Best of 2023

Courtesy of The Central Digest

I realize I didn't blog here a lot this year, and when I did, it was about pop culture. I also realize my last post was in September. I've been mostly sharing about stuff on Facebook and Instagram these days. I haven't even posted about my trip to NYC this past summer. It's been that kind of year, I suppose...

New TV shows that I enjoyed in 2023 (in no particular order):

Bad Sisters

Nine Perfect Strangers: It followed the book pretty well overall and I liked the White Lotus feel.

Shrinking: Well done show with all the feels. Harrison Ford deserves an Emmy for his role.

Acapulco

Why Women Kill

XO, Kitty: Fun and cute. I definitely want to see what happens next.

Not Dead Yet: I adore this show and am so glad it got a second season!

Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies

Somebody Somewhere

The Other Two

The Bear: Took me a while to warm to it but now I want it to continue!

Tiny Beautiful Things: Really well thought out show with incredible acting by Kathryn Hahn.

Jury Duty: Really funny, especially with how James Marsden was acting as himself.

Lessons in Chemistry

The Flatshare

Sullivan's Crossing: If you watched this show, I'd love to discuss!

Series I'm sad to say goodbye to:

Riverdale

A Million Little Things

Manifest (this post is about season one)

Never Have I Ever  (this post is about season one)

Ted Lasso (this post is about the first two seasons)

Workin' Moms (this post is about seasons one - four)

Favorite movies from 2023:

A Man Called Otto

Theater Camp: This movie is so good! If you haven't seen it yet, drop what you're doing and watch it right now!

Are You There G-d? It's Me, Margaret.

Red White and Royal Blue

Happiness for Beginners

Quiz Lady: Really cute and funny story about two sisters trying to save their dog. I highly recommend it.

Runners up:

Barbie: It was good but not something I want to see more than once.

Wish: I enjoyed it, but I still felt like something was missing.

Elemental: For all the great artistry, I found the story lacking.

Side note: I don't see a lot of movies so the ones that are currently popular have not made this list as a result of just not seeing them yet.

Top 10 Books I read this year:

See my top five picks at Chick Lit Central, as well! I read so many amazing books this year (go to my Goodreads page and see all the five-star books) and am sad to have to narrow it down at all. Links are to reviews.

1. Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

2. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

3. If I See You Again Tomorrow by Robbie Couch

4. The Women by Kristin Hannah

5. New Adult by Timothy Janovsky

6. In the Lives of Puppets by T.J. Klune

7. The Trail of Lost Hearts by Tracey Garvis Graves

8. What You Do to Me by Rochelle B. Weinstein

9. The Spectacular by Fiona Davis

10. Someone Else's Shoes by Jojo Moyes

Theater:

I got to see Something Rotten again (twice: once at a professional theater and once at a college)

Into the Woods (Touring from Broadway)

Jagged Little Pill (Tour)

Les Miserables (first time since 2005, they changed a lot in terms of the set)

Beetlejuice (Tour)

Kimberly Akimbo (Broadway)

Shucked (Broadway)

Moulin Rouge (Broadway)

I also got to see Ragtime again for the first time in 25 years. (Regional professional theater)

Spring Awakening (Saw at a small independent theater featuring high school students)

Avenue Q (Saw at the same theater as Spring Awakening, but featuring adults, including a teacher from my younger son's school)

My older son and I saw a musical about Audrey Hepburn, as well. It was interesting but went a bit long. (Small independent theater)

My family and I saw a production of Young Frankenstein. I was lukewarm on it but my younger son has been listening to the music ever since we saw it. (Community theater.)

There is more good theater in store for '24, including Company!

Highlights from 2023:

My daughter's Bat Mitzvah.

The NYC trip with my older son. (See above about the shows we saw.) I also loved going to Museum of Broadway.

Seeing my daughter in her camp shows this past summer. She owned the stage every time she was on.

Meeting Wade Rouse (a.k.a. Viola Shipman), Jean Meltzer, and Sara Goodman Confino. (Authors I adore!)

With Jean Meltzer

With Sara Goodman Confino

With Wade (R) and his husband Gary (L)

Pittsburgh trip with my family, which included getting to see "Will."

Seeing my older son in all his shows. He was especially amazing in his recent high school play, portraying a new role that no one had ever seen before and really making it his own. I also love how his improv troupe completely re-created a favorite experience from my 20s.

Visiting family in Chicago a couple times and seeing my nephew and some close friends. 

The amazing besherte timing that allowed me to meet my best friend's baby shortly after he was born.

My younger son getting his learner's permit (that just happened though, so I have yet to experience his driving skills). He's also been really into astronomy lately and I love seeing how passionate he is about it.

Making some new friends this year: One was through a cousin and one was due to my love of Kimberly Akimbo. 

Getting to see my sister-in-law this summer, even if it was only for a short period of time. I also enjoyed meeting her fiance. 

Taking on some new responsibilities at work, including the newsletter, which I'm enjoying.

Things from social media that made me smile:

Ayo Cheetah. These cooking videos are hilarious! 

Gen X Women are Sick of Your Sh-t. Great place to go for all things nostalgic.

On the down side:

The past few months of 2023 have been horrific. I wrote a post a while back about something very similar to what is happening now, but it captures my current feelings so accurately.

I hope 2024 only brings good things to everyone!

This is something I'm excited for, but dreading at the same time. Never mind that it will be 30 years since I graduated high school... (And no, I am NOT going to my reunion! Good thing I have no need to punish myself.)

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A Big Dale: Thoughts on the final season of Riverdale

 

Courtesy of Archieverse Wiki

I first want to say how much I am really going to miss Riverdale now that it has ended. I initially watched it out of curiosity, but then I easily became obsessed and couldn't get enough of it. I know a lot of it was bizarre and farfetched, but I love it anyway. I got so emotionally invested in this series and would get so worried for the characters each week. I feel like there won't be any other teen shows like Riverdale going forward. It's truly one of a kind. I looked forward to watching it every week after I binged the first six seasons. I couldn't wait for it to come back after a long break, but season seven made it worth the wait, as you will soon see in this post...

All seven seasons are now available to binge on Netflix, if you haven't yet seen Riverdale and want to check it out. 

Before you go on to reading this post, check out my previous two about Riverdale:

Thoughts on seasons 1-3

Thoughts on seasons 4-6

You can also check out the post my friend Sara and I did for Chick Lit Central last fall. (I just realized I predicted something in that post!)

Also, I got to meet Casey Cott a few weeks ago! He was fabulous in Moulin Rouge on Broadway.

Read ahead for SPOILERS....

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As you know by now, season seven went into an entirely different direction from the previous six. It took place entirely in the 1950s and there wasn't anything all that supernatural going on, with the exception of Angel Tabitha trying to untangle all the time loops. 

Courtesy of Collider

Overall, I liked season seven. A lot more than I was expecting to. Even with it being set in a different time period and no one remembering anything from before (except for Jughead, which only lasted for the first episode). It was definitely woke and I appreciated that. I also felt that it was incredibly relevant to everything going on in current times, especially when it comes to racism, homophobia, and censorship. I even liked some of the changes to the characters' personalities. Veronica seemed friendlier and more easygoing than before. Reggie wasn't as much of a bully. Cheryl started off as a mean girl but then mellowed out from that persona. Ethel seemed more confident, in general. Hal Cooper wasn't a murderer. You get my drift... 

I like that they kept Cheryl and Kevin as LGBTQ characters. I love Clay as a match for Kevin. They were really sweet together. I am also glad Choni was a thing again. 

Courtesy of Decider

I didn't get why they had to get rid of Jason and have Julian as Cheryl's brother this time around. He was such a jerk too. I totally forgot that Julian was the name of the creepy doll in the present time. It also seemed weird to have Evelyn back on the show as an actual teenager, since she was Edgar's wife who was posing as a teenager in the present.

There were definitely a bunch of villains this season, but they weren't as powerful as ones from the present. Nothing comes to being as awful as Percival Pickens, regardless of how menacing they tried to make the evil characters this season. I'm talking about Principal Featherbottom, Dr. Werthers, and Clifford Blossom. Alice Cooper was awful for most of the season, but I like that she finally came around to being a decent person. The evil stuff was more in relation to the relevancy to current times. All the censorship, homophobia, racism, etc. That was perperated by the evil characters big time. I also thought it was so creepy that Dr. Werthers was asking Betty about sex and then getting turned on by it. 

I had a feeling the milkman was connected to the evil characters. One of my friends had thought it was Hal being a serial killer again, but I had a feeling the milkman was summoned by Featherbottom or Werthers. I didn't know that Clifford was the mastermind or what the connection was to the people he had sent him to kill. So that was at least surprising. 

A lot of season seven reminded me of Spring Awakening. Especially everything going on with Betty. (There was also a Pleasantville feel to the season, especially a certain episode...) So it's too bad the season was set in the 1950s or they could have finally done that musical. Then again, they did some songs from Rocky Horror, which didn't come out until the 1970s...

Courtesy of @ArchieComics

It was nice that they could bring back people from the dead, but also bittersweet that they couldn't do that with Fred Andrews. They found a reasonable way to explain him being dead again though. Hiram was also not as evil this time around, even though he wasn't such a good husband or father. 

Archie and Jughead's friendship was missing this season. They didn't really interact much, if at all. Meanwhile, Archie had a bromance going on with Reggie instead. I also wasn't feeling anything between Jughead and Veronica. Maybe I'm just too biased toward Bughead, but I thought even Ethel and Jughead had more chemistry. 

I love that Veronica bought the Babylonium. It was such a cool movie theater. It reminded me of when I was in college and would go to this restored old movie theater to see indie films and classics. 

I still think Jughead is hot. Even in fifties clothes with his hair combed back and a crown hat instead of a beanie. And even when he's saying stuff like "gosh," "golly," and "gee whiz" or something along those lines. 

Courtesy of TVLine

How did Archie and Betty get caught stripteasing in front of their windows? Like someone would have had to stand outside and look up into either window to see what was going on. Also, why didn't they lock their doors?

I hate to sound snobby, but I wasn't a fan of Archie's poetry. It was mostly rhymes and a lot of it was awkward. I wish his uncle hadn't ripped up the poem about his dad because that actually had substance. I don't even get why it made his uncle so mad. The worst was his poem about Ms. Grundy. Cringe!

I liked the whole situation with finding out that Betty and Ethel were half sisters. That was an interesting turn of events and it also explained a lot about why Alice was so difficult most of the season. I'm glad the truth finally came out and that it brought Alice and Betty closer as a result. 

I loved Betty and Veronica's dynamic. I also enjoyed seeing them kiss. I know a Jarchie kiss wasn't going to happen because it was too hot, but Betty and Veronica were hot together too. The scene where they're about to kiss before Mary barged into the Pembroke was just full of anticipation and chemistry.

I like how Jughead and Ethel had their secret comic book sale at Pop's. I was so sad when they got caught and the comics got confiscated and burned. 

The musical Kevin tried to put together was pretty good, so I was sad when they were told they had to do Oklahoma instead. I loved the song Betty and Veronica did together even though Kevin didn't write that one. The ones he wrote reminded me of Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies. (That show is perfect for anyone who liked season seven of Riverdale.) 

Courtesy of TVLine

It was nice to see some people come back who had been away for a while, like Josie, Polly, Ms. Grundy, and Mr. Weatherbee. It was even fun to see Hiram again, I will admit.

I didn't like how Veronica yelled at Kevin and Clay in the Josie episode. It wasn't their fault the film had broken. She didn't even apologize to them afterward, at least not that I can remember, but she just acted like it never happened. 

I love how everyone was able to make fun of themselves after they all saw the videos of what life was like in the present. They had to have watched all six seasons, so how did they do it so fast? Either way, the one poem of Archie's that I liked was the one in the final episode that also made fun of things from the present. The best line was about the two Reggies. I was laughing so much from that. Especially after the meta moment in season six. 

Courtesy of US Weekly

I was slightly disappointed that Angel Tabitha couldn't bring them all back to the present and felt like getting to watch the videos was a consolation prize. I am glad they had good lives going forward, but it's sad that they couldn't enjoy the present in the same way since they were so much older by then.

The final episode was well done, but bittersweet. It reminded me of Six Feet Under and Peggy Sue Got Married. Betty's farewell to Riverdale made me think of Goodnight Moon. I loved the quad! I know there has been some pushback against it, but it satisfied my need for Bughead to get back together and also for Betty and Veronica to get really close. I also liked that there was a lot of closure for the characters. It's sad that Fangs died so young though. At least he left behind a legacy, but still. I liked that Cheryl and Toni named their son Dale. ;) 

I know this was all so random, but I would love to hear your thoughts on the final season!

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A Great Adventure: Thoughts on Kimberly Akimbo

 

"When opportunity knocks. When possibility calls..." You get tickets to see Kimberly Akimbo and you get to enjoy every second of the experience! (Trust me, it will make your sh*tty life better. ;) ) 

I had been listening to the Original Broadway Cast recording of Kimberly Akimbo for most of this past year and have really gotten to know the songs well and enjoy them more and more with each listen. So I was really curious to see how they would play out on stage and what would actually happen in the story. I can tell you that listening to the music is not going to spoil anything because you're still going to be plenty surprised! 

The show tells the story of a lonely teenage girl, Kimberly Levaco, who suffers from a condition similar to progeria that causes her to age rapidly, thereby giving her the appearance of an elderly woman, and how, according to Playbill, "[f]orced to maneuver family secrets, borderline personalities, and possible felony charges, Kim is determined to find happiness in a world where not even time is on her side." (Synopsis courtesy of Wikipedia.)

There's so much more to the story than the synopsis implies. It's full of many ups and downs, really funny moments, and some heartbreaking ones too. I loved it from the moment it started and walked out of the theater exhiliarated by the experience! We had almost the entire original cast, except for Victoria Clark, who normally plays Kimberly. In her place, we had Colleen Fitzpatrick, who did a marvelous job in the lead role. My main goal was to see Bonnie Milligan play Debra and I got my wish. She was even better than I was expecting her to be and I had high expectations. She definitely earned that Tony! Justin Cooley also delivered as Seth and was even more awkward than he sounds just from the songs. I loved him for that. Everyone in this intimately sized cast was amazing though. I loved the four teenagers and all their interactions with each other. The best part is when Debra calls them out on it, but that's all I will say... 

On the side doors, they have pictures and descriptions of all the teenagers, including Kimberly, of course!

The set was really well put together. It would shift smoothly between a house (as well as the basement of the house), a school, and an ice rink. The costume changes happened on stage sometimes. Kimberly would wear a robe over her clothes to go to bed and then would take the robe off in the morning to reveal her outfit. I liked the costumes a lot too. They were simple but they gave off the feel for the time period. 

As I mentioned before, it was cool to see how some of the songs played out on stage. Especially with the context behind them. This was especially true for "This Time," "How to Wash a Check," "Our Disease," and "The Inevitable Turn." (The latter is one of my favorites and seeing it performed made me love it even more than I already do.)

If you're looking for something new and different to see on Broadway, you've come to the right place! It should be touring in the next year or so; don't miss out if it comes to a city near you. Definitely a rewarding production in every way possible. If you want to get a feel for the music and see the camaraderie of the cast, check out the Tiny Desk Concert. (A different actor is playing Seth, but he's still good.)

After the show, we stage-doored and met almost all the cast. The only two who didn't come out were Colleen Fitzpatrick (Kimberly) and Nina White (Teresa). Everyone was so nice too!

Olivia Elease Hardy (Delia)

Fernell Hogan II (Martin)

Steven Boyer (Buddy, Kimberly's dad)

Alli Mauzey (Pattie, Kimberly's mom)

Justin Cooley (Seth)

Bonnie Milligan (Debra, Kimberly's aunt)

Michael Iskander (Aaron)

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Corny, but A-maize-ing: Thoughts on Shucked

 

Earlier this spring, my older son introduced me to the music from Shucked. I had heard bits and pieces, but I wasn't prepared for how much fun the Original Broadway cast recording would be. It's a whole lotta country music, but that's my jam! I found myself listening to it every so often whenever I was out driving. The music is catchy and gets into my head a lot. So when my son and I were choosing shows to see during our Broadway trip, Shucked definitely made the list! And, of course, we both loved it!

The set is simple and rustic looking, but it captures the feel of the show. (Somewhere north of south and south of north.) We were sitting in the upper mezzanine, so we got a great view of the entire stage. 

Maizy and Beau, two residents of the rural Midwestern community of Cobb County, are forced to postpone their wedding when the corn crop is blighted. Maizy, on the advice of her cousin Lulu, the local whiskey distiller, leaves town to try to find a way to save their corn. Maizy travels to Tampa, Florida, where she meets Gordy Jackson, a con-man who claims he can help, but secretly thinks Cobb County might have riches he can take to settle his debts. When the two return, Gordy comes into conflict with both Beau and Lulu, which leads to some interesting situations. (Synopsis adapted from Wikipedia.)

What I didn't expect was how gosh darn funny the show was going to be. I only knew stuff from the songs, and there's a nice mix of humor there. However, the lines are the funniest part. Especially all the stuff Peanut says and how he delivers it. I was laughing constantly. Lulu had some great one-liners too. So many puns throughout the show, as well. If you're a pun fanatic, you will LOVE it! The characters seemed to enjoy making fun of themselves and each other. What my son didn't expect was to cry from the first song, which is about corn. I get it though. It was more the overwhelming excitement of seeing everything on stage. (I cry during the opening number of Legally Blonde every time I see it.)

We had two understudies for this show. One was for Maizy, who is usually played by Caroline Innerbichler. However, we saw Traci Elaine Lee in the role and she gave it her own spin. While Caroline comes off as more twangy on the cast recording (which is how she is supposed to sound and it is cute), Traci's vocals were smooth and still worked really well for the role. (Listen to her singing "Woman of the World.") Storyteller 1 was played by Yasmeen Sulieman (usually played by Ashley D. Kelley) and she was adorable and so much fun. She worked really well with Grey Henson, who played Storyteller 2. (We were thrilled that he was performing because he played Damian in the original Broadway cast of Mean Girls.) And of course, we were so excited to see Alex Newell as Lulu. I can't even imagine anyone else in that role. They were perfection! Everyone in the cast was wonderful. Kevin Cahoon definitely stood out as Peanut, especially with his accent and hilarious line delivery. The actor who played Gordy (John Behlmann) was on Riverdale, but I had to look him up and it still took me a while to remember him. 

I already like the songs a lot from listening to them, but now they make even more sense along with the story. All the songs are really good. Some favorites are "Woman of the World," "Somebody Will," "I Do," and "Independently Owned." It will be fun to listen to all of them again and be able to visualize everything that is going on. I am not going to spoil anything for you though. If Shucked comes on tour, I highly recommend it for a ton of laughs. Even if you don't like country music, it's so worth watching. (My husband isn't into the music but I think he'll find the show really funny if he actually sees it.) If you're able to see it on Broadway, definitely do so!

We got to meet a couple actors after the show. Kevin Cahoon (Peanut) and Grey Henson (Storyteller 2). They both were so nice! While we were hanging out around the city after the show, we ran into Grey and he recognized us from the stage door. He even chatted with us! Day? Made! Unfortunately, Alex didn't stage door, but we were glad we got to see them perform. It's not as common for actors to stage door between shows since they have so little time, so we're thankful for who we got to meet. (Also that we went last week, since they're holding off on stage-dooring this week due to a spike in COVID. Yikes.) Here's a funny video of Grey and Kevin having a little chat, but only one is actually in character.

Kevin Cahoon

Grey Henson

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Come What May: Thoughts on Moulin Rouge, the musical

 

Although Moulin Rouge is currently on tour in DC, I wanted to see it on Broadway instead. The main reason was that Casey Cott is currently playing Christian. Since I'm a huge Riverdale fan, I could not pass up the chance to see one of its stars on Broadway. Especially since I know what a great singer Casey is! However, I'm also glad I saw it on Broadway for another reason....the set! I heard that the tour doesn't have as elaborate of a set and it felt really immersive from where we were sitting. (We were in row H, but the way things were set up, we were really close to the stage. 

Miniature model from Museum of Broadway

The show follows Moulin Rouge star performer, Satine, and an American man, Christian, as they navigate through a tumultuous love affair. The Moulin Rouge is going bankrupt and Harold Zidler, the club's owner, is willing to do whatever's necessary to save his beloved show and the jobs of all involved. He sets Satine up with The Duke, a wealthy man looking for a woman to be his own. It is Harold’s hope that she is what will entice The Duke to put up the money to save the Moulin Rouge. Little does Harold know of The Duke's violent past when it comes to his relationships. This puts a massive obstacle in between Christian and Satine. It leaves all wondering, “Is it all worth it for love?” But, love always prevails, as following the Bohemian ideals of “truth”, “beauty”, “freedom”, and “love”. (Synopsis courtesy of Stage Agent.)

More set pictures:

About ten minutes before the show started, the ensemble started assembling on stage and just doing their own thing in character. Then everything got started when Casey walked on stage and raised his hand to signal the Moulin Rouge sign to lift and the action to get started. I love that it kicked off with "Lady Marmalade" and it reminded me of how I'd always blast that song really loud in my car. The one thing that really stood out to me was that I could tell that one of the performers was a man in drag. And I LOVED that!!! (It was confirmed a little ways into the show.) 

There were so many changes made to the music from the movie soundtrack. Most of the songs were from the 2000s and 2010s. They did toss in a couple eighties and nineties songs too. I didn't realize until way later that they took out "One Day I'll Fly Away." That was surprising since it's such a good song. They also, thankfully, took out the Duke singing "Like a Virgin", which was so cringey in the movie! A lot of the songs were mashups. And they extended the "Elephant Love Medley" big time. I definitely want to listen to the music again!

I liked it way better than the movie overall. It was easier to follow the story this time around. Casey added an earnestness and innocence to Christian that made the character even more likable. Courtney Reed was fabulous as Satine. Not only was she stunning, but she had a gorgeous voice. She and Casey worked well together on stage and I enjoyed seeing their chemistry. 

The supporting characters were great too. Zidler looked exactly like the one from the movie. Amazing what costumes and makeup can do. I didn't realize the Duke was played by an understudy until intermission. The actor (Aaron C. Finley) was that great of a fit for the role. I loved that David Merino was playing Baby Doll. He has performed in local professional theaters in the DC area, so it was cool to see him on a Broadway stage. Christian's friends, Toulouse-Lautrec and Santiago, were awesome. Toulouse was so different from how John Leguizamo played him in the movie. He seemed deeper and more emotional. 

For being a jukebox musical, Moulin Rouge was really quite phenomenal and I'm really glad I saw it on Broadway. 

The other exciting part of the evening was that Casey stage-doored afterward and I got a picture with him. I was too starstruck to say much, but it definitely made my night!

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Why I'm Glad I Finally Watched The Other Two

Courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes

I first heard about The Other Two when I was browsing HBO Max (before it became Max), but didn't really give much thought to it other than "Oh, Molly Shannon is in this." I actually forgot the show existed after that, but then saw a post from one of the Neo-Futurists I'm friends with on Facebook because she was on an episode (she plays Sheila in season three). I thought, "Okay, I should probably check it out." Then I saw an article blasting Elemental for doing something similar to what Disney did in one of the third season episodes and that sealed the deal for me. I am SO glad I finally got around to watching because it was such a fun and hilarious series. There are times when it takes a serious turn, but there's a good balance overall. It reminds me of Arrested Development and has little hints of Reboot and a few good doses of Curb Your Enthusiasm. I love the satire and how it never takes itself too seriously. And, of course, I love all the LGBTQ+ rep. One of the main characters is gay, so it's there in spades!

The Other Two is about two millennials who are trying to make names for themselves in their careers and just not getting there. Cary is an actor who gets bit parts on commercials and TV series, if he's lucky. We first see him auditioning for a commercial where he has to look like he's smelling a fart. Brooke was a dancer at one point in her life and now she's not really doing much of anything. We first see her trying to sneak out of an apartment she's squatting in. Their thirteen year-old brother Chase is a pop star who was discovered on YouTube and now they're trying to benefit from his fame. Molly Shannon plays their mom and her main focus is on Chase's rise to stardom, which she also ends up benefitting from. 

I love so much about this show and I'm sad that there won't be a fourth season, but I'm glad the writers knew that in advance and gave it some good closure. It shines a light on "the industry" in so many comical ways. There are a lot of great supporting characters and tons of celebrity cameos. I love that the two main actors are completely new to me. I've never seen Drew Tarver (Cary) or Heléne Yorke (Brooke) in anything before, but now I want to see them in something else. Cary reminds me of Jason Bateman in Arrested Development, but gay. Brooke reminds me of a young Meg Ryan in some ways. (Fun side note: Heléne's birthday is closer to my daughter's than Kathy's birthday was to Pat's. You have to watch the show to get what I'm talking about.)

Fair warning: The Other Two is VERY raunchy. Lots of sex, nudity, and mature content all over the place. If you're new to the series, do NOT watch with kids in the room. Also keep in mind that some material is offensive on a Curb Your Enthusiasm level. It's not PC for sure. There's one point where I thought they took something a bit too far, even though it still came off as funny in the context of the scene.

Check out this trailer if you haven't seen the series yet, and then stop right there because there will be spoilers below. If you have seen the series, you may proceed...

Thoughts with SPOILERS...

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Cary and Brooke are essentially flawed in so many ways. I wanted to share some thoughts on both of them. As insufferable and/or cringey as they could get sometimes, there was a Zack Morris effect in play, since they're both protagonists and you want to see them "win" as a result. If the show was narrated through anyone else's point of view, you'd probably get so annoyed with Cary and Brooke. Like imagine seeing the show through Curtis and Lance's eyes. I'll wait.

There you go.

Thoughts on Cary:

I like Cary and how openly gay he is throughout the series. I feel like he keeps getting screwed over with his career and that has led him to make some really drastic and stupid decisions. His love life could use a tune-up too. I felt bad for Jess, since it seemed like he really was into Cary and Cary bailed as soon as he got spooked by that level of emotion. And he should have dumped Lucas as soon as he found out about the method acting. Cary also needs to keep his competitiveness and schadenfraude in check when it comes to his friendship with Curtis because that really did come back to bite him. There were other times I just really felt bad for him. Like I just wanted him to catch a break. Through Cary, we get to see how difficult it is to make it with an acting career. And I appreciate that. I also found his wanting to watch people watch him totally relatable. 

Thoughts on Brooke:

Brooke is definitely relatable, especially on the career front. I totally felt for her with how she kept dipping her toes in the industry and trying to figure out what she was actually good at. And in season three, she was just so lost. I honestly don't think it's that hard to do good in some way or another, but Brooke was so focused on trying to prove something to the world, or at least to Lance. I was actually impressed at the amount of patience Lance had for her. Especially when she couldn't figure anything out for herself and took it out on him. Somehow, he was still there for her even after their big fight. I was also impressed that Brooke taking the fall for Chase and Pat somehow translated into something big for her career. 

Sometimes I felt like Brooke and Cary were two ships passing in the night and other times I really liked their sibling dynamic. I'm glad they were both able to take a step back and reassess where their lives and careers were going. 

Favorite supporting characters:

Pat: Obviously, since she's played by Molly Shannon. I also appreciate her kindness and vulnerability.

Streeter: I didn't know an agent could be so dumb, but Ken Marino does it so well with this part. I love how earnest he is too. 

Lance: He's too "good" for Brooke, but he still adores her and is so devoted to her. 

Curtis: He's generally a good friend to Cary and I feel bad that he doesn't get that in return. I also love that he calls Cary out on his BS. 

Lucas Lambert Moy: I love how he commits to each of his characters, much to Cary's chagrin. And then how he gets lost when he doesn't have a role and his Australian accent comes out. 

Shuli: I love Wanda Sykes and she's so great in this role. 

Chase: He's the backbone to this show. It's fun watching him and seeing how fame affects his life.

I probably listed all the main supporting characters at this point. 

Favorite funny moments:

* Brittlynn being eleven years old, but Brooke thinks they're the same age.

* Cary sending a live picture of his butthole and then it goes out to everyone.

* The father and son who are really a gay couple, and the "straight son from Kansas".

* Globby!

* The fake Applebees.

* Streeter thinking everyone has diarrhea on the plane.

* The AIDS play. Need I say more? 

* The song for winning at the high school reunion, which sounds like "The Ants Go Marching One by One". The episode had a Romy and Michele appeal to it.

* Pat trying to evade her security staff.

* Jackie Hoffman as the Chase decoy.

* Brooke thinking an old man was pretending to be a sick pre-teen girl and then accusing the grandmother of the same thing.

* Chase's gay brother song

* Brooke stepping in as a backup dancer but trying to get everyone to not dance all sexy in front of Chase since he's a teenager.

* The farm where former girlfriends of celebrities go to stay safe. I loved the video with Ann Dowd.

* Streeter treating his breakup with Pat like a divorce.

* Brooke trying to recruit talent at a kid's birthday party

* Cary shadowing nurses at the hospital and finding out that there were other actors there doing the same thing. 

I also liked some of the conceptual stuff in season three, such as people being invisible if they're not in the industry and the Pleasantville situation with Emily Overruled. Really clever and funny. 

Actors I recognized:

* Alison Rich as Melanie. She was Valley Girl Erica on The Goldbergs.

* Nadia Dajani as Mackenzie. I remember her from Sex and the City.

* I was surprised about David Lascher playing Mackenzie's brother in the series finale. I knew he looked familiar but wasn't sure why. I think the last time I saw him was on Blossom ages ago. Or maybe in that movie where Melissa Joan Hart kills her parents and blames it on Jeremy Jordan (the pop star, not the Broadway actor). 

* Jackie Hoffman as the Chase decoy at the dance (as mentioned earlier). She's a great comedic actress. I actually saw her perform at Second City Northwest when I was a teenager. (Nia Vardalos was performing with that group too.)

* Fin Argus as Lucas, since I recently saw him in Queer as Folk. 

* Noah Galvin as the gay guy who is pretending to come out to his "dad." He's engaged to Ben Platt and he also played Evan Hansen at one point. And he narrated one of the characters on the audiobook of What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera.

* Tuc Watkins, who played the fake dad of Noah Galvin's character. (I think he also played Brooke and Cary's dad in a flashback scene.) I remember him from Desperate Housewives, but I also saw him on Uncoupled.

* Marcia DeBonis as Kathy. She's been in a lot of small roles on other shows I've watched.

* Greta Lee as Genevieve (Brooke's dance school rival). I saw her on The Morning Show.

* Josie Totah as Elijah in the school dance episode. This was before her transition though. I most recently saw her on the Saved by the Bell reboot.

* Beck Bennett as the "pilot" Brooke was sleeping with. He was on Saturday Night Live.

* Heidi Gardner, also from SNL, as the woman who is helping Pat get high at Chase's birthday party.

* Dana Delaney as Emily Overruled. I think the last time I remember seeing her was on Desperate Housewives.

* Ann Dowd as the lady on the video about sending teenage girls to live on a farm. I haven't really seen her in much but I recognized her right away. 

Some cameos I loved:

* Bowen Yang doing an impression of Cary after the butthole incident.

* Lukas Gage in the AIDS play episode, where Cary is trying to get him to give up the porn role. I even love the reference that was made to his role on White Lotus.

* Aidy Bryant. I can't remember what she did, but I just love her anyway.

* Jordana Brewster as the woman the gay-baiter had dated in the past. 

* Debi Mazar on an episode of Pat's talk show. I also loved her on Younger.

* Ben Platt, who was supposed to perform at the Night of Undeniable Good.

* Kiernan Shipka as the celebrity Chase gets pushed into marrying before he hooks up with Pam Snot.

* Patrick Wilson, who was trying to help Cary during Watch What Happens Live.

Questions: 

Why did Brooke give up her chance to work with Alessia Cara while Cary gave up the family trip to go work on Night Nurse?

Who played the girl who was singing "Ring of Keys" from Fun Home at the school dance in season one? She looks so familiar but I can't find her on IMDb.

If you made it this far, you've obviously seen the series. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

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My Daughter's Bat Mitzvah

Last month, my daughter had her Bat Mitzvah. We had a party to celebrate her coming of age and she made a speech about her parsha (Torah portion) at the celebration. She totally slayed it and made it even more interesting with her theatrical personality. It was a really nice celebration and I look back upon it fondly. My older son provided the entertainment with the improv troupe he started at his high school. That was a lot of fun and everyone enjoyed it. 

As tradition would have it, I made a top ten list for her during my speech, just like I did for her older and middle brothers. I'm not waiting until her thirteenth birthday to share this, as it's not until early next year.

1. She loves to read. I’m thankful to have kids who enjoy reading. She and I have a lot of similar tastes in books and I am more than happy to share novels that I loved when I was growing up. And I know we're going to "fight" over who gets to read Dahlia Adler's new book first. :) (Side note: I ended up reading it first.)

2. She’s really funny. I’m sure she picks up a lot of humorous bits from her siblings and from Jeff, but she definitely makes me laugh a lot, especially when she adds her own twists to what she already knows is funny.

3. She’s smart and does well in school. While middle school is a new experience for her with lots more homework, she has been getting As consistently throughout her first year there. 

4. She’s a great conversationalist. She always wants to “converse” with me and loves asking questions, which ends up leading to more questions.

5. She likes to draw and is really good at it! When I was her age, I had this big pad of paper on my desk and I would draw on it all the time, as well as in my school notebooks. She is the same way and she likes sharing her artwork with me. She also likes drawing inside everyone’s greeting cards. (Her Zadie inspired that.)

6. She has a strong moral compass and it’s important to her that people behave ethically. 

7. She is kind and loyal to all her friends. Friendship is important to her and she never wants to jeopardize that. 

8. She loves musical theater. I enjoy taking her to see shows and then hearing her sing the songs from her favorite musicals. She did Imagination Stage camp last summer and had a blast and she’s excited to go back again in a couple weeks. 

9. She still wants to spend time with us. If you knew me at 12, I was not that way with my parents and usually kept to myself. (Sorry, Mom and Dad.) However, she always wants to have quality family time and she also loves our mom-and-daughter days out. (Especially if it means going to Bath and Body Works and getting Starbucks.)

10. She is one of the sweetest and most genuine people I know. If everyone had her personality and attitude, the world would be a much better and happier place to live in. 

I want to wish Mazel Tov to M. You are an amazing daughter and I am so lucky and thankful to be your Eema. I know you have a lot of great things coming to you in life and I can’t wait to see what those will be!

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