deerstalker

Fair warning: this recap includes spoilers for The Expanse that will hijack your shipment of relief goods—don’t say we didn’t warn you ahead of time!

Before the start of “The Weeping Somnambulist”—an episode title clearly in honor of International Poetry Day—things at Tycho station had completely unraveled, Holden (Steven Strait) and the crew found their next mission in Dr. Meng (Terry Chen), and Sergeant Draper (Frankie Adams) was foisted with the task of testifying the false narrative that Mars had shot first on Ganymede. Who knows whether that could stave off war.

She got her chance, though: Draper went to earth, hand held firmly by a minder named Martens who stopped her from leaving her purple heart behind and made it clear how much was riding on her speech. Gotta keep up appearances and sell the image and all. Jacked full of medicine that will help her Martian body adjust to Earth’s atmosphere, she purposefully left her sunglasses behind. Was she trying to punish herself? Grinding against survivor’s guilt? Even after her initial and secondary testimony, she tested her fortitude against the sunshine blazing through the windows.

Of course, Avasarala (Shohreh Aghdashloo) and Errinwright (Shawn Doyle) traded barbs before the UN/Martian summit, arguing whether Eros really met its end when it crashed into Venus. Errinwright swore that he’d share any information he got with her—presumably bursting into sinister laughter immediately after leaving the room because everyone knows what a load that was. The good news is that Avasarala has her own source of information: a cocky, philosophizing scientist on Colonel Janus’ (Conrad Pia) mission to Venus aboard the Arboghast. Their ship was heavily shadowed by the Mars contingent there, but they ultimately discovered something shocking in the Eros crater: life in an environment that melts lead. The Protomolecule truly is a game-changer.

Draper’s testimony went according to plan, setting up the crew from Mars to negotiate reparations for the destruction on Ganymede and the disruption of the farming routes, but they placed the full blame of the incident on Private Travis (Mpho Koaho) and his apparent need to prove himself as a Martian. This left Draper scrambling, livid, fuming with her lonely medal on the desert of her uniform. She was aching for another chance to speak the truth, and Avasarala obliged.

Her suspicion couldn’t be tamed. It led to two of the most Yas Queen Avasarala moments of the entire season.

1. Her scowling “Wherever I goddamn liiiiiiiiike.”
2. “Whoever the fuck you are, stand down and let her speak.”

Frozen perfection. Her owning other people who think they’re in charge has become a highlight of each episode.

She questioned Draper about Travis, flustering her to the point of telling the truth about the monster without the vac suit, but after asking what made him open fire, she reverted back to her original story about Travis (despite no one in that room believing her anymore).

Meanwhile, Holden and Amos (Wes Chatham) hijacked a cargo ship called The Somnambulist, operated by Melissa Suputayaporn (Valerie Buhagiar) and her husband Suputayaporn (Peter Williams) in order to use it as cover to get down to Ganymede.

Meng tried to send a message but was blocked, so he used his knowledge in order to get information from Amos about what they were really doing, why they were hunting down Dr. Strickland, and what the Protomolecule has to do with all of it. They gave him what he wanted, but it led to more questions than answers. What does his daughter Mei have that Strickland wants? Does it have something to do with her genetic disorder, Myers-Skelton Premature Immunosenescence? If so, what’s the connection between the disease and the Protomolecule?

Their plan was to get through to the docking station undetected while Alex (Cas Anvar) cooled his heels behind one of the nearby moons, waiting as a backup to swoop in and save them if things went sideways.

And wouldn’t you know it, things went sideways. The cargo ship (which only wanted to deliver some much-needed supplies to the poor people of Ganymede!) was boarded by more hostiles (that’s two hijackings in as many days), which led to a sloppy firefight and Suputayaporn’s death. Holden’s mission began in earnest while Melissa wailed in mourning.

No, they were not off to a good start.

SOME STRAY THOUGHTS:

• Holden let Melissa get behind him during his cargo sweep. Not great tactics there, captain.
• Can you do a mission without lasagna?
• Apparently Baltimore is under heavy construction.

What do you think will happen next week? Is war still on the table? Let us know in the comments below.

Images: NBC/SyFy

Take a breather from whatever you’re doing–it’s TV-Cap time! Today’s roundup of the latest and greatest in television news has information about a three-parter in the next series of Doctor Who, trailers for season three of Fargo, some Captain Planet fun, and more.

Going Long. The Monks appeared in the trailer for series 10 of Doctor Who, premiering on BBC America on April 15, and it turns out they’ll be in a key arc. Show writer Toby Whithouse told Digital Spy they’ll be in a three-parter in the upcoming series, episodes six through eight, to be exact. Whithouse, Steven Moffat, and Peter Harness each wrote one of the three episodes. We don’t have three-parters often in Doctor Who, and it’s interesting that different writers are working on the arc. Get more information on the history of multi-episode arcs from Kyle Anderson here at Nerdist.

Cut Off One Head… Because you can’t keep an evil organization down in a fictional setting, Hydra is coming back to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (The group is returning in Framework, so it’s a loophole.) We get to see a look at how Hydra has taken over in the context of the virtual world, and we get some rad promotional Hydra propaganda posters because of it. You can see a couple above and a whole gallery of them at Facebook. [CBR, Images: ABC]

Music and Possibilities. Speaking of Marvel, let’s jump over to Netflix and touch on a couple of Iron Fist topics. First of all, thanks to CBR for a the heads-up that the soundtrack for the Netflix series is available for purchase on iTunes. Secondly, can you imagine what Iron Fist would have been like with someone other than Finn Jones in the lead? Specifically, with an Asian American actor in the lead? I’m sure it’s crossed your mind. Lewis Tan was in the running (he played Zhou Cheng in an episode of the series instead), and Vulture has an interview with him about the audition process and more. Read it here.

Meet the Presidents. History is working on a new anthology series that will focus on seeing United States history through the eyes of its presidents. The Commanders would feature the likes of Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and more and would bring a different perspective to key events in country’s history. Learn more at Entertainment Weekly.

Introductions and a Hint. FX’s Fargo is coming back with season three on April 19. A few short (as in 15-30 seconds) teasers have been dropping in preparation for the new episodes. Separately, they’re brief glimpses into the world. But put them together and you might find some clues. The latest one, “Missed Call,” is chilling. Watch it above–it’s the first video–then jump forward to watch a cast spotlight introducing the new characters. To get your full Fargo fix, you can visit FX on YouTube to watch all the promos released so far. Let me know in the comments if you have any theories about season three. [/Film]

Digitally Yours. If you’ve been longing to have Captain Planet in your life, Cartoon Network is here to help. They’re making all seasons of Captain Planet and the Planeteers, The New Adventures of Captain Planet, and The All New Adventures of Captain Planet available for digital download, and it’s the first time that’s been an option for the animated show from the ’90s. The series will arrive to iTunes, Amazon Video, Google Play, and other digital retailers on April 10. [Image: Cartoon Network]

Dressing for the Occasion. What happens when Bryan Cranston stops by The Late Show dressed as the Red Ranger? The above interview. My words don’t do it justice. [Nerdist]

Writer Time. Make your ears happy today by listening to the latest episode of The Writers Panel; it features Giana Fattore, Kathleen Robertson, and Courtney Lilly.

Pulling Rank. The Flash and Supergirl met last night in a musical crossover that was nothing short of charming and delightful. They were whammied by the Music Meister and an episode with song and dance ensued. How did the songs of “Duet” do? Sydney Bucksbaum has them ranked for you right this way.

What do you think about having a longer arc in Doctor Who or in any TV series? Tell me your thoughts on the subject in the comments.

Featured Image: BBC

If you’re reading this, you’re probably at least a little interested in getting your finances in order. Maybe you’ve even tried! Maybe you’ve read a bunch of advice, but nothing seems to work for you. If that sounds familiar, the solution might not be to find more advice. Instead, focus on finding advice that speaks…

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After writing about Tomi Lahren back in December, I silently promised myself that I would never write about her again. I didn’t want to give her any more of a platform than she already has. However, now that Trump has become President, I believe that examining the Tomi Lahrens of the world is especially important in that it allows us to navigate our increasingly fraught path toward gender equality.

Lahren is in the news this week after a recent interview on The View in which she proclaimed that she is “pro-choice.” As reported by The Daily Beast, she said:

“I’m pro choice, and here’s why. I am a constitutional, y’know, someone that loves the Constitution. I’m someone that’s for limited government. So I can’t sit here and be a hypocrite and say I’m for limited government but I think the government should decide what women do with their bodies. I can sit here and say that, as a Republican and I can say, you know what, I’m for limited government, so stay out of my guns, and you can stay out of my body as well…”

That actually makes…sense. Despite the fact that one can’t be a “constitutional” (you can be a constitutionalist), I can at least understand, even if I don’t agree with, the viewpoint that if you believe in limited government, you would certainly believe in limited government with regard to your health care and decision to be a parent.

What I’ve never understood is the hypocrisy of, say, being “pro-life” but also being pro-death penalty. Or being “pro-life” but only when it comes to unborn children and not when it comes to children who are very much alive. Suddenly, it’s all let’s screw the poor and their children, or the children of sluts who got themselves knocked up, because they clearly didn’t work hard enough/have good values and morals and deserve what they get. Really, this whole “pro-life” thing tends to be very conditional.

Fellow Conservatives were quick to point out Lahren’s “hypocrisy,” though, bringing up an episode of her own show on Glenn Beck’s TheBlaze digital network from back in December in which she called people who get abortions “baby killers”:

Only 3 months ago, @TomiLahren considered an abortion to be murder, today, she branded pro life conservatives as hypocrites. #NoPrinciples pic.twitter.com/8BqoQTOyD1

— The Reagan Battalion (@ReaganBattalion) March 17, 2017

For those who can’t watch the video, she says, “The pro-choicers are supposed to be about rare and safe abortions. That’s how they avoid sounding like straight-up baby killers.” She goes on to say, “Then we have Lena freakin’ Dunham out there wishing she could have murdered a fetus.”

Despite the ignorance apparent in this statement, the fact is that her private beliefs about abortion have nothing to do with whether or not she is pro-choice. That’s the entire point of the pro-choice position. People who are pro-choice are not necessarily pro-abortion. What they are is in favor a person’s right to decide for themselves whether or not they want to carry a child.

There are plenty of things to which I’m morally opposed that I understand need to be legal for reasons of public safety and protecting people’s civil and human rights. For example, I’m morally opposed to racism and sexism. However, I am a fierce defender of the First Amendment that guarantees freedom of speech. I don’t believe the government can or should limit someone’s ability to speak, no matter how reprehensible their views, so long as those words aren’t followed by actions that hurt people.

And before anyone starts, notice I said government. Private organizations and companies (like The Mary Sue!) have the right to allow or not allow a platform to anyone’s speech, and people have the right to express their pleasure or displeasure accordingly. That’s how individual entities express that particular freedom. All the First Amendment guarantees you is legal protection, not protection from The Court of Public Opinion. There, you’re on your own. For better or worse.

So, with regard to Lahren expressing her “pro-choice” viewpoint in light of her “baby killer” comment: all that says to me is that she’s someone who is personally opposed to abortion, but believes that it’s not the government’s job to legislate. That’s not her being a “hypocrite.” That’s her showing an understanding the difference between personal opinion and how government should assert itself in the lives of its citizens.

We very definitely disagree on what government is and is not responsible for, but at least I understand her. This time.

Now, The Daily Beast has reported that Lahren’s show has been suspended for the week. Or rather, wouldn’t be in production this week. It’s a bit unclear as to what is actually happening:

Two sources told The Daily Beast that Leon Wolf, TheBlaze’s managing editor, had sent a messages to Blaze staff informing them that Lahren’s show would “not be in production this week.” When reached by The Daily Beast on Monday, Wolf said that “it was communicated to me that [Tomi’s] show was not going to be produced this week,” and that he wanted to let Blaze employees know before they heard about it elsewhere. He said he did not specifically use the term “suspended.”

Oooookay. While it is very easy for me to imagine that her attempt to call out some hypocrisy among Conservatives might have caused this to happen, I don’t know that for sure. Here’s what I do know. Lahren’s boss, Conservative pundit Glenn Beck, wasted absolutely zero time in taking her to task while being extremely patronizing in the process.

First, he started by saying the following on his radio show: “If you’re pro-choice, you can have a job at TheBlaze. I don’t hire people who are sycophants or have my opinion.” He cites former Real News host Amy Holmes, who was an openly pro-choice employee of TheBlaze. She’s since moved on to be an independent conservative pundit elsewhere. Fine.

Actually, he started, seemingly imitating our country’s Tweeter-In-Chief, by taking to Twitter first thing and lampooning his 24-year-old employee from his own network:

Rule another label out. I am NOT a “constitutional”. I believe in LIFE, liberty and property. Just an old fashioned “constitutionalist.”

— Glenn Beck (@glennbeck) March 17, 2017

He continued through the weekend:

Wait, libertarian views? Help me out on Trumpcare, stimulus, and executive orders. Trump is anything but libertarian. #intellectualhonestyhttps://t.co/jlt5sFvQMP

— Glenn Beck (@glennbeck) March 20, 2017

He then goes on and on about “intellectual honesty” and “rigor,” insinuating that Lahren has none. I don’t disagree, but it’s strange to me to see a male boss attempt to publicly shame a much-younger, female employee by making her the topic of a public reprimand, only to then say, in true hypocrite fashion, in reference to viewers expressing that Lahren should lose her job, “That’s not for you to call, that’s not appropriate to be discussed on the radio. That’s in the privacy of the office of TheBlaze.”

Glenn Beck is now battling—subtly and not-so-subtly—with his most famous employee Tomi Lahren. https://t.co/j6DfUsQ2JM pic.twitter.com/op7zsbQh7R

— Andrew Kirell (@AndrewKirell) March 20, 2017

OK. So you’re all about privacy and protecting your employee from others who would call for her to lose her job…but you’ll spend 5 minutes of your radio show talking about how she lacks “intellectual rigor.” And now, suddenly, her show is not in production for the week and it’s unclear as to whether or not it will be coming back, despite her having a contract through September.

What’s particularly funny is Beck’s insistence that “Bomb-throwing in today’s world is dangerous. It can destroy people if your aim is clicks, views, and ratings” when he hired Lahren specifically for her ability to throw bombs. Her entire purpose on TheBlaze is to be that inflammatory young voice that stirs shit for clicks. It’s only a problem when the shit she stirs is in her own house. Beck doesn’t care about her “intellectual rigor” when she’s toeing the company line. Despite his claims to the contrary, he does indeed hire people he expects will be sycophants who will share his opinion, and if they don’t share his opinion, he publicly questions their “intellectual rigor.”

I’m forced to wonder what the response from Beck would’ve been had a young male correspondent done the same thing. Then again, would a young male Conservative even think to be pro-choice? I don’t know. *Raise your hand if you’re a Conservative dude who’s pro-choice, I guess.*

Tomi Lahren uses hate as a weapon. She is vicious, racist, and doesn’t understand feminism. She’s duplicitous, saying one thing when she’s invited on a talk show, only to retreat to the safe space of her own show to spit vitriol for ratings, vitriol Beck pays for and has come to expect. I don’t in any way support Lahren’s views or methods.

What I do support is her right not to be targeted and thrown under the bus based on her gender and her youth.

So, in the spirit of Patrick Henry or whatever, this is me disagreeing with what she has to say, but defending her right to say it, and it irks me that she’s being singled out for expressing a point of view that doesn’t jibe with the Right’s idea of what being a woman is. It’s important to me that all women raise their political voices. So, even though Lahren shits all over things like the Women’s March, I march for women like her as much as I’m marching for women like me, or women who believe what I believe.

Now listen, I’m well aware that thin, blonde, conventionally attractive women don’t need my help. They get plenty of help from the patriarchy when it suits them. But it’s hypocritical to decry sexist behavior toward one woman, only to allow it for another because schadenfreude. I’m trying to be better about that, even when it’s difficult. Especially when it’s difficult.

(image via screencap)

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