The superficiality of the diversity on Glee, as pointed out in the readings, is extremely evident when viewing the program. Yes, there are minority characters, but the narrative clearly centers around the white characters. And, yes, there are moments acknowledges and tries to mock itself, but this does not seem genuine. It seem like they are just acknowledging an heavily criticized aspect of the show so critics will move on. It is easy to problematize this overt whiteness, especially in light of feeble attempts downplaying the lack of diversity. But in the context of musicals, it sort of makes sense. Musicals, for better or worse, act to reiterate the status quo. I find it analogous to Bollywood films. One watches Bollywood films, not to see anything new and groundbreaking, but to go on an emotional ride and see quality song-dance routines. Norms are reinforced but the entertainment is there. Glee is shaping up to be our generations touchstone musical, so this makes sense. But one important aspect of Glee that is the positive work it is doing to combat anti-gay bullying. Kurt, his story-line, and the accompanying PSA’s endorse a positive message and make up for the program’s homogeneity.

Mad Men and Damages definitely work to expand understanding of Millennials beyond the initial definitions put forth by Strauss and Howe. These shows move beyond the world young adults and into a broader context. While Mad Men is set in the 1960s and centers around professional adults, it certainly has millennial sensibilities. Ellen in Damages is a millennial character in the ‘real’ world. Both of these shows present a sense of moral ambiguity touched upon throughout the term, out of college or high school and into the work place.

In Mad Men this is very much centered around Don Draper (or Dick Whitman, which could relate to millennials shifting identities as made possible by social technology? I don’t know, that might be a stretch). Don Draper, like Tyler the Creator as discusses in my presentation, is a walking paradox. He has extramarital affairs with numerous women, demands a certain level is respect/obedience as a man (as evidenced in his professional meeting with Rachel Manken), yet also demands men to give women a certain level of respect (as evidenced in his interaction with Pete and Peggy) and his date with Rachel complicates any depiction of him as a complete misogynist (as does his future working relationship with Peggy). Another seemingly paradoxical element of Don is his ambition and genius displayed in the Lucky Strikes account dealings, and the pessimism displayed in conversation with Rachel on their outing. Themes similar to this were seen in other programs throughout the term such as Secret Lift, Veronica Mars, and Gossip Girl.

Damages also presents a complex narrative dealing with moral ambiguity and ambition. While Patty seems to have a firm sense of justice, she is willing manipulate people and make shady deals to win her cases. This, in turn, complicates Ellen’s ambition upon entering Patty’s firm, as her desire for success comes into conflict with her morals and values. Both of these programs expand Millennial discourse beyond the original view of good, clean, and idealistic generation. While the ambition is still there, the binary between right and wrong is deconstructed, or at least brought into discussion rather than taken as a given.

I’ve been on a bit of an r&b kick lately- in particular, Frank Ocean, the Weeknd, and Drake. I touched on Drake in a previous post so I’m going to focus here on Frank Ocean and The Weeknd.

Frank Ocean is the resident R&B singer for OFWKGTA. He’s written songs for John Legend, Beyonce, and Justin Beiber. In February he released Nostalgia/Ultra, a sort of singer’s mixtape, where he sings over the music of other artists such as MGMT and Coldplay. The strength of his music is definitely his songwriting. It is personal, honest, and able to escape many modern r&b cliches. “Songs for Women”, for instance, is about how he writes loves songs to attract girls who eventually leave him because he spends so much time working on these songs. Very cool.

The Weeknd (yes, missing that ‘e’) is a mysterious Toronto-based r&b project. With the support of fellow Toronto native Drake, they recently released the House of Balloons ep online. At first listen it sounds very similar to Drake, but upon further review there is something else at work, something more sinister. It is really dark and haunting music, crafting tales of a scary/creepy nightlife informed by drugs and vice. It’s really haunting and really interesting to listen to. “The Morning” and “Wicked Games” and highlights.