I mentioned in my last article about The Idol that I felt this sick curiosity as a writer to watch the show. If you didn’t gather from my review of episodes 1-3, I was quickly reminded why sometimes you need to listen to the general public. Sam Levinson and The Weeknd’s Max original is something of a car wreck, and (SPOILER ALERT!) episodes 4 and 5 are much worse, for different reasons.
Sure the final two episodes of what should’ve been a 6-episode series had much less focus on sex and nudity…but I quickly learned - at what cost? I took two full pages of notes while watching, so I’ll include some of my candid, raw reactions. But, the show turned sickeningly unbearable. I’m borderline offended by it?
I mean, with cast members like Jane Adams telling the feminists (I guess me in this circumstance) to “go f*** yourself,” I can imagine the feeling is quite mutual at this rate. Poor, misunderstood Sam Levinson created a show so artistically advanced that the entire world didn’t understand it! Ever wonder if it was just bad and that’s why people don’t get it?
Whatever. Back by popular demand, here are all my thoughts while watching the final two episodes of The Idol. Pray for me, and you’re welcome.
The Idol, Episode 4 Recap
We see that Tedros (The Weeknd, Abel Tesfaye, I don’t know anymore) has completely taken over Jocelyn’s estate. However, good news! The team is officially convinced that he’s up to no good. Hallelujah, surely they’ll do nothing.
They even approach Joss and say his real name is Mauricio Jackson and he was charged for kidnapping his ex, holding her hostage, and beating her. I know, pretend you’re shocked that the guy with the rat tail did this. Anyways, Joss ignores feminism entirely and says he’s simply misunderstood. Aren’t we all?
Seriously, the most infuriating part about the show is that no one has a backbone. More on that later.
So one of Joss’ team goes to one of Tedros’ minions, Chloe, who has a wonderful singing voice. The catch? Tedros found her while she was addicted to heroin and she claims she’s 18, but we all know the truth there.
They’re all at Joss’ mansion to record music together, but naturally Joss’ track is missing something. So, in front of an entire crowd of record executives and this cult, Tedros starts to — I can’t bring myself to write it but just know he performs a sexual act on her. To which her agent says on the phone, “Jocelyn is on some weird S&M shit with this dude,” the only honest musing in the show.
So let’s get to the point, what everyone’s talking about: Troye Sivan’s torture scene. Troye is obviously a great singer, so The Weeknd hides in his room while he showers and sings to himself and asks why he claims he tore his vocal chords. Dumb Troye’s character, Xander, decides to tell the truth (???) and say Jocelyn was basically jealous and her mom outed him and he never sang again.
What’s the only viable option that happens here? The Weeknd tells Jocelyn and they start shocking him despite his pleas for help. But the main point of the episode is only to tell you that everyone is spiraling.
The Idol, Episode 5 Recap
At the end of episode 4, JENNIE from BLACKPINK shows up to Jocelyn’s and Chloe, on molly, spills that Tedros and JENNIE, who just stole “World Class Sinner” from Joss, were an item. Essentially, this is us learning Tedros was trying to infringe on Joss’ fame the whole time.
Big whoop, if that weren’t clear from episode one then I don’t know what to say. Literally he has a rat tail and you’re supposed to be shocked that he was using her?!! So episode 5 starts with Jocelyn trying to kick Tedros out of the house and keep his artists.
This was like the one moment of the show where I ever felt proud or anything other than immense, overwhelming hatred for every character. But I knew, deep down in the depths of my soul, they were going to let me down.
If you strip down the bad acting, this show is pure comedy. It’s like The Office but what’s funnier is that Sam Levinson and The Weeknd meant for this show to be serious.
But what’s even better is that it takes five minutes for Tedros to insert his ugly tail back in the picture. At the party the night before, Jocelyn proceeds to invite her ex over to make Tedros jealous and obviously the natural reaction is for Tedros to frame him for sexual assault.
Of course this is handled in an offensive, not even funny or ironic matter. No one tells Jocelyn this, but the assistant goes to Xander and asks if she knows what’s happening. To which newly brainwashed Xander said of course Joss knows. Because evil, evil Joss loves covering up sexual assault?
So this begins the downfall of Tedros. The agents get him, something about the IRS, there’s a speech about hunting the Big Bad Wolf, Josselyn saves her tour, and the final scene is at So-Fi Stadium, where Tedros’ people are her opening act alongside Xander and Tedro's minions. Joss’ team is cackling about how they ended him.
Mauricio Jackson is then let into the stadium with an artist pass for Jocelyn, which makes no sense considering she’s the technical reason he was exposed. Tedros goes backstage and picks up the hair brush her mother beat her with and realizes it’s brand new.
What they want you to think is that Josselyn was the manipulator all along- stealing Tedros’ people and making him think he’s all that just to whittle him back down to broke ass Mauricio Jackson. JENNIE also couldn’t record “World Class Sinner”, so Joss keeps that, too. She’s the evil of the show, not Tedros, he was just a victim.
@drophiltv2023 #selenagomez #theweeknd #theidol #parati #paratii #paratiii #paratitiktok #fyp #foryou ♬ original sound - Culture
I have to laugh. Truly. Because of the flippant ways they throw sexual assault and victim’s stories around, and because of the way they treat consent, and also because the writing was so awful that the show was doomed from the beginning. And to think these pompous actors are defending this train wreck and calling for a season two?
Gaslighting is when people make you think The Idol is good and you just “didn’t understand it.” Honesty is realizing this show is vile down to its core.
