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Empire in the Media: Read It In Billboard

Trini

By Trini
in Empire

Princess Sparkle
Message added by Princess Sparkle

Remember: Keep your thoughts on the Jussie Smollett situation on his situation only - not Chicago politics, not policing in general, not politics in general, not the state of the country in general, not OJ, not Michael Avenetti, not anyone except Jussie Smollett. 

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SimoneS
SimoneS

Whatever his motivation, it doesn't matter, all that that matters is the damage that his false hate crime allegation to people who are being violently attacked and victimized. 

jsbt
jsbt

Yeah, no. Agree to disagree. I believed Jussie Smollett's story wholeheartedly. It echoed the times we live in. It broke my heart. I was a fan. Now all I do is see red when I think about it. It m

RealReality10
RealReality10

There are always going to be a subset of people who will question a story of a hate crime or sexual assault.  Those minds are closed and there is no opening them. The disservice JS did was with r

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wanderingstar

wanderingstar

(edited)

Some of my favorite recaps of the finale

 

Observer.com: 'Empire' Season Finale Recap: The Lion's Head

You had attempted murders, accidental murders, excuse me, murthers (that’s Shakespeare if you’re nasty), hostile takeovers, catfights, wordplay, foreplay, sex, GAY sex (so HTGAWM!),  Jennifer Hudson holding a stack of bibles, Snoop Lion (IS HE RELATED?!),  Rita Ora (not busy per the usual), Patti LaFreakingbelle, women playing pool in bikinis, Cookie in upwards of four furs (When does Cookie buy all her fur?! She just got out of jail and now she has 40 furs? Every rabbit in Upstate New York is moving to Florida with Raven Simone right now.)

 

 

Paste Magazine

After announcing that he was misdiagnosed (he has Myasthenia Gravis), Lucious hands Jamal the kingdom, Hakeem a private jet (so that he can fly around the world and get his girl back), and Andre a million gabillion dollars for God/the Church he’s joined (this actually happens in the second hour, “Who I Am,”). Everyone should be happy. But that terrifying laugh Lucious let out when he discovered he wasn’t going to die made it clear that his new lease on life wasn’t going to benefit anyone. At some point in time, every person in his family has made it clear that they were lit’rally waiting for him to die. They’re all going to pay for that, but he’s gotta butter them up first.

 

 

NY Times ArtsBeat

It seems like a violation of Chekhov’s gun rule to put Naomi Campbell in the first act and not have her throw a phone at someone in the third. (She tore up a check instead.) But other than that, the first season of “Empire,” which ended on Fox on Wednesday, was pretty perfect.

 

 

Denverpost.com

“It’s gotta be epic! It’s gotta be like a supernova! That’s how I want to go out,” Lucious (Terence Howard) said at the start. And that’s how “Empire” went out for the season.
Edited by Gillian Rosh
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Mozelle

Mozelle

Malik Yoba is on TMZ Live, he said Lee Daniels called him while making episode 11 and told him he was going to die... And that FOX told Daniels they wanted someone to die in the finale. That angers me. I hate when networks dictate things and I really hope they don't make it a regular habit.

I'm listening to Malik on the March 19 show of The Combat Jack show. It's, like, two and a half hours long and I'm only a half hour in, but they've talked about Empire.

He's frustrated; you can hear it in his voice and by the way he's explaining things. He was bothered by the fact that there was no backstory with Vernon, that in 12 episodes he had, like, 2.2 lines. He apparently wrote a backstory for the character because TPTB just wanted him to focus on the acting, but at the same time, Malik's like, How can I? I don't what he's about.

He shared that he got the call from Lee Daniels before episode 11 (or around that time). Malik was out in Ferguson putting in work and got the "your services will no longer be needed" call. :/

Now I'm hoping that Netflix starts streaming New York Undercover. I'm realizing how much I miss that show. My friend was all about some Mike De Lorenzo while I was about some Malik. (Too bad he's kinda ashy looking now, though...)

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JessePinkman

JessePinkman

Penultimate episode of #EmpireFOX, airing at 8 pm, notched 20.2M viewers and 8.0 A18-49. Combined 2-hour for #EmpireFinale: 8.4 A18-49

 

 

 

BOOM: #EmpireFinale isn't done smashing records: With 3 days of DVR, Wednesday's final hour jumps to 21.9 million viewers and 8.8 A18-49.

 

 

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SailingBy

SailingBy

(edited)

(Lil') Bow Wow Says He Would Never Be On Empire Because It Stereotypes Black People

Ain't no one call you. #byefelicia

p.s. Wasn't there gay pics of him released a few years ago?

Nope. A quick google shows that someone tweeted a picture of two guys cuddling, one of whom, in a grainy picture where he has his eyes closed, could possibly be thought to look a little bit like Bow Wow, claiming it was him. The other guy in the picture came forward, it was just a pic that he had tweeted himself, of him and his boyfriend who actually looks nothing like Bow Wow, and he had nothing to do with the claim. The way Bow Wow responded at the time wasn't exactly pretty though. If you don't want people to think you're a homophobic douchebag, stop acting like any suggestion that you might possibly not be a 200% flaming heterosexual is the worst insult known to man. The fact that you remember this incident at all also shows it's counterproductive: if he'd ignored it, or treated it as a joke, probably nobody would remember. As it is, some people still have the "Bow Wow / gay pictures" association, despite there apparently not being anything to it. It's a small-scale example of the Streisand Effect, with a bit of the Methinks The Lady Doth Protest Too Much Effect added in. .

 

A few actual media outlets did rub me the wrong way, I know the NY Post is... well... the NY Post

SInce we're talking about Empire, cue the mid-post song. This little ditty is by Joe Keenan, a boogie woogie salute to the New York Post:

"Tot Is Crushed Under Daddy's Wheels!"

"Three Dismembered As Nut Goes Wild!"

Jury Reels

As Mom Reveals:

"Voices Told Me To Eat My Child!"

In the Post

The Post!

The New York Post!

Sex and death with your morning toast!

 

I also don't buy that he was killed because he outed Jussie. TH outed Jussie first, and Jussie stated that he was never in the closet. I think they just wanted Malik Yoba off the show.

This. Terrence Howard already mentioned it, in an interview from before the pilot even aired, and before almost anyone would have known who this Jussie person he was talking about was. And as you say, how can you out someone who states himself he was never in, and even before that said he didn't care what anyone else said about the subject?

What I also don't buy is that some network executives would order the creators of the biggest TV phenomenon in ages to randomly kill off someone in a season finale, just for the heck of it. Or that those same executives would threaten to axe a show like that, just because one actor portraying a minor, disposable character has a drug problem. Not unless the people who run Fox have gone as crazy and incompetent as the people who run the fictional Empire.

A drugs problem on the other hand is not exactly uncommon, nor is an actor being fired for it. But neither is a character being eliminated just to create another twist in the season finale, and also conveniently make room for new characters in season 2. There are only so many people you can fit into a show. If an actor is already, for whatever reasons, unpopular with either his colleagues or the producers, that's an added risk factor.

Edited by SailingBy
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Happytobehere

Happytobehere

Given that Jamal dangling Baretti reminded a lot of people of Suge dangling Vanilla Ice, the comparison becomes even more ridiculous.  And hilarious!

True, but that rumor dates back to the Temptations and if I recall correctly, it was a scene in The Five Headtbeats, a film that predates the crybaby thug. He and his lawyers are just trying to deflect and do anything they can to humanize a man whose entire career was rooted in being the big bad.

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SailingBy

SailingBy

(edited)

What do you think, right, all wrong?  I don't agree, but what do I know?  I'm an old lady.

 

http://blog.classyblacklady.com/2015/01/why-i-can-won-support-empire-despite.html

 

I'd say the idea that Rupert Murdoch's worldwide right-wing political leanings somehow have a direct, racist impact on Fox's USA scheduling decisions, and in particular the decision to air Empire opposite Blackish (which I've never seen) on ABC as some kind of devious stratagem, is pure conspiracy thinking. US network television doesn't work that way. Generally, you might as well make the claim that Dallas and Dynasty (yes, I am old enough to have seen both when they first aired - let me hasten to add I was a mere foetus at the time) were meant to paint all white people in the US as filthy rich, conniving, power-hungry, backstabbing, adulterous, generally unhinged and ocassionally murderous SOBs, whose women settle business disputes with catfights and whose men can't deal with having a gay son. And oh yes, they all own and run oil companies.

Edited by SailingBy
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Mozelle

Mozelle

What I also don't buy is that some network executives would order the creators of the biggest TV phenomenon in ages to randomly kill off someone in a season finale, just for the heck of it. Or that those same executives would threaten to axe a show like that, just because one actor portraying a minor, disposable character has a drug problem. Not unless the people who run Fox have gone as crazy and incompetent as the people who run the fictional Empire.

 

Network executives have more sway than you seem to believe. They're the ones ultimately giving the green light to projects and signing the talents' (which includes the creators) checks. I'm reminded recently of the essay in Vulture by Eddie Huang on the behind-the-scenes stuff when it came to creating Fresh Off the Boat for ABC, which is based on his memoir.

 

There were things that he objected to that the executives wanted and ultimately got because they figured that they knew what was best for the show...even if those things didn't hew to what Eddie Huang wanted or what he'd written about in his memoirs (e.g., he pushed--and lost--on some scene where the suits at ABC had the character based on him going to a Beastie Boys concert when he preferred the concert be a Gravediggaz concert).

 

While I don't believe that the executives would threaten to pull Empire off the air, it doesn't seem at all farfetched that they'd want a "OMG, Kimberly blew up Melrose Place" sort of finale, either.  

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Gigi43

Gigi43

(edited)

Networks in general are known to make plot demands whether its needed or not. A good recent example is USA demanded season 5 of White Collar to have some kind of cliffhanger finale, then after it was done they only gave "season 6" six episodes to wrap up the series. Fox has micromanaged shows in the past... I totally think its possible they requested a death. This is the network that insisted Firefly be shown out of order after all.

The Empire/Blackish article is a heaping work of conspiracy theory. Wednesday night does have Modern Family and SVU on but they're not in their prime any more. Its a good night to put something new on no matter what it is. Plus Wednesday is Idol on Fox, also not the powerhouse it use to be but airing a show about the music industry, with original songs no less, makes perfect sense to pair as a line up. Also the piece basically implies only black people are watching both shows... Which, No.

Edited by Gigi43
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Queena

Queena

(edited)
That was funny. I don't believe that TPH and TH have script control. Does TPH wear Spanx, yes, but so what. I'm not sure about the jealousy. As far as TH being jealous of Yoba, I don't know. They would've done better saying that Yazz was jealous of Jussie. Edited by Queena
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Mozelle

Mozelle

Omg, that was hilarious. Women swoon over ashy lipped Malik Yoba. Lol!

 

Nooooo!!! Ha! From the Daily Fail:

 

 

'He never liked working opposite Malik because women just swoon over him. During promotional appearances and public events, women would go crazy over Malik because he's been a Hollywood stud for a long time.

 

 

Now, if you told me this in 1994 (which is about the time I was all about some J.C. Williams), I'd believe it. Now? Naw, playa. 

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Queena

Queena

Nooooo!!! Ha! From the Daily Fail:

Now, if you told me this in 1994 (which is about the time I was all about some J.C. Williams), I'd believe it. Now? Naw, playa.

Right! I'm not swooning over either of them.

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jsbt

jsbt

I loved Malik Yoba on New York Undercover but i've heard stories about him (and his ego, not any other habits) since Cop Land. He came off fairly full of himself in some pre-Empire interviews as well. I like him but I don't think he was essential to the show and it doesn't surprise me he's making a fuss now.

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JessePinkman

JessePinkman

(edited)

‘Empire’ Breaks Records on Twitter, Cast’s Following Grows
 


Tweets from last week’s “Empire” finale — which drew in a whopping 17 million viewers overall — were viewed more than 112 million times by about 5.9 million people, according to Nielson data. Its 2.3 million tweets generated overall makes it the most-tweeted about telecast since Nielsen started measuring.

 
'Empire' Is 'Good Enough' to Hit Radio Charts
 

On the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop tally (which ranks total weekly song plays), the Empire cast's "Good Enough," featuring Jussie Smollett, debuts at No. 39. The show's first-season finale, which aired on March 18, helped boost interest at the format, as the song is up by 40 percent in plays in the week ending March 22, according to Nielsen Music.

 

Expect Some Epic Empire References in The Mindy Project Finale

 

"We were like, ‘Guys, Mindy Lahiri would be obsessed with Cookie. Like there's no world where we finish the season without her referencing her' and in the finale, we have some good Empire stuff," she says.

 

LOVE this!

Edited by JessePinkman
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Rick Kitchen

Rick Kitchen

 

Such was the case with Jennifer Lopez and Eva Longoria, who both commanded on-air episodic orders from NBC when they committed to star in drama Shades Of Blue and comedy Telenovela, respectively

 

JLo and Eva are the executive producers or their shows.  That comment makes no sense.

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Skyline

Skyline

(edited)

Shonda Rhimes responds:

Television powerhouse producer Shonda Rhimes blasted an article posted on DeadlineTuesday, saying television casting has become too ethnically diverse this season, calling the piece by Nellie Andreeva “ignorant.”

“1st Reaction:: HELL NO. Lemme take off my earrings, somebody hold my purse! 2nd Reaction: Article is so ignorant I can’t even be bothered,” tweeted Rhimes, creator of “Scandal,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “How to Get Away With Murder.”

http://www.thewrap.com/shonda-rhimes-blasts-deadline-diversity-article-as-ignorant-twitter-outraged/ Edited by Skyline
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jhlipton

jhlipton

From what I've read about the show, she is the classic sapphire stereotype, snapping her way through every scene.

Then you have the pimpish black father played by Terrance Howard (a person who has made his distaste with black women glaringly clear in the past, but of course black women are quick to forget). He is the classic stereotype of a trifling black father who abuses his family, and of course now that he's rich he is involved with a white woman.


What do you think, right, all wrong?  I don't agree, but what do I know?  I'm an old lady.
 
http://blog.classyblacklady.com/2015/01/why-i-can-won-support-empire-despite.html

From what I've read about the show, she is the classic sapphire stereotype, snapping her way through every scene.
Then you have the pimpish black father played by Terrance Howard (a person who has made his distaste with black women glaringly clear in the past, but of course black women are quick to forget). He is the classic stereotype of a trifling black father who abuses his family, and of course now that he's rich he is involved with a white woman.


You know, maybe you should watch a show before you criticize it, lest you look like a loon.

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JessePinkman

JessePinkman

That was awesome. I'm surprised they didn't wait to release it closer to season 2. And I hope the other parts don't give away too much backstory, I don't want the show beholden to anything in case they come up great idea down the road.

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SailingBy

SailingBy

Network executives have more sway than you seem to believe. They're the ones ultimately giving the green light to projects and signing the talents' (which includes the creators) checks. I'm reminded recently of the essay in Vulture by Eddie Huang on the behind-the-scenes stuff when it came to creating Fresh Off the Boat for ABC, which is based on his memoir.

While I don't believe that the executives would threaten to pull Empire off the air, it doesn't seem at all farfetched that they'd want a "OMG, Kimberly blew up Melrose Place" sort of finale, either.  

 

I know they have a lot of sway, and that they often get into micromanaging shows, but I just don't think that there is any reason to assume they had anything to do with the decision to have Vernon killed. They already knew they would have a season finale with one OMG moment after another. That of all those, they had to impose one extra one involving a character (it allegedly didn't matter which one, just as long as someone got killed) on the unwilling creators/producers doesn't seem very plausible to me. Plus, there is a very good plot reason to want to get rid of Vernon for season 2. As one of the arresting officers so unsubtly pointed out to us, their case against Lucious seems to rest entirely on Vernon's testimony. As long as he's around and willing to testify, it would be very difficult to let Lucious get away with the murder in season 2. Unless they're planning to have Lucious permanently in prison, first awaiting trial and then following his conviction, eliminating Vernon seems like a perfectly normal end-of-season decision. There is no need to involve demands from network executives for a death, or any particular problems with an actor, as an explanation.

 

On that last subject, the "Malik Yoba was terminated because he outed Jussie" canard seems to be turning into an urban legend of sorts. Here it is trotted out once again: http://chicagodefender.com/2015/03/24/the-real-reason-malik-yoba-was-fired-from-empire/ ,

It is just so stoopid. Even the timeline doesn't fit: unless I'm much mistaken, when Yoba made that remark, the finale had already been shot (the interview appeared on February 23, the finale aired on March 18).

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Kendall

Kendall

Mo'nique keeps talking Empire, but doesn't want to make it her vs. TPH.

https://youtu.be/7003LiOAV7A

 

So, I went to watch the video and I may look at the other parts of the interview, but I don't know, she is ticking me off. I make no secret that I'm not a fan of Mo'Nique and I've never been a fan. The only time she was even palatable was when she had her radio show with this really positive black DJ as her partner. Next thing I know, she got rid of that guy and the show became everything I find Mo'Nique to be: a ridiculous minstrel show.

 

Mo'Nique is from Baltimore, so she knows the deal, if you keep somebody's name in your mouth, people are going to eventually feel like you have a problem with them. If you really believe that Cookie was made for Taraji, then why are you steady talkin' about how once upon a time, somebody else thought Cookie was made for you?

 

I know that it could be argued that she's really talking about Lee doing her dirty, but why didn't she talk about her relationship with Lee during the media frenzy of "The Butler"? Or, shortly thereafter? If she did and I missed it, let me know.

 

Until then, don't try to play me (the public) stupid and act like you're just fed up with the situation. Naw, this is all coming up now because you are simply jealous and angry that Taraji is THAT CHICK right now. She's THAT CHICK and she didn't have to get nekkid with Billy Bob Thornton to do it, no shade to Halle.

 

Taraji is THAT CHICK playing a very, very, very black woman on TV and that simply doesn't happen that often. Cookie Lyons isn't educated or as polished as Annalise or Olivia, but she is beloved. And while many people would rather she not be that kind of black woman on TV because of Taraji's portrayal, that kind of black woman has finally been humanized and people, even within the black community, are able to see that chick isn't so bad once you get to know her, you just never took the time to get to know her.

 

Cookie Lyons is a role that any black actress worth her salt should've wanted to play, but most of the black actresses in Hollywood may think they are worth their salt, but that role would've eaten them alive and that not only includes, but in my opinion, places Mo'Nique at the top of the list of actresses that would've completely bungled Cookie.

 

Mo'Nique declined to play this stealing shine game with Oprah and thought she could get away with it versus Taraji, but she didn't know it was going to blow up in her face like this. She thought people were going to be like, "wow! We could've had Mo'Nique!" but no, we're like, "whew! That could've been Mo'Nique? Um, I guess."

 

She said something to the effect that she knew the game and what people are trying to make it, but either she knows the game and is trying to play puppetmaster for the publicity. Or, she doesn't truly know the game and can't see how she's giving the ammunition for people to try to detract from the attention and accolades for Empire. Nobody was thinking about Mo'Nique in regards to Empire or even just about Mo'Nique.

 

She put herself back out there, not on her own work and acclaim, but on Taraji's work and renewed acclaim and she ought to be ashamed of herself for every moment that she continues to do it. Not only were people not thinking about her, but after she went on the first show, people returned to not thinking about her once they stopped clowning her.

 

Mo'Nique doesn't see exactly how much she is telling on herself with this stunt. People are feeling less and less empathy for whatever they imagined her situation to be with each interview.

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yourstruly

yourstruly

(edited)

 

Yes, especially since Lucious isn't involved with a white woman.  Sometimes people should just stay quiet, that way they don't sound stupid.

She's not referring to Lucious, she's referring to Terrence Howard in real life. Not trying to take sides, but I do remember reading years ago about Howard praising Asian women (his current wife is Asian) for being respectful and submissive (which certainly does not jibe with any Asian women I know) and disparaged black women for being the opposite. This on top of his domestic violence issues. One can only hope that he has turned a new leaf-he has a good thing going now, he needs to not screw it up. I thought he was especially strong in the finale episodes.

 

 

Naw, this is all coming up now because you are simply jealous and angry that Taraji is THAT CHICK right now.

With the emphasis on the "right now". I don't understand why she is getting all upset about it-the show has only been on a season-if it is still huge in five years, if it is even still on in five years, then maybe Mo'Nique might have a reason to whine. But popularity is fleeting and the jury is still out on this IMHO.

 

And on a shallow note, Mo'Nique would have been all wrong as Cookie (hindsight is 20/20 because at this point I can't imagine anyone but Henson in the role) because I cannot visualize her and Terence Howard as a couple with lusty feelings toward each other. Yeah, it's mean but Henson is just considerably prettier than Mo'Nique and I think that matters for the show.

Edited by yourstruly
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ribboninthesky1

ribboninthesky1

(edited)

With the emphasis on the "right now". I don't understand why she is getting all upset about it-the show has only been on a season-if it is still huge in five years, if it is even still on in five years, then maybe Mo'Nique might have a reason to whine. But popularity is fleeting and the jury is still out on this IMHO.

 

Good point.  But from what I've observed of Monique, long-range thinking and strategy isn't even on her radar. She's a classic example of self-sabotage. 

 

And on a shallow note, Mo'Nique would have been all wrong as Cookie (hindsight is 20/20 because at this point I can't imagine anyone but Henson in the role) because I cannot visualize her and Terence Howard as a couple with lusty feelings toward each other. Yeah, it's mean but Henson is just considerably prettier than Mo'Nique and I think that matters for the show.

 

I've always thought Monique was pretty, even if I didn't like her attitude.  But Monique, from what I've seen, doesn't have the ability to take what was likely a walking stereotype on paper and give nuance and depth to the character.  IMO, she didn't do that with Precious, though her final monologue was supposed to achieve this. 

 

I've read here and other places that she wouldn't have chemistry with Terrance Howard, and that's probably true.  But I suspect most of Cookie's appeal/resonance has little to do with sexual chemistry with Lucious.     

 

I saw the beginning of Taraji's co-host stint on Live! with Kelly and Michael, and I think she's already over Cookiepaloosa.  So time will tell if she stays with the show long-term, especially if more lucrative offers come her way. Can't say I blame her if she does.     

Edited by ribboninthesky1
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Gigi43

Gigi43

(edited)

So many roles have an "almost list" in film/tv. I've heard there's a whole list of people who turned down Home Alone (including DeNiro) because people didn't think anyone would see a movie based on people basically neglecting and harassing a kid. It sounds like Daniels was trying to be decent by letting Mo'Nique maybe audition but he doesn't owe her a role he doesn't owe it to her to speak to her really because they made a hit movie. Her PR tour is doing nothing but really feed that she is in fact difficult. A smart person would play it in a way to maybe get a role now that the show is a hit. I don't care if you're in Hollywood or a Bank attitude," team playing ", counts in the work field, it just does. She's hurting herself not Daniels and certainly not TPH.

I think Taraji could play into how many episodes per season. When Empire was premiering she was talking a lot on something about how the 13 episodes really, really appealed to her because the 22 she's used to really cut into doing other projects.

Edited by Gigi43
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jhlipton

jhlipton

She's not referring to Lucious, she's referring to Terrence Howard in real life.

"Then you have the pimpish black father played by Terrance Howard (a person who has made his distaste with black women glaringly clear in the past, but of course black women are quick to forget). He is the classic stereotype of a trifling black father who abuses his family, and of course now that he's rich he is involved with a white woman."

 

Only the bolded part refers to TH; the rest, including the "white woman" comment, refers to Lucious.

 

She also makes the common mistake that because Fox network and Fox Noise are both owned by Murdoch, they have the same views.  She has never watched The Simpsons or The Shield, obviously. (I always feel a little dirty watching shows on Fox, but so many of them are just SO GOOD!

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jhlipton

jhlipton

http://www.beyondblackwhite.com/once-again-main-stream-media-awards-black-dysfunction/#comments

 

Now this post, complaining about dysfunction is sort of correct, the only thing is people like watching dysfunction period, no matter what the race of people are.  (see Game of Thrones)

The author of the piece states that she knows that Cookie is the star, so the show is about a smart, tough well-rounded black woman who will do anything for family. She also notes that Empire had one of the more accurate depictions of bi-polar disease. But other than that, it's exactly like a show about a guy who had a busload of kids.

 

Also, I'm dubious of anyone who says "And at this point, black people who complain about unfair representations of black people in television just need to shut the phuck up, because they are right there clapping and cooning at nonsense that make us look like the worst people on planet Earth."  Really?  "Cooning" FFS????  The article loses all validity for me at that point.

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Neurochick

Neurochick

(edited)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3013887/Empire-star-Malik-Yoba-gains-retraction-website-s-learned-rumour-departing-Fox-started-rogue-blogger-Thailand.html

 

Look, more from the Daily Fai...Mail.

 

The issue that I have with that blog post is that the writer doesn't understand that dysfunction sells.   Some people who say they don't watch Empire will watch shows like Breaking Bad, Dallas, Dynasty, Game of Thrones, even Downton Abbey has its share of dysfunction.  

 

I'm re-watching 1985's "Jewel in the Crown" talk about screwed up, dysfunctional people.

 

Screwed up, dysfunctional people sell and it's been that way since Oedipus Rex was first performed.  

Edited by Neurochick
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SailingBy

SailingBy

(edited)

She also makes the common mistake that because Fox network and Fox Noise are both owned by Murdoch, they have the same views.  She has never watched The Simpsons or The Shield, obviously. (I always feel a little dirty watching shows on Fox, but so many of them are just SO GOOD!

I remember the hilarious moment when the executives at Fox News, terribly upset at a spoof of them on The Simpsons, publicly threatened to sue. Yes, really. One branch of a huge media company threatened to drag another branch into court. An ensuing public "oh sorry, we're just a highly reliable, well-informed, fair and balanced news network, so we couldn't possibly have known that the Fox company that makes The Simpsons is the same Fox company we work for" apology never came, I think.

Edited by SailingBy
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SailingBy

SailingBy

(edited)

 

I love this bit, being a furriner:

 

you be sure the [sic] dance and smile when someone from China, Spain, or the Ukraine thinks you’re a baby-mama-crack-head-video-hoe.

Yes, because of course (a) all people from China, Spain and the Ukraine are incredibly stupid, and assume that any American TV fiction they see is an accurate representation of life in the US (that's not stereotyping about Chinese, or Spanish, or Ukrainian people at all, you understand - it's just a statement of fact); and (b) all those funny-talking furriners share exactly the same obsessions and classifications some Americans do about what in the USA is called "race" (a word I keep putting in quotes, because if you so much as use it without quotes where I live you mark yourself out as a racist - it's pretty much the ultimate taboo word in continental western Europe), and will therefore immediately link their TV-fiction-induced stereotypes to the skin pigmentation of the actors shown.

 

Taraji P. Henson mentioned in a panel Q&A that they did a similar thing with members of the Hollywood foreign press association (whatever their official name is, they're the people who do the Golden Globes). She thought it was remarkable that not a single one of those foreign journalists brought up Empire being a "black" show. Yes, with questions coming from American journalists that would indeed be remarkable. But that most foreigners just see an over-the-top soap about wholly unrealistic, crazy, rich Americans, not wholly unrealistic, crazy, rich black Americans, and that there isn't such a thing as a "black show" where they're from, isn't remarkable at all.

 

Edited for typos.

Edited by SailingBy
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Kendall

Kendall

With the emphasis on the "right now". I don't understand why she is getting all upset about it-the show has only been on a season-if it is still huge in five years, if it is even still on in five years, then maybe Mo'Nique might have a reason to whine. But popularity is fleeting and the jury is still out on this IMHO.

 

 

Looking at the numbers and ratings, even if during the second season half the current viewers stop watching and then in the third season, the same happens, they will still pull in numbers that will keep them as one of the most popular shows on TV. Once they get to the third season with just five million viewers, they are pretty much a lock to go five seasons, 100 episodes and the most desired opportunity for syndication, so that's why Mo'Nique is salty and any other actress that wanted the role or heaven forbid, turned down the role without even seriously considering it.

 

Taraji, Terrence and the other hit the jackpot and thus far, Taraji and Terrence are doing it on their own terms as they will still be able to do other projects alongside Empire. That's almost unheard of for most actors, but for black actors? This isn't as widely covered as Gabrielle Union whimpering over Scandal, but both Gabby and Mo'Nique know what is ahead for Taraji and what was in store for Kerry.

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