POP CULTURE NEWS EIGHTY-ONE: THE BREAK UP TO BREAK THE INTERNET

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Hey, there! We’re back for our usual, weekly round up of pop culture content. Let’s dig right in and see what, if anything, we can find this week. I have to tell you, so far, it’s slime. pop culture news eighty-one

DISCUSSION | WHAT IS CULTURE’S OBSESSION WITH AN EASY ENDING RELATIONSHIP?

✨ POP CULTURE NEWS EIGHTY-ONE: THE BREAK UP TO BREAK THE INTERNET. #POPCULTURE NEWS OF THE WEEK.#MILLIEBOBBYBROWN #TVNEWS #NETFLIX #JOEALWYN #TAYLORSWIFT #MARRIAGE Share on X

This week is slim pickings perhaps because a very specific break up “broke” the Internet over the weekend. Or maybe it’s just a boring and slow week for entertainment. Does it tend to have seasons? I really don’t know but I do know it makes putting these together a challenge because we NEED some interesting stories to talk about! By interesting I mean something with a bit of structure or heft to it because let’s be honest, while it’s fun to see our favorite TV shows get their renewal, that is also kind of boring. I’d rather have something we can be conversational about.

We may have a couple of interesting things to look at though. So let’s jump in.

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POP CULTURE NEWS EIGHTY-ONE

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THE BREAKUP TO BREAK THE INTERNET

On Saturday, the rumor mill swirled with an ET “exclusive” that a source claimed Taylor Swift and her British actor boyfriend Joe Alwyn have broken up. There’s conflicting reports as to whether or not this is true, some fans saying the reason Alwyn hasn’t been at an Eras Tour stop is because he’s working and filming a movie. Others insist she’s still with him. Some say they’re on a break because of their schedules and Alwyn being uncomfortable with her level of fame. But multiple entertainment outlets are reporting they’re done.

The two have been notorious for keeping their six year relationship private, and many of Swifts songs from Reputation through to her Midnights, which just released in October, album are said to be about their relationship. Here’s the thing, I’m already seeing lots of comments about Alwyn being a bad guy and that he “used” her and she did all the things for him (like song credits) and yet she never walked a red carpet with him (suggesting he was controlling and demanded from her things he didn’t give). Truth is, it’s not unreasonable for him, if true, to want to keep their romance private. The more you’re seen together, the more curiosity and questions. I actually admire that way more than a love story in the public eye.

Swift has even talked about the idea that her life is too big and public and wresting with this, and the idea that she’d like to someday fade away. Again, nothing wrong with Alwyn wanting a more private personal life. Just as a quick FYI for the Swift fans who think Taylor-does-no-wrong, it’s not necessarily all Alwyn’s fault just as it’s not all Swift’s fault why a relationship ends. Just your reminder. What are your thoughts? Do you think they are officially done?

All I know is, it’s sad that culture, in many ways, promotes or celebrates relationships ending. This we see by the TikTok videos or entertainment articles. I could say more, but I already wrote about this so we’ll leave it there.

TOO YOUNG TO KNOW?

The Internet is, from what I’ve read, a bit split about the rumor mill Millie Bobby Brown is engaged to her boyfriend of two years. The nineteen year old is dating one of Jon Bon Jovi’s sons and posted a photo of the two of them with her sporting a pretty diamond ring and a Taylor Swift lyric in the caption, saying she wants the rest of his summers. The rage is implying that the two are too young to marry. Well, maybe they are. Maybe they aren’t. I’m not here to argue the pros and cons of this.

However, I saw a tweet that makes one thing. The tweet asks if everyone criticizing Millie Bobby Brown for her engagement (that she’s too young) are the same people demanding that a two or three year old, and so on is able to pick a gender. It’s definitely something to think about and made me stop to think about this, and wonder if this is true.

LAST THINGS

Never Have I Ever, the super popular teen dramady for Netflix, dropped its fourth (and final) season teaser video this week. Honestly, I haven’t watched this since its first season and really haven’t thought much about it outside of seeing a headline during my writing research here and there. Is it worth investing the additional three season time into?

Before they’re current season bows, CBS Blue Bloods will reintroduce us to two familiar, but long missing faces. I did read who they are, but in case you’re not a spoiler person, I’ll refrain from sharing.

In an interview with Today, actress Jennifer Garner says her kids aren’t on social media. Though perhaps not for lack of trying. She says she tells them, ‘Show me the articles that prove that social media is good for teenagers, and then we’ll have the conversation,’” further explaining that she tells them, “Find scientific evidence that matches what I have that says that it’s not good for teenagers, then we’ll chat.” Honestly, I love this. She further went on to explain that her eldest, who is seventeen, is ‘grateful,’ but with her two youngest yet to raise (13 and 11), she hopes she sticks with it.

Have you read any of these stories? Which ones are you most curious about? Which ones annoy you? What do you think about the nineteen-year-old being too young to marry but culture’s insistence that a two-year-old can pick a gender? What about Swift and Alwyn? Comment all the comments! Let’s talk.

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