I still think that this teen trilogy is set up so that Tyrell "the teen wonder" creates his very first baby mama. For better or for worse, it fits the pattern of this show making the male characters appear weak, irresponsible, or otherwise misbehaved in some way. Martin and Smitty are too busy ganging up on Samantha.

10 hours ago, P.J. said:

that somehow is even more disturbing...

It's distracting to me. The actress is very capable, but I can't forget her age. I guess that's on me, but you can't tell me there are no very capable teen actresses in the ATL. 

For a show that is very anti-male, I was happy to see that Martin/Smitty were up in arms over walking in on their 16 year old daughter getting it on with a guy in their living room.  

Now if it had been Tyrrell and Jessica in that position and Martin/Smitty were still upset, but then having a heart to heart with their son about practicing safe sex, etc... then I could see the uproar over how unfair they were acting.

Also, the whole teen story with Samantha and Tyrell and are they/aren't they going to have sex is kind of outdated.  Both of them are the younger side of Gen Z.. and studies have come out saying that Gen Z teens are having way less sex than previous generations of teens.   And Gen Z actually are less likely to even want to see sex in their movies/books/tv shows.

 

I see this has become some sort of discussion. And I didn't want to say anything, because I don't want people to think I'm stepping on toes. No. I'm just going to disagree with some of y'all.

FIRST - If I was Smitty/Martin I would be even MORE concerned with what Samantha is doing. Why? Samantha was portrayed as being this borderline infantile RIBBONS in her hair, dressed like Britney in her debut album-GIRL... for a looooong time. Just couple of months ago this girl was naively asking "What's gay sex like?" like it was something from a fairytale. Nothing of this signals to me this girl is ready for mature things and sex.

It would be a clear shock to me if I were her parent to see her transition so fast to this new situation. I would be very concerned. Again - they played her off too childish in the beginning  for her parents to be just... OKAY go for it. It doesn't matter that the actress is soon going to hit 31. The character STILL has that infantile vibe IMO.

SECOND - It's great that they are stepping away from the stereotype that all gay people are these overly free in terms of sex creatures that don't care about stuff like this... It's an ugly stereotype. The truth is - some gay people are more cautious and more... old-fashioned when it comes to things like this. And I like seeing this dynamic here. If her fathers were all "Do you girl... y'all have fun." ... it would have been such a cringe moment for me. And I'm sure SOME people in the audience would have used that to bash gay people. They look for every chance to do it. Thank you MVJ for making it impossible for them to do so. As as gay man... I felt this was the right decision.

4 hours ago, Aback said:

Everybody was happy to have sex at 16 and now in their conservative adulthood want to forbid teens from living their life. It’s absurd to me. 
 

Being talked about as a conquest is outside Samantha’s control. One progressive and adult alternative to Martin’s parenting is helping their kid realize that sex and love are different things and expectations can lead to disappointment. It’s better than treating sex as a sin. 

Sometimes people who decided to have sex at a young age are against their teenagers doing it because it ended up being a poor choice for them. It's not treating sex as a sin or being too conservative to not allow your child to do whatever they choose to in your home. After all, it is the parents who have to deal with many of the consequences.

35 minutes ago, Maxim said:

I see this has become some sort of discussion. And I didn't want to say anything, because I don't want people to think I'm stepping on toes. No. I'm just going to disagree with some of y'all.

FIRST - If I was Smitty/Martin I would be even MORE concerned with what Samantha is doing. Why? Samantha was portrayed as being this borderline infantile RIBBONS in her hair, dressed like Britney in her debut album-GIRL... for a looooong time. Just couple of months ago this girl was naively asking "What's gay sex like?" like it was something from a fairytale. Nothing of this signals to me this girl is ready for mature things and sex.

It would be a clear shock to me if I were her parent to see her transition so fast to this new situation. I would be very concerned. Again - they played her off too childish in the beginning  for her parents to be just... OKAY go for it. It doesn't matter that the actress is soon going to hit 31. The character STILL has that infantile vibe IMO.

Great points here, (that I honestly forgot about until you just said it haha). 

14 hours ago, LondonScribe said:

As the preview for next week shows, this story has a way to go and I have a feeling that after a number of near-misses, Samantha will find herself in a position that she won’t be able to get out of as easily. Whether Nathan-related or otherwise.

I feel that way as well. I was thinking it was a kinda mini-arc that June and Samantha could bond over, but now it looks like it is going to turn into a whole story.

54 minutes ago, Maxim said:

I see this has become some sort of discussion. And I didn't want to say anything, because I don't want people to think I'm stepping on toes. No. I'm just going to disagree with some of y'all.

FIRST - If I was Smitty/Martin I would be even MORE concerned with what Samantha is doing. Why? Samantha was portrayed as being this borderline infantile RIBBONS in her hair, dressed like Britney in her debut album-GIRL... for a looooong time. Just couple of months ago this girl was naively asking "What's gay sex like?" like it was something from a fairytale. Nothing of this signals to me this girl is ready for mature things and sex.

It would be a clear shock to me if I were her parent to see her transition so fast to this new situation. I would be very concerned. Again - they played her off too childish in the beginning  for her parents to be just... OKAY go for it. It doesn't matter that the actress is soon going to hit 31. The character STILL has that infantile vibe IMO.

SECOND - It's great that they are stepping away from the stereotype that all gay people are these overly free in terms of sex creatures that don't care about stuff like this... It's an ugly stereotype. The truth is - some gay people are more cautious and more... old-fashioned when it comes to things like this. And I like seeing this dynamic here. If her fathers were all "Do you girl... y'all have fun." ... it would have been such a cringe moment for me. And I'm sure SOME people in the audience would have used that to bash gay people. They look for every chance to do it. Thank you MVJ for making it impossible for them to do so. As as gay man... I felt this was the right decision.

I agree and can see that.

 

Moreso the second point. I've gone from the Samantha Jones of my group to having a serious conversation about being religious vs being spirituality and how that can inform a person just last night with a co-worker who has been exploring both sides. And that turned into the follies of youth. If people were to see me now, they would be shocked. As a gay man, I have become...well...old fashioned. Who knew? lol. So I can see Martin and Smitty being this way and...as they have been proving since the show started...showing a different time of gay man. Gay couple even. And it is refreshing. Not to mention good.

1 hour ago, ReddFoxx said:

Sometimes people who decided to have sex at a young age are against their teenagers doing it because it ended up being a poor choice for them. It's not treating sex as a sin or being too conservative to not allow your child to do whatever they choose to in your home. After all, it is the parents who have to deal with many of the consequences.

Amen.

Same.

45 minutes ago, Taoboi said:

I agree and can see that.

 

Moreso the second point. I've gone from the Samantha Jones of my group to having a serious conversation about being religious vs being spirituality and how that can inform a person just last night with a co-worker who has been exploring both sides. And that turned into the follies of youth. If people were to see me now, they would be shocked. As a gay man, I have become...well...old fashioned. Who knew? lol. So I can see Martin and Smitty being this way and...as they have been proving since the show started...showing a different time of gay man. Gay couple even. And it is refreshing. Not to mention good.

I can definitely relate to your story. And yes, it is refreshing and a step away from the disgusting preconceived notions people tend to have about gay people. 

7 minutes ago, Maxim said:

I can definitely relate to your story. And yes, it is refreshing and a step away from the disgusting preconceived notions people tend to have about gay people. 

I was personally shocked he wanted to hold a conversation during the 10 pm rush. lol. A good conversation like that on Day of the Dead was worth discussing. I wish I could have continue it. I hope he finds his way. 

 

It's kinda funny 8 months in that Martin and Smitty are frontburner more times than not and it's not the typical gay couple. Well...not completely. But it says something that they have stories like Martin trying to block Smitty from working to Martin/Smitty dealing with their kids...Ty and the bullying, Samantha now with her growing sexuality and Nathan, dealing with June, dealing with Martin's Secret and internal issues with that. All in 8 months.

 

Meanwhile...what story does Tessa/Mariah on Y&R and Lucas/Marco on GH have and how often? Now that I think of it...cuz I'm waaaay behind does DAYS have anything going on with Leo?

11 minutes ago, Taoboi said:

I was personally shocked he wanted to hold a conversation during the 10 pm rush. lol. A good conversation like that on Day of the Dead was worth discussing. I wish I could have continue it. I hope he finds his way. 

❤️

11 minutes ago, Taoboi said:

It's kinda funny 8 months in that Martin and Smitty are frontburner more times than not and it's not the typical gay couple. Well...not completely. But it says something that they have stories like Martin trying to block Smitty from working to Martin/Smitty dealing with their kids...Ty and the bullying, Samantha now with her growing sexuality and Nathan, dealing with June, dealing with Martin's Secret and internal issues with that. All in 8 months.

And I'm here for it. The guys are improving... along with the entire show. The acting especially. I can't believe at one time I thought Martin was the worst. He's come a long way. And boy... he steals every scene with that booty. I just stop being able to hear the words and have to remind myself to listen. 😂

On 10/31/2025 at 7:45 PM, Cheap21 said:

Bill bought her a vacation house in HER name! Go Hayley, Go Hayley Go! I love this for our City Girl. Scamming, scheming, get money. PERIODT!

Yeeeees. And doing this while remaining fabulous as ever (face-card younger than Samantha really). 😍

10 minutes ago, Maxim said:

And I'm here for it. The guys are improving... along with the entire show. The acting especially. I can't believe at one time I thought Martin was the worst. He's come a long way. And boy... he steals every scene with that booty. I just stop being able to hear the words and have to remind myself to listen. 😂

Same. The very definition of representation matters. I knew they would find their chemistry together and I'm happy to see that it happen. Now while I would have love for them to be apart a liiiiiitle bit longer because both actors do longing like a soap couple oh so well and because some of their internal issues are still there...I'm ready now for their next challenge as a couple.

 

Now you know the worst actor is Tomas. 😜 But I am very happy Brandon Clayborn has managed to turn a lot of (if not all) opinions about his acting around. He really stepped up to the challenge, and it's paying off. 

 

LMAO!!! Now you stop sounding like how I sound every time they put Josh Morrow in dress pants and tight blue jeans. lol. But seriously Brandon's booty butt is just as much a cast member as Tide and the recently returned Febreeze. 

 

17 minutes ago, Maxim said:

Yeeeees. And doing this while remaining fabulous as ever (face-card younger than Samantha really). 😍

hehe. I be living for your commentary on Hayley. 

4 hours ago, LondonScribe said:

My assessment of why nobody has been concerned about Tyrell losing his virginity is because he hasn’t been shown trying to lose it. There’s nothing to suggest there has been a ‘boys will be boys’ approach, in fact Martin’s approach has touched on Tyrell (with Jessica cheekily trying to joust with him about curfews, etc).

I can see a pattern though. When Kat came out as a virgin to Tomas, nobody even remotely thought that Tomas might be a virgin too. He's a man, he's an adult and he's Latino - he must be good in bed (and that's what he turned out to be).

Same thing for Nathan. Nobody is up in their arms because a 16 year old boy is not a virgin. (but yeah he's a bad guy 😮 )

4 hours ago, Soaplovers said:

Also, the whole teen story with Samantha and Tyrell and are they/aren't they going to have sex is kind of outdated.  Both of them are the younger side of Gen Z.. and studies have come out saying that Gen Z teens are having way less sex than previous generations of teens.   And Gen Z actually are less likely to even want to see sex in their movies/books/tv shows.

Well, you have Tyrell who is seemingly uninterested in sex at the moment (🙄) so he fulfills that quota.

2 hours ago, Maxim said:

FIRST - If I was Smitty/Martin I would be even MORE concerned with what Samantha is doing. Why? Samantha was portrayed as being this borderline infantile RIBBONS in her hair, dressed like Britney in her debut album-GIRL... for a looooong time. Just couple of months ago this girl was naively asking "What's gay sex like?" like it was something from a fairytale. Nothing of this signals to me this girl is ready for mature things and sex.

I was hoping that line was tongue-in-check... because literally no teenager would EVER pose that question, especially to their gay parents. Which reminds me, Smitty deflected. Methinks Smitty and Martin are unable to talk about intimacy. (they're just overcoming their issues in that department after all)

SECOND - It's great that they are stepping away from the stereotype that all gay people are these overly free in terms of sex creatures that don't care about stuff like this... It's an ugly stereotype. The truth is - some gay people are more cautious and more... old-fashioned when it comes to things like this. And I like seeing this dynamic here. If her fathers were all "Do you girl... y'all have fun." ... it would have been such a cringe moment for me.

The hypothetical 'dissolute' scenario you're depicting is as extreme and as bad as this repressive scenario where the parents are acting like punitive monks. No parent in their right mind would go 'You do you girl, have fun'. A mature approach would be to discuss the issue openly with your child, let them realize the pro's and con's and then let them live their life. 'Cause, spoiler alert: teenagers will have sex anyway. Sex is a basic human need and a human right.

2 hours ago, ReddFoxx said:

Sometimes people who decided to have sex at a young age are against their teenagers doing it because it ended up being a poor choice for them. It's not treating sex as a sin or being too conservative to not allow your child to do whatever they choose to in your home. 

It's the same people who still can't deal with sex and could never discuss it with a teen   Samantha and Nathan were not doing drugs. They were about to have consensual, protected sex. Which they literally have a right to. Martin and Smitty will just force the girl to do it some place unsafe. And them having so many supporters in the audience and in the writing team baffles me. It's fine I guess, but that's one of the reasons soaps are in decline.