#but thank you for pointing the Nate and Jade dynamic!

[stonesandswords]

Me: I am not comfortable with the entire concept of Jade as a symbol of writers that don’t understand how race impacts experience and think a lot of the way people discuss her is evidence of a very white fandom that thinks working in customer service is an excuse to be a jerk to someone that literally just asked politely for a table.

Also me, guiltily: The concept of Nate so longing for connection to someone that he’s delighted at someone sitting down to have some dessert with him and Jade being nice to someone who is clearly having a bad day is really sad and sweet.

Ugh!!!! I get this!!! Sorry if I kinda lost the plot with this answer. I was trying to be thoughtful and then got a bit carried away with my thoughts about the topic. But it's definitely a double-edged sword there, and I'd love to hear more of your thoughts about it!

On one hand, I’m so happy Nate finally feels seen, even just a little, for his completely wonderful but quirky, normal self. Like he was having a bad day, which seemed cumulative of a lot of things and really highlighted Nate's introvertedness and awkwardness as a person. He's come across Jade at her job a few different times now, that we've seen, at different stages of his career and social life. For so long, Nate has thought that social status was something he wanted to achieve and would finally gain him respect from people who aren't really his peers.

This scene made me think of when Nate and Keeley were having a conversation in Keeley's office at Richmond, talking about being rich and famous or whatnot, and Nate commented that he wouldn't mind the groupies, and Keeley laughed telling him that he wouldn't. Like Nate is getting all these high-status things he thought he wanted: a new fancy car from Rupert, invites to fancy events with other high-status folks, and dates with famous models and socialites.

Yet, despite this, Nate still set the date at A Taste of Athens (*Rebecca Welton voice* in Tooting!) simply because he likes it there! It's sentimental to him! His family has probably been going there for decades. It doesn't take much to impress Nate because he knows what he likes. I mean, look at how he still drove around his green mini cooper despite getting the manager job at West Ham.

It's just very interesting to see the difference between noticing the very simple and sentimental things that he clearly loves and enjoys, but not really realizing that that's just enough for him. Clearly, from what we've seen, what Nate craves most, is validation. He assumes living this high-profile, high-status life will give him that validation, but it's just not enough.

Because on the other hand, what we've seen from Nate's interactions with his parents and with Ted, what Nate truly craves is validation from the people who he admires, loves, and respects the most. He craves validation from people he looks up to, and I think that the scene with Jade and the baklava shows that, in comparison to Anastasia, Nate doesn't actually look up to or respect the people he's currently surrounded by. And honestly, I hope that Nate realizes this soon, for his own benefit.

But I agree there’s a lot to it about race and the general stereotype of customer service in general, throughout the whole show. Like Jade’s entire existence has been pretty … unreadable? Like we take a look at how the episode ended and I feel like I can retroactively be like “Oh I guess I can see maybe what the writers were trying to do here.” But realistically there’s not much continuity in how Jade seems to be presented during her job.

I can’t tell if her role is to try and humble Nate or something, but if so, why must it be a white hostess at a run-of-the-mill Greek restaurant in South London? Like she’s just so oddly rude to Nate, and listen I understand having an off day or long day, but she’s aloof and cold to Nate every time he comes in. IIRC, we don’t see her interact with any other customers enough to tell if she’s like this with all of them or just with Nate (I’m happy to stand corrected on this one). Even if it’s just Jade being unimpressed with Nate trying to flex his famous associations or his own high-profile job title, she doesn’t have to be so dismissive and get his name wrong on purpose (even when Nate continuously remembers hers and refers to her by her correct name), it’s bothersome for sure.

Also re: my point about Keeley being the one person to kind of hint to Nate that he wouldn’t like fame as much as he thinks he would? Like why is it that the two characters who ever really seem to side-eye Nate’s intentions are Keeley and Jade? Because that’s putting just as much pressure on them to get through to Nate as women, as it is on Nate as a man of color whose understanding of himself seems to be shifted onto the white women around him.

I’m hoping that this season sees Nate shaping up on his own, and having him remember the empathy of someone who was always kind of standoffish and unsympathetic toward him. That he can use this moment of kindness from Jade to reflect on his own relationships with others around him. Because in a way, the sharing of the baklava was the closest to an apology that we see Nate get from anyone in the series. I hope it was the fact that Jade overheard Nate talking the food and the restaurant up and totally altered her preconceived ideas of Nate, apologizing with a place of baklava.

[laiqualaurelote]

Follow up question from your Ted/Trent one: would you elaborate on your S3 disappointment? Thanks for letting me pick your fascinating, insightful, brilliant brain!

You're very kind. My disappointments with S3 are manifold but I will try to sum them up here.

There was a pervasive wrongness to much of this season that had not previously been present, unlike in S1 and much of S2, where radical kindness was a driving force and storylines would seem to be heading towards a predictable trope, then be surprisingly and pleasingly subverted. Several S3 plotlines were handled in a way that left an unpleasant taste in the mouth, without any catharsis attached. The truly baffling Shandy storyline is a prime example of this. I thought at first that this was part of a wider plan (the dark forest, so to speak, from which we would eventually emerge) and defended the show to friends as such, but weeks went by and it became clear that a show that had once been meticulously, lovingly plotted in every detail had devolved into a haphazard mess.

Story arcs came and went with no perceptible purpose. The show promised Important Social Commentary (the attacks on Sam's restaurant, Keeley's sex video leaking) then failed to revisit these issues once the episodes in question were over. Plot points were hinted at, then never brought up again (Higgins broaches the subject of firing Ted to Rebecca; this is never returned to.)

The characterisation was a mass of unfulfilled potential. Why make the reason for Sam not being chosen for the Nigerian national team Edwin Akufo's cartoonish grudge, and not his S2E3 calling out of government corruption, which would have made far more sense narratively and given Toheeb Jimoh far more to work with? Why tell us repeatedly that Keeley is a PR genius, then fail to have her take charge of her own PR crisis? Instead of Shandy proving to be a bad hire, surely a better way to show Keeley learning to be a good leader would have been for her to integrate Shandy and Barbara's diverse skill sets and attitudes into a functional workplace dynamic. Why not show the most key milestones of Nate's reformation, especially his confrontation with Rupert when he quit West Ham? for that matter, why give the moment of a West Ham coach standing up to Rupert for ethical reasons not to Nate, but to George Cartrick? I think we were robbed of a truly meaty Nate villain-and-back arc.

The season finale was a mess. Ted barely seemed present. I'm not a Tedbecca shipper, but even to me the fakeout at the beginning seemed unnecessarily cruel (and a waste of time in a season where so many things were not adequately explored or given closure). The truly bizarre choices in the final montage, especially Beard's Stonehenge wedding with a conspicuously absent Ted, were the final straw. That Ted needed to return to Henry was, for me, without question, but the way it was handled was deeply questionable.

What bothers me a great deal is the lack of change. Characters either regressed (Roy and Jamie re: Keeley, Ted re: Michelle) or had no agency in major crises inflicted upon them. The opening and closing close-up shots are meant to be of the character that changes most over the course of the season. This holds true for Rebecca in S1, and Nate in S2, but not Ted in S3. What changes for Ted is circumstance: he is in London, leaving his son; then he is in Kansas, back with his son. He himself, however, is not shown to be changed to a degree significant enough to close the show on.

This is not to say it was all bad. There are things I love very much about S3: Roy and Trent's surprise dynamic; Nate/Jade; the Hey Jude scene; the strings exercise; Beard's Jean Valjean backstory; the entirety of Sunflowers, a near-perfect episode that deserved the Emmy writing nomination that was mystifyingly given to So Long, Farewell. It is only that we were asked to believe that the showrunners knew what they were doing in delivering us the final season of a three-season arc, and we did, and that belief was not rewarded. Therein lies my disappointment.

[filmmarvel]

Ted Lasso S3 Thoughts!

I want to talk about my overall thoughts on Season 3 before the finale comes out, because I’m sure I’ll have a lot to say about that! So let’s just get right into it. A lot of plot points and storylines felt like 1-off, little set ‘em up knock ‘em down types of things, as opposed to full arcs that carried a clear theme throughout the season. A big part of this is the focus being on such a wide variety of characters, and having to cover so many stories at once. This led to Ted being sidelined a bit? Don’t get me wrong, he’s still a huge part of the show, and had some great moments this season, but there was still a clear shift from previous seasons. In some ways I think this made a lot of sense- the team is becoming more like a family, we’re getting to know everyone and understand their individual stories more. While I like that idea, the lack of consistency when it came to Ted’s screen time was noticeable (he’s kind of the beating heart of the show). Some of the strongest episodes were ones where he was at the forefront. This whole season just felt a little less cohesive, with so many different things going on. Some of the extended arcs, like Colin’s and Nate’s were good, though. And as I’ve seen a number of other people pointing out, it kind of felt like they were just trying to cram as many hot topics into the season as they could, because they couldn’t really afford to focus on that many specific characters having longer arcs (which again, is why many of the characters had 1-2 episode arcs so that the focus could then be shifted to someone else). It starts to seem a bit like they were running out of ideas, so I’m glad they’re ending the show with intention instead of dragging it out. Another part of this issue (something that @king-author pointed out really well), is that we didn’t get to witness a lot of the important, impactful moments (particularly concerning Nate’s storyline). I think this season would’ve been a lot better (not that it was bad, just a bit of a step down), if they had chosen to focus on these bigger storylines and developing particular characters, as opposed to creating a bunch of random problems to keep everyone involved.

One particular storyline I’ve got issues with- I didn’t really see a point to the whole Keeley/Roy/Jack thing? Roy and Keeley’s breakup never really made all that much sense in the first place, but I understand the benefit of having Keeley go solo for a while. But then why bring Jack into the mix? It was pretty clear that Roy and Keeley were going to get back together, and so I didn’t really see any point to their relationship beyond an excuse to give Keeley more screen time (which I think could’ve been used in better ways).

So overall, this season has been kind of hit and miss. Since I talked about some of the misses already, let’s go over some of the hits! This last episode was absolute fantastic, between Roy and Keeley being back together, Ted having impactful tear-jerker moments, and Jamie having a moving arc once again, it felt like old times. Rebecca had some great moments as well recently, particularly her speech and everything with Rupert in Episode 10. She’s such a wonderful character, and that was a fantastic way to end her multi-season arc with Rupert. I also loved Jade! She and Nate have a fantastic dynamic, I really like the impact she’s had on him, she’s just a perfect addition to the show. And I think this goes without saying, but so many of the characters remain totally delightful (Sam, Jamie, Dani, Will, etc). This show is still wildly wholesome, sweet, and entertaining. And judging from the last few episodes, they’re going out strong! I have no doubt that the finale will be fantastic.

Anyways, I didn’t expect this review to be this long! If anyone actually made it this far, thanks for reading, and let me know what you think! Do you agree, and what did you like/dislike about this season?

[xsecretblastsx]

1x14 - The Blair B*tch Project

A new week (well not so new) and a new recap. This episode is so Mean Girls Upper east side version, and it was fun. 

As usual, recap after the break 

Thoughts I had while Watching the episode:

Is always such a delight to star an episode with one of Blair’s Audrey Hepburn inspired dream sequences, this one in particular is one of my all time faves though.

“You don’t have anyone” auch, also very simliar to watch said to her on the last episode :(

“I’m in mourning of my old life” I wonder how many times Blair thought that through the whole show

Chuck annoying Serena to no end will never get old.

So was this suposed to be Bart’s penthouse?

Chuck was always so charming with Lily, and it’s curious because it was genuine. Same with Eric,he was nice since the beginning, honestly the merging of the Van der Bass family is one of my fave plot points in the show.

I wonder what Serena did on spring break that she hadn’t talked to Blair.

This is why women say men are the worst, so Chuck and Nate get to be all offended by the mere sight of Blair, as if she was the only one in the wrong here. 

Poor Blair, yoghurt is so sticky. Also I’m not a fan of Nate here, he finds it funny and then he’s al concerned about Jenny’s tender nature. As if.

Nice and neutral would never work for Blair the same way it works for Serena, even if she wanted to. 

The way Jenny came up with a plot against Blair on the spot just to avoid an expensive dinner, like wow.

“Don’t put your dirty package on the table, If i had a dime for everytime i heard that” Same Erick, same. 

Gotta love Blair and that hostess

Getting Blair to wait alone at Butler, that was brilliant Jenny, taking that dress.. not so much. She may be really smart and devious, but she still has a lot to learn.

Bart really was such a lousy dad, which in turns makes Chuck even more jaded and like to do worst, such a vicious cycle.

15000, for a custom made Valentino, auch Jenny.

Rufus is so naive here, but then again he doesn’t know Blair. Yet what she tells him about the struggle ain’t wrong. 

Wow she stole the same dress twice. I guess Little J no more. 

So Serena is annoyed by Chuck not only by his little pranks, but because he’s nice towards her mother and brother, that actually makes more sense in a way.

Also I love Lily’s line: “Chuck might be excentric but he’s not diabolical” it’s funny and also a bit telling of why Chuck actually likes her.

That was brilliant Blair, that Jenny cake is quite the thing. Also what the hell is she wearing.

Is ain’t wrong Rufus is kind of a hotty... for a dad. 

Even though she’s being talking about the same thing non stop, it’s funny to watch Dan complain about Serena talking to much, when he suffers from verbal diarrhea half the time, but who am I to judge

Blair really is in her bitch element here.

Jenny’s argument with her dad was so real, because both on them are right in some way. It ain’t easy. And once has to be either very mature or antisocial for it not to bother you.

I’ve said it before but I love Eric and his sense of humor, and he has some of the most underrated lines on this show, even deep and hard stuff is funny

It’s awful and yet I love that sweater with the dolphins Chuck’s wearing. I also would like to know why is so easy to feel bad for Chuck Bass.

Dan’s also super critical of his dad, and I’m like is there someone out there this guy doesn’t judge?

This is one of those times I wish I didn’t know what was coming, because I still remember how curious I was to see Jenny’s plan towards Nate.

Eric is quite loyal, being mad at Serena because she drove Bart to kick out Chuck.

Well played Jenny, well played, that last look she gaves Blair is sooo good, it’s the moment when Blair really realizes how worthy of an adversary Jenny is.

I love the ending of this episode, is one of my faves. It ends with an unlikely victory for Jenny, a tad of mistery, and a great song.

For real, I love “Sour Cherry” by The Kills.

When I think about my favorite episodes in S1 this one normally doesn’t came up, but I think it should. Is a really good one. Jenny’s the star of this episode and weirdly I don’t mind. I love her dynamic with Blair, especially in the first two seasons and this is the episode when it really takes off. This episode is also the start of the Van der Bass family which I also love for many reasons.

So Jenny and Blair, at the time of this episode this was one of Blair’s lowest points, she lost her Queen B title and not only that but she’s shunned out by everyone, even getting yoghurt dropped on her head, what a change. She says at the start of the episode that she’s in mourning of her old life, and while it was meant to be just a display of her dramatic personality, this is really the end of her old life, the Blair we met in the pilot had a completely different future ahead of her, pristine reputation, not as single crack in her pefect image, with a blue blooded boyfriend and a place at the top of the hierarchy, that Blair never came back entirely, and that’s good. Obviously it will take her the rest of the show to grow up and mature, but I like seeing her fight for what she wants in a way that lets her devious brain shine, and she got quite the adversary.

Jenny is in many ways the perfect rival for Blair. In theory Jenny shouldn’t be a formidable oponent in the way she is, she has no connections, no name, no money, and yet she plays the game almost better than anyone, she’s smart, ambitious an cunning, which are traits she shares with Blair. She’s also a hardworker and willing to do what it takes to get what she wants. This episode she shows how brilliant she because it was almost impossible to bounce back from getting caught with that dress she stole, and one can tell Blair thought that was a sound victory and she can’t quite believe when Jenny shows up with Nate and has claimed back her spot. It was great to see, and I some ways even I love Blair I find myself rooting for Jenny, she’s that good.

HonestlyJenny can give Blair a run for her money and yet I’m not sure she entirely realizes it, because Jenny is fighting against Blair’s shadow in her mind, she can win battles but I get the feeling she doesn’t believe she can win the war. In part because she still has a lot to learn, but in some ways I think Jenny feelsi at disadvantage againgst Blair in a similar way Blair feels toward Serena: a rival that is ahead on the race just by virtue of who she is, with envy and admiration in equal parts.To me their dynamic is interesting through the whole show because Blair even if the doesn’t want to admit it fears Jenny too, a new younger queen in the making, with the ability to knock her dow even it seems unlikely, it’s a tale as old as time, a bit like Queen Elizabeth the first and Mary Queen of Scots. And this is just the first episode of this battle,I really love this part of the show.

The other big plot this episode is the merging of the Van der Woodsen and the Basses which is great because we get to see more of these two broken families and learn more about them. Serena is obviously not happy about this,particularly the part about living with Chuck; at this point we know they were all friends before, but I got the impression out of the group they liked each other the less, with a poor opinion of each other. Their behavior throught the whole season reinforces that and honestly through the season Chuck has not given her even one small reason for her to like him, and I feel part of the reason Chuck was so eager to plot against Serena with Blair was because he got a first row sit to the mess she left when she run for boarding school, with a heartbroken Nate and a devasted Blair. And yet while Serena constantly sees the worst ih him, he’s actually trying for once, as hard to believe as that is for her.

If this episode made one thing obvious is how much Chuck always wanted to have a family, he’s genuine in his compliments to Lily as extravagant as they may seemed and he’s really good with Eric too, they took really quick to each other because they have felt inadequate at some point or another, he eventuanlly makes the effor with Serena too, as Eric explains to her when he gives her a message from him (which backfires, but no the point) and for all his bad qualities Chuck can be a very non-judgemental person when he wants it, this episode for instance Serena gets him kicked out of the penthouse and yet as soon as she apologizes and ask for his help he let’s it go. Because as we see his relationship with Bart is awful, his father always expects and believes the worst of him, and even when he’s nice it ends up being not genuine, and so for the first time via the Van der Woodsens he has the oportunity to get a family life that it’s more than that. 

At his core Chuck is a lonely person, which is part of the reason he latches so easily to Van der Woodsens here, sure he had Nate but that was it, and Nate as good hearted as he is not the most reliable person, it’s quite noticeable this episode, aside his new found relationship with the Van der Woodsens, since Nate has dropped their friendship he’s basically on his own in every scene this episode, even more son than Blair who was Serena, even if Serena is flighty and always gets caught up in something, and sure enought the episode ends up with the mistery of who is “G”, which was intriguing the first watch because imagine a person that gets even Chuck Bass like oh no! But that’s for next episode. 

Randoms bits I’ve noticed

The timing of this episode is sort of weird. Last episode seemed like it was the end of January or something like that, and now this one is  after spring break, and since thanks to gossip girl wikia, we know Jenny’s birthday is on March 30th, and Serena says to Blair about her “3 week old scandal” and I’m like, I mean it’s possible, but then the first to episodes after the holidays had to be like really way too long after the holidays, and that doesn’t makes much sense either.

We also got a new location for the school, I sort of like the other one better. 

When the girls throw yoghurt on Blair’s head, all the yoghurt cups are turne upside down. 

At the top of the piano there’s a picture of Chuck as a little kid (which is actually Ed), guess Bart wanted to a least gave the impression he care. I do love the fact the show asked the actors for photos of themselves when they were kids. The ones on top of the piano at the Waldorfs are pics of Leighton as a kid.

Feel like saying it againg, but  this was such a good ending: