S03:E03 The Trunk

[AgentRXS]

Quote

After she is unjustly arrested, Elektra convinces Blanca to aid in disposing of the trunk in her closet before law enforcement finds it.

Original Air Date: May 9, 2021

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Promo:

 

[BloggerAloud]

This is the first true really great episode of the season. Everything really clicked together.

[LittleIggy]

45 minutes ago, BloggerAloud said:

This is the first true really great episode of the season. Everything really clicked together.

Yes! I loved this episode! Dominique Jackson is a goddess. The flashbacks were great. Loved Pray Tell’s ball commentary and Elektra’s Evil Queen costume.

How many years was that body in the trunk? Would it still be smelling so badly? I thought it would be mummified by then.

Edited May 10, 2021 by LittleIggy

[Surrealist]

This episode made me happy.  I was hoping, at some point, the writers would give us insight into Elektra's background. They didn't disappoint. Although I felt a little bad for her mother who was all alone in the world. This doesn't excuse her bigotry, but it's still very sad.

So far this season, the only episode to bring tears to my eyes.

I wish this weren't the final season.

 

 

[gatopretoNYC]

Great episode! I also love the opening song - Native New Yorker. ❤

[Lonesome Rhodes]

My God.

This ep surpasses.

Just hand Dominique whatever trophies there can be.  Her deft instant transitions from Elektra to Duane and back again when she was fighting Tasha (mom) were perfection.  The accent, the tonality, the facial expression and body movement were simply extraordinary.  Now add in the unreal power and impact of the moment.  The Arts can not get any better.

It's been a very long time since a Ball was so much fun and uplifting.  Pray was energetic and strong.  I loved having him back, even if only in flashback.  

I am beside myself with thoughts and feelings.  I honestly do not care about any retconning about the Elektra we first met.  That she is still outrageously proud to her very great detriment, to go along with a heart the size of Dumbo, is a marvelous portrayal of the best and worst of us.

Oh.  Pioneering phone sex operations?  Of course, she did.  Another inspired reveal.

I dread what is coming on the show, but for this night, anyway, possibility became reality.  I am grateful.  

[Glade]

This was a heartwarming origin story and a great sequel to last season's Elektra escapade, though they could have left that trunk there for decades like it happened in the real life story (but apparently IRL the body was entombed in baking soda and wrapped tightly so there was no smell.)  All of Elektra's clothes must stink to high heaven of those horrible car air fresheners; did she try to cover that up with perfume or something?  At least they can air out now. 

I thought at first that they might be running out of ways to tell these estranged parent stories, but this was really well done—so, so much better then Cubby's mom. It makes sense that Elektra's mother tried to tone police her so she put the volume on max.  At least we can absolutely root for this chosen family, whatever house name they're using atm.  It was nice seeing Cubby and Candy again—I was afraid when I heard Candy was back that it would be another ghost story, but this was fun. So I guess Elektra's company is strictly phone sex—I didn't get it at first and thought she was running an escort agency but in that case she wouldn't have been able to say it was all legal and it wouldn't have fit the theme of the episode either.

I guess the House of Ferocity completely disbanded after Candy's death and we'll never see Jiggly or the other girls again? You'd think they'd be looking out for Lulu too...

[Hiyo]

Quote

we'll never see Jiggly or the other girls again?

Maybe they're with Quincy and Chilly at the House of Forgotten Characters?

[TrininisaScorp]

Man, this episode is why I talk up Pose to as many friends as possible.  It was compelling, heartbreaking, empowering, and amazing!  I LOVE Dominque Jackson.  I'm Trinidadian (she's from Tobago, I believe), and hearing her slip into her Caribbean accent heavier when talking to her mother squeezed my heart.  I don't have a similar life experience as her, but I felt that in my soul. 

The trunk itself...I have questions about whether it would really be like that after all this time, but okay, show.  I get the device being used, and the point being made about having to fight for themselves against all the discrimination.  It was nice to see a smaller cast focus in the 90s scenes with Ricky, Papi, Christopher, Blanca, and Elektra.  Papi continues to be my favorite side character.  He's funny and supportive (and cute as hell). His behind the main action lines are always fantastic too.

It was a bit heavy handed, but I truly loved seeing how the House of Abundance was made, and why Elektra is the woman and mother she is. She has her mother's fire and strength, but she provides safety, empathy, and understanding in a way her mother never did. I don't think I picked up on Angel being that connected to Lamar and Cubby so closely.  Indya Moore's face is so beautiful, even that severe haircut looked amazing on her; that bone structure is FLAWLESS. My heart also squeezed to see Candy and Cubby so full of life and on my screen again. Watching them walk their first ball was great...we got that good good height of the ball culture fun again before AIDS ravaged their community. Blanca is a good mother to her children because before it got ugly, she had a good mother role model in Elektra.  The best relationship, the most complex and rich has, IMO, also been the one between Blanca and Elektra. Those two together create something magical. 

If Dominque doesn't get nominated for something, I'm going to be 38 hot.  

[Blakeston]

This really was a great episode. "If you could just tone it down a little" is a phrase that so many queer people have heard so many times. I was thrilled that Elektra just shut it down completely.

Her threat to call her mother "mommy" in front of all the neighbors if the cops showed up was another great moment.

That said, with this being a Ryan Murphy show, though, there were naturally a few things that were just sloppy or completely implausible.

- We heard two episodes ago that Elektra took Cubby in as her child because she saw him at a ball wearing nothing but a thong and glitter, and she realized that he walked across the city that way, and she knew that he needed a mother to teach him survival skills. Not because she saw him hustling in a park.

It would have been so easy to edit out that brief bit of dialogue from the season premiere. Why didn't they do it?

- Elektra in season one was a selfish, toxic person who would screw over her children without a second thought. And that was set four years after her saintly mother scenes in this episode. I wish they had shown her evolving throughout this episode, instead of pretending that she's always been the world's greatest mom.

- Speaking of saintly...Christopher the Fantasy Dreamboat only needs half a minute to be completely on board with being on body-disposal duty? At this point, the writers should have just had him resurrect the corpse!

[Hiyo]

Quote

This really was a great episode.

Quote

That said, with this being a Ryan Murphy show, though, there were naturally a few things that were just sloppy or completely implausible.

Well, that's the thing about a Ryan Murphy show. As it goes on, the seasons as a whole become less cohesive as does the show itself. You end up with some really good episodes and moments, and the actors and characters making the show better than it is sometimes, but continuity, character arcs, and proper character motivation usually go out the window.

Much like the episode with Candy's death, this is was a great episode on its own, but you really have to squint hard for it to make sense with what we have seen before and/or just ignore all the previous inconsistencies and continuity flubs.

Which is a shame, because season 1 as a season was a great season overall. Season 2 was good but sloppy, the episodes themselves were good but taken as a whole, it didn't quite flow as well as season 1. Dropped plot points, set-up for future plots that went nowhere, the season starting with somecharacters regressing instead of going forward, etc. I have a feeling season 3 will be much of the same, lots of good episodes but taken as a whole season...well, we'll see.

[Crashcourse]

3 hours ago, Blakeston said:

Elektra in season one was a selfish, toxic person who would screw over her children without a second thought. And that was set four years after her saintly mother scenes in this episode. I wish they had shown her evolving throughout this episode, instead of pretending that she's always been the world's greatest mom.

I agree. 

 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

3 hours ago, Hiyo said:

Well, that's the thing about a Ryan Murphy show. As it goes on, the seasons as a whole become less cohesive as does the show itself. You end up with some really good episodes and moments, and the actors and characters making the show better than it is sometimes, but continuity, character arcs, and proper character motivation usually go out the window.

Much like the episode with Candy's death, this is was a great episode on its own, but you really have to squint hard for it to make sense with what we have seen before and/or just ignore all the previous inconsistencies and continuity flubs.

I agree. As a stand alone episode, this was enjoyable to watch. But as an episode in S3 for a viewer who's watched since the beginning, there are a lot of continuity problems. There are too many things that contradict statements that have been made as well as what we have seen. This retcon of Elektra being this kind hearted generous house mother as opposed to what we saw in S1 is a bit ridiculous.

But I loved that we got flashbacks so that we could see Candy and Cubby vibrant and alive one more time. Getting to see many of the main characters at the first ball was really fun too.

Elektra dealing with her mother was painful to watch, and not just because of the judgment and abuse. I was also really offended that Tasha seemed most upset that she didn't have a son to live with her and protect her. If that's why you're having kids, please don't have kids. You should not have children with the expectation that their purpose in life is to live with you forever and take care of you. The purpose of being a parent is to raise an independent adult, not a lifelong caregiver and bodyguard.

[tennisgurl]

This was definitely the best episode of the season, it was great seeing the Ball scene back in its heyday and getting a backstory for Elektra and the House of Abundance. It was definitely the most cohesive episode of the season, with a strong mix of emotions and plot and held together by a really strong performance by Dominique Jackson, who has really been one of the highlights of the season so far. She really nailed both the high drama glamour of Elektra, Grand Dame of the Ballroom, and Elektra, a woman who struggles in a society that oppresses her for being who she is and a mother who threw her out into the cold for not being who her mother wanted her to be. 

The ball scene in the 80s was great, Pray's commentary was on point and those costumes were amazing, especially Elektra as the Evil Queen and Angel as Red Riding Hood. Blanca also had a very questionable wig back in the day, I suppose she finally listened to everyone else about it and switched it up by the time the show proper started. We not only got Elektra backstory, we got backstory on how the original House of Abundance got started, and it is interesting to fill in the blanks on how things went from that to what we saw in the first episode. Like Angel being Lemar's cousin and that she, Cubby, and Lemar were working the docks together, which I dont think we have ever known about, while when we get to the late 80s the two of them are mostly together while Angel was closest to Blanca, and also doesn't seem to track with the story that Elektra told about Cubby when he was dying, but maybe you can handwave that Elektra made up a different story that sounded a bit better for while Cubby was on his death bed. Or the writers just cant remember backstories that were established two episodes ago, depending on how forgiving you decide to be. 

Speaking of handwaving, Elektra going from the altruistic mother we see here to the toxic selfish woman we met in the first season in the years between these flashbacks and the first episode could be the Ryan Murphy tendency to change characters from bad guys to good guys and vice versa seemingly at random depending on how much he likes the performer/character or what the plot needs, and a retcon to what we saw in the first season, or it can be how Elektra started out as a good mother who cared about her children, then became so obsessed with money and winning that she lost sight of that and became the vain self centered person we met in season one, and the last few seasons was her getting back to being the person she once was by learning to care about her family and community again, better explaining how she has come around so much since we first met her. Again, depending on how much you want to to headcannon. Its clearly a retcon, but you can look at it as an actual character arc if you want to be nice. 

I always knew that trunk would come back again, no way do you establish a dead body in the closet and never have it come back into the story later. Chekov's trunk needed to be opened. I loved Ricky and Pappi's reaction to everything going on, they're baffled by the turns this night has taken, but are ride or die wen it comes to their family. Pappi continues to be the best, even in little bits here and there. 

[LittleIggy]

I forgot to mention that the Giuliani references were hilarious based on what we all know now.

[Surrealist]

55 minutes ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

You should not have children with the expectation that their purpose in life is to live with you forever and take care of you. 

I agree, but plenty of parents feel this way.

As much of a contentious relationship as I've had with my own mom, I'm glad she acknowledges it's not my job to take care of her.

I enjoyed last night's episode, but yeah, Elektra's backstory was retconned because she was never a very nice person. Like her own mom in many ways. But Dominique shined last night, so hopefully come awards season, she's nominated.

Edited May 10, 2021 by Surrealist

[Juneau Gal]

Favorite moment: the first appearance of Candy’s famous hammer!!

[Guest]

Looks like everyone will get a chance to suckle at the teat of Emmy bait! This episode really illustrated how much Dominique Jackson has grown as an actress, even if the whole "selfless suffering mother" spin on the flashbacks was a massive, glaring retcon. I'll allow it because the episode was incredibly wholesome, despite revolving around disposing of a body (again). Speaking of which...while the bacteria explanation makes a sewage treatment center seem like a logical dump site at first, they threw in the trunk too. Even if the corpse eventually dissolved, you're telling me the plant workers wouldn't notice a large (unweighted!!!) leather trunk floating in the water? And bougie practicing doctor Christopher is not only unbothered, but chipper about transporting a corpse for a stranger to prove his loyalty to a girlfriend of 3 months? He truly is peak Manic Pixie Dream Guy.

LOVED the Ricky/Papi interaction. It was nice to see them both doing something beyond being a love interest, especially Ricky, who has basically been The Boyfriend for the show's entire run. His quips to Blanca were hilarious, as was the brotherly love between him and Papi. And yes, the actor is cute as hell, which is notable in such a pretty cast.

Angel/Indya looked hot with a tomboy style/pixie cut. She was the most believably aged down in the flashbacks (Cubby too, but he had such a babyface already). The fairytale ball blowout was phenomenal. And hey, Candy got to be a character again instead of a group hallucination Sage Advice Ghost!

Not looking forward to returning to Pray's pity party next week - he already got his showcase episode, and it was a retread to start with! When will it be Papi's turn?  

Overall, this episode gave me renewed hope for the season. Again, hats off to Dominique for rising to the occasion. If we have to write off Damon's throwaway character assassination, then I hope Elektra gets to ride off into the sunset as queen of her own phone sex empire (excellent, in-character career track!).

Edited May 11, 2021 by Guest

[Glade]

12 hours ago, Blakeston said:

- We heard two episodes ago that Elektra took Cubby in as her child because she saw him at a ball wearing nothing but a thong and glitter, and she realized that he walked across the city that way, and she knew that he needed a mother to teach him survival skills. Not because she saw him hustling in a park.

It would have been so easy to edit out that brief bit of dialogue from the season premiere. Why didn't they do it?

- Elektra in season one was a selfish, toxic person who would screw over her children without a second thought. And that was set four years after her saintly mother scenes in this episode. I wish they had shown her evolving throughout this episode, instead of pretending that she's always been the world's greatest mom.

Alternatively, they could have shown Cubby wearing only a thong and covered in glitter in that park when she met him, which would be hilarious and then the audience could at least put it down to 'Elektra misremembered some of the details' rather then it being completely different.   And yes, maybe we could have at least gotten a hint or a scene about how Elektra soon enough began to mirror her mother's (and sugar daddy's) toxicity to her own house children. 

Edited May 10, 2021 by Glade

[txhorns79]

13 hours ago, Blakeston said:

 

- Speaking of saintly...Christopher the Fantasy Dreamboat only needs half a minute to be completely on board with being on body-disposal duty? At this point, the writers should have just had him resurrect the corpse!

This.  I get Christopher is essentially a fantasy for Blanca, but even someone with endless patience and who is kind and understanding is going to be like WTF when he finds out that his girlfriend is helping to dispose of a body.  I like Blanca a lot, but in no way is she worth the kind of life destroying consequences getting caught with a dead body would bring down on everyone.    

I liked seeing Elektra's backstory, but I agree this was a retcon of the person we met in Season 1.  For some reason, I also thought in the first season, Elektra's sugar daddy had been with her for a decade or something.  I might be misremembering though.      

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Christopher is on his Rumspringa.  Or, this is just all insane.  Fun, but nuts.

Another thing I absolutely love about this ep is that we see how Duane/Elektra are strict and severe just like, wait for it...Mommy!  For all the millions of children who deeply vow to not be like their parent(s), what happens?  One fine day most of them wake up and realize, "Holy shizzle!  I am just like her/him!"  Elektra's expression of love for her children is every bit the same as the tough and almost transactional way Tasha was with her (Duane).  It's spooky, eh?

This is a universal human deal, imo, and is a demonstration that for all the protestations of the "others" like the ballroom community in this show, we are all far more the same than not.  There are, to be sure, variances, as depicted here.  But, the core needs are the same.  

I was so happy to see how so many came together in a good cause (helping an innocent Elektra (I never thought I'd type those words!!!) largely due to shared experiences).  If only the world writ large would choose to embrace our commonalities.  

[justmehere]

10 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

...how Elektra started out as a good mother who cared about her children, then became so obsessed with money and winning that she lost sight of that and became the vain self centered person we met in season one, and the last few seasons was her getting back to being the person she once was by learning to care about her family and community again, better explaining how she has come around so much since we first met her. Again, depending on how much you want to to headcannon. Its clearly a retcon, but you can look at it as an actual character arc if you want to be nice. 

I'm going with this explanation. I think it makes a lot of sense. Elektra has always had warm moments - especially with Blanca - even in S1 in the midst of her worst moments. --I also like the explanation that she made up a more colorful story about Cubby in the moment. I guess I'm forgiving.

I thought her accent slipping in the emotional moments with her mother was very effective. Dominique Jackson was excellent.

My favorite moment, though, had to be Elektra's reveal at the ball as the Evil Queen. What a perfect choice!  

 

[RealReality]

Glad to see that I'm finally in the majority.  Elecktra always gives me everything I never knew I needed.  

It was a little hokey, but it warmed my cold dead heart a bit. 

I also loved seeing candy again.   

1 hour ago, justmehere said:

I'm going with this explanation. I think it makes a lot of sense. Elektra has always had warm moments - especially with Blanca - even in S1 in the midst of her worst moments. --I also like the explanation that she made up a more colorful story about Cubby in the moment. I guess I'm forgiving.

I thought her accent slipping in the emotional moments with her mother was very effective. Dominique Jackson was excellent.

My favorite moment, though, had to be Elektra's reveal at the ball as the Evil Queen. What a perfect choice!  

 

I, for one, NEVER believed that elecktra was actually going to hobble Damian.  

[RealReality]

3 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

This.  I get Christopher is essentially a fantasy for Blanca, but even someone with endless patience and who is kind and understanding is going to be like WTF when he finds out that his girlfriend is helping to dispose of a body.  I like Blanca a lot, but in no way is she worth the kind of life destroying consequences getting caught with a dead body would bring down on everyone.    

I liked seeing Elektra's backstory, but I agree this was a retcon of the person we met in Season 1.  For some reason, I also thought in the first season, Elektra's sugar daddy had been with her for a decade or something.  I might be misremembering though.      

This story can get so dark and far too real, with the HIV/AIDS stories and the killing of TG sex workers and the general cruelty.  

They are stories that have to be told.  But its nice to have a little bit of fantasy, fun and razzmatazz. 

And I'll never get tired of elektras wardrobe, her fashions or her looks.  

As this is the final season I know there are going to be some storyline that are going to end sadly.  But I hope there are one or two that end happy.

[hoodooznoodooz]

“I thought somebody without a hammer said something.”

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I loved Papi and Ricky bickering while Blanca was trying to get them to STFU and help her. It's those realistic moments and relationships that make me want to overlook the other problems that inevitably come with watching a Ryan Murphy show.

[Hiyo]

Quote

As this is the final season I know there are going to be some storyline that are going to end sadly.  But I hope there are one or two that end happy.

I think we are going to land more on the side of happy than sadly. Not on the revisionist level of Murphy's Hollywood series, but I think most of the characters will get some sort of a happy ending (well, we'll see if Blanca and Pray make it through till better treatments arrive).

[RealReality]

6 hours ago, Hiyo said:

I think we are going to land more on the side of happy than sadly. Not on the revisionist level of Murphy's Hollywood series, but I think most of the characters will get some sort of a happy ending (well, we'll see if Blanca and Pray make it through till better treatments arrive).

I'd be happy with that.  

I feel like there are two or three characters whose story will take a dark turn, but id like to see Blanca, Ricky and Elektra get happy endings. 

[qtpye]

23 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I agree. As a stand alone episode, this was enjoyable to watch. But as an episode in S3 for a viewer who's watched since the beginning, there are a lot of continuity problems. There are too many things that contradict statements that have been made as well as what we have seen. This retcon of Elektra being this kind hearted generous house mother as opposed to what we saw in S1 is a bit ridiculous.

But I loved that we got flashbacks so that we could see Candy and Cubby vibrant and alive one more time. Getting to see many of the main characters at the first ball was really fun too.

Elektra dealing with her mother was painful to watch, and not just because of the judgment and abuse. I was also really offended that Tasha seemed most upset that she didn't have a son to live with her and protect her. If that's why you're having kids, please don't have kids. You should not have children with the expectation that their purpose in life is to live with you forever and take care of you. The purpose of being a parent is to raise an independent adult, not a lifelong caregiver and bodyguard.

 

On 5/10/2021 at 7:54 AM, Hiyo said:

Well, that's the thing about a Ryan Murphy show. As it goes on, the seasons as a whole become less cohesive as does the show itself. You end up with some really good episodes and moments, and the actors and characters making the show better than it is sometimes, but continuity, character arcs, and proper character motivation usually go out the window.

Much like the episode with Candy's death, this is was a great episode on its own, but you really have to squint hard for it to make sense with what we have seen before and/or just ignore all the previous inconsistencies and continuity flubs.

Which is a shame, because season 1 as a season was a great season overall. Season 2 was good but sloppy, the episodes themselves were good but taken as a whole, it didn't quite flow as well as season 1. Dropped plot points, set-up for future plots that went nowhere, the season starting with somecharacters regressing instead of going forward, etc. I have a feeling season 3 will be much of the same, lots of good episodes but taken as a whole season...well, we'll see.

 

23 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

This was definitely the best episode of the season, it was great seeing the Ball scene back in its heyday and getting a backstory for Elektra and the House of Abundance. It was definitely the most cohesive episode of the season, with a strong mix of emotions and plot and held together by a really strong performance by Dominique Jackson, who has really been one of the highlights of the season so far. She really nailed both the high drama glamour of Elektra, Grand Dame of the Ballroom, and Elektra, a woman who struggles in a society that oppresses her for being who she is and a mother who threw her out into the cold for not being who her mother wanted her to be. 

The ball scene in the 80s was great, Pray's commentary was on point and those costumes were amazing, especially Elektra as the Evil Queen and Angel as Red Riding Hood. Blanca also had a very questionable wig back in the day, I suppose she finally listened to everyone else about it and switched it up by the time the show proper started. We not only got Elektra backstory, we got backstory on how the original House of Abundance got started, and it is interesting to fill in the blanks on how things went from that to what we saw in the first episode. Like Angel being Lemar's cousin and that she, Cubby, and Lemar were working the docks together, which I dont think we have ever known about, while when we get to the late 80s the two of them are mostly together while Angel was closest to Blanca, and also doesn't seem to track with the story that Elektra told about Cubby when he was dying, but maybe you can handwave that Elektra made up a different story that sounded a bit better for while Cubby was on his death bed. Or the writers just cant remember backstories that were established two episodes ago, depending on how forgiving you decide to be. 

Speaking of handwaving, Elektra going from the altruistic mother we see here to the toxic selfish woman we met in the first season in the years between these flashbacks and the first episode could be the Ryan Murphy tendency to change characters from bad guys to good guys and vice versa seemingly at random depending on how much he likes the performer/character or what the plot needs, and a retcon to what we saw in the first season, or it can be how Elektra started out as a good mother who cared about her children, then became so obsessed with money and winning that she lost sight of that and became the vain self centered person we met in season one, and the last few seasons was her getting back to being the person she once was by learning to care about her family and community again, better explaining how she has come around so much since we first met her. Again, depending on how much you want to to headcannon. Its clearly a retcon, but you can look at it as an actual character arc if you want to be nice. 

I always knew that trunk would come back again, no way do you establish a dead body in the closet and never have it come back into the story later. Chekov's trunk needed to be opened. I loved Ricky and Pappi's reaction to everything going on, they're baffled by the turns this night has taken, but are ride or die wen it comes to their family. Pappi continues to be the best, even in little bits here and there. 

 

15 hours ago, SnarkEnthusiast said:

Looks like everyone will get a chance to suckle at the teat of Emmy bait! This episode really illustrated how much Dominique Jackson has grown as an actress, even if the whole "selfless suffering mother" spin on the flashbacks was a massive, glaring retcon. I'll allow it because the episode was incredibly wholesome, despite revolving around disposing of a body (again). Speaking of which...while the bacteria explanation makes a sewage treatment center seem like a logical dump site at first, they threw in the trunk too. Even if the corpse eventually dissolved, you're telling me the plant workers wouldn't notice a large (unweighted!!!) leather trunk floating in the water? And bougie practicing doctor Christopher is not only unbothered, but chipper about transporting a corpse for a stranger to prove his loyalty to a girlfriend of 3 months? He truly is peak Manic Pixie Dream Guy.

LOVED the Ricky/Papi interaction. It was nice to see them both doing something beyond being a love interest, especially Ricky, who has basically been The Boyfriend for the show's entire run. His quips to Blanca were hilarious, as was the brotherly love between him and Papi. And yes, the actor is cute as hell, which is notable in such a pretty cast.

Angel/Indya looked hot with a tomboy style/pixie cut. She was the most believably aged down in the flashbacks (Cubby too, but he had such a babyface already). The fairytale ball blowout was phenomenal. And hey, Candy got to be a character again instead of a group hallucination Sage Advice Ghost!

Not looking forward to returning to Pray's pity party next week - he already got his showcase episode, and it was a retread to start with! When will it be Papi's turn?  

Overall, this episode gave me renewed hope for the season. Again, hats off to Dominique for rising to the occasion. If we have to write off Damon's throwaway character assassination, then I hope Elektra gets to ride off into the sunset as queen of her own phone sex empire (excellent, in-character career track!).

 

14 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

This.  I get Christopher is essentially a fantasy for Blanca, but even someone with endless patience and who is kind and understanding is going to be like WTF when he finds out that his girlfriend is helping to dispose of a body.  I like Blanca a lot, but in no way is she worth the kind of life destroying consequences getting caught with a dead body would bring down on everyone.    

I liked seeing Elektra's backstory, but I agree this was a retcon of the person we met in Season 1.  For some reason, I also thought in the first season, Elektra's sugar daddy had been with her for a decade or something.  I might be misremembering though.      

I agree with almost everything in the posts above.

First, Elektra has been amazing all season. It was high time the she had an episode that really gives the character her due.

Also, her looks have been a virtual feast for my eyes. Most fashion models do not have her incredible style and charisma.

Now my Debbie Downer moments...

Electra refuses to rely on a man? Are we to forget that her “Abundance” in the first season was due to an extremely rich and generous sugar daddy that supported her for a decade? 

We talked about how stupid it was that she never saved any of the money he gave her and spent everything on designer clothes.

She also could have used the money to further her education and skills. Elektra with a MBA would have been amazing.

She learned the importance of financial independence only after he dumped her for going full on with her gender reassignment surgery.

Also, first season Elektra only looked at her children as minions to worship her...she was a very narcissistic mother. Of course, maybe she became that way over time.

I noticed that Duane’s mother looked at her son as a “man that would never leave her”. She was probably very smothering and perhaps even committed emotional incest along with her bigotry.

Also, can we give up the notion that Blanca can not do her hair/make up and looks like a man? In the flashback, she looked much more stylish than Lulu and Kandi, in my opinion. I loved her sleek short wig.

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, qtpye said:

Electra refuses to rely on a man? Are we to forget that her “Abundance” in the first season was due to an extremely rich and generous sugar daddy that supported her for a decade? 

I forget when she said this but I don't think we were meant to forget.  I think it's supposed to be seen as a "sacrifice" she made to support her family.  Blanca said something about not wanting to know how Elektra could afford the apartment. 

I do think the timeline is messed up. It looks like she took up with Meloni's sugar daddy in 1983 but, like you said, I thought they had been together for longer than the four years having them start in 1983 would indicate.  And she clearly got used to the money/having a sugar daddy since she looked for a replacement after Meloni split with her. 

This was definitely Dominique Jackson's best performance.  Or at least showed us more range.  I loved the way she slipped into her accent at home with her mother.

 

 

Edited May 11, 2021 by Irlandesa

[LittleIggy]

I’ve never thought Blanca looked like a man. She’s pretty.

[tennisgurl]

The thing about Ryan Murphy shows is that they are often full of brilliant scenes and episodes, where his unique blend of camp and darkness come together perfectly to create instantly memorable television that you will never forget. However, he isn't so great at creating a cohesive narrative or character arcs, especially in shows that last longer than a single season. Some of that is because he is really an idea guy more than a plot guy, so you get him throwing a lot of ideas and and characters at the wall to see what sticks, with plots and characters disappearing and reappearing depending on if he and the writers are interested in them at the time. Or he comes up with a lot of big moments and set pieces and Emmy Moments and has to twist the plot and characters all over the place to get to that big moment that he really wants, even if he has to mess with his own cannon to do it. Or they first write a character as a villain but they end up liking the character or the actor and then they decide to make them a good guy without really dealing with the fact that they were recently cackling evilly about their latest scheme, and then sometimes they go back to being a good guy, or they get bored with good guys and make them do evil stuff because it lets us get to the set plot point or set piece or because its fun. So we get amazing episodes and scenes, or even whole runs of episodes, but when you look at the whole show it gets pretty messy, or shows that start out strong then fizzle out at the end. 

Edited May 11, 2021 by tennisgurl

[qtpye]

32 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

The thing about Ryan Murphy shows is that they are often full of brilliant scenes and episodes, where his unique blend of camp and darkness come together perfectly to create instantly memorable television that you will never forget. However, he isn't so great at creating a cohesive narrative or character arcs, especially in shows that last longer than a single season. Some of that is because he is really an idea guy more than a plot guy, so you get him throwing a lot of ideas and and characters at the wall to see what sticks, with plots and characters disappearing and reappearing depending on if he and the writers are interested in them at the time. Or he comes up with a lot of big moments and set pieces and Emmy Moments and has to twist the plot and characters all over the place to get to that big moment that he really wants, even if he has to mess with his own cannon to do it. Or they first write a character as a villain but they end up liking the character or the actor and then they decide to make them a good guy without really dealing with the fact that they were recently cackling evilly about their latest scheme, and then sometimes they go back to being a good guy, or they get bored with good guys and make them do evil stuff because it lets us get to the set plot point or set piece or because its fun. So we get amazing episodes and scenes, or even whole runs of episodes, but when you look at the whole show it gets pretty messy. 

I used to say on Glee the cheerleaders were either hating on and torturing Rachel or being her best friends depending on Ryan Murphy's mood that day.

[txhorns79]

8 minutes ago, qtpye said:

I used to say on Glee the cheerleaders were either hating on and torturing Rachel or being her best friends depending on Ryan Murphy's mood that day.

Sue Sylvester's personality seemed to change from episode to episode.  It's the same thing with Pose.  Elektra is a break out character.  We've seen her be a very villainous, cold character, but this particular episode was all about celebrating her, so that is temporarily forgotten.  I was a little confused as to how she went from having her S&M job shut down last week to apparently running a very professional and nice looking phone sex service. 

[Empress1]

On 5/10/2021 at 12:28 PM, LittleIggy said:

I forgot to mention that the Giuliani references were hilarious based on what we all know now.

I fell completely out. Fuck Giuliani. I also laughed at "people will be using their phones to get their rocks off," because ... yeah.

Get you a man like Christopher who will help you move a body without a second thought. "Why didn't she call the cops? ... Oh, OK. Come on, let's throw the body out."

[sugarbaker design]

What did Electra put in her bag, right before the toast for Blanca, in the final scene?

[Lonesome Rhodes]

1 hour ago, sugarbaker design said:

What did Electra put in her bag, right before the toast for Blanca, in the final scene?

The picture of herself as Duane and her Mom which Blanca gifted her.

[sugarbaker design]

11 minutes ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

The picture of herself as Duane and her Mom which Blanca gifted her.

Of course, thanks!

[12catcrazy]

This was a great episode - The Pose that I waited for with anticipation (not like the previous 2 episodes).  Yeah some retconning of Electra, but wow, oh wow.  

Every time I see Electra rocking one of those incredible outfits I say, "Can I be Electra when I grow up!".

And the trunk with the body - thank God they finally got rid of it.  And the backstory they gave that trunk - it represented where Electra came from and I think by finally disposing of it, it can "free" Electra in more ways than one.  

[RealReality]

On 5/11/2021 at 8:15 AM, qtpye said:

 

 

 

 

I agree with almost everything in the posts above.

First, Elektra has been amazing all season. It was high time the she had an episode that really gives the character her due.

Also, her looks have been a virtual feast for my eyes. Most fashion models do not have her incredible style and charisma.

Now my Debbie Downer moments...

Electra refuses to rely on a man? Are we to forget that her “Abundance” in the first season was due to an extremely rich and generous sugar daddy that supported her for a decade? 

We talked about how stupid it was that she never saved any of the money he gave her and spent everything on designer clothes.

She also could have used the money to further her education and skills. Elektra with a MBA would have been amazing.

She learned the importance of financial independence only after he dumped her for going full on with her gender reassignment surgery.

Also, first season Elektra only looked at her children as minions to worship her...she was a very narcissistic mother. Of course, maybe she became that way over time.

I noticed that Duane’s mother looked at her son as a “man that would never leave her”. She was probably very smothering and perhaps even committed emotional incest along with her bigotry.

Also, can we give up the notion that Blanca can not do her hair/make up and looks like a man? In the flashback, she looked much more stylish than Lulu and Kandi, in my opinion. I loved her sleek short wig.

I'll give Elektra some passes here, mostly because I love Elektra*

She eventually said no to her sugar daddy and chose her independence.  Even if it meant sleeping on the street.  

I also think Elektra has been consistent in being someone who won't compromise and won't take the safe option.  Elektra could have had it "all" in a way had she just been willing to tone it down.  She could have had the mother she loved and probably whatever her mother left when she passed.  But she burned that bridge, because to me, that not Elektra.  Elektra wants everything, she wants to be fabulous right now!  Vintage Halston, but living with her mother!  She sold everything in that trunk, everything she loved without salvaging even one diamond bauble for a rainy day.  

So, along those lines, I could see Elektra spending what she has and maybe, in some ways, thinking of it as her best investment.  To live the life she wants right now, instead of doing the responsible and reasonable thing and getting that MBA, or having a compromised existence with her mother.  

* - one of my all time favorite scenes with Elektra STILL has to be when they were putting the condom on Patti Lupone's house and Elektra was there, directing the entire thing and barking out orders, looking absolutely fabulous and somehow drinking a glass of lemonade with a straw.  Like, who did Elektra talk into giving her a glass of lemonade with a straw?  It just had me laughing....oh Elektra.....

Also, agree about Blanca.  It takes some willing suspension of disbelief to believe that she is getting "clocked" everywhere.  I kinda get it, its a TV show and to some degree you want these women to be appealing, particularly since they are TG women.  But I think they kinda want us to think that Blanca had more of a Marsha Johnson look.  

[qtpye]

21 hours ago, RealReality said:

I'll give Elektra some passes here, mostly because I love Elektra*

She eventually said no to her sugar daddy and chose her independence.  Even if it meant sleeping on the street.  

I also think Elektra has been consistent in being someone who won't compromise and won't take the safe option.  Elektra could have had it "all" in a way had she just been willing to tone it down.  She could have had the mother she loved and probably whatever her mother left when she passed.  But she burned that bridge, because to me, that not Elektra.  Elektra wants everything, she wants to be fabulous right now!  Vintage Halston, but living with her mother!  She sold everything in that trunk, everything she loved without salvaging even one diamond bauble for a rainy day.  

So, along those lines, I could see Elektra spending what she has and maybe, in some ways, thinking of it as her best investment.  To live the life she wants right now, instead of doing the responsible and reasonable thing and getting that MBA, or having a compromised existence with her mother.  

* - one of my all time favorite scenes with Elektra STILL has to be when they were putting the condom on Patti Lupone's house and Elektra was there, directing the entire thing and barking out orders, looking absolutely fabulous and somehow drinking a glass of lemonade with a straw.  Like, who did Elektra talk into giving her a glass of lemonade with a straw?  It just had me laughing....oh Elektra.....

Also, agree about Blanca.  It takes some willing suspension of disbelief to believe that she is getting "clocked" everywhere.  I kinda get it, its a TV show and to some degree you want these women to be appealing, particularly since they are TG women.  But I think they kinda want us to think that Blanca had more of a Marsha Johnson look.  

I agree.

I will give all the funky stuff a pass because I love Elektra as well. I am glad she finally got an episode where she could shine. I hope the actress gets nominated for an Emmy...she truly embodies the characters.

When this show goes off the air for good...I think Elektra will be the character that most stays with me.

[RealReality]

1 hour ago, qtpye said:

I agree.

I will give all the funky stuff a pass because I love Elektra as well. I am glad she finally got an episode where she could shine. I hope the actress gets nominated for an Emmy...she truly embodies the characters.

When this show goes off the air for good...I think Elektra will be the character that most stays with me.

Yeah, agreed.  I was listening to a YouTube (King of reads) and he was saying that he felt some kind of way about pose having all the dark skinned women being villains.  But elektra, to me, is my favorite character on the show and has been from almost day one.  

I guess I find the villains more complex.  I only kinda rooted for those Dalmatians.  LOL

 

JK but I still love me some cruela. 

[Surrealist]

On 5/13/2021 at 12:09 AM, RealReality said:

-one of my all time favorite scenes with Elektra STILL has to be when they were putting the condom on Patti Lupone's house and Elektra was there, directing the entire thing and barking out orders, looking absolutely fabulous and somehow drinking a glass of lemonade with a straw.  Like, who did Elektra talk into giving her a glass of lemonade with a straw?  It just had me laughing....oh Elektra.....

One of the best scenes of the entire series. 😂

 

 

[Starchild]

Why was Elektra arrested? I must have missed the reason given.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

11 hours ago, Starchild said:

Why was Elektra arrested? I must have missed the reason given.

She was caught up in Mayor Giuliani's initiative to cleanse NYC of smut, most especially Times Square.  The po po saw her as a particularly important, and therefore knowledgeable, target.  So, they were squeezing her.  

What made little sense to me was they were about to get the intel they sought through Elektra's cooperation, but arrested her anyway.  My guess is that she just rubbed someone the wrong way and they decided to punish her.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Can Elektra and her mom find common ground?

 

[Hiyo]

Quote

She was caught up in Mayor Giuliani's initiative to cleanse NYC of smut, most especially Times Square.  The po po saw her as a particularly important, and therefore knowledgeable, target.  So, they were squeezing her.  

I wonder if it was just a way to advance the plot? Like they needed a reason for them to get rid of the trunk by having the police coming to search Elektra's home. Granted, they maybe could have done that without an arrest (maybe an ADA was a former client of Elektra's and tipped her off about the subpoena to search her home). Or maybe it was just done to emphasize how far Giuliani's administration was willing to go to "clean up" NYC...

Edited May 19, 2021 by Hiyo

[Scarlett45]

So my mom & I are catching up on Pose, and I recognize many of the fashions my mom used to wear back in the day🤣 .

She had that blouse Elektra wore when she was arrested and the red belt.

They very much know what black women were wearing in 1994.

[aradia22]

Everything in the opening scene up to Elektra driving away with Andrew Kober (the Radio Shack manager) was absolutely perfect. 

The confrontation between Elektra and Tasha didn't work as well for me because Dominique is only a few years younger than the actress playing her mother and so glamorous that it was hard to establish her vulnerability and create a real sense of menace with Tasha, musical cues aside. I don't think it was necessarily a bad choice to have Tasha speak in those calm, dulcet tones of censure unlike the way Elektra snaps at people with her one liners but though the violence of the ripping fabric and wig snatching was jarring, very little she did or said seemed to genuinely demean or deflate Elektra except the physical violence. I did think Dominique made a strong choice to use her accent once she was up in Elektra's bedroom packing the trunk to leave.

STUNNING Elektra outfit back in the 1994. All that white fur contrasted with the bright blouse. And with the pants and the boots it was somewhere between ski chalet chic and a riding outfit. This series really makes me appreciate 90s color-mixing. It's mostly primary colors but there's always a bold blend of color without being an actual rainbow.

I'm confused. It's still 1994. How much time passed between the Hellfire club shutting down and Elektra opening a successful phone sex business?

Dealing with the trunk had a fun heist energy. This show has been struggling with drama and comedy in season 3 and this struck a good balance. And it was nice to have the characters working together. I don't think the show works as well with fractured storylines.

The 1983 flashback didn't seem like it was going for any kind of accuracy. It also seems like a bit of a retcon on Elektra but it does make sense that they'd be more loyal to her if she'd been nicer in the past.

Did we know that Lemar and Angel are cousins???

Lemar in those overalls and backwards baseball cap saying "we don't got no parents" had big "hello, fellow kids" energy. Ridiculous.

Elektra's black outfit with the gold embroidery and the big shoulder pads was so nostalgic for me.

"I thought somebody without a hammer said something." 😂 I miss Candy.

The scene between Elektra and Tasha when they went back for the trunk played much better. And it was very well-written, economically saying so much in just a few words.

Now, THAT is a perfect boyfriend. Dead body, no judgment. It strains believability but I'm glad it worked out because Blanca is totally the kind of character who would end up being honest with everyone.

I guess it was super gross, but it was a bit weird to throw in the trunk as well and hope everything sunk.

The final ballroom scene was great. It was a good mix of impressive creativity with costumes that for the most part were believably DIY.

I wish all the episodes of this show could be like this one.