moumantai.

I want be be as respectful as possible and I know I can’t change your mind but in defense of Gina she was all in on EJ he’s the one who told her time and time again he would make time for her but simply didn’t. She gave him an out in ep 2 that if the relationship was too much for him to handle they could cool it and HE said he could handle it all and he couldn’t live up to that. Gina knew what she wanted and wasn’t getting it from him. Ricky showed her that he was there all summer no obligation and she saw that in him and realized that’s what she wanted.

You're being respectful -- no worries!

Here is what I will say. If you want to argue that Gina was initially all in on EJ, I can agree with that. What I can't get behind is the narrative that EJ wasn't giving his all.

Yes, maybe she provided an out -- but what was he going to do? He was falling for this great girl and wanted to believe he could handle things. He was a kid being tossed an entire play that was going to be shown on national TV which he had to both direct and act in and do it all alone. Despite all that, he STILL tried his best to be there for Gina any moment he could. Accusing him of making her a "maybe" wasn't fair — just say you like someone else and let it be done. (Let's also remember camp was 2 weeks? She couldn't wait 2 weeks to be his #1 priority?)

While Ricky showed up for Gina during camp -- he wasn't always there for her. She cried over him many times and he chose Nini over her a few times as well. They were also the leads together so they had the opportunity to reherse, together. EJ was tackling an entirely different beast. (Also, AGAIN, let's remember this turn around for Ricky being there for Gina was during a 2 WEEK camp, while EJ and Gina spent all of season 2 — which was spread out over months — connecting and building something.)

At the end of the day, my problem lies with the character decimation of EJ above all else. It is so wild I literally have to ask myself why they gave him growth and didn't just continue making him an antagonist because his arc is really pathetic. He changed, he grew, he evolved, he apologized, he showed up, he did his best, and he still lost 2 girls to the same kid, walked away with nothing, still has a terrible relationship with his father, had no one really have his back and then got demoted to recurring character. That's, like, a writing issue to its core for me.

Gina didn't want to be dating someone going to college. She also has had feelings for Ricky since the beginning. Those were the reasons Portwell broke up and to narratively frame it in a way that makes EJ the bad guy truly does not make sense. I can't even wrap my head around someone not seeing it that way, that's how crazy it is to me!