Idle Thoughts--Mother Love/Farewell, Amanda (5/5-5/9)

Fashion notes first . . .

And modeling the Fred Rogers look, we have Michael! Loved that cardigan . . . NOT.

Angelique's hair looks like a souffle (this is not a good thing). Really quite unflattering coat with the fur trim. The ice blue dress was a good color, but the fabric and the cut looked cheap.

Holy Mother of God. Where did they get the bellboy's uniform? Radio City Music Hall?

Onto the shows . . .

Sky. Well. He's very good looking (long pause). You have to wonder just what it was about him that appealed to Angelique (and before anyone gets catty and mentions money, she really does seem to have feelings for him).

People who cheat at board games. Well, I don't need to go on.

I love how there are lit candles in the deserted secret passageways. Uh huh.

The Leviathans keep having problems with their leader there. Instead of dealing with him, they keep aging him and he gets more and more uncontrollable--you would think that this would occur to someone . . .

All this oedipal stuff is extremely icky, but it's also very effective. Usually, that is. Sometime it's like watching Eddie Haskell and Mrs. Cleaver doing Hamlet or some sort of sick Freudian drama. On the other hand, we had that very interesting moment between Michael and Megan when she mentioned Carolyn and his reaction was positively pornographic.

Michael falls ill. Again, I marvel. In a town that boasts a hospital and an ambulance service, people phone a shrink when someone experiences a serious medical emergency, they telephone the shrink. I realize that this is probably why they chose her so the call to her works here (this one time only).

But. Contrary to all common sense, potential liability issues, concern for the patient etc. Julia rushes to the scene, without calling the ambulance herself. That doesn't work.

And while we're at it. Megan has been giving off all kinds of signals all along that she's unbalanced. In Julia's presence, which you would think that Julia, being a psychiatrist would have picked up on a long time ago, but instead she keeps provoking Megan.

Loved Mrs. Purdy with her ratty bathrobe and her birdcage. Nice characterization on the part of the writers and Camilla Ashland.

Gee, when I host a dinner party, the most I ever get is a bottle of wine or a bunch of flowers. Nobody ever bought me an antique (guess, I need to get me a new set of friends  )

I can't get too excited about the Leviathans taking over the world. How can you when the leader gets the inspired notion that he's not going to be dead anymore after the doctor's signed the death certificate and he's supposed to be buried and all.

Paul makes me laugh. I know it's mean, but he does. Take the money and the clothes and get out of Dodge, man.

Then there's Liz, happily swapping labels on her ex's meds. Nothing quite like taking up a new hobby in your declining years. Pharmacy is something that anyone can do!

I loved the meeting of the Leviathans. It's like they're planning a committee for the PTA or something, albeit more enthusiastically than they usually do in those organizations.

Oh, Paul, no. Don't go to the antique shop. LEAVE TOWN!!!

Thank God, they did not show us what the Leviathan's true form looked like. Best thing they could have not done because it would have looked terrible. Sound effects were a good option, all things considered.

Hello? Paul's in shock. I'm no doctor, but I do believe there are certain things that you're supposed to do for the person in shock, like right away, no? Blankets and things, right? Does the all-purpose medical professional do any of this? No, they prop the guy on a couch and have a long discussion before they even fling an afghan at him.

Amanda's angst really doesn't move me. She had 72 years. No health problems. No debilitating illnesses. Complete use of her faculties. The rest of us poor slobs have to go through life aging and suffering and get no guarantee that we're ever going to find love sooooo--why the hell should I care about Amanda?

The hotel lobby/stopping off place is just weird. There's this restaurant in Buffalo. It's called Salvatore's Italian Gardens and it's unbelievably bizarre. Statues and bronzes and all this overdone art and velvet and crap everywhere you turn--much of it genuine, you understand, but the type of thing where one piece would make a huge impact, but fifty pieces just looks tacky. I'm watching these scenes with the hotel lobby and all I can think is, it's Salavatore's, but marginally more tasteful. Not working for me.

Really, really bored with this whole Orpheus and Eurydice ripoff. Aside from the fact that I never got behind the love story that is Quentin and Amanda, the attempt at this set and the dangers was unfortunate. Plus, can Amanda be anymore of a girl? Egads. The chick from The Blair Witch Project had more on the ball than she does.

Bye bye Amanda 

Amanda's angst really doesn't move me. She had 72 years. No health problems. No debilitating illnesses. Complete use of her faculties. The rest of us poor slobs have to go through life aging and suffering and get no guarantee that we're ever going to find love sooooo--why the hell should I care about Amanda?

This part makes sense to me.  It's not just that she's not ready to die.  But she's been looking for Quentin all this time and is on the verge of getting him when this happens.

However, given all she's gone through to get him, when she's on the verge of really having him, all she can do is complain and want to turn back?!!!!

This part makes sense to me.  It's not just that she's not ready to die.  But she's been looking for Quentin all this time and is on the verge of getting him when this happens.

Oh, I understand why she's upset. I just don't understand why we, the audience, are supposed to be so sympathetic 

Holy mother of God. Where did they get the bellboy's uniform? Radio City Music Hall?

LOL!!  Now that you've mentioned it he did look like he belonged at Radio City with that outfit on!

The Leviathans keep having problems with their leader there. Instead of dealing with him, they keep aging him and he gets more and more uncontrollable--you would think that this would occur to someone . . .

Exactly!!    Apparently they've never heard of the old saying, "small kids small problems, big kids bigger problems.    Did they honestly believe he would improve as he got older?!

And while we're at it. Megan has been giving off all kinds of signals all along that she's unbalanced. In Julia's presence, which you would think that Julia, being a psychiatrist would have picked up on a long time ago, but instead she keeps provoking Megan.

And not just Julia, what about everyone else?  If someone had treated me the way Megan had treated Carolyn I would have said sayonara long ago!

Hello? Paul's in shock. I'm no doctor, but I do believe there are certain things that you're supposed to do for the person in shock, like right away, no? Blankets and things, right? Does the all-purpose medical professional do any of this? No, they prop the guy on a couch and have a long discussion before they even fling an afghan at him.

Funny how we never once heard Julia mention the word "Wyncliff" to him.

The hotel lobby/stopping off place is just weird. There's this restaurant in Buffalo. It's called Salvatore's Italian Gardens and it's unbelievably bizarre. Statues and bronzes and all this overdone art and velvet and crap everywhere you turn--much of it genuine, you understand, but the type of thing where one piece would make a huge impact, but fifty pieces just looks tacky. I'm watching these scenes with the hotel lobby and all I can think is, it's Salavatore's, but marginally more tasteful. Not working for me.

Makes you wonder where they really were?  If that was suppose to be some kind of Heaven then howcome no body was happy to be there?   That bellboy did nothing but complain and remeniss about his past life and Amanda, well, Amanda just plainly always complains!!

  Good writing as always Luciaphil!

Cassandra