The Bold Type - Stroke of Genius - Review + POLL

This week on The Bold Type Kate joins the political campaign of a woman she admires. The candidate ends up dropping out but the campaign manager tells Kat she should run. Sutton has to adjust a dress and a jacket and realizes she wants to design. She tells Oliver and he helps her figure out her next move. Alex finds out an ex wrote a story about him that suggests he pressured her into having sex. He struggles to write the article and isn’t sure if she should post is since it could negatively impact his career but posts it anyway. Jane finds out that Ryan looked at porn on her computer. They can’t have sex because she’s about to undergo the egg retrieval procedure but they find a way to make it work. 

Could’ve gone worse: Did anyone here ever watch One Tree Hill? Remember that episode where Haley found porn on Nathan’s computer and the huge fight they had? That’s where I thought things were headed with Jane and Ryan. But as usual, this show defies the clichés. Instead, it may have actually made their relationship stronger. They had a healthy conversation about it. Ryan never pressured Jane into anything, they found something that they were both interested in. I have to say, I’m really enjoying seeing this relationship grow each week. 

Kat for president: Yes, I know it’s only city council but you have to start somewhere. We all knew this was coming, right? I believe it may have even been in one of the promos. This episodes really showed that just because you have good platforms and ideas, doesn’t mean you’re a good politician. You need that charisma and energy to get people interested in the first place. And we all know Kat has both of those things. She has fire and determination to make some real change happen. However, being a black queer woman will certainly also get her a lot of haters. I’m almost certain that there will be an episode that has Kat dealing with that. We’ve seen her deal with online trolls but this will be a whole other level and I’m not sure if she’s ready for that. I guess we’ll see. 

Follow your dreams: I was really proud of Sutton this week (every week, really) for not staying quiet about what she wants to do with her life. A lot of people in her position wouldn’t have said anything. But she was open about it to Oliver, despite him having previously stated the big plans he has for her. He took it a lot better than I thought he would, but I guess underneath all that strictness he’s just a big softie. He even gave her advice and offered her to help. And the job she has now is indeed a great way to start making connections that will help her later. I hope this show lasts long enough that we get to see her realize those dreams. 

Accountability is important: Alex had a really important storyline this week. He realized some things about himself that he didn’t like but he worked through it and spoke up. There are certain situations where women feel pressured by guys without the guys even realizing. And I think a lot of it has to do with how things work in our society. Women are raised to be quiet, obedient (yes even now) and not cause a scene which means we often stay quiet in uncomfortable situations. Guys, on the other hand, are allowed to be loud and get away with a lot more under the “boys will be boys” moto (hate that phrase). That’s why most men don’t understand why a woman wouldn’t speak up in a moment like this. So I get that Alex didn’t understand at first how he could’ve been the bad guy in this story. But he wanted to understand, he did his research and spoke up about what he’d learned despite the negative consequences it could have for him. I hadn’t even thought of that until the girls mentioned it, but yeah, in this current political climate this could impact him very negatively. And while I do think that men should be held accountable (even for things in the past, when it’s a serious offense), Alex never intentionally pressured or harassed anyone. Also, he chose to reveal this as a way to bring attention to it and to prevent these things from happening again. Those things count for something. 

Best quotes: Kat: “Hey, what’s going on?” Sutton: “Ryan pinstriped all over Jane’s computer.” 
Jane: “Oh my god, I’m vanilla.” Ryan: “Yes, but you are the tastiest vanilla.” 
Jane: “Well, I don’t know who the father of my potential baby is going to be but I know they’re gonna have the best aunties.” Kat: “They are.” Sutton: “I’m gonna be the favorite.” Kat: “No way, I’m..” Jane: “Okay, ssshht. No fighting, it’s not good for the eggs.” 

That’s it for this week. Check in again next week for an all-new review and let me know in the comments what you thought of this week’s episode. 

Please be respectful in the comments, any unnecessary rudeness isn't welcome.