Archive | October, 2013

Michelle Williams Talks Dawson’s Creek Nostalgia

8 Oct

Michelle Williams sported a quiffed look at The New Yorker “In Conversation” event at the weekend as she discussed her TV and film career with writer David Denby. Despite a clip snafu that saw the wrong Blue Valentine scene shown to the audience – the hotel shower scene was instead of another fractious moment between Williams and Ryan Gosling’s characters – there are other things to talk about from this discussion including Williams’ recent trip to Wilmington, North Carolina where they shot Dawson’s Creek.

Michelle Williams New Yorker 2013

Williams explained that she “hadn’t been back since the show ended but I went back and took my daughter on vacation and saw people I hadn’t seen in 10 years and went all the places that we used to go. And it was great. It was actually a real stroke of luck to be transported there.” It’s all ’90s nostalgia at the moment and while I think a reunion episode wouldn’t really work (Spoiler Alert! Jen is dead) I am tempted to revisit this show, plus I still really need to watch the final episode (I know).

Wearing a Louis Vuitton shirt-dress that manages to incorporate both a black and white checkered pattern and a bow around the middle without veering into too cutesy/twee and not over powering the look with accessorizes, Williams looks fantastic and relaxed. While there isn’t a ton of things you can do to make short hair look different the quiff is a tried and tested favorite here at TV Ate My Wardrobe as it not only gets occasionally pesky bangs out of your face but also gives you a fresh new look. The pink lip color and nail polish adds a pop of color without overwhelming.

New Yorker Michelle Williams

As photo shoots and magazine editorials with Michelle Williams tend to lean towards the melancholy these photos are a welcome change.

Next up for Williams is a turn on Broadway in Cabaret and she will be playing the iconic role of Sally Bowles alongside The Good Wife’s Alan Cumming, opening April next year. She also recently completed work on Suite Francaise based on Irene Nemirovsky’s work that tells the story of a woman living in German occupied France.

Variety “Power of Women” Red Carpet

7 Oct

Variety’s fifth annual Power of Women luncheon was held on Friday and honored 7 women who have used their star power for philanthropic work and after Amy Poehler delivered an important message about her work with Worldwide Orphans (that you can watch at the bottom) she joked that “Thank you to all the bossy, right amount of crazy women in this room. Giving to charity is good for your skin and makes your ass smaller.”

Power of Women group photo

Aisha Tyler hosted the event and the recipients as you can see in the photo above are Jennifer Hudson, Elizabeth Banks, the aforementioned Amy Poehler, Charlize Theron, Kerry Washington, Amy Pascal and Nicole Kidman. This is an impressive group of women and you can find about their charity work here.

Turning over to the red carpet at this luncheon and it’s good to see an array of styles and colors among the honorees with host Aisha Tyler working the neon pink to maximum effect. After a week of many public appearances and some dubious dress choices (the big gingham number springs to mind) Kerry Washington wore a Vince Camuto cocktail dress that reminds us why she is top of the best dressed lists. The gold polka dots are an instant favorite here and studded Christian Louboutin ‘Malabar Hill’ pumps add an extra bit of flare to the outfit. Elizabeth Banks also looks stunning in this red Dolce & Gabbana top and skirt with lace detail. I’m so excited about what Elizabeth Banks will be bringing to the huge Hunger Games press tour next month and all things Effie related. I could however, do without the nude Louboutin’s that she is wearing at this luncheon.

Kerry Washington and Elizabeth Banks

Some of the cast of Scandal were on hand to support Kerry Washington and Darby Stanchfield’s super pretty Valentino pastel graphic floral design is my favorite outfit from this luncheon. Stanchfield has been on crazy good form with her red carpet choices recently and her new look on the season 3 premiere of Scandal is definitely giving me some red hair envy.

Darby Stanchfield Variety

Amy Poehler looks great in this teal long sleeved Beckley by Melissa with Worldwide Orphan founder Dr. Jane Aronson, who Poehler first met in 2009 at a Glamour magazine Woman of the Year event. You can watch a video of Amy Poehler talking about this cause, how great TV is at the moment as well as part of her speech. Did it suddenly get dusty in here?

To see the Amy Poehler and Kerry Washington Variety covers head here.

Music Monday: Yo La Tengo Closes out Season 1 of The Bridge

7 Oct

Last week I wrote about the importance of the final song in a series final with Breaking Bad and Badfinger’s “Baby Blue” and this week’s choice comes from a season, not series finale and so the tone is very different. Yo La Tengo’s “Nowhere Near” plays in a long sequence that brings season 1 of The Bridge to a close and there is a hopeful and sad quality to the song. Spoilers ahead.

The Bridge

The song begins as Sonya puts her sister’s tape into her new car (I guess she changed cars as she complained her new one didn’t have a tape deck) and as this song is from 1993 it makes sense that it is on this mixtape. It’s a beautiful and haunting track mirroring the tone of the pensive faces that we see in this montage; Daniel Frye at his desk, Charlotte smoking on her porch and Sonya driving. It’s also incredibly heartbreaking as Adriana’s mother waits for her youngest daughter to get off the bus and she doesn’t turn up; vanishing like many other Juárez girls. This allows for a momentary truce between Adriana and her mother as personal differences are put aside in a story that is part of the longer narrative that connects both sides of the bridge. Steven Linder is a part of this and in this sequence he visits Eva; the woman he helped save by not giving up on finding her. What of Marco? The music fades as he enters his destination and makes a deal with the devil (ok Fausto) so he can get his revenge on David Tate.

http://youtu.be/jOcTozRTRGo

Out of the Box: Look of the Week

4 Oct

It’s another costuming focused “Out of the Box” as more shows returned and debuted this week. There’s also a show from long ago in the mix as Felicity is now on my viewing schedule and the opening credits are too good to not include in this feature. This is a snapshot of the week on TV and costuming that has caught our attention. We haven’t forgotten Scandal as there is a whole post here dedicated to the season 3 premiere.

Masters of Sex maroon sweater

Masters of Sex started this week and it’s already my favorite new show of the fall (Sleepy Hollow takes number 2 slot which I would not have predicted a few weeks ago). One issue with the pilot is it did that thing where it over emphasized the 1950s setting and mentioned on several occasions the historical impact this study will have. As this is the first episode I’m not going to quibble too much about that, especially when Lizzy Caplan gets to play a character that is confident with her sexuality in this setting and Virginia Johnson is ahead of her time without feeling out of place in this time. Caplan is an actress who I have wanted to see more of since her performance as Janis Ian in Mean GirlsParty Down provided an excellent TV role for Caplan but alas that only lasted 2 seasons – where is that movie they keep teasing us?

Master of Sex coatsThe costuming on Masters of Sex is giving me a lot of coat and short sleeve sweater envy and as with most period costume dramas there is wistfulness about seeing clothing styles from the past. A show like Mad Men has influenced fashion and while I don’t see Masters of Sex having the same huge impact it’s probably going to give me some ideas, especially as we are now in coat season. I got a short sleeve sweater this week and on Twitter I mentioned that it had a Megan Draper quality, it also looks like the costuming on Masters of Sex might have been an influence.

Masters of Sex

It isn’t all office wear and with the loss of Gossip Girl we don’t have a guaranteed big soiree every week, but luckily there’s a big fancy party and this means Virginia Johnson wearing a sleeveless prom style dress. If you were in any doubt who was the most in control of their sexuality then the above photo with Master’s wife Libby reinforces their roles. Libby is probably the weakest aspect of the pilot playing the downtrodden but supportive wife and I hope they expand her character beyond this.

Everything is Ending

Moving onto the present and The Good Wife returned on Sunday with an excellent episode that set up what should hopefully be an explosive season 5. Cary and Alicia’s big move hasn’t been revealed to the rest of Lockhart/Gardner but there are rumblings that something’s afoot and it probably wasn’t a coincidence that Diane was wearing the color of danger in the scene where they asked Alicia if she had heard anything. Red is generally Alicia’s go to power color so I think it’s significant that Diane is wearing it. Costume designer Daniel Lawson does such a great job on this show as he doesn’t lose the femininity of these characters and still giving them an incredibly commanding look. Felicity opening creditsNow let’s flashback to the past with Felicity as I am watching the show for the first time for This Was TV. I’ve never seen the Felicity opening credits prior to this week and I was struck by how simple but effective they are as we see Felicity and her friends in various settings around New York. It’s half laughing, half pensive looks and by using black and white it also gives the impression of what someone who had just started college would deem cool as their opening credits sequence. This shot of Keri Russell is stunning and I’ve already been warned that this credit sequence will get a terrible makeover which I am already mad about and should be filed with Alias and Veronica Mars as ways to mess up your awesome opening credits. On display here is the 90s baggy realness that the three episodes I have watched so far has in abundance.

Scandal 3.01 “It’s Handled” Costume Review

4 Oct

It’s back! After a summer of catching up with Scandal, talking about Scandal, predicting what Olivia Pope might wear and admiring what star Kerry Washington has been wearing we can finally talk about the season 3 premiere. This is going to be a different kind of review as I’m going to be looking at the costuming and how this adds to the narrative and tone of the episode. Costume designer Lyn Paolo has done an excellent job of establishing key aspects of a character’s wardrobe – such as Olivia never deviating from wearing pants in the office – and I will be looking at how this informs a scene and how it evolves over the season.

Scandal 3.1 Olivia Burberry Trench

The centerpiece outfit is this incredible Burberry Prorsum Caped Duchess Satin Trench Coat and it acts as armor for Olivia; it’s what Olivia wears to tell her father that she is never out of options and as she tries to work out the best solution with Fitz and Mellie. Olivia has worn other more traditional Burberry trench coats in the past and there is a powerful image that this silhouette produces as Olivia walks with determination to her destination. We’re not used to seeing Olivia backed into a corner like this and while she is trying to give off an image of control her expression reveals how hurt and lost she is feeling. This piece features in the “Storm is Coming” promo photos and it’s one that I wrote about in the Fantasy Costuming series back in July (yes I still can’t believe something I picked something that features this heavily in the season premiere).

Scandal 3.1 Mellie and Olivia

If you knew nothing about this show then the image above quickly identifies the two opposing styles of the women in Fitz’s life. Mellie is very traditional and while she rails against the notion that as First Lady she is ornamental not functional she knows how to dress the part. Block colors are very much part of the Mellie look and here she wears midnight blue to emphasize that in her position no matter how ornamental, she still has power and authority even in the presence of the woman that Fitz really loves. Despite their differences Mellie and Olivia are mirroring the other with arms folded as they try to resolve this situation. Olivia is very much in what you would consider work wear – her uniform consists of well tailored pant suits and the costuming shows a clear divide between the roles these women play.

Scandal 3.1 Mellie in black

Olivia lays out what color Mellie should wear when they tell the press about the affair details, she tells her to wear a soft color like lavender and as you can see from the photo about Mellie goes in the opposite direction with black. Mellie is clearly not on board with Fitz and Olivia’s plan and this is because she has figured out that Fitz is the one who leaked Olivia’s name. She’s ready to go to war with Fitz and by dressing in black she is mourning the death of her marriage (which died a long time ago) and shows that she is not backing down from this fight. While the cut is still very much in the First Lady tradition, it’s going against the vibrant color palette that we normally associate with Mellie. Gone are the regular pearls too and the necklace she is wearing looks like pearls made from gun metal which is appropriate given all the war talk with Fitz.

Scandal 3.1 Fitz as Kennedy

While Fitz’s costuming is pretty much what he has always worn, I really like the above shot as it’s reminiscent of this JFK portrait and the image of Kennedy has already been mentioned earlier in the episode. Fitz also pulls a move when he takes off his jacket that at first suggests that he expects some sexy time in the bunker, instead he pulls Olivia into a very different kind of embrace as he comforts her. I’m not Fitz’s biggest fan as he tends to act like a horny teenager a lot of the time so this was a very pleasant surprise.

Scandal 3.1 Olivia and Harrison

Olivia returns to the office mad as hell because of the role her team played in choosing an innocent woman to get Olivia off the hook. Harrison is all “There’s nothing wrong with a little self-preservation” showing that these gladiators sure like to live in the moral grey areas. As always Harrison is impeccably dressed and by mixing a polka dot tie with a gingham shirt he shows that power clashing is something he does with both his clothes and with his boss. Olivia is in her usual work wear and I wonder if we will be seeing more dark shades after this experience. I don’t think she will be wearing the white hat that David gave her anytime soon.

Scandal 3.1 Quinn and HuckQuinn jokes that they should find a bad intern they can blame again who can end up dead, well she made it seem like a joke but considering how she took to torturing at the end of season 2 part of her is probably being serious. From the way Quinn dresses you wouldn’t be able to tell that she is developing this darkness and she wears the brightest colors in the office. Her costuming is still very girly and this gives her an unassuming quality.

Scandal 3.1 AbbyThere’s something different about Abby this season her poker straight hair has been transformed into this gloriously wavy style (something I have praised about Darby Stanchfield’s red carpet look). We’ve been promised more Abby backstory this season and her style has evolved from being somewhat uptight to this more relaxed and confident appearance. Her relationship with David might have something to do with this and while it doesn’t look like they are back together there was definitely something that bordered on flirtation in the premiere. Abby is one of the only characters that calls Olivia out and so this confidence might also be down to feeling less like one of Olivia’s fixing projects and something nearer to an equal, especially as Olivia has a problem that needs to be fixed now.

A really strong start to the new season and I’m looking forward to discussing how the costuming on Scandal informs and adds to the experience of watching this show.

Magazine Cover Roundup: Kerry Washington, Amy Poehler and Claire Danes

3 Oct

It’s the start of the month which means new publications of several magazines and some of our favorite TV women feature on the covers. All three of these women have new seasons of their shows to promote and for one of them this has been a year of multiple cover shoots as both her star power and the popularity of her show are on the rise.

I am of course talking about Kerry Washington and at the moment she is getting at least one cover a month, sometimes two. In October she was on the cover of both Glamour and Flare, this month she features on Essence and Variety.

Kerry Washington Essence Cover

It’s a captivating cover as Washington is staring into the camera full on and she is wearing a stunning Rafael Cennamo Couture gold gown. In the interview she discusses the difference between Olivia’s style and her own “Olivia has three [fashion] modes: Work Olivia, Black-Tie Gala Olivia and At Home Olivia… My fashion is more eclectic: There’s Going to Work Kerry, which is gym clothes and Nike kicks. That’s the Bronx girl. There’s also Red Carpet Kerry and Out to Dinner With Friends Kerry.”

Kerry Washington Variety Cover

It’s Variety’s fifth annual Power of Women issue and Kerry Washington is one of five women being celebrated for her work as a member of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. Washington works as an arts ambassador in areas with poverty-stricken schools, using arts programs to help increase reading and maths scores as well as having a positive influence on attendance, parental involvement and enrollment. It’s a very different cover photo to her Essence shoot but just as mesmerizing. Washington’s red carpet style can’t be put in one category and her magazine covers have varied wildly in style and composition and I can’t wait to see what she features on next – personally I’m hoping for Vogue.

Amy Poehler Variety

Amy Poehler is another one of Variety’s Power of Women recipients for her work with the Worldwide Orphans Foundation. Poehler is both a fundraiser and an arts ambassador for the organization and she recently raised over $30,000 by throwing an Emmy “losers” afterparty. Co-hosting with fellow “loser” Jon Hamm the invitation stated that if you turned up with an Emmy award then your entry fee was a donation to WWO. It’s not mentioned in the article but I’m also a big fan of Poehler’s Smart Girls at the Party a website which promotes healthy self image for young women.

Claire Danes Vogue

Claire Danes covered Vogue earlier this year and now it is time for the UK issue of this publication. The cover shot is a lot softer than the US counterpart which almost feels like it is Danes’ Homeland character Carrie on the front. Wearing a tweed Louis Vuitton jacket Danes looks both relaxed and happy and you won’t be surprised to hear that I’m going to find out what lipstick color she is wearing because it’s the perfect soft pink blush for the fall season (when I’m not opting for a ’90s influence).

Scandal Catch Up Chat: The Influence of Social Media and the Rise of Kerry Washington

2 Oct

Over the summer I did the smart thing and caught up on Scandal and I’m joined by Kerensa Cadenas and Julie Hammerle to discuss all things Scandal; including why it has become such a phenomenon, the rise of Kerry Washington and what we hope to see in season 3 when it returns this week.

Scandal promo

Emma: The best place to start is when we watched the show and why we started watching as I know that myself and Julie have marathoned this summer and I don’t know exactly when Kerensa watched, though I know it’s a lot longer than us.

Scandal has been all over my Twitter feed and magazine covers this year and the amount of coverage has increased significantly from January to now. I’ve been meaning to watch the show for a while, mostly thanks to the really good word of mouth and because I’ve enjoyed previous Kerry Washington performances. I liked the sound of the soapy story combined with the political aspect and strong female lead, plus I’ve recently watched The West Wing for the first time so had a Washington D.C. hole in my viewing.

I’m not well versed in the shows of Shonda Rhimes as I’ve only seen one episode of Grey’s Anatomy, but she always comes across as an interesting writer whenever I’ve seen interviews with her.

How about you both?

KERRY WASHINGTON

Julie: Hello, ladies,

As far as Shonda Rhimes shows go, I’ve seen every episode of Grey’s Anatomy (except for the last two, which have been clogging up my DVR since May). I watched an episode or two of Private Practice and I think I saw one episode of Off The Map. When Scandal started, I mentally bookmarked the show as something I’d like to watch and then promptly forgot about that. It happens. So, I let the rest of the world decide that Scandal was worth our collective time before binge watching the first two seasons this summer.

The show appealed to me because 1) I love a good nighttime soap, 2) Kerry Washington is all kinds of awesome, 3) Shonda knows how to do drama, and 4) I love shows about the inner-workings of Washington.

What’s your story, Kerensa?

Kerensa: I’ve never been much of a Shonda Rhimes fan. Both my mom and my sister were (and maybe still are) super into Grey’s Anatomy, so as a snobby teen (who am I kidding I was like 21) I refused to get into it even after season one was purchased for me for Christmas. I’m not super into medical dramas, so I never got into Private Practice either.

Honestly, I’m not really sure how I started watching it. I had heard so much on Twitter about the show, my editor was surprised that I hadn’t watched, I think Kerry Washington is a flawless human being so I just went for it one night aided by wine. I was instantly hooked because like Julie said I also love a good nighttime soap, was automatically invested in all the characters and the DRAMA and suddenly discovered presidential fantasies I didn’t realize I had. It helped that once I started watching I badgered my BFF to watch and he got just as hooked.

We now run all our life decisions on whether or not Olivia would do the same.

Emma: This show has definitely benefited from the online conversation and all three of us started watching partly because of Twitter.

Have either of you read the Kerry Washington’s recent Vanity Fair interview? There’s a bit on the amount of tweets the show generates when an episode airs (it’s around 200,000) but it’s the part about Washington getting the entire cast to join Twitter and to live tweet an episode that intrigues me. One of her close friends is a social media consultant so she’s been pretty savvy on this front. Now I don’t think this method would work for all shows but something like Scandal that has that soapy DRAMA quality is perfect for this kind of interaction.

Now seems like a great place to talk about Kerry Washington and we all agree that she is several levels of awesome – plus we totally need some “What Would Olivia Pope Do?” merch.

Most of the films I’d seen her in prior to this were very much supporting roles such as Ray, Last King of Scotland and Django Unchained (and her story was the least satisfying in this film, especially if you factor in other great Tarantino female characters) so I’m so glad that she’s got such a terrific lead part in Scandal. TV really does seem to offer more satisfying roles for a range of women. Washington gets to play a range of emotions from week to week and while I don’t like that Fitz makes her weak she is often the strongest person in the room as she’s gathered a group of broken (but awesome) misfits to work with her.

The whole Olivia/Fitz business is probably a big draw for some of the audience; it’s the stuff that happens at the offices of Pope & Associates that I get the most enjoyment out of. They have been smart in drip feeding information about each of the gladiators throughout the first and second season; how Olivia saved all of them but really they saved her (awww). Except Desmond who has gone to live on an island or something (his name was Stephen right?). Watching how each of these characters challenges or refuse to challenge Olivia’s motivations has been fun and it changes weekly as to who my favorite out of them is (at the moment I’d probably pick Harrison as I love his suits, I’m so shallow).

What do you guys think of Olivia’s team?

COLUMBUS SHORT, KATIE LOWES, GUILLERMO DIAZ, DARBY STANCHFIELD, KERRY WASHINGTON, JOSHUA MALINA, JEFF PERRY, BELLAMY YOUNG, TONY GOLDWYN

Julie: I didn’t read the Vanity Fair article, but I did see this quote (on Tom and Lorenzo’s site):

“One of the most profound things for me about the show is the number of white women of all ages who come up to me and say, ‘I want to be Olivia Pope.’ […] The fact that white women can see this woman of color as an aspirational character is revolutionary, I think, in the medium of television. I don’t think white women would feel that way about Olivia if her identity as a woman, period, wasn’t first in their mind.”

To me, that sums up one of the best things about a Shonda Rhimes show. Her shows are so effortlessly diverse to the point where it’s not even the point. Olivia Pope isn’t an Everywoman (because none of us can look that great in white Prada trousers), but she is, above all, a strong woman to whom we all can relate and aspire to emulate. And, please, order me a few WWOPD bracelets.

I’m going to skip the Fitz stuff for now, because I know we’ll have a lot to discuss about that later. So, instead, I’ll talk about the team.

Desmond/Stephen: As much as I love Desmond, Stephen was kind of his smarmy older brother. I don’t really miss him all that much, and I kind of like the rest of the team (save Huck) being so in the dark about Olivia’s past. It’s like we’re all taking this journey of discovery with them.

Quinn: Whatever, Quinn. She’s, like, the typical Shonda Rhimes newbie girl. She reminds me a lot of Sarah Drew on Grey’s Anatomy — a little precious, a lot naive. They tried to edge her up with the whole murder charge thing, but she was totally innocent, so that didn’t do much to make her interesting in my book. I guess they’re trying to make her the new Huck now, with her learning about computers and spy stuff, but even that feels a little forced to me. I want them to take Quinn to some honestly dark places.

Abby: Abby is also a little precious. They let Desmond have his whores and Harrison have his time in prison and Huck have his whole killing obsession, but the girls are A) wrongfully accused murderesses and B) victims of spousal abuse. Let the ladies be bad, Shonda!

Harrison: I love Harrison, mostly because I know very little about Harrison beyond the fact that he looks fabulous in a suit.

Huck: I’m a little love/hatey on Huck. I think it’s a cool character idea to have a trained killer/ex-spy in Olivia’s ranks, but I am much less sold on the actor who plays Huck. Also, Shonda devoted an entire episode to Huck sitting in a corner mumbling “742” or something while the rest of the cast took turns spilling their guts to him (this is a Shonda show staple), and that’s automatically annoying.

David: I love Josh Malina, partly because he sounds like he’s always reading Sorkin dialogue. I like that they’ve brought David into the group and I hope they let him do more next season than sit in the conference room eating burgers.

Kerensa, what say you about Pope & Associates?

Julie: I take back my David stuff. I forgot that he ended the season working for the DA again. So he’ll probably be more of an antagonist next season, which also makes me happy. Basically I’m very pro-David Rosen and I’m still shipping him and Olivia. Dolivia Posen forever!

David Scandal

Kerensa: I really like the team overall. I do agree with both of you that Harrison completely and utterly rocks a suit. But I really want to know more about him! He feels like such a mystery to me. He will always follow Olivia no matter what and not question her motives, even if he should (i.e. breaking up David/Abby). But I feel like for the most part we know so much about everyone else and as Julie mentioned, especially in the case of Huck, which might not be a great thing.

I actually really like Abby a lot. I think she’s an interesting character and there’s a lot of potential for her. And I totally ship her and David. Although, Emma–I’m gonna need more explanation about this David/Olivia shipping!

I do agree with Julie that Huck isn’t always my thing–but I totally sobbed at the end of that episode when we get his fully backstory. However, I do really like the weird mentor relationship between him and Quinn. I think they both recognize a lot each other in themselves. But like Julie also mentioned, Quinn is super naive and kinda precious so I wonder how dark she’ll actually get in the next season.

I love David so much! I really want him to be part of the team which now probably won’t happen considering his new position.

I did read the Kerry Washington Vanity Fair article–which I went and bought the day it went on the newsstand. And the quote that Julie shared was what really stood out to me as well. I hate to say that it’s shocking to see a show that is so effortlessly diverse but while watching Scandal and recently Orange is the New Black sometimes it really catches me to be like “Wow, there are women on this show!” “Wow, there is racial diversity!” Because apparently everything I’m watching is so (this will be my one swear word I’ll allow myself) fucking white. I think there’s a lot of power in that quote and in those social media numbers because I think it really shows the necessity and demand for more diversity on television.

Emma: Oh it’s Julie that’s all about the Olivia/David pairing; I’m totally shipping Abby and David. I’m hoping for more of them in S3 and I expect we will. I read that we’re going to find out more about her backstory beyond the domestic violence, which I’m definitely looking forward to as I really like her so far (but not when she’s being overly judgemental). When Harrison made it seem like David had a history with hitting woman that was pretty brutal and as you mentioned Kerensa shows that he will do pretty much whatever for Olivia.

Count me in for the sobbing over Huck’s Jason Bourne like backstory, especially as Astrid from Fringe is his wife. The pairing with Quinn is great and the glee that she showed when drilling Dadshaw from The Carrie Diaries leg was pretty dark. Hopefully they’ll explore this more.

David’s great as both an antagonist and as part of the team. He has the same desire to do the right thing and while he’s less morally grey than say Olivia, he’s also willing to bend the rules now. Previously I’d say that he was more rigid so it will be interesting to see how this will influence his decisions in season 3. As you said Julie he is so great with all dialogue.

I’m sad that Brenda Song is languishing on the hellscape that is Dads and will no longer be on this show. #FreeBrendaSong

Diversity on mainstream TV is a joke and one thing that highlighted this recently is the way some people reacted to the news that Coach was coming back to New Girl as they assumed this meant that Winston would have to leave. So ridiculous. Hopefully we’re at a turning point and I hope these numbers and conversation shows this.

One thing I’d like to talk about is how the show balances ‘case of the week’ with the longer arcs. How do you guys think it handled both of these things in S2?

Scandal office

Julie: Astrid from Fringe! I did not put that together. She’s such a cutie.

I think I’m shipping David and Olivia so hard (not that hard) because he’s totally the anti-Fitz, and he’s the only one in her life who will not put up with her shit, especially not anymore. Hot stuff. And totally unexpected. Do the unexpected, Shonda. Of course, this is also the woman who put Meredith and McDreamy together in the pilot of Grey’s, and here they are married with babies 100 years later.

Speaking about diversity, I was reading some Scandal comments yesterday (I know, but they were on the AV Club and therefore relatively coherent). Someone mentioned that they knew immediately that Olivia’s dad was Olivia’s dad because he was an African-American gentleman of a certain age. And then everyone else jumped on that and said they had no idea he was Olivia’s dad because this show is chock full of people of color. On any other show, by any other creator, Mr. Pope probably would’ve stuck out like a sore thumb, but not on Scandal or any other Shonda Rhimes show. Someone even commented that perhaps Shonda Rhimes career up to this point has been one big long con leading up to the second season finale of Scandal, packing her shows full of people of all races and ethnicities just to throw us off the scent of her big reveal. Crafty stuff that, Shonda.

As far as the case-of-the-week stuff balances against the longer arcs, I think the show does a good job of both. Even when there is a quick case to be solved, there’s other stuff going on in the background to keep all of us long-gamers happy. The difficult thing network shows like Scandal have to deal with is the epically long season and long shooting season. I imagine it’s hard to sustain a longer arc like the whole Defiance thing when you’ve got 22 episodes to fill. Sometimes the show feels like it’s making shit up as it goes along. I *hope* Shonda has a very good idea where the whole thing with Olivia and her dad is going, and how it fits into Olivia’s backstory. I think we could have a sort of Sydney Bristow-gone-rogue situation, which would be awesome. Or the dad story could be dropped like a hot potato by November sweeps.

Rowan Scandal

Kerensa: #FreeBrendaSong –seriously she was so good on this.

Julie, that’s such a great point about David and Olivia. I never really thought about it but that makes so much sense. And UGH FITZ. I know we are gonna get to that…

The format works for me really well actually. I’ve never been super big into the procedural structure–but for the most part I’m usually pretty interested in the case of the week stuff with some exceptions. And I think they do have a pretty good balance between the long game and the case of the week. It’s always great when the two really intertwine somehow. Speaking of narrative elements, how does the use of flashbacks work for both of you?

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Emma: Just got in from work and I’m doing my best Olivia impression by having a glass of red wine (I’m not wearing white loungewear as that would be a disaster).

I like the procedural structure for shows that I dip in and out of or have on in the background but I need longer arcs to stay invested and this is where I see some similarities between Scandal and The Good Wife (plus all the sex and political aspects of course) and I think the flashbacks add to the way it tells the story in the long run. The flashbacks have been used to establish the Olivia/Fitz affair, to show the various schemes and manipulations of characters like Mellie (who I love and have a lot more to talk about later) and to show how Olivia started relationships with the team.

All of these things are important to the big picture that Scandal is projecting and as one aspect is resolved another mystery is exposed. This is where Olivia’s father comes in (a reveal I didn’t spot coming, thanks in part to what Julie says about the diversity of Scandal, I also vote for a Sydney Bristow-esque story) and I suspect that we will be getting multiple flashbacks where he is concerned.

Huck has been served well by his main flashback episode as he was the one character I found it hard to connect to (though maybe this was intended), though I find his hair and beard to be a bit cartoony when he is homeless, like I get it’s meant to be a disguise but it’s over the top. I think we can all agree that Harrison needs more backstory and the same could be said for Abbey too. With Quinn her past was the mystery at the start of S2 but we pretty much know everything about who she was, it’s who she is going to become that has the most potential.

One of the things that has made this such an easy show to catch up on is the breakneck speed of the plotting. The case of the week helps to slow things down when it needs it but they have done an excellent job of balancing all aspects of the story. There were multiple points where I actually yelled at the screen and most episodes end in such a way that you just want to stick the next one on. The writers are doing something very right.

How do you guys feel about the flashbacks?

Scandal flashback

Kerensa: I’ve never watched The Good Wife. Is this a horrible thing?

I like the use of flashback in the show. It’s a narrative device I like as long as it’s used well. And considering the amount of flashbacks we get on the show it could be executed poorly. But it’s not! I think that using the flashbacks in telling us about how Olivia/Fitz get together is really the most effective because #realtalk I don’t think I could handle seeing that all unfold in real time. And you know I love a good melodramatic romance–but I just couldn’t.

I think it also works well for learning the backstories of Olivia’s associates for similar reasons. These people are Gladiators now. We aren’t really supposed to see them as they were in the past–but knowing those details are important is obviously important in understanding how they come at both the work they do with Olivia and the brief glimpses we get into their personal lives (this relates much more to Abbey than anyone else).

I agree with Emma that the pacing of the show makes it excellent for watching and keeping invested in the story as well. Shonda is promising that stays true for season 3.

Julie, how do the flashbacks work for you?

Julie: I’ve never seen The Good Wife either; so if you’re horrible for it, Kerensa, then you have company.

I have been enjoying the flashbacks and, for the most part, I think they’ve been used well. The second season lulled us into a false sense of how all this works. Olivia’s flashbacks are about her (barf) affair with Fitz. The gladiators’ flashbacks are about how they came to be gladiators. Now, with the introduction of CIA Daddy, it looks as if we’re going to get a lot more Olivia backstory beyond boning Fitz, and I’m very much looking forward to that. I hope these flashbacks will reveal all kinds of craziness.

The pacing of the show is breakneck, but in a really digestible way. We have the cases of the week to ground us in a simple story (same is true for Grey’s, really), but then we also have all this character/backstory happening to keep me tuning in week after week. It reminds me a lot of early Alias in that way (though this show needs more wigs). I’m seriously hoping it becomes even more Alias-like with CIA Daddy in the mix. That excites me. Also, Scott Foley. We can’t forget about him.

KERRY WASHINGTON, SCOTT FOLEY

Emma: I definitely vote for more wigs and the whole B316 has an SD6 Alias ring to it (plus all of the Bourne movies).

Now to The Good Wife comparisons which I will try to keep to a minimum (I’m pretty sure you guys would love it and it’s definitely one of my favourites) but I was talking to a friend who has also marathoned Scandal this summer and we got on to the subject of Fitz and how he’s kind of the worst. This isn’t just from a romantic perspective, but also as his role as President and while I get that he’s not meant to be a President Bartlet I also don’t think they’ve shown us enough of what makes him a great politician. A politician so good that a group of smart level headed individuals would break the law and rig the election for him. This is where The Good Wife comes in as Peter Florrick has done terrible things in his personal life (sleep with prostitutes) but they’ve also shown that he has charisma and political nuance that not only wins over his wife and the voters, but also the audience. I want them to do this with Fitz so I can actually invest in the central relationship, but at this point they’ve shown that both Mellie and Cyrus have more political savvy.

As you both mention the flashbacks give further insight into Olivia and Fitz, I’m glad we get to see why it’s so intense between them but it also highlights one of my main issues with this pairing and that’s the power Fitz has over Olivia both mentally and physically. There are also moments where Fitz is aggressive in his pursuit of Olivia (like when he is drunk in the elevator) and even though I doubt it will go to a dark place it feels like it could. I know there are lots of very passionate Fitz/Olivia shippers and I can see that they have great chemistry. I also get that it’s meant to be a tragic love story as they can’t be together, but it just isn’t something I can connect to.

Now Scott Foley as Jake is someone I can get on board with – I’ve not seen the appeal before this show but now I totally get it and I’m really looking forward to the Ben vs. Noel debate now that we’ve started Felicity for This Was TV.

I’ve opened the can of worms that is Fitz; what don’t you both like about him and is there something the writers could do that would make you change your mind?

Kerensa: I, too, am super excited for Olivia backstory flashbacks next season. Like has she always been able to wear white without spilling? How does she only eat popcorn and is able to live?

Mellie and Fitz Scandal

Emma, I totally agree with you, in that nothing has shown us that Fitz is a great politician. I guess maybe he’s cares about people or something? And has the right (seriously, I almost just wrote WHITE there instead of right) WASP background for the job. But there’s been nothing that makes me believe that he is any sort of political mastermind. Unless being great at oral sex is a new qualification? Literally everyone on this show has more political savvy than Fitz–Mellie, Olivia and Cyrus are basically running his career. My personal OTP is that Mellie and Olivia get together and take over the country.

I also have to bring this up for a friend who just recently watched as well. In a heated GChat over Scandal, she mentioned that it’s completely inconceivable that Fitz is a Republican. That’s what she thinks is the biggest scandal of the show. He along with his administration has never really done anything republican at all.  Do you guys have thoughts on that?

Emma, I do agree with you about the power Fitz has over Olivia certainly. But I actually think she may have more power over him. I mean when he can’t see/talk/have sex with Olivia–he gets all mopey and whiny and drinks whiskey and kinda forgets that he’s running a country. He acts like a love-struck 16 year old. It’s exhausting. But while, yeah, Fitz puts Olivia into a tailspin at times for sure at least she like can keep working and stuff. And she sort of tries meeting other people–like that boring Senator and SCOTT FOLEY. I never got the Scott Foley thing before either but I’m so on board now.

Olivia and Fitz Scandal

Emma: I really like that they went with a Republican administration as it’s the unlikely route when it comes to Hollywood and the presidents they depict (even when they don’t say which party they are it often feels like they are a Democrat). When it comes to Fitz being a Republican this doesn’t seem all that obvious, his VP is clearly representing the hardline conservatives whereas Fitz is dancing in the middle. Would a Republican president really have a gay Chief of Staff? This doesn’t seem all that likely and I tend to suspend my disbelief when it comes to the political plots points because this isn’t The West Wing (and as I mentioned earlier, Fitz is certainly no Jed Bartlet). What they did with Fitz’s opponent was smart in a way as they made him into a coward and a killer; he’s no saint either so Fitz on this occasion is the stronger candidate. Though I’ve just remembered that Fitz is also a killer, so eh they’re both terrible presidential candidates.

So we’ve touched upon both season 1 and 2, the team, Fitz, Olivia and some of the other supporting characters so I want to look ahead and ask what you both hope to see in season 3 – who do you want to see more/less of? What story needs more expanding? Do you long to see Olivia in bright colors or would that ruin the theme they have? Also Julie even though I think I know the answer what are your Fitz thoughts?

Julie: Yeah, I don’t see much Republican in Fitz and his administration. His Chief of Staff is gay and Fitz is cheating on his wife with a WOMAN for goodness’s sake. It’s almost as if Shonda and company thought they had to make Fitz a Repub in order to cover for any political bias on the writing team (assuming Shonda and most of her writers are more liberal-leaning; I don’t think that’s a huge stretch). I think Aaron Sorkin took flack during the run of the West Wing because of all the liberal folks running around the White House. He made President Bartlett a bit more centrist, and let the people around him bear the Super Liberal mantle. Maybe Shonda didn’t want to deal with the criticism that Scandal is just more liberal propaganda. Maybe she just thought it would be cool and different and open-minded to write about a Republican president. Maybe she’s a genius and knew this would draw more people to her show. Whatever the case, it worked. Even if Fitz doesn’t.

Also, I was Team Noel back in the Felicity days, so I totally get Scott Foley. And if given the choice between a hot and mysterious spy guy who saves you from intruders and a drunk and whiny Edward Cullen-type, is there really a choice to be had?

Emma: One thing I’m really looking forward to with season 3 is being able to join in with the all the post episode chat as last year I had to basically avoid anything Scandal related in my Twitter feed, on the internet in general and in all the magazines that Kerry Washington started to feature in. Now it feels like I get to go to the party and as this is a show that has a high social media involvement this is definitely a bonus to the watching experience. While I had some of that this summer while I was catching up with the show it will be nice to not have to avoid potential spoilers. It’s going to be strange not being able to stick on the next episode straight away and the withdrawal of going from binge watching a whole season to watching one episode per week is something that takes time to adjust to. At least there will be millions of others yelling NOOOOOOO! at the screen when the inevitable cliffhangers happen.

What did you guys think of the Emmys in terms of Scandal? Dan Bucatinsky won in the guest supporting category – I never understand why these aren’t given out at the Primetime Emmy show (his speech is adorable). The lead actress category was crazy strong and so while I would have loved to see Kerry Washington triumph my loyalty was split between Claire Danes, Elisabeth Moss (who should have won for Top of the Lake) and Washington.

David and Abby Scandal

Kerensa: I agree with you Emma. One of the things I’m looking forward to the most is the social aspect of watching Scandal. Beyond us discussing the show in more conversations like this and via Twitter, I’m excited to have viewing nights with popcorn and wine with the 4 people I know who actually watch the show. And I do think Scandal may take over the blessed position of my “visual recap” which I’ve been doing all season with Breaking Bad.

Plot wise, I’m really hoping we get more about Olivia’s backstory. I hope Harrison has more to do. I still want David/Abby to get back together. And I want Mellie to run for office. Cyrus, keep doing you boo. Oh! And I’m hoping for more Scott Foley in shirtless scenarios. Also, since Emma and I have been watching The Comeback I’ve fully realized the national treasure that IS Lisa Kudrow, so I’m so excited to see what she brings to the show.

I was super excited that Dan Bucatinsky won! I know Scandal is considered a “prestige” show by any means and that Best Actress category was filled with excellent performances but I really wanted Kerry Washington to win. I think she deserved it and it would have been an incredibly historic and extremely important moment if she had won.

Emma: How could I forget Lisa Kudrow?! Yeah The Comeback has made me very excited for this guest starring role.

DAN BUCATINSKY, JEFF PERRY

Julie: I, too, loved that Dan Bucatinsky won for guest actor (even though he was in nearly episode of Season 2; I don’t understand the Emmys). I’m hoping that Cyrus (Jeff Perry) will get a nod next year. He has the juiciest role. I was rooting for Kerry to win. She’s the buzziest actress, and, while I’ve come to love Claire Danes late in life, she’s won before. And Homeland kind of sucks now. Let’s move on.

Lisa Kudrow is going to be a great addition to the show. She’ll bring some comedy to the proceedings, and I’m hoping she gets some scenes with Josh Malina, because I think they’ll play well against each other.

Other wishes for Season 3…I hope they kill off Fitz. I know that won’t happen, but I hope it does. I also hope that Shonda and friends know where they’re going with this whole Spy Daddy thing. There’s nothing worse than a show opening up a big old mythology Pandora’s box and then not knowing where to take it. Basing this on my extensive Grey’s Anatomy knowledge, I don’t think Shonda has ever tried anything this complex and far-reaching, story-wise, so I hope she’s up to the challenge. I’m sure there will be lots of drama and fun and gorgeous clothes, so there’s always that.

I’m very excited for Thursday!

 

For more TV Ate My Wardrobe Scandal coverage head here.

Kerensa Cadenas is a writer living in Los Angeles. She is a staff writer for Women and Hollywood. She also writes for This Was TelevisionForever Young Adult, and Bitch magazine. She was the Research Editor for Tomorrow magazine. You can follow her on Twitter and read her ridiculous thoughts about teen television at her website.

Julie Hammerle is, according to Klout, an expert in the areas of both Morgan Freeman and glasses. Her writing can be found at chicagonow.com/hammervision and you can holler at her on Twitter as well.

 

New Girl Review: Schmidt’s Dating Mess

2 Oct

At the end New Girl’s second season Schmidt was asked to make a choice between Elizabeth and Cece and he ran away. He’s been doing this since we returned this year and his two timing has come to a head in “Double Date” as he told Nick what he had been doing and it all spiraled from there. This plot has been a bit of a drag as the conclusion was pretty inevitable – that Schmidt would end up with alone – and it’s been a bit of a slog getting here, putting Schmidt firmly in the douchebag category that has been joked about since the pilot.

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“In your little brain how do you see this ending?”

Schmidt’s response to Nick’s question is full of awareness, he knows that he’s gone too far and whatever the end result is, it’s going to be terrible and hurt all that are involved (including Nick who gets not one but two junk punches from Cece). So why the big delay? Schmidt blames it on everything from his upbringing to his former weight; the big surprise is who he blames for this resolution and that’s Nick and Jess. The threat he delivers at the end is enough to lose any good faith that he has earned from the audience as a result of his heartfelt confession to Cece and he’s already lost points because his hand was forced. So they’re going full douchebag with Schmidt and it probably isn’t his smartest idea to try and break up two of the three people he lives with. Delivering this threat with pie all over his face was wonderfully absurd and made the whole thing so ridiculous that you can almost forgive that Nick and Jess didn’t stand up to him over this BS.

There is no one to blame but Schmidt and it’s not like he has been two-timing women who he only met recently; Elizabeth is his first love and his feelings for Cece run deep. Hannah Simone nails the heartbreak of Cece as her eyes tear up and this quiet reaction is the opposite of what she has just done to Nick. Simone’s role within the group is often as the outsider as she is the only one of the regulars that doesn’t live in the loft and it will be interesting to see how they incorporate her now that she doesn’t want to see Schmidt ever again. The last time they had a period like this was between seasons 1 and 2 so that was all off screen.

Tonally this episode was all over the place and the breakup scene in the restaurant was pretty laugh free. Last week I discussed how New Girl excels at balancing the absurd moments with real emotions and while both of these factors were at play in “Double Date” it wasn’t as successful in switching between the two. Something felt off and Schmidt’s delaying tactics help turn him into the loft villain – as much as a villain as a sitcom can have – coupled with his Nick/Jess threat. This is probably just laying the groundwork for some Schmidt self-discovery, but at the moment it just reads as pointless bitterness.

One aspect that continues to play well is Nick and Jess as a couple from their country lawyer sex fantasies to the rather healthy bathroom discussion about how they feel about each other. It turns out that Nick’s driving style (because he totally needs glasses) is more likely to cause contention than their divided BFF loyalty. The funniest moment is as they list all the things that Schmidt might try and use to break them up including being sexually attracted to ladybugs, thinking the Kilborn Daily Show is better and being banned from Lake Ontario. It also turns out that they both think horses are from outer space (and I really want to see all the alt takes for this scene). Oh and Jess happens to know a lot of Spaceballs quotes that are perfect for no kissing sex.

Hanging by himself once again is Winston and this makes the third week where Winston’s story has been mostly solo. Hopefully this is building towards something and they definitely made a point of him realizing that he is the only one of the group who doesn’t have a significant other, unless you count Ferguson the cat. Now Schmidt is also in this position he might try and get Winston on his Jess/Nick breakup team especially if he dangles the prospect of pranks in front of Winston. Lamorne Morris excels at the crazier aspects of Winston so trying to keep hold of a community table for several hours allowed him to showcase this. Winston performed an important PSA too and you should always check that mints in restaurants are in fact mints and not a piece of glass.

This is of course still early in the season and events from the finale are still having a big impact on the narrative. So while it wasn’t the best episode of New Girl there has been it’s a necessary one to sort out the Schmidt/Cece/Elizabeth business. On the whole it made me laugh a bunch and Hannah Simone made me incredibly sad with her reaction to Schmidt’s cheating so it covered the emotional scale. So long Merritt Wever, you’re brilliant and I really hope you will come back on this show in the future.

Costuming on The Bridge: Sonya Cross and Steven Linder

1 Oct

Season 1 of The Bridge comes to an end this week and while Diane Kruger’s red carpet and street style is often a point of discussion here at TV Ate My Wardrobe, it’s the costuming of her character Sonya Cross that I will be taking a look at today. Sonya isn’t the only one who has a specific look on The Bridge and Steven Linder’s smart rodeo wear adds another layer of intrigue to his character.

This article discusses the events of The Bridge prior to the finale. 

The Bridge Steven Linder and Sonya Cross

While it has never been explicitly mentioned in dialogue on The Bridge, Sonya has Asperger’s syndrome and what she wears is a direct reflection of that. The one item that Sonya wears each week is the leather jacket in the above photo and it’s a fascinating item as it’s completely different from everything else she wears. This jacket has so much detail that in week 12 I’m still noticing embellishments that I haven’t picked up on before. The horse is one of the more obvious details, as is the leopard print on the shoulders and this is all down to costume designer Anna Terrazas who modified a leather jacket that was found in a Los Angeles vintage store. These changes include aging and distressing the piece to make it look well worn.

The backstory of the jacket is that it belonged to Sonya’s murdered sister and Terrazas explains that as a piece of clothing it “doesn’t make sense for what she does as a detective or who she is, but the whole idea is that it has sentimental value and is worn in memory of her sister.” This process wasn’t a solo one and Terrazas worked with a team to create this costuming centerpiece and this is evident by how many different details there are. The horse isn’t a mystery as Sonya’s sister loved horses but other details like the different tiger imagery, the faded star and the duct tape are more ambiguous. There was great distress from Sonya in the penultimate episode when she found out that her sister’s Bronco was beyond repair and she mourned this as if she had lost her sister all over again. It doesn’t help that her replacement car doesn’t have a tape deck.

Marco mirrored this behavior as he wore the hoodie of his dead son Gus and slept in his bed to preserve the memory of him.

Sonya tape

Anna Terrazas explains that Sonya is a “very uniform person and does the same routine every day” and this is reflected in the rest of what she wears. The jacket is very much part of her daily wardrobe and it’s easily the most flamboyant thing in her wardrobe as everything else is in basic neutral tones; there are no bold colors here. In one way this is similar to how I would describe Scandal’s Olivia Pope’s costuming but the big difference here is their jobs and what image they need to portray. Everything about Sonya’s clothes screams function as she wears shirts in white, grey, black and light blue, always pants and flat shoes. Sonya is not dressing up for anyone.

The Bridge Sonya Cross

Steven Linder is socially awkward in his mannerisms and the way he speaks but he also takes pride in how he dresses even if his facial hair is a tad on the unruly side. Linder believes that he has a calling to save young women and his is one of the stranger aspects of The Bridge. He mumbles but he also tries to present himself in a manner which will make his rescue missions less scary – cast your mind back to the first episode and it is clear that he can be a foreboding figure. The iron that he uses to press his shirts also became a murder weapon as he was attacked in his own home, serving a purpose that the manufacturer did not intend.

The Bridge Steven Linder

When the serial killer story took over the middle part of the season, Linder was pushed to the sides and while we know why he thinks he has this calling there is also much about him that is still a mystery. What he did last week was act as a conduit between Sonya and Marco; giving the pair a reason to work together again and to get Marco out of his period of despair.

Oh and Steven Linder will totally wear his best suit to make a proposal even if it makes no sense in that kind of heat. Linder is as buttoned up as his shirt and by giving him such a distinct look he stands out even when he doesn’t want to.

the Bridge Steven Linder

At the same time as I started The Bridge I was also watching Top of the Lake and it helps a great deal that Thomas M. Wright is playing incredibly different characters in both of these projects. Wright’s Steven Linder mannerisms, speech pattern, costuming and hair style show no similarities to Top of the Lake’s Johnno; as viewer this helps with the whiplash that can occur when one actor features in two distinct worlds and I would say that Wright has been one of the breakout stars of the year.

Summer Rewind: The Comeback Episodes 8 and 9

1 Oct

So the summer is over but our Comeback first watch isn’t and Kerensa Cadenas joins us once again to talk all things Valerie Cherish. The two episodes we are discussing this week are “Valerie Relaxes in Palm Springs” and “Valerie Hangs with the Cool Kids.”

The Comeback ep 8 Valerie on Vacation

Emma: I’m going to start with a bold statement and say I think this might be the strongest pair of The Comeback episodes that we have watched yet as we got to see Valerie away from the show and L.A. as they retool Room & Bored and an episode that explores Valerie’s role within the cast and with her family.

Starting with the trip to Palm Springs we got to see Valerie confronted with the notion that she cares far too much about what people think and how this could end up having a negative toll on her life. This observation comes from Donna, a friend of Valerie and Mark’s who Valerie is talking up until Donna comes across as brash on the camera and Valerie starts to distance herself from Donna. It turns out that Donna has recently had cancer and so this new outlook on life is a direct result of this experience. There are several moments at this dinner where Valerie is incredibly uncomfortable – first she didn’t even know that Donna had cancer (who reads Christmas newsletters) and then she is perturbed by the guy (Damian from Mean Girls!) who has been obnoxiously talking Hollywood all day on his phone and smoking cigars.

Valerie is very set in her ways and she’s not good when things deviate from a plan; the hotel has had a ‘trendy’ refurb since they last visited and the new clientele is much younger and party orientated. Valerie doesn’t like to see herself as aging, I mean who does but there is an extra burden in this industry. The trip she had planned isn’t what she ends up with, but this entire experience is a valuable one and even though I don’t think Donna’s advice will have a huge amount of impact in the long run (I mean Valerie is back to her old self in the next episode) it was good to see Valerie’s carefully controlled mask drop.

One thing that we have discussed in the past about Valerie is how she pretends that everything is ok when it really isn’t, this links into everything that Donna is trying to tell her about bottling things up and getting drunk and calling Paulie G is Valerie’s way of expelling this negativity. So far Valerie has pretty much taken every despicable piece of shit move that Paulie G has made. The reality TV cameras have captured moments where we can see that Valerie is visibly upset, but she only lets her guard drop for the briefest amount of time and then her smile is back. When Juna rings to find out where Valerie is this is an incredibly awkward moment as it’s all on speakerphone. This is another example of how self absorbed and unaware Juna is, there’s nothing malicious about this inquiry. Valerie is in no state to call Paulie G – she can’t even find his name on her phone and suggests looking under Fatty – but Jane isn’t going to let this piece of the real Valerie go to waste and she does what she’s not meant to and helps make the call. I thought the message was going to feel like a triumphant moment; instead it made me feel incredibly sad as she tells Paulie G that he has hurt her feelings. I was wondering what impact if any this would have on their relationship and it turns out the answer is none.

The episode closes with “I Want You to Want Me” by Cheap Trick and this is the perfect anthem for Valerie – it’s also a song that I will forever associate with Joey Potter from Dawson’s Creek and 10 Things I Hate About You. If you haven’t seen the Joey version here it is:

There’s quite a bit more to talk about including Valerie showing just how ruthless she can be but I’m going to throw it across to you to see what you thought of Donna’s observation/advice.

Kerensa: I agree entirely, I think this pair of episode were by far the strongest we’ve seen so far.

I loved Valerie’s friend, Donna, and I think she gave Valerie some of the real talk advice that she desperately needs, even if she won’t use it. Valerie is terrible at just letting go–you can just see how tense she gets when things aren’t how she expected or needed them to be. I mean her reaction to the hotel’s renovated decor was hilarious and super cringey. Also, I think that the bell boy guy who was showing her around was on some 90s Saturday Morning teen show, it was either USA High or maybe the Saved by the Bell: The New Class, but he looked super familiar. And Damian! He was perfect as a typical LA douchebag. In related LA douchebag things to say, I was at a VIP gay pool party he was at once. I did not talk to him cause I was too nervous.

I think the thing with this episode that was so thrilling for me was to get those little glimpses of the actual Valerie. I think The Comeback is fascinating because we have this character who is so filtered, even to us. Like we’ve discussed before, neither of us have a really great idea of who Valerie actually is because we aren’t shown that side of her. So seeing her snap at the car guy or learning that she has Paulie G under “Fatty” in her phone is so interesting to me. While I know that drunk dialing Paulie G was a rookie move (I did that this weekend 😦 ), I felt so excited that she did it. While it obviously won’t change anything, it was nice to kinda see her not “give any fucks.”

This Dawson’s Creek clip is ridiculous–Joey’s shirt! “Punk” Chad Michael Murray! Why is there a live band?! But I do agree that it’s the perfect song for Valerie. Also, I’ve never watched all of Dawson’s Creek

We have to talk about Valerie’s ruthlessness because at times the people she’s kinda exploiting aren’t terrible. It’s super uncomfortable to watch.

The Comeback ep 8 Valerie and Donna

Emma: With regard to Dawson’s Creek I’ve spoken about the huge influence it had on my haircut and while it was one of my favorite shows at high school when I started university I only ended up seeing a handful of episodes. This was back before all the many ways that we can watch TV now and so I think things like sleep or being out got in the way. I’ve been meaning to do a full rewatch but haven’t found the time and I still haven’t seen the final episode and as we’ve discussed before I think we still need to do some kind of Dawson’s Creek related viewing project. I mean scenes like this will totally make it worth it.

Back to The Comeback and Valerie’s reaction to the car guy and this got funnier with each time that he tried to get Mark to say the car name. That’s the thing with product placement as it always sounds so unnatural and forced as no one calls their car by the full make and model name. As far as product placement goes I don’t tend to have an issue with it because I get that it makes sense from a business perspective but there are times that it can take you out of the moment and it reminds you that the thing you are watching is also so you buy shit. There are some shows like 30 Rock that handled all of this stuff in the funny obvious way that you would expect and others like New Girl that missed the mark last season with the episode “Models.” This seems like The Comeback’s way of getting their product placement in and turning it into a joke within the show. With something like Sex and the City it was an advertisers dream but I wonder how many of those big name labels actually paid to have their stuff in the show, I’m guessing very few.

Valerie is so incredibly ruthless as she convinces someone who is not out to his parents to sign a waiver so that he can be on the show. The gay couple are big fans of Valerie and it’s good to see Valerie have this happy encounter but it all becomes a bit seedy when she backs the guy into a corner so this moment can be used. As you said it’s uncomfortable to see her push this hard, particularly with something that will have a huge impact on this guys life. It also made me think of the Mickey situation that we saw a few weeks ago where he was also cagey about how his sexuality was being perceived on camera.

Both this and the second episode have big Valerie meltdown moments and when Lisa Kudrow lets it all go and freaks out it is hilarious. The first one is the after effects of Valerie taking a sleeping pill and she loses out on the good pool chairs, the other is when she gets the call at home to say that everyone else is at work except her. The subtle stuff that Kudrow does is great, but it’s in these really big moments that we get to see what a great physical comic actress she is.

What did you think about the way Mark reacted on the golf course? Do you feel like we know him any better now?

The Comeback ep 8 Valerie and Mark

Kerensa: I was so excited for Valerie when the couple came up to her and she seemed genuinely excited too. But when she basically coerced that guy into essentially coming out on her show and totally to benefit her, it was pretty horrifying to watch. It’s interesting to see Valerie be so ruthless with people that genuinely care about her and for her to not use those same tactics on someone like Paulie G. Her sheer intimidation by him is so strange to me. I mean, really, Paulie G? He’s some bullshit sitcom writer who has an Emmy and is a gross, misogynistic slob. But I guess that idea of feeding on those who are weaker on you maybe holds some weight here, which is supremely sad.

Mark’s reaction on the golf course was hilarious and pretty spot on. Granted, I don’t/can’t play any sports but I would be super uncomfortable about being filmed while I was playing especially if I wasn’t doing great. And I still can’t get a handle on Mark–and maybe that’s the point. He’s totally guarding himself while the cameras are on. Although I will say is that he does seem to be a calming presence for Valerie’s more than manic edges. What do you think?

The Comeback ep 8 passed out Valerie

Emma: I get the impression that Mark didn’t want to come across as a terrible golfer as this seems like something he takes super seriously so the fact that the cameras were distracting him made this even worse for him. That and Valerie’s ringtone which is pretty obnoxious and even though Valerie said this was going to be a phone free weekend she hasn’t put her phone on silent. I seem to recall the mid-2000s was a time when everyone used ringtones still, this doesn’t seem to be the case anymore and if this was now we’d get some awkward phone vibrating on a table noises.

I agree with you about Mark and I think because he is a lawyer he is being reserved and closed off to protect his career. Every time Valerie tells the car guy that he’s got to stop with his product placement interruptions Mark’s expression shows that he is happy with Valerie stepping in. Mark doesn’t fawn over Valerie and her fame and I think this adds to the calming presence so while in other episodes where it seems like a negative thing that he doesn’t get her, on this occasion it works and they work.

Moving on to the next episode; there are two main threads here with Valerie’s relationship with her stepdaughter and the major shakeup with Room & Bored. As we’re talking about Valerie and Mark I’m going to start with Francesca. The few times we have seen Francesca it’s clear that her new found interest in Valerie is because of the cameras and we get to meet Francesca’s equally fame hungry current BFF Kalla (played by a very young looking pre OC Willa Holland). Both girls have a new obsession with Juna and her new album so Valerie becomes even more likable to them thanks to her access to Juna. This doesn’t stop them from talking shit to Valerie, smoking – it’s ok they’re American Spirit – and being infinitely embarrassed because their teenagers. We also get to see some more Sidekick action as the girls communicate with each other via their phones even when they’re sitting next to each other. Once again Atkins gets a mentioning reminding us this is very much 2005.

This is one of the first occasions where Valerie’s fame helps them cut the long line of people waiting to have their CDs signed by Juna – what do people sign now that digital music sells so much more than physical copies? Valerie has authority issues with the girls and she hasn’t quite developed a rapport with them that means they take her seriously. The main reason why Valerie is being so nice to Kalla in the first place is because she has connections to Kevin Costner and this is another occasion where Valerie sees an opportunity that might benefit her career. The only Kevin Valerie gets to meet is one of the boys that has come over while Valerie is out and this leads to a hilarious game of chase around Valerie’s back yard.

What did you think about Valerie’s interactions with Francesca and Kalla?

The Comeback ep 9 Kalla and Francesca

Kerensa: Another hallmark of the times–Francesca’s Balenciaga bag!

I feel like when Valerie is around Francesca, she desperately wants her to like her. I think this is even more magnified by having the cameras around. Valerie’s a cool mom, not a real mom! But at the same time having the cameras there magnifies how clueless Valerie is when it comes to parenting. She wants to be cool but she still wants to be a parent which I think is super apparent in a lot of her actions. She takes the girls to Juna’s signing because it shows that she’s hip, has cool friends and has clout. But then she takes away Kalla’s cigarette and is automatically uncool again.

And then at the end of the episode, when Valerie leaves them alone, not purposefully obviously but trusts them enough to leave them there. When she comes back they are all drinking and smoking and have invited a bunch of other kids over. And Valerie’s “cool” exterior cracks again when she begins screaming at all of them and chasing that kid around the yard, which was hilarious.

But Valerie can’t seem to find a happy medium between both these sides of herself when it comes to parenting Francesca and even parenting her co-stars at Room & Bored. I think Valerie’s constant contradiction with this is totally mirrored in the situation at work and Mark especially nails it when he tells her, “[You] are as bad as Francesca with peer pressure.”

What do you think?

The Comeback ep 9 Valerie

Emma: I think you’re spot on with this Valerie assessment and it mirrors what Donna was saying to her in the previous episode; Valerie just can’t let go and this image she wants to project is a pipe dream. With the work situation up to this point Valerie has been the consummate professional through vile jokes and snide remarks so for her to ditch work it’s a big deal. As you mention Mark references Valerie’s inability to not going along with the group and on this occasion because she is acting like the mother of the cast she feels like she has to stand with them. Of course they all go into work and forget to tell Valerie, not out of cruelty but because they are so focused on themselves that they just don’t consider it. Oh and because Kellan Lutz can’t stop crying – this was hilarious and even though I don’t think he’s a very good actor he’s perfect for this part.

The work situation is terrible because they’ve added two new characters (it took me forever to realize that Kaveen is Jonathan from 30 Rock) and they’re taking screen time away from everyone except Juna. This divides the original 5 and you can tell that it means a lot to Juna that Valerie went to her signing (which she only did to be the cool mom). I also love that they tried to have an important work chat in the middle of the signing, they’re both so unaware sometimes.

Now the new characters and considering the racist stereotypes criticism that has been voiced about Michael Patrick King’s current show 2 Broke Girls, this is a critique of those same practices that occur with minority characters on sitcoms. The whole thing is super cringey from how much Paulie G and the writers are laughing at their put on accents to Valerie doing an impression of them to Mark and then repeating this back to them. It’s a whole circle of awkward and it subverts what you think might happen – at first it looks like they are playing incredibly racist representations of Indians, but they’re putting on those accents to get in with Juna. This is followed by them calling out Valerie when she does her impression and they tell her they’re fucking with her.

When Valerie tells them that they won’t be able to use any footage that has swearing they start emphasizing this word instead. They’re basically jerks and you can see why Paulie G has a comedy boner for them.

How do you think The Comeback handled the notion of racist stereotypes?

The Comeback ep 9 Valerie and the cast

Kerensa: I think they handled it pretty well. I mean it was a spot on critique of what we’ve seen in terms of 2 Broke Girls and Dads–just lame, lazy racist humor that’s packaged as “edgy.” And if you think it’s racist, you are too sensitive. Doesn’t Valerie say something basically along those lines? Like being “cool” with non-PC humor. I mean it would have been interesting if anyone would have called it out, but everyone was too concerned with their jobs and probably wouldn’t have even if they weren’t.

And of course Paulie G thinks it’s hilarious. Ugh. The Comeback has really nailed the perfect inside look of a terrible sitcom that we would all be complaining about on Twitter and would use its negative critiques as publicity but would still miraculously get ratings!

It’s also hilarious that after the re-tooling–the first thing they decide to do is make the show MORE racist! Since that makes a ton of sense.

Emma: Yeah they’re all too concerned with how many of their lines are getting cut rather than the awful direction the already awful Room & Bored has taken. I wonder if anyone will mention it in the next episode if it continues this way. Valerie has called attention to a racist joke in the past (Korean barbecue/puppies) but that’s because she was worried that it would turn the audience against her, so she definitely has awareness of the line that exists. You’re right about things being branded as edgy as an attempt to excuse lazy, ignorant writing and how this is the perfect satire of bad sitcoms.

I think this is why The Comeback has such a strong reputation; even though there are only 13 episodes it manages to dissect everything that can make a sitcom terrible.

Kerensa Cadenas is a writer living in Los Angeles. She is a staff writer for Women and Hollywood. She also writes for This Was TelevisionForever Young Adult, and Bitch magazine. She was the Research Editor for Tomorrow magazine. You can follow her on Twitter and read her ridiculous thoughts about teen television at her website.

 

 

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