The Great British Baking Show | Netflix | W1: Cake Week
The kindest competition on Earth is back! The Great British Baking Show (known across the pond as The Great British Bake Off), returned on Friday with a brand new season. As with everything else this year, the show has been modified behind the scenes to take necessary precautions for a certain virus that shall not be named.
For the uninitiated, the baking competition and filming are usually done inside a massive white tent on the weekends, and the bakers go home during the week; they are able to do their day jobs and practice for some of the upcoming challenges.
The 12 bakers in this year’s competition essentially volunteered to be quarantined, and live in (as baker Peter put it), a “wee Bake Off village” for the run of the competition. Ultimately, it seems that in front of the camera, everything will be business as usual.
Paul, Prue, Noel and newbie Matt
Also new this season is comedian Matt Lucas (Little Britain, Bridesmaids), who takes over co-hosting duties from Sandy Toksvig, along with the returning Noel Fielding. Judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood once again rate the bakes.
As usual, there are 3 parts to every episode (courtesy of Wikipedia):
Signature Challenge: This challenge is for the amateur bakers to show off their tried-and-tested recipes for bakes they might make for their friends and family.
Technical Challenge: This challenge requires enough technical knowledge and experience to produce a certain finished product when given only limited – or even minimal – instructions. The bakers are all given the same recipe and are not told beforehand what the challenge will be. The finished products are judged blind and ranked from worst to best. They place their bakes behind the person’s photo.
Showstopper Challenge: This challenge is for the bakers to show off their skills and talent. The judges favour a bake that has a professional appearance but is also outstanding in flavours.
Kicking off the competition is Cake Week. Who will be the competition’s first Star Baker, and who will be sent packing?
Signature Challenge
I couldn’t do this in 2 years, let alone 2 hours
The first Signature Challenge is to make a Battenberg – a rectangular cake covered in marzipan – with 2 complementary flavors, in 2 hours.
As usual, the bakers have mixed results.
Baker Loriea’s bubblegum and cream soda Battenberg was flavorful but, as Paul put it, “bone dry” and there were quite a few more dry cakes. Though the bakers mostly knocked it out the park, design-wise, Linda’s ambulance-shaped Battenberg was interesting, but unfinished.
Overall, though, these were beautiful Battenbergs all around even if the flavors didn’t always hit the mark for the judges.
Technical Challenge
Paul’s challenge for the bakers is to make 6 miniature pineapple upside down cakes in 90 minutes. Some bakers said they’ve made them before, but others said they’ve never even eaten one.
What they should look like
In miniature molds, the bakers put cherries and pineapple rings; they then have to make caramel – an always dodgy process – to put on top. Afterwards, they prepare a cake mix, layer in and bake.
Most bakers manage to get their upside down cakes out of their molds properly, but poor Linda’s are a mess. Most bakers also put whipped cream on top of hot cakes, melting the cream all over.
As they’re bringing their cakes up to the front table to be judged, baker Sura is shooing away a fly and accidentally knocks into David, sending most of his cakes flying to the floor. #Gutted! She apologizes profusely, and they pick up the cakes. Matt says they’ll explain what happened to the judges, and that the first two on the plate were fine, so they can judge based on those; which they do!
Paul and Prue rank the cakes, and Rowan, Peter and Sura take 3rd, 2nd and 1st places, respectively.
Showstopper
The first Showstopper tasks the bakers with creating cake busts of their personal heroes, in 4 hours. It must have a head, and must be made mainly from cake.
Some bakers tackle musicians: Marc is going to attempt a David Bowie Ziggy Stardust bust, Linda will attempt a lemon and orange Bob Marley, and Laura will create a Freddie Mercury. Other famous busts include Sir David Attenborough, Charles Darwin, Marie Antoinette and Lupita Nyong’o.
Sura’s Attenborough bust falls over as the bakers leave the tent, and her fellow bakers give her suggestions on how to keep it upright; she opts to lean it on a roll of piping bags.
The ambitious busts are something to behold, including a mouth-less Bob Marley:
After the judging and some deliberation, Matt announces this week’s Star Baker: Peter! Noel then reveals the baker who is eliminated: Loriea.
So the season is off to a great start, and it’s very nice to havethis show back in my life. It’s comforting TV, and really is the nicest competition out there – the bakers genuinely help and root for each other while creating some of the most impressive creations out of cake, bread, and anything else that can be baked.
Matt Lucas fits in well with Noel and the judges, and I found myself laughing more at his commentary than I did last season with Sandy; though I think many English comedians could fill the role, he did a great job in the first episode.
After the past 6 months, I for one am looking forward to soggy bottoms, Hollywood handshakes, and all the British humour I can get – and maybe I’ll be inspired to try baking things, again; thankfully, the fire department is only a few blocks away. M
The Boys | Amazon Prime Video | Season 2 Episode 6: The Bloody Doors Off
If last week’s episode was nothing but filler (and it was), this episode was nothing but killer. We got tons of backstory, secrets revealed, allegiances tested, several Golden Girls references, and a whole lot of action. Let’s recap!
Flashback Frenchie
Flashback (1): Frenchie is extolling the virtues of The Golden Girls to Cherie and Jay (Michael Ayres); he says the Girls made their own family, and Cherie and Jay are his Blanche and Dorothy, respectively, and that of course he is Betty White. He holds up a bomb and asks “Who wants to rob a bank?”
The Boys
Starlight tells Frenchie and Hughie she needs her Vought tracking chip removed because Stormfront knows she leaked the story about Compound V. Frenchie uses a small circular saw on Starlight’s neck, and manages to puncture her skin (grossly) and take out the chip.
In home base, Butcher and Kimiko watch Stormfront and Homelander in an interview and Butcher says “they’re f***ing,” keying in on their relationship. Starlight goes back to the underground lair with Hughie and Frenchie; Kimiko hugs her when she see her.
Hughie tells Butcher that Starlight has a lead on Stormfront: dozens of e-mails from Stan Edgar regarding a potential breakthrough at Sage Grove Center, a psychiatric hospital in Pennsylvania. Butcher says they’ll investigate with Starlight, in case Vought comes looking for any of them.
At Sage Grove, Frenchie, Kimiko and MM dress as orderlies. Butcher and Hughie wait in a wooded area with their van, and Butcher watches as Starlight fries a chain link fence so the “orderlies” can get through; they take off running towards the hospital and Starlight heads back. She asks Butcher why he hates her so much, since she hates Vought as much as he does. She says he’s just a bigot and a bully just because of what’s in her blood. Just then, Stormfront arrives at the hospital…
Flashback (2): Later, potentially after said bank robbery, Mallory interviews Frenchie in an interrogation room; she offers him a job working for her. He’s not too keen on the idea at first, but Mallory says Cherie and Jay can go free instead of going to a super-max prison, if he joins her.
MM, Frenchie and Kimiko
Inside, Frenchie tells Kimiko to get on a stretcher, but she motions and he gets on instead; she and MM wheel him through the halls.
Don’t mess with Cindy
The Boys take out a guard and manage to get into the security room, where they see dozens of cameras on cells that contain people with super powers. They watch as a male orderly (Shawn Ashmore) and Stormfront go into one of the cells. They talk to one of the patients and ask about his powers; they say he was admitted because he was suicidal. When he says he won’t cooperate until he can talk to his sister, Stormfront agrees and leaves the room; the male orderly closes the door behind her and lights the patient on fire.
In the control room, Frenchie yells out that it’s Lamplighter, and they have to kill him for what he did to Mallory’s grandchildren. Hughie calls MM and tells him Stormfront just flew away so they need to get out of there. Frenchie gets back on the stretcher and Kimiko and MM wheel him out again.
The Boys pass Lamplighter in a hallway, and he seemingly recognizes Frenchie; Frenchie jumps off the stretcher and Lamplighter tries to attack him with fire, but Frenchie pushes his arm, so he ends up incinerating a nearby door. The patient in the room, Cindy, comes through the door and Lamplighter tries to keep her calm. A guard comes behind Cindy and shoots her several times, but she simply turns around and makes a fist and the guard explodes (grossly). The Boys and Lamplighter run away and barricade themselves in the security room as Cindy crushes all the doors to the patient rooms. The patients come out and start killing all the guards and doctors.
A patient who vomits acid breaks into the security room and attacks Lamplighter, but Kimiko pulls him off and throws him as his acid burns his own face; he dies in front of them. Lamplighter takes The Boys to the drug storage room and tells Frenchie he remembers him: he was following him the night he “torched those kids.” He asks why Frenchie didn’t stop him; Frenchie gets enraged, but is held back by MM.
Flashback (3): In a warehouse, MM shows Frenchie and Mallory an engagement ring. Butcher gets their attention, and Lamplighter walks in. The Boys laugh at the spectacle of his costume and flaming staff and say he looks like a majorette. They’re not wrong! Mallory shows him some pictures, and tells him he’s going to tell them everything he sees and hears in Vought Tower. Lamplighter leaves, and Mallory says she doesn’t like the situation; he’s an animal backed into a corner. She tells Frenchie to follow him.
Back in the hospital, Frenchie helps himself to some drugs, and says he can make a “knockout bomb” with some supplies. He asks Lamplighter why The Boys were still alive; Lamplighter says they “weren’t worth it,” but Frenchie realized Lamplighter never told The Seven what he had done. He tells Frenchie he didn’t know the kids were going to be there, and that it was supposed to be Mallory who died, but once he realized it wasn’t her, it was too late. Lamplighter says he saw Frenchie following him, and then Frenchie disappeared; Lamplighter asks Frenchie again why he didn’t stop him, which MM says is a good question.
Flashback (4): Frenchie follows Lamplighter, but gets a call from Cherie, who tells him Jay is OD’ing. He leaves and goes back home, and tries to resuscitate Jay; he does CPR, gets him breathing and tells Cherie to look after him. He leaves them to go back after Lamplighter.
Frenchie finishes his makeshift bomb, and Lamplighter explains what they’re doing at Sage Grove: trying to stabilize Compound V. Infants take it well, but adults have a random sets of outcomes when exposed to it. Vought wants to create a stable compound that works on any adult; Lamplighter doesn’t know why, he just burns the evidence. Frenchie tells Lamplighter about Jay and why he wasn’t there to stop him; Lamplighter asks if he lived, and Frenchie says he did, but died a few months later from another overdose.
Guilt ridden Frenchie
After a fight with a patient’s Supe penis (let’s leave it at that), The Boys and Lamplighter try to make their way out of the hospital; they come across Cindy, and Frenchie throws his bomb near her. Gas comes out but she just crushes and breaks it. As she’s turning towards them Stormfront comes in and zaps Cindy, knocking her out, as she yells out for Lamplighter. He goes out and leads her away from The Boys; she leaves and he rejoins them.
The Boys take an ambulance and get away from the hospital; in a wooded area they regroup. Frenchie apologizes to Kimiko for trying to ‘save’ her; he thought he could make up for the things he did, but she never asked to be saved and she can’t absolve him. He says he’ll leave her alone.
A car comes to meet them, and Mallory gets out; she asks where “he” is. They open the ambulance and Lamplighter is sitting there; Mallory pulls her gun on him, and he says she’d be doing him a favor if she did it. Frenchie begs her for his life, but she says she has no choice; Frenchie says Lamplighter is tormented by what he’s done and she’d just be ending that torment. She asks Frenchie what they should do with him…
Butcher, Hughie and Starlight
Hughie is watching the carnage at the hospital, while Butcher tries to call MM. One of the patients comes near Butcher, Starlight and Hughie, and he releases a burst of energy, knocking Starlight and Butcher back and flipping the van with Hughie inside. Butcher shoots the patient dead, and checks on Hughie, who’s been impaled through the stomach. Starlight tries to use her powers to cauterize the wound, but her powers are drained; Butcher and Starlight take Hughie to get help.
They stop a passing car and try to commandeer it, but the driver gets antsy and pulls a gun on them. To get Butcher to stand down, Starlight uses her powers on the man, who flies back and hits his head, inadvertently killing him. She takes some power from the car to cauterize Hughie’s wound; Starlight and Hughie get in the back of the car, next to a car seat, and Butcher drives as they leave the scene.
Butcher tells Starlight he appreciates what she did, and that she didn’t have a choice. She tells Butcher maybe once she would have cried over the situation, but now that man was just another person in her way. Butcher seemingly approves, which angers her; she says they are nothing alike.
Butcher and Starlight get to a hospital, where Hughie is treated; Starlight talks to the doctors and tells Butcher that Hughie should be okay in a few days. They bond over Hughie’s kid shampoo and Axe body spray; Starlight says Hughie never gives up on them, and that he’s too good for them.
The Supes
Homelander and Stormfront find a man who just committed a robbery in an alley; Stormfront forcefully knocks a gun out of his hand, potentially breaking his hand. They discuss what to do with him, and say if they take him to the cops he’ll just be back on the street the next day. As Stormfront rubs his crotch, Homelander crushes the man’s skull and they proceed to have sex next to his corpse. #Classy.
Stormfront leaves Homelander to go to Vought Tower, and he waits in his trailer. Later, he sets the trailer on fire – from boredom, or anger. Stormfront comes back, and Homelander says he knows she didn’t go to the tower. She says she’ll explain, but he asks her why she would need to explain anything to him.
At Vought Tower, Stormfront finds Homelander in her apartment and tries to explain the situation. She says she’ll never lie to him again and tell him everything. She shows him a picture of her with an old woman – her daughter, Chloe – who died of Alzheimer’s a few years ago. She says she was born in 1919 in Berlin and shows him more pictures of her: in Nazi Germany, and in a wedding photo with her husband, Frederick Vought (!), who gave her the first successful injection of Compound V. She says Frederick didn’t care about superficial nonsense, only about fighting back at other races. She says Homelander will lead their army and that she loves him with all of her heart. She says neither of them need to be alone ever again; he turns and kisses her as The Golden Girls theme plays.
Elsewhere
Alastair and Fresca, trying to recruit A-Train
The Deep comes to visit Queen Maeve on the movie set, and he tells her he didn’t find the ‘black box’ but he’s got aquatic friends keeping an eye out. He gives her a camera from ‘the wreckage near Iceland,’ and she tells him if he wants to get back into The Seven he can’t say a word about ‘this’ to anyone.
Ashley shows A-Train the video for his potential “anthem,” then A-Train talks to The Deep, who’s presumably just came from Maeve’s trailer. The Deep offers A-Train a Fresca while pitching him on the Church of the Collective. A-Train has dinner with The Deep and Alastair Adana, who tells A-Train he can help him with all his problems. Convenient!
Later, Elena finds the camera hooked up to Maeve’s phone and watches the footage – it’s Maeve and Homelander leaving the hijacked plane (from season 1) to crash. Maeve says she’s going to show that to Homelander in order to get him to leave them alone, or else she’ll leak it to the press.
Literally elsewhere, a hitchhiker is walking down the road, and it’s revealed to be Cindy, who finds a ride…
The Wrap Up
What a crazy episode, with so much exposition! We finally learned more about what happened to Mallory’s grandkids, and the roles that Frenchie and Lamplighter played. We learned what Vought is up to at Sage Grove, and the role Lamplighter is currently playing. We learned about Stormfront’s history, and what she really wants from Vought and Homelander. We learned not to mess with Cindy, who may come back to haunt Stormfront at some point. And we learned Maeve is going to try to blackmail Homelander into leaving her and Elena alone (which can’t end well).
I enjoyed how Butcher and Starlight seemed to bond over their mutual affection for Hughie; it showed how hardened Starlight has become since this started – she’s certainly no longer the idealistic, wide-eyed young girl that came to The Seven.
I’m still not a fan of the Church of the Collective subplot; since The Deep and A-Train were kicked out of The Seven it seems like they’re reaching for reasons to keep them around. With so many characters they should either cut them out, or find some way to bring them back into the fold. I did like tying The Deep and Maeve’s storylines together; A-Train and The Deep could be double agents working for The Seven but also for their own agendas…
There was so much stuff going on in this episode that probably also sets up some things for the end of the season… With some Supes like Lamplighter and Starlight (seemingly) on The Boys’ side, and Maeve turning on her team leader, the only logical conclusion is a huge showdown between Homelander and Stormfront vs everyone else, right? M
Now that Zingbot’s had his fun, time to get back to the game! Who will be evicted: Da’Vonne or Kevin?
Tyler is determined to break up some side alliances, and Memphis and Christmas are starting to see his point of view…
Dani says she really wants Day to stay in the house, but she doesn’t know if she has the votes to keep her. Day says she’s not campaigning to stay because she doesn’t want to give anyone the satisfaction. Day tells Dani (in front of fellow nominee Kevin!) she’s going to ask Christmas and David what they’re thinking and maybe she’ll have the votes to stay.
Kevin talks to Memphis and Memphis basically tells him he’s safe. Later, Kevin tells Day that he thinks it was Nicole who flipped the vote on Ian. #Correct! Day doesn’t think it’s the case, but goes to ask Nicole about it. Nicole lies (again) and tells Day she voted to keep Ian; Day trusts her more than David so she believes her. Nicole, to herself, says she has “to tell her.”
Memphis talks Enzo into getting into 2 final 3 alliances; one with Cody (“Wise Guys 1”) and one with Christmas (“Wise Guys 2”). Interesting?
Dani talks to Christmas about keeping Day, but Christmas wants to break up a potential Dani/Nicole/Day alliance. Christmas then talks to Memphis and she suggests using David to take out other people in The Committee by offering him safety for the next 2 weeks. Honestly, this is a pretty smart move to make. Later, Christmas talks to David and feels out the situation. She says she knows David voted to keep Ian, and they seemingly make a deal to work together (with a pinkie swear).
At the eviction ceremony, Da’Vonne gave a lengthy (and great!) speech about the black women who came before her in the BB house, and says she strives to see someone who looks like her in the group of people who have won the game. Ultimately and unfortunately, though, Day is evicted by a vote of 5 to 2.
In her exit interview, Day says she’s relieved because she was sick of those people. Understandable! She says they chose to keep Kevin because he can be used, while she can’t. In the goodbye messages, she learns about The Committee, and Nicole finally comes clean about voting out Ian. Day says she knew about all the alliances, but was shocked about Nicole. She says she doesn’t know how to feel about Nicole, because Day asked her personally about David’s vote, and she lied to her. She wants a margarita on the way to the jury house, and after the time she’s had, she certainly needs one! So no more DR shenanigans, or hearing “Julie girl,” when voting; Day has left the building, and this season got much less entertaining.
After the eviction, Julie calls the houseguests to the living room to unleash the latest twist. In the neighboring house, outside above the backyard, Dr. Will Kirby (!) comes out in a bathrobe and tells the houseguests that for the next HOH and veto competitions, the houseguests can either choose power or money… will this shake up the game? Possibly? Or maybe some houseguests will become a little richer.
Probably more interesting is the fact that next Thursday will be a triple eviction (the game’s first?), and Otev will make his triumphant return this week. Here’s hoping to expect something unexpected with all these developments! M
There’s a reason Big Brother contestants say “pawns go home.” With that in mind…
After the nominations, Da’Vonne says if David’s the target, she’s good with that! After an emotional conversation in which Kevin says he really appreciates Day,
Memphis chooses Tyler, Day choose Nicole with Houseguest Choice, and Kevin chooses Dani with Housegust Choice. In the DR, David says both Day and Kevin got houseguest choice and didn’t choose him, so that’s pretty much it. Tyler is also suspicious that Nicole and Dani were chosen, since he thinks they’re working with Day.
Dani tells Nicole they either need to lose the veto or use it on Day; Memphis tells Nicole, Tyler, and Dani to just throw the comp so he can back door David. Tyler and Dani both aren’t down with Memphis’ plan. Memphis later tells Day and Kevin about his plan; in the DR Day says she doesn’t trust any of these people so she’s going to fight to win.
In the DR, Tyler says David is by himself, so why back door him, if he’s a potential number? Tyler talks to Cody and he agrees back-dooring David shouldn’t be high on the priority list.
Now with 40% more Zing
The houseguests get a rude awakening in the form of Zingbot… dressed as Tiger King? Sure, why not. His zings, as per usual, were pretty lame – but on point: David is not an All Star. Cody isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. Kevin is boring. Nicole is whiny.
Anyway, the POV comp is set in Zingbot’s zoo. The houseguests must race inside a hedge maze and return stuffed animals to their respective cages; whoever does this the fastest wins the veto. After the comp, the person who “sucked the least” (Zingbot’s words) was Tyler, with a nice and speedy time of 2:55.
Memphis tells Day and Kevin they’re probably fine, but he’ll talk to Tyler. When they do talk, Tyler says he’s not really on board with Memphis’ plan; he explains why David isn’t a threat, but Nicole, Dani and Day are. #Obviously!
At the veto meeting, Day says she’s not going to ask Tyler to use the veto, and he in fact does not use it.
So either Day or Kevin will be evicted on Thursday, and Tyler actually made a proper move in the game! In my mind this puts a huge target on Day because Kevin has been floating along all season. Christmas says she’s not going to use her special power to help either nominee, so I have a sneaking suspicion Day will be seeing Ian later this week – and the house will, unfortunately, get 100% less funny. M
As we rejoin the crew of The Wellington, we again see the scene from last week of Tom getting angry at Aesha – for apologizing to him and crying.
Bugsy sees Aesha is upset and talks to her about the situation, and apologizes to her (#irony); in an interview, Aesha appreciates how approachable Bugsy is.
Tom is annoyed about Cucumbergate; Malia apologizes to him, and he doesn’t go off on her. He says he’ll apologize to Aesha, but the damage is already done. Later, Sandy comes into the galley, and Tom says nothing to her; she feels that he’s angry and leaves. Sandy says he can either stay mad or choose to let it go. Even later, Aesha comes into the galley, but Tom is busy cooking and doesn’t address her, either. Later, Tom finally apologizes to Aesha and says he’s sorry he took out his anger at her.
Because Team Wellington lost at Frisbee, the crew wears Speedos over their uniforms and for some reason stuffs them with… small towels? Not only didn’t their Speedos look suggestive, they just looked like they stuffed towels in them. It was odd.
Tom talks to Malia and says he’s there because of her, and he doesn’t want to be angry around her all the time. Which he has been, since the second he came on board. That night, dinner is delayed because the primary isn’t ready, and Malia is hanging out in the kitchen helping Tom; later, she helps Bugsy clear plates – something I don’t remember any other bosun doing, frankly. When the guests rib her for not wearing a Speedo, Malia throws one on; ultimately they’re happy with the food.
Rob and Jess decide it’s a good idea to be on a lower deck getting friendly as the guests eat dinner above them. Malia notices them, and tells them they need to cut it out. You’d think this would be obvious, but Rob says “Little Rob” took over his thinking.
The next day, Sandy comes into the galley and greets Tom, and he doesn’t address her; he’s still being frosty towards her, but tells her he’s just tired. Malia texts her mom, Mary, and says she’s been traveling around Spain and will be at the dock when they arrive; Mary watches The Wellington pull into port. She greets Malia, Sandy, Busgy and Tom on the dock as the crew gets ready for the guests’ departure; later, Malia shows Mary around the boat, and then Mary leaves.
When the guests leave, the primary guest gives a little speech and instead of a tip, gives each crew member a card that represents an invitation to a weekly Tuesday dinner at his house in Malibu. At this point, it should be obvious as the show goes to commercial that he’s going to turn around and give them an envelope full of cash as a real tip. This season has had its fair share of drama, but it’s also been the season of fake outs. Catastrophic power outage?! Nope. Guests didn’t like the food?! Nope. Different guests didn’t like the food?! Nope.
Obviously, the guy gives a real tip. At the tip meeting, Sandy says people are getting tired, and brings up Cucumbergate; they have one more charter in the season, so she wants everyone to finish strong. Later, Malia and Tom talk about the tip meeting and Tom is annoyed the Sandy called him out. In an interview, Malia says she sees both sides but is conflicted.
The crew goes out, but Rob and Jess stay on board to Netflix and chill. At dinner, Alex says half the people there (Tom, Bugsy and Aesha) weren’t there in the beginning of the season – which is kinda crazy. I have to think this has been the most turnover of any season of Below Deck history. #JusticeForKiko. Nearly as bizarre is the fact that Pete (remember him?) is there, but severely edited out of the season. Not saying it’s not deserved; it’s just strange how this dude is just part of the show, but no longer part of the show.
The next day, the crew gets ready for the final charter. Malia tells Sandy she’s going to name a lead deckhand for the last trip… gee, who could it be? Rob, who Malia constantly reprimands, Pete (remember him?) or shining star Alex? Hmmm.
Provisions arrive, and the crew gets to loading them up. Tom is annoyed that the fish delivered is not refrigerated, and calls Malia into the galley to see the state of things. Malia goes to get Sandy to explain what’s going on, and Sandy tells her Tom should be talking to her about it. Tom does, and asks what they should do, and Sandy calls the distributor, who talks to Tom. The guests are arriving in an hour, and they need the fish for lunch, and Tom can’t serve the fish as it was delivered.
Tom gets frustrated, calls Malia and tells her he’s done; he asks how he’s supposed to get everything done… Sandy calls Malia out of the galley and says she needs to stay out of the galley and Tom’s business. She says Malia is filtering information from Tom, through her, and he needs to talk to Sandy directly. Malia says Tom is going to walk off the boat, and she says to let him…
So Tom is still angry, Jess and Rob are heading for trouble (involving a guest!) and tensions flare as everyone gears up for the final charter (and final two episodes) of the season! What a crazy season it has been – and I can only imagine it will end just as crazily as it began. Here’s hoping. M
Captain’s Log
Jess (sometimes) still can’t figure out Aesha’s name, and calls her ‘Ayeesha.’
Aesha asks if there’s any sexual tension between Bugsy and Alex or “if it’s just a drunk thing,” but Bugsy awkwardly says there is no tension.
Alex asks Aesha if it was awkward jumping into this charter season, and she says it most definitely was.
On the boat, Rob and Jess discuss what they’re doing after Bali; later, they go to bed in the guest cabin (after getting permission from Bugsy).
Why isn’t there someone dedicated to helping the chef on these charter seasons? Pay someone something and have them be a sous chef! The chef position is a full time job and probably the most stressful!
The trailer for the new season of OG Below Deck has dropped, coming this November. Let the shenanigans at sea continue!
Big Brother: All Stars | CBS | Week 7 HoH and Nominations
It’s week 7 in the BB house! Who will seize power (from The Committee) and who will the new HoH (from The Committee) put on the block?
Before the eviction, David tells Ian he’ll vote to keep him in order to make Dani break a tie, and Ian relays this to Da’Vonne. Day thinks she, Kevin, David and Nicole will vote to keep Ian, not knowing Nicole won’t actually go against Dani…
No one really trusts David, who really seems to be making a move to expose Dani’s allegiance(s). Kevin tells Dani about David’s plan and she tells him if there’s a tie she’ll vote Tyler out; she gets angry that David is coming for her.
Dani knows Nicole is voting for Ian, so she plans to make David take the fall for Nicole’s vote and make him ‘public enemy number 1.’
At the fire hydrant-building HoH comp, David, Tyler, and Memphis seem to be doing well. After not tightening up his puzzle and ringing in, Memphis pushes his pieces closer together and rings in to win the comp and become the new HoH. He seems like he’s going to go after David (again), and David thinks as much (again).
After the comp, Day is angry that someone flipped a vote, and she thinks it’s David (without any encouragement from anyone). Dani and Nicole are happy they’re on Day’s good side; Kevin says he also thinks David is lying when he tells Kevin he was ‘duped’ in the vote.
Later, Day asks David about the vote and he says he didn’t flip, but she doesn’t believe him. Nicole straight up lies to Day about her vote, as David gets angry (and loud) about his game.
David says he thinks Nicole and Dani are working together and correctly guesses they’re pinning the flipped vote on him. Kevin thinks there’s a (5%) possibility Nicole was the one who flipped.
Memphis calls everyone to the living room for the have-not transfer – on taco night! Day pics Christmas and David picks Cody – and both are very unhappy.
Memphis plans to back door David to get him out of the house; he tells David if he agrees to keep his nominees the same if he plays and wins the veto, he’ll keep him off the block. He tells David he has ‘other plans’ for this week, so David agrees, but in the DR wonders about a back door…
At the nomination ceremony, Memphis nominates Day and Kevin; he says it was a no brainier because they used the veto last week. In the DR, David says he’s going to play to win if he’s picked for the veto comp.
So it may all come down to the veto! Whoever wins will have to take someone down so Memphis can carry out his plan to back door David. If David wins, this may be another ‘collateral damage’ week in the BB house! M
The Boys | Amazon Prime Video | Season 2 Episode 5: We Gotta Go Now
Now with more canine goodness
After last week, where Becca effectively chose her son over Butcher, Homelander effectively took out his support system, and Stormfront effectively raised an army, The Boys, The Supes – and this week, a Terror – are back in action.
The Supes
We open on a scene where Queen Maeve is looking for ‘Ruby’ in some wreckage in New York City; they find each other and after a tender moment, a director – Adam Bourke – yells ‘cut’ and we see this is a movie shoot for ‘Dawn of The Seven.’ Homelander is reviewing the movie footage when Ashley shows him some footage of her own: Homelander accidentally killing a civilian while taking out a villain. She tells him Mr. Edgar and the legal department don’t want him addressing the incident.
Starlight’s mom, Donna (Ann Cusack), comes to the movie set and talks to Stormfront; she asks Starlight to forgive her for using Compound V on her. Stormfront tells Starlight she should forgive her mother; she says her mother, Adele, never let her do superhero pageants like Donna.
Congresswoman Victoria Neuman speaks at a rally about the Homelander incident; she says she will have hearings on Vought and Compound V. Homelander flies to the scene next to her, and she looks terrified; he takes her microphone and addresses the crowd. He says he’s upset too, but sometimes ‘these things just happen.’ He says freedom comes with a price, but a soldier in the crowd yells that Homelander doesn’t speak for them. The crowd starts chanting ‘you don’t speak for us,’ and Homelander gets angry; with his heat vision he incinerates dozens of people at the rally – in his mind, at least. Instead, he says they are the real heroes and flies off. Later, he watches the footage of himself at the rally, and has a mini breakdown.
On the phone, Stormfront talks to a male nurse (Shawn Ashmore) at a place called Sage Grove Center, about a kid who’s a hero. #Cryptic! As they hang up Homelander shows up; she tells him she’ll have her meme person put together some memes for him (as a way of getting support for Homelander back).
Later, Starlight goes into Stormfront’s trailer after she leaves, correctly guesses her tablet password (Adele), and sees e-mails about Sage Grove Center. When Stormfront comes back, she tells Starlight she knows she leaked the story about Compound V and she’ll tell Vought. Starlight says she’ll tell the world that Stormfront used to be Liberty; Stormfront says Starlight is going to be a big help to her, confusing Starlight. Homelander comes in, Starlight leaves, and Homelander tells Stormfront he owes her for his poll numbers going back up.
Stormfront throws Homelander against a wall and starts kissing him; he returns the favor and they start getting rough. His eyes glow and she tells him to do it; he burns her chest with his heat vision and she tells him she doesn’t break easily. They continue to throw each other around and end up having superhero sex.
(Most of) The Boys
In a bar, Butcher is drowning his sorrows; he picks a fight and takes out some aggression. Later, Hughie calls him, and tells him about Stormfront being Liberty. They discuss this and Becca, but Butcher says goodbye and destroys the SIM card in his phone. Hughie tells MM something is wrong with Butcher because he was being nice…
At the house of Judy Atkinson (Barbara Gordon), the doorbell rings and Butcher is standing there with groceries; we learn Judy is his aunt. In her kitchen, she tells him to call his mother because she’s worried about him. Judy tells him his father’s cancer is getting worse, but he isn’t interested in talking to or seeing either of his parents. He asks Judy where ‘his boy’ is, and finds him – a bulldog names Terror. Butcher takes Terror for a walk – without a leash! – and he talks to the dog; he tells him he thought he, Terror and Becca would grow old together.
Terror and friend
Butcher and Terror come back to Judy’s, and Hughie and MM are there waiting. MM says Hughie heard a dog toy and he knew Butcher kept Terror at his aunt’s. Judy asks Butcher if Hughie looks like ‘Lenny’, but Butcher isn’t interested. Hughie and MM ask for help with Stormfront, but Butcher refuses. He gets in his car, but sees Black Noir on a roof across the street. He goes back inside, starts shutting windows and curtains, and apologizes to his aunt. MM calls in a gas leak to get the entire neighborhood to be out on the streets; he wants an audience for whatever Black Noir is planning.
Black Noir watches as firemen arrive; Butcher decides to keep him busy while Hughie and MM escape – he says he’s tired and needs a break. Hughie says he thought about ending things after Robin died, but he didn’t; he says Butcher is feeling sorry for himself because he doesn’t have anything, but neither does anyone else. Butcher tries to pass, but Hughie and MM block his way.
The firemen eventually leave and the neighbors go back inside. Judy leads The Boys to the ‘taffy room’ – a safe room in the basement; they learn the sweet old lady is also a drug dealer on the side. They also set up explosive traps for Black Noir, should he get into the house.
In the taffy room, Hughie asks Judy who Lenny is, and she tells him Lenny is Butcher’s little brother. She tells Hughie a story about when Butcher and Lenny were kids and how Lenny had a way of making “Billy not be Billy.” She says she thinks Butcher needs someone like that in his life; as she tells Hughie Lenny is dead, they hear several explosions, then footsteps, up above them.
A smoke grenade comes through a vent to the taffy room, and everyone hurries out of the house. Butcher stays back and locks the door; he yells to Black Noir to come out, and he does. MM comes in and starts shooting at Black Noir, but Noir hurls knife into MM and he falls down. Hughie comes in shooting and the men fight; as Black Noir is going to attack Hughie, Butcher tells him he’s got pictures of Ryan and if he lays a finger on any of them, they’ll be released.
Black Noir chokes Butcher, and gets a phone call from Stan Edgar, who can see Butcher from a camera on Black Noir. They make a deal; Butcher won’t release the pictures and he’ll call off Black Noir. Edgar calls him off, and Black Noir leaves. Hughie asks Butcher if he really has pictures; Butcher says ‘of course I do’, and Hughie smiles.
Later, Butcher tells Terror he’s going to get ‘his mum’ back, and he should hang in there and be a good boy for Judy. He gives the dog a Homelander toy to hump; Butcher, MM and Hughie say goodbye to Judy, and take off.
Kimiko and Frenchie
Frenchie follows Kimiko, who goes to meet some men in a bar; she proceeds to kill them, quite violently, despite being shot several times. Frenchie walks in and sees the carnage, and follows after her.
He follows Kimiko to a church, where she goes in and meets Cherie, who hired Kimiko to take out the men. Frenchie tells Kimiko doing this won’t help her, and that it is only poison to her soul. Kimiko signs to him that she got her baby brother – the only thing that mattered to her – killed, and she doesn’t want his help. He doesn’t understand her, gets annoyed, and leaves.
The Deep
We learn through Nancy O’Dell and Extra that The Deep got married! Later, Katie Couric interviews The Deep and his new wife; Cassandra says Kevin had issues, but he’s grown and changed.
A-Train watches an ad The Deep filmed about the Church of the Collective, ending with shaking hands with the founder, Alistair Adana (Goran Visnjic). Later, Maeve goes to see The Deep and tells him she can help him get back into The Seven if he helps her…
Elsewhere
A-Train talks to Adam and gives him a proposed rewrite; his dialogue doesn’t seem authentic, and he wants his ‘goodbye speech’ to be open-ended, as if he’s not 100% leaving The Seven. Adam shoots him down, and when A-Train says he’s not going to do the scene, Adam tells him to talk to Ashley.
Stormfront and A-Train chat, and she taunts him about being fired. Ashley comes over and grabs A-Train; they talk about his career and Ashley tells him she’s sorry, but he can either leave with dignity or get fired for shooting up Compound V. He relents, and shoots his goodbye scene as written.
Maeve and Elena talk to Vought’s PR team about re-branding Maeve as a gay superhero and Elena as her girlfriend; Maeve says this is Homelander messing with her and they need to play along in order to be safe, but they’re going to take him down.
Wrap Up
I was able to write a lot of words, but nothing really happened in this episode. The Boys kinda took on Black Noir. Homelander and Stormfront boned. Kimiko took out her anger about losing her brother. The Seven shot a movie, which took up the bulk of the episode.
That last point was my biggest issue this week. Why would actual superheroes be starring in a movie about themselves? Even if they were all brought up in the Vought ecosystem and taught how to act – even though we know they all weren’t, because Starlight and Stormfront recently joined the team – you would have to imagine they wouldn’t be good actors. It’s like putting real doctors on Grey’s Anatomy, or real lawyers on Law & Order; it’s just odd. I think they missed an opportunity to ‘cast’ The Seven – they could have had lookalike actors talk about each superhero and their motivations…
While there were a few interesting story beats – Butcher’s dog, his brother, and Stormfront’s mysterious connection to Sage Grove Center (and Shawn Ashmore’s Lamplighter) – it definitely felt like a filler episode. Hopefully we’ll quickly (and finally) learn what Stormfront’s agenda really is, and what happened with Lamplighter, and his connection with Frenchie, before the end of the season! M
The house was disrupted by a secret power, and Ian is on the chopping block; former winner vs. great player: who will go?
After Ian is chosen as a replacement nominee, Da’Vonne talks to Dani and tells her she’ll do everything she can to keep Ian in the game.
Dani apologizes to Ian, though she doesn’t mean it; we learn there’s yet another alliance named The Four Prime: Dani, Cody, Nicole and Ian. Even so, Dani doesn’t seem to be very interested in keeping Ian.
Dani talks to Tyler and says he ‘definitely doesn’t want to’ come after him, and he seemingly believes her? He thinks they’re pretending to be enemies to fool everyone, but Dani isn’t playing. In the DR, Tyler says he has to keep her in his sights – so he’s not playing either!
Ian talks to Memphis to get him to keep him in the house, but Memphis tells him he’s just as dangerous as Tyler, if not more, because he actually won the game. Ian tells Nicole about the conversation with Memphis and she tells Ian she’ll campaign for him to stay. She wants Ian to stay but going against Tyler would be going against her alliance. #Tricky!
Day and Kevin compare notes and think it’s weird Tyler isn’t campaigning for himself; they think he knows he has the votes to stay.
Dani tells Nicole they can’t go against The Committee; if they campaign against Tyler they’ll put targets on their backs. Nicole talks to Memphis and Cody about keeping Ian but they’re not even entertaining it.
At the eviction, Da’Vonne, Kevin and David vote to evict Tyler, but the rest of the houseguests vote to evict Ian – even Nicole (!) – and he becomes the first member of the BB22 jury.
It’s crazy how Ian went from unassuming floater to ultimate pawn to evicted in one week! This is the kind of gameplay needed for this season, but Ian just ended up as collateral damage between Dani and her multiple alliances.
In this goodbye interview, Ian has nothing but nice things to say about his housemates and applauds them for playing so well – a class act, for sure.
Cody and Memphis grab their hydrant shaped puzzle pieces
Dani chooses not to use the Replay power, so she does not compete in the HOH competition. Said competition, “Hydrant Hustle”, sees the houseguests putting together a big puzzle in the shape of a fire hydrant.
The shows ends mid-comp so we’ll see who has the power on Sunday; let’s see if someone other than anyone in The Committee can pull out a win! M
So before the show even starts, BB Announcer Dude lets us know David is going to use his power and Dani will have to nominate someone else. Obvious, but #spoilers?!
During the actual show, David whips up some fake tears, and talks to Da’Vonne; he doesn’t let Day know he’s going to switch up the noms. Enzo and Cody discuss Dani wanting to back door Tyler but they say this absolutely can’t happen.
Cody, Dani and Christmas discuss the BB Basement powers, and why they haven’t been used… later, the houseguests are called to the kitchen and told the Disruptor power has been unleashed! David is taken off the block, and Dani nominates Tyler in his place. She calls Tyler up to the HOH room and tells him she doesn’t want him gone (pause for laughter). In the DR Tyler says they just made a deal, and he thought they were past their issues. You can understand his confusion.
David goes around asking everyone if they used the power on him; all of houseguests see right through him. Truly one of the funniest moments this season, and proof of why David hasn’t earned All Star status.
Dani talks to Christmas and says if she needs to put up a replacement nominee, Christmas or Memphis have the votes to stay. In the DR, Christmas asks why Dani is replacing one alliance member on the block for another? Dani has seemingly gone off the rails!
At the Veto pick, Dani chooses Da’Vonne, Tyler chooses Ian, and Kevin chooses Enzo. Day tells Dani she’ll keep noms the same to re-establish their trust.
Nicole hosts the Veto, and with a truly low-res CGI effect, the houseguests who are playing are shot with some sort of ray, or something, and ‘disappear’ from the living room..
Yes, this is a typical type of BB competition
The competition has the houseguests stacking 15 tiny cans of beer into a pyramid, with comically large tweezers. They fall, rebuild, and fall again, as you might expect.
After everyone meticulously stacks their tiny, tiny beer cans, Da’Vonne manages to stack her cans and wins (a very tiny, but very real) Veto – her first comp win! In the DR, Day says she doesn’t know what she’s going to do; she told Dani she wouldn’t use the veto, because she didn’t expect to win. Expect the unexpected, Day!
Kevin talks to Day, and wants her to take him off the block. Day tells Kevin she can’t really do that, because then she and Kevin will go up next week. Logical! But Day goes to talk to Dani, and says she wants to keep Kevin on her side, so she actually might use the veto.
Dani doesn’t know what to do if Kevin comes down; her only replacement options are Enzo and Ian. Cody tells Dani she needs to convince Day just to not use the veto, and Nicole tells her she doesn’t want Ian to go up… Later, Dani and Day speak, and Dani says she’s a much better ally than Kevin (100% true, for the record). In the DR Day says it’s her veto and Dani can’t dictate what she’ll do with it.
At the veto meeting, Day uses the veto on Kevin, and Dani replaces him with Ian – who she calls “the ultimate pawn.”
So David’s power really DID shake up and disrupt the house this week! Ian is a BB winner, and Tyler is a huge threat, so there’s a case for evicting either of them. Personally I think it’s smarter to take Tyler out now, but these houseguests haven’t made the best decisions this season, so we’ll see!! M
Below Deck Mediterranean | Bravo | Season 5 Episode 16: Cool as a Cucumber
This week on Below Deck Med: couples doing things! Just a guess, but let’s see what the crew of The Wellington actually got down to this week.
In the club, the yachties party some more, and they go back to the boat. Bugsy takes a tumble, but they all get back in one piece. Jess tries to talk to Rob, but he doesn’t want to engage and goes for a walk. He ignores everyone when he gets back, which really makes Jess angry and sad. Sadgry? In the morning Rob continues not wanting to talk and tells Jess he needs some space. Good luck with that? They argue, and seemingly wake everyone up.
Later, Jess breaks down to Bugsy and tells her that Rob wants to ‘hit eject’ on everything. Bugsy tries to play mediator and makes them sit together to talk. They do, and make up, again! Seeing a pattern here?
Aesha tells Malia she’s been feeling very homesick, which is why she was crying at the club. Later, she calls her brother and cries that she doesn’t want to be there. I can’t imagine being so far away from my family for so many months at a time.
Later, as the ship is docking in Mallorca, the boat suddenly loses power and alarms blare. Sandy says she can’t control the boat and they may hit or run over something. She says to drop the anchor as an engineer says he’s ‘sorting it out.’ He reboots the yacht, somehow, and the boat comes back to life. From the preview last week, this looked like a complete disaster; on the episode it lasted less than 5 minutes. I’m sure it was a bit scary, but you could tell they were really trying to ratchet up the drama…
The crew hops to their daily tasks, and provisions arrive. Tom is missing 1 kg of mussels and Malia and Bugsy investigate. They get it sorted, and the extra kilo of mussels shows up, but Tom is quite angry. The guests arrive, and the charter gets underway.
Aesha continues not gelling with the crew as she tells Jess her hair looks like – cat hair? I didn’t get it, and neither did Jess. She does bond with the guests, though, showing them her tattoo: her siblings’ first initials on her foot.
As they’re getting ready to go ashore for Frisbee, Bugsy bravely makes a bet with the guests involving Speedos for the team that loses… Rob, Jess, Pete (remember him?) and Aesha go play with the guests. The guests handily beat the crew 4 to 1, so Speedos for dinner?
Tom goes on break with Malia; while they’re in their cabin, a guest comes looking for cucumbers and Sandy bumps into them… Bugsy is on a break and Jess and Aesha are getting thrown around by the guests, who are showing them jujitsu – perfectly normal, right? Sandy goes to get Tom, and meets Aesha in the galley, explaining cucumber-gate. Tom gets snippy with Aesha because he’s angry he ‘can’t take a 15-minute break’ and he doesn’t know why Aesha can’t cut up a cucumber… When the guests ask Aesha for some avocado, she tries to get it; Tom then gets even more snippy and they end up getting into an argument, making poor Aesha cry…
Captain’s Log
This episode was a whole lot of filler. Among the tidbits:
The aforementioned power failure was a #nonevent.
Tom and Malia discuss the Rob and Jess situation and how they were banging “like jack rabbits” 3 weeks into their relationship. #Classy
Malia spends time making grilled cheese in the galley with Tom.
Alex and Bugsy continue to flirt.
The chefs are usually ornery folks on Below Deck, but Tom really seems to take it to new level. I get it could be editing, but he seems to fly off the handle at the slightest issue. He’s clearly not equipped to do this job in this state (taking over mid-season) and I have a feeling he won’t be doing any more charters any time soon…
Next week, the drama continues: Sandy blows up at Malia, and the crew wears Speedos. Can’t wait! M
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