Fox's Super "Star"

When we first meet her Star thinksamp160her life is kinda wack even though sheamp8217s got the nicest clothes in what is obviously supposed to be amp8220the hoodamp8221 and has a nicer pricier cell phone than Iamp8217ll ever own as evidenced by a throwaway remark her foster mother makes just a moment later amp160Cut to the foster home kitchen and our protagonist is told to do the dishes a request that apparently was the very last straw for Ms Thang In response she walks out claiming she going to have herself processed out of the system early This is a goal she accomplishes saving herself from the tyrannical reign of her dishwashingobsessed captors She also obtains the address of her kid sister Simone These two acts according to the state employee Star is harassing are respectively abnormal and illegal the latter due to her having priorsFast forward one last time and we see Star enter Simoneamp8217s foster home unannounced and begin searching for her The law would call this breaking and entering amp160She finds her in a bedroom with her foster dad attempting to sexually assault her amp160So Star does what anyone would do in that situation amp8211 she stabs dude in the back with a kitchen knifeAs far as they know at this point this guyamp8217s dead so Star tells Simone to grab her stuff and then they just bounce That just doesnamp8217t seem very well thought out Granted Star was in panic mode and her adrenaline was pumping just as anyoneamp8217s would in that situation so Iamp8217ll give her a pass for being human But now that they think homeboyamp8217s dead why donamp8217t they at least try to fool the impending authorities I mean they do absolutely nothing to make the scene less damning evidencewise or even attempt to leave some semblance of a misdirect that would even partially explain Simoneamp8217s absence amp160Even if the police donamp8217t come to the easytoreach conclusion that Star probably did it see the paperwork with her foster care release date the state employee who admits aloud she could lose her job etc theyamp8217re still going to assume that someone intentionally killed the guy and that Simone has run away with that person which they would surmise from all the missing stuff Star told her to grabRemember Star and Simone arenamp8217t going into hiding What they intend to accomplish is quite the opposite obviously because they want to get famous Now for the writers I know the openendedness of the situation is dramatic gold but for Staramp8217s character thatamp8217s a whole lot to swallow in the first five minutes of meeting someonePutting the obvious legal implications aside just for a moment I understand that these girls both have years of horrific dialoguereferenced offscreen events under their belts but without actually seeing any of it happen to Star it gives the impression that she just bailed on people who sure were mean to her but still housed and fed her for at least a year or two and then had the audacity to tell her to do what The dishes The horrorTo this fictional womanamp8217s credit however she is also dangerously ambitious and independent in an indomitable fashion but the main difference between her and the many alltoofamiliar stereotypes she represents is the fact that she actually has the talent to back up all that bravado She can sing dance and has personality to boot amp160But she hasnamp8217t even hit her twenties so even though her heart seems to be in the right place she still hasnamp8217t fully developed the gift of foresight hence the dramaStar and Simone head to Atlanta in search of their godmother Carlotta Brown Queen Latifah Through the peopleconnecting magic of Instagram they meet up with Alexandra Ryan Destiny the wealthy daughter of fictional rock star Roland Crane Lenny Kravitz who is passionate about making amp8220music that feeds my soulamp8221 without her fatheramp8217s help or money The three of them now share the same mission Make it to the big time no matter whatAs Star Jude Demorest pictured at top does a bang up job of switching between sisterlike playfulness sexy mischief and being straightup ratchet at a momentamp8217s noticeamp160Brittany Oamp8217Grady nails the nuances of being a sixteenyearold who finds herself ignored and alone Ryan Destiny is convincing as the nononsense business minded one Whether theyamp8217re having one of many friendshipending fights or just chillinamp8217 in the car their conversations never seem phoned in They really sell the idea that theyamp8217re just three young women chasing their dream togetherStar achieves a level of authenticity that makes it easy to buy into the messy drama of it all If I didnamp8217t believe Queen Latifah as the Christian mothertype with the constant urge to save her babies or Brittany Oamp8217Grady as the angsty modernday teen who has trouble processing her emotions the whole thing would fall apartThe show also addresses or at least acknowledges some social issues that have recently held the spotlight including the Black Lives Matter movement conflicting religious beliefs sexual identity drug and alcohol abuse and child abuse in the foster care system To his credit Daniels manages to say a little something about each of these topics in one way or another without any of it coming off as even a little bit preachyFinally the music on Star is fire The regular soundtrack particularly the club scenes consists of tracks Iamp8217d actually bump and the original music from the fictional trio is just as on point They also do a great job of using the music in the proper contexts as opposed to just shoving it down our throats whenever they feel like it At the right times the music and visuals alone are capable of evoking more emotion than any of the dialogue That makes Star shine all the brighterClick on the social media tiles above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggers

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Fox's Super "Star"

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Ainsley Andrade

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Fox's Super "Star"

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