Michaela Pratt: Shooting Star

[CabotCove]

Quote

 

Michaela is the only one who was bothered that Nate was being framed, to the extent that she sat in during his hearing and Annalisse had to reassure her that Nate won't be convicted of her crime.

Yet she feels the least remorse? 

It is some sort of selective implicit bias that can admit that and at the same time conclude that the only person in the group that expressed unhappiness at framing an innocent man is the person in the group that shows the least amount of guilt. But hey, at this rate Michaela could rush into a burning building and you'd argue that risking her life was arrogant and entitled and makes her worse than the arsonist. 

 

?? Oh kind of stories people fabricate about this "type" of character, it never gets old does it. 

Just saw the thread bumped to front page. Here I thought this thread was gonna be full of praising AJa Naomi King, after she has been such a shining star in the last few episodes, but nope nothing has changed. 

Edited October 25, 2016 by HeroLeague

[Tiger]

Im not going to speak for others, but I have no idea where some people are getting this whole 'Michaela is judged more harshly because she's female and black'. Ive never one shred of that on this board or anywhere else.

Again, not to speak for others, but I personally rank Michaela worse than Connor and Nate because the two of them keep being forced to do things, or bad things happen to them.  While the same is true for Michaela, she is also out poking the bear.  She steals money, drives drunk, and steals peoples personal belongings, and then physically threatens those same people.  

Lastly, if Michaela was ever supposed to be homophobic, then Aja and the writers and producers did a piss poor job of showing it.  She didnt like that Aidan had lied to her, it had nothing to do with him being gay.

Edited October 25, 2016 by Tiger

[CabotCove]

Quote

 

Im not going to speak for others, but I have no idea where some people are getting this whole 'Michaela is judged more harshly because she's female and black'. Ive never one shred of that on this board or anywhere else.

 

 

? You dont get how she is treated harshly due to her gender and race but then you go on and say this:

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Again, not to speak for others, but I personally rank Michaela worse than Connor and Nate because the two of them keep being forced to do things, or bad things happen to them.  While the same is true for Michaela, she is also out poking the bear.  She steals money, drives drunk, and steals peoples personal belongings, and then physically threatens those same people.  

?

Just proving the point.  

[Milaxx]

Michaela was forced by Connor & Laurel to go along with covering up Sam's death.  Sure Nate & maybe Oliver aren't quite as bad as the K5 but if you read up thread their are posters calling Michaela a mean girl, lacking remorse & homophobic. I don't recall any of this happening. 

[Tiger]

23 minutes ago, HeroLeague said:

? You dont get how she is treated harshly due to her gender and race but then you go on and say this:

?

Just proving the point.  

Uh, what does me pointing out that she drove drunk, stole money, stole personal items, and threatened people have anything to do with her race and/or gender? 

[Milaxx]

Because they have all stolen. Oliver is committing cyber theft every time he hacks.  Connor has been lying to Oliver from day 1. Laurel stole Micheala's engagement ring. Laurel stole from the library when she & Wes went to look up info on his mom.  Asher snuck in & stole Annalise recorder when Sinclair was blackmailing him.  It's very odd that Michaela is somehow worse than any of the other K5 ,  including those who literally killed people like Asher & Wes.  They all lie, cheat & steal. 

Edited October 25, 2016 by Milaxx

[ribboninthesky]

On 10/24/2016 at 2:21 AM, Glade said:

I agree that certain characters are given free passes for abusive, narcissistic behavior, but that list includes Micheala, who was also excused from her repeated homophobic/biphobic outbursts in season 1 by many people who don't care about/aren't personally affected by those issues.

This is patently untrue. Up to now, Michaela still gets harshly criticized in online circles as being "homophobe/biphobic/ignorant" for her admittedly poor reaction to that train-wreck of a story arc involving Aiden. You know who has managed to skate by free and clear from backlash while harassing her? Only to become the "fan favorite," even after outing someone without consent for no other reason but spite? Her supposed bestie, Connor Walsh. And in case you were wondering if that was water under the bridge, he happened to dredge up that turd in the punch bowl: a mere two episodes ago. Played for nothing but cheap laughs. But tell me more.

[ribboninthesky]

On 10/23/2016 at 4:44 PM, Keepitmoving said:

The question is do people see Anna in the same way they see Michaela? Because the only difference might be their age as I see it.  Anna isn't apologetic, she doesn't hold her tongue, the list of negatives goes on and on.  Maybe it's that she doesn't appear to come off as if she's looking down on others, maybe that's the other difference for some.

The age differential is a factor, but IMHO, I think it's more of a recognition that for all intents and purposes, whether anyone likes the sum total of who Annalise Keating is as an antihero protagonist, it's her show. No ifs, ands or buts about it. Not to mention that an out-sized talent like Viola Davis goes a long way towards rising above the multitude of sins Annalise has committed to still make someone feel invested in the methods to her madness. Michaela as a supporting character with aspirations of becoming Annalise, Jr. has no such cushion. Whether people choose to admit it or not, there's often a Highlander quality in allowing WOC roles a multifaceted range of complexity. There can be only one. Factor in two badass, bright Black women on the same series? Well, it doesn't seem too far-fetched that any latent discomfort with seeing someone like Michaela assert herself while refusing to settle for anything less than what she feels she deserves, rubs many people entirely the wrong way… so she inherits the residual crap storm by default.

On 10/23/2016 at 9:47 PM, DearEvette said:

Regards how Michaela is viewed vs. how Analise is viewed, there was a long discussion on the Gender thread (in the generic tv forums) about  how fandoms react to women.  Generally, my belief is that women are judged more harshly across the board.  WOC even more so.  There are certain areas where a character is exempt or given a pass regardless of race or gender.  For instance, if they are the lead character.  Lead characters often will get a huge pass, there is some psychological sleight of hand at play where you subconsciously connect with the "hero" or protagonist and therefore you give them the leeway that a supporting character would not get.  Also Ana is played by Viola Davis.  She is a powerhouse actor.  I think that also goes a long way toward just enjoying or accepting her performance no matter what the character actually does.  Charisma outweighs a lot of sins.  I call it the Walter White effect.

Couldn't agree more.

[Milaxx]

On 10/24/2016 at 2:21 AM, Glade said:

I agree that certain characters are given free passes for abusive, narcissistic behavior, but that list includes Micheala, who was also excused from her repeated homophobic/biphobic  outbursts in season 1 by many people who don't care about/aren't personally affected by those issues.  Some of us do equally dislike all white men, black women, and anyone else who exhibits certain personality traits.  

It's season 3. Everyone has grown & changed due to being around each other & their shared experiences. Why are you nailing Michaela to the cross over past behaviors?  FYI - in context her remarks really weren't offensive.  Someone she planned to spend her life with withheld important info regarding his sexual history . She had a right to be upset.

Edited October 25, 2016 by Milaxx

[DearEvette]

I don't at all agree that Michaela was homophobic or bi-phobic when she found out about Aiden's sexual past with Connor.

First - she was shocked because she said she thought they had both disclosed all of their past sexual partners.  This is smart.  People who have a monogamous sexual relationship and who are embarking on a long term serious relationship like marriage should disclose previous partners.

Second - She specifically said to him "People are gay, my cousin is gay, if you are gay it is not a big deal, we can still be friends."  These are not the words of a homophobe.  Again, I think clarifying his sexual orientation before marrying him is smart.  She did not ask him if he was Bi.  She asked him if he was Gay.  That is an important distinction.  A Bi man could want her physically.  A gay man, would not.  Any person marrying someone has the right  -- need  -- to know if that person is going to be sexually attracted to him.  Also, he would not be the first man on the down low who was using a woman as a beard to remain closeted.

Third - It was clear in the Season 1 that Michaela and Aiden had some sort of plan to enter public political life.  We know that she had high aspirations.  Not coincidentally this was also the same conversation where she talks about her bespoke Vera Wang wedding gown.  I know at the time people on SM found that uppity and distasteful.  But it was a very instructive moment about Michaela's goals.  She had her life mapped and planned.  A woman who plans to become the next RBG can't afford to have scandalous past skeletons of her or her spouse come out of the closet.  That was why she threatened him with ruination and divorce if he did this again.  Since any such liaison would presumably happen after they were married,  you could read that threat be just as easily about him being unfaithful in general.

Fourth - IIRC, he actually was gay.  His mother was definitely eager to have Michaela marry him despite the fact that she disliked Michaela and and had been very nasty to her earlier. Later in the season she was eating crow.  During that last conversation with Not-Mother-In-Law Michaela says "He is gay.  Or bi. Or experimental.  Or whatever he is, he doesn't love me."  Which indicates to me that Michaela would have been fine with him being bi or experimental if he had just loved her.

Edited October 26, 2016 by DearEvette

[Milaxx]

Wondering about Michaela and her parents; My guess is her adoptive parents were/are grifters. That would explain how easily Michaela can take things, why she warned her mother not to steal anything and why it was easy for Michaela to make herself over. Grifters would also be able to put on a good enough show to foster and/or adopt kids.

[Keepitmoving]

I want this Michaela to come out when she starts having scenes with her mother again. It probably won't happen as hard as she tries to reject this true version of herself, but this is the real, or original Michael and I love it.  I mean if it's going to come out I don't see why it wouldn't in front of her mother, who knows damn well who she is and where she comes from.  She apparently can't completely hide it since Asher said that, that southern accent occasionally comes out during sex. I love it, the fake and the real Michaela, both versions she has felt are necessary to her survival.

Edited November 13, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[Dee]

For someone who didn't know her bio fam, has a dysfunctional relationship to her adoptive family, and is often described as "cold," Michaela sure has an affinity for strays.

In the last two seasons, she's come to play lover and/or den mother to Connor, Asher and Oliver and become reluctant frenemies. with Laurel (despite her insistence that they aren't friends).

The only one she hasn't connected to is Wes.

[Keepitmoving]

1 hour ago, Dee said:

For someone who didn't know her bio fam, has a dysfunctional relationship to her adoptive family, and is often described as "cold," Michaela sure has an affinity for strays.

In the last two seasons, she's come to play lover and/or den mother to Connor, Asher and Oliver and become reluctant frenemies. with Laurel (despite her insistence that they aren't friends).

The only one she hasn't connected to is Wes.

Yes, which is why when she says something to effect of  I'm not cold and that she's just trying take care of herself to Asher that was poignant for me as I am understanding the character with the bits and pieces of back story we have so far. Then an episode or two ago, she's hesitant to commit to something more with Asher and tells him that he just wants her to be their for him until he screws her over just like all the previous men in her life. So I think she's trying to put herself first but habits are comfortable to us whether they are good habits or bad ones. This is her MO, because like I've posted on the other thread I think she's been put into the care taker role as a child or at the very least no one really took care of her in a healthy way. So now, that she's gotten away from her past, or so she thinks, she's trying to take care of herself, but still falls right back into the pattern of behavior she's familiar with, taking in strays.

[Keepitmoving]

Quite frankly, I'm tired of female characters who have issues being referred to as cold, when I don't see the male characters with similar issues being described with that word in the dialogue. I'm glad she got annoyed by the word and set the record straight, because I'm annoyed by it. They did this shit over at Grey's Anatomy with my favorite character Cristina Yang and I didn't appreciate it back then.

Edited November 14, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[Milaxx]

I agree but to be fair, I think the shows point in bringing it up is to dispel the myth that an intelligent, highly focused career woman is "cold.  It was a nice way of showing us, the viewing audience the hypocrisy of applying that label to women, especially when men who exhibit the same behavior are praised for that same behavior. In both case the show clearly showed in it's narrative that neither woman is "cold". 

[Keepitmoving]

24 minutes ago, Milaxx said:

I agree but to be fair, I think the shows point in bringing it up is to dispel the myth that an intelligent, highly focused career woman is "cold.  It was a nice way of showing us, the viewing audience the hypocrisy of applying that label to women, especially when men who exhibit the same behavior are praised for that same behavior. In both case the show clearly showed in it's narrative that neither woman is "cold". 

Yeah, I think that is what they're trying to do, I agree and you and I got that. But I don't think that was understood by many. Especially since with the character of Yang Shonda continued to have other characters on that showuse that terminology to describe her over the course of a decade. It's not like it stopped after a while, every fucking season there was some shit about the character's "coldness," pissed me off. So hopefully, she does have much to do with this show and the direction of the characters even though her name is in the credits somewhere, so I can be hopeful that the folk running this ship don't repeat this "cold" mantra when it comes to Michaela for any if many seasons to come. 

[Milaxx]

I don't mind it being reused as long as the narrative continues to dispute it and call attention to the hypocrisy of it only being used towards women. If anything it only highlights the fact that it still persist in society, so no it doesn't bother me.  Pete Nowalk the show's creator/write/showrunner is a protegee of Shonda. He wrote for several of her previous shows including Grey's so I expect to see some similarities in the styles. 

[Keepitmoving]

12 minutes ago, Milaxx said:

I don't mind it being reused as long as the narrative continues to dispute it and call attention to the hypocrisy of it only being used towards women. If anything it only highlights the fact that it still persist in society, so no it doesn't bother me.  Pete Nowalk the show's creator/write/showrunner is a protegee of Shonda. He wrote for several of her previous shows including Grey's so I expect to see some similarities in the styles. 

Well it's going to annoy me and quickly turn me off if I have to hear the likes of any more of these characters refer to Michaela as cold.  Especially these characters with all the dysfunction having to do with murder going on this  show, I don't want to hear it.

 

Yeah, I know he worked on her show and I hoping not the see any similarities except the good ones, not that I can remember. Oh yeah the friendships was something she was good at creating between characters, I see that in this show. But he can leave the rest of it over there with Grey's. 

Edited November 14, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[DearEvette]

Honestly I find both Wes and Laurel the two coldest people in the room.  Even going back to Sam's murder, if you look at how each of them handled it in the  Wes and Laurel kept their eyes on the prize.  They still do.  Right now Wes is lying like it owes him rent with a  deadpan straight face and Laurel has been juggling Anna, Bonnie and Frank like the baby Ana disciple she is. Meanwhile Connor subsumed all his fear into biting sarcasm, but Michaela was the one who lost it the most.  She was a wreck. 

One thing I am noticing about this season, Michaela feels like she the one who seems to be studying the most.  She just wants to get good grades.  I like that they are keeping this detail about her.  Probably why out of all of them she is only behind Laurel in gpa rank. 

And finally, I am wondering where does Michaela get her money?  She has great clothes, shoes and purses, a $400 duvet, and she had a Vera Wang wedding gown.  I know I assumed Aiden paid for her gown, but did he?  And how did she wind of getting adopted by a white southern family?  And why are they asking her for money? 

[Keepitmoving]

I really do want to know when is the last time she actually saw her mother? I mean she told Asher that she said goodbye to her a long time ago, I want to know how long ago?  Also, it doesn't seem like she intended to cut off all communication because when her mother blows up her phone, it comes up as "mom." That means she has had her mother's number in her phone, so it's not like I don't even know my mom's number and she doesn't know mine,  much less if she's still alive kind of relationship. The very fact that she keeps her mother's number means the line/connection is still there. It means to me that although she's telling Asher that she's said goodbye and I get that, as in I can't deal with her in my life from day to day, there's still something there.

[Milaxx]

20 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Honestly I find both Wes and Laurel the two coldest people in the room.  Even going back to Sam's murder, if you look at how each of them handled it in the  Wes and Laurel kept their eyes on the prize.  They still do.  Right now Wes is lying like it owes him rent with a  deadpan straight face and Laurel has been juggling Anna, Bonnie and Frank like the baby Ana disciple she is. Meanwhile Connor subsumed all his fear into biting sarcasm, but Michaela was the one who lost it the most.  She was a wreck. 

THIS! Although once I learned of their childhood traumas, it made sense that they would better handle the insanity of the K5. I will say I hope the second half of the season explores her background more, Connor's too for that matter. I look at these 2 and feel like I am still missing puzzle pieces.

Edited November 15, 2016 by Milaxx

[Keepitmoving]

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I have to agree with this and I am one that actually does like the Connor/Michaela friendship or at least what it has the potential to be.  Right now, it is a very lopsided relationship.  I see a lot of support coming from Michaela to Connor.

I like the friendship, but I agree since Michaela has become my favorite. I don't think I noticed it before, but I do now. What she said to Asher about him just wanting to her to be there for him like all the rest of the guys until he screws her over like the rest of them annoyed me, because he's still so damn immature.  I'm like is this fool going to grow up and get a clue. I don't want him to stop being funny, and stop being quirky but he can still show some growth while keeping in character, so Norwalk better get on it. So, I'm watching Asher, because Connor definitely just takes, but if that's all Asher is going to do Norwalk is going to start getting on my nerves in a way that Shonda did with Cristina on Greys. Do not abuse my character especially on behalf of some other character(s) that you the writer think are more deserving and/or important. 

If you think about the psychology though and what I feel I understand her relationship is with her mother and family as a whole, she IS the only person in that family who has her shit together and she gets used by them whenever they need something. She's the caretaker, they turn to her. She actually said to her mother that she couldn't take care of her right now, meaning that she would take care of her in the future but now she's' not in a position to. But she knew her mother was full of shit and trying to play her anyway.  But this is what Michaela does, she gives, she's the care taker, the one in the family that everyone tries to drain. So that lopsided friendship she has with Connor is unfortunately what she looks for because it's what she knows. She's not going to ask him nor Asher for anything and I'm gonna be pissed if one of them doesn't get a clue. Of course if Asher didn't interfere we wouldn't have the fabulous Brett Butler , that being said, he pissed me off and I need him to acknowledge to Michaela that he brought all this trouble on for her because he was projecting his own parent issues.

He did whisper and apology to her while her mother was getting wasted with her "friends" and talking with one of them about hook-ups, but she told him to save it, LOL. And that's not the apology he needs to be giving it needs be a well thought out one with some introspection, other wise he'll fuck up like this again with his projecting.

Edited November 28, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[Keepitmoving]

Another thing, I really want to know because Michaela did say to her mother that you saved your "black baby" so I took that to mean that she was a baby when they found her in that shack and that she's the only black child in that family. I mean is there a birth certificate? Is Michaela the name she came with or did that come from Trishelle along with Pratt?  I'm still not clear on like, did her mother go around to abandon shacks looking for abandoned kids? How did this all come about? I'm sorry, it's too interesting to leave out any details.  Was Michaela's birth parents her adoptive mother's  neighbor? So she knew what was up in that shack and had her eyes and ears open for when she could collect her next welfare check?  I need to know, seriously.

Edited November 28, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[wanderingstar]

The recent article on the day they shot Wes' death had a mild Michaela-related spoiler.

Spoiler

Looks like Michaela will be stepping up as more of a leader among the K4.

This makes me happy, as I've always liked her.

And I do hope Asher matures to be the man Michaela deserves. I like them together, but I don't like the way he's disrespected her boundaries.

[Keepitmoving]

1 hour ago, Gillian Rosh said:

The recent article on the day they shot Wes' death had a mild Michaela-related spoiler.

  Hide contents

Looks like Michaela will be stepping up as more of a leader among the K4.

This makes me happy, as I've always liked her.

And I do hope Asher matures to be the man Michaela deserves. I like them together, but I don't like the way he's disrespected her boundaries.

Do you have the link to this article?

[wanderingstar]

No, the article was only in the print version of the magazine (I'm too lazy to transcribe). It's the issue with Star Wars: Rogue One on the cover.

[Milaxx]

My guess is Trishelle got her shortly after she was found. This Gould gave happened in a variety of ways. Social services add/or police would have taken photos. Ttishelle could gave seen those. She could have been affiliated with a church that does emergency foster care or been signed up as an emergency foster care home. Those setups literally receive children straight from the hospital/ police station. These children may not get cleaned up until they are at the Emergency home. 

[Keepitmoving]

I was wondering though, was Michaela adopted or was she in the foster care system, isn't there a difference?  Isn't there a difference between a foster parent vs. an adoptive parent? 

I know she has Mrs. Pratt's last name, but...was she fully, legally adopted? 

I was listening to this podcast on the show and they brought up the difference and said that they think she was a foster kid. One person brought up how at first they were confused and thought they changed something in the backstory because they remember Michaela's fierce defense of adoptive parents during the Hapstall case, about not demonizing adoptive parents, that they are selfless, I remember the scene too. They said that looking back at that scene they were confused, because based on that scene they assumed that she must have had a pretty decent relationship with her adoptive parents. Of course this person must have missed the other clue drops Norwalk planted that didn't entirely support that theory, at least not for me, like Michaela also telling Caleb that she felt like she didn't belong in her family. Then way back when Connor was trying to convince her to go to police she says something to the effect of, OK, I can reinvent myself, I know how to do that. I'll change my name and become a housewife or something. Then she says to Connor, she's done it before, because if she's anything, she's smart, she says, she's always been smart.  Those remarks to me at the time just seemed like something a street kid, a gritty, fight for my survival kind of person would say.  I just felt that Norwalk was dropping clues here and there that all was not well or something was off, not adding up, and Michaela was no prom queen, that's for sure.  My aunt had a friend like that, she knew her for most of her life and said that she would lie about who she was... she would make up stories. She was't vindictive or dangerous, she would just make up things about her life and my aunt knew she was lying, but she never called her on it. My aunt always said that she was this way because she grew up in foster care, moving from home to home, I guess never really having a stable home, or a stable family/identity. So, as a child if you don't have that identity or sense of belonging then it must be natural to make up identities for yourself. But anyway,  another person on the podcast said that they thought that Michaela's defense of adoptive parents, like the ones that adopted the Hapstall kids was from Michaela's wish that someone had actually adopted her and that she never got that. She never really got someone to adopt and rescue her because they truly wanted her. Like she said to mama Pratt, social services rescued me, then I rescued myself. 

Edited December 11, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[helenamonster]

Michaela wasn't defending adoptive parents in that scene, she was defending biological parents who made the tough but brave decision to give up their child/children when they were unable to raise them.

I can't speak to whether or not she was formally adopted or a foster child, but she seems to have more respect for her biological parents for realizing they couldn't raise her than she does for the Pratts for taking on that responsibility.

[Keepitmoving]

1 hour ago, helenamonster said:

 

 

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Michaela wasn't defending adoptive parents in that scene, she was defending biological parents who made the tough but brave decision to give up their child/children when they were unable to raise them.

Yeah, that's right, you're right. Even better that this plays into what I meant about her making up narratives like my aunt's friend to suit the story she'd like it to be, a story that shows that she was actually loved. It's a lot better to believe that your biological parents actually loved you and that's why they gave you up. Michaela would never want to admit that they abandoned her in a swamp shack.  

Quote

I can't speak to whether or not she was formally adopted or a foster child, but she seems to have more respect for her biological parents for realizing they couldn't raise her than she does for the Pratts for taking on that responsibility.

And I'm not going to judge her for feeling the way she does about her particular situation, because that to me is where she was coming from.  Of course, I think she'd like it to be NOT true that her biological parents did abandon her in a swamp shack.  Because no, they did not selflessly give her up. They didn't contact an adoption agency and keep her safe until a decent home could be found for her.  I  don't know what the hell happened to them, but I surely wish Norwalk would tell me, eventually.  At any rate, I think there is definitely plenty of grey area and I'm hoping that mama Pratt is in the end NOT just painted as just some sneaky, playing the system type of foster parent especially since Brett Butler is playing her. I hope there's more to it, because she and whoever her "dead beat" husband his as she describe him are the only parental figures that Michaela has known  and  Michaela was not having  a bratty moment when IMO she genuinely looked at the only mother figure she's had and told her that she didn't know what she meant when she said she loved her. She wasn't kidding, she wasn't being a smart ass, she really wanted to know and that was sad. If a child feels that you just took them in for the money, then  your being "responsible" doesn't cut it; you might as well have left them in the care of social services. I really want a vision of what every day life was like in that house. Hell, I want to know what Michaela meant when she told Asher that she had said goodbye to her mother a long time ago. What do you mean a long time ago? How long exactly has it been since you lived in mama Pratt's house? Did you move out during high school years? Did you like run away from home before the age of 18? What did mama Pratt mean when she said that you were just going to move out of your apt. and go leach off another family until you got tired of them? Like, how many families have taken Michaela in over the years exactly?

But mama Pratt's face at the end of that scene did genuinely look like one of regret, like she doesn't know what to say to Michaela, or how to say it. She clearly knows how to play people, play the system. I assume that's how she was raised, she had to learn that from somewhere, and so the cycle continues. I just hope they continue to fill in the holes in this story and I hope that it's layered and filled with grey area. 

Edited December 12, 2016 by Keepitmoving

[Milaxx]

9 hours ago, Keepitmoving said:

 

I was wondering though, was Michaela adopted or was she in the foster care system, isn't there a difference?  Isn't there a difference between a foster parent vs. an adoptive parent? 

 

Michaela specifically says she was adopted so I'm going to assume she was legally adopted. There can be a slightly different process when as child is straight out adopted versus fostered and then the foster parents adopt. In that case you may still be eligible for many of the subsidies that foster parents are provided with in terms of welfare money and clothing stipends.  If Trishelle was in it for the money she may have gone this route.

Edited December 12, 2016 by Milaxx

[Milaxx]

Just rewatched season 1 I noticed that when Micheala meets with Aiden's mom post break up her Southern accent also comes out.

[Keepitmoving]

1 hour ago, Milaxx said:

Just rewatched season 1 I noticed that when Micheala meets with Aiden's mom post break up her Southern accent also comes out.

Yeah, that's why I posted a clip of that scene above a while ago, because I wanted to see that scene where she puts Aiden's mother in her place and confirms, yes that's who I am and I'm not trying to fake it anymore complete with accent. Great scene.

I think Michaela is damn near some being from the X-Men like the shape shifter, LOL. I think she can change and mold herself into anything in order to survive. She pretty much says that to Connor in season one as well, something about how she reinvented herself before and she can do it again. I died when she said she'd become a housewife and Connor looked at her like, girl please.Then she said something about becoming a writer and writing crime novels. I have no doubt that what she was so intensely thinking about when Gustav made an appearance to try and cheer her up, like who should I become next.

Edited February 5, 2017 by Keepitmoving

[ursula]

So do the writers of this show hate Michaela or what? Or is it just typical anti-blackness? Last season, she destroyed her wedding dress to prove to Asher that she didn't want him to be her Barack, she just wants him to be her Asher. They moved on from that point. And then ----- they use a cross-over episode to revert her character? Screw her and her relationship with Asher over it? Then rather than the fling with Marcus being just a one-time thing, we have to go through seeing Michaela pining over him and being dumped like a hot potato? 

[Lady Calypso]

1 hour ago, ursula said:

So do the writers of this show hate Michaela or what? Or is it just typical anti-blackness? Last season, she destroyed her wedding dress to prove to Asher that she didn't want him to be her Barack, she just wants him to be her Asher. They moved on from that point. And then ----- they use a cross-over episode to revert her character? Screw her and her relationship with Asher over it? Then rather than the fling with Marcus being just a one-time thing, we have to go through seeing Michaela pining over him and being dumped like a hot potato? 

I would say it's not anti-blackness, but just typical HTGAWM. They have done similar things with many characters on this show. They ruined Wes, they ruined Laurel, they ruined Frank, they've done shit with Nate, and I think it's just Michaela's turn. This show isn't the best with character arcs, unless it's with Annalise. They can't seem to write characters not named Annalise well enough. They either underused characters or they make them look like complete assholes with no remorse for their actions. 

I'm thinking that they really don't know what to do with Michaela, and they honestly never have. She's been one of the more underused characters. Much like Asher, who they also underused for most of the series, they simply don't have a good plot for her. Or, they start to but then it falters in favour of other characters. Michaela has potential and they started to show a potential arc a couple of times, such as with her mother, but then they dropped the ball for other characters that the show insistent were the stars (aka Laurel). It's not a special treatment thing on solely Michaela, because they've done it with characters here and there. Oliver has no story outside of Connor and only started getting a little last season. Asher's been used as 80% comic relief and hasn't had much development outside of that; he had progress during his arc with the DA that he killed and then he fully regressed to funny guy Asher. Nate is only there to look pretty. 

So I have no idea what they're trying to do with Michaela this season, but I never know what they're trying to do with her. Maybe she needs to be the focus of the mystery plotline for once, because then maybe she'd get something substantial to do. 

[Neurochick]

I think the writers only know how to write for Annalise, everybody else is just a prop for her, a supporting player, it's about how their characters relate TO Annalise.

[Dee]

HTGAWM only has use for Michaela as a sassy black sidekick for Pete's pet Connor.

[Chicago Redshirt]

I don't think that's fair. Just take 5.02: Michaela was featured as handling the case of the week, and given credit for destroying the public defender. AK even was going to give her the leeway to destroy the racist son if she were bold enough to take it and credited Michaela for knowing her limits and doing what's best for the case by letting AK AK it up. (I think S1 Michaela would not have been so wise.)

[Neurochick]

4 hours ago, Dee said:

HTGAWM only has use for Michaela as a sassy black sidekick for Pete's pet Connor.

Everybody on that show is second to Annalise.

[ursula]

3 hours ago, Neurochick said:

Everybody on that show is second to Annalise.

Not Connor, Laurel or Frank. 

 

4 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

5.02: Michaela was featured as handling the case of the week

Well the case of the week was a direct, convenient callback to Simon, so I don't know. I mean I'm glad that Michaela got a time in the spotlight, but I didn't like that Oliver ---- the same Oliver who ensnared Simon into their web in the first place, came up with the idea to frame him and would have done so happily ---- kept persecuting her about it. I don't think I've ever seen anyone be as humiliated over their past misdeed as Michaela has been over Simon. And that's saying something considering all the horrible things these people have done. 

Edited October 5, 2018 by ursula

[Dee]

3 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

I don't think that's fair. Just take 5.02: Michaela was featured as handling the case of the week, and given credit for destroying the public defender. AK even was going to give her the leeway to destroy the racist son if she were bold enough to take it and credited Michaela for knowing her limits and doing what's best for the case by letting AK AK it up. (I think S1 Michaela would not have been so wise.)

That's one episode out of how many though?

Usually Michaela's job is/was to hold Asher's hand, fix Laurel's messes and/or provide sanctuary for Connor.

Laurel has entire arcs planned around her character. Michaela's stories are dominated by other characters (how long did Connor take up residence in her apartment) or are tossed off with little regard (anything to do with her mother).  

[Milaxx]

8 hours ago, Neurochick said:

Everybody on that show is second to Annalise.

I think that is it in a nutshell. I also think they like to make her Annalise lite at times. Either way, the Michaela that was pinning for Marcus last week, they can keep. The Micheala I saw this week, is interesting. My biggest wish is they don't pair her with Gabriel.

[ursula]

11 hours ago, Milaxx said:

the Michaela that was pinning for Marcus last week, they can keep

but why was she pining for him though? There's just soooo much about that hook-up that I didn't understand. So she was attracted to him because he was the kind of man she wanted to date and marry years ago. OK. Ignoring that she's supposed to have evolved from that and developed true feelings for Asher, that kind of attraction isn't sexual do-it-in-the-backseat attraction. It's "OK, my boyfriend is a hot loser; this guy is husband material. I will dump my boyfriend and upgrade..." 

[Lady Calypso]

24 minutes ago, ursula said:

but why was she pining for him though? There's just soooo much about that hook-up that I didn't understand. So she was attracted to him because he was the kind of man she wanted to date and marry years ago. OK. Ignoring that she's supposed to have evolved from that and developed true feelings for Asher, that kind of attraction isn't sexual do-it-in-the-backseat attraction. It's "OK, my boyfriend is a hot loser; this guy is husband material. I will dump my boyfriend and upgrade..." 

It's really bizarre and felt oddly placed in general. Plus, it didn't paint Michaela in a good light. So, she develops feelings toward another guy and it creates a mess with Asher when she cheats. Ok, that much I understand. But then this season has her start out as forgetting about her relationship with Asher and openly gossiping about her feelings for a guy she met months ago. They really ended the pairing abruptly and even though I sometimes didn't like Michaela/Asher together due to how different they are, last season firmly established them as a strong couple with strong feelings before the crossover with Scandal happened. They ended Asher/Bonnie better than Asher/Michaela. 

17 hours ago, Dee said:

That's one episode out of how many though?

Usually Michaela's job is/was to hold Asher's hand, fix Laurel's messes and/or provide sanctuary for Connor.

Laurel has entire arcs planned around her character. Michaela's stories are dominated by other characters (how long did Connor take up residence in her apartment) or are tossed off with little regard (anything to do with her mother).  

I've been hoping for a solo Michaela story for a couple of seasons now. I thought they might have given her more last season but then they didn't. I'm hoping this season is her having her own arc. 

[DearEvette]

On 10/5/2018 at 4:01 PM, ursula said:

I don't think I've ever seen anyone be as humiliated over their past misdeed as Michaela has been over Simon.

Basically.  The show loves to humiliate Michaela. 

I mean in S1, let Connor be the one to let her know in his smirking, ass-hatty way that her fiance was his boo?  Sure.  So everyone gets to dine on that for awhile.

In S2, let's announce that she's had a less than satisfactory sexual history -- never experienced the Big O.  So then everyone gets to dine on that for awhile.

In S3, we know she is trying to distance herself from her adoptive parents and her less than wonderful roots.  So hey, let's bring Trishelle to town.  The scene of all of them in the living room mining Trishelle for information  about 'Mickey' against Michaela's wishes and much to her discomfort was rather cringey.

And now we have her being pranked and punished by fucking Oliver of all people because Simon, which honestly, given all the shit all of them have done barely ranks in the top five.

I also hate they trashed her relationship with Asher by cheating.  it felt out of character and really a pile on on top of what they were trying to say about her getting Simon deported.

[ursula]

Thanks @DearEvette, you said everything I feel but couldn't express as eloquently.

[Chicago Redshirt]

YMMV, but I don't see Michaela as getting any more humiliated than any of the rest of the K5.

I do see her as being one of the few who is willing to stand up to AK and pretty much everyone else.

I see her as being portrayed as the most ambitious and successful of the K5 when it comes to the law, and probably the most innocent, to the extent you can apply that word to any of them.

She deserves a bunch of the credit for AK's Supreme Court win because she was the one whose idea it was to get Olivia Pope involved. I haven't tallied who helped out most on cases of the week, but I'd put my money on it being Michaela as well.

[ursula]

12 minutes ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

YMMV, but I don't see Michaela as getting any more humiliated than any of the rest of the K5.

 

 

She deserves a bunch of the credit for AK's Supreme Court win because she was the one whose idea it was to get Olivia Pope involved.

She was humiliated with this. AK singled out Connor to give the credit, and the scene is definitely shot as a diss on Michaela because the camera zooms on her reaction when it happens.

Edited October 9, 2018 by ursula

[wanderingstar]

On 10/6/2018 at 12:27 AM, Milaxx said:

My biggest wish is they don't pair her with Gabriel.

Same here. I don't need them to go down that road.