A rare moment of grace in the ugly, ugly world of pre-teen dance competitions and the moms who support them.
Hello Blogosphere! It’s good to be back in print. I’ve been busy lately, but still had time to get in some quality television viewing. Some things I’ve been watching lately and that you can look forward to hearing about:
Dance Moms, or, the more easily digestible Toddlers and Tiaras
I cannot help myself. I LOVE this show. It pretty much combines all things I love in a reality television show: dance, pointless drama, questionable parenting, and normal situations that become super high stakes for no reason than to feed into the pointless drama. And unlike Toddlers and Tiaras, the kids on this show are talented. Crazy talented. And they seem to enjoy what they’re doing, for the most part. I could watch this show for hours. Maddie is so awesome, but I think she’s starting to get a little too comfortable at the top of that pyramid. Chloe is, and always has been, my favorite, and I think that she’s finally starting to outshine Maddie. When she won the Joffrey Ballet School scholarship, I almost cried. I was so proud of her! And now, with Dance Moms: Miami, I can. Thank you, Lifetime! If you like pointless reality shows like Toddlers and Tiaras but you feel a little too icky watching 5 year olds parade around in makeup, give Dance Moms a try. There’s still lots of makeup, but also they’re athletes. And they’re more like nine instead of five so it’s way more age appropriate. Kind of.
Real Housewives: Doesn’t Matter Which City
I don’t have much to report, except that the newest season of New Jersey starts soon and I CANNOT WAIT. Lately I’ve been watching Atlanta and The OC, and while I enjoy having it on in the background and casually glancing up from my work to see why Kim and Nene are fighting or who of the OC crew is having something reduced, none of these ladies can hold my attention like the crazy bitches from Jersey. I hope Theresa and her family get along better this season…or do I? I always feel so conflicted while watching this show, because on the one hand, I actually sort of care about these women and I want them to stop acting like children and just get along with each other, but on the other hand, that’s no fun, is it? During last season’s reunion episode, we learned that something really awful goes down this season between Theresa and Jacqueline because Jacqueline wouldn’t even appear on the reunion since filming for the new season had gotten so tense; so I do look forward to finding out what that’s all about. And for those of you who don’t want to waste a precious hour of your week, you can watch it vicariously through me! You’re welcome.
Justified, season one: aka the show to make me shout “what!?” most frequently as I’m watching it.
I just finished watching season one with Qualler and it was awesome. Raylan Givens is one of the most amazing characters on TV, ever. I want to have his gun-toting, smooth-talking, angsty babies. I cannot wait to watch season two, and I’m not sure how it took me so long to get into watching this show. The end of season one SHOCKED me. I actually gasped out loud, and I almost never do that (OK, I do it all the time, but never as often as when watching this show). Look forward to more in-depth reviews from me as I attempt to figure out and articulate just why this show is so amazing.
Game of Thrones: Not Just for Nerds!
I don’t make time for many things these days, but I will ALWAYS make time to watch Game of Thrones. After the second episode of the new season I’m as hooked as I was last season. I watched season one in about three days with Chris and Qualler, and that will always go down as one of the best weekends in my life (sorry, wedding weekend.) My favorite character is still Daenerys, and while I’m disappointed that she hasn’t had much to do but wander through the desert, I’m sure that her character’s just being set up to do something awesome…right, Qualler?? (Editor's note: You'll see!) Her dragons have also hardly gotten any screen time, but I look forward to seeing more of them. I also really enjoy what’s happening to Arya so far, and I hope she isn’t caught before she makes it home! I’ve found that, although there is a lot of soft dialogue and a lot of characters to keep straight, this show is best enjoyed with others. Here are some notes I took, as well as some standout quotes I noted, as I watched episode two with some friends.
Daenerys is a total badass.
Littlefinger is MEAN!
Tyrion is good!
“I’ll not have my honor questioned by an imp!”
“I’m not questioning your honor…I’m denying its existence.”
“There’s so much positioning in this show, I love it!”
“I’m watching.”
When asked whether she likes it she said “I feel cooler” and after a pause “I’m about two episodes away from being hooked.”
“They’re gonna get married! I want them to do it so I can see him without his shirt on. Okay, in season four then.”
@TimothyOleksiak, on Arya and Gendry.
“She’s wearing pants! Like a man!”
Weird molestation scene on horseback…
So much incest! Hard to keep track.
First black person in the series alert!
“Mother gone because of you. There’s no bigger joke in the world than that”
--uproarious laughter from @rhetoricqueline
“it could be an hour long episode of them shitting in chamber pots and I’d be like ‘omg, this is the shitting episode, this is so good!”
--@timothyoleksiak
Look forward to my musings on these and other shows this…season?...on the Blogulator!
Labels: Brigitte, Dance Moms, Dance Moms: Miami, Game of Thrones, Justified, Real Housewives, TV
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