Hmmm.  Simon Cowell?  I mean, I can see the personality compatibility, but it couldn’t last.  (Although I’d REALLY love to see Cowell’s very frank reaction to Betty’s wardrobe!)

Of course, she’s kidding, but on a serious note, I think I’m not alone in saying that Amanda most definitely needs a love interest.  Every other character (except Justin) on the show has had a go at a serious relationship – but Amanda is stuck in one night stand mode.  I guess you could count Tavares, the closet straight designer, but that was more of a fling.

I would suggest Matt, but I don’t think I can duck fast enough.  The pairing just doesn’t have any zing, although I could totally see Amanda going after the Sugar Daddy.  It would be interesting to see Amanda totally infatuated or even in love – her season 1 fling with Daniel showed a side we haven’t seen since.

Am I hawking this idea because I secretly wish to see more scantily-dressed Amanda bedroom scenes?  Well, that’s a pleasant side effect.  But really, although I’ve enjoyed Newton as the wacky sidekick, her character hasn’t had much to do in a while, and in a show with soap opera touches, falling in love is something to do.

Newton seems to be enjoying her European summer; I had never heard of “T4″ until I saw this video.

So, Ugly Betty writers, we’re reaching a consensus at UBN: Betty’s romantic entanglements are getting old – give us Amanda in love!

Post from: Ugly Betty News

Let me tell you about my love/hate affair with UGLY BETTY. On the one hand, it’s colorful, often hysterically funny, beautifully shot (in high-def) on location in my favorite city, New York, and is set within the publishing industry, something I know a little bit about, having worked on magazines all my adult life.

On the other hand it’s infuriating: sad, bittersweet and repetitive. It’s lead character, Betty Suarez (America Ferrera), seems to have not learned a thing in her four years working at Mode magazine; she remains too trusting, unable to read others’ personalities, and thus too willing to help those who are only going to stab her in the back in return. She is frustratingly unaware of the fact that there’s a fine line between being a sweet naïf and being a doormat.

I give more credence to this argument than the one that says Betty should be a fashionista by now after being at Mode for 3 years (although the show is entering its 4th season, theoretically Betty’s only worked there for 3).  Some people just do not have ‘the eye’ for fashion, no matter how much they are surrounded by people who do.

But the mere passage of time should have ensured that some of Betty’s innocence should have worn off by now.

Don’t get me wrong – the writers have a very fine line to walk here.  Sure, they have to address concerns like this; the show does tend to get repetitive.  At the same time, to borrow a phrase from executive producer Silvio Horta, Betty must retain her “heart”, else the show will lose a major ingredient in the show’s original popularity.

Betty has to grow, yet remain likeable.  I think in the season 3 finale, the writers mostly succeeded.  Yes, Betty’s actions treated Matt badly, but at the same time she was human in a perfectly understandable way.  That’s life; sometimes that which we desire is not what is right for others we love.  It’s one of the conflicts grownups face all the time – and Betty’s getting old enough to qualify for that distinction.

Next season, Betty will finally have that editor’s job, and she’ll finally lose the braces. I think these will be outward signs of more subtle changes in her character.  We’ll see if that happens. 

Image: Newscom

Post from: Ugly Betty News

We’ve heard for months that someone on the show is going to die, and all indications have been that it’s going to be the brand new Mrs. Meade, Molly.  Not only that, but he is going to appear on “The View” for what should be a lighthearted interview, but apparently Joy Behar and Elisabeth Hasselbeck turn it into Frost vs Nixon.

Eric Mabius is very, very good when his character Daniel is suddenly in an uncomfortable situation, so I expect this scene to be great.

"It really felt like a normal segment on our show," Hasselbeck tells TVGuide.com. "I felt we had a home-field advantage [at our studio]. It was [Eric Mabius'] character trying to fit in and feeling awkward — as I’m sure many guests do when we start grilling them!”

Behar says The View makes for a great inclusion in entertainment. "We’re part of the national lexicon now. People use The View as a jumping-off point — for better or for worse," she says.  [I make no secret that I can’t stand The View, but she’s right]

Apparently, the two were allowed to heavily improvise.  “The script merely served as a backbone for the tone of conversation," Hasselbeck says. "After we said our lines, we continued [talking] as we normally do here."

This is only one small part of what promises to be an exciting season finale.  Wilhelmina will play tennis with Billie Jean King, and sing with Victoria!  Of course, there’s the return of Henry.  Please join us here tonight at 8/7c for the live blog!

Image: Newscom

Post from: Ugly Betty News

Of course, the fact that he’s a “romantic entanglement” at all means that the producers of the show must have changed their minds about Betty concentrating on work and growing up a little. I guess Silvio Horta could say he had this in mind all along, but it’s such a drastic change, I doubt it.

But, regardless, we now have this character, Matt. As some of you have said, he’s good looking in a non-threatening way. Like Henry, he seems to have a certain innocence and goodness about him, and like Gio, he’s doesn’t let Betty get away with “her crap” (as one of you said) – he’s not afraid to put Betty in her place.

In fact, Matt is so much a morph between Betty’s former lovers, I’m half tempted to call him “Henrio”.

I have to say, I like this character, I like the way Gold is playing him, and I like his enthusiasm. I also like the fact that he works at a sports magazine, bringing a little youthful masculinity to the show that’s been missing since the departures of Henry and Gio. (Yeah, Connor oozes masculinity, but he’s not long for the show, I am guessing).

So, I may be opening a can of worms, but I’ll ask: what do you think of Matt? I know many of you want your own favorite characters back, but it looks like Matt is the Man of the Moment. Do you like him? Or is he a little too squirrelly? Are you hoping he sticks around?

That’s this week’s poll question.

Image: SplashNewsOnline

Post from: Ugly Betty News

Michael Urie

Most of the spoiler news about Ugly Betty lately has been surrounded around Betty and her family. Refreshingly, EW’s Michael Ausiello has an interesting little tidbit about Marc:

Question: We haven’t had Ugly Betty scoop in forever! What’s next? — Sidra
Ausiello: Marc’s getting a new roommate…But the show isn’t adding any new cast-members.

Hmmm – the possibilities are intriguing.

The obvious one would be the return of David Blue as Cliff. No doubt Michael Urie and Blue were great together, in an odd-couple sort of way. This is the possibility I am wishing for the most. However, when we last saw Cliff, he was leaving Marc in tears. Can they put that Genie back in the bottle?

Who else might it be?

• Wilhelmina? – Maybe, but aren’t they together a little too much already? It would be interesting to see a topical storyline where Willy gets caught up in the mortgage crisis.
• Daniel? – Has the possibility of being funny, but way too gimmicky for my tastes.
• Christina? – Just can’t make any sense out of that one.
• Amanda? – This one is the most likely possibility. If Betty does move back in with her family (please, no!), Amanda will have nowhere to go. Could the writers be setting up a Marc and Mandy spin-off?

Anyway, like I said, the possibilities are very intriguing. What do you think?

Image: Bauer-Griffin

Post from: Ugly Betty News

Mel in Temecula, Calif.: How about some Ugly Betty news?
I’m hearing that Betty’s father will suffer a heart attack soon. Fortunately it’s not fatal, but it will prompt Betty to move back home.

Holy cow!  That’s huge.  I’m not sure how I feel about this one yet.

On the one hand, there is a great opportunity for some real drama, which America Ferrera can handle deftly.  Not to mention the fact that Tony Plana would have a major storyline for the first time this season.

But on the other hand, what I don’t like is the idea of Betty moving back home.  Although realistic, doesn’t that defeat the whole purpose of Betty’s storyline the first half of season 3? 

Yet, on the 3rd hand, all the angst Betty will harbor after tasting freedom and adulthood only to have it snatched away again – that’s good stuff.

I guess that if this comes to be, it means that Ugly Betty will be taking a pretty strong dramatic turn.  If so, hopefully Marc and Mandy will have some bigtime comedy scenes to counteract it.

All in all, I think such a move would be a plus for the show.  I trust the writers; they’ve shown me that this year they know what they’re doing.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Ugly Betty News

The Ugly Betty staff writing it (I don’t know if it’s the writers, Newton herself, or someone else), give us a pretty good insight into the muddied mind of Ms Tanen Sommers.  Whether she’s giving her take on the events in the previous episode of Ugly Betty, or pontificating about world events, you usually finish the post saying, “Huh?” But in a good way.

Last Thursday’s post was about the events of episode 3.07, Crush’d .  She tells how wonderful it is to have a roommate.  But first, she waxes philosophical:

Meanwhile, I’d like to point out that it’s no wonder Earth is a woman. If it were a man, there would just be one season all year long, with a temperature perfect for wearing a T-shirt and cargo shorts… maybe a drop of a few degrees here and there to warrant a beer-stained college sweatshirt. I’ve also always wondered how Mother Earth and Father Time ended up having Baby New Year, but that’s for another blog.

She then proceeds to tell us about going through Betty’s closet, with the intent of trying on her clothes to mock each outfit, and then discovering something:

All those patterns, all those colors… you know how when you drive past a crash site, you can’t help but look? I not only looked, I got out of the car and threw myself into the wreckage. It started as some sick thrill, to put on Betty’s hideous outfits and gross myself out. But things didn’t go according to plan, because, as you could probably figure out, I looked hot. And believe me, I tried real hard to look bad, but outfit after outfit, each one looked better on me than the last. I had been making fun of her clothes for so long, but I realized that was wrong of me. I shouldn’t have mocked her outfits, I should’ve mocked her.

Heh.  Gotta love Amanda.  She says out loud what we’re sure people like her are usually thinking.  For instance, her take on Jesse:

Just because you’re roommates with someone, doesn’t mean you can share everything. I kind of learned that one the hard way when I made out with some guy that Betty liked. To be fair, I didn’t know she liked him. And my making out with him was kind of a good thing – it was sort of like my seal of approval for Betty’s choice of crush. She’ll realize that in time.

Nothing like the Amanda seal of approval.

Anyway, there is much more.  Check it out for past entries, and look for another post (hopefully) this Thursday.  It’s hilarious.

Image credit: Newscom

Post from: Ugly Betty News

Michael Urie recently hopped across the pond to attend the National Television Awards, broadcast on ITV from Albert Hall. Ugly Betty was nominated for Most Popular Comedy Programme (I LOVE spelling it that way!), although the award went to Benidorm.

This is an interesting look for Urie; it’s almost as if he stole Alec Mapa’s glasses.

It appears I’m not the only one wondering what’s going on with urie’s character Marc. 3.07, Crush’d, was a disaster for him. Cheating on Cliff, and not even over some long term emotional attachment, but anonymous sex (stereotype much, UB writers?). Then, in a moment of guilt, he proposes marriage?

I know Marc has done many dastardly deeds in Wilhelmina’s name, but this just feels different. The only thing worse he could do is betray Amanda. Please, UB writiers, Marc should be ruthless at work, loveable and sympathetic at home. That’s how I feel about it at least.

Post from: Ugly Betty News

Marc and Amanda get trapped in an elevator at Mode, and go into an air-headed panic.  I love how they go from “we’re stuck in here” to “the entire human race is gone, but us.”

The conversation at the beginning about flavored, er,something, is intriguing.  I also especially liked Marc’s dream about putting on Wilhelmina’s tiara  and becoming Zac Efron.

I don’t know which is creepier, Amanda’s recurring subconscious girl-crush on Betty (even if I bought a Mandy girl fantasy, Betty just doesn’t seem to be her type), or the fact that Marc and Mandy actually started the process of “repopulating the earth”.  However, when the elevator started back up, their mutual relief is hilarious.

Then, they see the security camera, and we get a little slapstick.

All in all, a great little diversion.

Post from: Ugly Betty News

The “latest” issue of Mode Online is up, reflecting all the recent changes in Ugly Betty.  There’s a whole, very beautiful cover story with Adriana Lima and the Tico Berry.  I love it!  It follows the storyline of episode 3.06 (Ugly Berry) almost exactly:

Supermodel Adriana Lima has been in on this trendy tropical treasure from the beginning, devouring the delish Tico berry on her grandfather’s farm as a young girl. The Brazilian beauty insists that this rare fruit, indigenous to her home country and known primarily by locals, is the sweet secret behind her sexy success.

There is a great photo gallery from the Mode shoot. My goodness, that woman is beautiful.

Daniel Meade wrote the “Letter From the Editor” this month, and it is poignant and philosophical.  The first part feels like it was written by Betty:

With the Wall St. meltdown, two wars, and the gas price rollercoaster affecting the nation, you might be asking yourself, what place does Fashion have in today’s society? If times are tough, isn’t Fashion a superfluous luxury?

However, later, this is vintage Daniel:

As troubling as these days are, now is not the time to settle for baggy, drab clothing…When things are looking down, we can’t give up. We can’t allow America to put on a collective pair of sweats.

I like that.

Amanda’s blog has an hilarious take on the US presidential election.  Her “cons” on each of the candidates are great reading:

So let’s see – the first con for McCain is that he has a hot wife. I know I said it was a pro, but I’m thinking now that having a really good looking first lady might make me jealous…

The cons for Obama? Other than his hot wife also making me jealous, I’d have to start with the ears. I mean, it’s like Will Smith and Spock had a kid. But I guess if you’re president you can get those pinned.

Of course, she ended up voting for Lance Bass.

Image Credit: Newscom

Post from: Ugly Betty News