It’s early evening at Chez Bette, where Angie is getting the full scoop on Jordi’s nomination to prom court, which to be honest is not a particularly compelling narrative, but Angie is somehow enthusiastic because teenagers in love, guys!
And THEN the oil that was supposed to only burn for one night lasted for EIGHT NIGHTS!
Angie’s so happy for her and wishes she could’ve been there to witness it and is so sorry she couldn’t be! It’s just that she had like an extremely bad day and didn’t want to go to the gym just to sit there and cry in public.
Angie: I’m just so pissed — like they always make everything about them. They’re so fucking selfish, you know? I bet they’re still downstairs bitching about it right now!
Jordi: I’m sorry. But like at least now it’s kinda out there and out of the way, right?
Angie: I mean, Carrie was the only one who was even on my side! Because she’s the only one who even sees me as a human being instead of just a kid. And I think Mama B just hates her so much that she doesn’t care about anything else, and she wouldn’t even listen to me—
Jordi interrupts Angie to share breaking news that her English teacher liked her instagram post and tells Angie it’s good that she got through it because now they can focus on “fun stuff.” I for one find Rosie O’Donnell to be very fun!
Tom and Alice have taken a spiritual journey to a vacant stretch of the Pacific Ocean to free the lobsters into the wild beyond!
Don’t worry I’ve disposed of a LOT of toxic chemicals and we definitely will not be getting caught
They then sit their butts on the beach to watch the surf roll in and ponder the dissolution of Alice’s relationship. Tom says for what it’s worth, he thinks Nat’s nuts for not trying to work things out with her. Alice says he’s not so bad himself!
Truly, if you had told 2008 Riese that in 2021 she would be sitting here rooting for Alice to date a boy, she would probably be like…… “wait how the fuck is that show still on.”
Really? You’re a member of A+, Autostraddle’s Membership Program that keeps the website afloat!?
Platinum, baby.
Anyhoo, Alice says the chapter about Dana is her favorite chapter in the book, and that he was able to take it somewhere she couldn’t. Alice says Tom cracked her open in a good way. That’s probably not the only way he can crack her open HEY O!
What, my dearests, are Dani and Gigi up to at this moment? Dani continues to be emotionally vulnerable in a way we have not seen before! She feels separate from her pals, since they all live together and also btw Finley and Sophie fucked in the green room which’s super awk, but she misses Micah. When Gigi asks if Dani’s told Micah that she misses him, Dani says that Gigi sounds like Sophie but Gigi says there’s more out there than just “Sophie” and “not” and that she’ll figure it out.
It’ll be perfect! You, me, two bicycles and the entire Pacific Coast highway!
Dani: Are you hitting on me?
Gigi: [laughs] No. I mean I don’t… think so?
Dani: Okay but you’re not sure.
Gigi: I like your energy.
Dani: I don’t know what that means.
Gigi: Sure you do, it’s what you’re feeling right now.
Dani: Oh.
Gigi: But. If my feelings change, I will let you know. I’m good at that.
Dani: That makes one of us!
You into temperature play?
Gigi would probably accidentally seduce a box of rocks but on COME ON on what planet is she not CLEARLY hitting on Dani?? Bette texts ’cause she’s had a bad day and wants Gigi to come over and make her feel better, but Gigi rejects the offer.
Cut to Shane and Tess’s Poker Palace, where Cherie’s rubbing her foot against Shane’s leg and sliding her hand into Shane’s lap and Tess clocks it all and heads into the backroom to make her escape. Cherrie, to the bewilderment of us all, follows her back there and asks if she can join Tess on her trip home.
“I don’t think you should,” Tess says. “Because I think you should be exactly where you want to be.” Cherie cocks her head, closes the door, and pushes Tess onto the sofa upon which so many misguided lesbians have had sexual relations, including Tess herself!
Lesbian Sexy Moment #5: I Need a Change
The Pick-Up: Cherie’s cocky smile, her closing the door
Hot or Not? Tess resists this absolutely unwise erotic adventure for about 30 seconds before Cherie kisses her way down Tess’s body, hikes up that skirt and goes right to town.
This brings us to…
Sexy Moment #6: Sex Before Marriage
The Pick-Up: Micah does literally pick her up, which is the most classic pick-up of all time
Hot or Not? Yes! I love sex scenes that are hot but also everybody has a sense of humor? Like they are so entirely themselves but also entirely bowled over by desire and general thirst. Micah asks if he can go down on her and she chides, ‘you sure you remember how?” I think he does!!!!!
Angie arrives home and walks right into a time warp in which Bette is wearing an Original Series XL Collar with flared pants and a blazer. Angie wants to go up to bed but her parents ask her to come in for a second.
Is this gonna be another lecture about how marijuana stunts my growth because I’m kinda maxed out on drug facts today
Bette is doing the unprecedented — she is apologizing. She’s sorry for acting out of her own fears and not listening to Angie. She feels ashamed. She feels sorry.
For us as lesbians—
Tina and Bette give Angie their blessing to reach out to Marcus. Angie’s face lights up, she heads towards them, head bobbing and thrilled, “Oh My God. I forgive you, I forgive you. And thank you so much!” They embrace! As a family!
Sophie, inspired by the Elder Dyke Love Story, got sushi from that place they like and has brought it home to enjoy with Finley. But hark! What strange noises beckon from the annals of the back room as she attempts to unpack her dinner! It is our dear Finley, fucking someone else. Sophie looks confused more than hurt, and then trots back upstairs to lie in bed alone, listening to everybody have sex!
I wonder what the risk factor is of taking a second ambien
Sophie pulls her blanket over her head and screams. I wonder if she knows one of those voices is her sister!!!!
We end this week’s journey at Dana’s Memorial Tavern, a place for friends, where Shane’s counting up a stack of cash. There’s a knock at the door, and Shane hides her secrets and guess who’s at the door!!!!!
It’s Cherrie Peroni!!
Sorry I think I left my Chanel Dental Dam case in your office
Cherrie says she dropped Tess off. “You gonna let me in?”
“Is that a good idea?” Shane asks because it is not a good idea.
“Don’t make me beg,” says Cherrie.
Shane opens the door…. TO DANGER
The Round Up:
Squabbles: 2 this episode, 21 total
Sex Scenes: 2 this episode, 6 total
Quote of the Week: “MICAH” (as in when Micah was rambling nervously and Maribel was like ok I’m gonna cut this kid off with a “Micah” and a MAKEOUT)
Pages: 1 2 3See entire article on one page
I just want to say that I’ve been refreshing the website all day waiting for the recap. Right now my excitement level for the recaps is almost the same as for the actual show and my The L Word experience is not full if I don’t read the recap (and later listen to the podcast).
just want to say that i love this for us both
I too was refreshing this page all day (sad for me, complimentary for Riese), especially since I have no one in real life with whom to discuss all my feelings!
Same to both of these!! I have no one irl to talk to about it so I eagerly await the review and podcast!
IT IS A PLEASURE TO BE HERE FOR YOU ALL
1000% agree!!
what a waste of a lobster! also not cutting the bands? wtf. so strange and unnecessary lol
i was thinking about the bands that whole time i was like wow i hope they cut those off and when he asked her if they remembered to cut off the bands i was like fuck they didn’t do it did they
haha truly same I found it very distracting and had to rewatch the scene again to absorb any of it. Threw a small wrench at my Talice ship
I swear it looked like they did, but what do I know about lobsters.
Not cutting off the bands was upsetting and cruel. Who would think to do that. The scene would have otherwise been sweet.
I really hope next season gets more episodes so literally any of these storylines could breathe. So much of it is interesting (well. maybe not whatever’s going on with Sophie’s dad.) but I feel like there’s so much that I actually want to see (like literally everything Angie referenced when talking about her relationship with Kayla) that would help me like…care?
(but also, a morsel of character development for Bette via Micah? amazing.)
right, shows with ensembles this big need at least 12 eps, it’s weird how seasons have gotten shorter and shorter over the past few years. i often forget that season 6 of the original series had 8 episodes because now that’s like… a normal season. and at the time we were like WHAT A SHORT SEASON
If you’re looking for me I’ll be snail mailing my glands, sweetbreads, and variety meats to Gigi. I might be back in time for next week’s episode, or I might be climbing a mountain in tights I’ve been wearing for an indeterminable amount of time.
just be sure if someone offers you mushrooms that you say yes
I haven’t had a chance to read the recap yet but I’ve been waiting all day (sad for me) for your post so I could vent: If 204 made me tear up multiple times, 205 was just painful to watch. Am I the only one who felt like I needed to re-watch Angie’s declaration to Jordi or other positive moments from earlier episodes?
Ahhh. If Sophie so desperate to absolve herself that she takes Finley’s flat, pained affect in the opening sequence at face value? I guess the answer is yes. There is so much construing and missed connections that could just be avoided by actually communicating.
I don’t know about you, Riese, but I’m holding onto Sophie’s voiceover line from the S2 trailer – “I just got scared and I promise, I’m going to try not to be so scared anymore” – and Drew’s observation on the podcast that in a show like this the longer we have to wait for happiness/closure the more likely it is so be substantive and long-lasting… Right? Right?
(Also, is someone finally going to directly acknowledge Finley’s substance abuse issues, please? I find it hard to believe that Micah wouldn’t at least say something, given how attentive his character is to the others?)
I have to assume as episode 5/10 this is the pivot hinge in the season’s narrative pacing? Please, Marja?
On another topic: I was disappointed by what felt like a rushed and rather flat consummation of the budding Micah/Maribel relationship. I think wanted it to be more …. drawn out? Written to be more meaningful? It felt like it happened so (too fast).
Could we just not have Cherie return? Please?
Gigi saved this episode. I appreciate how S2 is fleshing out Dani into a fuller character, in part through the dynamic with Gigi, which I appreciate how it’s charged but also evolving and unpredictable.
Perhaps most importantly: Jordan Hull is so, so good. She saves scene after scene of questionable character behavior and dicey narrative choices in the writing. I was happy to see her bring up race, her experience of Blackness, and privilege. That is not where I thought the therapy conversation was headed but it was a welcome surprise, and also revealed once again that Angie is the most emotionally mature person in the room and gave more depth and complexity to the character’s interest in cultivating a relationship with her donor’s family.
yes!! that voiceover line!!! also “it’s you and me”
re: micah/maribel yeah i was wondering what it is that made maribel even realize/accept micah was into her since she obviously did not pick up on a single signal in prior episodes
I figured Maribel had probably picked up on it but wanted to wait until Micah was sure?
Jordi (for the three scenes we’ve seen of her) is a completely different character this season, both in looks and personality. I get that teenagers change up their style and vibe but she just seems worlds away from the edgy rebel that Angie fell for. Ignoring her girlfriend for her prom queen campaign? For real?
Caitrw it’s refreshing to encounter someone that isn’t bowled over by Cherie. I didn’t like her in the original and her absolute disdain for Shane (and joy in enabling Shane to repeatedly fuck her life up) nullified any “hotness” from their sex scenes. I know I bang on about Tess in my comments but I’m so angry that this is her lot – Shane fucks her girlfriend, triggering a brief relapse, then she starts to find chemistry with Shane, and now the person she’s seeing turns out to be Cherie fucking Jaffe? For real? I was so hoping it was gonna be Helena walking through that door.
Just realised I used “for real?” in two separate paragraphs in two separate contexts. I am suitably ashamed, for real.
Agreed: I do not understand the Cherie defenders, in the OG or now. I also adore Tess and regardless of the outcome of her relationship with Shane (whether it does/should remain friendship/business partners vs romantic) she deserves so much better than this dumpster fire.
A lot of this show feels like people explaining conversations/relationships they are having but we haven’t seen (like Angie and Kayla) or explaining other people’s feelings despite us having never seen why they’d know those things (like Tess and Sinley).
I’m not sure if it’s a way of managing the cast or it’s a writing choice, but I’d much rather actually see the things they’re talking about rather than hearing about the second hand.
I love Carrie though and if Tina breaks her heart, I swear I’ll go back to how I felt about her the first time I watched the show.
yeah it is weird that the one kayla/angie talking-out-loud scene we’ve seen has been, at best, small talk, when there are apparently so many more interesting conversations being had too. the first scene occurring in complete silence behind a glass wall was…. a choice.
i do feel like w/r/t marcus being ill, the choice to have angie reveal it in pieces — to shane and then in therapy instead of us seeing her find out about it was a good one, an effective slow reveal of a mystery for maximum emotional impact.
but like with tess and finley, it would be nice to know if tess is: 1. giving bad advice based on misinterpreting finley’s stories about what sophie has said, 2. giving bad advice based on projecting her own experiences onto finley’s, 3. giving good advice based on her prior conversations with sophie or someone close to her, 4. simply not really paying attention to what finley is actually saying. because those are all very different scenarios!!! and i think that’s hard about the original series and this one (and most tv shows except the REALLY good ones), you never really know what’s intentional and what’s an oversight.
I also thought about Jenny’s writing when Bette said that!!! I feel so validated right now.
Me too! It’s too bad Tim didn’t accept a kidney from Jenny and then forward it on to Marcus Allenwood to resolve this situation.
I know we coulda nipped this RIGHT in the bud
If “for us as lesbians” is the best thing to come out of this season, I’m fine with it.
i think we should make a sticker
The Cherie plot line is even worse than I thought it would be, and my expectations of this show are exceptionally low.
So Tess only just met Cherie the other day and has no real attachment to her, learns that Cherie had a tumultuous relationship with Shane, observes Cherie touching Shane’s leg, decides to leave early over this, and then has sex with Cherie in her workplace after all that? Really? In what universe would this sequence of events occur?
Not only did this make absolutely no sense for Tess, but can the L Word not do better for Shane than recycling the Cherie plot yet again? She already had her post-divorce comeback, there’s nothing left to explore between them.
I was amused to see all of Jordi’s prom competitors named, can’t wait to see where this epic plot goes. One can only assume that bitter rivals Bethany Thompson and Alexa Faggiano will be kidnapped by a gaggle of vampires, German snipers, and demons, who they will have to kill one by one with kitchen implements, only to arrive for the unprecedented double crowning of Jordi and Jessie Yang.
the last paragraph of this comment has murdered me and it is from the great beyond that i say i genuinely have… no idea why tess was still down to hook up with gigi besides maybe like…. low self-esteem and wanting to feel like cherie did still want her and not shane or simply to prevent cherie from hooking up with shane?? this is me trying to put myself in her shoes lol
I love that you accidentally wrote Gigi, that woman is on ALL of our minds
Thank you for that most excellent Buffy reference <3
ok already an a+ member but just donated another $50 to pay tribute to this outstanding bit of comedic critical literature. I beg at your knees.
THANK YOU SO MUCH SINDEELOU2
This episode was painfully boring and emotionless. Easily worst of the season.
Can we all agree we have seen the Daddy Warbucks goes to jail, meets with offspring, discusses company 1 million times too many already? Stop wasting my attention span with this, Gen Q.
On that note, the actress playing Angie’s ability to elicit emotion through her performance is truly the only thing saving the dying biological father subplot. It feels like a strangely complicated and boring way to back into a broader discussion about systemic racism.
Speaking of unnecessary subplots, Cherie. No. Just no. No one asked for this. Let Shane live without imploding for once. Also the more screen time Tess gets, the more confusing her character’s motivations and behavior become. What is the backstory of this human?! What are her values? Her behavior is all over the map and the acting is so poor that it’s all uncomfortable to watch at this point. Can we please let Shane leave this bar and this flat scene partner to explore the light of day!?
Re: partners – totally here for Micah and Maribel but can’t say I felt a single emotion watching them connect so hastily. Just saying, writers, could you have reallocated some of this excruciating Finnly/Sophie build up to an ounce of foreplay for MM? Apparently YESTERDAY she was setting him up and today she’s just ready to bone. Did I miss the step where she connects the dots and reciprocates any amount of emotion or energy before dropping a smooch on the man?
Alice/Scrubs – yes, okay, like this progression.
WHY is everyone on Carrie’s case? What has this woman ever done to any of you other than offer up her steamy buns? More Carrie, always more Carrie.
Can we skip right to the Gigi/Dani sex, because discussing daddy’s finances is killing my boner.
All I can say is that the inevitable Sinnley make up sex better be worth this endless swapping of transgressions, Gen Q. This is 90% of why anyone is watching this show.
SOPHIE THAT IS YOUR SISTER. I AM HORRIFIED BY THIS.
I hate to be harsh, but the actress playing Tess just isn’t very good. The storyline suffers as a result. I also don’t think Micah or Maribel are particularly good. I also hate Cherie coming back. I want more Carrie, more Sophie, more Gigi…let them carry a heavier amount of the story. They have good skills and training
I literally just got dumped today and the first thing I did afterwards was checking if the recap was up because priorities.
I’m not really sure how I feel about this episode (or about anything). I’m not really liking how things are going with Shane and Tess (and Cherie now I guess). It got so messy and it just doesn’t make any sense. Sinley is also a bit of a trainwreck, but maybe by realizing Finley is not just gonna wait lost-kitten-on-the-highway style then maybe Sophie will finally make up her mind on how she feels about her? I’m also hoping they’ll address Finley’s relationship with alcohol soon.
Also, Bette honey are you okay? If being with Gigi is so damn uninteresting to you I can think of a million other women who can gladly fill in for ya, including me lol let me dream…
I gotta say though, I’m loving Dani and Gigi’s dynamics. I love how Gigi is able to bypass Dani’s avoidance in her sexy straghtforward way and everything just flows so well between them. They seem like they are able to be much more real with one another than Dani with Sophie or Gigi with Bette. I’m really looking forward to see how this is gonna evolve!
i want to say simply that i fully support your priorities and i am sorry about your breakup!
and obviously i agree about dani and gigi, aka gini
If I weren’t almost pathologically incapable of crying more than quarterly, Angie would’ve had me bawling this ep. Between Kit and the desperation to just connect with people who really get what she’s going through and not being listened to by anyone but Carrie and Micah…man, the most emotionally mature person on the show is really going through it.
Micahbel! I’m thrilled to see them hookup, but I really wish we’d gotten like three more scenes of them moving in this direction? Or like one scene where Micah had to verbally ask for what he wanted between them.
I’m very into Alice and Tom and very stressed about the banded lobsters.
Also, Gigi uttering the word “space” in Dani’s proximity qualifies as foreplay for them actually. In theory, I want other characters to have more screentime but not at the expense of theirs, as I could watch them sip wine and talk for maybe 5 uninterrupted hours.
Almost forgot, but justice for Carrie! I love her and I hope that she never softens in her resistance to being disrespected by or for Bette.
I’m not pounding the pavement for more Tina scenes but for me, that character will only grow when she allows herself to stop being Bette’s keeper, and puts some small fraction of that energy into protecting Carrie (with enough leftover to be a good mom and a whole person).
yes! it feels like tina has gone backwards w/r/t her deference to bette. idk if this is giving her too much credit for deep character work, but the only explanation to me for why she seems less capable of standing up for carrie in bette’s presence than she did in oh, idk, season 5-6?, could be her guilt for moving away from angie to get space from bette.
You know what I love about Carrie? She’s so real. Like, I’ve met a lot of lesbians who remind me of Carrie. I haven’t met that many Bettes. This show needs some real dykes to round it out and bring some good energy. I want more Carrie giving good hugs and tough advice
Yes yes this, so much this. Carrie deserves better and I hope that Tina actually listens and acts on what Carrie is telling her. I’m worried that what will happen instead is that Tina will keep on putting Carrie third and so gets written off the show.
I agree with all of this. Keep up not tolerating being Bette’s floor mat, Carrie! Although I love Rosie O’donnell in general and as Carrie specifically, and I wan’t her in the show, Tina needs to do better by her! I was never a Tina apologist, and for sure not when Rosie O’donnell is involved!
Also, I am here for Gigi and anyone, of course. But I don’t like her with Dani. It’s nice, but she needs someone more sophisticated and more communicative. She would get bored with Dani in a fortnight, I feel. I liked Gigi and Bette, but Bette is too caught up herself to deserve Gigi. Gigi needs someone real, someone experienced and smart. Someone who demands respect, and who needs to be seen and valued. Someone like Carrie?
omg you just opened my third eye. I like Dani/Gigi personally, but if it didn’t work out and Gigi decided it had run its course…
Riese, question—can we do some math and figure out how many days have been implied to have passed since the season start? Because each episode seems to be occurring the next day. Has it been 5eps of drama over what…like a solid work week? I’m so perplexed by the timeline in universe.
Alice has edited a whole book (to your point)?
Gigi bought an apartment and moved out?
Angie sent and received the results of a 23andme?!
Shane established and built apparently a robust client list for what appears to be nightly poker games? Is Dana’s Tavern and Backroom Sex Lounge only open to the public like once a week?
What is time on this show?!? I’m so disturbed by this.
Also… Sophie hasn’t seen Finley for a few days since standing her up for ex-sex in Ojai, but Shane and Tess’s almost kiss was… yesterday?
I seriously think that The L Word having absolutely no coherent sense of the passage of time is canon, and the Gen Q writers are honoring the original series by sticking with that.
Dani and Gigi’s dynamic is my emotional support animal
I love how much Alice and Turk (I know his name is Tom but I still call him Turk) can be so dorky around each other.
I was so happy for Micah and Mirabel although it definitely escalated faster than expected. I guess that’s the thing with this season; this timeline is just all over the place?
Finally, can Dani and Gigi just happen? The chemistry is just there in every friggin’ scene.
Dani & Gigi is the only interesting thing.
Bette’s attitude towards Gigi was inappropriate and unfair.
And Alice’s story is so boring…They must give her a new girlfriend or they must bring back Tasha
Also not here for the Bette slander.
Truly, if you had told 2008 Riese that in 2021 she would be sitting here rooting for Alice to date a boy, she would probably be like…… “wait how the fuck is that show still on.”
thank you this is everything
I can’t believe that I’m saying this… but I think that we should cut Tina some slack lol. It’s kind of an impossible situation to be caught between Angry!Bette, Angie, Micah, Marcus Allenwood, and Carrie. And to be fair, she was gone for some of Bette’s harshest attacks on Carrie.
It was also telling that throughout the episode, Carrie was all like: “Let’s make a break for it. *I* need a massage. That was horrible for *me*.”
Which, yes, Bette was awful to Carrie. But in the grand scheme of things, Carrie’s comments tended to center herself and her relationship with Tina. And yes, Carrie is Carrie and engayged to Tina… so naturally that makes sense. But if the writers wanted to make the point that Carrie is a long-term member of this family… I’m not so sure. Perhaps they would have had Carrie show more concern for Angie’s emotions/situation… or, again, Tina’s impossible situation!
Bette’s deficiencies (and Carrie’s responses) are a separate question from the most pressing matter at hand: Angie’s donor, Marcus, is dying and she has a lot of feelings about it!!
YES! I haven’t seen anyone else address this but Carrie really did make a lot of it about her. Instead of being sympathetic about how it might be affecting Tina, she just complained about how hard it was for HER. That really bothered me. I wish we had gotten to see a little more happy Carrie and Tina before the wheels came off the bus. But, here we are. They are not long for this world, but I hope they find a way to keep Rosie in the mix somehow.
Okay yes this is fair, it was a lot that she was immediately centering her own reactions to everything that happened instead of talking to tina about how she felt about what just happened
I just watched the episode and going through comments and finally someone! thank you!!!
This episode felt like a return to Gen Q’s signature features: odd narrative choices and rushed storylines. Why on earth would Black Lives Matter make Angelica want to give her kidney to her donor? It is so clear there are no Black people on the writing staff, lol. Y’all noticed how she couldn’t even say the word “Black”? “I look more like Kit than you.”—I’m sorry, but that line is so silly. In one fell swoop the writers have allowed a Black girl to make a nonsensical decision to save someone they elected to kill (there’s no reason Marcus has to be dying, except that he’s Black, lmao) while ignoring the boundary T and B set with Marcus years ago (i.e., Angie won’t reach out til she’s 18.) Oh, and Kit is still dead because they fridged her to advance Bette’s doomed mayoral campaign (sorry, scheduling conflicts are not a good enough reason to kill a central character, and the only Black main character from the original series). Kill it with fire.
Micah and Maribel’s hook up was cool but it felt totally unearned. As with Micah’s relationship with Jose, we have no sense of their connection. Yes, they joke around together. We still don’t know enough about either of them in terms of past relationships, aspirations, etc.
Tom and Alice have no sexual chemistry whatsoever. The Cherie thing is played. Gigi is amazing, but does Dani *deserve* her? As in, has she done the self-work that will allow her to enter into the kind of mature, elevated partnership that Gigi is capable of? Survey says no.
Tl;dr—This show is so frustrating!
Seamless references to both A League of Their Own AND The Little Mermaid in a single recap?! Bravo, Riese.
THANK U SO MUCH
i’m reading all of the comments and feel like i completely disagree with everything everyone else is saying and now i’m just overall confused about the way i watched the show.
i find carrie absolutely infuriating and just wish her character would stop being on the show. she interrupts and centers herself at the weirdest times without any respect for the fact that she barely knows Angie and is not responsible for speaking up in a group setting like that. Then she suggests running away and ditching the therapy session– the whole thing felt so weird to me and every time her character is on screen i resist the urge to fast forward.
I love tom and alice together and think they have great on screen chemistry. plus, alice finally being okay with dating a man is a huge development for the show and feels very realistic.
I personally love Tess as a character, and maybe i’m distracted by how hot she is but i honestly feel like she brings the most to all of the scenes with her in it. her reactions were a bit confusing in this episode but i felt it was intentionally left unclear to be revealed in a big explosion later.
i also loved cherrie in the original and think she’s one of the main people i’d want to see back so i’m happy!
First of all, thank you Riese for these recaps!
Last week when Tess mentioned she had met someone, combined with the prospect of another poker night, combined with the prospect of Rachel Shelley’s return, I had my hopes up for it being Helena. While I liked Cherie in the OG series, I can’t imagine this story line evolving into something intelligent for both Shane and tess’s character development..
And omg Carrie, totally agree with J!! Why on earth would anybody want to be in a relationship with a Carrie. She’s so self centered and whiney. Also, I don’t see the chemistry between Rosie and laurel.. With the way Tina responded to Carrie (“you are the one who wanted to get married”), I am curious where this is going. BTW love Tina as a co parent and abfab mom.
Hate the way Bette treats Gigi, but it’s in character and I do feel it’s centered around them both (eventually) growing from it. Or is that wishful thinking..? Or just utterly naive…
Have a lot of thoughts about everybody else, but will spare you my ramblings..
omg wow it didn’t even occur to me that it could’ve been helena!
Thinking way too much about fictional characters here:
Tina has been Bette’s handler for a long time- so long that she’s continuing to do it even though they’re not together. As sweet and kind as Carrie can be, I was glad to hear her stand up for herself. She may love Tina, but she needs to be treated with respect.
I’ve always been TiBette, but with the hope that Tina would start prioritizing herself. I thought the relationship with Carrie was great in that it got her to see another life where she had a voice.
Riese those stock photo profiles were all dreamboats my god
THANK YOU
Coincidence or not: The writers echoing Carmen’s love confession (thanks Mark!) from “Late, Later, Latent” in the OG series in that discussion with the older couple?
I WONDERED THAT TOO!!!!
I loved that faux dating profiles riese made up with these odd fave things combo in the taglines…funny thing is these woman with these kind of taglines in their profile are really out there… Lol’d so much bravo ,riese. But why are
vegans triggering for alice?
I thought vegans were triggering for everyone. No, jk of course. Wasn’t that lady Alice was dating in the first season of the original vegan? She tasted Alice badly? Can’t remember her name. Gwen? Gabby! Otherwise, I don’t know.
because of jamie!!! from season 6. she was vegan. she was the girl they met at the LGBTQ center who ended up having feelings for Tasha and vice versa.
Great recap as usual, Riese! This was great, and I loved you putting those pictures of Jenny in, talking about her organs and sweetmeats. Thanks. I also LOVE Micah and Maribel! That was such a great scene, and giving the person using a wheelchair a romantic interest (and on-screen sex) is the right thing for this show. I’m all about Micah and Maribel! She’s funny.
I would like to ship Gigi and Carrie, immediately, just so you know.
Thanks again!
“Don’t use my bat! Use Marla’s. It’s heavier!”
HAHAHAHAHA!
Such a great episode but this recap was EVEN better!
Wow, Nat is dating Brenda now? The heart doctor with augmented breasts?
(Had to go back and check my details on this character, and no wonder Alice doesn’t remember Brenda! She had skipped the opening night of SheBar to go to that secret gay party with Tasha and was busy taking photos of Darryl Brewer.)
Unlike (almost) everyone else here I really liked this episode! This is the kind of chaos I’m here for!
I have actually donated a kidney (it’s great, I highly recommend it) so I’m always interested to see where a kidney donation storyline goes. They are usually so badly done! Riese is right that they would never let a 17-year-old donate. Is there really no one else who would be able to donate? You don’t have to be related to the recipient! Also if Marcus Allenwood is in such a bad shape that he is already DYING he would probably not be a good candidate for a kidney transplant anyway. But here we are. I’d love to see one of the adults step in and donate on behalf of Angie!
i feel like the short seasons mean that they are not giving quite the right amount of timing to anything, and that’s why the micah/mirabelle thing seemed rushed — but i don’t mean they needed another episode, i think they literally could have just given micah’s speech another few seconds of “and i just wanted you, i just needed to come home and talk to…you” and mirabelle sits there realizing and kisses him.
last episode, or maybe the one before, they also needed to give bette’s moment looking at pippa’s art in the museum more room to breathe, in order to give us an actual measure of impactfulness that would rival the moment in peggy peabody’s hotel suite from the original series. all we need are seconds! the editing is just too rushed.
“‘you sure you remember how?””
ngl this line is kind of homophobic and weird about bi people. Like, yeah he just had a boyfriend and hooked up with a guy, so what? That doesn’t mean Micah doesn’t remember how to have sex with women.
Really? That was like my favourite line!
i didn’t think it was biphobic- he’s clearky not exclusively gay, women with disabilitiesz are actual women, not some third asexual gender. (nothing wrong with being a 3rd gender, ppl who identify that don’t often call themselves ‘women’ and we have no indication Mirabel is anything but cishet.) I interpreted it more as a joke about how much more often she dates/hooks up than his sulky ass.
This article lead me to the all time sex scenes list led me to watching the Alice/Tasha scenes in Lexington & Concord, which is officially the only L Word I’ve ever watched in my life and also WOW this show is just really hot or really awkward softcore porn with excuses huh?? a lot of conversations with other people where they talk about lesbians being catty cheating sex-driven skinny white girls suddenly make a STUNNING amount of sense in the hindsight where this was the only exposure they had to queer women in media when they were teens
anyway I subscribed to A+ because of this piece thanks for writing
21 SQUABBLES goddamn I didn’t even realize this season was that full of arguments
I’m a lifelong lover of the L Word and its drama, but think this season’s doing way too much! Just gotta vent a tad. The family drama storylines don’t have room to exist & make sense with so many breakups & new relationships happening simultaneously. Maybe they could’ve saved some of that for (🤞🏼) season 3? Every storyline just seems underdeveloped & lacking feel-y & fun moments that MAKE the L word. Carrie frustrates me & seems overstepping, but apparently she has this unique relationship w/ Angie we hear about but don’t see. I want to see it! Also yes Cherrie’s kinda the worst lol, but I think her moment would’ve been more fun if we weren’t already exhausted by other plot whiplash moments.
Still excited to see what they do w/ the season’s 2nd half! Maybe this is just Gen Q’s season 6 and we’ll look back on it w/ a collective cringelaugh after a many seasons run ;)
I want Dani and Sophie back together but at the same time I don’t because they both don’t really open up as much as they should. But I feel bad for Finley because it seems like she’s there as sophies friend and when sophie wants her as more than a friend she’s there but then her hopes get high and then Sophie goes back to keeping her just as a friend.
But I really want Sophie and Dani back together but it shouldn’t be rushed it should be one of those where it starts going slower. They start talking about their feelings more and Dani should be a little cautious around Finley I don’t judge her for that but that’s why they should go slow to re build trust and everything so they can go back to being in a better relationship.
I miss them together
I want Dani and Sophie back together but at the same time I don’t because they both don’t really open up as much as they should. But I feel bad for Finley because it seems like she’s there as sophies friend and when sophie wants her as more than a friend she’s there but then her hopes get high and then Sophie goes back to keeping her just as a friend.
But I really want Sophie and Dani back together but it shouldn’t be rushed it should be one of those where it starts going slower. They start talking about their feelings more and Dani should be a little cautious around Finley I don’t judge her for that but that’s why they should go slow to re build trust and everything so they can go back to being in a better relationship.
I miss them together
Ppl keep commenting that they’d be more okay with Mirabel/Micah’s sex scene if the show had drawn out flirting, then kissing, then foreplay then sex. And yet how many times on both OG and Gen x do couples have sex the first time they hook up? Even when thry’d literally never met before? I ay a good 90% Are ya’ll sure you don’t need some pearl-grasping time to steel yourselves before that being- as several commentors said, “forced” or “thrust” (haha) on you?
Also I’ve read several post calling Mirabel Sophie’s “?little sister”. Do we know for sure she’s younger? Cuz she’s supposed to be a high powered lawyer and Sophie just got offered her first real gig. Obvs careers can be zig-saggy but I’m curious what prompted ppl to conclude that birth order.
came here two months late just to say, gurl, sophie, OBVIOUSLY if you leave your bedroom door open you’re going to be able to hear your housemates having sex!! give yourself a fighting chance, jesus!!!