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1. Well, the Super managed to fix the outlet in the kitchen, so no more hazardous extension cords. Progress. The bathroom leak, however, has somehow begun to leak into the wall and ceiling of the living room with a few water stains. Hasn't begun to drip in the living room, yet, but I moved the television set just in case. (It was directly below it). Still leaking in the bathroom. They aren't sure what is causing this, since they removed and replaced a huge pipe with a hole in it on Friday.
The plumber is coming to look at it tomorrow.
2. While I'm still enjoying, Captive Prince - Kings Rising, I'm not sure the plot works. Actually it just jarred me out of the story. Having some of the same issues with it that I had with Scandal S4's plot, which also jarred me out of the story. (I think we're on S4). Neither quite tracks. I'm super-sensitive to plot issues, as you probably already know by now because I keep whinging about them when they pop up in television series and books. So it may just be me. (shrugs)
In Captive Prince - Kings Rising,
Jokaste, who betrayed Damen, manages to keep him from killing her by claiming to have sent his son to Laurent's uncle. The only way he'll get his son back is if he trades Jokaste for the boy. Laurent figures out that Jokaste probably didn't have Damen's son at all but Kastor's, so he let's her go. (Mainly because he realizes she cares more for Damen than Kastor, but could see where things were going and chose the means to save Damen's life, which was to take up with Kastor and convince him to sell Damen into slavery, instead of merely killing him. Kastor is the evil half-brother, who lost everything when Damen, the true heir was born.) Laurent also figures out that his uncle could care less about Jokaste and really just wants him to beg for Damen's life and go on trial and be executed instead. And it will be his uncle that they are meeting and not Kastor, or Jokaste's handmaiden/wet nurse -- like Damen believes. Why he doesn't confide any of this to Damen, so they can prepare, I've no clue. Also, why Damen doesn't realize at some point that the Uncle could care less about Jokaste, I've no clue.
Instead they stupidly ride into the King's Meet, where no one is permitted to draw swords on another, upon pain of death. The Uncle, all moustache a-twirling villainy on show, baits Damen into drawing his sword and trying to kill him. By telling him how he'd molested Laurent. (Seriously? Damen hadn't figured that out previously? And what did he think he would achieve by attacking him there, where they are surrounded by armed guards? He may be a bit on the reactionary side, but he's not a total idiot.) And he does it, after Damen is told that's what the Regent was planning on doing...so he just plays right into his hands? Then Laurent begs to be taken into custody? Why doesn't the Regent just kill Damen and take Laurent into custody? Why leave Damen free? There's no reason to bargain, he has both of them at his mercy.
The problem I'm having with the plot is it depends on all the characters acting like idiots to move forward and doing things that are slightly out of character.
I got irritated. The writer clearly had an agenda, she wanted her characters to get to point C. But didn't know how to get them there. So took a weird ass short cut.
Plotting is hard.
In regards to Scandal...
It should be noted that Shondra Rhimes is not a good plotter. She plots like a soap opera writer. So I tend to handwave them most of the time. Since they are emotionally based. That said, this plot...was more off-kilter than most.
Cyrus Beene, Frankie's Vargo's VP, turns out to be the person aka mastermind behind Frankie Vargo's, President Elect's death after all, albeit via an indirect route. He puts in Vargo's wife's head the idea that if Vargo is at his strongest when elected, if and when he gets shot, she'll be the most favorable candidate. She runs with his idea, at his urging, and hires this nasty group to kill her husband, which results in her becoming VP.
Except, the nasty group didn't want her to become VP, they wanted someone else in that slot. Nor did they originally intend for her husband to die, just lose the election. And they framed Cyrus for the assignation and wanted Cyrus to take the fall for it, possibly be executed. If it were up to them, he would have been. And for Mellie to become their puppet President.
Cyrus couldn't have planned all of that, or manipulated it, since he had no way of controlling or knowing that Olivia and her friends would take down the nasty group, LuAnne would become VP or that they'd even catch the nasty people. He's not omniscient. Nor is Luanne. There's too many uncontrollables. And I'm sorry, Cyrus isn't superhuman.
It doesn't work. I thought, yeah, right.
The plumber is coming to look at it tomorrow.
2. While I'm still enjoying, Captive Prince - Kings Rising, I'm not sure the plot works. Actually it just jarred me out of the story. Having some of the same issues with it that I had with Scandal S4's plot, which also jarred me out of the story. (I think we're on S4). Neither quite tracks. I'm super-sensitive to plot issues, as you probably already know by now because I keep whinging about them when they pop up in television series and books. So it may just be me. (shrugs)
In Captive Prince - Kings Rising,
Jokaste, who betrayed Damen, manages to keep him from killing her by claiming to have sent his son to Laurent's uncle. The only way he'll get his son back is if he trades Jokaste for the boy. Laurent figures out that Jokaste probably didn't have Damen's son at all but Kastor's, so he let's her go. (Mainly because he realizes she cares more for Damen than Kastor, but could see where things were going and chose the means to save Damen's life, which was to take up with Kastor and convince him to sell Damen into slavery, instead of merely killing him. Kastor is the evil half-brother, who lost everything when Damen, the true heir was born.) Laurent also figures out that his uncle could care less about Jokaste and really just wants him to beg for Damen's life and go on trial and be executed instead. And it will be his uncle that they are meeting and not Kastor, or Jokaste's handmaiden/wet nurse -- like Damen believes. Why he doesn't confide any of this to Damen, so they can prepare, I've no clue. Also, why Damen doesn't realize at some point that the Uncle could care less about Jokaste, I've no clue.
Instead they stupidly ride into the King's Meet, where no one is permitted to draw swords on another, upon pain of death. The Uncle, all moustache a-twirling villainy on show, baits Damen into drawing his sword and trying to kill him. By telling him how he'd molested Laurent. (Seriously? Damen hadn't figured that out previously? And what did he think he would achieve by attacking him there, where they are surrounded by armed guards? He may be a bit on the reactionary side, but he's not a total idiot.) And he does it, after Damen is told that's what the Regent was planning on doing...so he just plays right into his hands? Then Laurent begs to be taken into custody? Why doesn't the Regent just kill Damen and take Laurent into custody? Why leave Damen free? There's no reason to bargain, he has both of them at his mercy.
The problem I'm having with the plot is it depends on all the characters acting like idiots to move forward and doing things that are slightly out of character.
I got irritated. The writer clearly had an agenda, she wanted her characters to get to point C. But didn't know how to get them there. So took a weird ass short cut.
Plotting is hard.
In regards to Scandal...
It should be noted that Shondra Rhimes is not a good plotter. She plots like a soap opera writer. So I tend to handwave them most of the time. Since they are emotionally based. That said, this plot...was more off-kilter than most.
Cyrus Beene, Frankie's Vargo's VP, turns out to be the person aka mastermind behind Frankie Vargo's, President Elect's death after all, albeit via an indirect route. He puts in Vargo's wife's head the idea that if Vargo is at his strongest when elected, if and when he gets shot, she'll be the most favorable candidate. She runs with his idea, at his urging, and hires this nasty group to kill her husband, which results in her becoming VP.
Except, the nasty group didn't want her to become VP, they wanted someone else in that slot. Nor did they originally intend for her husband to die, just lose the election. And they framed Cyrus for the assignation and wanted Cyrus to take the fall for it, possibly be executed. If it were up to them, he would have been. And for Mellie to become their puppet President.
Cyrus couldn't have planned all of that, or manipulated it, since he had no way of controlling or knowing that Olivia and her friends would take down the nasty group, LuAnne would become VP or that they'd even catch the nasty people. He's not omniscient. Nor is Luanne. There's too many uncontrollables. And I'm sorry, Cyrus isn't superhuman.
It doesn't work. I thought, yeah, right.
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But everything after that...began to gradually lose me. Each week, it was if they just wanted to shock the audience for the sake of well shocking the audience, regardless of whether the plot tracked or worked.
I was able to hand-wave it for a while, because you know, soap opera, but I finally got fed up with it this season.