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Over the past few years, women named Karen have taken a lot of heat in the media. The term “Karen” has been used to describe a specific type of entitled, privileged and often middle-aged white woman. Typically, “Karen” is depicted as demanding, self-important and constantly seeking to escalate minor inconveniences to authority figures, like demanding to “speak to the manager.”

Identifying the folks who create unnecessary drama in our world is important. But calling them a “Karen” isn’t the best way to solve the problem. There are many reasons to have an issue with the “Karen” stereotype. First, it’s terrible for people named Karen, and it’s also a connotation that many feel is racist, sexist and ageist.

Further, according to a new study by Trustpilot, the stereotype isn’t accurate. A recent survey by the online media site found that the people who leave the most one-star reviews aren’t female, and the women who do it the most aren’t named Karen.

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Trustpilot is a site where people can review a business from which they’ve purchased a product or contacted customer service. According to TrustPilot, the number one biggest one-star reviewers are named John, not Karen.

“The name John is top for [one-star] reviews in the US, with the rest of the top five positions filled by David, Michael, Chris and James,” the site wrote in a press release. “Looking at specific categories, John is also first for negative reviews in Business Services, Electronics and Technology, Shopping and Fashion, and Money and Insurance. Meanwhile, Lisa left the most [one-star] reviews in our Beauty and Wellbeing category.”

So, if your name is Karen, keep this story in your back pocket next time someone stereotypes you as an entitled complainer. The real complainers are the Johns and, for the women, Lisas.

Why do people go online and write negative reviews? Psychologist William Berry writes in Psychology Today that people get many positive benefits from complaining, although they may annoy everyone around them.

The first big reason is an ego boost. When people complain, they feel validated. It also makes them feel superior to others. Complaining can also bring like-minded people together. If you and a significant other have ever been mistreated in a restaurant or car dealership, having a mutual enemy can work wonders for your relationship.

There are also entire groups of people who bond over a common gripe.

People who habitually complain may do so because of the brain’s negativity bias. “The human brain, geared for survival, focuses on negatives (as they appear more threatening to survival) than on positives (which enhance life but are less vital for survival),” Berry writes. “As the brain perceives negatives at an approximated ratio of five to one, there is simply more to complain about than there is to be grateful for. Additionally, this may lead to less general happiness.”

Here are the top 15 names of consumers who leave the most one-star reviews on Trustpilot. (Also known as the folks that owe the Karens out there an apology.)

1. John

2. David

3. Michael

4. Chris

5. James

6. Mike

7. Mark

8. Robert

9. Alex

10. Paul

11. Lisa

12. Sarah

13. Steve

14. Sam

15. Daniel

This article originally appeared on 9.7.23

It’s hard to explain the relentless intensity of having young children if you haven’t done it. It’s wonderful, beautiful, magical and all of that—it truly is—but it’s a lot. Like, a lot. It’s a bit like running an ultramarathon through the most beautiful landscape you can imagine. There’s no question that it’s amazing, but it’s really, really hard. And sometimes there are storms or big hills or obstacles or twisted ankles or some other thing that makes it even more challenging for a while.

Unfortunately, a lot of moms feel like they’re running that marathon alone. Some actually are. Some have partners who don’t pull their weight. But even with an equal partner, the early years tend to be mom-heavy, and it takes a toll.

In fact, that toll is so great that it’s not unusual for moms to fantasize about being hospitalized—not with anything serious, just something that requires a short stay—simply to get a genuine break.

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In a thread on X (formerly Twitter), a mom named Emily shared this truth: “[I don’t know] if the lack of community care in our culture is more evident than when moms casually say they daydream about being hospitalized for something only moderately serious so that they are forced to not have any responsibilities for like 3 days.”

In a follow-up tweet, she added, “And other moms are like ‘yeah totally’ while childfree Gen Z girls’ mouths hang open in horror.”

— (@)

Other moms corroborated, not only with the fantasy but the reality of getting a hospital break:

“And can confirm: I have the fondest memories of my appendicitis that almost burst 3 weeks after my third was born bc I emergency had to go get it taken out and I mean I let my neighbor take my toddlers and I let my husband give the baby formula, and I slept until I was actually rested. Under the knife, but still. It was really nice,” wrote one mom.

“I got mastitis when my first was 4 months old. I had to have surgery, but my hospital room had a nice view, my mom came to see me, the baby was with me but other people mostly took care of her, bliss,” shared another.

Some people tried to blame lackadaisical husbands and fathers for moms feeling overwhelmed, but as Emily pointed out, it’s not always enough to have a supportive spouse. That’s why she pointed to “lack of community care” in her original post.

— (@)

They say it takes a village to raise a child, but it also takes a village to raise a mother. Without the proverbial village, we end up bearing too much of the weight of childrearing ourselves. We’re not just running the ultramarathon—we’re also carrying the water, bandaging the blisters, moving fallen trees out of the way, washing the sweat out of our clothes—and we’re doing it all without any rest.

Why don’t moms just take a vacation instead of daydreaming about hospitalization? It’s not that simple. Many people don’t have the means for a getaway, but even if they do, there’s a certain level of “mom guilt” that comes with purposefully leaving your young children. Vacations usually require planning and decision-making as well, and decision fatigue is one of the most exhausting parts of parenting.

Strange as it may seem, the reason hospitalization is attractive is that it’s forced—if you’re in the hospital, you have to be there, so there’s no guilt about choosing to leave. It involves no decision-making—someone else is calling the all shots. You literally have no responsibilities in the hospital except resting—no one needs anything from you. And unlike when you’re on vacation, most people who are caring for your kids when you’re in the hospital aren’t going to constantly contact you to ask you questions. They’ll leave you to let you rest.

Paula Fitzgibbons shares that had three kids under the age of 3 in 11 months (two by adoption and one by birth). Her husband, despite being very involved and supportive, had a 1.5 hour commute for work, so the lion’s share of childcare—”delightful utter chaos” as she refers to it—fell on her shoulders. At one point, she ended up in the ER with atrial fibrillation, and due to family medical history was kept in the hospital for a few days for tests and monitoring.

“When people came to visit me or called to see how I was, I responded that I was enjoying my time at ‘the spa,’ and though I missed my family, I was soaking it all in,” she tells Upworthy. “My husband understood. Other mothers understood. The medical staff did not know what to make of my cheerful demeanor, but there I was, lying in bed reading and sleeping for four straight days with zero guilt. What a gift for a new mom.”

When you have young children, your concept of what’s relaxing shifts. I recall almost falling asleep during one of my first dental cleanings after having kids. That chair was so comfy and no one needed anything from me—I didn’t even care what they were doing to my teeth. It felt like heaven to lie down and rest without any demands being made of me other than “Open a little wider, please.”

Obviously, being hospitalized isn’t ideal for a whole host of reasons, but the desire is real. There aren’t a lot of simple solutions to the issue of moms needing a real break—not just an hour or two, but a few days—but maybe if society were structured in such a way that we had smaller, more frequent respites and spread the work of parenting across the community, we wouldn’t feel as much of a desire to be hospitalized simply to be able to be able to rejuvenate.

This article originally appeared on 9.7.23

Sometimes a person opens their mouth to sing and what comes out is not at all what one would expect. We’ve seen it countless times on various “Got Talent” shows, but one unexpected young singer not only surprised the judges and audience of Britain’s Got Talent with his voice but even brought many of them to tears.

Malakai Bayoh is a 14-year-old from London. For his BGT audition earlier in 2023, when he was 13, he sang “Pie Jesu,” the Andrew Lloyd Webber classic in Latin that helped launch Charlotte Church’s career. “Pie Jesu” is a beautiful hymn that requires a soprano voice and includes some challenging vocal high jumps. When it’s done well, it has a mesmerizing, otherworldly quality to it.

Malakai did it well.

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With the voice of an angel, he stunned everyone in the BGT studios as well as the folks watching at home. People in the live audience wiped away tears. The famously hard-to-impress Simon Cowell couldn’t stop smiling as Malakai sang, and at one point, it looked as if judge Bruno Tonioli (who is delightfully prone to dramatics, to be fair) might actually faint.

Watch:

People on YouTube haven’t been able to stop raving about Malakai’s performance.

“I would say this performance automatically entered into the top ten golden buzzers of all time,” wrote one commenter.

“As a trained singer, watching agt and bgt usually distresses me, but my husband loves it. I was in the bedroom when i heard Malachi’s voice pouring out if the living room like an angel. I”ve heard Pie Jesu performed many times, but this was not a performance, this was sound straight from the Creator to touch our souls. A message of love,” shared another.”

“I’m a trained singer, and a music teacher by profession, and sang this song as a young performer myself. I can say with absolute certainty this is the most beautifully I’ve ever heard this song sung. Not only is he a TRULY gifted singer, he sings with poise. With proper technique, proper breathing, proper everything. His vowels are PERFECTION, the smoothness with which he sings is truly impeccable. The amount of control it takes to sing slowly, that high…. this boy is truly a gift from God. Thank you for gracing our ears with your voice little one,” shared another.

“I have seen it 10 times in a row and I have cried all 10 times…definitely a voice that comes from heaven,” shared another.

As Simon Cowell said, “It was like being in heaven.” It seems that everyone is in agreement.

Since his initial BGT audition, Boyah has continued to wow BGT judges and fans with his classical singing. You can watch his performance of “Caruso” here and enjoy his tuxedoed performance of “O Mio Babbino Caro” here. This kid in definitely going places.

In fact, Malakai has recorded his debut album, appropriately called “Golden.” Watch out world, here comes Malakai.

FX and Hulu‘s meeting of the streaming minds has yielded plenty of goodness since they combined powers. The home runs of this effort include Reservation Dogs and The Bear, and that’s in addition to the next-day streaming that Hulu offers for about a zillion TV shows on countless non-FX networks.

Before too much longer, an epic adaptation will be coming your way on both FX and Hulu. Let’s discuss what will soon come from Shōgun.

Plot

The 10-episode limited series adapts James Clavell’s beloved 1975 novel, which wasn’t technically the first published book of his Asian Saga but counts as the first chronological part of the entire story.

The battle-filled story begins in 1600 as a civil war begins when Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) finds himself being dragged into oblivion by “vultures,” i.e. the opposing Council of Regents. Toranaga finds a seeming ally in John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), who has piloted a European ship that ends up marooned nearby but could hold information that helps Toranaga seize an advantage against his enemies. They must, however, communicate through a translator, Toda Mariko (Anna Sawai), who finds herself conflicted while serving both men and the memory of her late father, among other competing interests.

While gearing up for release, FX released two gorgeous pieces of key art.

Cast

An acclaimed Japanese gathering of talent stars in this series. This includes Tadanobu Asano as Kashigi Yabushige (an ally of Toranaga who also happens to be a backstabber), Hiroto Kanai as Kashigi Omi (a village leader), Takehiro Hira as Ishido Kazunari (a Toranaga and bureaucrat), Moeka Hoshi as Usami Fuji (a widow with a vital purpose), Tokuma Nishioka as Toda Hiromatsu (a loyal general of Toranaga), Yuka Kouri as Kiku (a renowned courtesan), and Fumi Nikaido as Ochiba no Kata (the heir’s mother who wishes to take Toranaga out for good).

Release Date

The series debuts on Tuesday, February 27 on Hulu and FX with two episodes and an episode each week to follow.

Trailer

The series looks absolutely breathtaking to behold on every level of production. Prepare for an event series.

The Eagles and 49ers met in Philly on Sunday evening in a matchup between the NFC’s two top teams, as the Niners had an opportunity to avenge last year’s NFC title game loss. After the Eagles took an early 6-0 lead, the Niners stormed back to score 21 consecutive points and take control of the game in the early third quarter.

As the Eagles worked their way down the field on a crucial third quarter drive, needing a touchdown to stay attached, things suddenly got chippy after DeVonta Smith got suplexed on the Eagles sideline by 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw. That drew a personal foul flag on Greenlaw and sparked a kerfuffle on the sideline, which saw the Eagles head of security Dom DiSandro to step in to separate players, which Greenlaw didn’t like. Greenlaw reached across as the two sides pointed at each other and ended up booping DiSandro in the nose.

After the NFL’s New York offices looked at the incident, they decided to eject both Greenlaw and DiSandro, which is obviously a much bigger loss for the Niners as Greenlaw is one of the NFL’s best linebackers and DiSandro does not actually play. You can rest assured DiSandro will be a Philly legend for this if the Eagles come back to win, and things only got chippier as the Eagles eventually finished that drive off with a touchdown on the tush push and saw more pushing and shoving as they closed the gap to 21-13.

Come hell or high water, Nicki Minaj will ensure her long-awaited studio album, Pink Friday 2, is on schedule. Nicki was forced to drop out of an upcoming show to ensure that the project hits streaming platforms this Friday, December 8. Tomorrow (December 4), the “Bahm Bahm” rapper was supposed to perform in Chicago, Illinois, as part of the 2023 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball concert series.

Unfortunately, the Chicago Barbz won’t see Nicki until the Pink Friday World Tour twirls through the Windy City. Today (December 3), Nicki broke the news that she can’t make the gig in a post on her official X (formerly Twitter) page. However, instead of leaving fans high and dry, she was able to tap Lil Wayne to fill in for her headlining slot.

“I have to tell you something. One last thing. I hope it doesn’t make you sad. I won’t be able to perform tomorrow in Chicago for Jingle Ball. I was so excited to see you guys. Please accept my sincerest apologies. I’ll make it up to you on the Chicago stops of my tour early next year,” wrote Nicki.

She added, “However, my beloved brother/boss stepped up for me so that I wouldn’t have to push my album back. His name is Lil Wayne, a.k.a. the GOAT. He will perform tomorrow at the Chicago show.”

She continued, “I am still performing at the Atlanta Jingle Ball on the 14th. And now I’ll also be performing at the Miami Jingle Ball on the 16th.”

Pink Friday 2 is out 12/8 via Republic. Find more information here.

If you’re still in the market for last-minute holiday gifts, Uproxx has you covered on the music front. Check out our shopping guides for the Drake, Taylor Swift, and Beyoncé fans in your life. But with the scorching comeback year she’s having, you might want to make room for Britney Spears-inspired items.

Spears’ memoir, The Woman In Me, would be a start. But for something a bit more family-friendly, The OP Games has something in their knapsack of goodies. Britney Spears is the latest celebrity to have their life’s work immortalized in the board game Monopoly. Here’s how to get your hands on the Britney Spears edition of Monopoly.

You can purchase your set directly from The Op Games’ website for $44.99. You will receive one limited-edition game board, six collectible tokens, 28 title deed cards, 16 Curious cards, 16 Fantasy cards, and all other gaming pieces packaged in the decorative Spears box. The board game has sold out on the company’s website, so if that happens, be sure to head over to Amazon or Walmart (where you can save a few bucks).

In the Britney Spears Edition Of Monopoly, players (8 years old and older) can buy, sell, and trade some of her hit songs like “Baby One More Time,” “Toxic,” and “Lucky” while reminiscing on her past signature fragrance launches (Curious and Fantasy). Find more information here.

House of the Dragon has thus far been much better received than the final season of Game of Thrones. This certainly wasn’t easy to pull off, given that plenty of viewers were not thrilled about several outcomes from the original series, not the least of which was the manner in which Daenerys went mad.

As it turns out, though, Targaryens have been making bad decisions for hundreds of years in George R.R. Martin’s Westeros, and some of the worst moves will soon be on display in HotD‘s second season. Granted, a few terminally awful decisions already went down in the first season. Those include King Viserys I’s decision to yield so much decision-making ability to the Hightowers (Otto being quite the mastermind and Queen Alicent being onboard with her dad’s plans). Additionally, Aemond Targaryen screwed the pooch when deciding to scare Luc and Arrax, who ended up being a tasty snack for loose cannon Vhagar.

Still, some decisions that were arguably more damning are yet to be seen onscreen. Those should happen in up to four seasons of HotD to finish up the events of GRRM’s Fire and Blood book. As well, HBO is prepping a full season of another GoT prequel called A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight. Yet let’s not get too far ahead of our current subject. As the second HotD outing grows closer to release, here’s what we know.

Plot

The Targaryen civil war, a.k.a., “The Dance of the Dragons,” shall soon be on fiery display in your living room as battle lines are drawn across Westeros on behalf of Teams Black and Green on Dragonstone and within King’s Landing, respectively. As the show’s recent teaser trailer confirms, yes, mistakes are made immediately following Viserys’ demise, and this leads to a bloody and flame-filled war that torches nearly half of Westeros’ population but also ends up tearing the House of Targaryen apart from the inside.

This is a Shakespearean theme, of course, but also, if the second season matches up to the applicable portions of the Fire and Blood book, this could be one of the most thrilling seasons of TV that we’ve seen in a long time. It also helps that HotD has already established itself as an event series, and the masses will tune in to watch the “Dance of the Dragons, which is actually a label that GRRM drags a little bit in the Fire and Blood book and is actually dreamed up by Westeros residents who observed the giant creatures flying above. We will also see much more of Westeros than the King’s Landing and Dragonstone locations that dominated the first season.

As well, we can look forward to many more dragons. Daemon was seen attempting to tame Vermithor in one of the most recent episodes, but Ceraxes could still be his ride as well. Rhaenyra will take flight on Syrax. Team Green and Aemond will still have Vhagar, who is the largest dragon, but Team Black will have more numerous dragons (including possibly Seasmoke), and we might also see wildcards, including Sheepstealer, Grey Ghost, and Cannibal.

Although the dragons shall be the main instrument of this war, make no mistake that this is a very human conflict. The two halves of the Targaryen crew will take up arms on behalf of Queen Rhaenyra, who was Viserys’ true chosen heir, and King Aegon II, who “accidentally” ended up on the throne after Queen Alicent “misheard” Viserys’ dying words. And you know, a lot of this sources back to the rivalry (unwittingly stoked by Viserys) between Alicent and Rhaenyra. The latter lost a son, and since the first episode is titled, “A Son for a Son,” the Hightowers had better watch their back.

Daemon will also take center stage in the battle because, let’s face it, he’s been dying to get back into the saddle, and the chaotic prince loves mayhem. In the book as well, Daemon ends up doing much of the early intimidation by fire while Rhaenyra is grieving the loss of both Luc and her father.

Cast

New characters for Season 2 shall be plentiful and include the following:

– Lord Gregan Stark (Tom Taylor), the Lord of Winterfell, who receives a visit from one of Rhaenyra’s surviving sons, Jaecerys, who spends the war’s earliest phases attempting to take a headcount of lords, houses, villages, and cities who support his mother’s claim to the Iron Throne. Although Fire and Blood doesn’t detail much about Stark’s meeting with Jaecerys, the series will likely go off book to provide details on Stark’s alliance.

– Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), a healer and unusually prolific wet nurse within Harrenhal, one of the first castles to surrender to Team Black in the book.

– Ser Simon Strong (Simon Russell Beale), who an uncle to Lord Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), he of the foot fetish, and the Castellan of Harrenhal.

– Ser Gwayne Hightower (Freddie Fox), who is Otto Hightower’s son, Alicent’s brother, and King Aegon II’s uncle.

– Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim), a Velaryon fleet sailor who served in the Stepstones campaign.

Additionally, HBO announced the following characters: Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty), Ser Rickard Throne (Vincent Regan), Ser Alfred Broome (Jamie Kenna), and Ulf (Tom Bennett).

Returning cast members? Oh yes: Emma D’Arcy (Rhaenyra), Matt Smith (Daemon Targaryen), Olivia Cooke (Alicent Hightower), Eve Best (Rhaenys Targaryen), Steve Toussaint (The Sea Snake), Fabien Frankel (Ser Cristan Cole), Ewan Mitchell (Aemond Targaryen), Tom Glynn-Carney (Aegon Targaryen II), Sonoya Mizuno (Mysaria/The White Worm), and Rhys Ifans (Otto Hightower).

Release Date

House of the Dragon‘s second season will return in early Summer 2024. Post-production surely continues at this time, given that plenty of special effects are needed to render all of those dragons and their fire. That’s less than two years from the series premiere, which is a miracle, especially considering how long those final Game of Thrones seasons took to arrive and all of the upheaval that hit Hollywood in 2023.

Trailer

HBO released this teaser trailer on December 2, and they did not hold back on showing off the dragons in battle.

HBO’s first ‘House of the Dragon’ season can currently be streamed on Max.

50 Cent (real name Curtis Jackson) has been extremely invested in his longtime foe Diddy’s legal battles. On Saturday, December 2, the rapper even hinted at developing a documentary about him. But his attention might have been best served elsewhere. Although he reportedly won’t face criminal charges in his mic-throwing incident, he’s still facing another case.

In court documents obtained by AllHipHop, Jackson and his attorneys reportedly want to have one lawsuit tossed out due to its delayed filing. Back in March, Corey Holland named Jackson in two lawsuits. The first filing, worth $1 billion, accused Jackson, Courtney Kemp, and the Starz Network of using his life’s story, even down to his nickname of Ghost, as the foundation for their Power series.

In the second case, this one for $300 million, Holland alleged Jackson intentionally inflicted emotional distress upon him. According to Holland, Jackson at one point even physically assaulted him, and Starz’s parent company, Lionsgate Entertainment, didn’t make any effort to stop it. Jackson hasn’t released a public statement regarding the matter. However, in the responding legal paperwork, Jackson’s attorneys agree that the timing of Holland’s filing should be examined further.

“The alleged conduct—Jackson ‘came to plaintiff home and neighborhood’—took place over a year before this Action was commenced,” the documents read. “Around late July or early August 2021, Plaintiff can’t remember exactly your honor, but defendant Jackson decided to come to the Plaintiff’s neighborhood, not once, but twice. This claim is thus untimely. The assault claim should, therefore, be dismissed for failure to state a claim because the First Amended Complaint is devoid of any allegations to support such a claim against Jackson.”

It’s unclear if the judge presiding over the case has made a formal decision on the matter. However, the allegation of assault is just one minor part of Holland’s $300 million lawsuit against Jackson.

Martin Scorsese, vindicated. This weekend was the fourth for The Marvels, the latest from, well, Marvel. But where is it in the box office Top 10? Nowhere.

Per Variety, the latest from the once indefatigable Marvel Cinematic Universe added merely another $2.6 million to its paltry sum. That means it’s bubbling under, at #11, behind Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving but ahead of the surrealist Nicolas Cage indie Dream Scenario. It’s not common for blockbusters to tumble after a great first weekend. But The Marvels never had a great opening weekend.

What’s more, while it’s common for MCU titles to gross $200 million, $300 million domestically, and even more internationally, The Marvels is currently sitting at a mere $80.7 million. (For perspective, Scorsese’s 3 1/2-hour Killers of the Flower Moon has grossed about $66.5 million so far.) The Marvels is already running on fumes, so it’s likely it won’t even cross the $100 million mark, which Marvel movies tend to speed by on opening weekend.

It’s a tough break for all involved, including its Oscar-winning star, Brie Larson, the talented Teyonah Parris, and charming Ms. Marvel star Iman Vellani. The same goes for director Nia DaCosta, whose previous film was the more relatively successful reboot of Candyman. DaCosta is already hard at work on another film, though, so she should be fine. Still, yowza.

(Via Variety)