Don't Trust the B---- In Apt 23 S2 Ep. "Paris..." - The SSL Review

Don't Trust the B----- in Apt 23 - "Paris..."

Don't Trust The B---- In Apt 23 was only on for 2 seasons, and like I said in the first SSL Review I did for this show, Netflix changed the order of the episodes around from their original air date, so I'm using the episode name instead of the number for your future reference. Anyway, I thought it was a pretty fun sitcom. My sister told me to watch it, and I do what she says, so that's how I got into it. You can get into it because of me. That's how this stuff works.

As you might expect, given this post, there is an SSL Reviewable scene. Honestly, it's maybe not strictly SSL Reviewable because it doesn't directly discuss or depict female masturbation, but it does indirectly insinuate it, and I think it's worth a quick review. So here it is.

An SSL Review

First a quick reminder about an SSL Review. It is the critique specifically of the depiction or discussion of female orgasm, female masturbation, or the clit. I'm particularly looking for the level of physical realism and for how the depiction/discussion fits into the larger cultural discussion about female sexuality and orgasm. Sometimes I comment on other aspects of the movie. Sometimes I don't.

Please feel free to check out all the SSL Reviewed movies HERE and the SSL Reviewed TV shows HERE.

So Many Vibrators

Like I said above, this is a bit of an SSL-Review-Lite. Let me just describe the scene.

June is the (mostly) innocent, sweet half of Apt 23. Chloe is the wild, chaotic, kinda mean side. June finally has this job she's been hoping to get, and she's trying to make sure she gets ready on time in the morning. However, there's a montage of her trying to get ready, but she just keeps finding Chloe's vibrators all over the house instead of the things she needs. They are, btw, Hitachi Magic Wand style ones instead of the classic dildo shape. It's clear she's using them to vibe the outside not dildo her insides.

My Thoughts

So, that's really the whole thing. It's just a comedic scene that also points out how often Chloe uses vibrators...alone, with a random sex partner (she often brings these types of guests for sleepovers in the apartment)...who knows how Chloe uses them, but she definitely does.

Loving it...

I LOVE that there is an acknowledgement of a female character masturbating. Any time that happens, it normalizes the idea of women masturbating, and hopefully makes it easier for women out in the world to feel okay doing it and admitting to it. More masturbating women means more orgasming women, means more women who might be able to figure out how to translate their way of masturbating into orgasm with a partner. We ladies need to do the solo research to help us with the partnered stuff because normal ol' sex (i.e. intercourse) ain't a good path to orgasm like it is for men, and we have to put in extra effort that men don't have to in order to get ourselves the right stimulation and get our partners on board with things other than the basics. (The clits, people. We just need the clits stimulated. I don't know why this has to be so hard really, but it is).

Although I have some reservations...

Sometimes I do worry about what a depiction is saying to the world by who the gal is that's masturbating, though. I worry about this for this show, but only very, very slightly. I definitely hold to what I said above, but if the woman who is depicted masturbating is a horrible person that does horrible things and the nice women around her hate her and are disgusted by the things she does (including masturbation) then that's clearly counter-productive to the whole 'normalizing of lady-bation' thing.

But mostly it's good shit...

Chloe is a bitch. She is the bitch in Apt 23. She's actually pretty terrible a lot of the time. However, she also redeems herself from time to time and she is the main character. She's hate-ably lovable, really, so although she is clearly chaotic and wild, and her masturbating may color lady-bation itself as chaotic and wild, I don't think it demonizes it. Also, as you'll find in my last SSL Review of this show, that, in fact, nice-gal June masturbates too. So the show as a whole, I believe, still really does make women masturbating seem like a thing that happens - for bitches and nice girls.

The Vulva Rating

First, bravo to the person/people who chose the props for this. They did not fuck around with things the audience might assume are dildos to be rammed inside Chloe's vagina and/or ass and not make her come. The props chose were badass vibrators meant to get a bitch off. Kudos, because I believe those very lady-orgasm-inducing props were intentional choices from people who want to give props to great vibrators and not silly dildo-y sex toys.

Secondly, respect that this is an insinuation of a woman's masturbation habits. Even if that women is a bitch of a woman, she's still a kinda lovable character and that, plus the larger story arch of the show regarding masturbation (see first SSL Review), are pieces of the larger media pie that help normalize ladies jigglin' their bits.

I give this 5 of 5 vulvas.

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