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GLOW (TV series)

GLOW is an American comedy-drama television series created by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch. [2] The series revolves around a fictionalization of the characters and gimmicks of the 1980s syndicated women’s professional wrestling tour , the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW gold) Originally created by David McLane . [3] The first season consisted of 10 episodes [4] and was released via Netflix on June 23, 2017. [5]

Premise

Set in Los Angeles in 1985, Ruth Wilder, a struggling actress, receives an invitation for an audition along with dozens of other women in a fledgling professional wrestling promotion called the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW). She gets at odds with GLOW’s director Sam Sylvia due to her tendency to overact in the ring. Further complicating matters is her best friend, train soap opera actress Debbie Eagan Who confronted Ruth after-discovering her affair with her husband and Their fight time immediately Makes Them la promotion’s top stars.

Cast

Main article: List of GLOW characters

Main

  • Alison Brie as Ruth “Zoya the Destroya” Wilder [6]
  • Betty Gilpin as Debbie “Liberty Belle” Eagan [7]
  • Sydelle Noel as Cherry “Junkchain” Bang [8]
  • Britney Young as Carmen “Machu Picchu” Wade [8]
  • Marc Maron as Sam Sylvia [9]

Recurring

  • Jackie Tohn as Melanie “Melrose” Rosen [10]
  • Kate Nash as Rhonda “Britannica” Richardson [10]
  • Britt Baron as Justine “Scab” Biagi [10]
  • Chris Lowell as Sebastian “Bash” Howard [11]
  • Bashir Salahuddin as Keith Bang
  • Rich Sommer as Mark Eagan
  • Kimmy Gatewood as Stacey “Ethel Rosenblatt” Beswick [10]
  • Rebekka Johnson as Dawn “Edna Rosenblatt” Rivecca [10]
  • Sunita Mani as Arthie “Beirut the Mad Bomber” Premkumar [10]
  • Kia Stevens as Tammé “The Welfare Queen” Dawson [10]
  • Gayle Rankin as Sheila “the She Wolf” [12]
  • Ellen Wong as Jenny “Fortune Cookie” Chey [13]
  • Marianna Palka as Reggie “Vicky the Viking” Walsh
  • Alex Rich as Florian [14]
  • Elizabeth Perkins as Bash’s mother, Birdie

Several professional wrestlers made cameos throughout the season. These include John Morrison as Salty “The Sack” Johnson, who trained who appeared the first episode, Brodus Clay and Carlito , who played Carmen’s wrestler brothers, Joey Ryan , as a wrestler known as’ Mr. Monopoly ‘Ryan’s real-life wife and wrestler Laura James played His servant’ Crystal ‘, Alex Riley Who played a wrestler Known As’ Steel Horse’ Brooke Hogan as nightclub manager Amber Fredrickson, and Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian as unnamed wrestlers .

Production

The idea for the series came when Flahive and Mensch, who at the time were looking to make a new female-centric show, came across the documentary GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling . [15] [16] Before this series, neither woman had heard of the GLOW wrestling league, and they became intrigued by the premise of producing a fictionalized version of it. [16] Both women found the storyline intriguing as a way of exploring the aftermath of the 1970s Woman’s Liberation Movement , with Flahive’s Telling Rolling Stone “We wanted to look back on the 1970s, coming out of the women’s movement, And ask the question: Did it work? [15] To this end, It was important for the series to maintain a tension between whether or not the league was exploiting women or empowering them. [15]

Soundtrack

The series features several songs from the 1980s, as well as tracks from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. [1]

Featured songs
  1. ” The Warrior ” by Scandal
  2. ” You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real) ” by Sylvester
  3. ” Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) ” by Journey
  4. ” Stir It Up ” by Patti LaBelle
  5. ” The Look ” by Roxette
  6. “We Do not Get Along” by The Go-Go’s
  7. ” Life in a Northern Town ” by The Dream Academy
  8. ” Movin ‘Out (Anthony’s Song) ” by Billy Joel
  9. ” Head Over Heels ” by Tears for Fears
  10. ” Rock You Like a Hurricane (2011 Re-recording)” by Scorpions
  11. “Ready Steady Go” by Generation X
  12. “Dare” by Stan Bush
  13. ” Theme of Exodus ” by Ernest Gold
  14. “Angel” by The Jetzons
  15. ” Under Pressure ” by Queen and David Bowie
  16. ” Magic Moments ” by Perry Como
  17. ” Things Can Only Get Better ” by Howard Jones
  18. ” Invincible ” by Pat Benatar

Quiet Riot’s cover of ” Cum On Feel the Noize ” was used for the series’ trailer. Songs covered by the cast include the Thompson Twins ‘” Hold Me Now ” and Barbra Streisand ‘ s ” These Are One Of Those Moments “. [1]

Episodes

No. title Directed by Written by Original release date
1 “Pilot” Jesse Peretz Liz Flahive & Carly Mensch June 23, 2017
Ruth Wilder, an actress struggling to find work, receives an invitation for an audition from her casting director. She is also a member of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW). On the first day of tryouts, Ruth is dismissed by director Sam Silvia when her acting skills come into conflict with the training; Her day worsens when her purse is snatched by a group of skateboarders. With nowhere else to go, she begins watching professional wrestling shows to develop her persona and returns to the gym for another shot at the audition. Debbie Eagan is a young woman who has been living with her husband for years. Their legitimate catfight in the ring inspires Sam to keep Ruth in the program.
2 “Slouch, Submit.” Wendey Stanzler Liz Flahive & Carly Mensch June 23, 2017
During the second week of tryouts, Sam tests the candidates’ personalities. He then leaves the training to Cherry Bang while he goes out to try and get Debbie to be the star of his promotion. Tensions in the ring when Melrose reveals Cherry’s previous affair with Sam and Cherry locks her in a sleeper hold . Melrose then mocks Cherry’s miscarriage with a bottle of ketchup. Sam uses the incident and Ruth’s affair with Mark to brainstorm a storyline in the ring. At the end of the day, Silvia promises Cherry double her pay if the promotion pulls through. Ruth discovers that Sam will cast her as Debbie’s evil arch-nemesis, much to her sorrow.
3 “The Wrath of Kuntar” Claire Scanlon Nick Jones June 23, 2017
The ladies meet their producer Sebastian “Bash” Howard while Sam hands them a script for them to work on, with Ruth reading stage directions. After the script reading session, Bash invites everyone to a party at his Malibu mansion, with Debbie riding in his helicopter. There, Bash brings the ladies to his dressing room to help them further develop their in-ring personas while Ruth puts a drunk Debbie in a taxi back home. As the ladies flaunt their new outfits, Sam and Bash argue over the direction they want the promotion to go. Following the argument, Sam agrees to work with Bash’s vision of giving the girls stereotypical gimmicks. The girls pass on their persona tests except for Ruth, who leaves Sam and Bash clueless over her character.
4 “The Dusty Spur” Melanie Mayron Sascha Rothchild June 23, 2017
With five weeks left before shooting GLOW’s pilot episode, Sam and Bash announce that the ladies will stay at The Dusty Spur motel in Van Nuys as part of their training. As Ruth struggles to find her character, she is assigned to work with Sheila the She-Wolf. Training is interrupted by Carmen’s father Goliath Jackson and her two brothers, who urge her to go home instead of pursuing a career. After Goliath slaps Sam, Carmen agrees to leave the gym, purpose Bash fakes an affair with her to convince Goliath to let Carmen make her own decisions. Tammé is concerned about her “Welfare Queen” gimmick, Meanwhile,
5 “Debbie Does Something” Phil Abraham Rachel Shukert June 23, 2017
As the ladies continue their training, Sam and Bash have a meeting with KDTV executive Glen Klitnick, who offers GLOW a Saturday morning timeslot and a potential sponsor in the outdoor / indoor lifestyle store chain Patio Town. Debbie has her parents take care of her while she continues her training. Dawn and Stacey is the best place to go for a meal. Ruth and Rhonda travel to Patio Town of Calabasas to meet CEO Patrick O’Towne, who declines to sponsor GLOW until Sam convinces him to reconsider by staging a vignette with Ruth during the ribbon cutting ceremony. It is here that Ruth develops her Soviet gimmick, but shortly learns from Sam’s affair with Rhonda. Meanwhile,
6 “This Is One Of Those Moments” Kate Dennis Jenji Kohan June 23, 2017
Sam calls in Ruth and Debbie. Ruth is an old-fashioned babe who loves to have sex with her. To further develop her character, Ruth asks for help from Gregory, the motel’s Russian manager, who takes her to a Russian Jewish family party. When Michael, the celebrity break , overhears Ruth talking about Yentl , he asks her to sing one of Barbra Streisand ‘s songs. Meanwhile, Debbie is having difficulty taking in-ring storylines while Justine confronts Sam over him using GLOW as his personal casting couch . After much convincing by Sam, Debbie finally decides to start a program with Ruth. Later that night,
7 “Live Studio Audience” Jesse Peretz Rachel Shukert June 23, 2017
As the ladies gear up for their first show on Friday, Sam and Bash argue over production costs, especially after Sam’s camera was stolen. In order to make the best possible main event, Ruth and Debbie begin training with Carmen’s brothers. Meanwhile, Sam discovers that Rhonda found her camera in her locker, but he knows that Justine was trying to frame her. On the night of the show, Carmen experiences fright and passes out after leaving the gym. The scheduled tag team goes awry when Dawn and Stacey wear Ku Klux Klan outfits in the ring. After coming to, Carmen discovers that Bash has been cut off financially by his mother after spending over $ 600,000 on developing GLOW. Debbie and Ruth’s training country off as they both get over the crowd on their main event, But Debbie suddenly walks out of the match when she sees Mark and argues with him backstage before he hands her divorce papers. Rhonda saves the show by getting the other ladies to rap with her in the ring.
8 “Maybe It’s All Disco” Sian Heder Nick Jones June 23, 2017
Sam takes Ruth to a Maya -themed theater as a potential venue for GLOW’s next show. Mark admits to Debbie that he never meant to serve the divorce paper to her and that he has to take sessions to help fix their marriage. Meanwhile, the ladies celebrate Sheila’s birthday by taking her to a roller disco , Rhonda breaks up with Sam, and Ruth secretly undergoes an abortion after her pregnancy test comes out positive.
9 “The Liberal Chokehold” Lynn Shelton Liz Flahive & Carly Mensch June 23, 2017
While most of America is focused on the TWA Flight 847 hijacking, KDTV executives present Sam and Bash the timeslot for GLOW, but Sam discovers that Bash is strapped for cash. In order to raise the $ 9,000 to secure the venue, the ladies will have a bikini car wash at the motel. When they collect only $ 287 and change from their car wash, Bash brings them to his mother’s anti-drug charity drug addicts using wrestling as a reformation tool. Their act convinces Bash’s mother to allow them to use their ballroom at the Hayworth Theater . Meanwhile, after confiding with Justine over his failed projects, Sam discovers that she is his illegitimate daughter.
10 “Money’s in the Chase” Tristram Shapeero Liz Flahive & Carly Mensch June 23, 2017
As the ladies pack up for the Hayworth, a drunk Sam returns to the motel to try and mend things with Justine while Debbie bails out to move back in with Mark. Ruth puts herself in charge of the event. With hardly any attendance in the ballroom, Tammé, Melrose, and Sheila pay many moviegoers from across the street to watch their show. Glen informs Cherry that she got the lead in the station’s upcoming cop drama series, but she has got to quit GLOW in the process. Arthie’s “Beirut the Mad Bomber” The gimmick and Rhonda is an actor. Sam spots Debbie and Mark in the hearing and calls her to leave. Carmen overcomes her stagefright when her father and brothers start cheering for her. Jenny and Jenny defeating, Jenny and Ruth to double cross Jenny and her to win the GLOW Crown. Her coronation is suddenly interrupted when Debbie challenges her to a match. Debbie finishes off Ruth with a flying cross body to become the GLOW Champion. Tammé, however, steals the Crown as part of Sam’s plan to continue the storyline.

Reception

GLOW was praised by critics on its release; receiving send a 97% approval rating from review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes , the website’s consensus being “With spot-on 1980s period detail Knockout writing, and a killer cast, GLOW shines brightly.” [17]

References

  1. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h i j k l m McNally, Victoria (June 23, 2017). “The ‘Glow’ Season 1 Soundtrack Is a Pumped-Up ’80s Masterpiece” . Bustle.com . Retrieved June 27, 2017 .
  2. Jump up^ Nellie Andreeva. “Netflix Orders Jenji Kohan’s ‘GLOW’, Comedy Series About 1980s Female Wrestlers | Deadline” . Deadline.com . Retrieved May 31, 2016 .
  3. Jump up^ Elizabeth Wagmeister. “Jenji Kohan Producing Netflix Comedy Series’ GLOW ‘About’ 80s Female Wrestling League” . Variety.com . Retrieved May 31, 2016 .
  4. Jump up^ “‘Orange Is the New Black’ Creator Sets’ 80s Women’s Wrestling Comedy Series’ GLOW ‘at Netflix – Hollywood Reporter” . Hollywoodreporter.com . Retrieved May 31, 2016 .
  5. Jump up^ ” ‘ GLOW,’ Netflix’s Women’s Wrestling Comedy, to Launch June 23″ . The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved March 1, 2017 .
  6. Jump up^ Andreeva, Nellie (August 29, 2016). “Alison Brie To Star In Netflix Comedy Series ‘GLOW’ From Jenji Kohan” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved August 29, 2016 .
  7. Jump up^ Andreeva, Nellie (August 30, 2016). “‘GLOW’: Betty Gilpin To Co-Star In Netflix’s 1980s Wrestling Comedy Series” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved August 30, 2016 .
  8. ^ Jump up to:a b Petski, Denise (September 17, 2016). “Britney Young & Sydelle Noel Join Netflix Comedy Series ‘GLOW’ From Jenji Kohan” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved September 17, 2016 .
  9. Jump up^ Petski, Denise (August 31, 2016). “Marc Maron To Co-Star In Netflix Comedy Series ‘GLOW’ From Jenji Kohan” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved August 31, 2016 .
  10. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g Petski, Denise (September 22, 2016). “‘GLOW’: Jenji Kohan Netflix Comedy Series Adds Britt Baron, Jackie Tohn & Five More” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved September 22, 2016 .
  11. Jump up^ Petski, Denise (December 16, 2016). “Chris Lowell Set To Recur On Netflix’s ‘GLOW'” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved December 16, 2016 .
  12. Jump up^ Daniel Holloway. “Jenji Kohan’s Netflix Wrestling Comedy ‘GLOW’ Casts Gayle Rankin (EXCLUSIVE)” . Variety.com . Retrieved September 28, 2016 .
  13. Jump up^ Denise, Petski (October 21, 2016). “Ellen Wong Joins Netflix’s ‘GLOW;’ She’s Gotta Have It ‘Sydney Morton Adds’ . Deadline . Retrieved October 21, 2016 .
  14. Jump up^ Petski, Denise (December 17, 2016). “Alex Rich Joins’ ‘Animal Kingdom’ Adds Jennifer Landon” . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved December 17, 2016 .
  15. ^ Jump up to:a b c Scherer, Jenna. “Get in the Ring: How ‘GLOW’ Recreates the Golden Age of Lady-Wrestling TV” . Rolling Stone . Retrieved June 24, 2017 .
  16. ^ Jump up to:a b Birnbaum, Debra. “Why ‘GLOW’ Creators Made Women’s Wrestling Series” . Variety . Retrieved June 24, 2017 .
  17. Jump up^ “GLOW: Season 1” . Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved June 23,2017 .

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