Mostly TV and a few Links

This piece by Linda Holmes at NPR about the lack of films about women is so true and so depressing. I mean have you noticed that even romantic comedies now are largely told from a male perspective? Also Man of Steel made so much money this weekend, I...like we are going to be stuck with superhero movies forever you guys. Which isn't all bad, summer films are fine for that, but how about some female ones? I'm still forever bitter about people raging over the Buffy reboot.

Holmes links to this analysis of the criticism of Sofia Coppola's latest movie which is also really depressing. Sigh.

So. Summer TV.

I like to have shows that I watch week to week, even during the summer, because I find that when I'm marathoning shows I have a "need to finish" and it sort of takes over my life in a tiny way. (the show doesn't even have to be particularly addictive, I'm not sure how to explain it other than it's like a to do list, lol) It's easier to just have one ep of a show I can watch while I'm eating or something you know? But summer TV is notoriously bad. With a few exceptions like Breaking Bad and while I like Breaking Bad, it's not a show I love on a deep level.

Anyway! All that to say I've been giving almost everything a whirl. Mostly ABC Family shows. Also, Switched at Birth came back and I quite liked the episode so.

ABC Family really does deserve credit for representation. Like, it's something they actively seek to do--it doesn't happen by accident. Switched at Birth didn't originally have one of the girls being deaf until the network suggested they make one of the girls special needs and can you even imagine the show without that now?

The Fosters, their new show about an interracial lesbian couple raising a mix of kids...biological/adopted/ and now foster kids is maybe one of the most successful shows I've seen in reflecting the way the world looks. I mean there isn't just token casting in this, the cast is truly diverse and not just the leads but all the way down to the supporting actors and extras. Seeing as it's set in Southern California, this is wonderful. Anyway, apart from that, the show itself is okay. It's not life changing, but it's nice enough, I guess? I was actually kind of bored during the first episode, but the second episode picked up a bit. It's a family drama so you have a mix of issues--the three parents thing for the biological son, the adopted teen daughter getting mixed up in some bad business in order to meet her biological mom, sibling issues. The show is missing some spark for me I guess, plus it has that unfortunate ABC Family feel, but even so I'll probably keep watching for a bit.

Then there's Twisted, the show about a kid who murdered a family member at a young age, comes back to town, and someone else ends up dead. This also kind of bored me, sigh. I think the biggest problem is that they want to keep us guessing about whether or not he did the most recent murder? And so they're withholding his point of view which makes it hard to care. Also, the two girls who were his best friends when they were kids were all traumatized about him coming back and then by the end of the episode that was like no big deal. So...again I'll probably give it a few more episodes and hope it picks up, but I'm not keeping my fingers crossed. Same unfortunate ABC Family effect here, too.

Switched at Birth, though, I quite liked. I think I like Switched at Birth best when it's about the family issues because let's face it, they are all messed up. But you can have deeply loving and complicated relationships and when SAB taps into that, it's great! So, I think Daphne growing closer to the Kennishes while Regina was in rehab makes sense both from a practical point of view as well as an emotional one. When she brought up the switch again and Regina was like, "what we're back to that"...well it's always going to come back to that. I'm glad it doesn't just get dropped and easily forgiven because it's the kind of thing that happens in relationships that affects everything that comes after. Daphne was right that the Kennishes were there for her...though there was their own selfish motivation involved. Regina isn't wrong to feel threatened by them and it has always made sense to me why she is. I think her protestations over the various parenting decisions (Daphne's credit card, Bay's job, even Nikki and the rehearsal dinner) are all her way of asserting her own opinion and almost...selfhood into a situation where she could easily be completely run over or forgotten. The Kennishes accepted Daphne into their lives with ease, it would be easy for her to feel extraneous. But I was super glad about the conversation she had with Bay at the end because I've always felt that was an imbalance in the show and that there was a distinct lack of Regina caring about Bay the way Kathryn cares about Daphne. So...I hope this is actually the beginning of a change and not just a one off that gets forgotten. So, anyway! I thought the show was interesting.

I also am watching The Killing, but I haven't watched last week's episode yet! Same with HGTV Design Star which has been renamed HGTV Star, lol.

Also, PSA, Bath and Body Works has their semi-annual sale going on right now which means it's a good time to stock up on country apple frangrances. ;)