Hacks had a really great ending to its second season, so good it would have worked as a series finale. The promo photo has me primed to watch it all over again. One shot basically sums up the dynamic of the entire series.
Lainey wrote about LV in its Pharrell era and I agree, he is bringing a clout money cannot buy. Even if some critics don’t get it or people think it’s just another celeb playing at fashion, Pharrell is making his mark. LV sales are soaring. The new collection with Tyler the Creator is not for everyone but it is for people who care about more than the monogram. The chess set, the checkered briefcase, the waffle bag! It’s weird, whimsical and a full of instant collectors items.
Last night Madonna came to town and delivered. I have always thought there is a disconnect between her Instagram and the person we have watched for decades. Whoever runs that account is doing her no favours, the tone has never fit her. When you watch her interact with the dancers and the audience and celebrate her own legacy, there’s so much charisma that is lost in the little screen. If I were advising her, I’d say get rid of it all together. Bring back the space between the performer and the audience. She comes from an era of inaccessibility and that’s not a bad thing.
Nothing will humble an adult like a room full of teenagers. High school teachers are emotional gladiators.
Every time I see a Road House post I think of Sarah’s annoyance about the whole thing. Is he supposed to be a UFC fighter or something? Never mind, it doesn’t matter.
Many people have gotten to know every detail about Scandoval against their will and with Tom Sandoval’s new interview in the NYT in which he compared himself to OJ Simpson and George Floyd (an extremely ill-advised comparison when answering why his story became such a “moment”), I think we can see the story declining now. We’ve wrung everything we can out of it and it’s time to move on. This is how reality TV works for the audience – we view people’s lives in “seasons” and Tom does the same to himself. The issue now is the stalemate with Ariana Madix. In real life, they could go their separate ways and interact but in the fishbowl TV life, they are intertwined. That’s why there’s a shift this season and she is getting a villain edit. As I’ve said before, reality TV blood feuds aren’t compelling if there is not a path to reconciliation. At minimum, filming together is essential and the producers know this. No one wants to watch multiple episodes of two people avoiding each other. The show must go on. (I chose the below clip of the two Toms simply because of the Rihanna shoutout – yes, she watches the show.)
