EyesGlazed

It's "for all intents and purposes." Just saying'.

Notice that Saul did not say to Carrie: "Allison told us the attack's going to be at the airport, so the Germans are evacuating the airport." Because Carrie would have been all over that nonsense, demanding why anyone believes Allison and calling bullshit. Instead, Saul said something like "it's going to be the airport, the Germans are evacuating it" which would make Carrie think the lead came from German intelligence. I thought poor Saul was going to have a heart attack after he discovered Marwan had killed himself. Seriously, when he sat down so sloooowly and took his glasses off, I thought the next thing was keeling over on the floor. I'm glad he didn't. He should keel over in embarrassment, him at Dal both, for letting Allison play them, but I like Saul and don't want him to croak. I loved the last few scenes of Carrie being badass and running into the subway with gun drawn. Go Carrie!!!!!!!

Alison Bailey: Retired drug mule. Shampoo squanderer. Mouth breather. Restaurateur. Yech. Put me in the camp of This Was A Stupid Move. First of all, just on a basic prudence level, you don't take your entire inheritance and put it into a restaurant. That's a notoriously difficult business. Even if your restaurant survives a year or two, it takes a long time to show a profit. Montauk will be seasonal, so you can't count on a full or near full restaurant year-round. How about a nice safe bond fund and a few growth stocks? Second, as to your relationship, what does it say that you don't talk to your fiancé about it at all? How is it a good idea to go into business with your ex-husband and his fiancee? And why not let Noah, who is obviously jealous and uncomfortable, know that your ex-husband whom you're going into business with has a fiancee? Might make him feel better, duh. I was on Noah's side this episode. In case you can't tell. Assuming that it's true that he is writing at 4:30 in the morning in the bathroom every day before going to teach and earn a non-writing living, then he was working hard and trying to be with his kids while Alison was just pissing around taking long walks around the city instead of going to class. I'd be mad if I were him. If Alison wanted to quit school, she should have told him. And why, why doesn't Alison go back to being a nurse?? That's a darn good profession, not to mention important and needed. I'd have a lot more respect for Alison as a nurse. The scene with Max and Noah was great. Though I wonder when Max does any work. He seems to be drinking and/or partying every time we see him. I really felt for him when he was, very deliberately, confessing his love for Helen to dumbstruck Noah. Oscar reminded me of boys from college who couldn't get laid and would develop fierce conspiracy theories about how evil and heartless their crushes were. I agree with whoever said he's fun as a broke loser. But at the same time, what he said struck a chord in the context of the episode -- I am starting to wonder if Alison is going to leave Noah.

I really do not enjoy Deacon acting like a baby, and the show has him acting like that every 4 episodes, throwing a tantrum at someone. So now Rayna's engaged to the baby. Yay? A genuine Yay for the four friends at the bar at the end. Bring back Layla so she can join them for some fun and singing. She's had enough agony lately. Speaking of which, I miss slimy Jeff. I foresee that Luke will have to make some public confession that he covered up the real cause of Jeff's death in order to win back Colt.

I am neither a "shipper" nor a "crackpot" in my regular life, but all I want out of this show right now is for Carrie and Quinn to have mad passionate sex and be bad-ass together taking down terrorists and other scum for eternity. Her sister can watch the kid while they're on missions.

So Miranda and Steve must be doing pretty well, maybe Steve owns a few bars now, so Miranda quit law and became a shrink, inspired by her many years of listening to the rantings of Carrie and Samantha and Charlotte, and . . . what? Sorry. I fell into a SATC fugue state. I do like seeing Cynthia Nixon in anything. Lordy I am sick of Alison's hanging-open mouth. Even in her classroom, she stands there like a gaping fish. My grandmother used to tell us kids that if we kept our mouths hanging open we'd catch flies. I suppose this habit of Alison's / the actress's is supposed to show how lost and at sea she is, but it's just too annoying when she does it all the time. Helen really ends up seeing that doctor?? What about all his Tinder dates and horror at watching TV with her kids? Well, if she just wants a hot fun guy to go on trips with, I guess he'll do. Cole and Luisa looked great. I wonder what Alison was planning to do, tell Cole about Joanie's paternity and then ask him to cover for her? That would figure.

Sam, it's time to go look at the flowers. Ron, you look too. Carol is temporarily out of commission but Carl's there.

Am I the only one who thinks Miranda Otto gave a great performance in this episode?! First the flashbacks showed Allison's disillusionment with the "rebuilding" effort and the hard life she's been living. Then when she met with Nazari, you could see that she was in a a weak moment, and in that weak moment the idea of running off with $8 million was too tempting (Nazari, not so much). I believe that if she'd had another day to think about it, she wouldn't have done it. Then when Allison's trapped by Ivan, and he's talking to her back about how it won't be so bad, he'll give her intelligence too, etc etc, you can see by her face that she doesn't believe any of it and knows that she's selling her soul. But she does it anyway. And the episode explained why she's so perfectly put together and dressed in the present day: she sold her soul for this shit so she might as well look good. As for the poster who said she's "too long in the tooth to be Mata Hari", for shame! She's a very attractive woman and she's not trying to bang 25 year olds : ) Here's a real superficial question: How did they do Carrie's hair in the flashback scenes? She has two wings of hair pulled back from her face, and at the back of her head one wing is layered over the other with no visible bobby pins or barrette or anything holding the hair in place. It looks really pretty, but it was driving me crazy how that hairstyle was supposed to stay in place!

I'm hoping that in the next episode, while drinking coffee in the kitchen or something, Noah slaps his forehead and shouts, "What did she mean, she hasn't had sex in 6 weeks! I hadn't had sex in 7 weeks before I attacked her by the tree!" Then he storms off to find Alison and confront her about whose baby it is. It's really interesting that the show keeps making Noah less and less likable. In the first season, I felt a lot of sympathy for him given his home life and his real (I thought) efforts to resist his attraction to Alison. But now, he shows appalling behavior every episode, even when the story is told from his POV! Is the show setting him up for a redemption arc? Like he goes to prison for Whitney? Alison's newly learned insights about her own behavior rang true to me. And she seemed more confident about talking about her feelings and wants. Until the tree. Man I hated that scene. I don't think it was rape, but it was certainly bullying via sex. Shame on you, Noah, you libidinous egomaniacal skank.

Well, I do feel bad for Allison that her potentially interesting and educational job with the neighbors turned sour. And I agree with those who say Allison acted unprofessionally in this episode we are shown. (I don't think her outfit was so wildly inappropriate however; it is a resort community, it was going to be a hot day, and part of her duties involve sitting down on the floor with Robert and helping with his exercises.) BUT. I have learned as a boss that sometimes you need to spell things out, even if you think the supervisee shouldn't need it spelled out. Yvonne is smart enough to know what she was hiring: a relatively unsophisticated young woman with no similar work experience or background to the people Yvonne usually hires and/or pals around with. If Yvonne wanted to make the thing work, all she had to do was sit Allison down and say "Here are my expectations. Please dress [this way] when you come to work. Bring a notepad and a pen when you see me first thing in the morning so you can write down what I want you to do." Etcetera. Allison was eager to please and to learn; she would have done exactly what she was asked. Instead, Yvonne just jumped on Allison's back and found fault with everything she did. So: Yvonne didn't want it to work. Personally I think that's an immature reaction from a literary agent who has presumably seen (and read) it all. Really?? A character who may be based somewhat on Allison is portrayed as a sex goddess in a novel written by her lover, therefore Allison cannot be tolerated in Yvonne's house? For reasons that I and others have already articulated (tolerating awful behavior by horrid parents and warped children), I have limited sympathy for Helen, even during her crack-up. And god, the show is continually telling us how cool and desirable she is, stop it show!! I am so tired of scenes like the one in which Max goes on and on about how he always knew Helen was too good for him, and she sits there saying nothing, looking around the room, like this is just her due. Ugh. And her stupid-ass store (which, to be fair to the show, I think we are meant to see as stupid-ass.) If Helen wants some autonomy in her life, why doesn't she get a job that makes her family some money, or if not, then volunteer for a charity or organization that helps less fortunate people?!? God she bugs me. And Noah: way to throw tantrums and drag your kids from place to place until you end up sticking them in a motel in Jersey City. Awesome parenting, douche.

Well, I had been rooting hard for Edmond, but he lost his way at the end of the season. What a disappointment. He decided he'd just leap right into couture gown design and ended up with way too much froufrou. If he'd sent a bunch of sleekly tailored, impeccably fitting dresses and jackets/pants down the runway, I think he could have won. He certainly has the skills to do that. Ah Edmond. That said, I can live with Ashley's win. I thought her designs were unexpected and some of the colors (the turquoise, the plum) were lovely. They didn't look like "I'm dressing to strategically conceal parts of my plus-size body" clothes that you see in stores. Really, her runway show was the best in terms of being a cohesive collection, telling a story, and showing something new. I defer to the opinions of the plus-sized commenters who would not want to wear the stuff. But there's a lot in a lot of runway shows that most of us normal folk would not want to or could not wear. Ashley could design a ready-to-wear collection that would be more down to earth but still fashionable. Kelly . . . Yes you came a long way baby, and good for you. But some of her fabric choices were just tacky and cheap looking. I hope she gets funding out of her success on this show, and learns more and comes back on All-Stars to wipe the floor with the other contestants. (Unless one of the other contestants is first-half-of-season-14 Swapnil, in which case I'd be torn . . .) Candice, yeah you let them tone you down too much. I was very entertained by this season and enjoyed many of the runways. So I respectfully disagree with the posters who are complaining it was a "terrible" season that "jumped the shark." (By the way, "jump the shark" has jumped the shark by now.) I hope the show gets renewed again.

So much word! As for me, I don't much like Helen, which seems to be a definite minority opinion up in here. Maura Tierney is great, but I think Helen the character is spoiled and brittle and fails to rein in her meddling, condescending parents and her awful children. I also dislike the way the show, through the other characters, is constantly telling us how hot, sexy and desirable Helen is. Enough already! Also contrary to others, I like Robert and Yvonne! I think the casting was perfect. They are both very New York to me and ring true. I loved Robert's compassionate and wise reaction to Alison's sad story and really hope the show doesn't make him a creeper. By comparison with the household of horrors that he lived in, I feel some sympathy for Noah. Though it's true that in recent episodes he's kind of a dick in everyone's version of events, and that's pretty funny. I feel for Alison for her loss and her lost-ness, but agree she is otherwise kind of boring. No interests, no passions, no ambitions. But perhaps that is intentional and we are meant to see her as sort of sleepwalking through life because she hasn't been able to move forward from Gabriel's death. In the "present day" scenes from last season, I think it was mentioned that she had a job? So maybe she was able to develop interests and/or skills. To me, Cole is hot but meh. And I'm embarrassed to watch all of these people having sex.

Eh, I wouldn't go so far as to call her a bitch. Which is a word I try not to use about women generally. In any case, Nina has her own ideas about what is good design, and that's her prerogative and her responsibility as a judge. I don't sense that she has any personal dislike for Kelly.

What in hell is happening to Swapnil?? He started out the season so strong, sending great looks down the runway every episode. And now he's bouncing between safe and on the bottom, and he's getting this weird edit about how he has a problem giving 100% to the challenges. I don't understand any of this, the weird narrative or why he's doing so badly lately. I agree that was a generally ugly runway. And ugly judging too, though they ended up auf'ing the right person. Laurie's recent designs have been total crap, and even at her best she was never close to winning. Though I kind of loved how even in her final post-auf TH, she was selling herself! Remember that name and label, folks. Edmond deserved the win. He designed something that completely fulfilled the parameters of the challenge. Zach should have recognized that instead of carping that it wasn't innovative.

I must be watching a different show than the rest of y'all because I'm enjoying it. But I am wondering: why does the military think Cobalt-ing the area is necessary? Is it because they fear all the zombies in the stadium are going to break out? Then why not just drop a bomb into the stadium? Otherwise it looks like they have the area under control. Emo teens trashing the neighbors' house: not cool. Go find something useful to do, you little twits.

Welcome back, Empire, I missed you terribly! And you especially, Cookie. Regarding the crazy concert/protest: so many reactions! My suspicion is that Lee Daniels put Cookie in the ape suit not just to mock racism, but as a little joke about the status of Taraji and her character: she is the big gorilla of TV now! She's a cultural sensation. The show has loads of acting and musical talent, but it's only honest to say that Cookie makes the whole thing work and the audience loves her best. Regarding Andre Leon Talley: Do not insult my girl Cookie about her last year's Gucci! She's had more important things to think about than keeping up with Fashion Week. Also: Porsha referred to Anna Wintour but called her something else, was it Anna Winner? It was something funny. Porsha is still a gas. She's also dumber than a box of hammers and has no managerial or social skills, so it's kind of hard to see why she's still employed by Cookie. I like seeing Jamal going over to the dark side, because he's acting it well and because I think eventually he's going to realize that he's happier being an artist than a CEO. Andre's the one who would groove on being the CEO, not just for the power but because he likes the management stuff. Chris Rock as a gangster . . . hhhmm, no, did not work for me. I'm a big fan of his, but he projects too much intellectual intelligence and too little menace for this role. But in any case I guess he's gone now? Unless we see him in flashbacks? Which presumably we will have to because Lee Daniels has said he wants to tell more of the story of how the characters got to where they are today. Still hoping Empire will slow down a bit. That plot line of Frank finding out about Cookie and menacing the family and then being taken out by Lucious could have lasted three episodes or even more, and in my view it should have. Wrapping all that up in under an hour was another instance of Empire not letting interesting situations play out.

Add me to the "good episode" team. My feelings exactly. Both Sammel and Gedmintas did terrific acting. And I was horrified by the near-rape/murder by Vombie tentacle. I was screaming NOOOOO at the TV! Was the scenario set up or hinted at adequately in prior episodes? No, it was not, as other posters have said. But I'm willing to overlook that for an episode that scared the living crap out of me and also ended without killing off Dutch. I don't agree with the recapper that this episode was some big sell-out of Eichhorst. He is the right-hand minion of Satan, correct? He is supposed to be as evil as evil gets. What he did and attempted to do this episode was consistent with his purpose on the show. And the sad-sack turned frustrated Nazi lover back-story did not seem out of character for a despicable human who turns to the dark side. Very interesting point! I think I agree with you.

Righteous, righteous auf. I was afraid Blake would skate by again because he's had a couple wins and he's young and the judges favor the young contestants over the middle-aged. But instead, they came down like the wrath of god on his dismissal of female anatomy, immaturity and arrogance. Good job, ladies and gent. I loved to see the smirk fade off his face. And I do not think Tim will be saving Blake either. Tim seemed unbothered by his departure, as was everyone else. On the other hand, Jake is not long for this world. He hasn't done anything noteworthy and is starting to live on the bottom. Swapnil is one of my favorite designers but I was shocked he finished in the top 3 this time. To me, his outfit looked sloppy and amateurish. Plus, how would you even get in and out of that bra? Merline's looked a bit sloppy on top as well, but I did think it was a cool look if executed well with better structure, and it would be easy to mass-produce, so I understood the win. Personally I would have gone with Ashley's. Now this is so funny, because I remember that challenge and I CRAVED that hoodie! Not for actual athletic pursuits, as you say, but just because I wanted to wear it around town. Edmond won't need saving, is my bet. He's got wins under his belt, the judges like him, and he's a canny competitor, having studied the show for so many years. In fact, I'm really puzzled why he never made it as a contestant before now. He obviously has talent and I'd think at least one time he would have shown PR a mini collection that was good enough to get him on the show . . . If anyone gets the TGS this year, it will be Merline later in the season.

The Battle of Red Hook was exciting and satisfying to me. Nice to see people banding together and taking action. Justine Feraldo/Geraldine Ferraro, you're the best. And I sympathized with Justine's moment of panic too. That just makes her a realistic human being. But as for the Mayor, he was not interested in being a hero or pretending to be! Weirdly, his focus on the Upper East Side reminded me of how Mayor Bloomberg made a big initiative for building city bike stands all over New York City . . . oh except for the Upper East Side, where there are zero. Even though there are five or six destination museums on the Upper East Side. Rumor had it that the mayor's rich friends didn't want any uncouth bike stands or sweaty tourists in front of their townhouses. I have a really bad feeling about Dutch's girlfriend. I think she's going to put Dutch in danger. But Nora-Fet would be okay with me. Eph is a douche and deserves dumping. As for why the Master is so interested in Zac: the Master is planning to punish his greatest enemies by forcing them to babysit Zac in one small room for all of eternity!! Bwah hah hah!

BRUTAL episode! Bruuuuutal! But before I get to the meanness, first I want to say Word! to this: I was born and raised in "the D" (good sign that it now has a "cool" nickname? we never called it that) and I love going back to visit. Try it some time! My theory about Ashley is that there was some kind of leak to the contestants that the challenge would involve a physical contest, and consequently they chose the obese person last. This seems to me the only rational explanation for why Ashley, who obviously has design chops and seemed to be getting along with the others, was picked last. And it would explain why Heidi was so surprised, if she were unaware that the contestants knew a physical activity was coming. But the problem with the theory is that Ashley did not seem to be in on the leak; she immediately attributed her being picked last to being unpopular. Or maybe nobody could admit there had been a leak? You said it, sister. I am sick of undeserving celebrity offspring getting employment just because of who their parents are. My favorite example of this is Jenna Bush as a talking head on the Today show. As for the mean girls, you all have said it so well that I have little to add. I was liking Candice, now I do not. She could have gone home for multiple failures of leadership, design, taking responsibility, candor and professionalism. Kelly's outfit was the worst, and I'll be a mean girl too and ask why Kelly looks like she dumpster dove for her outfits and when was the last time she washed or combed her hair. Amanda has taken up too much screen time already, so I'm happy to see her go.

Coming out of lurkery to say I'm quite enjoying S14 so far. The designers are in general a stronger crop than we've seen the last few seasons. I've really liked the runway shows, even allowing for the usual 2-3 stinker looks. And speaking of looks, Heidi is rocking some great outfits this season! Fun and attractive and flattering. What happened? Is someone new styling her? And to spread some more contrarian sunshine: I liked Blake's look and understand why it won. I loved the color combination (though admittedly I'm a sucker for nearly any evening look that's navy) and the bizarro shape. It was not meant to be "wearable couture". For a spread in Marie Claire, Nina's first priority was going to be something colorful and different- or even weird-looking. That trumped the poor construction of Blake's look for this particular challenge. In fact someone else articulated this well: That said, Blake is a cosseted, preening little faker and I hope he is not one of the final four. And Kelly: I like her, but why does she have to look like such crap all the time? Everything from her hair down to her shoes is painfully fugly. There are ways to wear the 80s that don't involve looking unwashed and like you've just dumpster-dived for your clothing. I can barely focus on what she's saying in the TH because my eyes are burning from the stank. Zac is adorable. I love his enthusiasm when he's crawling around checking out the designer's clothes up close. I love his Posen faces. I also liked Shipka. Though a 15 year old judge is not appropriate for this program in my view, she was classy and mature.

Things that made me unhappy: What a travesty that Edson is going home instead of Derek. I'm also sad to lose JJ. I don't know why she hasn't caught on with the audience (or apparently those who post here). She was multi-faceted and had a lot of personality. Her sexy cha-cha was amazing. Megz, in my view, is overpraised. And she's been given choreo that's not too challenging. Things that made me happy: Gabi. She is everything. And she's of Cuban background, which makes her even cooler. I loved her ninja number the most. Seeing Alex Freaking Wong. That was an unexpected treat, and he looks finer than ever. JaJa was much better in her Bollywood with him than I would have expected, though it's clear the choreographer didn't give her the most difficult Bollywood moves. Neptune and Jasmine in the Frankenhop number: great. Since I love Empire, I was glad to see the contestants dance to the soundtrack. Get the Season 1 soundtrack. You'll love it. I listened to it compulsively for weeks.

HELL YEAH to Councilwoman Justine Feraldo of Staten Island! And I wonder if her name is a shoutout to the first woman vice presidential candidate, Geraldine Ferraro? And I wonder if that also means Justine is headed for a greater leadership position in a U.S.A. that's going to be swarming with vombies soon and needing a seriously badass president? Thank you, thank you FlowerofCarnage for posting that Eichorst video. That was hilarious! Whoever on the FX team is responsible for that should get an immediate raise and orders to make more videos. This season is definitely looking up. I'm intrigued again.

Wow, that shoot-out was incredible. And also literally not credible, but whatever, I enjoyed it and found it exciting. I liked how it ended with the three protagonists looking at each other and reacting in their various ways, which called back to the end of the first episode when they were all gathered around the dead body. Re Taylor Kitsch's plot, I too find it somewhat cliched. At first I thought it would be a more timely and fresh story about an ex-soldier dealing with impotence and other PTSD. That would be trauma enough. Adding in the gay angle is too much. On the other hand, I can believe that it's likely more difficult for a military guy to come out of the closet than a guy who isn't part of a macho work environment and culture. But even though I'm not sold on the closeted-gay subplot, I think Taylor Kitsch is acting the hell out of this character and giving a moving performance. McAdams rocked this episode, as usual. I've never found Colin Farrell remotely interesting until this show, but now I'm a believer. Vince Vaughn I have never liked, not even in his popular comedies, and I'm not warming up now. The plot loses me, but thanks to you guys I'm getting educated!

So much word to all of the above. I cannot enjoy the group routines when the camera is constantly swooping and switching angles and going closeup then far away. I actually tried to count how long the camera held each view and it was about two seconds each time. Ridiculous. Does this show think we're all 6-year-olds who will cease to pay attention unless the camera is frantically moving around?? Does this show think we can't focus on the, you know, dancing? Maybe her "plants" are aligned and she's smoking them before the show. ; ) I agree she's doing good work on the critique. Jason is improving on that front too. I don't know which I hated more, the Sex Dance or the critique afterwards. Where oh where in that routine was there any space for "subtle sexuality"? Those poor girls. That said, I think the dance could have been salvaged with different costuming. If they'd put the girls in some feminized version of men's tuxedos, for instance. Standouts for me are Gaby, Yorelis, Virgil, JJ, the ballet boys (but they are no Alex Wong), the Madonna girl, and Asaf merely because he is so entertaining, often unwittingly.