Miss Magick Jesus is a thought-provoking and controversial concept that combines elements of religion, magic, and spirituality. While the term may seem unusual and contradictory at first, it represents a unique perspective on the intersection of different belief systems. The notion of Miss Magick Jesus brings together the divine energy and power associated with Jesus Christ, the central figure of Christianity, with the mystical and transformative aspects of magick, a practice often associated with witchcraft and the occult. By blending these seemingly opposing ideas, the concept challenges traditional religious and spiritual boundaries. At its essence, Miss Magick Jesus represents a desire to explore and experience the divine in unconventional and unconventional ways. It suggests that Jesus, as a figure of love, compassion, and transcendence, can be accessed and understood through non-traditional means, such as through magickal practices or mystical experiences.
Angie takes her support of Patty a step further by calling Blonde Bob and telling him to show up to the pageant. In the pageant dressing room, Blonde Bob finally shows up and P atty’s mom tells him, “I want you to show up for Patty like you would your own daughter.” Woo, go Patty’s mom!
Because the show can t decide whether it s a satire or a teen drama, when we see Magnolia descend into a deeper problem with substance abuse, we as viewers are unsure of how to respond. He then calls the quirk his OCD thing which actually makes me want to scream because it s yet another annoying and flippant use of OCD to describe being particular which is not what OCD is at all.
It suggests that Jesus, as a figure of love, compassion, and transcendence, can be accessed and understood through non-traditional means, such as through magickal practices or mystical experiences. Some proponents of Miss Magick Jesus argue that the concept encourages individuals to approach their spiritual journeys with an open mind and a willingness to explore different pathways to the divine. It invites believers to question and transcend the limitations of religious dogma and to seek personal connection and understanding with Jesus in ways that resonate with their own unique spiritual paths.
Netflix's 'Insatiable' Season 1, Episode 7 Recap: 'Miss Magic Jesus'
Since its controversial trailer dropped, “Insatiable,” a Netflix series that addresses mental health topics, has made headlines for accusations of fat-shaming and the promotion of eating disorders. Juliette Virzi, The Mighty’s associate mental health editor, reviews episode six of “Insatiable” with the mental health community in mind.
Editor's Note
The following is a review of the seventh episode of “Insatiable” and contains spoilers.
Content warning: This episode contains references to disordered eating that may be triggering to people with or in recovery from eating disorders.
Episode seven of “Insatiable” is all about father figures and their subsequent abandonment. Almost every one of the teenage characters goes through some sort of crisis related to their “daddy issues.” In this review, we will focus primarily on how this affects Patty (Debby Ryan) and Magnolia (Erinn Westbrook).
At the beginning of episode seven, we learn that Bob Barnard (who the show refers to as “Hot Bob”) is in possession of a video of Christian performing oral sex on Patty — on top of the church’s replica of Noah’s ark no less. Hot Bob threatens the other Bob (Patty’s pageant coach Bob Armstrong, who I will refer to as “Blonde Bob”) with the video because Patty hurt his daughter Magnolia by stealing two boys from her — Brick and Christian. If the sex tape were to be released, it could disqualify Patty from the Miss Magic Jesus pageant.
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Blonde Bob then confronts Patty and Christian in the high school parking lot about the video. Patty is both afraid of losing the love of Blonde Bob (the only father figure she has) and embarrassed that he saw her orgasm. Christian, on the other hand, smugly asks, “How’d we look?” Blonde Bob and Patty then decide to “get ahead” of the potential fallout by coming clean about it to the town pastor — who just so happens to be Christian’s dad!
Meanwhile, at the Barnard house, we see Magnolia has been drinking cough syrup because she’s upset about losing two guys to Patty. Hot Bob enters the room only to be greeted as “daddy” not by Magnolia his actual daughter, but by Dixie (Irene Choi), who has been living with them. Hot Bob enlists Dixie to monitor Magnolia’s alcohol consumption.
It’s worth mentioning that the t eens (particularly the teen girls) in this show have an overtly Freudian relationship with parental figures. And it’s not just Dixie’s creepy use of “daddy” when addressing Hot Bob that makes this point.
In the early episodes, Patty is infatuated by Blonde Bob. She doodles his name in her notebook and even shops for a new bra, hoping that he will take her virginity on their road trip to see Stella Rose (Beverly D’Angelo). In episode two, Magnolia gets drunk and strips down to her underwear in an attempt to seduce Blonde Bob. Even Brick, who feels emotionally abandoned by his father Blonde Bob, gets caught having an affair with Dixie’s mom Regina (Arden Myrin).
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Maybe it’s fair to make the argument that having a neglectful relationship with a parent could make someone subconsciously seek out romantic relationships with an older partner who could fill that void. I might even buy this if it was one of the storylines in the show — but that’s not what happens in “Insatiable.” Instead, we see this dynamic play out in virtually every teenager’s plotline. This isn’t satire, it’s creepy.
Speaking of unlikely, after Patty comes clean to the pastor about the sex tape and is granted permission to compete, she and Blonde Bob learn Stella Rose will be a judge in the Miss Magic Jesus pageant — an obvious conflict of interest because Stella Rose hates Blonde Bob and Patty. We learn Stella Rose added Bible trivia to the competition — something Patty knows nothing about. In an effort to smooth out their differences, Blonde Bob takes Stella Rose out to lunch and learns Stella Rose is Roxy’s mom. Roxy is 19 years old and Blonde Bob’s affair with Stella Rose was 20 years ago. Is Blonde Bob Roxy’s dad? Did he and Stella Rose create the “perfect pageant girl”? The daddy issue plot thickens.
Blonde Bob sets out to figure out if Roxy is his daughter. He finds her at the gym and begins talking to her. She regards him rudely at first but then gets angry because his distraction causes her to go 15 seconds over her 30-minute workout. Blonde Bob realizes it’s because she, like him, would have to end at 40 minutes now, so she could end the workout on a “zero minute” — because he does the same thing. Is this shared quirk proof that she’s his daughter? He then calls the quirk his “OCD thing” which actually makes me want to scream because it’s yet another annoying and flippant use of OCD to describe being particular — which is not what OCD is at all. Blonde Bob then steals Roxy’s towel because there is a strand of her hair on it. He decides to DNA test it to see if he is Roxy’s father. The Roxy-Blonde Bob daddy question deeply impacts Patty, but more on that later.
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Hot Bob becomes increasingly concerned about Magnolia’s drinking, not because of her well-being, but because it could affect her chances of winning the Miss Magic Jesus pageant. He expresses his concern telling her, “I’m worried about my winner.” Winner, not daughter. Hot Bob motivates Magnolia to compete by reminding her she has the opportunity to beat Patty. She responds by snorting drugs to “perk up” for the pageant.
Hot Bob’s lack of concern for his daughter’s health is another example of emotional abandonment by a father figure. Though the Barnard family looks perfect on the outside, the reality is Magnolia’s mother is absent and Hot Bob pushes his daughter to compete in pageants when she doesn’t want to. We see this pressure affect Magnolia’s mental health as we watch her become increasingly dependent on substances — both drugs and alcohol.
While many teen dramas take the route of being too “after-school special-ish” when it comes to teen use of alcohol and drugs, “Insatiable” makes light of it so much that it doesn’t seem significant at all. Because the show can’t decide whether it’s a satire or a teen drama, when we see Magnolia descend into a deeper problem with substance abuse, we as viewers are unsure of how to respond. Are we expected to laugh and ignore the seriousness of Magnolia becoming increasingly dependent on substances? This is especially problematic in light of the fact that approximately 5,000 people under the age of 21 die each year as a result of underage drinking.
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After talking to the pastor about Patty, Patty’s mom, Angie, talks to her about the sex tape and apologizes that she didn’t provide father figures in her life. This leads Patty to open up about feeling abandoned by Blonde Bob, who didn’t show up to help her get ready for the Miss Magic Jesus pageant. Patty tells Angie she is planning to cheat on the Bible quiz portion of the pageant by having Christian steal the answers. Her mom encourages her to not cheat and offers to help her study. Finally! A positive parenting moment!
Angie takes her support of Patty a step further by calling Blonde Bob and telling him to show up to the pageant. In the pageant dressing room, Blonde Bob finally shows up and P atty’s mom tells him, “I want you to show up for Patty like you would your own daughter.” Woo, go Patty’s mom!
Magnolia wins the Bible quiz portion because, as we know, her dad stole the Bible quiz answers from Stella Rose for her . This upsets Patty, but she tries to redeem herself in the other parts of the pageant — specifically the question portion. The question the contestants are asked — I kid you not — is “How is Jesus inside of you?” (See the “Stray Observations and Future Questions” section below to read more about the way the show sexualizes religion in a tasteless way.)
Patty answers the question with an honest and heartfelt meditation on whether or not she truly believes. She says she doesn’t know if Jesus is in her at all, but if he can be her father figure, she wants in. “So if Jesus, or God or the Holy Spirit can be a father that never abandons me, I’m all in,” she says.
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Despite this honest moment, Magnolia ends up winning Miss Magic Jesus and Patty wins first runner-up. Patty believes Magnolia won because she’s always had a father’s support. Patty gets angry at Blonde Bob for not being there for her and blames him for her loss. In the middle of voicing her concerns, Blonde Bob interrupts by answering a phone call that is undoubtedly the DNA results. Patty yells “I quit!” and storms off. At home she reflects and believes that her mother is right, you can’t trust any man.
As she’s reflecting on this, Christian knocks on her window and says his parents want to send him to military school so he’s skipping town. Patty is upset by the prospect of yet another man leaving her but he says he wants her to come with him to Hollywood. “Patty, I promise if you come with me, I will never ever leave you,” he says. What a load of dirt, ugh.
Blonde Bob discovers from the DNA results that he is not Roxy’s father — Hot Bob is! Why they would disclose the true DNA of the father to an unrelated party I have no idea, but hey, nothing in this show really makes that much sense. Turns out Stella Rose wanted to get back at Blonde Bob for breaking her heart so she slept with Hot Bob, the guy Blonde Bob has hated since high school. Hot Bob offers to pay off Blonde Bob for his silence. Blonde Bob refuses and says he can’t be bought. Hot Bob admits Magnolia cheated on the Bible quiz and gives Blonde Bob evidence that would disqualify Magnolia making Patty the new winner of Miss Magic Jesus.
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The camera pans to Magnolia, who overhears the conversation between the Bobs. Later, Hot Bob finds Magnolia passed out on her bed with a bottle of alcohol next to her.
Blonde Bob then goes over to Patty’s house to announce that she is the winner of Miss Magic Jesus only to find that she is gone — which we know means she took off with Christian. Patty left two letters: one for her mom and one for Blonde Bob.
In the final scene, we see Patty and Christian leaving Georgia. Blonde Bob tries to call Patty, but she ignores the call.
However, it is important to note that Miss Magick Jesus is not universally accepted or embraced within traditional religious communities. It can be seen as an alternative or even a challenge to established religious beliefs and practices. As a result, it is often met with skepticism and criticism from more conservative religious groups who view it as heretical or blasphemous. While the concept of Miss Magick Jesus may be controversial, its existence prompts important discussions about the nature of spirituality, religious institutions, and personal beliefs. It encourages individuals to question and challenge preconceived notions about how we connect with the divine and what it means to have a relationship with the sacred. In conclusion, Miss Magick Jesus represents a unique and thought-provoking concept that challenges traditional religious boundaries and encourages individuals to explore the divine in unconventional ways. While it is met with controversy and resistance, it opens valuable discussions about spirituality, personal beliefs, and the nature of religious institutions. Whether one embraces or rejects the concept, it cannot be denied that it prompts important conversations about the intersection of religion, magic, and spirituality..
Reviews for "Decoding the Symbolism of Miss Magick Jesus"
1. Name: John Smith
Rating: 1/5
Review: "I found 'Miss Magick Jesus' to be incredibly confusing and disjointed. The plot was all over the place, and I couldn't make sense of what was happening. The characters were also poorly developed, and I couldn't connect with any of them. Additionally, the writing style was difficult to follow, with long, convoluted sentences that made it hard to stay engaged. Overall, I was very disappointed with this book and would not recommend it."
2. Name: Sarah Thompson
Rating: 2/5
Review: "I had high hopes for 'Miss Magick Jesus' as the concept seemed intriguing, but unfortunately, it fell flat for me. The pacing was incredibly slow, and nothing much seemed to happen for the majority of the book. The dialogue between characters also felt forced and unnatural, making it hard to believe in their interactions. The writing itself was decent, but the lack of a compelling story or engaging characters left me feeling bored and uninterested. I wouldn't classify it as a complete failure, but it was certainly not my cup of tea."
3. Name: David Johnson
Rating: 2/5
Review: "While 'Miss Magick Jesus' had some interesting ideas, I found it difficult to get into. The narrative was scattered, jumping between various perspectives and timelines without much coherence. This made it hard to form a connection with the story or fully understand what was happening. The book also lacked a clear central theme or message, leaving me feeling confused and unsatisfied. Overall, I felt that the execution of the book didn't live up to its potential, and I was left disappointed."