S02E03: Concerned Women of America 2018.06.29

[The Crazed Spruce]

Quote

Ruth connects with a fellow film lover and helps Debbie cook up a PSA to appease an angry women's group. Cherry struggles on the set of her new show.

[thuganomics85]

Glad to see Cherry again, even if it looks like being a television actress isn't going to work out for her.  But I suspected that she was going to have to go back to GLOW in order for her to stay around.

Damn, Debbie knew exactly what she was doing with Ruth.  Pretty cold, but considering what Ruth did to her last season, I guess it's hard to be surprised that Debbie would still have some resentment in her.

Not sure how effective that PSA was, but it was sure fun to watch!

[Lady Calypso]

The Debbie stuff with Ruth was pretty cold, but they made it clear that the Ruth/Debbie rivalry is still as present as it was last season. Still, damn Debbie. I do like Russell and like that he seems to be genuinely interested in Ruth but also won't put up with her bullshit.

The Sam/Cherry scenes were good. Sam's brutal honesty is put to good use, and he does really have a soft spot for her. He was also shown to be quite competent with the show's directors. Plus, Cherry comes back to GLOW. 

The PSA was an interesting idea, and it played out pretty well. The Melanie/Jenny stuff was weird. I keep chuckling at Rhonda's mannequin. This time, he shows up in the pool briefly.

[JakeyJokes]

19 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

 

Damn, Debbie knew exactly what she was doing with Ruth.  Pretty cold, but considering what Ruth did to her last season, I guess it's hard to be surprised that Debbie would still have some resentment in her.

Not sure how effective that PSA was, but it was sure fun to watch!

At the end of the episode, I realized (in my opinion) that Debbie was fucking with Ruth because Ruth had thought she was pulling a fast one and nobody would think she was going on a date with Russell. Debbie was stalling because she wanted Ruth to just come out and admit what was going on. Debbie's "Sorry you missed your date" was her way of telling Ruth that she knew the entire time.

Me: Why doesn't Melanie just use an enema?

Jenny; *pulls out enema*

Me: OH MY GOD.

Cherry bombing (no pun intended) reminded me of the episode of Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List when Kathy got a guest spot on Law & Order: SVU. She was super excited and then, once she got there, remembered she hadn't done an episodic drama in over ten years, panicked, and blew all her lines when they first started filming.

Sam is such a well-written character and Maron is killing it. He has moments where he's downright loathsome (anything to do with the show), and then moments of decency (getting Cherry back while saving her dignity, attempting to be a father to Justine).

[Clanstarling]

On 6/29/2018 at 7:56 PM, Lady Calypso said:

The Debbie stuff with Ruth was pretty cold, but they made it clear that the Ruth/Debbie rivalry is still as present as it was last season. Still, damn Debbie. I do like Russell and like that he seems to be genuinely interested in Ruth but also won't put up with her bullshit.

The Sam/Cherry scenes were good. Sam's brutal honesty is put to good use, and he does really have a soft spot for her. He was also shown to be quite competent with the show's directors. Plus, Cherry comes back to GLOW.

Yeah, Debbie has been cock-blocking her from the get-go. Maybe a little passive-aggressive revenge?

Gotta respect the brutal honesty. And even if Sam is being an ass with Ruth and Debbie, he's still showing some awkward heart with his Justin and Cherry. His quick "reimagining" of the Cherry's show was a good solution for everyone.

On 6/29/2018 at 11:15 PM, JakeyJokes said:

At the end of the episode, I realized (in my opinion) that Debbie was fucking with Ruth because Ruth had thought she was pulling a fast one and nobody would think she was going on a date with Russell. Debbie was stalling because she wanted Ruth to just come out and admit what was going on. Debbie's "Sorry you missed your date" was her way of telling Ruth that she knew the entire time.

I'd like to believe that was the case, but since Ruth was shot down by Debbie in an earlier episode when she revealed an interest in Russell, my take is more that she's exacting some revenge for the state of her life and breakup of her marriage. She has not missed a single opportunity to put Russell down in front of Ruth, and that last comment, in my opinion, was letting Ruth know that she was deliberately fucking up Ruth's plans to date him.

Sam and Debbie are, in my opinion, both displaying the classic "kick the dog" syndrome - and Ruth's the dog (though she's not exactly innocent). Ruth desperately wants to please both of them, and they both take advantage of that need.

[tennisgurl]

Debbie and Ruth might have found common ground, but Debbie is still not ready to be friends with Ruth again, and even seems to be passive agresseing her a bit. Now I want to know if Debbie actually gets a sketchy vibe from the camera guy, or if shes just cock blocking Ruth. 

Sam can be such an asshole, but he does have a heart, buried underneath mountains of cheap booze and cynicism. 

That PSA was AMAZING.

[Loandbehold]

14 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Sam can be such an asshole, but he does have a heart, buried underneath mountains of cheap booze and cynicism. 

Don't forget the cocaine.

[benteen]

I felt bad for Cherry but the actress did an amazing job acting like someone who couldn't act.

[Danny Franks]

Poor Cherry, but that show she was on looked like a typical, boring, 80s cop procedural. She's far better off being a precariously employed lady wrestler. And if it means more Keith, then so much the better. He's absolutely one of my favourite secondary/minor characters on the show.

Sam was almost tactful in the way he approached telling Cherry the truth. He was still brutally honest, but in a way she could accept. And the solve he came up with, to avoid her being fired, was really nice.

Really liked seeing Ruth and Debbie get along so well, working together on their PSA. And the gag of Sheila being a great typist was amusingly predictable.

Debbie making cracks about Russell being creepy.... Not sure if she's unconsciously trying to protect Ruth or consciously trying to sabotage her.  But scuppering their date felt deliberately mean. The thing is, I can understand the motivation if she doesn't want Ruth to be happy. Because Debbie's no longer happy, and that's because of Ruth (also because of asshole Mark). The whole "a baby could destroy my future" was obviously tying in to how Debbie might actually be feeling, now she's a newly single mother. It's just really messy and unpleasant.

"Justine is playing the teen? Then who's gonna kiss her?"

*cut to Bash waving awkwardly*

Heh.

[Clanstarling]

30 minutes ago, Danny Franks said:

Debbie making cracks about Russell being creepy.... Not sure if she's unconsciously trying to protect Ruth or consciously trying to sabotage her.  But scuppering their date felt deliberately mean. The thing is, I can understand the motivation if she doesn't want Ruth to be happy. Because Debbie's no longer happy, and that's because of Ruth (also because of asshole Mark). The whole "a baby could destroy my future" was obviously tying in to how Debbie might actually be feeling, now she's a newly single mother. It's just really messy and unpleasant.

I'm definitely in the "consciously trying to sabotage her" arena - and the motivations you listed are spot on. It's nice and complicated isn't it? I feel sorry for Ruth - but you know, she slept with her best friend's husband. Debbie is annoying me, but yeah, she has real reason to be angry and vindictive. I've known a couple of people who've been in this situation, and both of them were ultimately more hurt by the friend's betrayal.

[DianeDobbler]

Cherry's bad acting was some of the funniest stuff I've ever seen. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I'm glad that we're getting Cherry back, but I'm sad for her that she lost a lead role. She thought she was finally getting her big break.

Loved when Sam tried to blow it off as not his problem and Keith gave him a list of reasons why he owed Cherry after all she had done to help him. Keith continues to be the best guy on the show. When he asked Cherry if her emergency was being a sexier Whitney Houston, I totally cracked up.

Poor Russell. He genuinely likes Ruth and he's stuck in the middle of Debbie's conflicted need to get some passive aggressive revenge and Ruth's need to be friends with Debbie again.

Loved Jenny getting Melrose's lucky jacket!

The PSA was hilarious.

[snarktini]

On 7/3/2018 at 6:27 AM, Clanstarling said:

I'm definitely in the "consciously trying to sabotage her" arena - and the motivations you listed are spot on.

Me too. In the first episode of the season, Debbie stepped in to offer a ride to Ruth just as the cameraman asked her out. I saw that as conscious sabotage, 100%. Debbie knew Ruth couldn't resist a ride home with her and a chance to talk, and that would stop Ruth from her hookup. Yet my BF read it totally differently, he thought Debbie was being helpful and saving her from a possibly creepy guy and an ill-advised fling with a coworker. He's so naive :)

[Clanstarling]

43 minutes ago, snarktini said:

Me too. In the first episode of the season, Debbie stepped in to offer a ride to Ruth just as the cameraman asked her out. I saw that as conscious sabotage, 100%. Debbie knew Ruth couldn't resist a ride home with her and a chance to talk, and that would stop Ruth from her hookup. Yet my BF read it totally differently, he thought Debbie was being helpful and saving her from a possibly creepy guy and an ill-advised fling with a coworker. He's so naive :)

My husband never sees it when women are being underhanded to each other. He's too nice. I'm not. Lol

[aradia22]

It was great to see Cherry be a badass on her TV show. Sad they decided to introduce an issue with her remembering her lines and acting.

"Who's promoting the occult?" "Sheila." "Sheila." XD

Poop baby is a new Kate Nash banger.

*blows on typewriter* "To get all the coke off." XD

Why were all their PSA ideas about molestation or sex or unwanted pregnancy? How about drugs? Or the environment? Or nutrition? Weirdos.

I died when neither Debbie nor Ruth knew how to use the typewriter and the next shot was just Sheila clacking away. Too funny.

"Is the emergency that you look like an even sexier Whitney Houston?" Get you a man that says those kinds of things to you on a regular basis. 

"I have a very good memory." I love Keith!

Glad Cherry called out the chemicals as "toxic shit." The way she talked about it, I highly doubt that stylist knew how to treat black hair. I'm disappointed that because of her other insecurities about her performance, Cherry just let her do it. 😢

Russell seemed sweet. Sad Debbie ruined it. But Ruth allowed her to do it.

I love Melrose's endless supply of Madonna outfits.