that makeup campaign but the storyline was contrived. I get that modern cell phones didn't exist. But phones did. And beepers. Angel could have found a way to take a break and let Papi know she had to reschedule. Angel's tee with the exaggerated makeup face was super cute. WANT. WTF? Who plans to keep a decaying body for the rest of their lives? After it's decomposed enough, surely she could dump out the contents somewhere?