Orphan Black 1×04 Photo Recap: “Effects of External Conditions”
Every great TV show has a turning point when it goes from good to excellent. The show finds its original voice and the storytelling is all engrossing. Some refer to this turning point as “Growing the Beard” and it typically happens around episodes 4-6. In Battlestar Galactica, it’s “You Can’t Go Home” and in Fringe, it’s “The Arrival.” These episodes really standout for me because each one marks the point in the series when the show dives into the overarching story/theme, having already introduced the characters in the first couple episodes. The moment Orphan Black ‘grows its beard’ is in 1×04. Helena is introduced as a clone brainwashed to kill the others, her ‘sisters.’ She is the season’s ‘big bad’ but the line between evil and good is not so clear cut. She wasn’t born evil. She was influenced by her environment, therefore, should she be killed because of that? Even if they did have a chance to terminate Helena, could they? Perhaps not, since Sarah let Helena escape out the window, but she is definitely not afraid to injure Helena. Episode 4 begins with Helena in the bathroom of a stranger’s house cleaning her wound after being impaled by Sarah. It seems like the opening of a Stephen King novel.
Orphan Black 1×03 Photo Recap: “Variation Under Nature”
You came back! Yay!
(via gle.wikia.com)
In “Variation Under Nature,” Sarah finally learned why there are four women who look just like her. She is one of quadruplets! 28 years ago, Sarah Manning’s mom was Nadya Suleman of the 1980s. She offered herself to science and had quadruplets. Then, to protect the kids from ever being discovered by the Sith, she hid them. One girl was given to relatives in the desert, the second went to an influential senator, the third was given to an orphanage and the fourth was raised by scientists . Now, they have found each other and will work together to bring balance to the Force!
Actually, they are clones.
Orphan Black 1×02 Photo Recap: “Instinct”
Not too long ago, I asked the internet if I should write Orphan Black photo recaps, because that’s what I always do when I have to make important life altering decisions. I ask the internet. And the response was yes. I can’t promise you these will be as funny as Louise’s Fringe recaps, but I will do my best. Here we go!
“Instinct” picked up exactly where the first episode left off. Sarah was looking at a dead body that looked just like her, and reacting VERY WELL. If I was in her boots and stylish leather jacket, I would’ve been freaking out and calling Tom Cruise to protect me from the pod people invading Earth. Sarah went a slightly different route and buried Katja Obinger, following the advice of a stranger calling the pink phone. The whole situation is like a frightening TomTom commercial. Drive 5 miles to escape the shooter. Turn right. Drive 10 miles until the paved road ends. Turn left into woods. Drive 100 feet. You have reached your destination to bury Katja.
Special thank you to kissthemgoodbye.net for the screencaps.
10 Fictional Places We Would Love to Visit
Who doesn’t love traveling to new places? Unfortunately, some places we would like to visit don’t exist. Here is a list of ten fictional places we wish we could visit this summer.
1) Endor
Why? Because the Ewoks are adorable and badasses. They helped defeat the Empire.
Photo source: starwarsscreencaps.com
2) Hogwarts
Why? “Why not?” is the better question. Quidditch, Apparating, pet owls that are house-trained … Living in the wizarding world would be incredible, but Hogwarts has the added bonus of being the coolest boarding school ever. Hufflepuff pride!
3) Neptune, CA
Why? We would seek employment at Mars Investigations, but secretly, we would visit Neptune to make out with Logan (and Duncan).
Photo source: vm-caps.com
4) The Red Universe
Why? Altlivia and Lincoln. Enough said. (Bonus: lots of blimps.)
(via agentdunham.tumblr.com)
(via agentdunhamtumblr.com)
5) Sunnydale
Why? We want to slay some vampires and drink tea with Giles. (Of course this would be before the town was swallowed up by a Hellmouth. Obviously.)
6) Jurassic Park (with Tom Hiddleston)
Why? Because we want to see Hiddleston communicate with the velociraptors.
Photo source: themovieblog.com
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7) The New York Institute
Why? Because being a Shadowhunter would be freaking awesome. But mainly because we’d want to meet Jace, Clary, Alec, Simon, Magnus, and every other butt-kicking character from the Mortal Instruments series. And afterwards, we’d stop off at the London Institute circa 1878 to swoon over Will Herondale.
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8) Stars Hollow
Why? It may be a small town, but it’s full of big characters. Sure, there are downsides to everyone being involved in everybody else’s lives, but really it’s like having a huge, hilarious family that all live within walking distance of each other. Plus, we would love to eat at Al’s Pancake World, no matter what kind of cuisine he was serving that week.
9) Storybrooke
Why? Where else can you have coffee with Snow White and Captain Hook? I bet if we stuck around long enough, the folks from Star Wars would eventually show up. Storybrooke is basically Disney World without roller coasters.
10) Pawnee, Indiana
Why? Sure, the city almost voted to allow Sweetums to take over their water supply, but what this place lacks in common sense, it makes up in friendship. Also, we will visit any city that had a Star Wars filibuster.
(via dailypawnee.tumblr.com)
-M+L
10 WTF Moments Watching “Orphan Black” for the First Time
I finally started watching Orphan Black.
A few of my friends are fans and are always singing its praises so I told myself I had to watch it this summer. I didn’t have much knowledge going in. I was expecting clones and superb acting from Tatiana Maslany but I was not expecting so many shocking moments in the first episode. I had so many questions by the end that I decided to list my ten “WTF” moments watching ‘Natural Selection.’ I have a feeling there will be more in future episodes. I’m excited! 
1. When Sarah encounters a girl who looks exactly like her
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2. When the doppelgänger jumps in front of a train
(via absolutepunk.net)
3. When Sarah transforms into Beth and speaks in an American accent
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4. When Sarah discovers multiple birth certificates
(via reddit.com)
5. When Sarah learns Beth is a cop
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6. When Sarah drinks the soap
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7. When Art breaks into Beth’s car
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8. When Katja Obinger appears
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9. When Katja is shot
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10. When Katja’s cellphone rings then Beth’s
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-M
20 Reactions to Out of Africa
Photo Source: fanpop.com
For some, June 22 is any other day but at popculturenexus.com, June 22 is BIG day. It’s Meryl Streep’s birthday!!!!!!
So, how do you celebrate the day the world was given one of the most talented actors to have ever lived? Do you have a Meryl movie marathon? Do you listen to the Mamma Mia! soundtrack on repeat? I guess it doesn’t really matter what you do as long as you do it with passion because that’s what makes Meryl so astounding. Whether she is rafting down the Salmon River or ruthlessly leading a fashion magazine, Meryl breathes life into each character she portrays because she is passionate about her craft. Her passion is palpable on the screen which makes it easy to believe her relationships with other characters. To celebrate Meryl’s birthday, we decided to look at one of her greatest love stories, Out of Africa (1985).
She once had a farm in Africa but we still have 20 feels we can’t get over.
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD
Our Favorite TV Dads
In honor of Father’s Day, we wanted to take a moment to commemorate all of our favorite TV dads. Between them, they’ve had to deal with everything from sibling spats to alternate universe apocalypses, and everything in between. So join us in tipping our hats to these fantastic fictional fathers…
Keith Mars (Veronica Mars)
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The Fault in Our Stars Twitter Reactions
Find out what fans had to say about the film. Spoiler alert: It includes many tears.
- @christinepilar ansel and shai gave justice to the book so kudos to them!!
@AnselElgort@shailenewoodley#tfios - @jamhutcherfin As a result of seeing TFiOS, I was really impressed with Ansel’s acting out of anybody’s. I thought he did a great job
- @croley Tfios was seriously the best movie
- @diannehadap emotionally unstable for the rest of my life bc tfios.
- @gocheckyourself I SAW TFIOS AND I CRIED SO HARD I CANNOT BREEAATTTHHHEEE AGAIN
@realjohngreen HOW DARE YOU - @LokiiLaufeyson Honestly, I found
#TFIOS to be quite boring… - @accioboooks
@realjohngreen I saw#tfios yesterday and it was perfect. ansel and shailene were perfect. congrats, its the best movie of the year xx - @CourtneyLuther TFIOS was one of the best movies I’ve ever seen…
- @dansmeow but guys, i went to see tfios and, i was so excited to see it but it was a let down, to be completely honest+…
- @makfinley2017 So many people were crying in the theater last night it was unreal. I loved it.
#TFIOSFeels - @mmillaxoxo Oh gosh but it was the best. So beautifully and tragically made into movie. Lcckfkdlslldlsaööaöw
#TFIOSFeels - @bieber_ariane The fault in our stars is the best movie ever. The saddest too! I cried for the last 45 minutes! <3 :’)
#TFIOS#TFIOSFeels#AugustusWaters - @Sarahholloway_ This movie is about to make me reevaluate my whole life
#TFIOS - @Reading_Girl So
#TFIOS was AMAZING! It broke my heart…
Again. Like…I just…I can’t even explain how much I loved it! I wanna go back &see it again! - @sazzyrosalie Definitely One of The Best Movie Adaptation
#TheFaultInOurStars - @claudmramos I am literary crying walking home.
#TheFaultInOurStars so good. - @WannaMinajOrNah
#TheFaultInOurStars is one of those movies that I would watch 8254167 times. like it’s THAT good. DEFINITELY recommend it. 5 stars.
‘The Fault in Our Stars’ Movie Is More Than “Okay”
I was lucky enough to see an advance screening of the movie adaptation of John Green’s bestselling novel The Fault in Our Stars (in theaters June 6th), and I can’t imagine a better version of this story being told on the big screen. Directed by Josh Boone (Stuck in Love), the movie manages to capture the delicate balance of sharp, witty humor and brutally raw emotion that Green so deftly depicts on the page. A large part of the film’s success is that they took a fair amount of Green’s text straight from the book. Hazel’s narration is preserved through periodic voice-overs, and much of the dialogue is fairly true to the book, if not taken directly. The other reason The Fault in Our Stars so perfectly encapsulates the spirit of the book is the cast. I never thought it could be possible to find a young actress and actor who could truly embody Hazel Grace Lancaster and Augustus Waters (unless someone created a time machine and went back in time to when Jena Malone and Mike Erwin were young enough to play teenagers), but Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort have surpassed any image I may have had of what these characters should be. And I’d be remiss if I left out the incredible Nat Wolff, whose performance as Isaac is so innate that it almost feels like Green based on the character on him to begin with.
The Fault in Our Stars seems like the rare instance where everyone involved in this project actually worked together seamlessly to create the best possible film while staying true to the original work. As someone who holds the book very dear and was dubious about its journey to the big screen, I am thrilled to say they succeeded. I think fans of the book will be very pleased with how the movie has turned out, and anyone who hasn’t read the book will be equally blown away by this powerful and brilliant film. Just remember to bring tissues.
-L
Which TV Network is Winning?
I was curious to see which network had the most viewers each night so I decided to graph the number of viewers per episode for the 2013-2014 full season drama shows that were renewed for next season. I don’t watch any CBS dramas (I use to watch The Good Wife but sadly, I fell behind) so I was immensely surprised to see that CBS was winning 4 of the 6 nights. CBS may remain the winner for comedy shows too since it has the uber popular The Big Bang Theory which TVLine reports has a total of 20 million viewers. With the exception of Elementary, even the lowest rated CBS episodes beat the other networks’ highest rated episodes. WOW! That’s some impressive numbers.
*Viewership data from tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com
-M
