S04.E12: Ask Him about Stella

[HunterHunted]

11 hours ago, Milaxx said:

I don't believe Isaac.  The ease in which he purchased those drugs, combined with thee fact that it was his drugs that Stella found in the first place leads me to believe this isn't the first time he's relapsed. Now I think back to every time we've seen Isaac curled up in  chair like that in his office and I suspect he was high then. It's starting to feel like the ex-wife was right to go to AK in the first place..

That brings me to my next question; Is Isaac technically still seeing AK as her therapist? Is he sending fake reports to the law board?

I actually agree with you about Isaac having relapsed multiple times. He's allegedly been sober for 10 years since Stella overdosed. He shouldn't know where to score still after all these years. And that was more than going to the Southside, it was going to a specific food truck that also deals drugs on the side. I guess it's possible one of his patients could have told him, but the fact that he retained that info is troubling.

[love2lovebadtv]

15 hours ago, sioux21 said:

Also, in defense of that poster:

I know who Kerry Washington is, but couldn't have picked her out of a line up. I know Scandal is a show on tv, but couldn't have told you what channel it was on or that it comes on right before HTGAWM or that Kerry Washington was on it or that the main character was named Olivia or even what the show was about beyond that it has to do with some sort of scandal. 

I trust that I don't need to catch up on anything or watch another show to understand the introduction of a new character here. It'll be fine.

1

Let's hope we don't need to catch up on Scandal. I left that train wreck behind (even though I'm still watching the HTGAWM train wreck). 

[project90]

4 minutes ago, love2lovebadtv said:

Let's hope we don't need to catch up on Scandal. I left that train wreck behind (even though I'm still watching the HTGAWM train wreck). 

I find hard leave shows like Supernatural i've come this far surely they got stop flogging that dead horse soon

[love2lovebadtv]

Just now, project90 said:

I find hard leave shows like Supernatural i've come this far surely they got stop flogging that dead horse soon

Come to think of it, I might just watch next week's episode of Scandal to torture myself. Hence, my name. 

[Anela]

As I said in another thread, I have no interest in another show with two crazy, power-hungry, murderous parents. 

The part with the mention of a wedding, was cute. That baby is adorable, too. And I love Jimmy Smits. I also liked him on the West Wing, when I binge-watched it. 

[Milaxx]

Back to the show. I thought all the interactions with the (new)K5 were really cute.  Despite the issues with Laurel & the baby they were all working together and basically getting along. Love seeing Asher's new found love of baking. The quick side comments when Asher asked if Connor was always this bossy & Oliver's reply was , "If I'm lucky." and Connor chiming in, "You're always lucky".  Also enjoyed seeing the healthy rivalry between Micheala & Connor again. I have no clue if Connor & Oliver actually make it down the aisle or if we get to see it on screen or not.  It was just nice to see them not afraid for their lives or worried about getting arrested for a change.

[possibilities]

The scene with them working together on the case made me realize I probably would have liked the entire show better if it had been about really interesting cases like the class action, and not about how to get away with murder. At this point, it's no longer morally complex or interesting that basically these people are constantly creating crises that lead to death and destruction and we're supposed to root for them to get away with it. But the class action is an interesting idea that it would be endlessly awesome to see them fight for, even if it took many episodes and they kept having to come up with creative ways to do it, instead of creative ways to get away with murder.

[Marley]

I liked this ep and I still think the mom is sketchy and Wes is secretly alive.

Im hate watching Scandal it sucks really bad now and Kerry Washington gets worse at acting by the day so I’m not really that excited for the crossover. I almost feel bad for her having to act next to the amazing Viola Davis.

[the-grey-lady]

You know, I was kind of indifferent about Bonnie up until this season, but the actress has just been killing it lately. I still find her obsession(s) with Annaliese and Frank to be rather disturbing, but they make sense given what we know about Bonnie, i.e. that she is absolutely pathologically needy and searching for somewhere, anywhere to belong. And watching her attempt to channel Annaliese in her confrontation with Denver reminded me of how desperate she is to impress/live up to her idol.

Now I'm worried Bonnie is next on the chopping block, and I hate that idea. 

I don't watch Scandal, and that promo with Kerry Washington doesn't inspire me to tune in. Wow, Viola Davis is head-and-shoulders above her, acting-wise.

[wanderingstar]

I watched Scandal for about 4 seasons, but eventually, it just got too convoluted and dumb (and not in an enjoyable way). Still, I will get a kick out of the Shondaland crossover. 

As for Kerry Washington, I have seen her in several films, and I think she's a solid actress. That said, the writing on Scandal does her no favors. I'll still watch and enjoy the crossover, but I will be tempering my expectations for the Annalise-Olivia scenes.

Edited February 11, 2018 by Gillian Rosh

[Milaxx]

On 2/11/2018 at 2:04 PM, possibilities said:

The scene with them working together on the case made me realize I probably would have liked the entire show better if it had been about really interesting cases like the class action, and not about how to get away with murder. At this point, it's no longer morally complex or interesting that basically these people are constantly creating crises that lead to death and destruction and we're supposed to root for them to get away with it. But the class action is an interesting idea that it would be endlessly awesome to see them fight for, even if it took many episodes and they kept having to come up with creative ways to do it, instead of creative ways to get away with murder.

I don't mind them working together to get away with murder, but I do miss them doing actual cases together.  With them moving away from the classroom as much I hope we delve more into the class action and some of the individual cases in it. 

On 2/11/2018 at 5:17 PM, Gillian Rosh said:

I watched Scandal for about 4 seasons, but eventually, it just got too convoluted and dumb (and not in an enjoyable way). Still, I will get a kick out of the Shondaland crossover. 

As for Kerry Washington, I have seen her in several films, and I think she's a solid actress. That said, the writing on Scandal does her no favors. I'll still watch and enjoy the crossover, but I will be tempering my expectations for the Annalise-Olivia scenes.

 

I agree Kerry is a solid actress. Her turn as Anita Hill was really well done.  It's just that Viola is an incredible actress.  I still watch Scandal because I just put my brain on hold and enjoy the crazy. Still I am looking forward to this crossover because I think they will use it to bring out the best in both shows and actresses. 

Edited February 13, 2018 by Milaxx

[jhlipton]

On 2/8/2018 at 8:23 PM, Dee said:

Laurel needs to be pushed into the sea.

With concrete galoshes -- amy she slepp with the fishes!

On 2/9/2018 at 9:35 AM, Joimiaroxeu said:

Kerry's probably already doing the best she can. Bless her heart. ?

I saw what you did there!

On 2/10/2018 at 12:03 PM, secnarf said:

I trusted that too, and then the Supergirl/Flash/Arrow/Legends crossover happened. As someone who watches exactly one of those shows, I was utterly lost and ultimately gave up.

I only watch LoT and was glad it was the last show.  I only watched that hour and figured everything out fairly well.  (I do have a cursory understanding of the Flarrowverse, which helped.)

14 hours ago, possibilities said:

The scene with them working together on the case made me realize I probably would have liked the entire show better if it had been about really interesting cases like the class action, and not about how to get away with murder.

Yes, but How To Get Away With Class Actions just isn't as catchy a title!

[TV Anonymous]

Has Mrs. Castillo (Laurel's step mother) always been French? I thought when Laurel came home to Florida, when his father was still Jose Zuniga, her whole family was hispanophone (Spanish-speaking people)?

[secnarf]

5 hours ago, TV Anonymous said:

Has Mrs. Castillo (Laurel's step mother) always been French? I thought when Laurel came home to Florida, when his father was still Jose Zuniga, her whole family was hispanophone (Spanish-speaking people)?

I am pretty sure she is Laurel's mother, not step mother.

[Milaxx]

On 2/13/2018 at 2:24 PM, TV Anonymous said:

Has Mrs. Castillo (Laurel's step mother) always been French? I thought when Laurel came home to Florida, when his father was still Jose Zuniga, her whole family was hispanophone (Spanish-speaking people)?

Sandrine is Laurel's  birth mother. The mother in the Christmas vacation was her step-mother.

[pennben]

So, I just did a mini catch up on the episodes.  I really feel like there's more to the Pa. Supreme Court rejecting Annalise's case than them just saying no to her after calling her in for a meeting.  Maybe I'm wrong, but it just felt like a big hole to not see what happened in that room.

Regardless, I think this season has been really, really good.  I'm viewing it in mini-binges and that seems to enhance my enjoyment overall.  

[RedheadZombie]

On ‎2‎/‎8‎/‎2018 at 11:08 PM, stonehaven said:

Wow..that was intense....Great episode...and the scariest I'd ever seen Jimmy Smits...

It was good, but I don't understand why Bonnie is risking her life to protect Isaac.  He lied, he's responsible for his daughter getting the means of her suicide, he's off the wagon, and he's losing it.  Jail may be what he needs to get clean.

[starri]

I've made this comment before, but the music on this show is always on point.

[Chas411]

Bonnie is such a moron - how long did she think this would go on for before she'd get caught. 

[truthaboutluv]

On February 11, 2018 at 1:06 AM, Milaxx said:

Also enjoyed seeing the healthy rivalry between Micheala & Connor again.

Catching up way late on the second half of the season and had to comment on this. I actually really disliked Michaela in this episode. I didn't see healthy rivalry, I saw her being an asshole to Connor just because she was so thirsty to get her name on a potential Supreme Court case. And don't get me wrong, I don't have an issue with the girl's ambition but it's how rude and dismissive she was being to Connor and his suggestions, despite his having worked his ass off for weeks on the case, while she was busy being a mole at what could have been a very lucrative internship opportunity, to help in Laurel's bonehead plan. I just found her very annoying this episode. And I still wish she and Asher would break up. 

[Hazel55]

Well, I'm about two and a half months behind here, so its unlikely that anyone will actually read this. However, there are few burning comments I need to get off of my chest:

Isaac is clearly Krazy with a capital "K." There have been signs of it creeping up since they introduced his ex wife/ therapist (that these were the SAME PERSON was a warning sign in itself, good lawdy.) Since the midseason finale, these warning signs have become more and more obvious with each episode; by this episode, all subtlety had been dropped-- everything Issac said to Analise during their little interactions struck me as the equivalent of giant flashing signs of Isaac's head reading: "Warning-- UNSTABLE! UNSTABLE!"

By the time he ended the episode ranting and raving, blaming Analise for his own long term drug use, and basically throwing a temper tantrum like a child, I marveled at how Analise could have possibly missed his instability for so long. In addition to his breach of confidentiality in telling his ex wife (and therapist) about her, he also relapsed on drugs, lied about his time of sobriety, was responsible for providing the drugs that led to his daughters death, and consistently lied about or downplayed all of these things until he was found out. The idea that Analise was not only continuing to defend him, but was actually considering entering a romantic relationship with him, makes my head spin. Then again, Analise is the woman thought Sam her already married therapist would make a great husband, so... I guess it fits. 

At any rate, I'm just thrilled to (finally) see the last of Isaac. At first I was neutral (he seemed a bit dull, but at least he was helping Analise), but the more of his backstory that emerged, the less I liked him. For the past few episodes I've been praying for him to just leave or get killed off already, so that more time could be spent on the crazy amoral characters I actually cared about, rather than this crazy amoral character who meant nothing to me. 

The only thing I regret is the brilliant Kathryn Erb (whom I loved so much on Law and Order: Criminal Intent), was so tragically wasted. I would have loved to see her guest star on the show in a role that actually showcased her incredible abilities. 

Other random thoughts: 

I am bored by both the Isaac storyline and the Laurel's kidnapped baby and evil mom/ dad storyline. The only storyline that continues to hold my interest is the class action suit. 

So Asher can cook. He was adorable in this episode. In fact, I kind of loved everyone in this episode, even Laurel, who is far less annoying when she is in the background. (And not in self-righteous, morally indignant mode.) I love the sense of community and family between the group, which makes sense considering nearly all of these people have either lost their families (Asher), utterly lost faith in them (Laurel, and, to a lesser extent, Connor), or simply never really had a family to begin with (Michaela.) 

Something amusing-- has there been a lot of focus on food/ comfort eating in the last few seasons? Because, considering the sheer amount we've seen Analise eating, and the loads of baked goods the kids were consuming, it seems unlikely everyone would be as fit as they are. Just saying. 

So... a crossover. Not thrilled, but then I've only watched one episode of Scandal, and was not even a little bit impressed. It was like this show... minus the brilliant pacing, ingenious mysteries, incisive social and political commentary, and the incredible lead performance of Viola Davis. 

And while I've only seen Kerry Washington in action on that show once, from what little I've seen, I'm predicting she's going to be laughably out of her depth opposite Viola Davis. While Davis can deliver a staggering amount of nuance and emotion with just her eyes, Washington seems to be straining with her immobile face and constantly revealed teeth to master so much as a single real emotion. 

Edited April 26, 2018 by Hazel55

[Milaxx]

On 3/25/2018 at 12:41 PM, starri said:

I've made this comment before, but the music on this show is always on point.

Shondaland shows do have a knack for good music. AND they cater to the general vibe of the shows. Grey's is good indie pop, Scandal is Motown. Not sure how I would describe HTGAWM but they definitely have their own distinct sound. 

On 3/9/2018 at 12:07 AM, RedheadZombie said:

It was good, but I don't understand why Bonnie is risking her life to protect Isaac.  He lied, he's responsible for his daughter getting the means of her suicide, he's off the wagon, and he's losing it.  Jail may be what he needs to get clean.

Because Isaac is tied to AK. If he loses it and runs his mouth to the police/DA, or they offer him a deal to sell out AK, they are all in trouble. I also think there's a bit of guilt for how they sucked him into their mess.

On 4/14/2018 at 1:04 PM, truthaboutluv said:

Catching up way late on the second half of the season and had to comment on this. I actually really disliked Michaela in this episode. I didn't see healthy rivalry, I saw her being an asshole to Connor just because she was so thirsty to get her name on a potential Supreme Court case. And don't get me wrong, I don't have an issue with the girl's ambition but it's how rude and dismissive she was being to Connor and his suggestions, despite his having worked his ass off for weeks on the case, while she was busy being a mole at what could have been a very lucrative internship opportunity, to help in Laurel's bonehead plan. I just found her very annoying this episode. And I still wish she and Asher would break up. 

That's always been the Michaela/Connor dynamic.  From competing for higher rankings even when they are both in the bottom 10 to trying to one up each other on court cases. Part  of it was also the tough love he needed to encourage Connor to get back in school. Yet at the end of the day when Coliver broke up, Connor went to Micheala and when everyone else wasn't speaking to her for calling ICE on Drake, Micheal went to Connor.

On 4/26/2018 at 3:41 AM, Hazel55 said:

The idea that Analise was not only continuing to defend him, but was actually considering entering a romantic relationship with him, makes my head spin. Then again, Analise is the woman thought Sam her already married therapist would make a great husband, so... I guess it fits.

I didn't get the sense that AK was considering entering into a romantic relationship with Isaac. I think she was attracted to him, but she was the first to mention how she got involved with Sam. I think she recognized the attraction, but had no interest in following up on it. In fact, this entire season we saw AK resisting against using sex as panacea for her problems. She stopped herself with the guy from the plane, she stopped herself when Nate kissed her, she and Bonnie actually talked about what was going on between them and she wisely kept her relationship with Isaac platonic.