S03.E02: Run

[madam magpie]

I actually don't get the sense that he was purposely calling out journalists at all. That assigns an intent that there's no real evidence for except the rantings of the media who took it personally. For a writer, the less you have to explain to your audience, the easier your job and the more you can concentrate on your characters and narrative. I believe Sorkin when he says he set the show in the recent past so he wouldn't have to create fake news and explain it to his audience. Setting the show in real news also grounds it in a reality the audience can relate to. Because Aaron Sorkin's writing style is idealism and heroics, he created a cast of characters to embody that. The fact that he called out the entertainment and social media was probably no accident, but it also wasn't initially the driving point of the show. Plus, those of us who are wedded to the idealism of the press agree with him. That doesn't mean others don't disagree; sure, they do. But the viciousness with which this show was attacked by the entertainment and social media was glaring, and it basically made Sorkin's point much more obvious than he ever intended, I think. If people don't like heroics and idealism, that's one thing. I don't like a lot of shows that are critically acclaimed. But I'm usually able to identify why they're so acclaimed and where the writers'/actors'/whoever's skill is. For internet writers whose critiques and recaps are riddled with spelling and grammatical errors to be calling out Aaron Sorkin as a bad writer, however, is laughable. I hope he can see that.

[iMonrey]

 

Why is there such animosity between the twins and jane Fonda's character?

 

I would assume because her husband left her for their mother.

 

While this episode did have some great moments, the show cannot escape from the occasional clunky dialogue. Whenever a character starts a sentence with "Webster's Dictionary" you know it's going to be contrived, and Leona's little speech about the definition of "literally" was God-awful. I just cringed at that.

[oceanblue]

LOL.  I loved that speech.  I'm one of those people who is appalled by the casual swapping of literally for figuratively.  I'm horrified that Webster's is giving up on this.

Edited November 18, 2014 by oceanblue

[TV Diva Queen]

Let me add to the animosity:  Its Leona's company.  She had to give 1/2 to her hubby (their father) in the divorce settlement.  That's a real big reason in my book (if I had a book).

 

Neil didn't smash the flash drive, he smashed his phone.  Will asked him if he had anywhere to go where he could get lost, without a phone or credit cards.

[marny]

Why did Neil smash the drive?  I thought this was going to be about Neil and ACN cooperating with Snowden but it sounds like Neil will be the pseudo Snowden, if he's going to be on the run for most of the season.

 

In any event, FBI can recover the data unless he has the platter ground into dust.  So it makes no sense, unless he was just smashing the housing so he can keep the bare drive?  That makes no sense either.

He smashed his phone, not the drive. Presumably because he wanted to prevent the ability to GPS track him through his phone.

[LotusFlower]

I felt terrible for Hallie. That was a really stupid move, but she didn't do it to be malicious; she did it because she's young and stupid. A lot of people (especially younger ones who have grown up on the internet) don't grasp how everything you say online can have drastic, far-reaching consequences.

This wasn't a young person sending out a stupid tweet, this was a news organization. It's one of the things I think this episode got wrong - these are suppose to be smart people, with journalism training, and yet Hallie writes a tweet bashing Republicans, and Neal encourages a source to steal classified information?

I'm thinking Hallie might help Neal on the run? I'm not sure why they'd bring her character back only to get rid of her in the second episode.... Just a guess.

[madam magpie]

I buy it completely. I worked in a newsroom. The young, idealistic kids hoping for recognition someday do stupid things for glory. I was one of them. My days were pre-Internet, but we were still dumb. No one was trained in the legality of journalism, and there wasn't a ton of oversight. In my experience, a newsroom is a chaotic, sink-or-swim place. That's not to say Hallie shouldn't have known better. Plenty of others would have. But it was late, she was tired, she had the ever-important retweets in mind, ACN is a pretty liberal place. I can see it.

I have no trouble believing what Neal did either. Will basically gave Neal approval when he sent him to buy the computer. I think Will sees how this thing with Neal is sort of his and Mac's fault. They should have paid closer attention, but they were busy and didn't. That happens all the time. It just doesn't usually end up as a federal crime.

[netlyon2]

Why is there such animosity between the twins and jane Fonda's character?

No sympathy for Hallie re the twitter post. It was outrageous and her half an hour later remorse is bizarre. She's an adult she took the time to log on and type it it's not as though she just said it and someone overheard.

(1)  I think it was strongly implied that Leona cheated on their father (the crack about Reese looking like their father's brother).  That may have been the basis for the divorce, in which bitter Dad took her for half of the company.  If that's the case, I could totally see the twins growing up to despise Leona, especially if Dad's feelings disrupted his relationship with their mother.  There were also the repeated jabs about the twins never seeing Reese and Leona, which may indicate a sense of inferiority, a desire for an emotional connection, and/or all sorts of other issues.

 

(2)  It was a combination of Boston-related exhaustion and that "must-tweet-to-remain-relevant" social media thing.  So, she threw out a comment that she might personally make in conversation or tweet under her own name.  Just a case of impaired judgment.  Then, when her brain got a little sleep, her system revived enough to realize that she'd just made a huge mistake and needed to try and fix it.  As someone who is under constant pressure to (a) choose my words carefully and (b) engage in near-continuous streams of electronic communications, I can definitely relate.  I really liked this storyline since, again, there were no easy answers, no good guy/bad guy, just a good person who made a bad call.

[NoWillToResist]

Don and Sloan were gold.

 

D: Do you consider us a couple?|

S: I don't understand the question

D: Yes, you do. I know because that is what I do: I pretend to be dumb and hearing impaired! Oh my God, I'm getting Don Keefer'd!

 

One of the contrivances that kind of gets to me is that ALL the shit happens all at once. The company is being taken over, Don and Sloan did some whoopsie insider trading, Hallie lost her mind and logged into the newsroom's twitter to post a very biased and stupid tweet, Neal forgot all his training and requested stolen government documents...like, really?

 

When Leona entered the boardroom, I paused the viewing to get comfortable because a pissed off Leona is a fucking force of nature and deserves my full attention.

 

I do not want to revisit Jim/Maggie. Maggie on the train was the most tolerable she's been to me in a very long time. I liked her interactions with the ethics professor though so obviously we'll revisit Jim/Maggie. Several times this season, we've been given Jim's reaction shots to Maggie succeeding...combine that with Hallie's imminent departure and Maggie potentially finding a new interest, and I think we all know where this is going...

Edited November 18, 2014 by NoWillToResist

[kieyra]

One of the contrivances that kind of gets to me is that ALL the shit happens all at once. The company is being taken over, Don and Sloan did some whoopsie insider trading, Hallie lost her mind and logged into the newsroom's twitter to post a very biased and stupid tweet, Neal forgot all his training and requested stolen government documents...like, really?

I think Sorkin told us, in a meta way, what to expect in the first episode, with the bit about Euripedes and drama: "get your protagonist up a tree and throw rocks at him".

Edited November 19, 2014 by kieyra

[WearyTraveler]

One of the contrivances that kind of gets to me is that ALL the shit happens all at once. 

 

I don't find that so contrived.  I think that sometimes life can be that way.  It has certainly been for me a few times when EVERYTHING was happening all at once (to me and to people around me) and I barely had a chance to catch my breath.

I remember, for instance, one time when all of the members of my immediate family (mom, dad and sister) were ill with totally unrelated medical conditions. Mom had a cast on her arm, dad was just home from the hospital recovering from thrombosis surgery, and my sister had been rushed to the ER (a couple of days after dad was sent home) because she had hemorrhagic dengue fever. 

 

Meanwhile, I had clients that wanted their projects completed, so I was hauling my computer back and forth from my home to the hospital, where I had to sleep in case my sister needed a blood transfusion.  Hectic doesn't even begin to cover it.  And that was just me.  My friends and other family had their own stuff going on too.  It happens.

Edited November 19, 2014 by WearyTraveler

[morgankobi]

Are we suppose to know what was written on the menu (I got distracted near the end)? Neal was already gone by then, and Will specifically told her to come get the menus, and that's it, so it's likely not something for her to act upon.

Did I just miss it?

[ottoDbusdriver]

Are we suppose to know what was written on the menu (I got distracted near the end)? Neal was already gone by then, and Will specifically told her to come get the menus, and that's it, so it's likely not something for her to act upon.

Did I just miss it?

 

You just missed it.  Will wrote two words on the menu:

 

Neal

Run

[VeryNot]

Thoroughly enjoyed this one. Am a bit crushed that just as this show is FINALLY finding its footing, it's going to end.

I totally buy Neil's error. Hey, if people at ACN didn't make mistakes/poor choices, there would be no reason keep Marsha Gay Awesome, Esq. on hand. Neil is idealistic and hungry for his break, and he has a tendency to let his enthusiasm for a story overrule his senses.

I'm a little less thrilled with Hallie's tweet. ACN is a NEWS network, not Perez Hilton. I can't imagine (especially after Genoa) they'd be tweeting anything other than straight news void of editorial comment. They were gun-shy to even begin coverage of Boston, and everyone in the newsroom felt the pressure of waiting, knowing they were being scooped and missing the story. So they were being extra cautious in how they handled the story, and in that environment, she posts a laughably partisan tweet designed to be so inflammatory that it would generate retweets? Hallie is supposed to be savvy; I get being tired and making a mistake, but these are journalists -- they always operate on tired mode. That tweet was so OTT and WTF inappropriate as to be unbelievable, and I'm hoping she had a plan behind it other than "retweets".

And I enjoy Sloan/Don, but, to me, they're treading pretty close to the line between adorably hilarious and insufferably gag-worthy. Please, please, Sorkin, keep them on the right side of that line.

And please, please, Sorkin, let Maggie continue her growth without any romantic entanglements driving her.

Edited November 19, 2014 by VeryNot

[NoWillToResist]

Are we suppose to know what was written on the menu (I got distracted near the end)? Neal was already gone by then, and Will specifically told her to come get the menus, and that's it, so it's likely not something for her to act upon.

Did I just miss it?

 

I'm trying to figure out whether Will has inadvertently made whatshername an unwitting criminal (aiding and abetting). When and where did they pre-arrange for her to meet up with Neal?

 

I'm a little less thrilled with Hallie's tweet. ACN is a NEWS network, not Perez Hilton. I can't imagine (especially after Genoa) they'd be tweeting anything other than straight news void of editorial comment. They were gun-shy to even begin coverage of Boston, and everyone in the newsroom felt the pressure of waiting, knowing they were being scooped and missing the story. So they were being extra cautious in how they handled the story, and in that environment, she posts a laughably partisan tweet designed to be so inflammatory that it would generate retweets? Hallie is supposed to be savvy; I get being tired and making a mistake, but these are journalists -- they always operate on tired mode. That tweet was so OTT and WTF inappropriate as to be unbelievable, and I'm hoping she had a plan behind it other than "retweets".

 

Yeah, that one I can't get behind at all (unless it is later shown that she did it for the notoriety). I don't care if she was tired. Wasn't she all about the online journalism when she was introduced? So she should be MORE savvy than most. Also, unless I misheard, the ACN twitter feed wasn't even hers to use! Neal does it but she felt that there hadn't been enough tweets from ACN so she somehow got access and then posted THAT? I fail to see how that can be attributed to "I was tired". Maybe she was tired of the boyfriend and figured getting fired was her only escape. ;)

[scrb]

I think Maggie must have gotten some therapy since season 2 which has calmed her down.

 

She had to use an assumed name, April, but Dr. Weston seemed to have helped her.

[madam magpie]

I think Will told Neal to get the menu from Jenna. So yes, she was sort of an unwitting criminal, but she knows virtually nothing. Maybe she read the menu, but she has no real idea what any of it means. The Feds wouldn't want her.

[NoWillToResist]

I think Will told Neal to get the menu from Jenna. So yes, she was sort of an unwitting criminal, but she knows virtually nothing. Maybe she read the menu, but she has no real idea what any of it means. The Feds wouldn't want her.

 

I would question her intelligence if she read the menu's message, while the newsroom is crawling with feds, and then delivered that message to Neal, thinking nothing of it. Maybe she didn't look at what Will wrote and thought she was simply handing Will's dinner order to Neal, but wouldn't she think it's strange that she would have to do this (A) in person, and (B) outside their place of work? Just things I ponder. :)

[Haleth]

Neal burned the menu so if she keeps her mouth closed there is nothing to implicate her.

[madam magpie]

I would question her intelligence if she read the menu's message, while the newsroom is crawling with feds, and then delivered that message to Neal, thinking nothing of it. Maybe she didn't look at what Will wrote and thought she was simply handing Will's dinner order to Neal, but wouldn't she think it's strange that she would have to do this (A) in person, and (B) outside their place of work? Just things I ponder. :)

 

She was supposed to be placing a food order, though. I don't think it would have seemed odd for her to look at the menu. I think she knows something's going on (certainly she would figure that out when the FBI came into the newsroom); she just doesn't know exactly what. That said, Haleth is right on. If Jenna can just stay quiet, she'll be fine. And here's hoping, because even though she's a small part, I really like Jenna! I want my girl to be smart and savvy!

[NoWillToResist]

She was supposed to be placing a food order, though.

 

Let's hope they remembered to keep up the ruse and actually ordered food from that place! :)

 

[kieyra]

I didn't completely understand the menu thing. It seemed overly complicated. They knew the feds were coming, why not just tell Neal to run before they got there?

 

I think I must be missing a crucial piece. 

[CaughtOnTape]

I didn't completely understand the menu thing. It seemed overly complicated. They knew the feds were coming, why not just tell Neal to run before they got there?

 

I think I must be missing a crucial piece. 

 

To give him time to get further.

[madam magpie]

To give him time to get further.

 

Yes, and I think also to kind of gauge the situation. Will suspected the FBI was coming, but he didn't really know for sure. So if Neal was expecting a message on the menu, Will could tell him whatever needed to be communicated.

[iMonrey]

 

 

I didn't completely understand the menu thing. It seemed overly complicated. They knew the feds were coming, why not just tell Neal to run before they got there?

I think I must be missing a crucial piece.

 

I was a bit confused as well. I don't remember Will telling Neal anything about a menu. From what I could gather, he told his intern to come into his office three minutes after "they" got there and retrieve the menus. From this, I'm assuming he planned to pull the FBI agents into his office and find out their intentions towards Neal, at which time he could slip Neal a message on the menu. However, I don't know how the intern knew to give the menu to Neal, or how Neal would have known to retrieve it from her, unless I missed something.

[NoWillToResist]

I didn't completely understand the menu thing. It seemed overly complicated. They knew the feds were coming, why not just tell Neal to run before they got there?

 

I think I must be missing a crucial piece. 

 

There was a question as to what type of punishment Neal might face. He was fine with 10 days for contempt but less so if it was treason-time. So I think Will had him stay away until he knew if there was anything to worry about. As soon as he heard 'Leavenworth" or whatever, he got the message to Neal to run far and run fast.

 

I presume there was a bit we weren't privy to where he told Neal to wait in X spot for a message from Jenna...either the all clear, or GTFO. ;)

[morgankobi]

I don't get how anyone really believed that Neal might only be in jail up to 10 days. So much so, they were using that as the argument to go ahead with the story.  It doesn't matter that previous journalists got slaps on the wrist, this is was a major crime and it's insane they thought the government wouldn't pursue it fully.

[madam magpie]

I don't get how anyone really believed that Neal might only be in jail up to 10 days. So much so, they were using that as the argument to go ahead with the story.  It doesn't matter that previous journalists got slaps on the wrist, this is was a major crime and it's insane they thought the government wouldn't pursue it fully.

 

It's not really any more major a crime than the Pentagon Papers or Iran-Contra revealed, though. Neal's young and stupid; of course he thinks the First Amendment will protect him. Mac isn't young or stupid, but she trusts her FBI source/buddy. Plus, I know it's post-9/11, but Neal's not some enemy combatant from Iraq that they can throw into Gitmo. He's a British national working for an American media outlet on American soil. And what they'd get him on would be a technicality, not the actual leak or crime. He's only guilty of treason by default, because he told the leaker how to get him more documents. The govt would use that to squeeze him, so I think Neal would actually have a great deal of public opinion on his side. I can see why he feels brave and ballsy.

 

Mackenzie, I think, should have paid more attention to Will and Rebecca, but maybe this is where her relentless optimism and ethics will bite her. It seemed to me that she took what Molly told her at the gun range as gospel and seemed kind of horrified later when Molly was saying, "Yeah, you said it was a leak, but I didn't know it was THIS leak." It looks like Will is going to try to take the fall, and I'm wondering if Mac's ethical resolve will crack a little when she's suddenly faced with it being Will who's taken from her and carted off to jail, assuming he is. Also I'd expect her to feel guilty for encouraging Neal's ten-day delusion. This is sort of Will and Mac's fault anyway for not taking Neal seriously at the start and guiding him. I hope that comes up later and there's a lesson learned there, though I think Will gets it already.

[NoWillToResist]

It's not really any more major a crime than the Pentagon Papers or Iran-Contra revealed, though. Neal's young and stupid; of course he thinks the First Amendment will protect him. Mac isn't young or stupid, but she trusts her FBI source/buddy. Plus, I know it's post-9/11, but Neal's not some enemy combatant from Iraq that they can throw into Gitmo. He's a British national working for an American media outlet on American soil. And what they'd get him on would be a technicality, not the actual leak or crime. He's only guilty of treason by default, because he told the leaker how to get him more documents. The govt would use that to squeeze him, so I think Neal would actually have a great deal of public opinion on his side. I can see why he feels brave and ballsy.

 

Considering that the American gov't gets up to some shit, I can't imagine they'd tread lightly with a guy who managed to figure out how to get their secure info off their super secure server. That is a danger to their security whether he gives up his source or not. They will want to make an example of him, if nothing else, to dissuade any other journalists from getting any bright ideas, IMO.

 

Also, not only did he tell the leaker how to get more docs, he ASKED him to leak more state secrets. I don't think that's treason by default; he demonstrated intent to obtain and publish classified American documents and then gave directions on how to do exactly that.

 

That's a paddlin'... ;)

Edited November 20, 2014 by NoWillToResist

[madam magpie]

Well, sure, but I'd say it's still treason by default because his intention wasn't treason; it was verification. And intent does matter when it comes to the law, and certainly to public opinion. But really, I'm not saying I think Neal shouldn't have kept his mouth shut. I'm a chicken shit and would have done whatever Rebecca and Will told me to; ethics be damned. I'm just saying I get why Neal feels like he's got a high horse (soap box? Pulpit?) to stand on.

[lucindabelle]

Re Hallie: since when is 24 a child? She got through college. She knows better. She typed something offensive and hit send. It is more than a lapse I judgment it's an active case of HORRIBLE judgment and a firing offense, nd I call bs o other news orgs rushing to hire her becuase they wouldn't t want a loose cannon like that. In a journalist and know that for a fact.

[Deputy Deputy CoS]

And I enjoy Sloan/Don, but, to me, they're treading pretty close to the line between adorably hilarious and insufferably gag-worthy. Please, please, Sorkin, keep them on the right side of that line.

 

They've been the latter for me for as long as I can remember. 

 

I don't know why, both characters are arrogant, together the self-importance is twofold.

[oceanblue]

I find them organically chemistry laden and thoroughly enjoyable.  Much better than the Jim - Maggie pairing that was being forced on us.

[NoWillToResist]

Well, sure, but I'd say it's still treason by default because his intention wasn't treason; it was verification.

 

I'd actually like to know where the gov't would come down on that because, to be completely honest, I can't quite figure out whether a good defense is "well, this guy gave me leaked gov't docs but i wasn't sure I could trust this guy so I asked him to get me some more stuff". :)

 

 

Re Hallie: since when is 24 a child? She got through college. She knows better. She typed something offensive and hit send. It is more than a lapse I judgment it's an active case of HORRIBLE judgment and a firing offense, nd I call bs o other news orgs rushing to hire her becuase they wouldn't t want a loose cannon like that. In a journalist and know that for a fact.

 

I don't think she was getting any offer from legitimate news agencies. She was offended at the ones that were courting her which made me laugh in disbelief. Like, did she think fucking CNN was going to be banging down her door? Of course it was going to be the laughingstock, mud-slinging sites that would want her because, duh, she slung mud...

[madam magpie]

I don't think she was getting any offer from legitimate news agencies. She was offended at the ones that were courting her which made me laugh in disbelief. Like, did she think fucking CNN was going to be banging down her door? Of course it was going to be the laughingstock, mud-slinging sites that would want her because, duh, she slung mud...

 

I was thinking that too. Huff Post? Gawker? That's why Jim said what he did. It was a continuation of the old vs. new media debate. Sure, we all read crap like Gawker and the Huff Post, but who do we really believe? The Washington Post, NY Times, CNN, etc. Those people are represented by Mac et al, and they weren't calling Hallie. I think that's who she wants to be, though, which is why she was disappointed and hurt by what Jim said. I think! I mean, maybe she'll sell them all out in the next episode, but I hope not.

Edited November 20, 2014 by madam magpie

[NoWillToResist]

Frankly, since Hallie posted her tweet with the singular goal of re-tweets, then I think she's better suited to tabloid/sensational "journalism"...

[Boundary]

I'd actually like to know where the gov't would come down on that because, to be completely honest, I can't quite figure out whether a good defense is "well, this guy gave me leaked gov't docs but i wasn't sure I could trust this guy so I asked him to get me some more stuff". :)

 

The govt wants the leaker first and foremost. Throwing Neal into jail is simply a means to get him to out his source and the more serious the charge, the more pressure Neal will feel. That's why Will offered to shield Neal by confessing to the FBI that he also knows the whistleblower. Will's logic was that, given his stature, they wouldn't really cuff him up, would they? Whether he's right we'll see.

Edited November 20, 2014 by Boundary

[oceanblue]

There must be a protocol in place on who is allowed to tweet for the network, right?  Hallie said she noticed Neil hadn't tweeted yet so she did it.  That's nuts.  Anyone could have noticed and all of them could have sent out conflicting tweets.  

[madam magpie]

There must be a protocol in place on who is allowed to tweet for the network, right?  Hallie said she noticed Neil hadn't tweeted yet so she did it.  That's nuts.  Anyone could have noticed and all of them could have sent out conflicting tweets.  

 

Hallie and Neal are the social media people in the newsroom. That's their job, and she's probably his back-up. The others wouldn't have messed with the blog or Twitter.

Edited November 20, 2014 by madam magpie

[alexvillage]

There is a case of a NY Times journalist who was being pressured to give up the name of his source. He refused. Not the same thing, but maybe Sorkin is basing his story on this one. Bottom line: refusing to give the name of the source can take years of back and forth. This journalist has not spent time in jail.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/03/us/james-risen-faces-jail-time-for-refusing-to-identify-a-confidential-source.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/28/us/case-of-james-risen-times-reporter-poses-dilemma-for-justice-department.html

[Crs97]

Frankly, since Hallie posted her tweet with the singular goal of re-tweets, then I think she's better suited to tabloid/sensational "journalism"...

 

 

Maybe Nina is hiring . . . or did she go legit, and now there's an opening?

[CozyKat]

"You realize you just delivered a monologue."

"Everyone does that where I work."

 

Also:

Rebecca to Will on his legal credentials: "And now when you go to work, you put on makeup, just like me."

And Charlie to the twins: "I wasn't in the delivery room, cuz boundaries."

And best of all, Leona to Reese: "I sold my clothes, dealt a little weed. ... Just kidding; I didn't sell my clothes."

[lovinbob]

"You realize you just delivered a monologue."

"Everyone does that where I work."

This was a little too on the nose for me.

 

(1)  I think it was strongly implied that Leona cheated on their father (the crack about Reese looking like their father's brother).

I hate this reasoning, which I've seen on other shows (Rescue Me, for one). They share genes--Reese looking like his uncle doesn't mean a damn thing. My sister's son looks exactly like me and my son. Does that mean my sister isn't his mother?

 

It's unclear to me why the kids don't like Leona. I guess because they feel entitled to more of the AWN fortune? I guess that would do it. I like that the Kat Dennings character is not an idiot. A worthy-ish adversary.

[EyesGlazed]

I knew this f'ing show would get good in its last season just in time to disappear.  

[Hanahope]

Come on! A lawyer who graduated second in her class from the third best law school on the planet doesn't know that the presence of a third party breaks privilege for her client?

 

I'm not a lawyer but I've been in a meeting where the company's lawyer was in the room specifically so that the conversation would be covered by attorney-client privilege.  Rebecca doesn't just represent Neal, she represents ACN.  So having multiple ACN employees in the meeting shouldn't break privilege.

 

When the lawyer represents the company, certain higher level people and/or executives of the company can sit in on any meeting and retain attorney-client

 

privilege.

 

 

I don't think she was getting any offer from legitimate news agencies. She was offended at the ones that were courting her which made me laugh in disbelief. Like, did she think fucking CNN was going to be banging down her door? Of course it was going to be the laughingstock, mud-slinging sites that would want her because, duh, she slung mud...

 

Yes, but if she was slinging that mud the other way, you bet your bottom dollar Fox News would be calling.

 

Which reminds me, I did love the Obama dig Sorkin made via the EPA guy, about why Obama seemed to think he had any political capital to "save" with Republicans so might as well at least try to get some little thing done that the Rep's may not care as much about.  Though frankly Obama could seek legislation saying the sky was blue and the Republicans would fight him tooth and nail on it.

 

 

(1)  I think it was strongly implied that Leona cheated on their father (the crack about Reese looking like their father's brother).

 

I hate this reasoning, which I've seen on other shows (Rescue Me, for one). They share genes--Reese looking like his uncle doesn't mean a damn thing. My sister's son looks exactly like me and my son. Does that mean my sister isn't his mother?

It's unclear to me why the kids don't like Leona. I guess because they feel entitled to more of the AWN fortune?

 

I agree that simply because Reese looked like the father's brother doesn't mean a damn thing, as long as Reese also looked like the father's mother or father.  People take after siblings all the time.  One of my daughters looks exactly like my husband's sister (who looks like their mother), I don't think that means I had sex with my sister in law.

 

But obviously, or presumably, Reese's father thought something happened between his brother and Leona and then when Reese looked like his brother, considered it confirmed.  I have to presume that Reese's father then filed a very bitter divorce, taking half of Leona's company.  He no doubt passed on that bitterness to his new children, probably bitched and moaned extensively about Leona (because he still loved her) and never truly loved the twin's mother.  The twins resented that.  Blair wasn't after simply money, she proved that by upping her price to Leona to buy them out.  Blair wanted to exact more 'revenge' on Leona.

 

I agree that so far, this season is shaping up to be significantly better than last season (as well as season 1).  The women, for the most part, are looking far more competent and the story line not quite so ridiculous.

Edited November 26, 2014 by Hanahope

[Inquisitionist]

I agree that simply because Reese looked like the father's brother doesn't mean a damn thing, as long as Reese also looked like the father's mother or father.

 

Is the italicized part even necessary?  One of my brothers is the spitting image of an uncle, but has little resemblance to that uncle's parents.  Families are so small these days, limiting our observation of the diversity inherent in genetics.  My mom had 10 siblings, some of whom look a lot alike, others whom you'd never even guess were cousins, let alone siblings.  When you get to my generation, there are cousins who look more like siblings than the actual siblings do, and the resemblances to particular aunts and uncles can be really striking.

[NoWillToResist]

Yes, but if she was slinging that mud the other way, you bet your bottom dollar Fox News would be calling.

 

Like I said, Hallie can't expect legitimate news agencies to court a 'reporter' who just made headlines for any mud-slinging. ;)