General Hospital has Carly Spencer (Laura Wright) and Valentin Cassadine (James Patrick Stuart) getting frisky all the time, but it also looks like they are legit falling for each other. Plus, they’re building up quite a fan following.

So, I think James Patrick Stuart is going to stick around. And I suspect Carly and Valentin are endgame and they are going to be a big official super couple. So, we’re going to talk about what might be next for Carly and Valentin and what has to happen so that they can actually build a future together.

Carly And Valentin’s Undeniable Chemistry on General Hospital

So, I will say off the cuff, I haven’t enjoyed many of Carly’s pairings in the past. Some I have, some I haven’t. And Valentin has had some messy love stories, but I did like him with Anna Devane (Finola Hughes). But ever since Carly spun into Valentin’s orbit, I think it’s been magic. Once Carly went in disguise to visit Valentin at Steinmauer to recruit him to help her take down Jack Brennan (Chris McKenna), it was on.

Then things got even more fun once Carly tricked Jack into transferring Valentin back to the US because then that set the stage for him to take down the WSB guards on the transport plane and he stole a parachute, dove out of the plane right to his freedom. And once he showed up and Carly stashed him in her attic, that’s when things really started sizzling.

Gor me, Valentin and Carly’s chemistry is off the charts. I know a lot of fans share that opinion. Their banter is hilarious and they are clearly catching feelings for each other and a whole pile of GH fans have caught feelings for them as a pair. There’s a big Carly and Valentin fan base as they call it. But for Valentin and Carly to be endgame, certain things are going to have to change.

Getting The WSB Off Valentin’s Back on GH

So, first of all, they got to get the WSB off of Valentin’s back so that he’s not a fugitive anymore. Nothing can move forward for them really until Valentin is in the clear legally. I think he and Carly may help take down Jenz Sidwell (Carlo Rota) and Ross Cullum (Andrew Hawkes). Then that’ll likely score Valentin some points with Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) because he is determined to take Sidwell down also.

And it’ll also score some points with Brennan since Cullum is, you know, low-key still considering killing Jack and he’s in Turning Woods trapped and pretending to be locked-in. So, this is bad. Once Sidwell and Cullum are exposed and hopefully dead or in Steinmauer prison or even Pentonville, the WSB should finally get off Valentin’s case and he should be free and clear and can be Carly’s man out in public and not just in her bedroom and in her attic.

Making Peace with Jack

So, once that’s all taken care of, the next thing they need to do is make peace with Jack so he is also off of Valentin’s back. And of course, right now, Jack is still on fire and he’s furious that Carly was cheating with Valentin. So, right now, Jack absolutely hates Valentin and he’s not a big fan of Carly’s at this point either.

So, Jack’s stuck in Turning Woods faking Locked-in Syndrome and simmering with rage over Carly. And this week, Jack told Nina Reeves (Cynthia Watros) she needs to go over and talk to Valentin because they need to work with him. So, the good news is that Jack is setting his jealousy aside to save his butt.

Now, obviously, Valentin and Jack have a more dangerous common enemy, too, actually, Sidwell and Cullum. So, that should help them get past hating and trying to kill each other. But, if Valentin helps save Jack from Cullum and helps get rid of the big WSB boss villain, obviously that would be a huge moment. It’d be a game changer.

General Hospital: Valentin & Jack Bury the Hatchet?

If you remember, Valentin and Jack were once best friends. So, we know that they can work together. They also ran Pikeman together. And you know, at this point, I don’t think Valentin and Jack will ever be bowling buddies again, but they might get back to a good place. Especially if Jack realizes Valentin didn’t break him and Carly up.

It was the fact that Jack recruited Josslyn Jacks (Eden McCoy) into the WSB and repeatedly lied right in Carly’s face. That’s what made her stop loving him. So, I could eventually see Jack not necessarily giving Valentin and Carly his blessing, but accepting their relationship and just moving on.

Getting Family Acceptance on GH

And the next thing is once Josslyn is back home safe and sound, Carly’s going to need to get all the people that she cares about to accept her relationship with Valentin. So, Carly’s going to want Sonny and Lucas Jones (Van Hansis) and Josslyn and Michael Corinthos (Rory Gibson) all on board with her seeing Valentin.

Honestly, I think it’ll be easier for Carly to get them to accept Valentin than it was to get them to accept Franco Baldwin (Roger Howarth). Just for instance, I mean, Valentin can be ruthless, but Franco was a serial killer who was presumed to have set Michael up to be raped in prison.

Even though Valentin has killed before, it’s generally bad guys. He doesn’t go around killing innocent people. And obviously Charlotte Cassadine (Bluesy Burke) is on board with Valentin dating Carly because she’s ticked off at Nina and feels betrayed by her and Charlotte likes Carly and appreciates her protecting her dad.

Valentin Getting a Job and Reintegrating in Port Charles

Now, the next step once Valentin is not wanted by the WSB and is not a fugitive anymore and Carly’s loved ones accept their relationship, what they need next is to get Valentin reintegrated into the fabric of Port Charles society. He’s obviously going to need a job and some sort of income source.

So, maybe he’ll wind up working for Jack if they make peace on General Hospital. You know, Valentin may land some sort of consulting role for the local WSB office. Or if something happens to Jack, because we’ve heard rumors that he might be killed off, we could see Valentin running the local WSB office. That would be cool.

You know, he’s not exactly the kind of guy who can go land a job selling car insurance or anything, but maybe private security or as a private eye or a consultant to the PCPD. Although we know Dante Falconeri (Dominic Zamprogna) is not exactly a fan and he’s the current commissioner. Or maybe, you know, once Carly’s family accepts Valentin, we might see Michael offer Valentin a job at Aurora Media or ELQ. Obviously, that would be a favor to Carly, but also Michael might do it partly to keep an eye on Valentin. And I’m sure Carly would offer him a job at the Metro Court, but I don’t see Valentin bartending or changing sheets or giving people drinks by the pool.

Carly And Valentin’s Future on General Hospital

So, the final thing I think we could see for Carly and Valentin once all this other stuff is done is for them to make it official with a wedding. We could see her walk down the aisle and become Mrs. Carly Cassadine. That’s a pretty cool name. And I like the sound of it.

I think long run Valentin would put a ring on it if he sticks around. I do think Carly and Valentin are endgame and I hope it works out for them. James Patrick Stuart is an amazing actor. He’s a fan favorite.

And while I did like Valentin with Anna, there’s also a lot of baggage because of their long history and his past obsession with her. And despite the oddball way that they began, I do think Valentin’s relationship with Carly is much healthier than the one he had with Nina.

You know, because that was just whackadoo and based off nothing initially. And also, it’s without the painful history that he had with Anna. So, I’m hoping we get a lot more of Valentin and Carly’s love story, including them falling head over heels in love and making it all official.

Tom Holland is giving fans a fascinating look behind the scenes of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, revealing that Christopher Nolan’s upcoming epic The Odyssey may have played a major role in shaping the next chapter of Peter Parker’s story.

Speaking about the development of the highly anticipated Marvel sequel, Holland explained that Spider-Man: Brand New Day was originally scheduled to film alongside Nolan’s adaptation of The Odyssey. However, the scheduling conflict forced him to make a difficult choice.

Rather than rushing into production, Holland pushed for Spider-Man: Brand New Day to be delayed, allowing the creative team additional time to refine the script and find the right direction for the project.

According to Holland, the decision ultimately paid off.

“I convinced the studio to delay the movie,” Holland said, explaining that the extra development time gave the filmmakers an opportunity to strengthen the story and fully realize their vision.

The actor also credited his experience working with Christopher Nolan for changing the way he approaches filmmaking. Holland said Nolan’s commitment to preparation, purpose, and storytelling inspired him to push for a higher standard on Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Tom Holland, The Odyssey [credit: Universal Pictures]

“I wanted it to be a real movie,” Holland explained, emphasizing that he wanted the project to focus on storytelling rather than simply becoming another blockbuster production.

The additional development time reportedly allowed Marvel and Sony to bring in director Destin Daniel Cretton and spend several months refining the screenplay before cameras rolled. Holland now believes the result could be the strongest Spider-Man film yet.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day serves as a fresh start for Peter Parker following the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home, which erased Peter’s identity from the world’s memory. Holland previously described the new film as a “fresh start” and a “rebirth” for the character as he returns to a more street-level version of Spider-Man.

The film is directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and stars Tom Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jon Bernthal, and Mark Ruffalo. The movie is scheduled to swing into theaters on July 31, 2026.

Meanwhile, Holland will also appear in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, which arrives just one week earlier on July 24, setting up a massive summer for the actor.

While breaking down his approach to playing Euphoria‘s new fan-favorite character, Darrell Britt-Gibson confirmed he saw Bishop as on the autism spectrum.

“I don’t think Black people get to play that enough,” Britt-Gibson, 39, told Variety on Monday, June 1. “I don’t like the way that people who are on the spectrum are spoken about.”

Britt-Gibson wanted to offer accurate representation, adding, “There are a lot of people in my life and my family who are on the spectrum, and they are the most beautiful, deep, soulful people.”

He continued: “I thought, ‘If I get to do this and play him like that, I want to be able to do it justice and make it thoughtful and layered.’ That was something I inherently thought about. I wanted to give it that care.”

Britt-Gibson, who joined the show in season 3, recalled putting in a lot of thought into the character.

“It wasn’t really described to me in any way, and [that’s] the beauty of it. [Creator] Sam [Levinson] saw an audition of mine for another part, and he wanted to craft Bishop around what I brought to it,” he noted. “Sam is so amazing in that way — he’s a ‘best idea wins’ type of creator. I had this idea of a character who moves more like a samurai in a world of cowboys. Somebody who you can’t really figure out until it’s time to figure him out.”

The actor credited Levinson for wanting to “build the character around what I presented,” saying, “Then he wrote this beautifully intricate, nuanced and layered character. … Sam told me the idea for Bishop’s backstory, which is so incredible, but I don’t even want to say it. I want to let the world make their own opinions.”

After playing Alamo’s (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) fixer throughout the season, Bishop had his hero moment during the Sunday, May 31, episode of the HBO show. The show ended with Ali (Colman Domingo) coming into the Silver Slipper to avenge Rue’s (Zendaya) death. He held Alamo at gunpoint before they agreed to a Western-style showdown.

Alamo’s plan failed because when he drew his gun, it misfired. He realized Bishop secretly unloaded the gun so there wouldn’t be any bullets.

“Bishop didn’t agree with a lot of what Alamo did, but it was a job for him,” Britt-Gibson told Variety. “I think what Alamo did to Rue was the final straw for Bishop.”

Related: Why Did Bishop Betray Alamo in Euphoria’s Finale Before Brutal Death?

Viewers were left confused by why Bishop betrayed Alamo in Euphoria‘s series finale. During the Sunday, May 31, episode of the HBO show, Ali (Colman Domingo) came into the Silver Slipper to avenge Rue’s (Zendaya) death. He held Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) at gunpoint before they agreed to a Western-style showdown. But when Alamo drew his […]

Advertisement

Britt-Gibson explained how Rue’s death affected Bishop, adding, “He’s also having that conversation with Maddy in the car. Rue was a bridge too far, and he’s like, ‘I promise I’m not going to let you get to Maddy.’”

Despite some viewers assuming Bishop didn’t care for Rue, Britt-Gibson thought differently.

Thank You!

You have successfully subscribed.

Advertisement

“There are a million different ways to look at it, from a character standpoint. It plays like he doesn’t care, but if you look deep enough, there are moments of Bishop being like a big brother who is hard on her,” he explained. “You know those figures in your life who are like, ‘Don’t hang out with those people. Those are not good people. You shouldn’t be here.’ The way Yana Grebenyuk Sam [Levinson] wrote it is up to interpretation. He gives it space for it to be seen however people want to see it.”

He concluded: “He’s been waiting. He’s so calculated. It’s chess. It’s always chess for Bishop.”

Euphoria is currently streaming on HBO Max.

For a man who adores his world-building, James Cameron didn’t have to do much heavy lifting when it came to Aliens. Unlike, say, Pandora, the 1986 sequel to Ridley Scott‘s Alien chooses not to stop every five minutes and show you something that might have lore to it. Yet, despite that, the attention to detail in the Colonial Marines’ gear is one of the finest you’ll see in cinema, and it’s almost as memorable as the Xenomorphs themselves. They aren’t just cool, they feel like the future.

Speaking during a Big Lick Comic Con NOVA panel moderated by Collider’s Maggie Lovitt, Aliens stars Ricco Ross and Jennette Goldstein reflected on some of Cameron’s more forward-thinking ideas in the film. Ross, who played Private Frost, brought up the way Cameron adapted the Steadicam concept for the Marines’ heavy weapons, particularly the massive guns carried by Goldstein’s Vasquez and Mark Rolston’s Drake.

“That’s when they say, what is it? Life imitates art. The Steadicam that Jenette and Mark would use in the film, the idea, the concept of having a Steadicam, so that the camera, even though you’re running and moving, it stays pretty steady on the site, and for James to think, ‘Let’s put a gun, a rifle on that, and then the target, even if you’re running, it will be there as well,’ was such a brilliant idea at the time.”

The steadicam makes the Marines feel like part of a specific military future, one where technology has advanced, but everything is still heavy, dangerous, and terrifyingly physical. Ross said the idea was so striking that he had even heard of outside interest in the concept. “So brilliant that I heard that the military asked him if they could use it,” said Ross, “because he actually made sure that he got the rights for that.”

The U.S. Military Borrowed James Cameron’s Technology

Years on, Cameron still spends half his time inventing tech to achieve his filmmaking visions that go on to have numerous real-world applications. See also: numerous pieces of tech, VFX, and cameras for Avatar: The Way of Water. Goldstein, who played Private Vasquez, also pointed to another idea from the movie that seems almost obvious now because real-life technology eventually caught up with it. She brought up the small cameras used in the film, comparing the concept to what audiences would later know through GoPro-style devices. Goldstein said:

“The camera, the GoPro that everybody used. I mean, there was no such thing as a GoPro. It was this really cool idea he had. He was like, you know, ‘What if there was a little camera, and you know, those big video cameras that you had in the ’80s were there,’ and now we just think, like, ‘Oh yeah, of course, a GoPro.’”

To be honest, that’s a huge part of why Aliens holds up so well, because it doesn’t feel like our future; it’s a dirty and grimy future, and the sort you can never say feels aged. It feels like it was built for soldiers to protect them against aliens. And that’s exactly what it did. Aliens is streaming now on Hulu and Disney+.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Release Date

July 18, 1986

Runtime

137 minutes

Advertisement

Director

James Cameron

Advertisement

Writers

James Cameron

Producers

Advertisement

Gale Anne Hurd

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

“Vanderpump Rules” alum Stassi Schroeder recently walked in a Sports Illustrated fashion show in a bright orange bikini. As she strutted down the runway, onlookers stared in amazement, and netizens on social media praised the reality TV star, complimenting her looks. Now that the show has come and gone, a source is opening up about what Schroeder reportedly went through to become runway ready.

A source told The Daily Mail that Schroeder wanted to look her best for the Sports Illustrated fashion show. So, in order to get into the best shape, the Bravo veteran reportedly stuck to a very strict diet.

“Stassi really wanted to look incredible for the show so went on a massive diet,” the source said, claiming that she “skipped breakfast, had only a salad for lunch and then did not touch a carb after 5 p.m.”

They added, “So she was only having about 600 calories a day.”

Advertisement

What Was Stassi Schroeder Eating And Drinking To Get Prepared For The Sports Illustrated Fashion Show?

According to the source, Schroeder’s alleged diet was so effective that the mother of two started seeing results almost instantly.

“The weight just melted off her body, but that kind of diet is very hard to do because the cravings are insane,” the source shared. “It’s not easy for her to diet that hardcore, but the results are amazing and she felt great about herself.”

It’s unclear exactly what Schroeder ate while dieting, but in the past, she said her routine consisted of a caffeinated Celsius drink in the morning and, for lunch, a Chinese chicken salad with chicken, lettuce, carrot slices, ginger, and almonds.

Regarding dinner, the “Vanderpump Villa” star would eat a snack to keep her full throughout the night.

Stassi Schroeder Previously Said She Stays Thin By Trying To ‘Starve’ Herself

Schroeder previously raised eyebrows when she confessed to starving herself to stay thin during a 2017 interview.

When asked about her fitness routine, Schroeder claimed, “I’m really lazy. I stay thin by trying to starve myself for the most part, if I’m being totally honest.”

Advertisement

She went even further, sharing, “When I’m home in LA, it’s like one meal a day, but when I go out of town or on work trips, it’s breakfast, lunch and dinner.”

Despite her limited intake, Schroeder said she enjoys foods such as cheeseburgers, hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, pizza, and Mexican dishes.

Later in that interview, Schroeder got candid about getting work done on her body, saying, “I’ve always been really open. Even when I got a chin implant when I was 18 years old, and anyone who asked me, I would always tell them.”

For Schroeder, being honest was more important than putting “on this facade” that she was perfect. “Then the rest of us look at it and feel badly about ourselves. I’m all about plastic surgery or Botox and fillers, but be open about it, because there’s nothing to be ashamed of,” she said.

Advertisement

Who Else Walked In The Sports Illustrated Fashion Show In Summer 2026?

Schroeder wasn’t the only public figure to appear in the Sports Illustrated fashion show. According to Page Six, “Truth Hurts” singer Lizzo walked the runway along with Alix Earle, Ilona Maher, Bethenny Frankel, Brooks Nader, Maura Higgins, Jena Sims, and more.

Beyoncé Followed A Strict Plan To Get Prepared For Coachella In 2019

Schroeder isn’t the only celebrity who has followed a structured plan ahead of a major event. Beyoncé has spoken about losing weight after welcoming twins Rumi and Sir Carter in 2019, a process made even more demanding by her approaching Coachella performance.

“Good morning. It’s 5 a.m., and this is day 1 of rehearsals for Coachella,” she says in a video shared on her YouTube. “Every woman’s nightmare…this is my weight,” she said before stepping on the scale. “175. Long way to go. Let’s get it!”

To shed the weight, Beyoncé followed a program called 22 Days Nutrition, founded by her friend, trainer, and exercise physiologist, Marco Borges. In the “Homecoming” documentary, Beyoncé said her diet consisted of “no bread, no carbs, no sugar, no dairy, no meat, no fish, no alcohol.”

Advertisement

By Joshua Tyler
| Updated 28 seconds ago

The end of World War I was a mess. Soldiers flooded home, without jobs, and with nothing to do. Veterans became angry and disillusioned; protests and social upheaval ensued.

With an even larger military force returning home after World War 2, the United States government sought to avoid repeating this mistake by finding ways to keep its returning soldiers busy. Their answer was the GI Bill, a massive funding system largely designed to keep veterans busy by funneling them into a gigantic college education system that hadn’t even really existed before the war and definitely wasn’t needed by the country as it was constructed back then. 

Before World War 2, fewer than 15% of men and 12% of women ever attended college. After World War 2, that number surged to 32% of men and 24% of women. It was the first time in human history that secondary education became a common fixture, and, out of nowhere, a booming post-High School education industry was willed into existence, born of a need to give traumatized soldiers a bunch of busywork.

As America spent the next few decades getting involved in further overseas wars, the endless funding of newly created college education for Veterans continued. Soon, it also became a way to get out of war, as men rushed to enroll in college to avoid a draft that would have sent them to die in Vietnam. By 1970, more than 50% of all high school graduates were attending college. 

In 1975, the Vietnam War ended, and the forced conscription of young men was over. At the same time, the United States government’s grant program began to drastically reduce spending, and free money for college began to vanish. 

Instead of free money in grants, the government and bankers began offering high-interest loans as a way to attend a University. And obviously, that’s not nearly as attractive. Now college wasn’t free, it wasn’t necessary, and men noticed. College enrollment for men began to dip.

So the powers that be decided to make college horny. This is the story of how Hollywood screenwashed men into living a life of debt slavery, just to get a shot at banging some girl from a sorority. 

It’s Not Just About Promising Hedonism

Right now, you’re probably thinking, ok, this one’s kind of obvious: Hollywood made a bunch of movies portraying college as a place of debauchery, so of course that got young men to go into debt thinking they’d get to party.

However, that’s only the surface level of what these movies are doing. The United States was still a majority Christian country until the late 1990s. Promising endless hedonism to Christian young men wouldn’t have been enough. Given the extreme level of debt slavery that colleges were asking men to sign up for, they needed something more than the possibility of drunken partying.

That something more is an Assimilation Rebellion. Once you see it, you’ll never be fooled by it again. You’ll also understand why, in recent years, young men have begun abandoning college as their way forward into life.

The College Comedy That Started It All

Since most college raunch comedies follow the same pattern, it makes sense to go to the source. The college raunch comedy was born on July 28, 1978, with the release of Animal House. It grew out of the anarchic comedy culture surrounding National Lampoon magazine in the 1970s. That magazine itself was spun off from the Harvard student publication Harvard Lampoon. 

All of this was deeply rooted in college culture, so when writers Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney, and Chris Miller decided to write a movie script, they did so with a focus on wild fraternity stories Miller liked to tell about his time at Dartmouth. Instead of a polished college comedy, they made something crude, chaotic, and openly hostile to authority.

Everyone hated their Animal House script. No one in Hollywood wanted to make it. They rejected it as vulgar, gross, and ridiculous.

It only exists as a movie because of a man named Ned Tanen. He was the president of Universal Pictures, and he used his clout to push Animal House into production, even though no one else believed in it. 

Tanen made his career out of pushing counterculture propaganda pictures and films designed to change society’s views. Animal House was his biggest, and perhaps most important, persuasion victory.

Animal House’s Assimilation Rebellion

National Lampoon’s Animal House follows the disaster-prone members of Delta House, the worst fraternity on a fictional college campus in 1962. Why set it in 1962? Because by 1978 the world the characters in the movie are rebelling against no longer exists. By 1978, the hippie movement had already destroyed everything, but for Animal House to work, they needed something to rebel against. 

So the movie goes back in time before Vietnam protests, hippie culture, and the full collapse of trust in institutions. Animal House needs something to rebel against because that’s how it’s setting up the audience for an Assimilation Rebellion.

An Assimilation  Rebellion is a persuasion technique in which someone is Screenwashed into conformity by forming a rebellion that appears to reject or fight against an institution, system, or authority, but ultimately encourages people to join, support, or become emotionally attached to that same system. 

Here’s how Animal House and the college raunch comedies it spawned persuade audiences into college debt with assimilation rebellion, step by step. 

• Step One: Show the institution you want your audience to join as boring,  oppressive, or even corrupt.

That’s right: before we can get people to go to college, we have to make it seem like it sucks. Animal House does that with a Dean who’s a hypocrite and a system of straight-laced fraternities that oppose all sorts of fun. 

It’s basic stuff, but the film goes out of its way to make everything about college seem joyless and empty. The fraternities playing by the rules are stiff, formulaic, and they don’t seem to be happy. They’re angry and totally corrupt

Donald Sutherland plays a professor in the movie, and during the only classroom scene shown in it, he confesses he finds what he’s teaching boring and suggests it’s pointless. Even the staff doesn’t seem enthusiastic about this whole college thing and the ones who do, like the Dean, are portrayed as extremely stupid. 

• Step Two: Introduce charismatic rebels inside that institution.

Give the audience characters who break the rules yet remain within the system’s boundaries. Attach pleasure, freedom, status, humor, and belonging to the rebels.

Animal House is built around Delta House, a rebellious frat full of charismatic, drunken louts designed primarily to appeal to the sensibilities of the working class. It’s a template followed by nearly every college raunch comedy that came after, with the only difference being what group the rebel frat is meant to appeal to.

In Revenge of the Nerds, the rebel frat is meant to appeal to, obviously, nerds.

In PCU it’s Gen X slackers

In Old School it’s past-their-prime thirty-somethings.

What kinds of people populate the rebel frat changes depending on what group is being propagandized, but they’re always portrayed as lovable, wild-partying, outside-the-box thinkers.

• Step Three: Reward the internal rebels.

 Let the rebels humiliate authority, win social status, get sex, gain friends, or become legends.

Animal House quickly establishes that being a member of Delta House somehow gives its members total immunity from normal laws, regulations, and morality. When its members steal from a grocery store, a clerk catches them and then just waves them on, because they’re Delta.

When our rebel “heroes” abandon their girlfriends to be “assaulted” by “large men” at a club, the girls don’t even seem that mad about it and just walk home by themselves without complaining about what was done to them. 

Delta is even immune from the ire of its own members. Flounder briefly has a steady girlfriend in the film, and when he introduces her to his frat brothers, they immediately seduce her and sleep with her behind Flounder’s back. 

Flounder doesn’t seem to mind; he doesn’t even complain. Instead, he joins in the various assaults being perpetrated on other women by his frat brothers throughout the rest of the film. If you’re in Delta, you can literally do anything at all. 

If you haven’t seen Animal House, I need to be extremely clear here. This isn’t the normal, boys-will-be-boys partying you might have seen in the college comedies this movie inspired. There’s nothing innocent about anything in Animal House, and that’s on purpose. The movie goes to immoral and illegal extremes to prove to you that by joining a college, you can literally get away with anything.

It’s so extreme that the film’s primary protagonist, a twenty-something-year-old man, knowingly sleeps with the Mayor’s 13-year-old daughter after getting her black-out drunk, and nothing is done about it. Instead, the movie presents this horror as awesome and seems to suggest that the audience should consider trying something similar.

The fact that, in the era of #MeToo, Animal House is not only still available to stream freely but also doesn’t even have one of those annoying warning labels about outdated content in front of it should tell you a lot about how important this movie is to the institutions around it.

It’s worth noting that Revenge of the Nerds is not available to watch on streaming, having been canceled for an only slightly less horrific scene in which an adult woman is lured into intimacy under false pretenses.

Meanwhile, every frame of Animal House is basically frat-house Epstein Island, and everyone in our culture is fine with it. They have to be, because Animal House is the pillar on which the modern college myth was constructed. Pull out that pillar and the whole thing collapses.

• Step Four: Don’t present escape from the system as an option; instead, make rebelling a lifestyle.

In Animal House, as in every college raunch comedy, the hero frat is composed of guys who basically do nothing but sit around partying. They don’t attend college classes, play sports, or hang out in the quad. They just hang out in a group home, getting drunk.

So when these lazy hedonists run afoul of campus regulations, you’d think they’d all just shrug and move the party to a different house, since none of them were really attending college anyway. You can literally party anywhere.

That never happens. It never even occurs to them. Instead, the group fights desperately to stay in the very system they’re against, though there’s no reason for them to be there. 

There are variations on this. For instance, in Old School, people who aren’t already part of the college to begin with fight to get in. But they aren’t fighting to get in and take math classes; they want to hold topless wrestling matches in their basement. Something you don’t need college enrollment to do.

• Step Five: Leave the institution intact.

The system survives, but now it looks cooler because a rebellion happened inside it.

In Animal House, we never explicitly see what happens to the college after Delta House’s rebellion. But the movie ends with a note that tells us what happened to each member, making it clear that they were eventually all let back in, got their degrees despite never attending classes, and that everything worked out fine.

Other movies spend more time on showing the aftermath of the rebellion. The result is always the same. Everyone resumes attending college, only it’s more fun now.

They get all the status and income promised by college, but get it by doing nothing that resembles studying. The classic college raunch comedy’s protagonists do drugs, commit crimes, and bang sorority girls. Then they graduate.

When they’re done, the college is still there, ready for the next class of hedonistic criminals. It’s still there, ready for you.

• Step Six: Transfer the audience’s affection.

With the Assimilation Rebellion arc complete, the audience now falls in love with the idea of college itself. Because none of this could happen without that system, and hedonism without any consequences looks like a lot of fun. 

You don’t really have to conform man, you can go and be an independent free thinker just like all the other independent free thinkers there who just happen to be independently free thinking exactly the same things as everyone else. Conformity becomes liberation. Rebellion becomes assimilation. That’s an Assimilation Rebellion. 

The College Lie Is Collapsing Too Slowly

Luckily, the lie started by Animal House and transmitted by its successors is starting to collapse in on itself. A few people are, finally, starting to realize that allowing kids who can’t legally rent a car, drink alcohol, get a tattoo, or purchase a lottery ticket to take on long-term predatory loans and pause their lives for four years in the hopes of assaulting a minor may not be a good idea.

Yet, it’s not happening fast enough. 55% of men were still attending college after high school in 2024, down from a high of 60% in 2020. Women seem to be going in the opposite direction, with 70% of them attending college, up from 67% in 2020.

There have been recent attempts to tweak the standard college-deserves-all-your-money narrative to account for the fact that people have begun to notice it doesn’t deliver on its promises. Netflix, for instance, recently released an entire series designed to screenwash audiences into believing that college is only good when it’s totally useless. 

I did a full video on this one; you’ll have to see it all to believe it. 

Unfortunately, tactics like this are working to deflect from secondary education criticism. Though there are now a few objectors, for most, college still seems like a foregone conclusion, despite the fact that there’s no longer any real evidence that it helps improve people’s future job prospects or in any way contributes to their long-term happiness. Despite the fact that you’re almost certainly not going to bang a hot sorority girl and will most definitely go to jail if you rob a grocery store. 

Congratulations, future college debt slaves: You’ve been screenwashed.

Bold and the Beautiful shocks as Hope Logan (Annika Noelle) is officially over at Logan and everything falling into place, while we still have some more surprises coming, there’s also some negative surprises coming because the problem is she’s lying to her mom, Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang).

And that means there’s going to be a huge explosion before too much longer. Once Hope and Deke Sharpe (Harrison Cone) do their thing and they get a collection ready, there’s going to be a public launch that’s going to flip things upside down. It’s obviously going to devastate Brooke. So, we’re going to talk about Hope blindsiding Brooke and the Forresters.

Hope And Deke’s New Venture At Logan on Bold and the Beautiful

So, this week we saw Deke excited and agreeing to work with Hope at Logan. And Katie Logan (Heather Tom) reminded Deke that she was excited about his design work even before this. Bill Spencer (Don Diamont) promised that they have faith in Hope and Deke and are going to give them all the resources that they need to get this collection out. And we know they want it fast.

So, Deacon and Hope are both super excited to finally be working together again, and Liam, Bill, and Katie are ready to rock and roll. Plus, Bill has something else up his sleeve. We know that he wants Wyatt Spencer (Darin Brooks) to get the Hope for the Future diamond for them to use as part of Hope’s big launch at Logan.

Now, Bill hasn’t told Katie yet that he’s working to score the jewel because I think he’s waiting to see if he gets it. But Bill did say he’s going to make Katie and Hope the crown jewels of the fashion industry.

So, not only are Deacon and Hope about to make their dreams come true, but there’s also a revenge plan at play to hit back at the Forresters. So, Bill is determined to get the diamond for Hope. And that’s just one more thing that’s going to feel like a face slap to Brooke and the Forresters.

The Foresters’ Mistakes and Losses on B&B

So, there’s a lot of bad stuff here. You know, first they lost the Logan trademark, which they literally never used, but to say that Katie stole it isn’t accurate. Forrester Creations let it lapse and you can’t sit on a trademark you’re not using anyway. So, Liam grabbed it up fair and square.

And then Brooke and Ridge Forrester (Thorsten Kaye) did Eric Forrester dirty and they lost him even though he later came back. That’s another problem. That never would have happened if Ridge hadn’t shoved his dad out the door. And now, although Brooke and Ridge don’t know it yet, they’ve lost Hope.

And she’s planning to never come back. Plus, Katie, Bill, and the others are about to find out Ridge fired Will Spencer (Crew Morrow) because R.J. Forrester (Brayan Nicoletti) is a whiny nepo boy. And that’s going to add even more fuel to the fire.

The Hope for the Future Diamond and Launch

So, coming very soon, I do expect Wyatt is going to get his hands on that diamond and that Bill’s going to give it to Hope to use as part of her launch. And when they debut her collection designed by Deacon, we could see that diamond on the neck of the showstopper model, but I kind of don’t think so.

I think it’s going to be around Hope’s neck. Maybe as she and Deke walk down the runway because if you remember, Hope first wore that iconic blue diamond at a Hope for the Future launch. So maybe she’ll be the one wearing the showstopper dress and the diamond or just wearing it without the showstopper dress.

But can you even imagine? I think Brooke’s head would completely explode over that. So bottom line is yes, this is a fresh start for Katie, Hope, Deacon, and Will to achieve their dreams, but it’s also going to be a revenge mission because everybody at Logan pretty much has a reason to hit at Forrester Creations.

Hope’s Revenge on the Forresters on Bold and Beautiful

In terms of Hope looking for payback, I think her primary revenge targets are Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) and Ridge. But I also think Hope’s got a grudge against Brooke because she thinks her mom chose Ridge over her. Hope still salty that Brooke didn’t force Ridge to give her Steffy’s job as co-CEO. So, Hope definitely wants revenge on all of them on Bold and the Beautiful.

And she wants to show them what they lost because Steffy and Ridge didn’t believe in her or her line. Because I think we all know even if Steffy did indeed bring back Hope for the Future, she knows that it would always be a fight with Steffy. She would always be a second-class citizen at Forrester Creations. And now of course we’ve got Will, who definitely wants revenge on R.J. Forrester.

Will’s Firing and Revenge Plans on B&B

So, this week we saw Ridge fire Will for assaulting R.J., saying they can’t have violence in the workplace. I think honestly Will could probably sue and win for wrongful termination because Ridge was clear he fired Will for an incident at the bar. They were talking about a hostile work environment, but this happened outside of work. Now, Carter Walton (Lawrence Saint-Victor) brought up that they had an incident at work as well, but Will was quick to remind them that R.J. instigated that, which Carter had to acknowledge. And I also appreciated that he told Ridge that R.J.’s behavior is problematic.

But Will was right. R.J. ran crying to his mommy and daddy and got him fired. So when Will said R.J. is going to regret ever messing with him, I kind of think it’s justified. And after Will left, R.J. kept dissing Will and the Spencers and just being a nasty little creep. Like when he smirked after Ridge fired Will. I honestly think R.J. is the absolute worst character on B&B right now. So, this week, Bill and Katie are going to be appalled that Ridge fired Will, but also Bill’s eager to have their son working with them.

So, I think that Will is going to get his revenge by making sure that Logan trounces Forrester Creations in the fashion press with their next collection. And I’m sure he’ll also make sure Electra doesn’t give R.J. the time of day. But at the same time, I expect R.J. to be creeping on Electra Forrester (Laneya Grace) all day long at work. And that’ll keep Will focused on making him pay professionally, but I think also personally. Heck, he might even try his hand at designing, you know.

The Spencer Revenge Plan on Bold and the Beautiful

So, that leads us into Bill’s revenge. Obviously, he wants to slap at Ridge and blow Forrester Creations out of the water. So, Bill’s going to make sure that Katie’s fashion firm is headline news. Bill wants to totally humiliate Ridge and him firing Will is only going to fuel Bill’s fire for revenge on Ridge and nepo crybaby R.J. And then, of course, Katie, I think, is going to double down on wanting to clap back at Ridge for him firing Will.

While Ridge said he felt bad about firing him, Brooke was happy that he stood up for their son. But as Will said, at his age, R.J. should have handled his business like a man, not a crybaby. Katie’s going to be mad and she’s already annoyed at Brooke, dissing her and predicting failure. And then when her first collection with Eric was a hit, you know, then Brooke was basically saying, “She’s a one-hit wonder and this is over for you. This is it. This is all you had.” So this week, Katie and Brooke get into it again. And I’m guessing that Katie walks away from that showdown with more anger.

Bold and the Beautiful: Katie on Fire

And after the Will incident, Katie may go from worrying about what Brooke thinks about Hope working for them to Katie not caring and wanting to rub it in her sister’s face. Brooke and Ridge fired Katie’s son, and now Katie has hired Brooke’s daughter, Hope. So, there is some irony there.

And I think after this upcoming showdown, Katie is going to want to absolutely crush Brooke. And somebody else looking for a little revenge, I think, is going to be Liam Spencer (Scott Clifton). I can see him wanting to get payback for how Steffy and Ridge have treated Hope. He feels like that she’s been sidelined. Honestly, the only Spencer who doesn’t have vengeance on their mind at this point is Wyatt. I think he’s just in it for funsies right now, but he will support the other Spencers.

The Big Bold Reveal Coming In July

It’s not going to be too much longer. I expect it’ll be in July sweeps when Brooke, Ridge, R.J., and Steffy get slapped with a rude awakening because once Logan reveals their next collection and they see that not only did Katie and Bill have Hope, but also they’ve got that big blue diamond, it’s going to be another win in the fashion press. And I think there’s going to be a bunch of salty, ticked off Forresters. And honestly, I’m here for it. I think this fashion rivalry is so much fun.

Days of Our Lives may have four possible deaths we may get in Salem this summer. Kristen DiMera (Stacy Haiduk) and Lexi Carver (Nikki Crawford) are on that list and possibly two babies, which is truly horrible. Plus, EJ DiMera (Dan Feuerriegel) is targeted, Dimitri Von Leuschner (Peter Porte) is back, and Sarah says, “I love you, but not to Xander.”

We’ve got the lowdown on what happens in Salem this summer. We took the big summer promo and made sense of it because it was choppy, out of order, and all over the place. But we fixed all that, but we have lots to cover. So, I’m going to be talking a little faster than usual.

EJ’s Ambitions and Lexi’s Illness on Days of Our Lives

So, first of all, EJ is determined to carry forward with Stefano DiMera’s (Joseph Mascolo) vision and preserve the empire that his dad built. And Lexi thinks the DiMera name could be something better. And Susan Banks (Stacy Haiduk) doesn’t like this at all and tells EJ he’s not Stefano and she’s not going to let him turn into that monster. Also, Lexi is soon sick. Scary symptoms start this week.

Plus, Mark found the dead rat that took the same serum. Later this week, Dr. Wilhelm Rolf (Richard Wharton) tells EJ about the rat. And once Lexi knows she’s sick, she’s going to rant that EJ never stopped to think what this would do to her. So, it looks like Lexi is going to get secret treatments from Rolf down in the tunnels because she walks out of the secret entrance. And Kristen DiMera (Stacy Haiduk) tells Lexi she doesn’t have to hide things.

Days Spoilers: EJ Fires Sarah

She claps back at Kristen that she wouldn’t have walked into the living room if she were hiding. Also, EJ is going to fire Sarah Horton (Linsey Godfrey) after telling her she doesn’t need your help. So, maybe that’s about Chanel Dupree DiMera (Raven Bowens), but it may also be about Lexi since Rolf is taking care of EJ’s sister. We also see Lexi crying in Theo Carver‘s (Cameron Johnson) arms.

Also, Lexi winds up hospitalized again, and Abe Carver (James Reynolds) screams at EJ to get the hell out when he walks into the room to check on Lexi as Abe and Theo sit at her side on what may be her deathbed all over again. So, looks like that might be the end for her. We could get Lexi dying in Abe’s arms yet again.

Kristen’s Downfall and Gwen’s Betrayal on DOOL

We’ve also got Kristen in deep trouble this summer. EJ finds out that Kristen was plotting with Sophia and EJ screaming in Kristen’s face about her trying to murder his son. And then in a quick shot in the promo, we see Kristen getting kidnapped. She’s grabbed from behind by some henchmen.

No doubt EJ’s. We know Stacy Haiduk wrapped her run as Kristen and is over on Young and the Restless now. So, she might be dead. We also have disgruntled Gwen Rizczech (Emily O’Brien) telling EJ that he stabbed her in the back, so she’s returning his knife. He looks furious at Gwen. And I’m sure this is about her leaking dirty DiMera details to Leo Stark (Greg Rikaart) to spread across the Spectator.

Days of our Lives Spoilers: EJ Loses It

Also, EJ is in near tears, screaming at a woman that everything he did, every decision, every sacrifice, he did it for family. There’s also some pills in his clutches and there’s some sort of tainted pill outbreak in Salem this summer that EJ may literally have a hand in. Steve Johnson (Stephen Nichols) is with Brady Black (Eric Martsolf) as he tells Johnny DiMera (Carson Boatman) that if the tainted drugs are still out there, this could be a public health crisis.

And Johnny says on a call to somebody that he doesn’t want to be involved with any of this. And he is though because he’s sneaking around in the dark in a doctor’s office up at the hospital looking around. Doesn’t look like Marlena Evans‘ (Diedre Hall) office. So, this may be about the tainted pill crisis.

Johnny tells Theo they have an opportunity to leave a different legacy for their kids than the one left for them. Looks like they’re going to be co-CEOs. But things take a turn as Johnny sits with an injured Theo at the hospital and he’s asking Johnny what other heinous things that he’s covering up.

Chanel’s Medical Crisis on DOOL

Chanel meets with her oncologist this week and it seems like she turns down the treatment. But then there’s a crisis when she goes into labor. She’s at the hospital with Paulina Price (Jackée Harry), Lani Price (Sal Stowers), Johnny, and Kayla Brady (Mary Beth Evans). Johnny says she’s bleeding and Kayla clears the room as Chanel says she’s scared.

Cat’s Investigation and Romance on Days of Our Lives

Cat Green (AnnaLynne McCord) is still investigating EJ this summer while also trying to get a dose of the serum to give her mom who has dementia. But with Lexi getting sick, EJ might have to tell Cat no. But at the same time, she’s plotting another con job on EJ and is setting him up, maybe with a honeypot trap. Cat goes to see Marlena for hypnosis, and she asks Cat if the connection between her and EJ is personal or professional. And Cat kisses EJ again this summer.

Chad And Belle’s Romance on Days

And speaking of smooches, Chad DiMera (Connor Floyd) is heating up with Belle Black (Martha Madison) and he gives her a proper kiss in the park after they go to a ball game. Also, the chess set mystery continues as other items are delivered to John Black‘s (Drake Hogestyn) family. And Chad tells Belle whoever Stephano got to drop these breadcrumbs is still out there on Days of our Lives. One clue is a little silver key.

And Chad says it’s better if we don’t spread the word. There’s somebody in front of a chessboard watching EJ, Chad, and a woman. It’s not Cat. Maybe Marlena, maybe Belle. It’s a lady in a pants suit. And he’s watching them via a surveillance camera on a tablet. Also, Chad finds out Cat’s keeping dark secrets and confronts her.

Chad’s frantic to Cat that she knew about all this and did nothing. And Cat tries to explain, saying there’s a reason she hasn’t told him everything. So, even if Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves) dropped her ban on Cat dating Chad, I doubt he’s going to want anything to do with her after this.

Titan’s Financial Trouble on Days of Our Lives

We’ve also got big trouble at Titan as Philip Kiriakis (John-Paul Lavoisier) warns Xander Cook (Paul Telfer) and Alex Kiriakis (Robert Scott Wilson) that EJ found out they used DiMera money to make the loan payment. Philip says we’re going to lose everything and it looks like Gabi Hernandez (Cherie Jimenez) is eavesdropping. Kate Roberts (Lauren Koslow) tells Xander and Philip they have to stand together or they go down.

This comes soon because Xander’s arm is still in a sling in this scene and it likely won’t be that way too much longer. There’s another scene of Philip ranting at Gabi about money, not buying forgiveness, but that happened this week already. Also, Roman Brady (Josh Taylor). Kyle Lowder is ranting at Kate about more lies and then walking off.

Sarah’s Love Triangle on Days

And we’ve got some triangle action. Brady tells Sarah he loves her and she says it back. Then they kiss in Horton Square, but Xander is telling Marlena he can see it in Sarah’s eyes and Marlena warns that he’s deluding himself that Sarah wants to get back with him. She doesn’t think so.

Also, Xander proves that he’s there for Sarah and he helps her when a patient collapses in the square. Also, in the promo, she’s telling Xander that she hopes they stop EJ in time, and he warns Sarah she does not want to be in EJ’s crosshairs, and that could come before EJ fires Sarah.

Rachel Learning About Sophia and Holly’s Crisis

Also, it looks like Brady and Kristen tell Rachel Black (Lorelie Olivia Mote) that Sophia’s dead, or Rachel hears on the Bayview grapevine, but she’s crying in Brady and Kristen’s arms, asking what if the doctors can’t heal her like they failed to heal Sophia. Looks like Holly Jonas (Ashley Puzemis) has got a rough summer coming, even though Amy Choi (Shi Ne Nielson) couldn’t get Belle to press charges on her over Sophia’s alleged suicide.

We’ll see Holly telling Arianna Horton (Vico Escorcia) that it feels like no place in Salem is safe. And then up at the hospital with Sarah and Tate, we’re going to see Holly insisting, “Those pills aren’t mine.” Then Tate asks, “Can we just talk about this?” And Holly screams no and yells at Tate to get out as an alarmed Sarah watches. So, maybe Holly is taking pills again. Or maybe vengeful Amy is setting her up since the DA won’t hold her accountable and she blames Holly for Sophia’s death.

Stephanie’s Gun Tragedy on Days

And in what may be the most shocking moment of the summer promo, Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein) and her fixation on that gun may prove tragic. We see Jada Hunter (Elia Cantu) telling her that she pulled a loaded gun and fired on an innocent person, which is bad enough, but this might be Stephanie killing her marriage.

Beacause Alex rushes into a hospital room and asks Joy Wesley (AlexAnn Hopkins), “Where’s Kelsey?” And Joy falls into Alex’s arms, crying and holding their daughter’s blanket near her empty baby carrier. So, did she show up with the baby to see Alex and Stephanie actually fired a gun at Alex’s baby mama who was holding their child. Did Stephanie shoot his kid?

Other Summer Moments on DOOL

Also, we’ve got some romantic sizzle as Eli Grant (Lamon Archey) surprises Lani with some afternoon delight at the Salem Inn. And Kayla tells Steve she’s grateful to have him. However, I will say this promo is way more dark drama and tragedy than it is hugs and kisses.

And in some more of that drama, Leo asks Dimitri in front of Rafe Hernandez (Galen Gering) and Gwen if he won’t make a deal with Rafe. Will Dimitri make one with him? So, we’ll see if this is DiMera related. I think it is. And that means Peter Porte is back on the scene by Summer. And if Leo is still single, we’ll see if they mingle.