aradia22
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I really felt the 90 minutes with this episode. I was fast-forwarding (just a little mostly at the end) because I didn't want to miss any funny comments but I might be fast-forwarding more the next episode if it's also like this. Part of it was that it was just a rainy day. Nothing looks as good and seeing everyone get drenched wasn't fun. But watching them play anything like pickleball or tennis was always going to be boring. You could tell that the players took it easy on them eventually... some were barely moving to chase the ball and they were clearly intentionally hitting it so their opponents could score a point. The fish pots were not that much better so I'm glad the pilots at least chose the seaweed task to bring some drama and make it interesting. I didn't think Rod and Leticia should have switched but I don't know why this was the one time he avoided the physical task. This was one leg where the joyful greeters at the mat made for one of the more fun parts of the episode. The stilt walkers were very impressive. The way they could bounce on one leg and dance like that without losing their center of gravity.
QuoteRod is one sweet husband. Gosh, I like him.
There have been a lot of muscly or athletic guys in couple teams that try to give off positive energy. For instance, Todd from last season. Rod is one of the few that I genuinely believe. Even if it comes from a sports mentality of just moving forward, he seems pretty affable. He doesn't seem to let things get him down for long. I do enjoy watching Ricky and Cesar as well but it's easy to be positive when you're always winning. I do like Juan and Shane when they're around but they were a little forgettable this episode aside from the end.
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I did see Teeth off-Broadway but I also sprained my ankle the same day so I'm going to need some more time to put my thoughts together.
In the meantime, here's a quick review of El Nino at the Met Opera... it was bad. I fundamentally did not understand the musical palette that John Adams was using. Regardless of genre, humans are programmed innately and also socially to understand what sounds joyful or romantic or melancholy or threatening. This man was born in Massachusetts. He chose to compose a score that mainly sounded ominous and cold with occasional breaks for something that was vaguely... mystical (that's not the perfect word choice but you know, like chimes and layered chanting). It felt pretentious and weird.
I needed to read the program to realize the woman in yellow was a SECOND Virgin Mary. It made no sense because the things she said felt contradictory to the first Mary and she behaved differently and had a daughter.
Visually, it looked like a pageant. Like a church play or the kind of show you put on with very young children. It was probably wood but it looked like a cardboard set with thin fabric screens for projections and fabric also used to evoke water a few times. While the projections were used effectively, it felt like it was trying to look cheap. James Ortiz can do so much more with puppets. His Biblical angels, the girl with fire, and the dragons were very underwhelming. I did like the choice to give the angels LED eyes but the focus on 2D puppets and everything looking simple and homemade... it didn't feel like it helped sell an important vision. Especially for longer scenes, the immediate impact was lost and it quickly became dull to look at. In the same way, there were one or two nice costumes but they mostly looked simple and homemade.
There were some nice dancing moments but lots of the show seemed underchoreographed like people were just told to do whatever. There was a bit in act 2 that looked like someone's arm was itchy... and then everyone started doing it. I don't know why but watching it absolutely INFURIATED me. If it had been a legitimate medical issue, I don't think I would have noticed, but having it be on stage as a bit of planned choreography it was just so annoying to watch this one dancer pull focus for no apparent reason.
Ultimately, I felt annoyed that the show wasn't trying to make ANY kind of argument. What was it saying about Christianity? I did enjoy pieces of it like the parts taken from female poets to express the alien feeling of carrying a child and it briefly touched on how weird it was that Mary is 16 when this all happens but it doesn't interrogate anything interesting because it refuses to form its own narrative. It just vomits out references. Tell your own story. I did like the countertenors for once when they were the angels so I guess that's something. The singing was generally unremarkable.
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https://playbill.com/article/tony-nominations-2024
Hahaha. What? The Tony nominations are so weird.
I guess Best Play makes sense but Hell’s Kitchen, Illinoise, The Outsiders, Suffs, and Water for Elephants are some real choices for Best Musical. It seems fairly aligned with critic opinions where shows with more mixed notices were shut out... except Cabaret still got in there for revival. Interestingly, score doesn't mirror Best Musical with Days of Wine and Roses and Here Lies Love getting some love but the inclusion of Stereophonic shows they really did not like a lot of the scores.
The acting nominations continue to spread things out with more shows getting recognition. Two nominations for The Notebook and two for Lempicka. That is SO MANY acting noms for Stereophonic. A fair amount of recognition for Hell's Kitchen as well. That'll stay an expensive ticket for a while. Oddly only one nomination for Suffs.
Choices were made for Best Scenic Design of a Musical. One nomination for The Great Gatsby for Linda Cho's costumes.
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This was a bit of a letdown after the megaleg. The tasks didn't seem that difficult but there was a little entitlement going on like people expected to show up and breeze through it. It's supposed to be a challenge sometimes.
I liked that welding shook up the placement a little though I think he wasn't hitting it as hard as he went along judging the task.
QuoteDid anyone notice that on some of the 2nd "tests", the welder judge didn't hit the piece straight on the edge, like he did for the first hit. On a few he hit them to the side - which is why they flew off to the side a bit. I have a feeling those wouldn't have taken a second direct hit, and he was being nice.
Or this. Whatever the case may be, it felt like he found a way to go easier on them as time went on.
The performance tasks allowed some people to shine though it seemed like singing was judged more harshly. When it was Yvonne and Melissa's turn, I really had no idea what they were being knocked for. I feel like that should have been clearer.
QuoteAnd so can Rod!
He was very cute running back to Leticia after that task. Though I felt like they kind of disappeared for the rest of the episode. They must not have been fighting enough for the editors to make the cut.
QuoteMeanwhile Ricky and Cesar are lovely couple who learning more about each other in this race.
Their conversation in the car was so refreshing.
They really tricked us with an earlier clip. I thought that was going to be a fight, but instead it was a lovely conversation about Ricky learning to let go and trust. Same with a clip of Danny yelling the rebus clue seeming like it was directed at Angie "the world is bigger than you." I don't know why the editors think I watch this show for drama.
QuoteTo be perfectly honest, I find both Vinny and Amber maddening. They take turns with me. They are so passive-aggressive with each other, babe.
QuoteAmber and Vinny, do not get married. Do not figure out this relationship. Get out. Both of you.
Truly, I cannot tell from the edit who is worse or at fault. All I know is after 4 years, their communication styles do not match up at all. He does seem very patronizing. But she also seems very emotional (see: crying about Angie last week). She wanted him to look left down a street but turn right and also didn't know where the car was parked even though she was arguing with him about it. But she has a point about him rushing her all the time. On the other hand, she's very negative and gives up quickly. And she gives him the verbal encouragement that she hates when she receives it so... idk. It's a mess. They would both be better off with different partners. It's at the point where they seem to bring out the worst in each other.
QuoteLet stop at any plaza and maybe we will be lucky.
This was truly insane. Editing got lucky with Y&M getting stuck at the singing task but I don't think the final finish was close at all with the way the firefighters were just going to EVERY PLAZA in Uruguay.
QuoteI think the local performers and judges all have dinner plans.
I mean, fair. No reason for sunset or nighttime finishes this leg.
QuoteI blame the food poisoning for Juan and Shane's fall in the ranks.
That was surprising. I guess it affected them more than we saw though I think two teams beating them at welding didn't help. But Ricky and Cesar overtook those teams so either navigation got them or they were taking much longer practicing the drums and pacing themselves than we saw.
QuoteIs everyone really this consistent? Or is the race just way too structured?
I think a lot of the teams we lost already were just incompetent so they were always going to be out first, it was just a question of in what order. Ricky and Cesar and Juan and Shane are the actually solid teams. Rod and Leticia and Vinny and Amber are next in terms of skills and competence. But Leticia and Amber can both be negative and unenthusiastic about tasks. Where they really struggle is navigation though, allowing other teams to easily overtake them. Then you have Angie and Danny and Yvonne and Melissa who are relatively competent but in the most need of luck to pull ahead. Angie and Danny need tasks that play to their strengths (or don't overwhelm Angie). And I'd say Yvonne and Melissa are the most hurt by regularly starting out in the middle or back of the pack because they don't breeze through tasks the way the firefighters did. I think if Yvonne and Melissa got to start earlier on some legs, they would have had better finishes.
Quote"LET'S GO!!!" is this season's "C'MON DAD!!" (Not as annoying, but still annoys! 😁)
I think that's just something young people do. Though it makes more sense for someone Danny's age than someone Vinny's age. Here's a random article I found: https://slate.com/human-interest/2023/06/lets-go-meme-phrase-history.html
QuoteBut if you want to point to a specific time and date when Let’s go was fully deconstructed into filler patois among the boys writ large, our best bet might be March 3, 2020, when a Twitter user named @gofthejungle23 tweeted this image—a screaming cartoon tennis ball embossed with the words LET’S FUCKING GOOOO—into existence. The “Let’s Go” Ball, as it’s now known, quickly metastasized across the internet and elevated the term into both a meme and fodder for commentary. Today the term, and the meme, serves as an informal mantra for several dude-coded hobbies—especially gaming—but it’s really become endemic. Slowly but surely, everyone began to realize that the men in their life were stuck in an interminable let’s go loop.
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The megaleg was fun. There was real competition keeping things interesting between the top two with Ricky and Cesar actually struggling a little with some tasks. And even though it was annoying for the other teams, the alliance kept all of those teams from falling behind. The only unfortunate thing was that as much as editing tried to hide it, it was clear after a certain point that the retirees were not going to catch up.
The first three teams did not make a good advertisement for that recycling bike invention so I'm glad the others had an easier time of it. Given how much they love physical tasks, I don't understand why so many of them went with the bolo. You've never done it before!
QuoteDerek and Shelisa should have at least finished out their set of 10. He might have gotten lucky!
Not the way he was throwing. She was right.
QuoteIs no one going to dust for clues? I'm so disappointed.
I completely forgot about that. I wonder what those people did all day when no racers showed up. I wonder if the losing team did a final task or if they just called them to the mat.
QuoteI am so fond of Derek and Shalisa. So sorry to see them go.
They bickered in a funny way. Now if KF hits, it's going to be rough to watch with any of the other teams.
QuoteDanny reminds me of a younger version of Monk’s eager, annoying neighbor Kevin Dorfman.
YES
QuoteI just don't find the cast very compelling. There's no team I'm particularly rooting for
I'm growing to like Juan and Shane and Rod and Leticia but we just lost two of the teams I found more likeable (Derek and Shelisa and K&K). I would be happy if Ricky and Cesar won because they've been running a good race but it just wouldn't be that interesting as of right now, because very few other teams are challenging them. I might like Yvonne and Melissa if we got to see them more often.
QuoteI liked how Cesar realized that being heavy gives him an advantage and he simply bump everybody out of the way.
That was cute... like his own little sports movie in the middle of the episode. Meanwhile, when Rod took the field, I got nervous for the other players when they started to knock him over 😅
QuoteEspecially in a challenge with limited stations, you need to have a ticking clock to force teams to either get it done or get kicked to the back of the line.
It was weird that they were so strict with 3 minutes for the cars but you could take as long as you wanted at the butcher task. Especially since they have had timed memory challenges very recently.
QuoteR&L have offered nothing to the "alliance", I don't even know how they got into that group.
I guess they technically helped box out the other two teams at the meat task and probably remembered a few of the cuts. I'm surprised Mr. Puzzles couldn't remember 14 things on his own.
QuoteBack to the meat challenge, I kept thinking it was a waste of a lot of meat.
I understand limiting it to three stations if only to not waste any more of it 😅
QuoteDanny is the race fan here. He had applied multiple times with his sister, but the producers only let him on when he applied with his mom. Them's the breaks. You can only participate if production lets you.
Oof, so production is torturing Angie. Interesting that they've never mentioned Danny's sister. I thought he was an only child.
QuoteKnowing Spanish has been a huge advantage this season -- it seems pretty unfair.
I can't remember if Leticia and Rod speak Spanish. But otherwise, of the remaining teams, Yvonne, Cesar, Juan, and Danny seem relatively fluent. But Vinny and Sunny also speak some Spanish. So it doesn't seem to be that much of an advantage especially since many teams up to this point have been eliminated because of their own incompetence.
QuoteDidn't Danny have some major health issues when he was younger?
I actually wanted a follow up. He was apparently allergic to the walls of his school (so he had to be homeschooled). How did he get well enough to presumably study abroad in college?
QuoteIn Season 32, teams were sent into a (salt?) mine to perform a challenge.
Ah, that makes sense. I skipped that season.
QuoteBtw. here is a snapshot of the actual puzzle for reference:
something about the way it seems to be drawn in red marker feels disorienting. But maybe that's just me
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Aww, I'm going to miss K&K. It was obvious at the beginning of the episode from the talking heads that they were going home. They were terrible at racing and were never going to win but I liked having them around. Yelling deranged "words of affirmation" about Tyra Banks is the kind of energy I needed on the show to make me laugh. I think their real downfall was being too young. We've had young teams before but either they're paired with an older person (usually a parent) or they're young and accomplished (e.g. intelligent, athletic, super competent at one thing). If you compare K&K to other young teams without special skills, they lasted a good while.
I'm impressed at everyone who did the climbing wall. Unlike last episode when Michele wandering around the statue park was just sad, I'd glad K&K had that last moment of conquering the task.
QuoteWhy is no one looking at the skateboard example?
It felt poorly explained in the episode. Was one person holding it? Was it hard to see? Normally they just leave the example somewhere for them to look at it.
QuoteI thought the days of begging from locals was long gone. But, the 2,500 pesos is only $2.50 US, so at least it's not that much.
It didn't seem to take long compared to a physical task but I imagine people would progressively grow less amused as more teams showed up. Maybe they kept the total reasonable for that reason. Leticia was awful at the task.
Maybe it was to get to 90 minutes or maybe it was because it was obvious who was going home but I felt like they were really padding out the navigation drama.
QuoteI know Rod is tall, but seeing him jump over the fence was impressive!
I may have watched it a couple of times 😅
QuoteSo I have to assume the boyfriends have quite a few differences under the hood. They just have the same type as themselves. With same sex couples that happens. There are also doppelbangers in the straight world, but it's not as noticable for obvious reasons.
If it wasn't true among straights, we wouldn't have "siblings or dating."
QuoteIt does seem like the boyfriends have a huge advantage but there are multiple other teams on the race where at least one partner speaks passable Spanish. If people who are multilingual aren't allowed to compete, how far do we take it? Should they refuse teams where a member seems to have superior map reading skills, or someone who drives shift skillfully or prevent people from doing challenges in areas where they excel?
Agreed. It feels like there are always language complaints but it doesn't guarantee a win. There will always be uneven skills among the racers.
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That's a lot of hats on that greeter.
Imagine if in the finale they have to remember how many hats he was wearing
QuoteThe incessant pop-up ads for Elsbeth are annoyingly intrusive.
I honestly cannot stand that woman.
Meanwhile, I'm thinking I should start watching Elsbeth 🤣
Quoteas annoying as Amber & Vinny (especially Amber) were in this episode, it had to suck for them that they lost out on a win that they would've deserved all because of an incompetent local who couldn't check her phone for beans.
I think they were hurt by the over-reliance on phones. They could have asked anyone else given the pit stop was supposed to be 2 minutes away OR just run with Ricky and Cesar.
As someone who does know a fair amount about history and classic film, knowing who Elizabeth Taylor is wouldn't have helped them anyway. They just had to find someone to point them to the landmark.
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OK, now I know who Vinnie and Amber are. Shame we had to spend so much time with them this episode... Their bickering is not fun.
I thought the rebus puzzle was painfully easy aside from some possible variations (earth/world, think/imagine, etc.) but that was pretty easily solved by just being able to repeat it over and over unless another team was there. And then I saw the firefighters. GOOD LORD.
The breakdancing was fun. The judge seemed very chill and the dancers were so encouraging. It did give me the vibe of a routine for a workout class. They've been much harsher on other dance challenges.
This was not a great episode for women having spatial awareness. Matching statues to a map was an unexpectedly painful task to watch.
I'm glad double dutch had their moment with Phil before being eliminated.
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I find the brunette girlfriends and blonde firefighters interchangeable as well (largely because they're not getting much screentime) but it's nothing compared to Amber and Vinny whose names confused me every time I read them in this thread. I had to look it up to figure out that they're the nurses.
I felt for Sean as I have no fear of heights but I do have concerns about falling. Steep walk down with no handrails or real stairs AND it was slippery? No, thank you. I've traveled to enough places like that and it's so not worth it to risk of spraining your ankle or cracking your skull open. I understood why he calmed down once he was able to at least make it to some real stairs. Meanwhile one of the pilots was ready to roll his way down the mountain to get to Phil.
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Three episodes in, I'm learning to be entertained by the bickering and incompetence. This might not last but right now there are still so many teams I can't find any one team or person too annoying and the editors are keeping any bad griping or yelling out of the show so it's all tolerable and amusing.
The repeated stair climbing is brutal but hilarious from the couch at home. And the cooking challenge was another good way of slowing them down without just having them do a puzzle.
That one pilot was way too serious about getting to the mat. It's leg 3, you're not up for the win or the loss. He could have fallen off the mountain.
The twins... I can't.
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This episode was a little more fun for me because I managed to enjoy some of the bickering (mostly the grandparent cops and the cousins). "You're like 7 feet tall. You're like Shaq." "I'm like Shaq???"
Also, the face painting was a nice touch for making the teams look goofy and slowing them down.
The only really unpleasant part was seeing people struggle with the heat and genuinely feeling unwell. This was a tricky leg because they did not seem to be strict about the balloons popping at all but you couldn't know that ahead of time.
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tbh, when I started the episode tonight, I didn't know if I'd make it through the season or even the whole episode. I'm starting the season late and we were very spoiled last season with mostly wholesome, competent teams. This season got right in there with annoying voices, bickering, incompetence, frustration... all my least favorite parts of TAR. I was disappointed (and confused) with the elimination since I wasn't sure how no NEL was going to work with everyone continuing to race. Also with their showing at the memory task, they might have succeeded where others wouldn't (yes, I was annoyed at so many people jumping to the horse task even if the "judge" was maybe the most adorable race judge ever). I will stick with it for a while but it's definitely a background show right now. I walked away and did other things rather than being glued to the screen.
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There are just too many shows this season. Based on the music that's been released so far and the critical consensus for shows that have premiered, here's where things stand for me right now
Shows I'm definitely going to try to see
- Lempicka: I'm interested in the subject matter. The leads are strong. The music sounds the most like a proper theater score and not a folksy take on pop music.
- Suffs: Interesting subject matter and a stacked ensemble cast. I'm not always into Shaina Taub's style and I don't love the songs I've heard but I will try to go in optimistic.
Shows I will try to see:
- The Notebook: A strong maybe. I've been following Ingrid's music from the beginning of her career and I do enjoy a sweeping romantic show. The reviews and quoted lyrics are rough but if I have time, I will see this.
- The Who's Tommy: Anyone I know in this cast can sing their faces off. The show doesn't interest me at all but I might go and treat it like a concert.
- Hell's Kitchen: Of the shows by people who aren't trained musical theater composers, this one actually sounds the most interesting to me. Like, the actual sound of it. In this case, being a jukebox musical might help because the amateur songs written for the stage are so weak while at least some of these were trying to be big pop hits.
- The Great Gatsby: That music video sold me. I don't think it's going to be Gatsby but I'll treat it like another Paradise Square... and hopefully the show will be less convoluted this time since they have source material to work off of.
- The Wiz: I just want to be able to see it on stage for the first time.
Shows I could skip without feeling too bad about:
- Everyone says Paul Nolan is good and the show is bad. I don't know if I have time for another Doctor Zhivago. I'd definitely go in a weaker season but I have to think about scheduling and budget.
- Stereophonic: I feel like if I was going to see this, it should have been off-Broadway.
- The Outsiders: Zero interest in the subject or the songs I've heard
- Forbidden Broadway: I always have mixed thoughts. Maybe if it papers or is on TDF.
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Hooray!
QuoteThe world premiere production of Here We Are, the new musical from David Ives and Stephen Sondheim, will release an original cast recording. The album was recorded earlier this week at Power Station at BerkleeNYC and will be released by Concord Theatricals Recordings in spring 2024. The production is currently playing at The Shed’s Griffin Theater (545 W 30thSt) through Sunday, January 21st.
[...] Now playing through January 21, Here We Are is directed by two-time Tony Award winner Joe Mantello, and features Francois Battiste, Tracie Bennett, Bobby Cannavale, Micaela Diamond, Amber Gray, Jin Ha, Rachel Bay Jones, Denis O’Hare, Steven Pasquale, David Hyde Pierce, and Jeremy Shamos.
The understudies for Here We Are are Adante Carter, Lindsay Nicole Chambers, Bradley Dean, Mehry Eslaminia, Adam Harrington, and Bligh Voth.
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Thankfully this season does not start until September 2024. Pirates of Penzance is not scheduled until April 2025.
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Jesus Christ... this is too many shows
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Hooray! I had a lot of fun with how the season wrapped up. I'm glad neither Loretta nor Dickie were involved with the murders. And to my pleasant surprise, they've left the door open for Meryl Streep to return. I've just become so enamored of Oliver and Loretta as a couple, I didn't want it to end.
They really had me for a moment thinking Howard would take the stage. But I should have known Oliver would take the chance to grab the spotlight. I do wonder if Jonathan will go back to the role in the real world of the show. Though, this show should have already been in previews (with people seeing Jonathan's performance). No way you just jump to opening night.
Kudos to the person or people who have been suspicious of Cliff and Donna from the start. I still think Tobert was weird but whatever. It was somewhat anticlimactic but there was still plenty of drama getting the confession from Donna and then having Cliff threaten to kill himself. Linda and Wesley knocked their roles out of the park.
Sazz being murdered at the end is an incredible set up for next season and a great way to use Jane Lynch this time since we'll obviously be learning more about Sazz's life in flashbacks and such. Are they staying in NY or going to LA? Half and half? Unclear at this point.
QuoteKudos to all of us who predicted that it was Donna who poisoned Ben, but Cliff who pushed him. This season was easier to predict than last season, but it was because this time we basically had all the clues. The only thing a lot of people guessed that ended up being wrong was Tobert being a witness to the murder and doing nothing.
I liked having a nice cozy mystery to play along with solving. Also, the gang never really seemed to be in peril from a murderer who was afraid of being caught or coming after them too. It allowed the show to actually focus on the theater stuff which was very fun for me. I agree Tobert lasted the longest as a red herring. If Charles was the intended target at the end of the episode, it seems like we'll be back to danger next season. I forget what happened with Rose Cooper and the painting. Is Charles' father still alive?
QuoteI partially agree with you on Tobert, but to be honest his entire character was dressed and acted to make him as suspicious as can possibly be. I mean it seems he was added as "suspicious possible murder love interest ......" I forgive him somewhat though when I saw him in that hat. lol
QuoteThe only big twist was Tobert’s innocence. So, they hired Jesse Williams to play a pointless side character that lacks substance and plot development. He’s just there as a coat stand and a love interest who’s now moving away.
Yeah, it was a bit of a waste of his character since he was dangled as a red herring for so long. I could never get invested in him and Mabel (not that I think the actors have great chemistry anyway). Maybe one day Mabel will actual get a decent love interest (though they could always bring back Oscar).
QuoteI absolutely need tickets to Death Rattle Dazzle, it looks like possibly the greatest, most messy play on Broadway. [...] I ended up actually feeling pretty sorry for Cliff, he's certainly the most sympathetic killer so far.
QuoteI do wish that the elevator killer had been Tobert instead of Cliff, just because both mother and son going to jail (as one of them dies from cancer), is just really sad.
Same. Honestly, it probably could do well at New World Stages. Though not this season. There are way too many shows competing for attention for the 2023-2024 season. And yeah, I hope Cliff resurfaces at some point. If Theo can do it, why not Cliff?
QuoteSazz knows the shooter... she is trying to write a code from an old Brazzos episode.
I'd love that. One time Charles' Brazzos memories could actually be useful 😄
QuoteAs an aside from the who-dun-it aspect of the finale, I just want to point out that Selena Gomez's opening night gown was absolutely stunning.
Mabel's fashion is usually pretty good but OMG I want that dress. So shiny!
QuoteI kept waiting for there to be another twist we didn’t see coming since when we found out last week that Donna killed for Cliff, that it was obvious he pushed Ben to his death to protect her… But he didn’t really? Ben was mean and it was just an accident? That’s a really weak “motive” and kind of took the oomph out of it.
I think it was all of it. He wanted to stop Ben from calling the police to report the poisoning (so he was protecting his mom). Ben kept prodding at him and antagonizing him. And then in the heat of the moment, the shoving turned into a murder.
QuoteOliver and his unwillingness to subscribe. So relatable!
I also refuse to subscribe to the NYT.
QuoteI wasn't crazy about this resolution. I despise the "they only meant to shove them, not kili them" resolution that so many mysteries resort to. (There were so many damned episodes of Cold Case that ended that way ::grumble::.) I've never found those resolutions particularly satisfying. And they've already done it on this show, wiith Mabel's friend dying the same way!
lol, I've been watching a lot of Cold Case. So many "heat of the moment" murders where someone's ego is wounded.
QuoteHaving the anticlimactic reveal (that Jesse Williams was just a coat rack after all) is a bit of a kudo to Jesse Williams in that it’s an acknowledgment that he is an important enough actor and a hot enough actor to work as a red herring on an Elite TV streaming series that is already chock full of celebs.
I don't know how many more seasons we'll get but Meryl and Jesse this season prove that anything is possible with this show. You don't have the Law & Order SVU thing where the famous guest star is definitely guilty and they have the pull to get big actors for more than cameos. It's exciting!
QuoteThat didn't really make sense to me though....musicals can run for months, sometimes years. Why would a Grey's Anatomy spin off be willing to wait that long for some unknown?
You can have a year-long contract that gets renegotiated if the show runs for that long. I agree it doesn't make the most sense but I can believe she would still have job offers after a couple months.
QuoteFor me, it's the trio plus occasional dose of Uma. I enjoyed her episode this season because Hoffman gave that character emotional depth.
I think they made good use of Uma this season but I can only take her in small doses.
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One thing I can say for this season is that all the musical numbers and the lack of peril definitely increase the rewatch value. It's not just about catching the killer so there's more to revisit on a rewatch.
This felt like a bit of an underwhelming 30th birthday for Mabel. I do hope they figure out how to get her unstuck in season 4.
QuoteCredit to everyone who called it that Ben was actually yelling at a cookie/some kind of junk food that entire time on tape. I did like how Mabel figured that out by seeing Oliver basically doing the same thing, because that definitely seems like something Oliver would do. Also, it looks like Ben was the one who wrote "Fucking Pig" on the mirror as well. Looks like two of those mysteries have been put to bed for now.
QuoteBut I think the cookie/pig thing also indicates that they might be making this show less convoluted than the prior seasons so the viewers could feel smart by solving the mystery. The other two seasons were absolutely impossible to decipher and really had deus ex machina like endings.
I appreciate that they've given us little mysteries that were "easy" to solve while still trying to direct us away from the killer. This is the first season I've felt like I was really following along successfully trying to solve the mystery.
QuoteBen actually attending sewing classes with five older ladies (while Dickie and most everyone else assumed he was whoring around) was an unexpected reveal. It seemed like they and sewing really were a calming force for him. He clearly wasn't a great person in a lot of ways, but I do think we are seeing that Ben had some positive traits. Paul Rudd was fantastic throughout this episode.
I also like that "some positive traits" didn't cancel out how much of a jerk he was. I didn't want another repeat of Bunny where she was actually a nice person, just not to our three leads. We know Ben has been awful. He didn't deserve to die for that but I didn't want a character retcon either.
QuoteLiked how they inserted the main trio into all of the flashbacks, even when it was obvious that they wouldn't know exactly what was happening. Got a chuckle over them even bringing out the popcorn for Ben/Loretta/Charles' fight.
That was brilliant given the focus on theater this season and the fact that all of that action happened on stage (at least until the dressing room bit).
QuoteAnd we finally got to see SG in the wedding gown that’s been teased since the summer.
So it seems like the wedding dress was just there to provide some drama for the trailer. She did look good in it but I'm not sure I buy that it would allow them to grab a taxi and then talk their way into a criminal court.
QuoteI hadn't seen any of those spoilers, but when they replayed that scene last week, that was my immediate thought...he's talking to food.
No, I certainly don't talk to food, why do you ask? :D
Maybe it was just obvious to those of us with disordered eating issues... and those who love dips 😅 Woo! Negative self talk! I do think the fact that the "person" wasn't responding was a significant signal that it was the cookies
QuoteI think Ben was a softie who covered up his insecurities by pretending to be the tough guy, by being rude and mean to people, by acting like an arrogant jerk
I think at this point, we have to take what he said at face value... Charles getting him fired as a kid really messed him up forever.
QuoteI do wonder if it's going to turn out that Ben tripped over Howard's cat and fell or something like thay rather than being pushed.
That would have been funny
QuoteConsidering Schmackary's Cookies is a real bakery and are proudly promoting their appearance on OMITB, I doubt they would be promoting their appearance if their business is rat infested.
They were already well known in theater circles but this show has given them a TON of attention. I don't think it's paid promo. Maybe they're just friendly with people involved with the show.
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Lots of drama in this episode. Of course I knew they weren't going to kill Oliver, but it was still well-acted.
QuoteSo the visiting director from New York was Dickie's father? Wonder if he really thought Loretta was any good or if he was even a director. Poor girl.
I got a little nervous that it might have somehow been Oliver. I know the ages and actors don't really match up but that doesn't count for much on TV. Glad they didn't go that route.
I loved Howard's involvement in this episode. Admittedly, my fondness for Creighton is growing because of the aftershow but I feel like they found a proper use for him piecing together the shredded papers... unlike the way they've been shoehorning in Uma. Let Howard on the podcast!
QuoteAnd kudos to SM for that tour de force patter song.
Shaiman and Wittman have been doing kind of boring work for a while. I was shocked to see that the Pickwick Triplets song was their work. Steve Martin did a great job... even though I knew he would, it was still satisfying to see "Charles" pull it off, especially as a distraction for Detective Williams.
QuoteI loved everything about this episode. Please, don't make the murderer Dickie or Loretta. I love them. Actually, I like most of the cast this season. I want everyone to be happy lol.
Same. They did a lovely job of introducing new characters and not having anyone you'd want to be the killer.
QuoteIf there is a clue in there, I wonder if it's in the last verse, saying that they should be looking outside of the cast/crew.
I've always thought looking at the cast was a misdirect to waste time during the season and not get to the real killer too early.
QuoteI hope millennials are watching this show so they will finally hear the names Gilbert and Sullivan.
Am millennial. Try Gen Z. Though The Mikado is probably too problematic for them to ever get on board.
QuoteShe has a definite flat affect in her performance. I've never seen her in anything else so I don't know if it's a character choice or if she's just like this.
I haven't seen her act in anything else since her lupus got bad but she wasn't like this as a child actress. I'm assuming it's a character choice or something affecting her ability to emote but generally, I think it works for Mabel.
QuoteYeah, Tobert definitely seems like he's the odd man out here with everything he's doing.
I don't know why they made him so sus except as a red herring.
QuoteI loved Mabel's prep talk to Howard. We know Howard is going to find something, but what? (I love the automatic assumption that the shred bin hasn't been emptied in what now, months?)
Yeah, that was strange. I know they've been out of the theater (weirdly) most of the time as they've switched to a musical but has no one needed a paper shredder?
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Now that's a pull. Calling Matthew Broderick in for a patter song was an amazing choice. I do love that the show has these connections to surprise us like this. Realistically, they should have kept him instead of Charles, even if Broderick hasn't been able to consistently sell Broadway tickets and the constable doesn't seem like a big enough role to be a draw for audiences.
I loved having Theo back and that Mabel has been learning some ASL. And it was great to have that little clue with the original drawing and the R being turned into a B. I like that they're not in peril from the killer and they don't have to clear their names from suspicion this season. It creates a natural reason for them not to be solving the mystery quicker when two of the three are pretty busy and for clues like this to be uncovered later.
I'm conflicted on whether to be suspicious of Dickie and Loretta at this point. The show has done this before where towards the end they let us become suspicious of Jan and then dismissed it only to have a fuller explanation of how Jan was connected to the murder later. This late in the season, I'm not ruling out "red herrings" anymore like earlier when they discarded Kimber as a suspect. But I am hoping for a better twist when Dickie has felt like a credible suspect from the beginning that they were mostly ignoring because they were focused on the cast.
Quotetobert is working for cinda
Oh, wow. Yes! I don't know if it's true, but it makes sense.
QuoteDid not call her being a serial stealer of peoples things because she finds it hard to connect with people and that she nabbed the hankie!
I appreciate that the writers were pretty compassionate about the kleptomania rather than just making it a throwaway joke. I mean, they had all those boxes in the closet for the things she had stolen, they grounded it in emotion rather than just anxiety or covetousness, and they didn't present it as something that necessarily needed to be "cured." Pretty well done all things considered.
QuoteMinor gripe: Mabel pretending that she was a CoBro fan when talking to Dickie at the auction. She was a big Girl, Cop fan, so why not bring that up instead?
I thought that was strange too but maybe the auction was only for CoBro stuff?
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OK, now this was the filler episode. After how much I loved the last episode, this one was a little bit of a letdown but I still enjoyed it.
They really found a focus for Oliver this season and his dramatic storylines have been very strong. Hopefully another Emmy nom for Martin Short.
The KT and Howard scenes were unnecessary but I like Howard so I'll allow it. Peter Bartlett made the most of a very silly role.
I'm going to have to disagree about Mabel this episode. Usually I defend Selena's acting but she was notably weak in that big confrontation in Ben's dressing room.
QuoteBy the way, the "Goosebury" theater interiors are being filmed at a theater I know all my life in the Washington Heights (yes, that "Heights") neighborhood of upper Manhattan, which is also the neighborhood where my husband grew up. It's now known as the United Palace Theater on 4140 Broadway (and 175th St.). It was originally a Loew's movie theater but it was constructed to also handle concerts and live vaudeville shows.
It's absolutely gorgeous. I don't have any reason to visit but I want to. Looking forward to them spending more time at the theater later in the season just so I can keep looking at it.
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I swear I already commented on this episode but I really love what they did with Loretta and Oliver's date and I'm sorry she likely won't be sticking around
ETA: I'm glad we got to see some of Jonathan's cabaret show.
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ngl, I know I didn't want a female killer, but Andrea Martin (Joy) as the killer would be very fun. Way too similar to the killer in season 1 but I'd allow it. Of course, now that it feels obvious in episode 4, it won't be her.
People seem to complain about Selena's acting, but honestly, I was finding Steve Martin a little flat this season. But he really dialed up his energy for the comedy in this episode. The patter song and the white room, it was so classically, effortlessly funny. Is that all there is to the song? It seems rather short if the part he sang making the omelet was all of it. Also THIS is the song they give the old guy who can't sing.
It's a shame Cinda can't be trusted because working on true crime podcasts (with a paid salary) would be a good job for Mabel, especially given her lack of college degree and work experience.
QuoteI hope Joy has nothing to do with it, because a second girlfriend being a killer would be so awful for Charles. I think what happened is Joy was the one who fixed whatever red mark Ben had and for some reason her lipstick was left in his dressing room. If we assume that Ben really was talking to the cookies, he may have written the message on the mirror about himself after eating them, since he's pretty self-loathing.
Yes, my guess right now is that Ben wrote the insult himself thinking about the cookies. But it was a relatively bright shade of red so Joy wouldn't have applied it to his lips and it wouldn't cancel out anything on his face beyond maybe the shadow of his beard (and that'd be pretty excessive). Unless the lipstick was the red mark, but it's not difficult to get lipstick off.
QuoteIdk, from everything we've seen, Joy is overly obsessed with him and also super weird. This show: Charles being weird=charmingly quirky. Woman being weird=certifiable. Unless ofc this is all in his head, but I doubt it.
Maybe it's just a reflection of how much harder it is to date as an older woman.
QuoteI bet she gets a interior designer business.
I could buy her selling art. You don't need a degree for that. It wouldn't be enough for an apartment at the Arconia but based on what she painted on the wall, I think people would buy those kind of art prints on etsy or whatever.
QuoteIs going to The White Room a real thing with stage actors?
I've always heard it calling "going up" or "blanking" but maybe they wanted an easy visual for the audience.
QuotePaul Rudd really is aging backwards, its uncanny. How sure are we that he isn't a vampire? Or using some very fancy skin serum?
See, I feel like VERY much looked his age when he was standing next to the actress for Girl Cop. I feel like when people say actors aren't aging, what they mean is they have a similar face and they've maintained it pretty well and they haven't gained weight. Like, Anthony Michael Hall doesn't look the way he looked when he was younger. Most actors have obviously aged but genetics and procedures keep them looking younger than they are and the basics of their face structure hasn't changed. Also, with celebrities you see them all the time so the changes feel more gradual. If you look at side by side photos of when they were young and now, there's a more dramatic difference.
QuoteAlso, one aspect that's bothering me is the absence of any police in this season so far. If this is a murder why don't we see evidence of a police investigation?
The police think they caught the murderer (the obsessed fan) and Detective Williams isn't there to push to keep investigating. Also, I definitely think there's less urgency because the murder attempts feel less violent this season compared to how Tim and Bunny were killed. There's less of a sense of someone suddenly attacked our trio (even if two of them were briefly kidnapped). I don't mind this. I like a cozy mystery.
QuoteIt wasn’t very funny, but my sense of humor isn’t very keen anyway, so I assumed some found it uproariously hysterical.
But maybe it was just supposed to be absurdist?Me. I found the White Room funny every time.
QuoteI don't think they needed the moving out storyline either. Why bother?
Because from the start the show has always been about Mabel's past trauma. I don't want her to be stuck forever. Yes, she had fond memories of the Arconia. But she should also finish college, get a job, find something substantial to do besides sleuthing... when even her former-retiree pals are getting back to their passions.
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Loved the monologue about the gal from Duluth and the ear worm from a musical. Mean but true.
Honestly, I'm loving the specificity. This season is for theater people and, to me, it's landing even better than the NY-specific jokes in past seasons. Also, it sounds like a read of ALW shows Memory (Cats), Don't Cry For Me Argentina (Evita)... whatever song people like from Phantom.
QuoteI haven't felt like Meryl Streep was dominating the show--not that I've really measured. Obviously her story is what starts the season so I think thematically her story (waiting her whole life for her break) is important, but I don't think she's taking time away from the main characters. The main characters would be separated anyway, because that's their story this season. Mable's alone and feeling lost and the two guys are unaware of how she feels. Charles had a romance the first season, now Oliver has one. Loretta might turn out to be an interesting contrast to Mable who's also getting a late start.
I think she's been a big focus but I don't mind at all. I appreciate that this show isn't whatever the season-equivalent of "case of the week" is. I don't want it to be that repetitive. I like that the characters are capable of growth. I want Mabel to get out of the Arconia and figure out what she wants to pursue to make a living (or maybe go back and finish college). Even if Death Rattle flops, I Oliver to start directing again. I want Charles to find some kind of happiness even if he's incapable of sharing his apartment. If I wanted everything to stay the same, I'd watch 22 episodes a season sitcoms.
QuoteEven if you're not interested in pondering "Who dunnit," you might still enjoy noticing at about the 3 minute mark that Steve Martin as Charles delivers this line for the podcast in a voice that sounds exactly how William Conrad would have spoken as the narrator for the Rocky and Bullwinkle show:
"As we look at the cast, we are faced with an unsettling truth. Any one of them could be the killer."😁All the focus on the cast makes me think it's definitely not someone in the cast.
QuoteThe nanny supposedly had one line -- what the heck role is she serving in the show at this point?!
No, she had at least that scene she delivered in the audition to the detective questioning her. It was a short scene, of course, but it was more than one line. It communicated that she would be willing to kill for a child in her care. I don't think having the song addressed to the now triplets instead of making that a defensive statement to a detective is so crazy. Also, she definitely had lines at the beginning of the play for some reason because she was started off the rough table read.
QuoteI think she's great in this. And I have made no secret of my unpopular opinion that Meryl Streep is overrated.
QuoteI agree 100% with both of your sentences.
Me three. At some point in her late career she stopped playing characters and started playing caricatures with funny voices. She stopped being able to disappear into roles and even in stuff like The Devil Wears Prada it was too broad and too self-conscious. And yes, there are moments when she cries but she could do that in her sleep. Loretta feels like she's really playing a person again and not Meryl Streep showing off.
S36.E08: That’s What Being Strong Will Do
in The Amazing Race
They got very lucky with this season aside from their exit. They're in a group that is terrible with self-navigation and not that great at tasks. They were able to do their alliance strategy and save themselves in the megaleg. And for all the complaints about the covid season, I think it affected the design of the tasks in a way that advantaged them as well. We didn't get a lot of tasks surrounded by people or crowds (except things like the balloon task) that really would have tasked Angie's ability to bear the heat. I don't think they would be competitive returning in a different season though maybe they might let Danny return with his sister. I don't think he's a huge fan favorite though.