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'Hit the Floor Review’ “Possession” S3E10.

2013-2018, VH1/BET, 4 Seasons/41 episodes SPOILERS

I started watching ‘Hit the Floor’ in October of 2023, writing fanfiction in December 2023 and “reviewing” the show in July 2024. When I say review, I just mean that I wanted to break down each episode, give my observations and opinions. Pros and Cons. I’m not a professional, just a fan with a desire to talk and write about this small, niche TV show that I unexpectedly fell in love with.

This is truly Logan Browning’s episode from start to finish.

That mic drop when she took over the team!

Jelena interrupting Sloane and Oscar like she’s coming between her divorced and feuding parents is gold! I read an old social media post on the show where someone hypothesized that Oscar was really Jelena’s father! If this show was the traditional 20 episodes per season… I would have believed it possible. Jelena and Jude BOTH have green eyes… LoL!

The more I watch the scene of Jelena and Terrence, the more I think it was for the best that she broke up with him personally and professionally. Hey, she offered him equity; not like she would have left him broke and homeless. Sure, she could have married him, and they would have been the queen and king of L.A. But, at that point he didn’t trust her - although that seems out of character at that point in their relationship - and she would have resented him. They’d have been miserable.

Not a storyline I would have been opposed to if we’d had more episodes and time.

Terrence is being a petty bitch when he “warns” Ahsha that Jelena knows all of Derek’s secrets and would break them up and destroy Derek??? That feels like a storyline that was being hinted at if the show had come back sooner, Logan Browning was available full time, and Taylour Paige was back on board. Because otherwise, that was a random plot point solely existing to add a “romantic” rivalry that never existed between Ahsha and Jelena.

Jelena taunting Sloane about corrupting Ahsha. What’s so odd about that is Jelena did no such thing. She poked Ahsha, but every decision was a calculated and deliberate choice that Ahsha made.

Ahsha is incredibly happy! But, for some reason, Sloane and German act as if she’s under some mind control and “protect” her with violence and both seem to want to dictate to her. I wonder if it was always a conscience choice that she would be infantilized by them.

How beautiful does Ahsha look when she goes to pick up German from jail?

Lionel being “trapped” literally in her marriage to Oscar just does not track. We have been given nothing as to why she can’t leave him, hire security, call the cops and/or leave town. Having her cowering and suicidal and needing Pete to save her is a real let down and a disservice to someone who has been presented as smart, calculating and always thinking ahead.

This was an episode with more growth for Oscar. Pre prison he was a homophobe - which let's be clear he probably still is - who didn’t like or respect Jude’s desire to be just like him, Oscar. Post, he plans to keep him on instead of firing him. My head canon is that he admires the ruthless streak and hardball tactics Jude employed against him, while handling the board. I think he finally saw him as a Kinkade.

That look of disgust on Jude’s face when Lionel talks about being Oscar’s wife in every way! Priceless.

Love that we get a little bit more of shady Jude and Zero. One of the biggest missed opportunities was not showing the two scheming more pre S2E8. While we see Zero manipulate throughout, once they start their relationship, the scheming Jude sort of fades and he becomes more of a romantic lead, and sidekick to Lionel’s dealings.

Apparently the key to a man’s heart is giving him a key to a house. One thing I noticed during re-watches is that Jude is always on the left and Zero is always on the right. Whether standing, sitting or in bed. Nice little detail with their positioning in shots.

I love the marriage proposal. Derek has always been the most romantic character on the show and his big grand gesture was fitting.

This is probably the most romantic episode by far, with Jude/Zero and Ahsha/Derek. It balances out all the double dealing, backstabbing and business shenanigans between everyone nicely.

I do wish each season was a year, though. A lot has happened, and folks are getting married, buying houses, going to prison, etc. It feels especially in Ahsha’s case that she’s “grown up” but in reality the first three seasons are what amounts to about a year and a half!

Next Time On …S3E11, ‘Til Death Do Us Part’

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Updates

[taylorwarwick]

I'm very partial to 'smirk,' 'hooded,' and 'butter wouldn't melt.' While I usually only use them once per fic, I constantly use them throughout my work.

Are they overused and cliched in writing, in general? Probably. But, I love them and don't have any plans to stop!

I love when I’m reading a fic and it’s evident that the author has a favourite word/phrase/metaphor they like to use because it’s used again and again.

As a writer, I worry that people will find it annoying when I do this but as a reader I find it so endearing, it’s like walking into someone’s bedroom and its immediately obvious what they’re favourite colour is.

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One thing I noticed about Nate's room is that it's the only one that doesn't look like a teenager's.

It looks like a 35 year old man's guest room. For the twice a year he has family come visit.

No color. Where are the posters, the trophies, and clothes on the floor? Neat, clean and organized.

Very big contrast to his outburst and the anger we see. Not usually at home though. He doesn't feel comfortable in any shape or form in that house. He's wound so tight, controlled and repressed in so many ways.

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I will never hate Maddy Perez. She's a liar, manipulative and rude! But, she really did love Nate... in the most toxic way. It was wonderfully messy.

Plus, she was a great friend to Cassie.

I just feel like there's a lot of revenge on the horizon in S3...

alexa demie with blue eyeshadow will always be my roman empire.

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They are so drawn to each other and in each other's head.

Euphoria - Nate and Jules

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Zendaya is amazing. At turns funny and tragic as Rue. Like life.

Nika King is so underrated on this show. She plays a good mom dealing with a godawful situation(s), and doesn't fall into stereotype of saintly or ghetto Black mama. And I love her.

Angus Cloud imma miss you and Fezco (and your psycho little bro Ash), blaccent and all. I loved how they used his character as the 'wise old man' in the guise of dangerous drug dealer. The casual observations of the Rue & Jules and the Jules/Nate relationships were just pure gold.

Nate Jacobs and Jules Vaughn. I don't know how it happened, but how much do I need, want and desire a full on relationship between these two selfish, damaged, dangerous and ridiculously hot people? A lot S3. A lot.

EUPHORIA — Pilot | June 16th, 2019

[taylorwarwick]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Euphoria (TV 2019) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Nate Jacobs/Jules Vaughn Characters: Nate Jacobs, Jules Vaughn Additional Tags: Emotional and Sexual Pull, Longing, Reunion Series: Part 1 of Pull Summary:

Nate invites Jules for coffee.

Post S2E8, ‘All My Life, My Heart Has Yearned for a Thing I Cannot Name’

Jules POV

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A few updates...

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They were so happy! Zero came through for Jude. They had their ups and downs and downs (ahem... s4), but in the end (S5 Instagram Treatment) it was Zude4va!

Jude + Zero HIT THE FLOOR | Drama, Basketball, LGBTQ+

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Logan Browning aka Jelena Howard.

They could never make me hate you Jelena. You could burn down Devils Arena WITH Miguel inside, I would still stan Thee HBIC of 'Hit the Floor!'

June 9, 1989

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Chapters: 5/? Fandom: Grumpy Cat's Worst Christmas Ever (2014) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Grumpy Cat & Chyrstal Alexander Characters: Grumpy Cat, Chyrstal Alexander, Marcus Crabtree, Chris Manderson, Shauna Manderson, Tabby Alexander, Santa Janitor Additional Tags: Fantasy, Humor, Mystery, Black Female Character, Black Male Character Summary:

Grumpy and Chyrstal investigate missing merchandise at the mall.

A week after Grumpy Cat's Worst Christmas Ever.

Grumpy, Chyrstal and Shauna POVs.

[taylorwarwick]

I like the tough, but not scorched earth Jelena. Although, I miss those form fitting silver slacks from S2/3!

It's nice to see Derek as captain and a leader.

However, It's pretty clear. The show might have been able to survive without Jelena, Dersha or Zude. But not all. They were the most popular aspects of the show. One of the three needed to be there to anchor the show.

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A few updates!

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Overall, I do agree that Derek and Ahsha have a deep and real love for each other. Team Dersha.

I only disagree that you won't be jealous or attracted to someone else if you're in a committed relationship. That's being human. What you do with those feelings are what's important.

Ahsha's feelings changed. German's didn't. She really didn't do much to not lean in heavy when it came to Derek. She lied to herself that she tried to resist.

Same with German's jealousy. He was immature and let it overtake him.

I also disagree that history isn't important. Having a history can often make people stronger and build on something. In their case, being first and young love, it was never going to survive the changes in their lives.

It was less, in my opinion, about how they felt, but how they handled them. Badly.

That being said. It's a soap opera and if the characters were all nice, perfect, everything was a clear path forward and not at least morally grey, I wouldn't be watching!

Describe dersha love and german and ahsha love, disregarding the fact that you're a dersha shipper, and i am too. be honest.

Speaking as simply a viewer of the show… German and Ahsha have no business together. I can elaborate a thousand ways, but let me just say this… For one, when you’re content and satisfied, there’s no longing for someone else outside of your relationship. When you know what you have, there’s no jealousy, because you know that it can’t be taken from you. With Ahsha and German, they had 3 years of companionship that ultimately wasn’t enough. For some reason, she was attracted to Derek. Despite loving German. Despite being in a relationship. Despite not wanting to have feelings for him. There was a fire there that she couldn’t put out or deny between her and Derek from the very beginning. If I go back and watch season one, I can still admit: German and Ahsha were cute. At least to me. He was a nice dude (pre-murder)… but the same reason Ahsha is with him now, is the same reason he wasn’t enough then. He’s safe. He’s boring. She’s comfortable with him, but all they have to stand on is 3 years. What do they have that survives beyond their history? How have they bettered one another? Do they challenge each other? Do they go through trails and make it out of them? As Sloane said to Ahsha in the past, German and Ahsha hadn’t gone through hardship prior to her becoming a Devil Girl, and before they broke up, they were going through a transition between puppy love and grown-up love. To me, puppy love is just an idea… grown up love, you have to act on that. Ahsha and German were based on the idea of love. At the first sign of difficulty… Of actually having to prove love actively… he bailed on her. People love to bring up them having history, but it’s a convenient point to make when it’s all that exists between them. Derek and Ahsha? They ignite each other. There’s passion. There’s challenges. There’s growth. They’ve changed each other in significant ways. That love is what a lot of people want to see. Cotton-candy, bubble-gum high school love (as I’d like to call “Gersha”) can only go so far. German and Ahsha is child’s play. Derek and Ahsha are the real deal. 

Thanks for your question!

[taylorwarwick]

'Hit the Floor’ “Loss,” S3E9 Review

2013-2018, VH1/BET, 4 Seasons/41 episodes SPOILERS

I started watching ‘Hit the Floor’ in October of 2023, writing fanfiction in December 2023 and “reviewing” the show in July 2024. When I say review, I just mean that I wanted to break down each episode, give my observations and opinions. Pros and Cons. I’m not a professional, just a fan with a desire to talk and write about this small, niche TV show that I unexpectedly fell in love with.

I’ve written it once; I’ll write it again. With all of his tricks and resources, Oscar couldn’t have – from jail - had someone get those three copies and digital files of incriminating evidence… in addition to finding the M.E.?!

I love how vaguely menacing Oscar’s threats are. We see him with Adam and his wedding band is front and center. Him saying that he’s going to “kill” Sloane. That look of horror on Jude’s face when he sees Oscar, who emanates smugness in every pore. Yes, Oscar is creepy and kinda rapey, but I ship the hell out of Lional and he… Lionscar, anyone?

The Jelena/Terrence vs Oscar scene continues to make me wish that we’d been able to have an arc of the Howard -Walls vs the Kinkades. It then would have forced everyone to take a side, with bigger personal and professional stakes.

That was a straight up passive aggressive ultimatum from Terrence. Give me babies or we’re done. She obviously wanted desperately to give him that. Then he flipped on her and accuses her of lying. On my re-watches, I’m even more Team Jelena. He suddenly didn’t believe or trust her. That seemed out of character.

All I could think was, when Jelena hands Ahsha that lantern during the dance, that they could be friends… and that I once also owned that exact white sundress!

I hate that we don’t see Raquel and Pete’s goodbye. I get it. Slete. But, c’mon, we get two extended Ahsha scenes based on a whole mostly unseen close friendship.

As someone who isn’t religious I thought the show did a really good job of asking what comes next. What you want it to be, fireflies, will Miguel see Raquel again; very emotional and mindful.

I did think it odd that during Sloane’s moment of unity/silence she only mentions Raquel’s beauty. Yes, she is the most beautiful woman on the show. However, she’s also kind, determined and has a lot of strength. It just felt like it didn’t need to be mentioned at all. Then again, for all its emotional beats, Hit the Floor is a soap opera about beautiful and sexy people!

It was nice to see -even if I was crying –  Pete, Miguel, Jelena, Ahsha, Kyle, Terrence, Derek and Sloane in the same scene. It’s not really until S4 that we get so much on-screen interaction between the main characters.

I get that Sloane and Raquel are friends through investigating Oscar… but that scene of her talking to the Doctor belonged to Jelena, Kyle or Pete.

Kimberly Elise is the best actor on the show… but those reactions to Raquel dying… the least convincing; a bit phoned in, especially compared to everyone else who looks genuinely upset.

It really is a shame that there is no Zero in S4. No doubt we would have had Laura. It would have done so much to flesh out his character. We see him through the lens of his relationships with Jelena and Jude. His manipulation and scheming for his career. We see the hurt of foster care. But, with an actual familial relationship, I think that really would have been great for the character.

Gotta say the way German’s stalking, murder and obsession is justified -even more so in S4. Nah, Eve was within her right to say, screw ‘em, I’m bringing all of you down.

Nice touch how as a celebrity Derek can just roll in and see German.

I get that it was to show his maturity and growth, but sorry Derek. I for one believe in Mourning Sex!

In a show full of gorgeous men, wow to that Doctor. Thank you, casting director!

I know Jelena’s wardrobe in S4 is meant to showcase her as older, a team owner and a mom… but, damn do I miss those formfitting silver slacks from S2/3!

That was a great wide shot of the Devils Arena court. Although, it’s insane how many culminated minutes are often dedicated to exterior shots, that in the end are unnecessary. For example we know what Sloane’s house, Jude’s apartment, the arena, etc. look like from the outside. I don’t know how much time is wasted across all seasons, but all I know is it could have been dedicated to  Jelena and Raquel’s friendship, Raquel and German’s relationship, Jude and Zero’s love story or smaller scenes that flesh out details about Oscar, Terrence or heck, even Beau!

[taylorwarwick]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Hit the Floor (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Jude Kinkade/Noah, Jude Kinkade/Lucas, Jude Kinkade/Zero | Gideon Characters: Jude Kinkade, Noah [Ali], Lucas [Ward], Zero | Gideon (Hit the Floor) Additional Tags: Angst, Break Up, Longing Series: Part 4 of Season Four Summary:

Summary: After Noah breaks up with Jude, he runs into Lucas.

S4E7, ‘Foul’

Jude POV