Sweetbitter - General Discussion

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Ugh, the actor playing Jake does not have the gravitas to pull off the serious scenes talking about his mom.

It's not a good sign when a guy orders two beers and breakfast or when the first thing he does when he gets out of bed is get a beer out of the fridge.

I really don't care about Jake or his weird relationship with Simone. I just want him to go away. OF COURSE he backed out of opening a place with Scott. On the plus side, that means Scott will still be around next season!

[NeenerNeener]

Wow, in the last few minutes of the last episode Tess really lives up to her "Baby Monster" nickname.

Simone really messed Jake up, but Tess, you can't save him.

Nice to see that I'm not the only one who gets my Starz fix on Sunday mornings.

Edited August 18, 2019 by NeenerNeener

[dmc]

This show is like all about eve for the restaurant business. 

[Ms Lark]

14 hours ago, NeenerNeener said:

Wow, in the last few minutes of the last episode Tess really lives up to her "Baby Monster" nickname.

Baby Monster, indeed. So you think she'll start sleeping with the boss rolling into the 3rd season? To spite Jake and If it's actually renewed.

[Adultosaurus]

15 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Ugh, the actor playing Jake does not have the gravitas to pull off the serious scenes talking about his mom.

It's not a good sign when a guy orders two beers and breakfast or when the first thing he does when he gets out of bed is get a beer out of the fridge.

I really don't care about Jake or his weird relationship with Simone. I just want him to go away. OF COURSE he backed out of opening a place with Scott. On the plus side, that means Scott will still be around next season!

Tom Sturridge doesn't have gravitas? I think it's just a poorly-written role. He's a good actor.

[Adultosaurus]

15 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I kinda hate this where the origin content was exhausted with the first season, but the show continues on without the basis. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

23 minutes ago, Adultosaurus said:

Tom Sturridge doesn't have gravitas? I think it's just a poorly-written role. He's a good actor.

He has been terrible since S1.  Instead of coming off as sexy and aloof, he just seems bored and/or stoned no matter what the situation (“flirting” with Tess, discussing his dead mom, talking about his weird relationship with Simone).

[Adultosaurus]

1 minute ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

He has been terrible since S1.  Instead of coming off as sexy and aloof, he just seems bored and/or stoned no matter what the situation (“flirting” with Tess, discussing his dead mom, talking about his weird relationship with Simone).

His character is exactly like this in the book.

[qtpye]

When Tess suggests firing Simone, I actually cheered. Tess and Simone fighting over Mr. Dumbfuck was so eye rolling.

I know Simone is supposed to be so amazingly talented at everything but what the Hell does she bring to the table she that lets her wield so much power in the restaurant? I hated the first season of this show and now I’ll be disappointed if there is no third season.

[Eyes High]

On 8/15/2019 at 10:35 PM, qtpye said:

So both Tess and Simone turned down some really great guys to be with a man who is as fascinating as watching paint dry.

A rich handsome Frenchman marries you and whisks you away to his fantastic estate.  Not to mention, you both could make some of the best wines and champagnes in the world together. However, you choose to be a friendless waitress in New York and continue a situationship with the blandest fuck boy on the planet because it feeds into your queen bee delusions.  I wonder why you are not happy.

I think Simone needs to be in control at all times. Etienne said something about how she wouldn't allow anyone to get close to her, and I guess that would also mean giving up control (something that seems to be anathema to her). Jake is under her thumb completely. She allowed Tess to get close enough because she knew that Tess worshipped her (and lashed out at Tess when Tess questioned her relationship with Jake).

The restaurant, even though Simone is smart enough to know that it's a dead end, is a perfect little ecosystem she feels she can control completely, right down to telling Howard what to do, whereas she seems to have been out of her depth in France with Etienne's family and lifestyle. Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven, I guess.

It's been a little satisfying seeing Simone act out and come apart at the seams, after having to deal with her smugly dispensing words of wisdom and acting above everything for the better part of two seasons.

On 8/18/2019 at 7:18 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Ugh, Jake continues to be THE WORST. He shows up at a group hang just to get Tess to leave with him. "I want to eat with you. Now. Alone." And even worse, she can't resist this asshole behavior and leaves without saying a word to everyone else. NOT COOL. If I was at a club and my friend said she was going to get a drink and never came back, I would be freaking out. But of course Tess has to drop everything whenever Jake calls. And of course she's fascinated by watching him eat shitty diner food.

Any person who says they never swooned over a hot jerk is lying. I mean, this is a coming of age story, and swooning over assholes because they're exciting and transgressive while overlooking nicer people because they're too safe, boring and predictable is definitely part of being young. So Tess being entranced with Jake not in spite of, but because of his horrible behaviour is very realistic.

12 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

He has been terrible since S1.  Instead of coming off as sexy and aloof, he just seems bored and/or stoned no matter what the situation (“flirting” with Tess, discussing his dead mom, talking about his weird relationship with Simone).

Jake's a ridiculous character, when it comes down to it. He's almost a parody of the obnoxious, pretentious assholes girls in their twenties fall for, right down to the artistic hobby, the mommy issues, the rudeness, the tattoos, the drinking (to conceal his great inner suffering), etc. Tom Sturridge is playing Jake as if he's in on the joke.

Quote

Even if Ari is a poor little rich girl who doesn't have to pay rent to live in the building that her parents own, why not cash her paychecks? She doesn't have to spend the money but she should at least deposit them. She seems to be spiraling so hopefully she doesn't OD.

If she's that rich, the paychecks probably don't mean anything to her. Ari being rich and working at the restaurant out of loneliness explains a lot about her.

9 hours ago, qtpye said:

I know Simone is supposed to be so amazingly talented at everything but what the Hell does she bring to the table she that lets her wield so much power in the restaurant? I hated the first season of this show and now I’ll be disappointed if there is no third season.

She has been there for so long and, it's implied, has acquired so much knowledge and experience within that time that it's difficult to replace her. Simone should remember that as she once warned Tess, everyone's expendable.

One thing I don't get about Simone and Jake is this thing that Simone "raised" Jake. How old is Jake supposed to be? Simone and Jake's actors are only three years apart.

Edited August 19, 2019 by Eyes High

[Amethyst]

The only thing good about Tess and Jake's hookup was that Radiohead's "Sail to the Moon" was playing.  It's one of my favorites but I never hear it anywhere.  Otherwise, that whole scene was surprisingly underwhelming.   No chemistry, but they had to get this part going because the season is ending.  

Simone and Howard are very strange together.  Every conversation between them looks like it will lead to either intense sex or a shouting match.  

On 8/18/2019 at 9:18 PM, Ms Lark said:

So you think she'll start sleeping with the boss rolling into the 3rd season? To spite Jake and If it's actually renewed.

It definitely looks like Tess and Howard are going to have a fling, but I don't see her doing it to spite Jake.  If anything, Tess seemed disappointed that Jake let Simone manipulate him again, so she took matters into her own hands. 

However, getting involved with Howard would be disastrous at any rate.  It looks like a "Oops, we fell into bed because we had too many drinks" kind of thing.

[dmc]

On 8/18/2019 at 11:06 PM, Adultosaurus said:

Tom Sturridge doesn't have gravitas? I think it's just a poorly-written role. He's a good actor.

I don’t like him in this either.  It’s not just the writing.  It’s difficult to believe two women are fighting over him which is essentially the plot 

[Marci]

It has become clear that every show is required to foster racism, particularly among white people. Not a show goes by without some reference to white racism. It must truly have been handed down to all writers as a requirement. Oh, well.

[MaggieG]

I just want Jake to close his mouth. He always looks bored with his mouth hanging open. 

[NeenerNeener]

So Starz cancelled this today.

[scrb]

2 hours ago, NeenerNeener said:

So Starz cancelled this today.

Hmm, this news made me check for the status of Vida.

It was renewed back in May.

[Ms Lark]

Yep. Can't say it's a bad thing, either:

https://deadline.com/2019/12/sweetbitter-canceled-after-2-seasons-starz-1202815445/

[ElectricBoogaloo]

They gave the show two seasons which was more than fair. Did you think S1 (which followed the book) was more cohesive or did you prefer S2 when they were no longer constrained by the original source material?

[NeenerNeener]

1 hour ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Did you think S1 (which followed the book) was more cohesive or did you prefer S2 when they were no longer constrained by the original source material?

I was afraid they were heading for a thruple of Tess, Jake and Simone when they were no longer constrained by the source material.

[Amethyst]

Disappointing, but not surprising. Would have been nice if they had one final season to wrap everything up.

[Sun-Bun]

Just finished watching the second season a few days ago; I liked it even better than the first one! The energy felt a bit more upbeat and the characters seemed a bit deeper and fully fleshed out. Shame to see this show cancelled just when it started to pick up steam.
 

Jake still sucks though. I’m sure JS is a fine actor otherwise, but as others have noted here, he just doesn’t have the charisma or good looks to play the hot bad boy bartender-type. Like I still can’t understand the attraction Tess has to him and Simone’s clingy nature with him is equally baffling given her ambitiously worldly, sophisticated streak. It’s a weird Oedipal energy that I don’t think translated very well between those two actors. Such a waste, because I think a better casting choice for Jake might’ve elevated this material a bit, especially since I think everyone else was perfectly cast in their roles.
And had he been played by a younger actor, Simone’s maternal energy with him might’ve made more sense as well. He’s supposed to be closer to Tess’s age in the book, just a few years older than her. 
 

It was nice to see Howard given a bit more humanizing scenes. The actor who plays him is just perfect in his style and delivery. Sorry we don’t get to see what ultimately happens between he and Tess, although it was an ugly final twist in the book that might’ve been tough to play well for another season if they stuck to the book’s plot.

Speaking of the book, I kept waiting for the big France trip with Simone and Jake to happen, which finally sets Tess off and turns her into the shameless backstabber she becomes...I guess they replaced that storyline with the weird storyline about Tess reading Simone’s writings and getting weird ideas about her and Jake’s relationship?? The very last scene between Tess/Howard just felt flat and random without that necessary backstory...

It was nice to see Tess’s loyal friendship grow with the Russian gay guy(I forget his name). And I found Will’s character especially intriguing as he was given more chances to explore his ambition and drive for success. Tess should’ve been hanging out more with him and not pining away for the dumb bartender. 
 

Interesting series overall though and I’m sorry it wasn’t given an extra season to tie up those loose ends. Although I was beyond tired of watching JS sulk his way through every episode while being annoyed over his character’s casting, so it’s okay.

[ShellsandCheese]

I’m late to the party, but I loved it. Tess and Howard has great chemistry and could see them getting together if the show had continued. I wish there had been a third season - it could have focused on people getting unstuck. Howard, Simone, Jake, Will, Ari, Sasha, et al were all very much stuck. 
 

I also had didn’t think Omar came across that bad in the sex scene. If anything he was pointing out that she was performing, lol. When he was like I’m not really moving or doing anything really, and Tess was acting as if she was in the throes of orgasm. 

Edited May 21, 2020 by ShellsandCheese