S01.E07: Happy Animals

[ElectricBoogaloo]

BBC1 is airing two episodes per week while HBO is airing only one episode per week. If you enter this thread before the US air date, you may encounter spoilers!

Quote

Strapped for cash and still unable to produce a draft of her book, Arabella takes a job working alongside Theo. Terry's birthday party finds Kwame avoiding reminders of his assault.

Original UK air date: 6/29/20
Original US air date: 7/20/20

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Wow, the most surprising thing in this episode was Theo and Arabella's confessions to each other. I was really surprised that Theo admitted that she got paid more to bring in POC and that Samson had been right about Arabella being exploited. I felt bad for Arabella because she was clearly just there to earn some money and figured "why not?" when the guy asked if he could use her for some promos. It's one thing to anonymously call people and read a script. It's another thing to be somewhat well known and put your face to a cause that you don't believe in because you are desperate for money.

I was even more surprised that Arabella told Theo she was the one who went to the headmaster back when they were in school. I had actually wondered if Theo already knew and was doing some kind of long con to get back at Arabella somehow.

Poor Kwame. Although I appreciated Terry being supportive, I disliked that one of the first things she told him was, "You have to tell Arabella." No, he doesn't. It's his choice when to tell her (if ever). You are never required to tell someone about your sexual assault. I know this group of friends is in their 20s so they still have that mentality about how you have to tell each other EVERYTHING, but you really don't.

[oxford]

There's been some discussion in the episode 4 thread of why Kwame thought that a threesome was a good way of introducing his nervous new friend to the gay scene. In this episode we found out that he'd lost his own virginity while underage to two guys at once .

From the look on his face he was reassessing just how positive an experience that had been.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Bella's publisher seemed awfully excited about hearing that she was going to write about her rapes. It made me uncomfortable even though I know there have been plenty of TV shows and movies based on rape as a plotline.

Whoa, not sure what kind of friend Terry is if she's managing parts of Arabella's life behind her back. IMO she's kind of vicious too, usually under the guise of being funny or "honest."

Kwame's story about the Greek and the Egyptian was stunning. Sounds like he's has a longstanding problem with people disregarding and violating his right to personal agency and he's just now starting to see the pattern.

Were they calling the party a yard or a yark?

Guess the theme of this episode was whether you can volunteer to be exploited, even if it's for money.

[scrb]

They’re keeping secrets from each other.  Terry had told Simon to leave Arabella on the night she was raped.

She’d be taking care of Bella since they’re best friends but there seems to be guilt behind it.

Inevitable it will come out.

Is she going through writers block?  Been a year since she got an advance.

Maybe she could side hustle magazine or newspaper pieces or the online equivalents.  Or use her notoriety for other IG influencing?

These friends are all going through either sexual assault or ambiguous experiences like Terry’s in Italy.

[meep.meep]

On 6/29/2020 at 5:57 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

 

Poor Kwame. Although I appreciated Terry being supportive, I disliked that one of the first things she told him was, "You have to tell Arabella." No, he doesn't. It's his choice when to tell her (if ever). You are never required to tell someone about your sexual assault. I know this group of friends is in their 20s so they still have that mentality about how you have to tell each other EVERYTHING, but you really don't.

He needs to tell Arabella so she won't lock him in a room with a strange man again.  I think that's what Terry meant.

Loved the "promo" at the end with Arabella wolfing down fried chicken!

[Blakeston]

I don't think Happy Animals was exploiting anyone. Lots of companies that are seeking a more diverse workforce will offer bonuses to people who refer qualified candidates who are POC. Isn't that preferable to being an all-white organization?

The guy who was ranting about how vegans are trying to control Arabella was far more guilty of trying to control her than anyone else in the episode.

On a side note, I've noticed that a whole lot of people buy into the idea that vegans = white people. The majority of the vegan restaurants I've been to in the US are Black-owned. And there are a lot of African-Americans who are doing their best to promote vegan alternatives in food deserts.

[After7Only]

22 minutes ago, Blakeston said:

I don't think Happy Animals was exploiting anyone. Lots of companies that are seeking a more diverse workforce will offer bonuses to people who refer qualified candidates who are POC. Isn't that preferable to being an all-white organization?  

I think part of the "exploitation" is that Arabella wasn't made aware of the arrangement.    Kind of like Terry in her random/not really random 3-some situation.   Knowing the full picture changes your reaction to the experience.     

I for one would love to know that someone received a higher referral bonus than normal to refer me as a POC.   That information would affect my thoughts about the organization on whether I wanted to work there (why can't this organization find/keep POC?), and it might also affect my salary requirements.  

 

[luckyroll3]

On 7/21/2020 at 4:08 PM, After7Only said:

I think part of the "exploitation" is that Arabella wasn't made aware of the arrangement.    Kind of like Terry in her random/not really random 3-some situation.   Knowing the full picture changes your reaction to the experience.     

I for one would love to know that someone received a higher referral bonus than normal to refer me as a POC.   That information would affect my thoughts about the organization on whether I wanted to work there (why can't this organization find/keep POC?), and it might also affect my salary requirements.  

 

Exactly; awareness is key.  Knowing that they have a higher referral bonus would also make me pay particular attention to their organization culture and policies. It took some time, but at least Theo came around to sharing the truth about the arrangement. I don't agree that they were trying to control Arabella, but they were definitely trying to capitalize on her fame and her "blackness" to reach a certain audience that didn't necessarily vibe with them and/or their content.

[Arcey]

I'm not sure I understand the ending, with Arabella doing the Happy Animal spot. Was that supposed to be something she posted on her own,  as a middle finger to those awful directors? I got a bad vibe from them all along, but couldn't put my finger on exactly what they were doing that felt so wrong. The way they (and Theo) kept side-eyeing each other made me feel like they were conspiratorially exploiting Arabella, but wasn't quite sure what was going on. And I was a little surprised that Arabella seemed kind of okay with the exploitation/dishonesty , even from Theo. Please help me understand this. Thanks.