Vida - General Discussion

[Aethera]

This topic replaces the old Vida forum which has been vaulted at the location below:

http://forums.previously.tv/forum/3952-vida-v/

[Cranberry]

Season two is available in its entirety now.

[scrb]

Hmm, I see they're going to air 2 episodes each Sunday too, starting this Sunday.

[scrb]

Marisol and Eddie speak English and pepper in some Spanish words every few sentences.

are they suppose to be speaking Spanish but speak English for the viewers and insert Spanish words to let us know they’re suppose to be speaking Spanish?

Quite noticeably similar speech patterns for two different characters.  I would assume Hispanics don’t speak that way to each other.

As for the leads, they seem to be in the same place.  Lynn participates in an orgy then announces she’s going to be celibate.  You get the sense if the guy wanted her back, she’d jump.

Emma is trying to be a hard ass businesswoman but she yields little by little rather than cut out Eddie completely, even though she suspects Eddie wasn’t legally married to Vida nor have a legit will.

Not a good sign that Starz dumped the whole season on demand.  From the first two eps, looks like they’re going to show more nudity, to try to draw in viewers.

[Keely]

Me and mine really like this show and hope it being put up at once isn't a bad sign. My one constant complaint from last season immediately rears its head in s2, however.

Emma isn't without issues. She needs to breathe, take it down a notch and all that. But I'm damn tired of her being the bad guy. She's painted as unreasonable regarding the building when the opposite is true.  Things weren't working before. Leaving them as they were won't help. Sentimentality doesn't pay the bills.

I feel bad for Eddy, but nope. If they weren't married, she doesn't get say because she is neither liable nor on the hook for anything. Even if they were, the world doesn't stop for you to mourn. Especially when you're a heartbeat from foreclosure. 

Edited May 27, 2019 by Keely
Spelling

[scrb]

The other thing they're underlining is that these women grew up in the neighborhood but left and then kind of blended with white coworkers and friends before they returned for their mother's death.

In season 1, Lynn goes to a party at some swanky mansion with mostly young white men and women she met and she blends in easily.  But there are older Hispanic women cleaning up the place and she feels bad for them and also feels like out of place with her rich friends.

In S02E02, Emma meets with a contractor to clean up and renovate the bar and some of the apartments.  The guy, who was on Looking, seems dismissive of her as a coconut or similarly derisive slang.

She has to tell him she grew up there and has come back to live in the neighborhood.  But he agrees he will sign a contract for the work rather than the informal handshake agreement which is supposedly how things work in the community.

There was more of this issue about how well assimilated these women are compared to those in their old neighborhood.  I think Marisol and Emma had a little confrontation, with Emma suggesting Marisol get an education and Marisol coming back at her for being too assimilated.

I imagine this is a real thing in the Hispanic community, just as it is with other ethnic groups?  Not because it's valid that these characters want to leave their heritage and roots behind but the other part is a certain jealousy about the success of those who are more assimilated into white social and professional circles.

The other thing is, are they setting up some dalliance between Emma and the contractor?  Emma has been hooking up with a lesbian -- and again, some clash in styles, between a more alternative style and Emma's more buttoned-down professional clothing.

But in this episode she hooks up with a colleague/mentor white guy, though she only lets him perform oral sex on her.

So she can be bi and may hook up with the contractor, again more clashing of worlds -- guy who's ex-con, never left the neighborhood and Emma, who's left and come back.

[tennisgurl]

I like this show, so I hope it all being put out at isnt isnt a bad sign. So much nudity in this first episode! There was a lot last season too, but god dang they were just opening right up there!

I still think its awful that Vida and Eddie didnt invite her Vidas daughters to their (apparently non legit) wedding, and I dont blame Emma for still being salty towards her mother, even when she is trying to keep her bar open and help her partner. 

Lynn really does seem to be trying, as much as she can at this point I guess. I am actually totally with her on work out places not changing their work out schedules even when classes change or get cancelled. Its annoying! Just change your facebook page! 

[scrb]

Yeah but I wonder if they were mocking Lynn a bit about that.

She wanted notifications for the schedule change.

I assume this is not the most affluent community so do they have resources to have an up to date website?

The gyms around where I live, where they charge up to $80-90 a month, have web sites but they do not post up to date schedules.

They have social media accounts but not sure those are proactively broadcasting class schedule changes either.

[xtwheeler]

On 5/26/2019 at 11:08 PM, scrb said:

Marisol and Eddie speak English and pepper in some Spanish words every few sentences.

are they suppose to be speaking Spanish but speak English for the viewers and insert Spanish words to let us know they’re suppose to be speaking Spanish?

Quite noticeably similar speech patterns for two different characters.  I would assume Hispanics don’t speak that way to each other.

This is what we refer to as "Spanglish"--part Spanish and part English, and it is absolutely how many Latinx communicate amongst themselves. There is generally a smooth flow between using both languages together with little in the way of "rules" about which language is used for which things. It isn't like "English is used for verbs, Spanish is used for nouns." It is just a smooth ebb and flow between them amongst people who grew up bilingual by necessity and are quite often code-switching in the rest of their lives. 

What I find interesting is that Emma and Lyn didn't grow up speaking Spanish. Amongst newer immigrants, it is common to teach children only the new language of wherever they have landed so they assimilate more easily. As you see here, it can cut that new generation off from their  own immigrant community. 

There's th general phenomenon that what the children of immigrants are not taught for assimilation reasons, the grandchildren do seek out in honor of their heritage, without fears of assimilation factoring in anymore. This exact thing happened in my husband's family. His grandmother was French, but came to the US as a teenager and worked hard to learn English and to speak it with no accent. None of her 7 children speak a word of French. My husband, however, who has never had to worry about assimilating or being the subject of prejudice as from a new immigrant family, is fluent in French because he sought it out in school. 

So yes, this is a common language pattern for Latinx people, who usually can also code-switch to some extent into one language or another in other settings. 

[scrb]

57 minutes ago, xtwheeler said:

This is what we refer to as "Spanglish"--part Spanish and part English, and it is absolutely how many Latinx communicate amongst themselves. There is generally a smooth flow between using both languages together with little in the way of "rules" about which language is used for which things. It isn't like "English is used for verbs, Spanish is used for nouns." It is just a smooth ebb and flow between them amongst people who grew up bilingual by necessity and are quite often code-switching in the rest of their lives. 

What I find interesting is that Emma and Lyn didn't grow up speaking Spanish. Amongst newer immigrants, it is common to teach children only the new language of wherever they have landed so they assimilate more easily. As you see here, it can cut that new generation off from their  own immigrant community. 

There's th general phenomenon that what the children of immigrants are not taught for assimilation reasons, the grandchildren do seek out in honor of their heritage, without fears of assimilation factoring in anymore. This exact thing happened in my husband's family. His grandmother was French, but came to the US as a teenager and worked hard to learn English and to speak it with no accent. None of her 7 children speak a word of French. My husband, however, who has never had to worry about assimilating or being the subject of prejudice as from a new immigrant family, is fluent in French because he sought it out in school. 

So yes, this is a common language pattern for Latinx people, who usually can also code-switch to some extent into one language or another in other settings. 

Thanks for the explanation.

It just seems they throw random Spanish words in there like nadie.

I can see Eddie being an immigrant but maybe Marisol is young enough to have been born in the US or came at a very young age?

Her brother Johnny doesn't have a hint of an accent.

Generally Europeans will throw in English words because there is no good native equivalent like tech terms like "Internet" or "computer" or "app.".

Or they have learned some idioms unique to English from American movies, shows and music.

But they're not trying to communicate in English per se.

[taanja]

I just discovered this show last week...?? anyway I did a whole marathon watch on Saturday of the first season (only six eps?) and then last night watched the entire second season (minus the last two eps which I will watch tonight)

anywho... LOVING IT! Wow!!!! Emma! my girl! I love her no nonsense uptight thing she's got going on. and Lyn-- girl! She and Johnnie are my new "power couple" meaning -- they got MAD chemistry!

Love the Spanglish.--- reminds me of home (Mesa AZ) I miss habla-ing with mi amigos en la Spanglish. Oh my gatos! 

[HoneyBeach]

On the topic of Spanglish, I was born in the US to parents who didn't speak English. I have no accent, but my co-workers tell me I do have a slight accent when they hear me speaking with friends or relatives in English, which I wasn't even aware of. Amongst my friends, we speak Spanglish all the time.  Like somebody else stated, there are no rules.  It just flows and comes out like it comes out.

[qtpye]

On 5/27/2019 at 2:08 AM, scrb said:

Marisol and Eddie speak English and pepper in some Spanish words every few sentences.

are they suppose to be speaking Spanish but speak English for the viewers and insert Spanish words to let us know they’re suppose to be speaking Spanish?

Quite noticeably similar speech patterns for two different characters.  I would assume Hispanics don’t speak that way to each other.

As for the leads, they seem to be in the same place.  Lynn participates in an orgy then announces she’s going to be celibate.  You get the sense if the guy wanted her back, she’d jump.

Emma is trying to be a hard ass businesswoman but she yields little by little rather than cut out Eddie completely, even though she suspects Eddie wasn’t legally married to Vida nor have a legit will.

Not a good sign that Starz dumped the whole season on demand.  From the first two eps, looks like they’re going to show more nudity, to try to draw in viewers.

I wanted to look like this show as a woman of color who grew up in an immigrant household. I heard a lot of good things about the first season. The opening scenes seemed extremely male gaze oriented and objectifying of the two beautiful Latina lead actresses. It was off putting to me but that might be a little unfair on my part. 

[taanja]

14 hours ago, qtpye said:

I wanted to look like this show as a woman of color who grew up in an immigrant household. I heard a lot of good things about the first season. The opening scenes seemed extremely male gaze oriented and objectifying of the two beautiful Latina lead actresses. It was off putting to me but that might be a little unfair on my part. 

Oh? I didn't see it that way -- but I usually don't think in those terms when watching television. I watch certain things because they entertain me. Or... I turn the channel.

I love that fact that both sisters own their sexuality and are unapologetic about it. And if there was any "objectifying" going on it was from ME! LOL (sorry couldn't help myself.)

[scrb]

Vida S02E03/S0E04

While Lyn recently vowed to be celibate while they get their bar launched, Emma is having a lot of sex, compared to season 1.

She's not connecting with anyone though.  She agrees to go to a wedding with her lover Cruz but she doesn't like being seen as Cruz's gf or even a lesbian.

So she stomps out of there leaving Cruz behind but Nico helps her get back home -- Nico had checked Emma out.  Nico actually mentions "The L Word" while she's channeling Katherine Moennig.

Meanwhile, Lyn's shaken because one of the men who dumped her recently is dating some  Instagram star.  She tries but bemoans that she can't compete with her feed.

Mari calls her out for milking her beauty all her life and Lyn can bat her eyelashes to get a cake fixed gratis but she seems to pine for men who've dumped her.

Nico visits the bar, gives Emma all kinds of ideas to make the bar successful.  Emma offers her a job, willing to give up a new apartment to pay Nico, even if it means continuing to live with Lyn.

Then she jumps Baco, the construction guy she's been clashing with.  He tries to give a reach around but she won't have it.

So Emma is having a lot of sex, mostly on her terms.  There's a behind the scene feature, about 3 minutes, on season 2.  The show runner proudly announces that all the writers and directors of season 2 are women -- some are directing for the first time.

They would probably say they are depicting sexuality from a female perspective, even if the increased nudity and depiction of sex might be elements to draw in more viewers, including more men.

Both of the sisters in their own way seem to think their mother has failed them.  But then they find mementos which bring back flashes of happy moments during their childhood.

Yet at some point, they did both leave so maybe they will plan to show each of them falling out with their mother, perhaps in their teen or early adulthood years.

I really like the songs in both episodes.  I don't even know what they're saying but I assume these aren't traditional songs.

[Empress1]

14 hours ago, scrb said:

Lyn can bat her eyelashes to get a cake fixed gratis

I mean, they should have fixed that cake for free. They fucked it up. I don't know why the bakery owner was tripping.

I thought Cruz acted so badly at the wedding, as did her friends. Cruz was like, just come to the wedding and have a good time, it's not anything! and then put their sex life on blast at the table and low-key judged Emma for choosing not to label herself.

14 hours ago, scrb said:

Yet at some point, they did both leave so maybe they will plan to show each of them falling out with their mother, perhaps in their teen or early adulthood years.

Vida sent Emma away to live with their grandmother when she realized Emma was queer. That's why they fell out and why Emma stayed away. I would be LIVID if I were queer, had been abandoned by my mother because of it, and then my mother turned around and came out later in life. LIVID. I know Emma is cold, but she comes by it honestly, IMO.

With Lyn, I get the sense that because she was always "the pretty one" and taught to find a man (I laughed when Johnny did an impression of her), she maybe thought she could do better than the ones in their neighborhood.

Lyn is beautiful but she really has nothing going on. She seemed bored - and she probably is. Working out is great (I'm into fitness myself), but ... then what?

[tennisgurl]

Poor Lyn, that was just painful to watch. She was so excited about her game night, and it flopped in the most public way possible. I think that Lyn was told from an early age that she was so pretty that she should just focus on being pretty and finding a man, that it was all she ever expected of herself. She needs to find some passions or something, she seems really unfulfilled. 

I think that both Emma and Cruz acted badly at the wedding, even though I think Cruz was worse. It was clear that Emma freaked out when Lyn was teasing her about her and Cruz being endgame, and was desperately pulling away and refused to even hold her hand or even really talk to her, and was already starting to pull away and look for an excuse to bail, but thats the kind of thing you talk about, and if Cruz has a problem with Emma not enjoying public displays of affection, thats up to her to talk about, and if its not something Emma is into, she does not have to. But Cruz should never have let her friends drag Emma like that, or make fun of their sex life on top of it. Like the bartender said, who are they to judge Emma and act like the queer police? 

[taanja]

On 6/2/2019 at 4:01 PM, scrb said:

Meanwhile, Lyn's shaken because one of the men who dumped her recently is dating some  Instagram star.  She tries but bemoans that she can't compete with her feed.

Mari calls her out for milking her beauty all her life and Lyn can bat her eyelashes to get a cake fixed gratis but she seems to pine for men who've dumped her.

 I loved that scene at the bakery with Lyn batting her eyelashes and acting all pretty girl to get what she wanted. She has power in her beauty!

And I think she is pining for ex boyfriend not because she misses him or likes him or even wants him back -- it's that he doesn't want her. <<< that to Lyn is the sin of all sins!

[scrb]

1 minute ago, taanja said:

 I loved that scene at the bakery with Lyn batting her eyelashes and acting all pretty girl to get what she wanted. She has power in her beauty!

And I think she is pining for ex boyfriend not because she misses him or likes him or even wants him back -- it's that he doesn't want her. <<< that to Lyn is the sin of all sins!

She must have liked him some.

As the clips showed, she did eat his ass after all!

🤣

[taanja]

19 hours ago, scrb said:

She must have liked him some.

As the clips showed, she did eat his ass after all!

🤣

Of course she did. But then he packed up her shit and asked her to leave. He doesn't want her. He is now with new blond chicky. Like she said -- she can't compete.

IMO Lyn wants to be wanted -- she loves to be loved.

[scrb]

Vida S02E05/S0E06

Ok, Lyn ends her celibacy to help the bar but is upset that the city council guy didn’t cum.

So the next time, she uses a strap on on him, to show she’s not “boring” and that just makes him smitten, offers her a key to his fancy apt?

What does this have to do with the Latina experience?

Meanwhile Emma can’t make one move on the bar and apartments without Eddie complaining that they’re violating the mothers wishes.  They can’t sell an old mixer or sell off other old junk at the yard sale without her trying to chase off prospective buyers.

Not surprising since she kept an old shirt unwashed jut to be able to sniff Vida’s scent.

Then she wanted to meet a prospective tenant, even though the guy was Latin X, whatever that means.

Emma is trying to put out fires left and right, to keep the bar afloat, until the fire marshal hall threatens to shut the bar down for 30 days, for fire code violations.

Then Lyn pulls some strings, finds an “in” by pulling out a strap on and putting it in.

😃

But yet another big crisis pops up as Emma finds a collection notice in Lyns purse.  She apparently is in debt for $14k or borrowed against the bar somehow?

Lyn promises to pay even though she has no income.  Though she somehow can afford to go to fancy gyms where she meets connected men.

Not sure why Emma is so shattered about it.  She hates the things Vida did so she can walk away from the bar at any time.  She’s got marketable skills so she could go back to her profession and live well.

She expresses disdain for Vida all the time and doesn’t seem to like some of the choices made by people in the neighborhood.  For instance she pointedly asks or hints to Mari to go back to school.

If she can’t keep the place in business, even if she has to sell to that despicable guy and let him gentrify the neighborhood, which would seem to be the kind of thing she might see as an improvement, she can go back to her previous life, which she worked hard to achieve, because she wanted to get away from her mother and the neighborhood.

Yeah people like Mari and Eddie will accuse her of being a sellout and a traitor to their ethnic heritage but would she care that much?  

Emma seems like the type who would come back to the neighborhood with some ambitious plans like gentrifying it or identifying some product or service which would do well.  Not just renovating an old bar which had struggled to stay in business.

[Empress1]

21 hours ago, scrb said:

Then she wanted to meet a prospective tenant, even though the guy was Latin X, whatever that means.

Latinx. Gender-neutral term used in place of Latina/o.

21 hours ago, scrb said:

But yet another big crisis pops up as Emma finds a collection notice in Lyns purse.  She apparently is in debt for $14k or borrowed against the bar somehow?

Lyn promises to pay even though she has no income.  Though she somehow can afford to go to fancy gyms where she meets connected men.

Not sure why Emma is so shattered about it.

Agree about the gym - that looks like Crossfit, which is really expensive, but then again, she's probably charging it to her dead mother's credit cards. Which is credit card fraud. She could go to jail for that.

I think Emma is shattered about it because she knows she'll be on the hook for it because Lyn is selfish, immature, and irresponsible (she has good qualities too, but she's all those things) and has no job. When Lyn was like "I was gonna pay it all back" I was like " ... How?" She's not even TRYING to find a job; she appears she has no skills (has she ever worked?) or education. Emma has savings and resources to live on because she had a lucrative job before; Lyn does not. Lyn needs a day job. Lyn's not helping that much with the bar anyway.

I'm still not sure I like Mari's boyfriend.

The one who was stealing from the bar had a lot of nerve being that mad about getting fired for it.

[mtsmvfn]

I didn't see this posted but Vida was renewed for 3rd season. 

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/vida-renewed-season-3-at-starz-1214872

I binged all of season 2 already and really enjoyed it. I loved the way they speak. they speak the way my family speaks a mixture of English and Spanish all mixed together. 

[scrb]

Good to hear.  Only half way through S2.

I'd like to see them get beyond launching the bar.  Either it does enough business for both sisters to hang around or they're going to have to look for jobs elsewhere.

But if it just barely survives, I don't know if it would be that interesting to see them struggling episode to episode financially.

If OTOH they don't have too much  trouble paying the bills, then what is it going to become a Cheers set in a Latina neighborhood, with more focus on the bar owners than the patrons?

I understand the bar is in some ways a metaphor for the sisters coming to terms with their mother.  But there can only be so many mementos which trigger memories of their childhood and they can only mine that so much more going forward.

Would increased enforcement by ICE impact the lives of these characters and other residents in this neighborhood?  Maybe the main characters wouldn't be directly affected but would they know people who would be in fear of being caught affect them?

It seems most of the main characters are second generation so they wouldn't be personally affected but would they feel sympathetic to the Dreamers for instance.  Or would they not really interact too much with them?  Some of the Hispanic community isn't too sympathetic with people who don't have legal status.

I'm not saying the immigration issue is the direction which they should go in, but it's been a big story in the news IRL so even if the characters aren't directly affected, they'd certainly have opinions about all the people seeking asylum or the horrific stories all Americans hear about kids being separated from children and so on.

[taanja]

1 hour ago, mtsmvfn said:

I didn't see this posted but Vida was renewed for 3rd season. 

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/vida-renewed-season-3-at-starz-1214872

I binged all of season 2 already and really enjoyed it. I loved the way they speak. they speak the way my family speaks a mixture of English and Spanish all mixed together. 

Yes! Mi familia in Mesa speaks just like that! 

Glad to hear the show was renewed. I did a marathon watch of season 1 then season 2. Loved every moment. Emma is uptight and repressed and GOD! I love her in every way. She is in charge of her own sexuality and it is so refreshing to see. I liked that that dude she was fucking and treating like a sex object spoke up and said --- ummm no! (I can NOT for the life of me remember his character name-- the carpenter dude) anyway then Emma goes to his house to apologize and the old Mama makes her stay and eat! haha!

Lyn(da) is my favorite. She is a hot mess and those are usually my favorite types of characters. She is beautiful to look upon and totally messed up in the head. I love her and Johnnie. He is beautiful and she is beautiful and together they make a beautiful messed up couple. My kind of television.

Emma has been called out a couple times on why she wants to save the bar if she hates it so much. She finally admitted that she loves the bar. She learned to walk on those floors. She danced with her mama on those floors. 

Their poppy is alive! What? Didn't see that happening!

[Amethyst]

I binged the whole season last week, and I loved it.  It's an engrossing show, and I love how they're not afraid to show the negative sides of the characters.

With the exception of the father, the season doesn't end on a cliffhanger.  I suspect it was because they weren't sure if the show would be renewed, so they didn't leave many loose ends.  The bar was a success.  Lyn manages to take charge and it ends up working.  Emma finds someone she clicks with (Nico. one of the best additions to the show) and that's basically it.  I was fine with that, I'm tired of shows ending on some major cliffhanger to keep viewers tuned in.

That said, there is no way Lyn would have recovered that quickly after being doused with laundry detergent like that.  Her face was totally covered, how did she not inhale or swallow any of the soap?  At the very least, it would have taken more than a quick rinse to get the soap out of her eyes.

Like I mentioned, Nico and Marcos were great additions to the show.  It was nice to see the sisters bonding with people who were part of their new world.

I was relieved when Johnny finally admitted that he missed Lyn.  Lyn is a walking hurricane, but it was tiring watching Johnny snap at her like she was some lunatic.  I hope it's really over so they can both move on for good.  The Alderman(?) Lyn was dating was so sweet, and I felt for him.  He seemed like he was crazy about Lyn, but she only met him when she needed something.  Not her finest hour.

Edited June 11, 2019 by Amethyst

[tennisgurl]

Lyn admitting that Vida told her that all she was good for was being pretty was really sad. You can tell how much she internalized that, and while she has a terrible worth ethic and a lot of her problems are of her own making, thats still an awful thing to tell your kid, and you can tell that this bothers her. 

I like the bartender woman, I think she and Emma could do really well together. She seems like she would be really understanding of her issue but also would not put up with her crap.

[taanja]

14 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Lyn admitting that Vida told her that all she was good for was being pretty was really sad. You can tell how much she internalized that, and while she has a terrible worth ethic and a lot of her problems are of her own making, thats still an awful thing to tell your kid, and you can tell that this bothers her. 

I like the bartender woman, I think she and Emma could do really well together. She seems like she would be really understanding of her issue but also would not put up with her crap.

THAT^^^^ explained a lot to me about the character. She has obviously drifted from guy to guy but never finding anyone to love (except Johnie)

She has a history of being a "kept woman" << I got that from the story Lyn told about the ex boyfriend Juniper packing her stuff and taking away her credit cards--- which leads her to stealing her mother's CC and charging up thousands in debt. She has obviously never had a real job or has never had to pay her own way.

The bartender woman's name is Nico and she is a great complex character in the little we have seen her.

[scrb]

I still think they made Nico a Katherine Moening clone from both The L Word and Ray Donovan.

With the look if nothing else.

[taanja]

22 hours ago, scrb said:

I still think they made Nico a Katherine Moening clone from both The L Word and Ray Donovan.

With the look if nothing else.

I don't know what that means?

[Empress1]

On 6/12/2019 at 1:58 PM, taanja said:

I don't know what that means?

This is Kate Moennig. Nico does kind of look like her. Moennig also plays queer characters a lot - she's currently playing one now on grown-ish.

I loved the neighbor telling Lyn that she was selfish and her actions were ugly and she didn't see how her fuckery affected people.

I don't know why no one seems to be on the "get a job and pay it back" train (if Emma has the cash on hand to pay it off at once, Lyn could AND SHOULD pay Emma back). Lyn would drive me insane if I knew her; I'd have to keep her at a distance. She's that friend you see once  a quarter and she talks incessantly about herself and her problems, all of which are of her own making.

Edited June 17, 2019 by Empress1

[Steph J]

Tlāloc has a lot of nerve getting mad at Mari for the fact that Johnny gave him a very deserved beat down.  Dude, what you did (video taping Mari without her consent and then sending out the video) could get you arrested.  If the worst thing that happens to you is that Johnny kicks your ass, consider yourself lucky.

[tennisgurl]

I get that Eddie is still recovering from both beating beaten and losing Vida, and now possibly their bar, but she does get on my nerves with how much she always seems to be annoyed by Emma trying to do anything to help their finances. She just complains about how its not true to their neighborhood or to Vida or to whatever, without offering up any new solutions of her own. 

So Lyns sex fast lasted a whole five seconds...about as long the councilman lasted inside of her! 😉 

The last scene of Emma and Lyn drinking and singing together at the bar was really sweet, we so rarely get to see them just have fun sister time together.

Edited June 17, 2019 by tennisgurl

[scrb]

Vida S02E07/S0E08

Mari likes the guy who recorded her and then shared the video.  She needs to work on herself before she saves the neighborhood.

Are there really people in the neighborhood fighting gentrification beyond it pricing people out?  I can see Mari being influenced by that guy but what is driving Eddie to want to keep things the way they are, beyond sentimentality for her wife?

I can see why Boyle Heights may be popular, great view of the LA skyline.

Lyn may have messed up that developer but could that backfire on the sisters?

I'm not sure how this underground scene that they depicted would fit in with this neighborhood bar.  The act they saw seemed to have a big following so she could play big venues, not just some small bar?

Big time acts wouldn't play there all the time so they'd have to build up a regular clientele rather than try to attract people from across town on the nights these artists with bigger following play.

The show and the bar are both named Vida so it appears it's going to be about the struggle to keep it running at least through this season.

[Empress1]

9 hours ago, Steph J said:

Tlāloc has a lot of nerve getting mad at Mari for the fact that Johnny gave him a very deserved beat down.  Dude, what you did (video taping Mari without her consent and then sending out the video) could get you arrested.  If the worst thing that happens to you is that Johnny kicks your ass, consider yourself lucky.

I know! It's like the one who was fired for stealing. "How dare I have consequences for my foul actions?" I felt terrible for Mari though, when her father kicked her out.

7 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I get that Eddie is still recovering from both beating beaten and losing Vida, and now possibly their bar, but she does get on my nerves with how much she always seems to be annoyed by Emma trying to do anything to help their finances. She just complains about how its not true to their neighborhood or to Vida or to whatever, without offering up any new solutions of her own. 

Me too. Emma is the only one who is dealing with the financial realities of their situation. Running a bar and apartment building costs money. The bar appears to be hemorrhaging money. Emma is trying to deal with that. If Eddie doesn't want her to lease the wall (and it appears Emma is hesitant about that too, since they'd lose the mural entirely), she ought to come up with an actual solution to their problems. I'm sympathetic because in show time I think it's only been a few weeks since Vida died, but I need for Eddie to have more to do.

Emma said Lyn had "taken a month" so does that mean the building brings in $14K a month?

I assume Johnny and Lyn are end game? If I were the woman pregnant with his child, I'd kick his ass (or have someone else kick his ass).

[taanja]

17 hours ago, Empress1 said:

This is Kate Moennig. Nico does kind of look like her. Moennig also plays queer characters a lot - she's currently playing one now on grown-ish.

I loved the neighbor telling Lyn that she was selfish and her actions were ugly and she didn't see how her fuckery affected people.

I don't know why no one seems to be on the "get a job and pay it back" train (if Emma has the cash on hand to pay it off at once, Lyn could AND SHOULD pay Emma back). Lyn would drive me insane if I knew her; I'd have to keep her at a distance. She's that friend you see once  a quarter and she talks incessantly about herself and her problems, all of which are of her own making.

Half the characters I adore on television I would HATE IRL. I LOVE dramatic hot messes as characters. I love to watch them rail and moan and be all dramatic and basically do things and behave in a way that IRL would be unacceptable. I love Lyn because she is chaos personified. In true life-- I would NOT associate with such a person - Haha!

[mtsmvfn]

13 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I get that Eddie is still recovering from both beating beaten and losing Vida, and now possibly their bar, but she does get on my nerves with how much she always seems to be annoyed by Emma trying to do anything to help their finances. She just complains about how its not true to their neighborhood or to Vida or to whatever, without offering up any new solutions of her own. 

So Lyns sex fast lasted a whole five seconds...about as long the councilman lasted inside of her! 😉 

The last scene of Emma and Lyn drinking and singing together at the bar was really sweet, we so rarely get to see them just have fun sister time together.

I saw a bts snippet and they talk about how Melissa Barrera (Lyn) is always singing before every scene. so I did a deep dive into her career and it turns out that she started out in a Mexican reality show ala American Idol called "La Academia". When she was voted out they offered her jobs as an actress on telenovelas. She did that for a couple of years in between drama school at NYU. She is having a good summer. She is filming "in the heights" in NY this summer. 

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/melissa-barrera-leslie-grace-join-180807197.html

[scrb]

Vida S02E09S0E10

I'm trying to understand why the activists are against Vida bar succeeding.  Lyn doesn't get it, because it was a family mural, not some work by an artist whose work they would want to preserve.

Sure gentrification can be bad for people who live in the neighborhood.  They might be priced out and be forced to move out.  But this protest seemed to be about some vague notion of ethnic pride and trying to humiliate the Coconut Becky.

Yeah the sisters have assimilated better socially and professionally with white friends and coworkers.  So they're "whitinos"  living their best life in the neighborhood.  But Mari doesn't know the debts they're dealing with.

And if they were doing well financially, why does it bother them?

If they had some practical grievances, like maybe increased traffic in the neighborhood, more noise, maybe drunken clients getting out of control, etc.

Or if in fact the bar somehow led to old tenants being evicted and their places being renovated for people who make a lot more money than longtime residents.

When black people accuse some of being oreos or sellouts, or uncle toms for succeeding or dating non African Americans, it seems some of it is about envy.

I imagine at least some of this "whitino" hate is similar.  Mari could be spending some of her energy and drive to try to improve her own educational and job prospects.

But beyond the protestors, others seem to be living well, like Baco's mother, who's able to entertain family and friends in her backyard.

[Steph J]

1 hour ago, scrb said:

I'm trying to understand why the activists are against Vida bar succeeding.  Lyn doesn't get it, because it was a family mural, not some work by an artist whose work they would want to preserve.

Sure gentrification can be bad for people who live in the neighborhood.  They might be priced out and be forced to move out.  But this protest seemed to be about some vague notion of ethnic pride and trying to humiliate the Coconut Becky.

Yeah, I don't get it either.  The bar is on the verge of failing and Emma and Lyn are making choices to try to keep it afloat.  They might have to sacrifice some of the "purity" of it, but they'll keep it in business.  They aren't outsiders trying to push the locals out.  The alternative is that the business goes under and they have to sell it to someone who is an outsider who will turn it into something completely different.

[Empress1]

8 hours ago, Steph J said:

They aren't outsiders trying to push the locals out. 

IIRC last season Emma raised the rent 3%, which is really nothing, and that's the only time the rent has gone up since Vida owned it (which is probably why the building is fucked up financially). Emma and Lyn are doing pretty right by the tenants, IMO.

I'm glad Emma owned up to how horribly she was treating the contractor; she's his #metoo story, it's disgusting, and she needed to cut that shit out.

So when the reality that Johnny is a simple guy from/in the barrio AND that he's having (had?) a child with another woman set in, Lyn lost interest AGAIN and ran back to Rudy? Did I read that right? Her face fell as Johnny was describing his perfect day, and she pouted and looked stank when he went off to attend to the birth of his child. Then the next episode is Lyn snuggling up to Rudy and Johnny is nowhere to be found.

[tennisgurl]

Lyn freaking out about Emma's #metoo story was sweet in a Lyn kind of way. "There has to be a website to tell us what to do do!"

I dont blame Emma at all for firing the bartender who was stealing from the till, no matter how bad Nico feels about it. Maybe its not a big deal at a big bar that makes tons of money, but Vida is one bad night away from going under pretty much all of the time, they need every dollar, and everyone knows it. 

I am enjoying the musical performances a lot, maybe Lyn should get into event planning or something if she can get a bit more organized. 

[taanja]

5 hours ago, Empress1 said:

So when the reality that Johnny is a simple guy from/in the barrio AND that he's having (had?) a child with another woman set in, Lyn lost interest AGAIN and ran back to Rudy? Did I read that right? Her face fell as Johnny was describing his perfect day, and she pouted and looked stank when he went off to attend to the birth of his child. Then the next episode is Lyn snuggling up to Rudy and Johnny is nowhere to be found.

I interpreted that as Lyn listening to what Johnnie's perfect day would be and realizing in that moment that they have no interests in common.

and THEN he gets the text that the baby is coming. I think Lyn wants to forget that Johnnie has other people in his life and other obligations that aren't HER.

[tennisgurl]

Lyn might be a mess, but she does seem like she is really trying to be a better person in her own way. And she looks super cute in little antlers. 

I really do feel for Eddie and everything she has gone through, and I think Emma was really harsh on her yelling that her marriage was fake, but until she actually starts helping out with the financial stuff, she needs to just back off and leave it to people that know what they're doing. She dosent seem to ever have ideas as to how to get out of the hole, she just yells at Emma (and everyone else around them) for changing things and making them less...authentic? Like things were with Vida? Less like the way she wants it? Even if the whole bar goes under I guess. Even freaking Lyn is trying to come up new ideas!

Maris not boyfriend is such a dick, she is way better off without his shitty, self important ass. 

[BigDfromLA]

On 7/1/2019 at 10:04 PM, tennisgurl said:

Maris not boyfriend is such a dick, she is way better off without his shitty, self important ass. 

I agree with you!! I can't stand Mari's "boyfriend". He is a complete fraud and phony. He uses his "activism" to chase tail...and to actually film Mari during an encounter? What a jerk-off. I am not a big fan of Johnny, but it was fun to see him kick that guy's ass, and to see him whine like a baby to Mari in the aftermath. 

I loved season two of Vida a lot. Like the show Ozark, it improved upon a very strong first season with a second one that was even stronger. Also pleased that Vida was picked up for a third season. I imagine it will come back late spring or summer of next year. Looking forward to it.

Quote

[Amethyst]

I'm fine with Mari's BF taking a hike.  He's scum anyway.

I can't blame Emma for wanting to turn the bar around.  Frankly, the bar simply wouldn't survive the way Eddie and Vida were running it.  They had a few regulars, but there wasn't enough cash flow to keep their heads above water, especially in such a desirable location.  Younger patrons have more disposable income and are more likely to invite their friends.  And increased interest and word of mouth could also bring in more lucrative entertainment.  

When Johnny got the phone call about the baby, I just saw him and Lyn realizing that they couldn't just run off and live in a fantasy.  They had just hooked up and now were making plans to have this great day together with no worries or responsibilities.  Then the phone rang.  Basically dragging them back to earth.   But at least neither of them denied what was going on.  Lyn didn't beg or cajole Johnny to stay with her, and Johnny didn't blow off Karla and his child. 

I doubt these two are finished, but I really wish they were so they could move on from each other.  And no offense to Karla, but if she weren't pregnant, Johnny would have left her for Lyn like a shot.

[tennisgurl]

Maris friends suck, and I hope she realized that after this whole mess with Lyn and Vidas. Yeah gentrification is a complicated issue, but at what point are you not helping the community, and just being bullies because you dont like how someone looks or lives their life? I would have liked to hear what their demands actually are, because I dont know what they really want from Lyn and Emma. When it was just a local spot, they almost went into bankruptcy and lost the whole building, so its not like any of these protesters were apparently turning up there when it was "pure" or whatever, so what do they want from them? To fail and sell to a full on outsider? Like, they know the asshole sexual harassing contractor who hates Latino people is still around right? Maybe focus on him, or helping struggling community members instead?

It was good to see Lyn actually really finding what she is good at in the business and excelling, even if she got a blast of detergent to the face for her trouble. She actually has had a pretty good arc throughout the season, trying to be a better person, falling back on old habits, and eventually finding a way to use her natural skills to succeed at real life. 

So Lyn and Emma's mom lied and their dad is alive?! Well shit, I guess that will be a whole thing next season! We all kind of knew that Vida wasn't the best person, but I guess its still a shock for Eddie.  

[BigDfromLA]

Chelsea Rendon has joined the cast of Shameless for it's new season on Showtime. She is excellent!

[scrb]

Yeah but I'm afraid they're going to make her desperate for Carl's dick, since all the Gallagher boys have "it."

[scrb]

Coming back this Sunday.

Who'd have guessed this show would outlast Counterpart and Sweetbitter?

 

Not too much info. out there.  Appears to be a 6 episode finale.  Some positive reviews out there, but maybe not as strong as the previous 2 seasons.

Turns out Comcast Xfinity dropped them.  So I can't get it, though they still have a bunch of old movies on various StarzEncore channels.

Starz.com offers first 3 months for 4.99 a month and then the regular price of 8.99 thereafter.

I think I'll probably wait a month or so.  There is suppose to be a new series, Hightime, some kind of crime drama set in New England, debuting on May 17.

Not sure if that deal will still be available then.

Edited April 25, 2020 by scrb

[dr pepper]

Hmm, no one else has commented on the new episode. Maybe i got an early showing. So i won't say anything about the plot, just one single item.

In one scene one of the people protesting the sisters' "selling out" had a sign that said

Eloterxs Si, Hipsters No!

Ok, elote means "corn" so i guess an elotero would be one of the street vendors who sells spicy corn on the cob. I hope someone can clarify. But, the thing is, that's not a very catchy wording. Why a corn seller, anyway, as opposed to a tamale or an ice cream seller? Is there something significant about contrasting a corn seller in particular to a hipster?