DRW50

It is still one of the higher-rated ABC shows, you're right.

I finally watched this today. Pretty good. The dialogue is razor-sharp, great one-liners. Sometimes you can tell a little too clearly that you're hearing zingers rather than real people talking, but that feels like a small complaint to make. The Darlene and Becky stories felt like they were edited in from two separate episodes. Becky's storyline is clearly going to be ongoing. The scenes with Dan catching her drinking felt much more like the old Roseanne. That doesn't mean it was better, just that it reminded me more of the old show's tone and style. John Goodman didn't seem as frail in this episode, and he nailed many of his very funny lines (my favorite was the one when DJ told him that it's never too late to get healthier, and he said, yes, it is too late). His scene with David at the end was priceless - it's still impressive to me how quickly Johnny Galecki gets back into the character all these years later. I'm more invested in the David and Darlene dramas (which had some beautifully written dramatic interludes here) than Darlene with her kids, but the scenes with Darlene and Harris really really work. Their scene with Jackie was probably my favorite in the episode - her line about the Conner women having such wit that leaves them bitter and alone was perfectly delivered. So was her line about the wonders of living with Bev. They still seem to not really know what to do with DJ, or his wife (who has more interaction with Darlene then her husband - of course Darlene is the central character), but the Mamma Mia bit was funny. Michael Fishman still works best as the kid brother Darlene and Becky needle. I'm disappointed, if not surprised, about the ratings. I guess whatever happens happens. I'll keep enjoying the show for now.

I was just watching an old documentary from during Gerald Ford's Presidency, and saw all the crowds out who had little to say about him but basically supported him just because he was the President. One little old lady said all the Presidents are special. I thought to myself - can anyone ever say that again after Trump? We already saw the hardening and contempt toward the office from Clinton on but I think Trump has permanently destroyed the office for many. I see that he is upset the mail bombs have distracted from his wonderful message. I wonder if any of the press is still waiting for him to have his "moment" and show his "stature." He can barely even keep his eyes open.

After reading about how early voting is going to Republicans in Nevada and Florida, I hope people are listening to him. It often feels like people never do until its too late. The media is going wild finding ways to tell us there is no wave. Politico had some bizarre article up from the Charlotte suburbs to that effect. I doubt anyone expected change there.

You'll be shocked to learn people are already working overtime to claim this is all a plant and that the stickers are too fresh, even though various people on social media have mentioned or shown photos of the van going back to last year.

I think it depends on the man and on the Republican who is running. I think Biden would have only won the White House in 2016 - the electorate that year was just right for his tough guy routine and his charm. Even then he might not have won, but it's the only year I think it could have happened. I don't know if Kerry could have won in any year. I think we're at the point with the right where a woman or a minority male Republican could get the nomination and beat a white male Democrat, as long as they are insane, sexist, insane, anti-abortion, insane, contemptuous of poor people, insane, homophobic, insane, xenophobic, insane, and racist. Whether that is a sign of progress or a sign that truly depraved self-destruction now conquers all, I don't know. Speaking of Avenatti: https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/25/politics/julie-swetnick-justice-department-judiciary-committee/index.html

They probably know that if they stick with Trump they will get sweeteners to help bail them out, even if the public gets screwed over. I keep reading that what we're doing to China is a big reason for our slump, because they're slumping. Yet no one in the White House (no one with any voice anyway) saw this coming, or cared. They don't care about anything but themselves and their nihilism and bigotry.

I believe it, to be honest, but it's already come out that NBC likely twisted the data to suit their Republican agenda. The firm that provides the data complained on Twitter.

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/far-right-says-bomb-threats-false-flag-democrats The media will push this too, most likely.

What a monstrous hypocrite Jeff Zucker is. Words didn't matter to him when he was cheering Trump in 2016. He has no room to say anything.

True. I know it was a big struggle for Reagan. Trump's people make his staff look like they were from The West Wing.

I'm torn between agreeing with those who say this is a mental decline and wondering if he has always been like this and it's just been well hidden.

This isn't the first time he's done that.

If anything all of this is likely to make them even more beholden, as they seem to have intractable ties with the GOP now. The amount of time they have spent in the last few years carrying water for literal Nazis is astonishing.

If it's happening to anyone who is not a far right extremist then conservatives won't care and neither will the media.

The sad truth is I think that a lot of people just never will care when this happens to Democrats - I think many on the left see it as part of the process and many others aren't ginned up to care because the press doesn't make them, as the press hates Democrats and liberals anyway (unless they are "good" Democrats who agree with Republicans). There will be more upset over Mitch McConnell being heckled in a restaurant. I have a feeling Republicans are already out there saying that Democrats are doing this to themselves for sympathy.

This channel may have some. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDFFoMg4Avrx4EeNdkEyzdQ

Speaking of Dark Shadows, here's a recent Marie Wallace interview.

A recent Marie Wallace interview.

Didn't Van Jones also make a backhanded compliment about Michelle Obama? I tend to believe that the Republicans have more enthusiasm, because they pretty much always do in recent decades outside of one or two cycles, but that doesn't make the blatantly biased reporting any better. "Purple wave." The pure joy in that text. They may as well have said "eat the libs." I know Andy Lack wants to. That Haberman tweet where she is so impressed with Trump's political callousness is something we see over and over with Beltway types. They are so divorced from reality. Chris Cilizza used to tweet that type of stuff all the time too. They can't see humanity anymore. They probably never could.

Iyanla would have been all over the daddy issues that helped us get where we are today. In other happy, happy, happy news: And it looks like Republicans have the edge so far in early voting, which sadly doesn't surprise me. You can feel the glee in this NBC writeup. "Purple wave" indeed. Andy Lack must be grinning ear-to-ear and extending Megyn Kelly's contract right now. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/republicans-outpacing-democrats-early-voting-key-states-nbc-news-finds-n922881 Seeing that Trump's approval ratings have climbed even as he is trying his hardest to get us into nuclear war and even as he and the GOP openly say they are coming after Medicare and Social Security and even as tariffs make the economy falter more and more just makes me feel like if there was a tipping point we've already passed it. The bar is SO low for this man because the hate he spreads is so alluring to so many. I guess all we can do is vote and hope for the best.

I really wish that so many did not always start with 210. Some of the pre-Barnabas episodes are the show's very best.

I was unsure about the episode before it aired, because I just don't think grafting social issues onto Doctor Who is the best idea (I know it's been done before but many times the results have made me cringe, especially in the revival), and because there's something a bit offputting in 2018 about a white character saving the day for a historical figure, and because the scripts so far haven't exactly filled me with confidence. Overall I thought it was good - better than I thought it would be, anyway. The rightful decision to strip away goofy asides meant that Jodie Whittaker delivered what I'd say is by far her best performance as The Doctor, making the role her own with many moments of seriousness and quiet strength (and she did have a few small comedic bits, which she nailed). Beyond that, the biggest assets came from the multi-companion format, especially since two of the companions are people of color who would experience prejudice directly. Their private conversation was the highlight of the episode for me, and touched on some complicated truths that I wasn't expecting. And it's so great to see companions who, while they clearly like and respect the Doctor and are enjoying the journey together, do not exist for the Doctor. I did think Bradley Walsh was terrific in this episode, and made what could have been tone deaf (the white companion devastated and outraged by racism) feel much more natural and believable, but I'm glad he wasn't the only voice. In earlier years I can imagine a lot of scenes of Rose or Donna crying in closeup about how bad racism was, which both Billie and Catherine would have acted the hell out of, but it just wouldn't have fit the tone. I'm also glad the Doctor was, while clearly disgusted by what she was seeing, more conscious of staying in the background, instead of what we have gotten with some past Doctors, which amounts to focusing too much on how awesome it is that the Doctor hates racists and putting the suffering of the actual people being discriminated against in the background. I think my biggest complaints are that I didn't really understand why Ryan didn't immediately clock that he would experience racism when they got to 1955 (he may not have known a lot of history but he would have known that, surely), I didn't know why the Doctor didn't have them return to the TARDIS (before they decided they couldn't) for more appropriate clothes, and why this needed a sci-fi element at all. I get the whole idea of telling us that the future also has racism (which would have been more profound if the scene itself hadn't been so clunky), but I really, really wish this could have been a flat out historical, with the Doctor and her companions preventing natural occurrences for the time period to help make sure history happens. I think this could have been done without taking away from Rosa's fight, and would have made for a more cohesive and powerful episode. I also thought that the locals were all one-dimensional props. While I understand why they did not want to go the usual route of inserting a sympathetic and wonderful white character, as we so often get in these types of subjects (Roots, The Help, etc.) having so many different caricatures, many of whom struggled badly with their attempts at Southern accents, made the episode feel much more artificial than it needed to be. (and while I understand why they didn't want to insert all kinds of material about MLK as well, him being introduced so randomly for one short sequence made me wonder if something with Ryan's story was cut for time)

Kathryn Leigh Scott co-hosting a 1985 Disney Channel preview special.