GIRLS talk (the Lena Dunham thread)

forks I'm marathonning S1 so that I can catch up to S2 and watch it and see what all of this fuss is abt

cannot rep for season 1 at all! in fact, i think my lack of backstory for the characters has been beneficial as I gotta figure out in media res what their deal is.
would strongly recommend jumping into s2, e2 and catching up with me there. would love another opinion, maybe i'm insane.

I think I am the only person watching Togetherness

I really like it. It's very sad, in a way I appreciate.

I really hated the pilot of Broad City and didn't watch any further, and am always baffled when people are, like, Broad City is what Girls should be.

best ep of the season! first 5 minutes were hilarious, kinda reminded me why i loved it in the first place.

I was kind of amazed that Hannah just decides to be a teacher halfway through an episode and Poof!! she's a teacher by the opening shot of next episode, just gets the job just like that, also seems to be weirdly engaged and decent as a teacher, what???

Same as. My first thought was "huh? is it that easy to get a teaching job in the States?"

but there were scenes explaining that at the school she was teaching at they don't even expect her to have a degree in teaching

& she sez she's a substitute I think

like, her first interaction w/fran was p expositionary to this effect

she was a sub at a private school, which is not as hard a job to get. Also, I liked Fran, and I also liked the very simple way he just excused himself from the story and, presumably, the show.

Not disliking this series as much as everyone else, I think it's fine. I also like Togetherness a lot, which admittedly is married-people-mid-life-crisis territory and by default not exactly groundbreaking, but it has some pretty rough moments of truth. Also I have a mad crush on the woman from Heavenly Creatures who plays Michelle.

still really enjoying this show, too. and togetherness feels like 30something to me, in a good way (note: i have not really watched 30something since I was a kid in the 80s)

i'm dreading if they make something of jessa saying shes still in love w/ ace or whatever. that really felt like a misstep to me, as did Hannah minimizing the taxi hitting the old lady

It was a good Girls ep. Liked Fran too-- nice curveball, turned out to be a perfectly good date. Actually one interesting and unusual thing about this show is that the guest characters are often (intentionally depicted as) more likable than the main characters.

Jessa's an especially awful person this season, isn't she.

It's interesting how unlikability (antipathy) and likability (empathy)-- often leaning to the former-- are so intricately threaded in the characters on Girls, not just from ep to ep but line to line, moment to moment. An experience well-illustrated by Hannah's dizzied reaction to Mimi-Lee (full of shit & manipulative/ self-aware & sweet/ both at once?).

Jessa is just straight up evil at this stage. I dont know where her character is going.

what's with this btw? is this an NY thing we're not privy to?

http://40.media.tumblr.com/0f28f79e2b78baab4b6af49bab36335e/tumblr_nkkdqpJafw1smuhzqo1_1280.jpg

douchebaggery

just more contrived bullshit tbh

i've never seen him as anything but Spock and i'm not sure i'd have even recognised him tbh.

it's quinto right? or isn't it? honestly wasn't sure

it's insane that people are Looking-bashing in here, this season > the current season of Girls and certainly >>>>>>>>>>>>>> Togetherness, did you guys all give up after a couple early episodes or what?

^

seriously gtfo with Togetherness, it's Sundance Jury Prize: The Series.

Simon H OTM with both his ranking of HBO's Sunday night ennui series and also with his hatred of Togetherness

I like Looking. Probably “care” more about those characters than any in the other two shows.

In part because, when I watch Looking, I experience the characters as the characters. When I watch the other two, I too often see primarily the actors playing the characters, laboriously acting out a script, the seams of which I notice.

And I don’t think this is due to a genre difference in realism or whatever; when I watch e.g. Broad City or Sunny in Philadelphia, I also primarily experience and enjoy those characters as the characters. This is particularly a problem with Looking for me, “Sundance Jury Prize” otm.

edit: particularly a problem with Togetherness for me

not a problem for me, but maybe cuz I was totally unfamiliar with all the actors in Togetherness (apart from the Heavenly Creatures gal)

True, might have something to do with familiarity with the actors in Togetherness and off-screen celeb personae of the actors in Girls. But I don't think it's just that (for me).

Best episode of the series I think. I hope they keep Mimi-Rose around. She has the right likable/annoying balance that the others lost a long time ago, although this is the first time in ages that I've really rooted for Hannah. Ace is a fine addition to the show's long tradition of absurd, posturing douchebags.

yeah Desi, Booth Jonathon, whatever Richard E. Grant's character was named. Adam, to some extent

I had a date with a gay homosexual last night and we discussed Looking to great length; he told me to stick around and that It Gets Better in season 2. I mean I came in with a lot of v specific expectations informed by my direct exp w/ gay culture so to someone who doesn't have my partic experience I'm sure they're a lot less intolerant of the show, so like I respect other ppl liking it tbh

black sails just did a SURPRISE YOUR LEAD CHARACTER IS MOTIVATED BY HIS LOVE FOR A MAN thing that was super well handled but i'm wondering how it's playing with gay homosexuals and non gay homosexuals

more on that btw: http://decider.com/2015/02/22/toby-stephens-black-sails-gay-flint/

@lenadunham
Watched Citizen Four. Incredible, essential film. Takeaway is we
should all come up with cute funny internet code names for our
friends?

can't tell if stevie's post is a piss take or not

lol not at all

it just started airing during a period that I was really fucking jaded and fed up w/ a lot of bullshit and was hoping this would subvert these things instead of perpetuating them but I was wrong

i don't think there is any nationally aired subversive gay television programming
and maybe not since pee wee's playhouse?

yeah idk if there is either which is why I was like "oh wow it's a show abt gay millenials, maybe this will be really critical and thought provoking!", like I feel like Girls has a lot of commentary abt its characters and its characters' generation and demographic and all of that and Looking does not

it's much more implicit yes.
worth noting: one of the executive producers of looking is the chief creative officer for archie comics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Aguirre-Sacasa

okay just watched 5 episodes of Looking in a row, just finished season 1, actually am kind of liking it

now you're gonna make me go back to season 1
when you get to the funeral episode in season 2, let's see if you're with me

halfway through the most recent episode, mimi rose seems similar to the main characters just better at it

this ep was prob the best of the season imo, tho if someone critiques dad tad's coming out as gimmicky id not disagree

if we're still talking about togetherness, i just watched episode 4. the sex scene is so sad.

ok shosh still killing it.

"Fucking Marnie?!"

there are scenes in togetherness that are underplayed but just. devastating. the sex scene is one.

Holy shiiieeeeeet what a great episode!

I was laughing so hard at/with Mom laughing so hard

thought this was a really great episode. best of the season easily. just when i was starting to feel a little bit fed-up with girls too.