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Season 4 Talk


OnceSane
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13 hours ago, Court said:

Dre is insufferable. He's so obnoxious that any good points get lost. 

I learned about Juneteenth in school. So have my kids. Our town has a one day festival celebrating it.

I agree more people should know about it and do what they want to honor/celebrate it.

But my issue lies with Dre being upset other people weren't familiar but he'd never taught his kids or celebrated it before now. That's where the conversation should have been had.

I'm also really sick of the dumbing down of his co-workers. Stevens son can leave.

 

Charlie is the best.

I know it's a sitcom, but I hate the way Dre is written.  They make his character too over the top with his cruelty towards Junior and his man child bit.  Over the top is fine for supporting characters like Ruby or Charlie, but Dre is supposed to be the heart of the show and they need to dial it back a bit.  Also, Anthony Anderson is an amazing actor and the writing doesn't let him act in a more natural way.

I totally agree that Charlie is the best.  He makes everything better.

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We LOVE this show.....every episode, even those where Dre gets all preachy have been some of the best tv on these days.

....except THIS episode.  We literally tried 2x to watch it but it just got waaaaay to preachy.  We get it.....there were slaves a long time ago.  Indigenous peoples were taken advantage of.  It really really sucked for them.  It should never happen again.

They played to their constituents.....good for them.  We will continue to look forward to Blackish every week....but this was an episode we will avoid every time it comes back in re runs. 

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I really enjoyed it.  I'll watch it again.  Maybe the fact I was giving myself a pedicure during it, and know so little about Hamilton I didn't even realize that was the 'joke', helped.  

I'm not sure I like the insinuation in the lines Fishburn read at the very end, but whatever.   

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They played to their constituents.....good for them. 

Sorry but I'm confused here. Who is "they," "their," and "them" in this context?

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I'm not sure I like the insinuation in the lines Fishburn read at the very end, but whatever.   

What did he say? I don't recall being particularly bothered at the time I was watching and have deleted my recording already. Thx.

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I'm sad. I really, really liked this show. 

Warm, FUNNY, and loved the characters. 

I don't need to be preached to every week, and I fear this is where we are headed. 

No doubt there will be an episode about athletes taking a knee when our anthem is played. And I'm sure they will find plenty of opportunities to work in "Trump is a white supremacist" material, in a joking way of course.

Oh well, it was good for a while.

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Done. Click. Not watching again.

1. I don't need a series of boring lectures about how there needs to be another holiday, this time ignoring Gettysburg, Cold Harbor, Emancipation Day, or even federal freedom day in DC, but based on some date in Texas. Yawn.

2. The only funny part was the song, which was a cartoon.

3. Dre is an unlikable bully who abuses his son.

4. The stupid white people characters have become actually offensive.

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I really hate that when the show finally delivered on having Bow call out Ruby for the ish that woman puts her through, it has be the one time Ruby actually didn't fully deserve a callout. Ugh. And of course, Bow decides to forgive Ruby after all and decides she can come back in the house. I'm trying hard not to see Bow as a doormat and understand she's just a forgiving person, but the crap she takes and accept from her husband and mother-in-law is unbelievable. :/

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I couldn’t help but think that Bow was feeling overwhelmed because the show never once showed Dre actually taking care of his own baby. I don’t remember seeing him hold or feed him, offer to check on him when he cried (not even change his body language that he heard anything), nothing. Bow would run to check and he would just stand there frozen. Hormones and putting all the pressure on Bow to do everything, totally makes sense. I was waiting for someone to mention it.

Junior was actually taking care of the baby when Bow was going through stuff (that we could see)

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Ruby gets scammed and Dre begins to suspect that she isn’t as sharp as she used to be, particularly because she was the one who used to scam other people. Zoey’s friend Aaron visits and Diane develops an instant crush on him.

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Rainbow is, as always, a hypocritical ass.

And it's getting really difficult to muster any sympathy about the rest of the Johnsons teasing Junior when he does creepy stuff like stripping half naked around his baby brother.

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7 hours ago, TobinAlbers said:

Josh really is coming along. He was the one who cottoned to Bow possibly having PPD.

 

5 hours ago, Aileen said:

I also loved the little moments, like Josh grabbing the divorce attorney's business card and then Charlie taking it from him.

I liked the way he whispered, "Oh, my God" and took the card from Dre, knowing that calling the attorney wasn't the answer.  For once, he actually overstepped Stevens without fear.  I didn't notice the Charlie part, though.

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I really hate that when the show finally delivered on having Bow call out Ruby for the ish that woman puts her through, it has be the one time Ruby actually didn't fully deserve a callout. 

I think it was warranted.  Bow has put with a lot of nonsense from her MIL as it is. But Bow was on the verge of fully breaking down thinking she wasn't bonding to her baby despite doing it 4 times before and maybe breast feeding was one of the few things going right for her.  Ruby isn't the one currently struggling, so when she feels she needed to intervene and give DeVonte formula, Bow finally snapped and told Ruby off.  She didn't need the reminder that she was not doing great from the last person she needs to hear it from.  

 

Meanwhile, Diane having Charles' address had my sister and I howling at the prospect as to what else she would send him. 

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6 hours ago, luckyroll3 said:

"Dear Charles, I now have your home address.  It's the last mistake you'll ever make.... Diane."

And Deon's facial twitching after having read it is an awesome callback. I love their nemesis relationship.

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I loved this episode . Ruby fully deserved Bow's rant. I would have been furious if anyone had given my baby formula when they knew I was breast feeding.

My second was 7 weeks early and the pumping/breast feeding was the only thing I could control or that I felt in control of with her care. It was incredibly important to me and I would've lost my shit too especially since Ruby has a pattern of doing this to Bow. 

There's nothing creepy about what Junior did. The hospitals and especially the NICU highly encourage skin to skin.

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I am so glad they did this episode! PPD is a real mental illness that can be treated, and it's more common than most people know because - like most mental illnesses - it's spoken about in hushed tones.  A woman with PPD can be paralyzed with fear and depression; it's horrible. I'm glad Dre recognized it and dealt with it like a normal person instead of the man-child he usually is.

  • Love 22
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Yes Bow! Tell Ruby to shove it! I've been waiting for this! Ruby actually did have better intentions than usual this episode, but giving the baby formula against Bows wishes really did cross a line. And Dre actually backs up Bow for once! Granted, I knew it would get undone and Ruby would move back into the house (and even though she apologized, you know she`ll be back to being mean to Bow by next week), but that rant was a long time coming. 

I think this is the one time Dre saying the words "I listened to my co-workers" has actually lead to something good! I do appreciate that Dre did try to be supportive to Bow and to the kids, and actually showed some real emotion beyond race based outrage, bumbling, or insecurity based assholeness. I did wonder why we didn't see him with the baby very much. It seemed like Junior was the only one actually watching Devonte. 

"I now know your home address..." Oh my God I love Diane and Charlies rivalry, I laughed so hard! On the other hand, not cool sending a mean note to Josh! He put effort into that blanket, thats a thoughtful gift! He was also the first person to guess that Bow had PPD! 

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When I saw what the episode was going to be dealing with, I have to say I wasn't stoked. Other shows have done PPD to varying levels of success in the past and it didn't feel like new territory for the show. Not to mention how much drama surrounding this pregnancy has already been in place.

But Tracee's performance did it for me. She did a great job of portraying the depression in a manner that wasn't overly done. It felt real especially the moments when she was just sad and sitting there. And kudos to how they had Dre portrayed as well. The male response in these situations is "How do I fix this, I want to fix this." and it's frustrating when you can't. I appreciated the support that Dre got from the kids, work, and Pops to assist Bow, even if he couldn't fix anything himself.

Speaking of Pops, thank god he was around to add some levity to the show. Cussing out the kids, then the cut hand while he enjoyed his bourbon were terrific!

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18 hours ago, Bronzedog said:

Is this still a comedy?  Not in the last two weeks.

It's always mixed comedy and drama. Mostly at the same time. Most shows with black casts do that. I think because there are so few all black shows or dramas in particular that they end up addressing a lot while they have the chance. And we've seen the pure comedy plotlines that could have come from the initial after birth issues. I always applaud them going a little deeper.

16 hours ago, Aileen said:

If my MIL fed my EBF baby formula behind my back, I, too, would've lost my shit. That scene between Bow and Ruby was a long time coming and, IMO, very well done. 

I also loved the little moments, like Josh grabbing the divorce attorney's business card and then Charlie taking it from him.

The only thing that didn't work for me was the thank you note plot. Diane is too smart to think that those were acceptable. 

It's not about Diane being smart or not. It's another joke regarding Diane being a possible sociopath.

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8 hours ago, vibeology said:

I think Ruby fully deserved that callout. She gave DeVonte formula when Bow is breastfeeding and did it because Bow's milk might be "poison." That's a disgusting thing to say to say to any mother, especially one who is struggling. Everyone except Jack knew something was very wrong. Ruby couldn't have missed it but she used that fact as a weapon against Bow. For me, it's the worst thing Ruby has ever done.

I know the show has to hit the reset button and move Ruby back in so the character is around but it's a shame because if I had been Bow, she'd never be coming back.

Baptizing the twins on her own is up there too, but that didn't seem to be much of a concern to Dre and Bow. This was something that Bow felt strongly about and on top of the rest of the issues she was having, I'm not surprised she flipped.

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Tracee Ellis Ross was phenomenal this episode.  If the Academy could ever get over their obsession with Julia Louis-Dreyfus (who is always incredible, to be fair, but enough already), she would have the Emmy locked up, but...she'll unfortunately have to wait until Veep ends.

Bow's evisceration of Ruby was looooooong overdue, incredibly well-deserved, and beautifully done, and I was so relieved Dre actually supported his wife for 3.7 seconds against his mother.

 

That scene was beautifully done, Tracee knocked it out of the park. I was a little shocked that Dre supported her right away instead of trying to weasel a solution where he doesn't have to stand up to Ruby, but I guess he was that freaked out about Bow's state of mind.

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But Tracee's performance did it for me. She did a great job of portraying the depression in a manner that wasn't overly done. It felt real especially the moments when she was just sad and sitting there. And kudos to how they had Dre portrayed as well. The male response in these situations is "How do I fix this, I want to fix this." and it's frustrating when you can't. I appreciated the support that Dre got from the kids, work, and Pops to assist Bow, even if he couldn't fix anything himself.

I appreciated the muted portrayal too, although the sobbing over the too-big bag of potatoes in the supermarket did make me laugh. And yeah, Dre's desire to fix it and being afraid that it might never get better were very realistic responses.

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Speaking of Pops, thank god he was around to add some levity to the show. Cussing out the kids, then the cut hand while he enjoyed his bourbon were terrific!

The whole baby-proofing sequence had me rolling. I had completely forgotten about those damn plastic things that people put over doorknobs. My sister's house had those and I swear I could not get out of there without help. Half the time, it was the kids helping me get around the childproofing. 

Dre kicking the baby gate and Pops' "I was going to sweep it up but I couldn't get into the pantry" made me laugh out loud. Laurence Fishburne's delivery can make anything hilarious. 

Edited by ljenkins782
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I thoroughly enjoyed this ep. As others said, TER was fantastic. I loved how she depicted different moods of PPD -- depressed, crying, sarcastic self-deprecation, panic. This is her Emmy-nom submission for next year.

 

18 hours ago, Dee said:

The treatment of Ruby was colorist and misogynistic as hell in this episode.

I don't understand. Can you explain?

 

16 hours ago, Risha17 said:

And of course, Bow decides to forgive Ruby after all and decides she can come back in the house.

Did I miss that? After Ruby apologized to her, Bow asked for the key back.

The show has improved Josh tremendously. He still has his stupid moments, but he's much more likable and sympathetic now. He needs to be to differentiate him from the boss and son. BTW, when he tells his little story about being kicked out of Curves, I love the teeny little lip snarl he does at the end.

All the baby-proofing stuff was great, esp how Pops was confronting it all. The toilet seat, the locked liquor cabinet, the bandaged hand... Just all so great. I also loved Junior's inspection of Jack's work, and then Zoe just opening the cabinet door that has the lock on it. I love Jack. Then Junior finding the glass that Pops had left on the floor -- though he would have swept it up if he could have gotten into the pantry -- and angrily saying, "Why does this house have so much broken glass in it?"

Jack: I can do better!
Junior: Then SHOW me. In my good eye.

Zoe: She put sunscreen and a steak knife in Diane's lunchbox today.
Diane: Turns out I needed both at recess.

BTW, what do you call Dre's hairstyle?

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9 minutes ago, Boofish said:

My favorite line was Junior being happy not to do skin to skin with the baby because he was trying to latch

Ha, I totally forgot that one, another line that made me laugh out loud. 

It's interesting to me that I loved so many pieces of the episode and yet still don't feel like the show has hit its stride yet this season. The parts were greater than the whole. 

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1 hour ago, peeayebee said:

BTW, what do you call Dre's hairstyle?

It looks like he's starting to grow dreadlocks, but it's looked like that for a while now and it seems like it would be longer if that's what he were doing, so I might be wrong.

I always like the office scenes better than the home scenes, so this episode wasn't my favorite, but I did like Charlie's line about how his wife had PPD and had to go on vacation with Charlie's brother Eustace after baby Eustace was born. I know he said something similar about his wife and his brother in an earlier episode, but I can't remember what it was. In any case, Charlie's face was the perfect mix of having figured it out but still being in denial about it.

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5 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Yes Bow! Tell Ruby to shove it! I've been waiting for this! Ruby actually did have better intentions than usual this episode, but giving the baby formula against Bows wishes really did cross a line.

I do agree with this.  In fact, I saw both sides to the issue.  While using the word "poison" was way over the top, Ruby wasn't unreasonable to think that Bow's medication could affect her breast milk.  It's happened to several nursing mothers before, so it's not an uncommon occurrence, and she wasn't out of line to be concerned about the same thing happening to DeVante (I still can't believe that Bow relented to Dre about that name).  But at the same time, she really should've at least talked to Bow about it first.  Might've avoided her blowup that way.

42 minutes ago, fishcakes said:

I always like the office scenes better than the home scenes, so this episode wasn't my favorite, but I did like Charlie's line about how his wife had PPD and had to go on vacation with Charlie's brother Eustace after baby Eustace was born. I know he said something similar about his wife and his brother in an earlier episode, but I can't remember what it was. In any case, Charlie's face was the perfect mix of having figured it out but still being in denial about it.

He said Eustace looked a lot more like his brother than he looked like him.

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11 hours ago, vibeology said:

I think Ruby fully deserved that callout. She gave DeVonte formula when Bow is breastfeeding and did it because Bow's milk might be "poison." That's a disgusting thing to say to say to any mother, especially one who is struggling. Everyone except Jack knew something was very wrong. Ruby couldn't have missed it but she used that fact as a weapon against Bow. For me, it's the worst thing Ruby has ever done.

I know the show has to hit the reset button and move Ruby back in so the character is around but it's a shame because if I had been Bow, she'd never be coming back.

She fully deserved it. She's been deserving it since the character was introduced. I love Jenifer Lewis, but Ruby treats Bow like shit. And not only does she treat Bow like shit, she does so in the home Bow and Dre pay for. She called Bow's milk "poison," and I don't have kids but I think overriding a mother's wish about breastfeeding vs. formula is a huge overstep. I liked that Dre supported his wife, because he should. (When he said "You really think I'd take her side over yours" I was like " ... Yeah.") I'd put her out too, and I don't think I'd let her back in even with that apology. The apology is the least she could do.

3 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

The whole baby-proofing sequence had me rolling. I had completely forgotten about those damn plastic things that people put over doorknobs. My sister's house had those and I swear I could not get out of there without help. Half the time, it was the kids helping me get around the childproofing. 

Dre kicking the baby gate and Pops' "I was going to sweep it up but I couldn't get into the pantry" made me laugh out loud. Laurence Fishburne's delivery can make anything hilarious. 

The baby proofing stuff was great, and Laurence Fishburne has great timing. "I will whup all four of your asses at the same time!"

I will never like the name DeVante, but the baby is cute.

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Ruby has every right to treat Rainbow the way she does. It's not as if Rainbow makes an effort to check her own mother when she's rude to Andre and his side of the family.

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12 minutes ago, Dee said:

Ruby has every right to treat Rainbow the way she does. It's not as if Rainbow makes an effort to check her own mother when she's rude to Andre and his side of the family.

Is that how it was colorist and misogynist? Ruby is super rude, and D'Alicia has been in 2 maybe 3 episodes and I don't recall her being hurtful to Dre. If that had happened, it would just be that both Bow and Dre act like children around their parents and don't stand up for their spouses. But, it's not a theme for Rainbow's mom to be rude.

But again, how is it colorist or misogynist for Bow to not want her child to be fed formula when he is breastfeeding? Help me understand. 

Last point. Ruby has every right to go get her own house if she wants to be a bully to Bow.

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5 hours ago, Racj82 said:

It's always mixed comedy and drama. Mostly at the same time. Most shows with black casts do that. I think because there are so few all black shows or dramas in particular that they end up addressing a lot while they have the chance. And we've seen the pure comedy plotlines that could have come from the initial after birth issues. I always applaud them going a little deeper.

It's not about Diane being smart or not. It's another joke regarding Diane being a possible sociopath.

Diane is an unsavory brat....can't stand her, never could.

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3 hours ago, Star Aristille said:

I do agree with this.  In fact, I saw both sides to the issue.  While using the word "poison" was way over the top, Ruby wasn't unreasonable to think that Bow's medication could affect her breast milk.  It's happened to several nursing mothers before, so it's not an uncommon occurrence, and she wasn't out of line to be concerned about the same thing happening to DeVante (I still can't believe that Bow relented to Dre about that name).  But at the same time, she really should've at least talked to Bow about it first.  Might've avoided her blowup that way.

He said Eustace looked a lot more like his brother than he looked like him.

Except her own doctor had already given her one that is safe with breast feeding. It wasn't her place . 

Edited by Court
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23 hours ago, OptimisticCynic said:

I couldn’t help but think that Bow was feeling overwhelmed because the show never once showed Dre actually taking care of his own baby. I don’t remember seeing him hold or feed him, offer to check on him when he cried (not even change his body language that he heard anything), nothing. Bow would run to check and he would just stand there frozen. Hormones and putting all the pressure on Bow to do everything, totally makes sense. I was waiting for someone to mention it.

Junior was actually taking care of the baby when Bow was going through stuff (that we could see)

I know they set it up for Junior to get laughs, but yeah, good point.  It would be good to see at least one scene with him helping.  I’m surprised no one thought of PPD much sooner.  I’m glad they covered it, but it’s not taboo.  It’s very common.  I think the part about Bow being in denial as a doctor was good.

Loved the Ruby scene.  She had it coming.  

It’s probably a good thing I’m not a parent, but I heart Diane.  I loved the knife and sunscreen joke and any interaction between her and Charlie. 

Where is Bow’s brother?

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13 hours ago, Dee said:

Ruby has every right to treat Rainbow the way she does. It's not as if Rainbow makes an effort to check her own mother when she's rude to Andre and his side of the family.

Everyone has every right to treat people however they choose but people have a right to not that shit from nobody. Ruby would never be welcome to live in my home. 

Dre is lucky to have Bow considering the flashbacks of the way he was raised. She is a loving wife and mother with a successful career. She has never once treated Dre the way Pops and Ruby treated each other.  Ruby is jealous and it's an ugly jealously. I don't remember one instance when Bow's mother or anyone in her family was rude to the Johnsons but if they were "they had every right to treat them that way" considering how they treat their daughter/sister. No offense to you but that's some messed up B.S.

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26 minutes ago, Boofish said:

Everyone has every right to treat people however they choose but people have a right to not that shit from nobody. Ruby would never be welcome to live in my home. 

Dre is lucky to have Bow considering the flashbacks of the way he was raised. She is a loving wife and mother with a successful career. She has never once treated Dre the way Pops and Ruby treated each other.  Ruby is jealous and it's an ugly jealously. I don't remember one instance when Bow's mother or anyone in her family was rude to the Johnsons but if they were "they had every right to treat them that way" considering how they treat their daughter/sister. No offense to you but that's some messed up B.S.

I have just started watching this last season and just wanted to ask, is there any reason for why Ruby hates Bow so much?  Bow is a great mother, a doctor, and is very patient with Andre.  Most women would kill for a daughter in law like that.

Even in her depression, Tracy looked radiant.

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I thought Tracee handled the PPD beautifully, but Dre still irritates me. I know they're all broadly drawn, but his self-centeredness drives me batty and makes me wonder what Rainbow ever saw in him. Saying he wants Rainbow to keep up breastfeeding because it helps with weight loss?! Seriously? And what happened to the parental leave he was supposed to take? Junior and the kids were doing everything Dre should have been doing. That said, I do still love the comic bits, like Pops, Jack and Diane and the office interactions. 

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