Okay children, let me tell you how it was, since I was there. I posted about this above, but to reiterate: Yea, the counterculture was pretty sexist. The example posted above about men running the change-the-world meetings while the women were supposed to take notes and get the coffee is pretty accurate. The…

I agree with Schiels. The counterculture stuff is being worked in with an intriguing sense of tension and ambiguity, which seems to me about right, since as I remember it, the counterculture was completely self-righteous while at the same time completely blind, when it came to seeing its own bullshit. The women on the…

authentic
The guy he plays in Adaptation is as genuine an American person as I've ever seen on film. Not many characters are even close to that real. He reminds me of a lot of people I ran into in my younger, more ragged years in California and Oregon. Also reminds me of that Richard Avedon book of portraits of people…

That *is* interesting, because it seemed that way to me as a viewer: in the early going there seemed to be very little genuine talent there, which I think is why Angelo seemed to be so much at the head of the pack early on. But then people started coming on as the season progressed. Ed, Tiffany, and Kevin, especially,…

PS: There's a brief thread on page 3 regarding the phrase "on the nose," which some people apparently dislike, presumably because they think it's overused. In any event it's effective shorthand for a reference point that's too obvious.

@a jeff probst film: Then you must like your art as obvious as possible. The trouble with those references is that they call attention to themselves, they're self-conscious. They shout out, "Hey, this is 1963! (or whatever the year is supposed to be) and make you think, Oh, right, I'm watching this show and the people…

@Montypark: You seem to have a fairly limited understanding of the differences between a period piece and a contemporary one.

nice analysis!

casting change
Hate to say it, but the kid who plays Don and Betty's two-year-old has gotta go. Wasn't even close to believable during his big birthday party scene. Time to find a replacement. The show's done it before.

Two things on Joan's episode:

@LeFebre Jones: Yes, the 60s references are getting much more overt. Not sure I like it…hard to do without it seeming self-conscious. The Satisfaction segment in tonight's episode being a case in point, IMO. The 60s was such an eventful, in-your-face period that it's going to be hard not to have that stuff overwhelm…

I didn't see the irritation on Tim's face during Michael's critique session that John refers to in his review.

@Catalogia: You're right about that, Mondo's response to the judges about working with Michael C. was still condescending. His behavior in the workroom was more of a turnaround. That was a bit strange.

I waited for years for "Harry" to come out on CD and rushed to buy it when it finally did. Didn't know there was a twofer afoot, but am still happy about being reunited with one of my favorite albums from the 60s. And a very uncharacteristic album from that period, too; understated and melancholy. A critic once…

mondo's turnaround
It will be interesting as the season continues to see if others follow Mondo's lead and change their tune re Michael C.

The judges misinterpreted Casanova's comment about wanting to design something for his grandmother — that wasn't what he said. I'd have to watch again to remember what he said exactly, but I think his point was that he realized that's what people were thinking about his work, not what he was actually aiming for.

Oh, okay, I agree with that — the DC locale has been a real bust.

Let me get this straight
He loves Beethoven and hates popular culture but he's doing a crime show on cable TV with a computer-generated talking dog?

give em a break
Gee, I'm surprised at the strength of the negative reactions here. I agree this isn't the most talented or most likable group of competitors, but I thought the cooking this week was pretty impressive, given the obstacles.

I agree. If Angelo was a woman they'd call him a drama queen. I wouldn't go so far as to say he has a psychological problem — I don't think he's clinically nuts — but I think he's more sincere in his nuttiness than people give him credit for.