Vee

Episode 13 (Reunion): "Oh, cut the motherhood stuff, wouldja, Karen? It's a biological function, not a holy calling!" That's bold as hell for '82, and an amazing teaser. This week: The late, great Jessica Walter! Fairly fresh off Play Misty for Me but long before Arrested Development, fascinating to watch here as Karen's old college chum. Victoria's reactions to the cul-de-sac and Karen's neighbors were hilariously stricken, especially when she turned away from them to enter the house. The conversation between them over wine in the living room late at night is another great, deep beat of simple, soulful candor from Michele Lee - she seems to come up with these very real, very fresh moments episode after episode after episode and is always spellbinding to watch. Another fascinating moment in this episode is when Abby tries to work Gary on her plans for converting the dealership by turning on the charm, and he shuts her down completely: "Do you know what you're doing or does it just come so naturally to you, you don't realize you're doing it? Are you trying to be persuasive or seductive? You talk about a business venture as if it were a tryst. Your idea of being convincing is to stand very close and wet your lips. I'm getting a little tired of you thinking you can manipulate me by being sexy." This would not happen on basically any other primetime soap I am familiar with, especially with a man skating the edge of actually falling into bed with Abby. Gary knows what is there between them, knows it's real and still pushes back on her vs. what most men on soaps (at least primetime soaps, but often daytime as well) would do at this juncture, namely refuse to confront it and in doing so, become even more subject to her wiles. And the great capper on the scene: Abby: Gary. Do you want me to stop? Gary: I didn't say that. Does Claudia Lonow have any other volume and tone to her voice? Asking for a friend. There's a bit of a shock as we find Laura and Scooter finally in bed together in this episode - we didn't see them finally consummate things after many close calls, and it came as a surprise. And now of course she is pregnant. Welp. The bit where Abby comforts Eric who is clearly overcome and about to break down on the lawn next to the for sale sign is lovely, and I think people may overlook it assuming Abby is just happy to get Karen out of her life. Firstly because I don't think that's how Abby feels about Karen at this point; I think she does regard Karen as a moralizing irritant, but also cares for her because of their bond through Sid, just as Karen does the same for Abby, and I think she truly believes it's best for both herself and Karen for the move and sales of the business and house to happen. Secondly and most importantly, she's truly kind and encouraging to Eric, trying to buck him up as Steve Shaw seems very much on the verge of tears over potentially leaving the family home. Again, these facets to Abby are shades many soap bitch queens, especially those on primetime and especially in the '80s, simply are not given. A quick throwaway guffaw for me: Abby greeting Laura as she crosses the cul-de-sac to talk to Eric and Laura striding past without a word. It's not a studied moment or given any kind of beat or pause for the audience to process the snub, Constance McCashin simply keeps walking and the scene keeps going, which makes it so much funnier. The fashion show predictably descends into glorious camp as Jessica Walter immediately begins treating Karen like a serf, snapping 'if you can't take the heat, get back in the kitchen!' and then proceeds to slather hilarious, pretentious plot-relevant narration over the whole show as only she can. "Fashions that will live forever!" she crows as Ginger appears in a literal turban. "Young and hip, and out for fun!" And oh my God, Diana's outfit complete with Bolshevik cossack hat! And what is Laura wearing? Lilimae's beehive and subsequent fire mime prance? Olivia's Swiss Miss smock?! Sweet Christ. We're just lucky Eric and Michael didn't come out in chaps. "Dare to express your femininity in all its profusion!" Jessica howls. The blow-up between Karen and Victoria feels a bit kludged together in that I was not really feeling the beat about Victoria being childless and insecure about not having a family. I felt it was cliche and came a bit out of nowhere, but Walter sells the hell out of all of it and is a rare intense match for Michele Lee. I would like to see the character return, though I doubt she does. There's a brilliant essay on KL Season 3 here - one of many about various seasons - and I've only read part of it so far but I highly recommend it.

Episode 11 (Power Play): Karen: Abby is just Abby. Val: I know. Well, here we are. This episode is directed by legendary character actor Bill Duke (stone cold Mac in Predator, among many other classic films) who also is an impressive director in his own right, having shot a ton of TV including several eps of Knots but also films such as Deep Cover, Hoodlum and Sister Act 2. Let's refresh your memory! Abby invoking Sid to make Karen understand her ambition and drive was both strikingly modern for its time - the show again refusing to paint her as just a vixen and schemer - and poignant. I dunno why I thought Sid's engine was going to come back into this with the methanol story, but I could've sworn I read somewhere that it did. Shouldn't they be expecting a big payday from that if Abby did successfully swing a deal with J.R. on it last season? The look of gratification and triumph on Abby's face as Gary headed upstairs to pack for Mexico was animalistic. Fascinating also was how Val could see Gary's manic ambition rising - as she tells Lilimae, she's seen it before in their youth. He's supercharged by new enterprise, and it's a addictive drive for him: "If I were still a drinking man, I'd be smashed." It's intriguing to see the true depth of what drives Gary. Despite past humble promises to the contrary, even the black sheep Ewing can't truly imagine staying a 'wage slave' in Knots Landing, whereas for Val a happy suburban home and family is all she's ever dreamed of. Together, Gary and Abby are the rising '80s incarnate, where the simple post-'70s happy houses by the California dreamin' beachside of S1 and S2 are not enough. And Abby's exultant, quasi-sexual reaction to being together in their methanol still facility - 'feel it, Gary! I can feel it inside of me!' - feels genuine to her, not just calculated to seduce. We're welcomed inside the bones of these characters into what fuels them beyond simply sex and schemes against one another, unlike many primetime soaps. Richard warns Gary off Abby in a great little scene which, again, is deftly handled by Duke like many of the two-handers throughout this episode. Kenny's only worthwhile moment in this series thus far was his exchange with Lilimae about her music, and her brilliant response. Kenny: Lilimae, your voice is never gonna make it. Lilimae: [pause] So what's the bottom line? The encouraging reaction of Kenny's secretary when Lilimae shrugged off his criticism was equally hilarious, as was his reaction to seeing her among the backup singers. It's not lost on me that a Bill Duke-directed episode has several choice roles for Black actors, basically the first in the series that I can recall. Episode 12 (Possibilities): The dreaded Kenny and Ginger-centric episode (written by James Houghton himself) and it's actually not half bad! Ginger's voice (if that's Kim Lankford) is cute and her song was neat, Kim Lankford is winning when she sings, whereas Kenny continues his powerful streak of having the same 1-2 expressions and foul character beats for three seasons strong. Given his backstory, these days he's probably been cancelled faster than Dr. Luke. tbh though I think the whole thing with the Wards and the LA music scene is prime material for hot story, and it's crazy it's taken this long for the show to begin to take real advantage of it beyond tacky, dated single episode setpieces. (I know next season the Wards get involved with Lisa Hartman's Ciji, whose legend precedes her) I did like Lilimae at Kenny's office in the previous episode, stirring things up; it actually showed a comic faculty for James Houghton, much better known today for writing on daytime vs. his extremely banal acting. Anyway, it's fine for Kenny to fùck anything that moves but God forbid Ginger have a career beyond sort of volunteer kindergarten teacher and brood mare. Typical. I was glad Ginger put him in his place and told him he'd say anything to get his way, then told him to leave. And I did like the beat where Val mentions Lilimae abandoning her for her own musical dreams. The dating plot for Karen was solid enough. The moment where Eric asks Karen to make sure her date doesn't drive too fast was small and heartbreaking. I did like Karen's very strong, firm kiss-off of Charles after that rough dinner with the kids and all his overbearing behavior, but not too mean to what was otherwise a staid but decent guy. Putting Kenny with Lilimae again is cheating. Houghton works best in comedy when playing opposite people who can torment Kenny. The wonderful Knots Blogging site points out in their commentary on this ep that at this point in the series, contrary to where it began in S1 at the end of the '70s, all the women on the show have gone from being housewives to having either jobs, careers, or career aspirations percolating and growing from week to week. The slow, natural and timely change in the characters is earned, organic and exhilarating to watch unfold. I knew it was going to happen but not how or when, and I love seeing it. Even with Ginger! They're really gonna keep calling this baby a whole "Erin Molly," huh?

Is it me or is Imani basically Xerox Hilary?

Kruse is an attractive man and I am all for more frontburner AAPL representation on these shows, but putting aside his latest online drama he is thus far a C-player at best, and I am just not interested in watching the superior Trina recast be fobbed off on a side player to keep Frank's white teen female lead in the prime seat and to make Dubuque more comfortable. I think Ali's exceptional, I think she has great chemistry with Chavez and I think the course should be stayed on that popular romance, period. If they keep Kruse and he works out, he can develop separately. There's no reason Asian characters can't thrive on their own terms.

Death knell, dear.

JFP was dethroned as a showrunner when her GH run with Megan McTavish in 2001-2002, where they were in full control, tanked the show. Guza, who had quit/was fired due to creative clashes with previous EP Wendy Riche in 2000, only agreed to come back in '02 if he was given a co-producer credit and associated control/autonomy. All of JFP's favored leads fell by the wayside or were fired outright, and it was well known from then on in the 2000s that Guza had creative control just below Brian Frons, who believed Guza was the only writer who understood GH. After his battles with Riche, Guza was never going to be left stymied by an EP again. JFP was reduced to the show facilitator for Guza's stories and glorified line producer, and could no longer creatively control the show or its storylines. The only time JFP got her own vision back onscreen in full was during the 2008 writer's strike, when Guza was out of the building. Suddenly Rick Hearst had a frontburner story for the first time in aeons, as though he was back on Jill's GL circa 1993. This was all well known at the time, it's not some big secret.

Season 3, Ep 9 (The Rose and the Briar): Monkey's paw time for me: A Lilimae-centric episode, but it's really tiresome! Written by longtime Y&R, PC etc. scribe Scott Hamner, son of the legendary Earl Hamner who I clearly don't need to educate anyone on this forum about, this is not one of the show's best. The friction with Lilimae and Val continues, which is a strong thread at least - I LOLed at Val sliding down the wall, exasperated, as Lilimae once again strummed one of her cornpone songs. I worship Julie Harris but a little of Lilimae's songs goes a long way. I'm amazed she didn't get kicked off the bus to Vegas. The entire A-plot was a test in endurance for me, with the con artist and the overall silliness. I just couldn't be bothered, I prefer Harris and JVA digging into meatier material, or I'd prefer to see Lilimae mixing it up in the cul-de-sac and making mischief more. The Avery B-plot was far more interesting. Scooter was unusually aggressive with Laura about ending her marriage. And poor Richard, the company pimp. Things were going so well for the Averys so recently, and now it's a rapidly spiraling train wreck again. Rosemary Prinz is back! I do really like Val and Abby's friendship as two very different women here, though I know where it ends up. There's a fun moment where Karen twigs what Abby is up to with Gary, and the ending finally brings things a bit more focus after the incredibly irritating Lilimae/Jackson follies of the main plot as Val takes one look at Abby with her husband and can see it all coming - before blinking it away. Ep 10 (The Three Sisters): I've heard a lot about this one, and I was pretty excited for it. The ethereal pans across the empty house with the voice-over of our heroines was great stuff, sleekly shot and cut. The women of the ensemble all together as a unit clicked beautifully, even Ginger if you squint. The camerawork prowling around after them inside the haunted house at various crooked angles was brilliant work by Kim Friedman. And those creepy dolls! Let's not and say we did. The shot of Valene and the ghosts in the basement was pure horror movie, and the synthesized ghost voices were creepy stuff. It's such a bizarre episode but I would've liked them to continue a sort of Halloween tradition with eps like these (though I'm pretty sure this did not air at Halloween) - I have no idea if they did more like it. I was glad they tied it all back to Valene's core issues. Laura's dry wit and disengagement with the entire mess was great; she's looking for a commission. Karen's pragmatism was also refreshing in this environment; I loved her throwing up her hands in confused exasperation after Lilimae and Val both stuck by the ghost story at the end. And Abby slinking about getting off on it all was great. Playing the creepy lullaby over the end credits was wholly unnecessary. Props to Lorimar for that! I hear the season is about to kick back into high gear and I am more than ready. Any distraction is welcome after the past week in America.

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That's because you don't find anything you do or say inappropriate or off-topic if it comes from you. This is your second screen name in less than a year, consider taking a beat.

Holy shít.

This season is also a real love letter so far to the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise and especially Robert Englund, Freddy Krueger himself. With that series lying dormant and Englund maybe never playing Freddy again, it makes me very happy to see so much tribute paid.

Donna, that really isn't appropriate to the topic of Ray Liotta passing but you knew that.

The premiere is on point. Sadie Sink has had a major come-up in the intervening years with COVID delays, etc. due to the Fear Street trilogy (worth a watch!) and so on, but she is getting a real chance to shine this year after having a bit less to do last season. Sink is a Broadway/theater kid, like so many soap kids (Eden Riegel, Chris McKenna, etc). It's a shame the New York soap industry collapsed before it could help foster her earlier - that would have been neat. Charlie Heaton (Jonathan) has been extraneous to this show since Joe Keery broke out in Season 1, and he's still dead weight today. He's the only key flaw for me.

I'm glad ST4 could get Kate Bush trending in the middle of the night among a generation of kids for whom many are just now being exposed.

Really impressive. The third season was a considerable improvement and I will be watching.

Season 3, Episode 7 (Secrets): Another John Pleshette script! In which a happy and contented Richard Avery learns pimpin' ain't easy. Richard and Laura are so good together in the mode they've been in for awhile - witty, urbane, an equal match in intelligence but able to give and take with Richard contented to let Laura lead - in a way that I never thought was possible for most of the first season and a half. So it's tragic seeing that begin to fall apart; to think it all begins with a misunderstanding and Laura ready to be the one to have an affair. Allan Miller and Rosemary Prinz are both back - they crackled together. So do Mills and Shackelford the more time they spend together - "tough day at the office, dear?" I did not know you could get away with saying 'orgasm' on network TV in the early '80s - I can't remember the last time I heard it since. Melrose Place certainly never dared. Abby ringing up a massive lunch bill on the dealership's dime was great, as was Gary's suggestion they just make stuff up for the audit. Karen: Do you really think the IRS is that stupid? Gary: Well, it is a government agency. That is a young and dashing Ian Abercrombie (Mr. Pitt from Seinfeld) as the slinky caterer for Richard's latest ho train. Weird to see him bearded and roguish. The chemistry between Abby, Karen and Gary at the dealership is brilliant, including the continued grudging care and admiration between Abby and Karen, but as I said I can't fault Mills at all for pushing the writers to dump KL Motors. You can just tell Abby and Gary are meant for far bigger things than this car lot, and that her aspirations in particular are grander - like I said last season, the slow metamorphosis of her house already reflects the far scope of her vision. The glimpse we got of it here as Gary visited was even more modern, a sharp contrast to the rest of the homes in the cul-de-sac. That being said, Abby's breakdown over Sid's gift and the women's truce was really touching. Allan Miller's Scooter is touchingly tentative with Laura, who he's been soft on since the beginning of their relationship. I honestly did not expect these two to ever go there; back in Season 2 I thought their closeness would simply drive an already awful Richard madder and madder. Instead, Laura's almost strayed after Richard's worked hard to make good, but his sad lot in life has forced another secret between them, left them unable to communicate and drove Laura to nearly commit the first betrayal of their better marriage and worse, completely check out. The talk between Scooter and Laura about Richard's struggle was earnest and kind, and it's brutal to watch Laura not fully heed or understand Richard's cries for help, right down to the cold silence at the table in the backyard at the end. No comment on the collection of comic Japanese stereotypes! I love Abby's parenting. "Drown quietly, please!"

I had a particular fondness for Depeche Mode's mid-90s comeback album, Ultra, which straddled the grudge wave but did its own gritty, electronica-infused thing. I knew a lot of their other stuff from the radio but I'd never heard anything like that before, where a group had managed to take an emerging trend and turn some of its stylings to their own ends, but leave the rest to make something new. What an incredible talent Fletcher was.