I loved Mindy Kaling from her days on The Office as Kelly Kapoor, so I was BEYOND excited when The Mindy Project first came out in 2012. As I started to watch, I wasn’t disappointed—we were given a strong, hilarious, quirky female lead who had the same appreciation for pop culture and desire for constant attention as I do. I was low-key jealous of her hair, the attention she got from guys, and the fact that she was a badass doctor.
Fast forward to 2020, three years after the series finale in 2017. I’ve got time on my hands, I’m bored out of my mind, and I’ve come to realize that I’m not TikTok famous (and probably won’t ever be). So what do I do? I channel my energy towards re-watching old TV shows that I used to love (yeah… my parents are super proud of how I spend my time…).
One of the shows I re-watched was The Mindy Project, which I picked in hopes of giving my mind a break from serious sh*t like the upcoming election, #FreeBritney, and the fact that Dorinda left RHONY. I wasn’t disappointed, but I did happen to notice a ton of unrealistic storylines, ridiculous plotlines, and general inconsistencies.
Whether you were quick enough to notice these things the first time you watched the show or not, here are some of the things I happened to spot that made me think “WTF?”
1. That Mindy Meets A Cute Guy Everywhere (Literally, Everywhere)
If you’ve seen even a few episodes of the show, you know Mindy meets a potentially dateable guy literally everywhere she goes. She’s met them on an airplane, in her office and office building, at the hospital she delivers babies at, on the street in NYC, through her patients… the list goes on, and on, and on, and on. Oh, not to mention that the majority of these guys are hot, have decent personalities, and have great jobs (I’m talking lawyers, doctors, and writers).
This is a recurring theme and storyline that I find difficult to believe. Especially as a single girl myself who’s fairly social, I know it’s preeeettty difficult to find even one normal guy who’s single and ready to date. And I’m not talking about finding “Mr. Perfect”—I’m legitimately just talking about meeting a guy who looks like he showers and receives a paycheck from some sort of place of work.
So with all that being said, the show romanticizes the ability to find a dateable guy or girl in a way that drives me crazy. Buuuut, in the off chance that Mindy Kaling actually experiences this IRL…@Mindy, please send me some serious tips. Your girl needs all the help she can get.
2. That Mindy Opens A Fertility Clinic Within Episodes
If my business degree and Shark Tank watching have taught me anything (ok, ok… Shark Tank definitely taught me WAY more than college), it’s that it takes time to start a company. Especially one that requires its own brick-and-mortar front in the heart of NYC, like the fertility clinic Mindy opens in season three.
Somehow, in a miraculous amount of time (I’m talking within a few episodes), Mindy finds a location for the clinic, gets together financing, files the necessary permits, re-decorates, hires an employee, rolls out a marketing plan, and is ready for her grand opening. If anyone thinks this is possible, they’re either delusional or they have the same connections as Kris Jenner.
3. How Mindy Found Time For Full Glam And Wardrobe Every Day
As a doctor at one of the top practices in NYC (and a single mom for part of the show), how TF does Mindy find the time every single day to have her hair and makeup done as if she’s Dorit Kemsley? And to dress in outfits that even Reese Witherspoon would be jealous of? Personally, I’m not even commuting to work and I can hardly find time to put on Chapstick and a non-toothpaste-stained sweatshirt before my 10am Zoom meeting.
So even though her hair, makeup, and outfits are #GlamGoals and good enough to get her cast on the RHOBH, IRL it would be humanly impossible to pull those looks off without a full-on glam squad and stylist. And it’s not like everyone else is dressed to the nines too. The majority of the other cast is running around in scrubs…just saying!
4. The Longevity Of Mindy And Danny’s Romantic Relationship(s)
Okay, I get it. Every girl has that one guy in their life that they always go back to, even if he’s a complete piece of sh*t. For Mindy, that guy seems to be Danny.
What makes this recurring plotline so ridiculous is the longevity of their relationship, and the fact that Mindy kept going back to him over and over again. Why is this so crazy and unbelievable? IMO, it’s unrealistic because of how Danny treats Mindy.
I’m referring to Danny criticizing and shaming Mindy on everything from her eating and workout habits, her mothering skills, her appreciation for pop culture and celebrities, and the fact that she was career-driven (shocking, a modern woman!). For someone that hardly seemed to like her lifestyle and personality, why TF did Danny even want to be with her and why TF did Mindy want to be with him?
What makes this crazier is that Mindy dated a sh*t ton of other guys on the show who were so much less of a**holes. Okay, so not all of them were that much better than Danny (i.e. she dated a 40-something-year-old skateboarder she met off the street)…but let’s just say they weren’t as judgmental as Danny.
5. That Danny Tried To Secretly Impregnate Mindy
In season four, Danny tries to impregnate Mindy without her knowledge. Big WTF. Big red flag.
What makes this plotline unbelievable is that they’re both OBGYNs. So from Danny’s standpoint, he should 100% understand the ethical issues with getting someone pregnant without their explicit consent and knowledge…you would think? On top of that, from his work, he should know what kind of stress it can cause a woman to deal with an unplanned pregnancy.
Overall, this just seemed like a bizarre (borderline criminal?) scenario to take place on this show.
6. How Mindy Could Afford Her Rent And Lifestyle
Even Luann de Lesseps would be impressed if she saw Mindy’s apartment, because it’s THAT gorgeous. Seriously, it looks like it could be on Million Dollar Listing.
Nowhere in the show was it discussed how Mindy could afford her lifestyle, pay her medical school bills, AND afford her rent. Did she have some sort of relative that left her a ton of money? Did her parents contribute to the rent? Did she secretly have investments in stocks or property elsewhere? No explanation was given…
What makes it even more unbelievable is that, through the seasons, we learn that she has zero financial skills and insane spending habits.
Remember in season three, when Mindy realizes she’s been inadvertently committing tax fraud and had to hire her ex Cliff to get her out of the mess? That goes to show her lack of awareness for personal finances. Second of all, her outfits and bags look like they’re more expensive than the property tax on Lisa Vanderpump’s Villa Rosa. So how TF is she affording it all? Makes no sense.
7. The Length Of Ben And Mindy’s Marriage
The only explanation I have for the Mindy/Ben plot line is that the show’s writers were HUGE Keeping Up With the Kardashians fans. After all, Mindy and Ben’s nuptials seemed to last about the same length as Kim Kardashian and Chris Humphries’ 72-day marriage.
To refresh your memory: Ben and Mindy got engaged during the last episode of season five. In episode one of season six, we find out they’re having marital issues, and in episode two they decide to get divorced. This left viewers—or at least, me—wondering what the point of building up the engagement plot was, if they weren’t planning on exploring the relationship more in the coming season.
And it wasn’t like Ben was acting like an a**hole and it made sense for Mindy to initiate a divorce. In fact, it was Mindy who wasn’t showing any commitment to the marriage, despite Ben’s efforts. Mindy was standing Ben up on their date nights, and at one point she hadn’t even realized he’d been missing from home for two full days.
So, for the girl who dreamed of being married to the perfect guy (seriously, she started a podcast about wedding cakes), why TF wouldn’t she put more effort into keeping Mr. Perfect once she found him? Too weird for me to believe, and therefore something I’m calling out for being a ridiculous plot.
Don’t get me wrong, I still love the show and Mindy Kaling will always be my personal hero. I’m just saying, if there’s ever a reboot and she needs a writer to will painstakingly catch every single out-of-place detail, give me a call.
Images: GIPHY (7), Hulu
I may be twenty *cough* years old, but no matter how many undereye wrinkles I get, one thing remains the same: I am a slut for teen dramas. Give me a hot cast, lots of sex, unrealistic plotlines, and meme-worthy dialogue, and you have yourself a fan. From Gossip Girl to Vampire Diaries, Riverdale to Pretty Little Liars, I’ve seen them all more times than I’d care to admit. The newest addition to my shameful series obsession is, of course, Netflix’s perfect scandy, soapy quarantine distraction: Outer Banks.
First thing’s first: The series, starring a couple of twenty-somethings playing teens who gained Insta-fame overnight, is solid gold. It makes sense Netflix picked it up and it makes even more sense why it was an instant success. A whole bunch of beachy high schoolers on a deadly hunt for treasure while things like parents, class status, sex, and natural disasters get in the way is the whole reason television was invented. Still, though the show is a bonafide success, just like with our other fave teen dramas, there are plenty of plot points and elements that make absolutely no sense. Gotta love how much we’ll all suspend our disbelief when it involves tanned people with daddy issues.
1. The “Teens”
This is the one aspect that the internet has really clung onto and like, I get it. The show is centered around OBXers ranging from 13 (Sarah’s sister) to 19 (her brother, Rafe) with the core crew being around 16. While that’s the perfect age for a series about first loves and eternal summer vibes, it’s not exactly the age the cast looks, which haters obsessed over. Chase Stokes (John B.) is 27, Madeline Cline (Sarah) is 22, and the rest of the Pogues are all 21.
While this is one of the biggest quips viewers had, I didn’t really give a sh*t. The industry has to do that to overcome things like age restrictions and underage employment laws, and the fact that they can all legally buy booze makes me feel a little less grimy for lusting after them. If the person who played JJ or John B. was actually 16, we’d all be going to prison right about now. Still, even I have to admit John B. looks closer to middle age than he does to graduating high school.
2. Sarah Understands Her Demons
At 16, I didn’t know what childhood trauma was, let alone that I’d spend many years and many hundreds of dollars in therapy because my parents never got me an American Girl doll. Sarah, on the other hand, seems to have a full-on grasp of her toxic trait: not getting attached to people. When Kiara confronts her about ghosting on their best friendship, Sarah said, “When people get close to me, I feel trapped and I bail. And then I blame them for it.”
While that’s a very honest response followed up with a heartfelt apology that resulted in the two reconciling, that’s not how most 16-year-old girls would act, let alone talk. She communicates clearly with John B. before (assumingly) losing her virginity and she manages to keep a level head when he talks about how he lost his, something I at 16 could not fathom doing. Unless teens now have the emotional intelligence of 30-somethings who have spent a lot of time working on themselves, I’m calling bullsh*t. At least she said she’d rather die than live without John B. him even though she knew him for like, a month. That helped tbh.
3. John B.’s MANY Escapes From Death
After getting pushed out of a tower, fleeing gunshots and criminals, evading death by both a gaff hook and a plane at the hands of his girlfriend’s father and then, of course, living through his boat capsizing during a hurricane and being FOUND and RESCUED, it’s clear John B. can’t die. I mean, if he could, he’d have been dead probably long before the series even started (or at least at the very start when he was drinking while balancing on a roof with one foot, which is literally making my palms sweaty just thinking about).
“I don’t know how many lives got left, at this point,” Chase Stokes told Bustle, indicating that even he realizes just how absurd it is that his character walked away from season one with nothing more than a concussion, a broken arm, and some majorly chapped lips.
4. Kiara Didn’t Hook Up With Anyone
It’s clear every single “teen” (lol) on the show had the hots for Kiara. JJ tried to hook up with her before, John B. kissed her and she turned him down, and it seems she ends up with Pope at the end of the first season (which might actually be the most unrealistic part of the entire series). The Kooks nod at how hot she is at the Midsummer’s ball, even if they’re being d*cks about it. Hell, there are even a few moments with Sarah when it seems like something could happen. I mean, that boat sleepover was low-key steamy.
Granted, maybe she’s just waiting for the right person and like, fine. But does she have eyes? Literally 100% of these people are hot and horny for her. Personally, I’d opt for a Sarah-John B. threesome, but that’s just me. The fact that she, a single 16-year-old (well, played by a 21-year-old) in her prime with the hottest humans in the world drooling at her feet, ONLY KISSES the person with whom she has the least sexual chemistry in the entire show with is a TRAGEDY.
5. They Find The F*cking Gold
Now, I might have been looking at my phone most of the time while watching the show, but hasn’t this treasure been missing for a long-ass time? So long, in fact, that John B.’s dad spent his entire career on the hunt and literally died looking for it? I get it — debris was sturred up after a storm, the Pogues found a key clue which led to another clue which led to them breaking into an old lady’s well and causing an Island-wide battle for the gold. Still, people’s jobs, careers, and lives were dedicated to finding the treasure for decades.
During the pilot episode, a museum worker says, “The Royal Merchant sunk in the great storm of 1829 with $400 million of British government gold on board.” People have been looking for this gold since 1829 and a group of sexually-charged teens manages to find it within a few months while also juggling family drama, budding relationships, and consuming vast amounts of alcohol? Yeah, that checks out… Finger’s crossed season two will happen and be just as juicy and far-fetched!
Images: Netflix; Giphy (3)
If you’re reading this, chances are you have subscriptions to like, half a dozen TV streaming services. Okay, the Netflix subscription might be your mom’s, Hulu and Disney+ are a package deal, and you got a free year of Apple TV+ when you upgraded your phone, but still, you have access to a lot of content. That being said, it might not seem like we need more streaming services… but maybe we do? Today marks the launch of Quibi, a brand new streamer that actually has a unique concept, and tons of original content. Is it worth it? Here’s what you need to know to make a decision.
The Concept
It’s tempting to roll your eyes at the thought of yet another streaming service, but at least Quibi is really doing something new. Unlike other services, Quibi is only meant to be watched on your phone—there’s no way to watch on your computer or TV. The app looks great and is super easy to use, but I’m a little skeptical about watching so many videos on my phone. Usually, I prefer to watch on a bigger screen, so I can use my phone to mindlessly refresh Instagram every three minutes.
Thankfully, the shows on Quibi are tailored to my minuscule attention span, with all episodes clocking in at under 10 minutes. If you’re super bored during your work day, you can just go to the bathroom and watch like, three episodes of a Quibi show. Quibi is a portmanteau of Quick bites, and it definitely lives up to its name.
The Content
Quibi is 100% original content, and the nice thing about the short episodes is that you can try out a lot of different shows. Quibi divides its programming into three categories: Movies in Chapters, Unscripted and Docs, and Daily Essentials.
Movies in Chapters are… exactly what they sound like. These longer programs are still split up into short episodes, but you’re following one story the whole time. For these, the first three episodes are available now, with new episodes every weekday. Of the handful that have already launched, I’m most excited to start Most Dangerous Game, a thriller starring Liam Hemsworth and Christoph Waltz, and Survive, a drama starring Sophie Turner. There’s also Flipped, which stars Will Forte and Kaitlin Olson as house flippers who get involved with a drug cartel. Should be fun.
The unscripted content is where a ton of big names come in. I was most excited to check out Chrissy’s Court, which stars Chrissy Teigen deciding real cases, and I’m happy to report that it’s delightful. I’m also very into Nicole Richie’s new show Nikki Fre$h, and the reboot of Punk’d, which is now hosted by Chance the Rapper. The short episodes lend themselves perfectly to silly shows like this, and this is where Quibi’s concept really shines.
The Daily Essentials shows cover up-to-date news, entertainment, and lifestyle info, and are a good alternative to reading Twitter for your news. The first episode of Around The World by BBC News made me feel very smart this morning, and I’m waiting for work to be over so I can check out sex and relationship show Sexology.
The Cost
Okay, so obviously everyone is going to like different shows, and there are way too many of them to even get into, but we can definitely talk money. Or rather, lack of money. Quibi is offering all new subscribers a 90-day free trial. Yeah, like three full months. Considering some streaming services only give you seven days for free, this feels like a f*cking gift.
Once your lengthy trial ends, Quibi has two options for monthly plans. There’s a $4.99/month plan, which is supported by ads, or you can go ad-free for $7.99/month. For reference, Apple TV+ is also $4.99/month, and Disney+ is $6.99 if you don’t do the Hulu bundle. Personally, I refuse to sit through ads for something I’m paying for, so if I keep my subscription, I’ll definitely be going for the ad-free option, but it’s up to you.
The Verdict
In general, Quibi is a good concept, and even if the phone-only thing isn’t a great fit for how I like to watch TV, I’m sure it’s ideal for a lot of people. The short episodes make it easy to get sucked in, and there’s enough interesting content to keep people watching. And even if you’re on the fence about the new shows, or you don’t think you’ll use it much, the free trial makes it a no-brainer. If you’ve complained about being bored at all in the last three weeks, you can definitely kill an hour or two watching episodes of random Quibi shows.
Will I keep my Quibi subscription once my free trial ends? I really don’t know, but with 90 days free, I don’t have to decide any time soon. I set a reminder to cancel at the beginning of July, but who knows, I might end up getting addicted and keeping it. Also, I canceled my Apple TV+ subscription, so I don’t feel that bad about signing up for something else.
If your mind is already reeling at the thought of signing up for another streaming service, you’re in for a rough few months. NBC’s Peacock service rolls out to Xfinity customers later this month (with a wide launch in July), and HBO Max is coming in May. Too bad the Friends reunion is postponed because of COVID-19, but you’ll still be able to watch all the old episodes. Until then, I’ll be watching Chrissy’s Court from the toilet every morning!
Images: Quibi
