Betty And Amanda’s Article At ModeNY.com

In case you haven’t seen it yet, ModeNY.com, the online presence of fictional fashion magazine Mode from Ugly Betty, has become more and more integrated with the actual show.

In episode 3.10, Bad Amanda, ModeNY.com was actually a huge part of the plot, especially an article that Betty and Amanda were charged with writing. That article, How I Blew Ten Grand Without Spending A Dime, is now posted on the Mode NY web site.

It is written in Betty’s voice (not easy to do), just as “Amanda’s Blog” is written in her voice. That tells me the Ugly Betty writers have something to do with this. Betty twists between narrative of the events in 3.10, and waxing philosophical:

I have to mention that I’ve been to the Grand Canyon, and it was a wonder to behold, but I am still in awe of the phenomenon that is Amanda in a department store. I’ve never seen anyone more in control of an environment. This is what it must have been like to watch Alexander the Great control his men during his conquest of Asia.

I love it. This is definitely something Betty would write. Another snippet (about the wonderful scene where Betty has to think on her feet to take care of the huge restaurant bill she and Amanda were left with):

Let’s consider our subsequent scamming a bonus lesson – things never go according to plan, so always be prepared to adapt and think on your feet. In our situation, it also helped that we were dealing with an incredibly understanding dining establishment. Clearly, this is a restaurant who knows how to cater to its customers. The superb food was only surpassed by its service. Even though we didn’t pay for the meal, it would’ve been worth the price. The fine people at The Shire are the best that the New York dining scene has to offer.

This, of course, is the prominent feature Betty promised the manager in exchange for “taking care of” the bill. So cool. And were learn the name of the restaurant – The Shire.

ModeNy has now fully reached its promise; it’s a true compliment to the show. When episodes air one Thursday, one can usually go to ModeNY on Friday and get true bonus content about that week’s episode (not to mention the Letter From The Editor and Amanda’s Blog).

My only quibble: why didn’t Amanda share the byline? Yes, Betty “wrote” the article, but Amanda had a big part in that. Oh well, like I said, it’s a small quibble.

All in all, great job, ABC.