Pop Culture Princess

Pop Culture Princess
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Thursday, June 06, 2013

GOT's Red Wedding blues,a house divided in Mad Men and The American Baking Competition lets the cookies crumble

A number of subplots were updated on Game of Thrones this week,but I'm going to push all of them aside here to talk about the gruesome main event of the episode,the Red Wedding where Rob Stark and his allies(along with his new wife) met their end and his mother Catelyn suffered through some true horrors before her own demise.

I've read the books,so I knew this was coming and as horrifying this was to experience on the page, in some ways it was even more so here. This shocking betrayal almost makes Ned's beheading seem tame(key word in that sentence is almost,so please don't riled up there,folks).


 Arya's being there as it went down yet escaping with her life thanks to a dubious ally is another note in the tragic song that her life has become here. A sad day for the Starks,indeed as well as for the fans who weren't expecting this devastating body blow to the story.

 As it was with the unexpected execution of Ned, many are swearing that they'll never watch this show but I would strongly advise against that, at least until the season finale this coming weekend. For one, this story line is only half done as A Storm of Swords(the third book in the series)was split in two,much like the last Harry Potter and the last volume of the Twilight saga. Therefore,the finale is going to set up some major events that truly rock the foundations of Westeros and you don't want to miss out on that,trust me on this.

I have no idea how exactly the show will tie up the season but if what I think happens will happen,then you're going to see that payback,like winter, is coming for those who deserve it:


Things are also unsteady on Mad Men, as Joan attempts to become an account woman while Don and Roger are out of town on a business trip. Her date with an Avon representative turned out to be a chance to get their business for the firm(which now has the name Sterling Cooper and Partners) and she took a shot at getting them on board.

You can't really blame her for taking such a golden opportunity like Avon when it's practically sitting in her lap but Joan got in over her head way too fast due to keeping Pete out of the loop and it was only with the begrudging help of Peggy that the whole thing might still be a step up for them all.

Meanwhile, Don and Roger get spun out of their comfort zone in L.A.,particularly at a Hollywood party that Harry gets them invited to. Not only do they run into a former work colleague,Don decides to take a nearly deadly dip in the pool after a few rounds with hashish.

While all of this is happening, their new partners at the firm(well,one of them anyway) is planning to make some changes both behind their backs and right in their face. Hey,gang, take a look around the office and see what's really going on there before a bloodless coup takes you out of the game,seriously!:




It was cookie time on The American Baking Competition and during the Signature round, Brian tried to tweak the rules in his favor. The first batch of chocolate chip cookies that he made didn't come out so great,so he put them aside and prepared some more, quite the no-no there.

He did mention his early attempt to the judges, who scolded him for that but as it turned out, the second set of cookies weren't much better. You may want to be Star Baker,Brian but this is not the way to go. Either everyone gets a do-over or no one does, it's that simple.

The Show Stopper round was equally challenging for all,as the cookie to be made was French macarons. The outer shell is difficult to keep from cracking but most of the flavor combinations worked out well there.

The Star Baker this time was Elaine,who did a great job with her cookies and lucky for Brian, college student Whitney went home for the lackluster macarons she put out. She gave it a good try there and I'm keeping an eye on Brian for further not-so- sweet shenanigans:



RANDOM NOTES:

TATTOO NIGHTMARES: Season two of this show is now under way and my good friend Jasmine Rodriguez is still helping people shake off those terrible tattoo errors in judgement. Check it out for some good laughs and appreciation of the best in body art:








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