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| Love, Victor, Hulu / Star (Disney+) | Season 2 - 11th June 2021 |
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 17th June 2020, 04:11 AM
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#1
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 "Jayrusaleminians" - Umi.
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 4 April 2007 Posts: 41,448 User: 3,217 
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 Love, Victor — a small-screen follow-up to Love, Simon, the 2018 film starring Nick Robinson — stars Michael Cimino (Annabelle Comes Home) as Victor, a teenager who is facing challenges at home and adjusting to a new city, all while struggling with his sexual orientation. When Victor starts to feel overwhelmed, he reaches out to Simon to help him navigate the ups and downs of high school. Robinson will be back to narrate the series, while the ensemble includes Ana Ortiz (Ugly Betty), James Martinez (One Day at a Time), Isabella Ferreira (Orange Is the New Black) and newcomer Mateo Fernandez. I'm excited to watch this! All 10 episodes are now available on Hulu. Unfortunately it's not been picked up by any UK channels...  The first episode can be seen via Twitter though  https://twitter.com/i/events/1270012102015455232Mostly positive reviews so far, it currently holds a Rotten Tomatoes score of 88% based on 16 critical reviews: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/love_victor/s01 |
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17th June 2020, 07:20 AM
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#2
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 BuzzJack Legend
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Joined: 25 July 2013 Posts: 26,024 User: 19,585
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Got it all ready to binge it probably over the weekend
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17th June 2020, 10:28 AM
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#3
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 I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,449 User: 5,042
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Ooh I didn't realise it was available now! I thought it was still to come. The film is ridiculously feel-good and watchable!
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17th June 2020, 12:33 PM
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#4
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 is in hibernation
Joined: 24 August 2014
Posts: 11,385 User: 21,161
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Oooh let's go
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17th June 2020, 01:21 PM
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#5
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BuzzJack Legend
Joined: 15 March 2006
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Disappointing it's not on Netflix or Amazon at least in the UK
 You'd think a streaming service would pick them up considering the movie's success!
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17th June 2020, 01:24 PM
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#6
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A dead mouse (from my cat)
Joined: 2 March 2018
Posts: 28,495 User: 67,771
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The Guardian are saying that there is a "UK date to follow", so there may be an announcement soon.
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17th June 2020, 01:39 PM
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#7
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I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,449 User: 5,042
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QUOTE(Jack @ Jun 17 2020, 02:21 PM)  Disappointing it's not on Netflix or Amazon at least in the UK Hulu is Disney owned now, I believe. I'm surprised they didn't put it on Disney+ tbh. Maybe that's where it'll come into play for the UK?
You'd think a streaming service would pick them up considering the movie's success! |
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17th June 2020, 02:35 PM
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#8
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A dead mouse (from my cat)
Joined: 2 March 2018
Posts: 28,495 User: 67,771
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It was originally going to air on Disney+ before they moved it to Hulu - I imagine something to do with it being too "adult"? (not sure though, haven't seen it yet)
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18th June 2020, 06:16 PM
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#9
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 you never forget your first time...
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 19 April 2011 Posts: 121,685 User: 13,530 
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The post below contains HUGE SPOILERS - don't say you weren't warned x
I finished this earlier, such an easy watch. I love how it captured the essence and the vibe of the film, yet it was still notably different in so many ways. For starters, I loved that Victor's journey wasn't straightforward. Simon's was pretty easy, which made sense in the context of a rom-com film that was, for the most part, very light viewing. The TV show, with more time, dares to delve deeper, which really helps flesh out Victor's story before he truly accepts who he is. I wasn't sure I expected Victor and Mia to be an item for most of the series, but it made the finale pay-off even stronger. I really liked Mia and I really hope she and Victor can patch things up because their friendship was so adorable throughout. Lake was hilarious, and FELIX. I have so much love for Felix, he's so adorable  (and gives me very strong Stiles from Teen Wolf teas???) I also loved how we saw glimpses into their home lives - I hope that's something we see more of next season.Victor's home life was another thing I was really glad to see some focus on, and it's a particular contrast from Simon's story. He's not from a family that's quite so accepting of homosexuality, making the cliffhanger even more tense than it otherwise would be. James Martinez playing at least his second "homophobic dad" role in recent years - see also One Day at a Time Naturally I was SO rooting for Victor and Benji, even if Benji was vaguely twatty towards the end of the season. Derek was a hideous boyfriend though so I was relieved when Benji dumped him for Victor, and I cheered when they kissed at last! Poor Mia witnessing it though, she deserved an explanation sooner. Shoutout to Andrew for not just agreeing to be her rebound, especially after he spent the entire season basically being a twat :')Also I yelped when Ms Albright showed up, even if she had a grand total of one scene. More in season 2 pls x (same for Simon, I knew Nick Robinson was "narrating" the show but I didn't expect Simon to appear in person  !!!)Conclusion: such a strong first season, and I can see season 2 being even better with the chance to delve deeper into the plotlines they opened up in season 1. |
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19th June 2020, 08:11 PM
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#10
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 BuzzJack Platinum Member
Joined: 13 June 2011
Posts: 19,808 User: 14,043
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Starting this tonight
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19th June 2020, 08:29 PM
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#11
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you never forget your first time...
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Joined: 19 April 2011 Posts: 121,685 User: 13,530
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Hope you enjoy it Jase!
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19th June 2020, 09:07 PM
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#12
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BuzzJack Platinum Member
Joined: 13 June 2011
Posts: 19,808 User: 14,043
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QUOTE(JosephStyles @ Jun 19 2020, 09:29 PM) Hope you enjoy it Jase! I was apprehensive to start because I love the film SO much but I've just finished the first episode and yeah, I'm hooked 
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19th June 2020, 09:36 PM
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#13
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you never forget your first time...
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 19 April 2011 Posts: 121,685 User: 13,530
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QUOTE(Jαsє @ Jun 19 2020, 10:07 PM) I was apprehensive to start because I love the film SO much but I've just finished the first episode and yeah, I'm hooked  !! It's all I've been thinking about today one downside of watching it so quick means I've got such a long wait before season 2 :')
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28th June 2020, 09:41 AM
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#14
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"Jayrusaleminians" - Umi.
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 4 April 2007 Posts: 41,448 User: 3,217
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I finished watching this a few days ago! Spoilers ahead.
Firstly, Michael Cimino plays Victor perfectly. I feel like he expresses teenage emotions so believably. From the lust at first sight/instant infatuation with Benji, to his worry about fitting in, his confusion regarding how he truly feels about Mia, and indeed regarding himself. Additionally, the angst he feels towards his parents and their marital problems, and his worry about whether or not he would be accepted by his religious family - he conveys all these emotions very well! The story lines in general are definitely standard tropes for a teen show (outside of the fact that an LGBT character is upfront and centre, rather than merely a side character). For the most part, the story-lines are easy to get absorbed into - specifically Victor's family life / the aforementioned parents' marital problems. Can I just say, Ana Ortiz in particular is an amazing actress Where I felt the show stumbled a bit was with the characterisations of Mia and Lake, and to an extent Felix. With Mia, she was introduced to us (through Lake) as being the most popular girl in class, therefore lots of friends, and someone who all the boys desired (according to Felix). Now, I'm certainly not about to say that she's unattractive, because she absolutely is. My slight disbelief is more to do with her character's vibe & how she's generally presented. She comes across quite laid back, even reserved. We're never really shown her level of popularity. Even at a party at her house, she keeps herself to herself. On the surface, it really seems like she spends all of her time hanging around with Lake, with Andrew flitting in and out as someone that she ultimately doesn't have much time for. I feel like the writers should have made room to have at least two other recurring female characters as friends, to demonstrate more overtly that Mia has the status in that school that we're told she has. Lake - she is preoccupied and driven by status, caring very deeply about what she perceives people think of her - we're later shown that this is a result of her overbearing mom. Yet, she is also only really shown to have Mia as a friend, so again we have to take it for granted that there's seemingly other friends in her school life that she seriously cares about impressing - because one thing is for sure, Mia is not shown to be one of the people who is looking down on her or judging her choices whatsoever. This brings us to Felix. Now, I think the actor plays his social awkwardness perfectly, and in that sense I can see why he wouldn't be a "popular girl's" stereotypical idea of what would be a "suitable boy" to be seen with. However, this really skirts around the fact that the actor is clearly cute and attractive, so I had to try and suspend my disbelief that Lake would a) fail to notice him at all to begin with, to the point she can't even remember his name and b) ultimately be so ashamed of him, even as she grows to like him. Lake has an amusing disposition (she has quite a lot of amusing lines, the actress has great comedic timing), yet this character trait is something that can easily be seen as being a bit on the dorky side too... so I don't think a huge amount actually separates Lake and Felix's personalities. Felix being a complete social outcast doesn't seem to ring true to me anyway. I mean, there's an implication that he had precisely zero friends before Victor showed up. Has he really been completely lonely for the past 4 years? If that's the case, he's surprisingly chipper. Like with Mia and Lake, I think it would have been beneficial for Felix to have at least one recurring friend, and I think that would have benefited Victor too. He's somewhat shown to have friends on the basketball team, but they're totally anonymous background characters. Just to end this paragraph on something positive, but Felix is for sure one of my favourite characters in this show! He's amusing and adorable. I appreciated the underlying story line of his difficult home life with his hoarder mom, something he hasn't shared with Victor. There's an indication that Victor is perhaps too self absorbed in his own problems to have picked up on any signs that Felix could have his own struggles. It'll be interesting to see how much further this is explored in Season 2. My other criticism would be that some of the actors really don't pull off being 16, although this is something that is an issue with countless American shows. Of the main characters, Benji (George Sear, 22) and Andrew (Mason Gooding, 23) look and carry themselves more like their in-real-life ages. Benji's boyfriend, Derek, a character who is apparently older than Benji (yet it's not completely clear exactly how much older he is) certainly contributes to ageing Benji beyond what is believably "16". That is not helped along by the actor who plays Derek being 25(!). Their relationship almost came across as being post-college/working-life mid 20s couple. It was kind of bizarre, and I would go as far as to say that the boyfriend was completely miscast - but I would also blame the writing of that relationship as well. I know that so much nitpicking could make it seem like I didn't enjoy the show as much as I said I do, but honestly, I really did enjoy it! The above were niggles, but it didn't totally get in the way of how entertaining and pleasant Love, Victor is. It's an uncomplicated, easily binge-able viewing experience, with a mostly charming set of characters and watchable story lines. Overall, it's a thumbs up! I'll be very interested to see whether Hulu "Hulu-ifies" the show more for Season 2, i.e. goes in a slightly more mature direction with it. We have to remember that Love, Victor was written and produced while its intended home was Disney+, and presumably they were trying to make it appealing to teens in that demographic. Yet it wasn't deemed the right fit for that network, so Hulu took it on... when it was already a fully formed package. I think they could definitely iron out the kinks and create an even stronger second season. Somehow I've written this essay without yet touching upon the messaging between Victor and Simon being a great plot device. Obviously this messaging is what ties this show to the Love, Simon film, but otherwise I think it is realistic to show a character having an online friend, someone who is detached from all the drama of their "in real life" goings on. Simon offered up some great advice along the way, and it was cute and touching. Also, the episode where Victor goes to New York and spends time with Bram, his flatmates and ultimately meets Simon, is probably my favourite episode of the season. By the way... that cliff hanger *_* It was a clever choice to not focus on the parents'/sister's reactions at all. |
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28th June 2020, 05:36 PM
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#15
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 nabad
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 13 February 2013 Posts: 28,364 User: 18,316
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I've just finished watching this, and what a wonderful journey that was.
I pretty much agree with most of your critiques there Jay re. characterisation, and it's definitely something I feel can be improved with a second season that will hopefully iron out kinks and really get into a groove.I think one of the biggest nitpicks for me was, like you say, the characterisation of Andrew. It's obvious at the very beginning that they're introducing him as an antagonist, and that he's going to be an obstacle coming between Victor and Mia, and at the same time an obstacle for Victor when the time is finally right for him to tell the truth. However, when we're at episode 10 it feels like they're not entirely committed to making Andrew a 'villain' in all of it, and he ends up being a character that you're half rooting for because he's kind to Mia, and ultimately he doesn't end up sabotaging Victor's journey in any way, despite overhearing the conversation between Victor and Benji in the bathroom? It's nice to see that with a typical jock character like that, they went down a different route but at the same time it feels like a misrepresentation because the sad truth is that, in reality, that's not the way that type of person would typically react. Initially I was pretty stumped at the angle they'd chosen for the show's first season, and how heavily devoted they were to the 'playing it straight' storyline. Obviously there's a major difference between a 90 minute film with Love, Simon, and Love, Victor presents itself in a far more complex way, but as each episode passed I guess it really highlighted just how easy it can be to succumb to societal pressures of fitting in, involving yourself with somebody to do all you can to tell yourself you're 'normal'. Then by episode 10 we're at the point where it all starts to fall together, despite the fact that the fallout of all this isn't going to be pleasant, but it needed to happen to be able to get to Victor accepting who he is. I think all in all, the one thing that it does do a lot better than Love, Simon did is, like I said, delves a lot deeper and shows itself to be a lot more complex. Victor's life is a lot more complex, his family life is complicated, his friendships/relationships are complicated, and Benji's life is complicated too. It wasn't as straight forward, but we still managed to end up at an equally devastating and optimistic destination. The cliffhanger was an excellent way to end the season, and it'll be intriguing to see how they show (or don't show) his family's reaction (particularly since his dad's comments in an early episode about his younger brother seemed to allude to the fact that he wouldn't be okay with one of his sons being gay), Mia's reactions when she's had time to digest what's happened, and how the school reacts when the 'perfect couple' Victor and Mia are no more. I agree as well though Jay that Ana Ortiz is such a brilliant actress. She was one of the highlights of the season for me; it was great to see the complex relationship between her and Victor's father too, and one thing that the writing really excelled in was making you invest in all of these characters' individual storylines. The story with Victor's parents, the story with Mia and her father/Victoria, Lake and Felix, Benji's troubles, and of course Victor being front and centre. I too loved the episode where he went to New York the most; it was great to see him feeling uncomfortable being his true self around people just like him, but then slowly and surely over the weekend learning to accept that it's part of who he is, and that as a community they are ready to accept him for who he is, and support him in any way he needs. I was stunned when Bram showed up first - I wasn't expecting that; and then I knew that Simon turned up at some point so was expecting that but it was such a beautiful moment anyway. Having the back-and-forth between Simon and Victor, and then them actually meeting tied the two together wonderfully. It was great that they really paid attention to the continuity of Love, Simon too, because I was scared that was something they'd end up ignoring. All in all, this was an excellent first season that is a bit of a slow-burner in places (part of me feels that if, for whatever reason, this didn't end up returning for a second season then they maybe didn't explore as much of what they could have in the first season), but the pay-off ends up being so worth it in the end, it has characters you really believe in and want to root for, and Michael Cimino is the perfect casting for Victor - I couldn't help but fall in love with him more and more with each episode. I'm really hoping, going by interviews with the writers, that with future seasons we'd see Victor grow a lot, and that in turn we'd have a more mature exploration of his sexuality, maybe more-so outside of the typical school setting, with the potential for real and authentic realisations about his sexuality, relationships, sex, etc.I can't wait and hope everybody else enjoys watching (also: Pilar was iconic, and the cameo from Katya I was living for *.*)
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29th June 2020, 01:56 AM
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#16
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New Entry
Joined: 10 January 2015
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So, I streamed this and without knowing watched the last episode first!
It was very much a "wow, this is such a well defined world, I wonder how the series will unfold" moment before realising I am stupid.Anyway, I watched the whole thing and enjoyed it. I wish there were shows like this when I was a teenager. The episode in New York was especially powerful and Queen Katya of course made it even better! |
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29th June 2020, 04:41 AM
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#17
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BuzzJack Platinum Member
Joined: 14 September 2014
Posts: 6,271 User: 21,211
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I really enjoyed watching season one of the series after I saw it twice during the last couple of days. I did that to avoid missing some details, although I guess I will end up doing that. Lol.
I have to be honest that I didn't watch Love, Simon before and I did that after I saw season one of the series for the first time and I was thinking to myself why I could have missed that. Anyway, the reason why Love, Victor caught my attention was after I found out that the story was going to be developed in a Latino family, so I was wondering how they were going to show that throughout the series. The journey of Victor's self-discovery and the struggle of his sexual orientation were shown in a good way, but I guess that they could have gone deeper to be honest. I want to think that they didn't go into that way because it was formerly a Disney+ series and there were probably restrictions about that, so the script could have been changed if it was picked by Hulu since the very beginning. Personally, it would have been a bold move if Victor was bisexual instead of gay, but I assume that everything was pointing out to not be in that way. Although it's shown that Victor cared about his relationship with Mia and he actually felt something for her, it's implied that he made the first move (end of the episode one / beginning of episode two) because he wanted to fit in and he was worried about what others think about him. The aforementioned could also be interpreted as a denial of Victor to accept himself and the relationship with Mia was to pretend something he wasn't, but I doubt that because, as I mentioned before, it's shown that he was with Mia because he enjoyed hanging out with her. However, everything moved faster since, coincidentally, Mia slipped to him that she was her girlfriend and I guess this was the moment when Victor realized that his feelings towards Mia weren't the same as hers. When I saw episode one, I thought that Victor's parents were from Puerto Rico (the PR flag is shown multiple times), so it was surprising to see when Pilar told their grandparents that they moved from Colombia to the US as a comparison why her parents moved from Texas to Atlanta in episode five because there wasn't any mention (or something implied) about that. Therefore, he's Colombian from his father's side and Puerto Rican from his mother's side. Regarding that episode, I liked how this was developed and it shows how people (especially the ones from the old generation) still have their beliefs and traditions and it's difficult for them to see new ones, which is something that it's common to see in the Latino families, so I was identified with that. I don't know if it's going to be mentioned throughout the series or not, but I hope Adrian isn't gay. I understand that some people could erroneously think that if a boy plays with girl's stuff, they like boys and vice versa, but this is old-fashioned and so stereotyped. Childhood is a stage where children need to explore the things they like or they don't like to do without any type of repression in my opinion. Episode eight was also great. Aside the fact that it's very weird to see someone to go to another city to meet the person you've messaging with, I think the introduction of people from the LGBTQ+ community, including non-binary, was good and it's something that it's missing to see nowadays on TV. I'm not sure if this has already happened, but it was the first time I saw that. Also, Simon's speech towards the end of this episode, when Victor confronted him why he shared some personal details to his roommates, was very touching and I really felt that. "Because you're not a stranger, you're one of us. To me, that's the best part about all of this, having a community... On some level, we've all been through the same thing, because we're family." Everything gets a little faster during episodes nine and ten though. Victor's coming out to Felix was special that everybody could see how important your friends are during tough times and how they show your support no matter what. However, this escalates quickly when Mia found out that Veronica is pregnant and Victor doesn't feel it's the right time to tell her about his feelings, so it's understandable that she felt that she was cheated when she saw him and Benji kissing. Anyway, I'm wondering what they will do in season two because there are some things to be explored to be honest. It will be interesting to see how Victor's parents and siblings deal with his coming out, as well as Lake, Andrew and Mia. It's already known about the last two, but I expect this to be expanded as well. Also, I hope they introduce Felix's mom to the series too. Although the only information known about her is that she suffers from depression and she has compulsives buying disorder and hoarding, it will be crucial to see how this is shown towards the relationship between Felix and Lake. As a side note, the songs they picked for season one have been incredible, as well as the ones they made exclusively for the series. I currently have "We Could Be Beautiful" by Wrabel and "Time" by Colouring on rotation and I've added them in a playlist on Spotify. |
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7th August 2020, 05:08 PM
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#18
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you never forget your first time...
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 19 April 2011 Posts: 121,685 User: 13,530
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Officially renewed for season 2!!
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7th August 2020, 05:10 PM
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#19
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BuzzJack Legend
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 25 July 2013 Posts: 26,024 User: 19,585
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QUOTE(JosephStyles @ Aug 7 2020, 06:08 PM) Officially renewed for season 2!! Best news
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7th August 2020, 05:45 PM
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#20
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nabad
Pronouns: he/him
Joined: 13 February 2013 Posts: 28,364 User: 18,316
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So happy with that news!!
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