Unpopular Opinions Thread

[pennben]

17 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I don’t even think that’s interesting about Kate.  I know how she got so obese.  Self-medicating with food to soothe her guilt.  I suppose I’d like to know why she never got therapy instead but I think they’ll never answer that, as if the very normal option didn’t exist.   

Yeah, I get that. But I think that there could be a hell of a lot of story to be told there....it's one thing to self-medicate with food and gain weight, but to me, an entirely different thing to have it go to such an extreme from where teenage Kate was.  And, as you mention, why no therapy? Also, maybe this is the period where her relationship with Rebecca really soured and became awful...but how? Or because she was in a bad place, something else also happened that made everything worse? But, we won't know anything until next season after this 'awesome' reveal of Jack's death......sigh.

[chaifan]

5 hours ago, pennben said:

Yeah, I get that. But I think that there could be a hell of a lot of story to be told there....it's one thing to self-medicate with food and gain weight, but to me, an entirely different thing to have it go to such an extreme from where teenage Kate was.  And, as you mention, why no therapy? Also, maybe this is the period where her relationship with Rebecca really soured and became awful...but how? Or because she was in a bad place, something else also happened that made everything worse? But, we won't know anything until next season after this 'awesome' reveal of Jack's death......sigh.

That's going to be hard to tell via flashbacks.  They would have to find another actress that would have to have a striking resemblance to Chrissy Metz (where Kevin & Randall could otherwise be played by the regular actors) to pull off a convincing 20-something storyline.  The actress who plays teenage Kate looks enough like her to buy her as teenage Kate - I think that actress is more or less normal weight (by non-Hollywood standards) with a fuller face, and they dress her "fat" in really baggy shirts. 

In any event, I don't think that would be an interesting story line, and it would again limit her to being a one-note character.

Now that I think about it, what I'd rather see for Kate is instead of pursuing a singing career, she realizes she is a talented songwriter/lyricist.  That would be a plot line that has absolutely nothing to do with her weight.

[laurakaye]

11 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Kate told Toby that she ordered the bath when they were talking about all the inane questions she was writing down to ask her OB/GYN. I wonder if that bath was by some pretentious artisanal company with limited production runs, so Kate didn't want to risk it being out of stock by the time she'd really need it.

LOL, this is as viable an arguement as any!

But it's still a really stupid plotline.  The writers just needed something for Kate to special-order so Toby could storm into the FedEx offices and speechify another of his grand-gestures.  A hand-crafted Swedish baby bathtub that has specific non-standard proportions is simply not something that a woman in her first trimester would think to order.  The plastic tubs from Target that fit over a sink are all one needs to bathe a tiny newborn.  I'm starting to think that Fogelman & Co. has a big sign on the writer's door that says "The He-Man Woman-Haters Club," because I can't imagine any woman would give that plotline the green light.

Edited November 27, 2017 by laurakaye

[Guest]

I had read the thread before watching so I was kind of shocked with how the writers chose to have the miscarriage occur, once I watched.  I feel like the 'one small fall and BAM the pregnancy spontaneously terminates' is kind of an old, lazy tv trope.  Like we women have glass uteri and babies are all hanging by a thread in there.  This article discusses how it's not very likely in early pregnancy.

https://www.verywell.com/can-falling-during-pregnancy-cause-a-miscarriage-2371489

I think the overwhelming majority of miscarriages occur due to chromosomal abnormalities, especially in older mothers. 

http://www.ivf1.com/miscarriage-risk/

But I think the writers felt they had to make it clear that Kate's weight was a main factor so she was directly at fault, so she can bear even more guilt.  

[ItCouldBeWorse]

2 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I had read the thread before watching so I was kind of shocked with how the writers chose to have the miscarriage occur, once I watched.  I feel like the 'one small fall and BAM the pregnancy spontaneously terminates' is kind of an old, lazy tv trope.  Like we women have glass uteri and babies are all hanging by a thread in there.  This article discusses how it's not very likely in early pregnancy.

https://www.verywell.com/can-falling-during-pregnancy-cause-a-miscarriage-2371489

I think the overwhelming majority of miscarriages occur due to chromosomal abnormalities, especially in older mothers. 

http://www.ivf1.com/miscarriage-risk/

But I think the writers felt they had to make it clear that Kate's weight was a main factor so she was directly at fault, so she can bear even more guilt.  

Did she fall?  I thought she was overcome by pain or a contraction (signalling the miscarriage) and grabbed the shower rod, pulling it down.  I don't think she fell, leading to the miscarriage.  I don't think she was on the floor at all, just hunched over.

Edited November 27, 2017 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Guest]

Oh, could be!  I assumed she fell.  I was curious so I just re-watched.   It looks to me like she's on the floor.  It's hard to tell but Toby goes down on one knee to be face to face with her.  

 

Edited November 27, 2017 by Guest

[ShadowFacts]

Was she sitting on the ledge of the tub?  That's what I thought anyway.  If they had to shoot that scene more than once, her being on the floor and having to get up each time would be tough. 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

35 minutes ago, ShadowFacts said:

Was she sitting on the ledge of the tub?  That's what I thought anyway.  If they had to shoot that scene more than once, her being on the floor and having to get up each time would be tough. 

I think she was sitting on the edge of the tub.

[raiderred1]

On 11/20/2017 at 1:47 PM, potatoradio said:

but I'm pretty much watching this show while running a wine-induced Mystery Science Theater-style commentary and I don't want to ruin the spontaneity

WONDERFUL nod to MST3k!!! Love it!  I only needed to see the previews last year to know this would be a show straight out of a can of Cheez Whiz!  I absolutely love to hate watch it.

[Guest]

5 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Did she fall?  I thought she was overcome by pain or a contraction (signalling the miscarriage) and grabbed the shower rod, pulling it down.  I don't think she fell, leading to the miscarriage.  I don't think she was on the floor at all, just hunched over.

I think you're right that most people didn't interpret it how I did... that she fell, just based on the recaps. 

I didn't know a first trimester miscarriage could be a sharp, sudden pain event.  I thought it was usually just suspected from spotting.  It doesn't seem like a uterus would have to do extreme contractions to expel a poppy seed but I guess some people even have horrible menstrual cramps.  I don't know about 'pull down the curtain rod' pain, but I guess they've never been subtle here.

[Katy M]

24 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I think you're right that most people didn't interpret it how I did... that she fell, just based on the recaps. 

I didn't know a first trimester miscarriage could be a sharp, sudden pain event.  I thought it was usually just suspected from spotting.  It doesn't seem like a uterus would have to do extreme contractions to expel a poppy seed but I guess some people even have horrible menstrual cramps.  I don't know about 'pull down the curtain rod' pain, but I guess they've never been subtle here.

She was at least 10 weeks along.  Which means the baby would have been over an inch big.  I wouldn't call that a poppy seed.  More like a kumquat.  If she was 12 weeks, it'd be twice that size. 

[Guest]

Was she that far?  Last I heard was 'lentil' and that's 6 weeks.  

[chocolatine]

6 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

Was she that far?  Last I heard was 'lentil' and that's 6 weeks.  

Yes, she said she was 10 weeks along when she and Toby told Kevin about the pregnancy.

It definitely looked to me like she experienced a sharp stab of pain and grabbed the shower curtain to steady herself. It didn't look like a fall. Maybe the writers confused the symptoms of a miscarriage with those of labor/contractions?

[Diana Berry]

Could not have Beth and Randall rationally talked to Desha's mom and asked if they could be mentors to Desha in the future, if she agreed?

Best part of the episode.  Beth asking Randall what he  was talking about when he finished his long winded PAC man speech then Randall goes into another speech to explain the previous speech.

Did no one again notice Kevin looking all sweaty and under the weather?

 

love this thread

[Kata01]

I am shocked. Shocked! Shocked, I tell you, that Deja’s journey was nothing more than a plot device - this young girl FINALLY getting with the program and embracing the fabulosity which is Saint Randall, Patron Saint of the Perfectly Perfect. Hashtag- Sarcasm. 

I want to add that I absolutely loathe what they have done to William’s story this season. Sanitized him to the point where he’s shooting candied unicorns out of his behind every time he appears on screen. I’m expecting the writers to walk back his drug addiction to “Drugs?!?! What we meant was that William mistakenly inhailed some pot fumes once.” He’s been turned into a caricature. But, I guess it makes more sense for Saint Randall as prodigy of Saint William vs Jack & Rebecca’s 2 loser biological kids. lol 

Edited November 29, 2017 by Kata01

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Kata01 said:

I’m expecting the writers to walk back his drug addiction to “Drugs?!?!

Correct me if I'm wrong but that already started.  In The Most Disappointed Man he tells the judge he turned to drugs because he was so disappointed when his mother and girlfriend died and he lost Randall.  Though I think it was said or heavily implied last season that William and the girlfriend both used during the pregnancy and before, hence the death and the abandonment.   

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

Correct me if I'm wrong but that already started.  In The Most Disappointed Man he tells the judge he turned to drugs because he was so disappointed when his mother and girlfriend died and he lost Randall.  Though I think it was said or heavily implied last season that William and the girlfriend both used during the pregnancy and before, hence the death and the abandonment.   

It was.  But then in Memphis or whichever overwrought episode it was when William (finally) died, they had him only having used for such a brief time.  Because, Saint William would never have been a long term drug addict.  He would have been the perfect father to young Randall if not for that evil shrew Rebecca.

Basically, they set up one storyline, and then they decided to rewrite it for the inclusion of the great saints, Randall and William.

[ShadowFacts]

I don't see where his drug abuse is being walked back.  The flashback in front of the judge was when the babies were about a year old.  We had already seen William totally strung out when he dropped off baby Randall at the firehouse.   He has also recently been revealed to have been close to shooting up right before Randall appeared at his doorstep 36 years later.  He hasn't been sainted, he's just a person who had intelligence and was pretty gifted, which many drug addicts and alcoholics actually are.  He kept his word to Rebecca and never came looking for Randall.  Some non-abusers wouldn't have had that integrity.

[OtterMommy]

I think I've crossed over into full hate-watch mode with this show (which is problematic since I swore I wouldn't venture into that territory with another show...).  I was just...irritated...with this last episode.  Here is what set me off:

1 - William.  Look, I like Ron Cephas Jones and I think he did a great job *when William was alive,* but now when he shows up, it feels like they are just trying to cram him in where they can.  I'm actually okay with the flashbacks to the younger William (since we get so much Jack and Rebecca, why not William), but I think it is time to let older William rest.

2- Randall and Beth's attitude towards fostering.  I know that there are people who have experience in foster care, so they can jump in if I've got it wrong.  It seems like Beth and Randall went into fostering Deja with the opinion that they would get a child and then they would adopt the child, that was their right and they would fight whoever stood in their way.  And, well, it doesn't work that way (as they found out in this episode and, yes, they seemed to "see the light," but that doesn't excuse everything up to that point).  I would think that someone would have burst their bubble early on in the fostering process.  In any case, they seemed to me to drip of entitlement with Deja.

3 - They have got to figure out how to get all the characters of this show at least in the same time zone.  I understand that the 3 most recent episodes were not "usual," so I'm talking about nearly all the episodes up to that point.  It seems like the writers are completely unable to write all 3 adult siblings together.   We have Kate and Kevin here and Randall there, or Kevin and Randall here and Kate there, and it just makes the show feel unbalanced (and adds volumes to my general annoyance with this show).

4 - Sort of along the same lines, I'm not sure they really know what this show is about.  Is it about "the Big Three"? Is it about Jack and Rebecca and their kids?  Is it basically a thirty-something for the 21st century?  I don't think any of those (or any other possibilities) are bad or wrong, but it doesn't feel like this show has any real defined "anchor."

I really don't know if I'll be back after the winter hiatus.  On one hand, I feel like Fogelman has had 1.5 seasons to get this figured out and he's still floundering.  On the other hand, I still hold out hope that things can improve (and I really should know better....)

[methodwriter85]

Word SO much on the fact that this show isn't going to work in the long run if you don't have the 3 siblings living at least in the same time zone. Both Parenthood and Brothers and Sisters (two recent family dramas that had long runs) pretty much had them living close to each other.

Me? My big bitch about this show is that things just seem to happen as some twisty shocker without feeling organic and true to what has already been set up. Milo let it slip that he wasn't told about Jack having a brother until two episodes into filming season 2, which tells me  that they seem to figuring things out on the fly. Like, if it had always been intended for it to turn out that the family house burned down, how is it that this family seems to have so many keepsakes and videos from their childhood?

Edited November 29, 2017 by methodwriter85

[leighdear]

Kitty Foreman needs to back off the Botox.  I love Debra Jo, but she's 66 years old and can afford a few lines on her face.  It's starting to get that frozen look.  But I like the way she's playing Linda.  Ha! 

There IS a character on this show I like!

[Pallas]

15 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Milo let it slip that he wasn't told about Jack having a brother until two episodes into filming season 2, which tells me  that they seem to figuring things out on the fly.

Not necessarily. It's become more and more prevalent for showrunners not to tell their leads everything they have in mind for that character's backstory -- especially big moments to be dropped later. The rationale is that this prevents the actor from, in any way, beginning "to play" that upcoming outcome or revelation.

Me, I think that's belittling to actors, and a bit of a power play. But not proof that the showrunner didn't have this in mind beforehand. 

[ShadowFacts]

Just now, Pallas said:

Not necessarily. It's become more and more prevalent for showrunners not to tell their leads everything they have in mind for that character's backstory -- especially big moments to be dropped later. The rationale is that this prevents the actor from, in any way, beginning "to play" that upcoming outcome or revelation.

Me, I think that's belittling to actors, and a bit of power play. But not proof that the showrunner didn't have this in mind beforehand. 

I don't even think there's anything particularly wrong with writers not having a complete bible of a story with a lot of details from the get-go.  Coming up with new characters and past events in a show so heavy in flashbacks seems fine to me.  What I don't care much for in this show is the amount of flashbacks from different timelines -- makes episodes choppy to me. 

[CelticBlackCat]

9 hours ago, ShadowFacts said:

I don't even think there's anything particularly wrong with writers not having a complete bible of a story with a lot of details from the get-go.  Coming up with new characters and past events in a show so heavy in flashbacks seems fine to me.  What I don't care much for in this show is the amount of flashbacks from different timelines -- makes episodes choppy to me. 

As you can see, I get confused easily with flashbacks and fantasies.  We already had that one episode where Beth meets William in the park to reminisce.   Maybe just one flashback per episode?

[GSMHvisitor]

9 hours ago, Pallas said:

Not necessarily. It's become more and more prevalent for showrunners not to tell their leads everything they have in mind for that character's backstory -- especially big moments to be dropped later. The rationale is that this prevents the actor from, in any way, beginning "to play" that upcoming outcome or revelation.

Me, I think that's belittling to actors, and a bit of power play. But not proof that the showrunner didn't have this in mind beforehand. 

Agreed! I absolutely LOATHE how Grey's Anatomy does that to their actors. They don't tell them anything. They only find out during table reads and then you end up with scenes that look stupid in hindsight and a ton of retcon. And I just think, if it's such a hussle for TPTB to keep up with character continuity, it would be helpful to give their actors a bigger picture, so they can point out when something doesn't make sense. Then again, Grey's Anatomy has thrown "making sense" over board a long time ago, so why do I still care?

Back to This Is Us: I'm okay with how TPTB handle the information flow with their actors. They seem to be in on lots of things (they were all told how Jack died apparently). But as was mentioned above, I don't expect the writers to have a character bible with every detail planned out beforehand. I do believe Jack's brother was something that was made up this season, but it's not something that couldn't have existed before, just because he wasn't mentioned before. We're only in s2 and we're still in the middle of getting to know these characters, getting new bits and pieces every episode.

[Guest]

They’ve gone to lengths to avoid spoilers so I’m fine with the actors being in the dark.  

I kind of wish they would adapt the plan rather than stick to the original because I think it’s a mistake to keep it all about this entire cast (including Toby and the dead guys) it’s entire run.  

Good band name there!   

[laurakaye]

5 hours ago, CelticBlackCat said:

As you can see, I get confused easily with flashbacks and fantasies.  We already had that one episode where Beth meets William in the park to reminisce.   Maybe just one flashback per episode?

I also get confused.  I still struggle to remember that Kate, Toby and Kevin all live in LA (I think?) and Randall lives on the east coast, and I honestly don't even know where Rebecca/Miguel live (still in Pittsburgh)?  And while I understand that families who live apart can drive or fly to see one another, I still get confused when Kevin shows up at Randall's door in New Jersey (?), having just been in Pittsburgh, or everyone shows up at a Manny taping, etc.  These people must either not work or get a lot of vacation time for travel.

As for "Number Three," I know better to post in the episode thread because I'm pretty sure that all my opinions are unpopular:

I find it really stupid that Jack and Rebecca refer to their kids by number rather than names, including on their bicycle license plates - what kid wants a plate that reads "Number Two?"...also that they just happened to have their video camera rolling when all three took their first steps - on the same day.  If that isn't in fact what happened, then I'm doubly ticked because that's how the show presented it, IMO.

Randall is such an unlikeable person, he's surpassed Grand Gesture Toby on my list.  Adult Randall is being portrayed as a misogynistic smug jerk.  His speech to the social worker?  Oh hellz no.  He interrupted her - how many times? - stood up to be in a more threatening position, and concluded his monologue with, "Now I'm done."  This from a first-time foster parent to a seasoned social worker.  Give me a break.  No, just no.  I cannot stand the way Randall and Toby throw their big tough selves around to diminish other people.  It's not chivalrous, as the writers probably want us to believe.  It's mean, and it's threatening.

William can go away now, as can "LL Kool K."  Over it.  At least we didn't have to see Kate wiping the dog's ass on the couch again...or did we and I just missed it?

I cannot get my head around the direction this show is taking.  I don't even think the show knows, either.

[BlancheDevoreaux]

I'm with you, Laurakaye, on so much.  I really feel like the writers have lost their minds.  I think that this show started out as a good family drama, then people started talking about how emotional it was because this character reminded them of someone and that character was just like someone else and blah blah blah. Then, the writers bought into the hype of every episode making people cry and giving them "the feels" (what does that even mean, anyway?) and they lost their footing.  Now, they are making it so none of the characters are likeable.  I know that we are supposed to love Randall and Jack, but they come across as so smug and it seems the writers think we should bow down to the patron saints that they are.  I'm not feeling it.  It think we are also supposed to like Toby but he is so over the top that it's hard to like him.  Kate is a royal bitch.  I get it.  She hates her mom.  Why?  He mom has never really done anything to her that we have seen.  But, it's clear that we aren't supposed to be Team Rebecca much, either.  I didn't care for her "going on tour" with the band instead of staying with her family, but that's the only real issue I have seen.  But, the writers seem to want us to be irritated with her and then so surprised when she is there for Kate.  Whatever.  And then there is Kevin.  The writers clearly hate him and are doing everything they can to make him seem like a horrible d-bag, but I'm not really there.  I get why he is that way.  But instead of playing off of how hurt and flaws he is, the writers just want to double down on him doing bad things. I'm thinking that they saw that people were sympathizing with him, decided we couldn't have that, and decided to have him drive drunk with Tess in the car (which I'm sure will get played into what a horrible person he was even though he didn't know she was even there and was at the house trying to get someone to friggin help him).  It's like they write the characters we are supposed to like as completely unlikeable, then the writers are mad that people are liking the bad guys and not liking the saints so they decide to make the "bad guys" even worse.  So who is left to like?  I think the youngest daughter is now my favorite character.  I think her name is Annie.  Oh, and Miguel.  Maybe his daughter since she hasn't been on for me to hate.

 

Oh and don't get me started on Beth.  I still can't stand her.

[laurakaye]

Slightly off-topic, but when I went to Comcast on-demand to (hate) watch this episode, I could not believe all the extraneous crap associated with this show...there are sections called "Meet the Pearsons, " "Editor's Choice," "After-Show Discussions," "Feel the Feels" (I kid you not), and at least two other categories.  I had a hard time just finding the freaking episode.  This show is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too big for its britches.

[Lady Calypso]

29 minutes ago, BlancheDevoreaux said:

And then there is Kevin.  The writers clearly hate him and are doing everything they can to make him seem like a horrible d-bag, but I'm not really there.  I get why he is that way.  But instead of playing off of how hurt and flaws he is, the writers just want to double down on him doing bad things. I'm thinking that they saw that people were sympathizing with him, decided we couldn't have that, and decided to have him drive drunk with Tess in the car (which I'm sure will get played into what a horrible person he was even though he didn't know she was even there and was at the house trying to get someone to friggin help him).  It's like they write the characters we are supposed to like as completely unlikeable, then the writers are mad that people are liking the bad guys and not liking the saints so they decide to make the "bad guys" even worse.  So who is left to like?  I think the youngest daughter is now my favorite character.  I think her name is Annie.  Oh, and Miguel.  Maybe his daughter since she hasn't been on for me to hate.

I agree on this. It's why Kevin is my favourite character. The show seems intent on me disliking him more than Saint Jack, Saint William, and Saint Randall. They've basically ignored him as a person for season 1 and only threw him in romantic drama with him having three different relationships. They also only gave Kid Kevin one episode last season with him getting to speak his mind. Then this season, they seem to have doubled down on the negative aspects to Jack and gave them all to Kevin, showing what a horrible person he is or something. They're doing a bit more with his Teen self, at least, but they're not really showing more of his positive attributes. He also has not had any one-on-one scenes with Rebecca in two seasons, and have just gotten a couple of scenes with Jack, but mostly to show where the dog tags came from. He also has been consistently ignored or been chosen second over Kate or Randall. 

So I really hate manipulations like that. But moreover, I have related to Kevin since the beginning of the show in some way, so that helps me love him as a character. So yeah, I love Kevin's addiction storyline because he's given something to do. Plus, Randall has consistently gotten the meaty storylines (and I mean, I get it; Sterling is an excellent actor so why not utilize him?), but Kevin's story means more to me. I don't relate in the sense of a drug addiction, but feeling like an outsider, depression, not feeling like his voice is heard and whatnot is more of how I relate.

Annie's a pretty cute kid. Her and Tess have both been underused, especially in terms of the show wanting some foster kid storyline. Maybe develop the kids you have first instead of bringing on new kids. 

Also, despite them fixing everything that was wrong with the handling of Rebecca's character last season, which made me love her despite what the show was telling me last season, I still very much prefer her to Jack. 

[ChromaKelly]

Am I not remembering, or did they mention the Number One, Two, and Three nicknames before these episodes? The whole thing of Kevin being "number one" seems inconsistent with the middle-childish, forgotten (where's Kevin, oh yeah he's dead!) portrayal of Kevin. But now, Kevin was Number One, a golden boy, blah blah?

[Lady Calypso]

4 minutes ago, ChromaKelly said:

Am I not remembering, or did they mention the Number One, Two, and Three nicknames before these episodes? The whole thing of Kevin being "number one" seems inconsistent with the middle-childish, forgotten (where's Kevin, oh yeah he's dead!) portrayal of Kevin. But now, Kevin was Number One, a golden boy, blah blah?

I think they've mentioned the nicknames briefly a couple of times, but they never really went into depth like this. The numbers are more to determine the order that they not necessarily were born in, but the order that the Pearsons see them in. Kevin was their first born, technically, so he's number one. Randall may have actually been born earlier than Kate and Kevin (obviously it took time for William to take Randall to the fire station, have the firefighter take him to the hospital, and be all checked out and put in a bassinet in time for Jack to see Randall for the first time), but he was the last to arrive in the family. Which is why I imagine Kevin is really the middle child. Their actual birth order would make sense in that way (which leaves Kate as technically the youngest in the family). 

[Guest]

Didn't Jack's silly little 'first came number one...' poem/song thing first come up in the pilot or maybe second episode?  

[laurakaye]

1 hour ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

Didn't Jack's silly little 'first came number one...' poem/song thing first come up in the pilot or maybe second episode?  

Oh yes, I blocked that from my memory forgot about that.  I mean, it's cute and there's nothing really wrong with it, except these people tend to fixate on history so hard (Pilgrim Rick and the 2.64 mile Thanksgiving walk for starters)...at some point, wouldn't calling them 1, 2, and 3 be kind of over?  Maybe being constantly referred to as Number One is the reason Kevin is so messed up (not to mention Kate being called Number Two). 

Edited November 30, 2017 by laurakaye

[potatoradio]

So, I finally smarm-watched #2 and #3 to complete the bodily function trifecta (piss, dookie and puke). Or, as I have renamed them: "How to Lose a Pathetic, Desperate Hookup and a Necklace in a Few Hours," "When Shower Curtains Attack" and "Joyride with Drunk Uncle." Yes, I clearly need more grief counseling. I'm a sick puppy for not clutching my feelz at every Pearson-splained* emotional breakdown.

Pac Man as life  lesson, ya'll! It's so...sob...sob..the ghosts...man...the ghosts are still there....sob sob...ohmigod, the feelz....Randall. Dude. Eat some food out of that perfectly full fridge, drop some acid and maybe you'll see your two sainted dads as Inky and Blinky get eaten once and for all and then you can calm.the.fuck.down. and shut.the.fuck.up. 

The less said about powerful men and yellow onions the better. Perhaps Kate didn't eat the Chinese food because there were NO. YELLOW. ONIONS in it. BTW, Rebecca, Saint Jack would ho ho ho about a red onion substitute and it would become an overblown Pearson tradition when making stew to have the whole family storm into a grocery store and scream at someone. No worries, this is just how we Pearsons do it. 

Best part of the finale was the kid popping up in the back seat and saying, "I hate my house." Yeah! You go, Tess! I'd hate it too if I had two insufferable parents who harp on how perfectly imperfect they are. I wonder if Tess and Annie are allowed to use wire hangers? Could we have a scene where Randall re-enacts the Mommie Dearest "clean up this mess" scene? Cos that would be fun. And watchable, for entertainment, unlike 99% of this dreck.

I say, next season, Tess runs off with Drunk Uncle and they form a band called Tobe and the Dead Dads.  

 

 

*Bless whoever came up with that phrase earlier in the posts and apologies for not finding it to quote. 

[CelticBlackCat]

4 hours ago, BlancheDevoreaux said:

I'm with you, Laurakaye, on so much.  I really feel like the writers have lost their minds.  I think that this show started out as a good family drama, then people started talking about how emotional it was because this character reminded them of someone and that character was just like someone else and blah blah blah. Then, the writers bought into the hype of every episode making people cry and giving them "the feels" (what does that even mean, anyway?) and they lost their footing.  Now, they are making it so none of the characters are likeable.  I know that we are supposed to love Randall and Jack, but they come across as so smug and it seems the writers think we should bow down to the patron saints that they are.  I'm not feeling it.  It think we are also supposed to like Toby but he is so over the top that it's hard to like him.  Kate is a royal bitch.  I get it.  She hates her mom.  Why?  He mom has never really done anything to her that we have seen.  But, it's clear that we aren't supposed to be Team Rebecca much, either.  I didn't care for her "going on tour" with the band instead of staying with her family, but that's the only real issue I have seen.  But, the writers seem to want us to be irritated with her and then so surprised when she is there for Kate.  Whatever.  And then there is Kevin.  The writers clearly hate him and are doing everything they can to make him seem like a horrible d-bag, but I'm not really there.  I get why he is that way.  But instead of playing off of how hurt and flaws he is, the writers just want to double down on him doing bad things. I'm thinking that they saw that people were sympathizing with him, decided we couldn't have that, and decided to have him drive drunk with Tess in the car (which I'm sure will get played into what a horrible person he was even though he didn't know she was even there and was at the house trying to get someone to friggin help him).  It's like they write the characters we are supposed to like as completely unlikeable, then the writers are mad that people are liking the bad guys and not liking the saints so they decide to make the "bad guys" even worse.  So who is left to like?  I think the youngest daughter is now my favorite character.  I think her name is Annie.  Oh, and Miguel.  Maybe his daughter since she hasn't been on for me to hate.

 

Oh and don't get me started on Beth.  I still can't stand her.

I agree with you Blanche, and laurakaye.  I really don't hate Beth.  Annie and Tess are sweet and likeable/lovable.  I don't hate Miguel.  My favorite character is the dog.  ;)

Here's my UO about why this show even exists.  I think the writers wanted a show about a black family whose husband and father was raised by a white family.  Perhaps they thought that would be too obvious and offensive somehow, for the networks anyway, so they made the family of origin, Jack and Rebecca, have two children.  They hide the fact that the show is really geared toward Randall (best fleshed-out character, lovable adorable little girls, beautiful Beth) and added in Kevin and Kate.

I also hate the numbering of the children, especially on the bike license plates.  If I had triplets, or same-day born twins and an adopted infant, I would be raising them as if they are all equal, no numbering.  I would, of course, teach the boys about respect for girls, etc. but I wouldn't let them know they are in a pecking order.

[OtterMommy]

6 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

They’ve gone to lengths to avoid spoilers so I’m fine with the actors being in the dark.  

I kind of wish they would adapt the plan rather than stick to the original because I think it’s a mistake to keep it all about this entire cast (including Toby and the dead guys) it’s entire run.  

Good band name there!   

I am, in theory, more than okay with actors being kept in the dark.  There are great reasons to do this: Having too much information can influence (in the wrong way) a performance.  Also, actors can't talk in interviews about what they don't know.

Now, a crappy reason to keep actor's in the dark--and I fear this is the case on TIU--is that the writers either don't know where they are going with a story or they are wishy-washy on it themselves.  I don't necessarily think that writers need to have an entire show's run mapped out, but I do think they need to have a clear direction (that can be adapted as needed)--and I no longer feel that is the case here.

On the flip side, there are time when actors really need to NOT be kept in the dark.

So, let me give sort of an example...how Jack dies.  I think it is actually appropriate for Milo not to know how he dies.  However, I think the rest of the cast really needs to know how he dies.  Pretty much the whole point of this show is how these people deal with the death of this one person--so the actors needed to know from day one what happened to Jack, and then the writers had to stick with it.  Since this one thing is so crucial to the character's lives, the actors do need that information to effectively do their job, the show is shooting itself in its foot by not letting them have it or changing it (if that is what they are doing...again, this was an example).

[voiceover]

4 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

 Annie's a pretty cute kid. Her and Tess have both been underused, especially in terms of the show wanting some foster kid storyline. Maybe develop the kids you have first instead of bringing on new kids. 

Co-sign.  The boldface I added for emphasis, and if I could get your words to shout from the screen, I'd do that too.

When Tess dropped the bomb that she was unhappy at home, I thought: No shit.  That farewell to their foster child left me confused -- Beth! when did we see evidence of Deja's "big heart"?  Probably an easy thing to write: show her defending Annie from a bully; have her make a surprise breakfast for the family that's shown her kindness...I dunno; just spitballing here; but this whole thing felt as forced as a few of Randall's speeches to Deja.

I love the two youngest Pearsons.  Let's give them a bigger slice of the pie.

[voiceover]

2 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

 Didn't Jack's silly little 'first came number one...' poem/song thing first come up in the pilot or maybe second episode?  

Randall started the chant in Ep 2, as a way to buck up his brother.  Then later we saw Jack with the "littles", getting them to join in before he left for work.

"First came --"

Kevin: "Me!"

"And Dad said -- "

Kevin: " 'Gee!' "

No mention of numbers in the chant, until the last "That makes 3!/Big Three!" shout.  I think the walking video is the first reference to singling them out, and the ep titles broke it down by numbers.

And the bikes.

Edited November 30, 2017 by voiceover

[BlancheDevoreaux]

6 hours ago, voiceover said:

Randall started the chant in Ep 2, as a way to buck up his brother.  Then later we saw Jack with the "littles", getting them to join in before he left for work.

"First came --"

Kevin: "Me!"

"And Dad said -- "

Kevin: " 'Gee!' "

No mention of numbers in the chant, until the last "That makes 3!/Big Three!" shout.  I think the walking video is the first reference to singling them out, and the ep titles broke it down by numbers.

And the bikes.

I always thought that chant kind of sucked for Randall.

"First came --"

Kevin: "Me!"

"And Dad said -- "

Kevin: " 'Gee!' "

"Then came --"
Kate: "Me!"

"And Mom said --"

Kate: "Whee!"

"Then came --"

Randall: "Me!"

"And Dad said --"

"Randall: "That's Three"

All: "Big Three!"

 

Kevin and Kate get exclamations of joy and Randall gets "okay, that's enough" or possibly "And the other one".  I mean, I'm sure it wasn't meant that way but that's how it sounds. 

Edited December 1, 2017 by BlancheDevoreaux
Mixed up what mom and dad said.

[Neurochick]

The UO that I have is that I like what the show does to Kevin.  Years ago, if there was a black character on a TV show or a movie, that character was just a prop for the lead white character; you never knew if that character had a family, where they were from, etc.  

This show kind of flips that, as it's the black character we know more about, and the white, male character is almost a prop for the black, male character.  

[voiceover]

Uh.  It's "Mom said, 'We!' "

It's a family joke that doesn't bother them (little Randall grinned at his part), so it doesn't bother me.  Plus, it's factually accurate.

[ChromaKelly]

1 hour ago, potatoradio said:

So, I finally smarm-watched #2 and #3 to complete the bodily function trifecta (piss, dookie and puke). Or, as I have renamed them: "How to Lose a Pathetic, Desperate Hookup and a Necklace in a Few Hours," "When Shower Curtains Attack" and "Joyride with Drunk Uncle." Yes, I clearly need more grief counseling. I'm a sick puppy for not clutching my feelz at every Pearson-splained* emotional breakdown.

Pac Man as life  lesson, ya'll! It's so...sob...sob..the ghosts...man...the ghosts are still there....sob sob...ohmigod, the feelz....Randall. Dude. Eat some food out of that perfectly full fridge, drop some acid and maybe you'll see your two sainted dads as Inky and Blinky get eaten once and for all and then you can calm.the.fuck.down. and shut.the.fuck.up. 

The less said about powerful men and yellow onions the better. Perhaps Kate didn't eat the Chinese food because there were NO. YELLOW. ONIONS in it. BTW, Rebecca, Saint Jack would ho ho ho about a red onion substitute and it would become an overblown Pearson tradition when making stew to have the whole family storm into a grocery store and scream at someone. No worries, this is just how we Pearsons do it. 

Best part of the finale was the kid popping up in the back seat and saying, "I hate my house." Yeah! You go, Tess! I'd hate it too if I had two insufferable parents who harp on how perfectly imperfect they are. I wonder if Tess and Annie are allowed to use wire hangers? Could we have a scene where Randall re-enacts the Mommie Dearest "clean up this mess" scene? Cos that would be fun. And watchable, for entertainment, unlike 99% of this dreck.

I say, next season, Tess runs off with Drunk Uncle and they form a band called Tobe and the Dead Dads.  

 

 

*Bless whoever came up with that phrase earlier in the posts and apologies for not finding it to quote. 

Can you please do a recap of every episode? I am DYING over here! It could be a tradition! After every episode, we all gather 'round the laptop and read Potatoradio's recap, clutching our sides in laughter. Maybe we can come up with a song to go along with it.
 

[voiceover]

On 11/27/2017 at 8:28 AM, Winston9-DT3 said:

I had read the thread before watching so I was kind of shocked with how the writers chose to have the miscarriage occur, once I watched.  I feel like the 'one small fall and BAM the pregnancy spontaneously terminates' is kind of an old, lazy tv trope.  Like we women have glass uteri and babies are all hanging by a thread in there.  This article discusses how it's not very likely in early pregnancy.

But I think the writers felt they had to make it clear that Kate's weight was a main factor so she was directly at fault, so she can bear even more guilt.  

I thought this was clarified, but just in case: Kate didn't fall.  We see her feel something (obviously the miscarriage in progress), then as she sits on the edge of the tub to steady herself, she clutches at the curtain.  Which is brought down by adrenaline.  Apparently.

[laurakaye]

26 minutes ago, ChromaKelly said:

Can you please do a recap of every episode? I am DYING over here! It could be a tradition! After every episode, we all gather 'round the laptop and read Potatoradio's recap, clutching our sides in laughter. Maybe we can come up with a song to go along with it.
 

Seconded.  Pretty sure I once proposed marriage to one of @potatoradio's posts, and I think it was from this show.

Edited November 30, 2017 by laurakaye

[ChromaKelly]

38 minutes ago, BlancheDevoreaux said:

I always thought that chant kind of sucked for Randall.

 

 

Kevin and Kate get exclamations of joy and Randall gets "okay, that's enough" or possibly "And the other one".  I mean, I'm sure it wasn't meant that way but that's how it sounds. 

Angelica!

Eliza!

...and Peggy.

[Crs97]

Didn’t someone’s mom make the ugliest onesies ever with the numbers 1, 2, and 3 on them?  Now that I think about it, doesn’t that throw off timelines?  There is no way Rebecca’s Mom would handmade those things, and Jack’s Mom is already dead.  Hmm...

[ShadowFacts]

1 hour ago, Crs97 said:

Didn’t someone’s mom make the ugliest onesies ever with the numbers 1, 2, and 3 on them?  Now that I think about it, doesn’t that throw off timelines?  There is no way Rebecca’s Mom would handmade those things, and Jack’s Mom is already dead.  Hmm...

I think Jack's mom did that, and I don't think we know when she died, do we?

[Crs97]

Wasn’t she dead when Jack needed to borrow money from his dad for the house (while Rebecca was pregnant), or were they divorced?  The dad was alone then.

[potatoradio]

2 hours ago, laurakaye said:

Seconded.  Pretty sure I once proposed marriage to one of @potatoradio's posts, and I think it was from this show.

 

2 hours ago, ChromaKelly said:

Can you please do a recap of every episode?

K, ya'll are making me blush over here, but thank you. I am 100% down for snarkcaps. Reading the posts on this thread is so much more therapeutic than trying to prepare for the Feelz that are guar-an-teed to give you that special "ride the lightning/meet your maker" epiphany. And I would never get over my anvil headaches without the rest of you. Cheers to the unpopular lot of us and save your eye muscles for rolling next season.