Pose Season 2 Ep. 2 Recap: 'Worth It'

Photo: FX

After loudly proclaiming their right to exist in "Acting Up," "Worth It," finds several of Pose's characters reevaluating their self-worth.

Elektra has seemingly found hers in a new side hustle, working as a dominatrix at The Hellfire Club. Playing a domineering, verbally abusive tyrant clearly agrees with her personality(no shade but shade). She's also still working the door at Indochine in order to stay in close proximity to the rich and famous--get your coin and your clout boo--and the extra money is helping the House of Ferocity level up from its status as the red-headed stepchild of the ballroom scene.

If only mama could learn not to take her work home. Elektra stirs the shit during dinner, upends another table (her signature move darling) and sashays away to recruit a crew that includes the best dancers and a white girl to create the House of Wintour. "Quake in fear children. Wintour is coming," she tells the crowd after interrupting a runway category. Who knew Elektra could see into the future and make a pun on a classic Game of Thrones line?

While she may be reveling in her newfound power, Elektra doesn't seem to have learned much from her recent struggles as, in the harsh words of Candy, "an over the hill, homeless sex change." She hasn't realized one can be a ferocious goddess without shitting on everyone else. But if previews for next week's episode are any clue, she'll need the help of one of her former children soon.

Blanca is moving forward with opening her own nail shop, meeting with fearsome landlord Ms. Norman, a rich divorcee and casual racist who can tolerate the fact Blanca's Dominican--they're hard workers you know. She schools Blanca on what's on the horizon for New York: gentrification, a process that will transform the city's gritty, diverse culture into the safe, homogenized and very white Big Apple of the 21st century. All of this initially goes over Blanca's head, partially because she's thrilled about having her own space, but also because she doesn't understand what gentrification means for her and her community.

"Worth It" also focuses on Blanca's continued ambivalence about her health. When Judy presses her on why she isn't taking her medication, her response is heartbreaking: she's not taking it because she doesn't feel she deserves it. However, when Damon reveals he and Ricky are still having unprotected sex, Blanca's forced to confront her own tenuous relationship with self worth. She decides to tell them about her painful past, one where she dranm too much, debased herself for men and eschewed condoms all in the name of wanting to feel loved, at least for the moment. She reveals she has AIDS, and the house rallies around her, Papi especially.

The confession seems to set something free in her. She begins taking her medication, and  stands her ground when Ms. Norman attempts her evict for being a "liar" (her son clocked Blanca as trans),and threatens her with legal and bodily harm. "I've had more beatings than you had breakfast," Blanca snaps. Oh it's on bitch. It's on. Like the protest at St. Patrick's Cathedral, pushing back against Ms. Norman is an act that's both personal and political. If season one was about Blanca finding her way as a mother, season two appears to be about her discovering her voice in the outside world.

Damon also has a personal reckoning. After some child named Chris cattily tells Damon he and Ricky slept together while on tour, the two argue for hours, with Damon never fully believing Ricky's claims of innocence. Both their HIV tests thankfully come back negative, but something is still nagging at Damon. Between music videos and touring, Ricky's life appears to be moving forward, while his, despite the thrill of the ballroom, remains stagnant.

Feeling that he's lost himself in their relationship, Damon breaks it off with Ricky at the Eros Ball. I predicted these two wouldn't make it for the long haul, being so young and inexperienced in how to sustain a relationship and the feels that come with it. That said,  the pain of their breakup was palpable. Damon begins to focus on himself, teaching voguing classes. Meanwhile, Ricky moves out of Blanca's house and joins the House of Wintour.

Damn Elektra snaps the kids up quick.


Other Thoughts/The Shade of It All

• Angel trying help Blanca upgrade from her "shit style" leads to a casual but insightful moment, one where Blanca explains her lack of fashion sense comes from years of rushing into women's sections and grabbing what she could before being kicked out. One of the things that's so wonderful about Pose is the way it delves into the lives of trans women in such a casual way, in this case  via a conversation between two friends (or mother and daughter).

• "Gay black boys ain't never been trained to have a dollop of self-belief." Fuck that cut like a knife.

• Not to nitpick, but were the kids saying slay in 1990? I'll ask around and report back.

• Ms. Norman named her dogs Cash and Credit. She's such fabulous trash.

• "Lil Papi is certainly putting that GED to good use ya'll.

• Shush mongrel."

• The council has spoken. No bitch.'

• "I mean it's a concert tour. Aren't all the dancers gay?" Papi ain't wrong. 

• "Could somebody please take this bitch back to kindergarten so she can learn the difference between feathers and foam?"

• "I said in alphabetical order. Chanel. Dior. Fendi. Get it right."

• "Save your well wishes for someone in need of validation hag." 

• "Whatever that doorman did to him was nothing compared to reaming I gave old Randy Norman in divorce court."