(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
The Walking Dead
Siddiq flashes back to Alpha. He wakes and sees Cheryl, lying in bed, shaking. He gives her some water and tucks the covers more tightly around her. He goes out to get more water, and tends to more sick people. The infirmary is full. A song plays – We Don’t Know Why. He drifts back to sleep.
Siddiq opens his eyes. A hand comes out from the couch, and covers his mouth.
Daryl goes to the jail cell, and tells Lydia, get out. Carol puts her captured Whisperer in the cell. Outside, Carol asks if Lydia knows him. Lydia says, he’s one of the guardians. Carol asks if he would know where her mother’s horde is, and Lydia says, probably. Gabriel tells Carol that she put them at risk, but she says they have to find the horde before it’s at the gate. He says, so she put them at risk? Daryl says, it doesn’t matter. They have to find them. Gabriel says he’s sticking around, and Siddiq is going to treat the guy’s wound first. Carol says he can bleed until he answers some questions, but Gabriel thinks the council would agree with him. Carol tells Lydia to stay with her, and brings her to the house. Carol thanks Daryl for backing her up. He says they aren’t going to give up easy.
Daryl takes his shirt off, making women everywhere happy, and whistles for Dog. Never mind shirtless Daryl, I have anxiety every time Dog is on the screen. We see whip marks on Daryl’s back. He sits on the couch, and pets Dog. My anxiety heightens. He looks at the double-capper acorn Carol gave him.
Carol gives Lydia back her pokey stick, saying it’s still hers. She hands Lydia some salve for her bruises, and Lydia says she’s had worse. Carol asks what else Lydia knows about the prisoner, and Lydia says he’s one of the ones who watch the horde. She tells Carol that they were given no choice. She knows Carol hates them, but Lydia knows them too. Carol says a line was drawn, and Lydia has to choose which side she’s on. Lydia says her mom twists people to get them to do what she wants; to make them think it’s what they want. People obey because they think they have no other choice, but if they let him see what they have there, that a place like this can survive, an idea like that is dangerous. It would spread, and there’s nothing her mom could do to stop it.
Siddiq and Dante go into the Whisperer’s cell. Dante tells him, don’t try anything. They check him out, and Siddiq says his wound needs stitches. The guy says he knows them, and Siddiq freezes a little. Gabriel says Dante can take it from there, and Dante tells Siddiq, outside. Now. Siddiq leaves.
Siddiq pauses at the top of the stairs. He flashes back to Alpha cutting someone’s head off.
Gamma watches Aaron at the bridge. He eats a piece of bread, and she says he has bread every day. he says, made fresh this morning. He has some extra, but she says, no. She asks how people make so much, and he says, flour. She says, every day? A lot of people must be doing that. He says, as many as needed. She sees a child’s drawing sticking out of his backpack, and he says his daughter made it. She says, he has children, and he says, just one. That’s about all he can handle. She says, there are more? and he tells her, there are. He asks if she has children, but she says, children hold you back. They make you weak. He asks if she has a family, a brother or sister, but she says she’s an only child.
Carol goes to the Whisperer’s cell, and sets down a tray covered with a towel. We all assume it must be surgical instruments. Gabriel and Dante watch as she sits. She says, let’s get started, and uncovers the tray. It has bread and some pots of jam on it. She asks, what’s it going to be? Honey or jam? Strawberry or apple? He leans forward, and says, all of it. She says, not a problem; they have plenty there. She slathers it on the bread, and says for lunch she was thinking salted fish. She likes to wrap it up in fresh lettuce. He asks what she wants, and she says, right now, they’re just going to talk. He says, pass, and she says, okay. She gives him the bread, and says, then eat. He takes a small bite, then devours it. She says, good? and he spits it at her, saying, no.
Siddiq feels Rosita’s forehead. She asks if he’s okay, and he says, yeah. Is she okay? She says, yeah; nice and pasty. He says if it weren’t for Gabriel, he’d be making his move. She says don’t let that stop him. There isn’t a jealous bone in Gabriel’s body. He tells her, scoot over, and gets in the bed next to her, putting his arm around her. She says she’s been thinking about Eugene, and he laughs. He says, sorry. Her other other man. She says they set a date to talk, and she missed it. She doesn’t want Eugene to think she was ditching him. Siddiq says, he’ll be fine. He bounces back; not everybody does. He tells her that he checked out Eugene’s baby tips, and his poop chart is on point. He’s a bonafide sh*tologist. He says, they have a kid together, and Rosita says, yes; they do. She never thought she’d be a mommy in this world. He says he tries not to think about it. It freaks him out. He wants to do right; be a good dad. She says it freaks her out that he’s a dad. Coco is lucky to have him. They both are. She coughs, and he gives her some water. She asks again if he’s okay, and he says, yeah. He has a lot of patients to see, and miles to go before he sleeps. He tucks her in, and kisses her forehead.
Standing over the Whisperer, Carol asks, where’s the horde? She presses her fingers into his wound, and he says she has animal in her. If she was out there, he would take her like a bitch in heat. Daryl and Gabriel watch as she puts on a ring, and punches the Whisperer in the face, again and again. Daryl says, that’s enough, and the Whisperer says, they’re all weak. Daryl takes out a knife like the one Paul Hogan carried in Crocodile Dundee. (What happened to him anyway? And what about Pauly Shore?) Daryl says he’ll start with the fingers first; then both of his ears. After that, he’ll take all the guy’s teeth. The Whisperer says they lie to themselves, and to each other. They fight for what? Sandwiches. Daryl pins his hand down, and the Whisperer says, they ignore the truth when it’s staring them in the face. He’ll never betray Alpha. She rescued him. She protects him, and loves him. She loves them all. She sacrificed her own daughter for them. Carol says, she killed Lydia? and he says, she did. He’s willing to give his life for her. Carol and Daryl look at each other.
Outside, Daryl tells Carol, stop. She’s not getting Lydia mixed up in this mess. Carol says the guy swallowed every ounce of Alpha’s bullsh*t. Once he gets that she’s not his great leader, he’ll be itching to talk. Daryl says, Lydia has been through enough, but Carol says, let Lydia make up her own mind. That’s the only way they’ll know it.
Siddiq checks Cheryl’s temperature, and she says, not good? He says, better than last time, and she asks him if he knows how she can tell if a man is lying – his lips are moving. He says she’ll get through this. He’ll make sure of it. She tells him, sit down, and he does. She says he looks worse than she does. Rest. He says he can’t, and she says, for her. She’s made her peace, but the others need him to have his head on straight. He closes his eyes.
Aaron tells Gamma, go ahead, and hands her the drawing. She looks at it, and he says his daughter likes to stay out with her friends. What about her? Gamma says, she’d find every excuse to stay out. As kids, they used to take the long way home, around the lake. He says, brother or sister? He apologizes, saying, he had a brother, a couple of years younger. He loved cars, but he loved people more. They loved him too. He still thinks about his brother every day. He knows what it’s like to lose someone you love. It helps to talk about it. What she’s doing, the questions, digging for intel; he supposes he should do the same, but what’s the point? Maybe they could just talk about nothing worth reporting. He can go on about his brother, or maybe him. She walks quickly away, and back into the forest.
In the cell, the Whisperer chants in his head – we walk in darkness; we are free. Dante and Siddiq come in, and Siddiq says, he’s burning up. Dante asks, what’s the problem? and the Whisperer says, how the hell should he know? Just make it stop. Dante says, there’s no sign of infection. It doesn’t make sense. The Whisperer suddenly has a seizure, and dies, just as Carol is coming in with Lydia. Daryl is like, no, and they go back out. Siddiq looks at something in a jar, and asks if Dante gave this to him. Dante says, for pain and inflammation, and Siddiq says, it killed him. Dante says, how? It’s yarrow. Siddiq says, it’s hemlock (which does look frighteningly the same); he didn’t know though… Dante looks at Siddiq, who says, what? Dante says he never thought hemlock would be in the bag because Siddiq packed it.
In the woods, Gamma takes an unmasked breather, then puts her mask back on. A zombie toddles toward her, and lunges at her. She pushes it away, but it won’t quit, so she cracks its head against a tree, where it gets a branch through the brain. Alpha walks up, and says it was a guardian for the horde. Alpha stands in front of Gamma, and says, the man with the metal arm… Gamma says, Aaron. He has a daughter. Alpha asks, is that all she learned? Did she ask after her sister’s child? Gamma says, there’s nothing to ask. Alpha says, he’s one of them, and will slaughter their kind. He’ll use her sister against her. She tells Gamma to remove her mask. Gamma does as she’s asked, and rolls up her sleeve, holding her arm out, palm up. Alpha whips Gamma’s arm, and says, she’s always being tested. She must remain strong. Alpha believes in her. Gamma rolls her sleeve back down, and Alpha says, tell her, this Aaron; he tempts her. He’s a liar. Do not be seduced. Gamma nods.
Gabriel tells Daryl, if the people find out, they’ll panic. If Alpha finds out… Daryl says, she won’t. He’ll clean up the mess. Gabriel says he’ll help, but Daryl says it’s not his mess to clean up.
Carol asks if Lydia still wants to help, and Lydia says she does.
Siddiq goes to Cheryl’s room, but she’s not there. He goes outside, and sees Dante burying a body, while Cheryl’s body lies wrapped in her quilt. Dante says he was going to find Siddiq, but… Siddiq walks through the house, and flashes back to being with the Whisperers. He starts to get dizzy, and remembers Enid backing away, holding a knife. He runs outside, and jumps into the water. He remembers Alpha smiling, and raising something. He sees a pool of blood. Alpha looks at him, and he cries out. He’s floating face down, and someone else jumps in as he’s sinking. It’s Rosita, who brings him back to the surface. She says she heard what happened. He says he doesn’t want to talk about it. He tells her to go home; she should be in bed. She says, no, and he says he has nothing to say. The Whisperer died because of him… She says she wants the real sh*t; what’s been eating him up for weeks. He says, it’s like he’s still there all the time. He never left. It’s just pieces jumbled together like a puzzle; screams, blood. He can’t stop it, and people are dying. Cheryl… Rosita says, Cheryl was sick, and he was doing everything he could. He’s not alone. He says why it bothers him so much is Enid. She’s there, and he thinks about how much he misses her. He gets to remember how he failed her. Rosita says, no. it’s not his fault. This is what that skin bitch did. It isn’t on him. He says, she wasn’t there. Enid, the people who he loved, died in front of him. Now he gets to watch it over and over, and he did nothing. He didn’t move; he didn’t help. He just watched. Because of him more people… He says, he’s not smart enough. Rosita tells Siddiq that he has to pull through. He has to fight it; for Coco, her, and everyone else who loves him. He can and he will, because he’s not alone, and he’s the smartest person she knows – except for her, of course. He laughs, and says he still can’t figure out why she’s sick. The patients didn’t live together or work together. They don’t even eat the same things. There isn’t a common denominator. Not one he can… He looks at the water, and she says, what? He tells her, go home.
Siddiq looks at the water pump system; drinkable and undrinkable. He pushes a lever down, then back up. He swipes everything off of a nearby table, and destroys it.
It’s nighttime, and Aaron goes to the bridge. Gamma holds out the drawing, and he says it’s hers now. She says she doesn’t want anything from him. Take it or she’ll burn it. He takes it, and she grabs him, putting him in a headlock. She says she has questions, and she wants answers. Got it? He tells her, don’t do this. It’s not her. She says he has no idea who she is. How many people do they have? Carol comes out, bow drawn, and says, let him go. Lydia comes out behind her, and Gamma is like, whaaat? She says, no! and backs away, then runs. Carol says Lydia’s mother told people she’d killed Lydia. Lydia says, Carol told her that she wanted her help. Carol says she did, and Lydia says, Carol used her. Carol says, sorry, and Lydia says Carol is just like her, meaning Alpha. Aaron shakes his head, and Lydia says they wanted her to choose sides. She chooses her own. Aaron says Lydia can’t go; it’s too dangerous. Lydia tells him that he can’t stop her. Carol moves to Lydia, who punches Carol and runs. Aaron tells Carol, wait. They might be watching.
Lydia goes through the woods.
Gamma, sans mask, sits in the woods, crying.
Dante knocks at Siddiq’s door. He says he knows it’s late… Siddiq says, leave him alone, but Dante says he just wants to chat for a second. He’ll go, but not before saying he’s sorry. With Eugene gone, he hasn’t pulled his weight. Siddiq tells him, stop. It’s his fault, not Dante’s. Dante knows Siddiq wants to blame himself. For a second, it makes everything make sense, but he’s sorry. That’s not how this works. This place is special; he got that right away. It works because it’s a village. It takes everyone to grow, fight, raise rug rats, and heal people. Everyone carries equal weight, so when something happens, it’s all their fault; every one of them. Siddiq is suffering, and he’s there to help. Siddiq says Dante doesn’t know him, and turns to the window, but Dante says, sure he does. Siddiq is his friend. It’s going to be okay. He pats Siddiq’s shoulder, and Siddiq says, yeah. Siddiq flashes back to Alpha telling him, look, as she chops heads off. He sees pools of blood, and calls out to Enid. A Whisperer holds him from behind, forcing his eyes open. He screams, and the Whisperer’s face turns into the face of Dante’s reflection in the window. He tries to go past Dante, but Dante tackles him. They fight, but Dante gets Siddiq in a headlock. Dante says he didn’t want to; not like this. Siddiq struggles, but Dante tightens his arm against Siddiq’s throat. Siddiq goes limp, and falls to the ground.
Now we all go, whaaat?
Next time – the mid-season finale – Ezekiel says, none of it matters, knowing sets you free, accept the future; Daryl asks if Carol is trusting a Whisperer now; Carol says she’s doing nothing; Judith and Michonne capture a stranger; and there’s a battle in the woods.
🔊 On Talking Dead, Chandler Riggs said he was also surprised that Dante had been a Whisperer. Like me, he thought Dante was off, but not that off. I just figured he was some kind of creeper. Also, the cellblock Whisperer didn’t really spit at Carol. Michael Cudlitz, who directed the episode, threw a handful of food at her face. I thought it seemed like an awful lot of food for a spit.
💀 Who Thought This Up…?
I’m still resenting this whole mid-season finale business.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
Not preempted after all.
General Hospital
Finn tells Hayden that he guesses they’ve earned the right to be honest with one another. Hayden says co-parenting is the number one priority, but she can’t guarantee the only way she’ll see him is as Violet’s father. Anna comes in, calling out that she’s home. She walks into the living room, and sees Finn and Hayden (wearing just Finn’s shirt) sitting on the couch. Finn gets up, and says, welcome home. Anna says, before anyone tells her it’s not the way it looks, she’s had a long night. Finn says he told Anna that Hayden was in town, and Anna says, but she didn’t expect to find Hayden in her house. Her nerves are frayed.
Elizabeth brings Cameron to Sonny’s place. Sonny says he’s glad she brought Cameron by. She says she has to run to the hospital, but she’ll be back to pick him up. Sonny says, it won’t take long, and she leaves. Sonny says Cameron is growing up. He was Cameron’s age when he left home. He tells Cameron, it’s time they had a talk, man to man.
At Alexis’s house, TJ and Neil are putting on rubber gloves. TJ says, Molly went through the house once to check the cleaning supplies, and asks what they’re looking for. Neil says foreign substances. Something innocuous. They might not seem toxic, but acting together, some elements can be dangerous. He tells TJ, grab whatever he’s not sure about.
Alexis lies in a hospital bed. Julian comes in, and starts to leave, but Alexis tells him not to. She could use the distraction. He says he shouldn’t be there; he’s not good company. She asks when that’s stopped him before. What’s wrong now? He says it’s not a matter of life and death, but she says let her be the judge of that. Julian thinks it’s time to do something about Olivia’s rats.
Kim sees Monica at the hospital, and says she was hoping to see her. She came to say her goodbyes, but the nurses aren’t speaking to her. They’re very loyal to Elizabeth. Monica says it’s an impossible situation, but she’s glad Kim caught her before she and Drew move. She wishes they could find a way to stay. Kim say she’s sorry, but Monica says she does understand. Port Charles has too many memories for her, and not enough for Drew. Monica agrees that what they’re doing is a better plan. Just promise after all they’ve gone through, that they have happy lives.
Franco comes out on the pier, and Jason asks if he can help with something, like he works there. Franco says he wants to be by the water. He was a SEAL. Did Jason know that he was? Jason says he noticed the uniform at the hearing. Franco says his lawyer suggested it for optics. It reminded people of his heroic actions. Jason says, people don’t get medals for nothing. Franco says, he and Franco knew each other when they were kids. They lived in the same house. The only reason he grew up to be a hero is because Franco already was one.
Scotty asks Elizabeth if she’s heard anything from Franco. She says she hasn’t heard anything since he said he was leaving with Kim. Scotty says he thought told he could change what’s left of Franco’s mind. She asks what he said, and he says he told Franco about his childhood; Andy and Bobby, Jim and the stairway. She says Franco didn’t want anyone else to know about that, and he says he violated Franco’s trust, but he’s fighting for Franco’s life. If Franco is mad, he can tell Scotty himself.
Franco says, according to Scotty, Jim is dead. Franco felt like he got his old brother back – that would be him. Jason says he never understood the friendship between Franco and Drew, but he guesses that explains it. Franco says, now he has that life, and it belongs to the guy who saved him. He should step up like Franco did, and give it back.
Alexis says she’ll definitely have to do something about Olivia and her rats. Is Olivia commanding them with music, or instructing them telepathically? Julian says they both know Olivia isn’t happy with him. Alexis says Julian kept her deposit. He says, legally. Someone please enlighten me on how that’s possible when he backed out of the deal. Even if the sale had been contingent on him getting the bar in Manhattan, he’d still have to give it back. It’s making me nuts. He says she tried taking him down, starting with the flyers. Alexis says he doesn’t know that was Olivia. Doesn’t he think it’s going too far to believe she sent an army of rodents against him? He says the alley behind Charlie’s is filled with dead rats. She says he should be more concerned about the proximity of the restaurant. He says he uses a humane exterminator, the city doesn’t use poison, and his neighbors don’t have the same issue. The rats have been put there deliberately. Alexis says, absolutely. Olivia is littering his alley with dead vermin. It sounds more like a prank. Why doesn’t he just refund the money? She can’t believe they’re even having this conversation. Julian says, Olivia may be a Quartermaine, but deep down, she’s a street fighter.
Finn asks Anna, what happened? She said it had been a long night. Anna says, it doesn’t appear to be over yet. Finn says, Hayden is there because… Violet comes out, and Anna asks what her name is. She says, Violet Barnes, and asks if Anna is a friend of her daddy’s. Finn picks her up, and says, yes; a very good friend. She’s traveled a long way to see him, and he’s happy to see her. Anna says she’s happy to see him too. She asks Violet if this handsome man is her father. Did she decide to keep him? Hayden says, Violet is keeping her daddy, but no one is keeping anyone else. Anna says, Violet is a lucky little girl. Hayden welcomes Anna home, and takes Violet upstairs. Finn says, what happened was… and Anna says, no, not yet.
Sonny takes his jacket off, and sits in the living room with Cameron. He asks how Cameron’s hands are, and Cameron says, feeling better. Sonny asks if he iced them, and Cameron nods. He thanks Sonny for allowing him to use the gym. Sonny says, life is tough. If Cameron wants to punch something, punch the bag. Did it help? Cameron says, yeah. He thinks it did. Sonny says, it’s the kind of anger that tears you up. Cameron has every right to be angry. Oscar died, and he had that stuff with Franco. Cameron says, it’s hard, and Sonny says, we don’t get to choose what life throws at us, we can only choose how we react. Those are the decisions that define you. Does he want to be the guy who gets his friend drunk at a school party?
Neil and TJ load up a couple of boxes with bottles and boxes of household products. TJ asks what Neil thinks, and Neil says they collected enough to rule things out. TJ says he’ll drop them off at the lab. Maybe they can find out what’s making Alexis sick. Neil says, here’s hoping. TJ hopes the answer is there waiting. Neil asks if there’s something on TJ’s mind. It seems extra urgent. Neil adds he’s professionally trained to see changes in behavior. Does TJ want to talk? TJ asks if it will stay between them, even though he’s not Neil’s patient. Neil says, honor among colleagues. TJ says he’s come to a decision about him and Molly. He wants to propose. Neil says, great, congratulations, and shakes TJ’s hand. TJ says he was planning on doing it old school, and asking for Alexis’s blessing. Neil says, and if they don’t find out what the problem is, he won’t have the chance. TJ wonders if it’s a terrible thing to be thinking about, but Neil says maybe he should ask now. As bad as things are, good news is always good medicine.
Kim wants Monica to know that she’ll never forget what Monica and the Quartermaines did for Oscar. Raising him as one of the family enabled him to be something larger than himself. Monica says, the both of them. She hopes Kim felt embraced as well. Kim says, how could she not? Monica says, the Quartermaines aren’t exactly big when it comes to affection, and Kim says, before Oscar was embraced by the Quartermaines, he never thought of leaving a legacy. Now, there are going to be kids climbing Kilimanjaro because of the bequest he left them.It was important for him to be able to do that before the end. It means the world to her. So many will carry on his memory. Monica says, it’s a wonderful gift; family. It was the greatest gift Kim could give her. Kim says it was her pleasure – for as long as it lasted. Monica says, Oscar will not be forgotten. Kim tells Monica that it’s a horrible club they belong to; mothers who have survived their children. Monica says they have to endure for those still there. They have to do for them as well. Kim thinks that’s one reason she fought so hard for Drew. She didn’t want Monica to lose another child. I call BS on that one.
Scotty tells Elizabeth, Franco is gone, and has Drew’s memories. He should know the guy whose life he’s living. So that’s what he did. She asks how Franco reacted, and Scotty says he wasn’t unmoved, but he doesn’t think Franco was swayed. Elizabeth says, they’ve literally tried everything, and he says, short of kidnapping him, and forcing him to go through the procedure. Don’t think he didn’t think that through, but kidnapping, false imprisonment, and assault; none of them is good. They did fight for Franco. She says, with everything they had, and he says, yet here they are. It’s cold comfort.
Finn asks Anna how the trip was. Hayden comes back down with Violet, and tells them goodbye, saying it’s nice to see Anna again. Finn tells Violet that he’ll see her soon, and hugs her. They leave, and Finn says he doesn’t want Anna to think something happened when it didn’t. Anna thinks she knows him well enough to know that if he was going to betray her, it wouldn’t be in their bed. It surprised her though. Why didn’t he tell her? He says it’s all he’s wanted to do since he found out. He wanted to make sure she wasn’t blindsided. She asks when he found out, and he says, a few days ago. Violet was sick, and Hayden brought her to the hospital. He found out that she had her daughter was the same age as their child would have been, and she came clean. He thought it should be a face-to-face conversation. She says what if she hadn’t come back? and he says he doesn’t know. He didn’t expect her to be gone this long. He’s sure she didn’t either. She says, no; she didn’t. Finn says they can talk on the phone, but it’s not the same as sharing their lives. She nods in agreement.
Kim tells Monica that she knows she’ll never get Oscar back, or the Drew who helped make him, but if Monica had the chance to get back the person she loved most and lost, she’d take it, right? Monica says, of course (🍷). Kim promises to do everything to persuade Drew to stay in touch, and Monica says Kim doesn’t know who much that means to her. She can make it easier. Drew doesn’t have to come back. She can come to them. Just tell her where they landed, and she’ll come to see them. Kim says, it’s a deal.
Alexis tells Julian, he was right the first time. It’s not about life and death. Julian says, unless you’re a rat or a small business owner. Alexis says she’ll have someone alert Olivia about his concerns. In the meantime, he should call his exterminator, pronto. He says he shouldn’t have bothered her; sorry. She says, it’s not about rats. His best laid plans with Kim are dissolving, he doesn’t know what’s going on with Lucas, since it keeps changing, and his daughter isn’t speaking to him. He has plenty to be upset about without using rats as an excuse. Julian says the last thing he needs is her making fun of his stupid problems. She says, they’re not stupid. The next time an army of beavers chews up the bar, they’ll know Olivia is commanding them. Julian says, if that happens, he’ll take pictures. He tells her to focus on getting better, and she says she’ll get right on it.
Jason says, according to the court, Franco can make his own decisions. He can legally live this life with these memories. Franco says, so his advice is to do nothing? Jason says it’s not nothing. Whatever he chooses, someone he cares about loses. Franco looks at the water, and says, the thing about water is, it’s dangerous. The temperature plummets; you get disoriented in the dark. You can’t beat water. You have to join it; surrender to it. That’s been his training. He knows how far he can swim with gear on, and how deep he can go before he passes out. He knows how to manage hypothermia. He and water have an agreement. He obeys when he’s surrounded by water, and in return, it releases him when it’s done with him. It allows him to go to the surface with light and air; to go on to another day. Water was always in on the agreement. It’s allowed him to live his life, but that was before.
Neil goes to Alexis’s room, and she says, any luck ransacking her home and office? Neil doesn’t think so. He and TJ went through her cleaning, laundry, and lawn supplies. She says, she has cleaning, laundry, and lawn supplies? He says he thought they might find the cause of her illness, and took everything to the lab, but it doesn’t look promising. She says, just great, and he says, it’s understandable for her to be scared. She says she doesn’t want to be. She wants to find out what happened.
Julian sees Kim near the hospital elevators, and she jets in the other direction. She doesn’t want to talk to him. He asks her to wait. He doesn’t want to leave things like this.
Cameron tells Sonny that he’s sorry about what happened with Josslyn. He shouldn’t have had the liquor in the first place, much less shared it with her. Sonny’s not sure Cameron knows how stupid it was. Cameron says, he does. They could have fallen out of the boat, or passed out. Sonny says, a lot of things can happen when you’re drunk. Some are dangerous, and none of them are good. Why should Sonny believe Cameron won’t do it again, and get in a car? Cameron says, that’s not going to happen. Sonny wants to believe that, but what if there’s a party, and a couple of friends have some liquor? What if Cameron thinks he’s not that drunk, and gets behind the wheel of a car? Cameron promises he’ll never drink and drive. He gives Sonny his word. Sonny tells Cameron to listen to him, because there will be a lot more dances and parties. Cameron is going to want to forget about life for a while, and he’s got to make the smart choice. Maybe it’s not the popular choice, or it’s the boring choice. Maybe it’s not exciting, but he’s got to know what the safe choice is. That’s what Cameron’s word means. Cameron says, yes, sir.
Hayden drops off Violet to her doctor’s appointment, and finds Elizabeth. Elizabeth asks why Hayden didn’t phone. She was worried when Hayden didn’t come home. Hayden asks if Elizabeth didn’t get her text. Elizabeth asks if Hayden sent it, and Hayden says, yeah. She looks at her phone and says, no, but she wrote it. She shows Elizabeth, and Elizabeth says, she was with Finn? Hayden says, it was completely innocent. He invited them to stay over – in the guest room. She told him that he’s Violet’s daddy. Elizabeth asks how he took it, and Hayden says, Violent thinks Finn is amazing, and he comes with a reptile. She thinks Roxie is her sister. Finn was sweet with her; it was magical. Then, Anna came home.
Franco tells Jason, his mind thinks he’s Drew, and thinks he could jump in and swim. His muscle memory in his body says something is off, and the water would spit him back out or worse; let him know this was not what they agreed on. It’s not his body, and not his life. This life belongs to Franco. Uh-oh, feeling tears coming.
TJ tells Neil that he dropped everything off at the lab. He wishes he could do more to help. Alexis says Molly has him to lean on. That’s a help in and of itself. He says he’s doing his best. He’ll swing back with the test results. Neil says he has patients to see, and looks pointedly at TJ. Alexis says they’re abandoning her in her hour of need, like rats fleeing a sinking ship.
Julian tells Kim, after all they’ve been through, he’d hate if they couldn’t part on better terms. She asks, whose fault is that? She made a mistake, but he utterly betrayed her. He hopes she recognizes one day that he acted out of love. She says, how dare he say that? When she lost Oscar, she was at the lowest point of her life. She was in so much pain, she couldn’t see straight. She didn’t know black from white, or right from wrong. Her moment of desperation is now a matter of public record, thanks to him. He says he’s so sorry, but she asks what he expected would happen. He told Elizabeth’s lawyer. Julian says he just wants to part… She says, as friends? He says, with no ill will between them. She says he’s used to getting away with murder – literally – and he wants her to absolve him. He tells her that he wants to say one last thing. Loving her, and being her Charlie, made him a better man. The man he knew he could be. She says, compared to what? He was never her Charlie. That man never existed. It was him pretending to be someone he could never be. The good news is, he doesn’t have to pretend anymore. She says, goodbye, Julian.
Hayden tells Elizabeth that she and Finn were looking like deer in headlights. Before they could manage a coherent response, Violet asked if Anna was her daddy’s friend. Elizabeth says, poor Anna. Hayden says, poor Anna? She was the one in Finn’s shirt. Elizabeth asks what she did, and Hayden says, grabbed Violet, and got the hell out of Dodge. Elizabeth tells Hayden that she’s coming from a place of love. She watched Finn put his life back together, piece by piece, when Hayden left; it took a long time. Anna makes him happy. Hayden says she’d never come between them, and Elizabeth says, whatever happens, she wants them to be happy. Hayden knows, but Violet is his child. Elizabeth tells Hayden to be careful with whatever she’s up to. She’s playing with Violet’s family.
Finn tells Anna, sorry. He knows it’s upsetting for him to have a daughter suddenly. Anna says, that’s not what’s upsetting. She’s happy to know his daughter is alive and well. She doesn’t love the way she found out. He understands, and he’s sorry for that. She says, it’s not his fault; it’s no one’s fault. Just bad timing. It will take a few days to adjust for both her and him. She thinks he’ll be a wonderful father. He hopes she’s right, and she says, she is. She thinks Hayden thinks so too. Finn says, there it is. I wish he’d said, whoomp first.
TJ goes back to Alexis’s room, and she asks if he has news. He says, not exactly. About what she said; rats fleeing a sinking ship… She tells him, don’t take it personally, but he tells her that he’s glad she said it. It got him to thinking. That’s what could be making her sick. Rat poison.
Elizabeth goes to pick up Cameron. She thanks Sonny, and asks if Cameron is ready to go. Sonny asks Cameron to do him a favor, and get a jar of sauce from the kitchen for his family. Cameron says, yes, sir, and Elizabeth says she loves hearing him call Sonny sir. She asks how it went, and Sonny says, he’s a good kid. He’ll think twice next time. She thanks him again, and says she does the best she can, but this time she thought a man Cameron respects should talk to him. Sonny says he’s there if she needs him, but seeing her with the boys, he thinks she’s doing a great job. Cameron comes back, and Sonny says it was good talking to him, Cameron says, him too, and Sonny tells him, if Cameron needs to hit the bag, let him know. It’s all good. Cameron thanks him, and Sonny tells Elizabeth, she’s got this.
Hayden tells Violet, it’s wonderful news. Violet says she’s all better, and Hayden says, daddy will be happy to hear it.
Finn tells Anna that she doesn’t have to worry about Hayden. Anna says Hayden clearly still has feelings for him. He says he told Hayden that his life is with Anna, and no one else. She says she loves that. Hayden’s intentions might be genuine, but her instincts might not. She has powerful leverage with Violet. Finn says Violet will change their lives, but he’d like to think they’re as solid as ever. She says he’s just beginning to know what it’s like to be a father. It could change his perspective. His phone rings, and he says he should get that. He answers, then says he’s on his way. Anna says, duty calls? He says he doesn’t want to be away from her another minute… and she says, but his patients come first. Finn says he’ll be back as soon as possible. She says she’ll be there, and he kisses her. I think it’s less passionate than she expected though. Hmm…
Monica sees Jason walk into the hospital, and asks what he’s doing there. Doesn’t Sam’s trial start tomorrow? He says he wanted to see how she was doing. She says checking up on her is okay, and hugs him.
Kim puts Oscar’s stuffed bear in her bag, and looks around at the empty apartment. There’s a knock at the door. It’s Franco, and she says, right on time. He doesn’t say anything, and she says, Drew?
On Monday, Lucas tells Brad that he made sure Julian won’t interfere in their marriage anymore, Diane tells the court that Sam has a clear-cut case of self-defense, and Kim asks if Franco is ready to start their life in San Diego.
🎥 A Witchy Redux…
I’m not sure how this got to be a classic, but since it is, why fix what ain’t broke?
🍵 Bravo had repeats of Below Deck again, so I watched a documentary about Preppy Killer Robert Chambers, and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?Edward Albee never gets old. In lieu of any new TV, here are some cups of tea I’ve collected.
🍸 At Least We Still Have VPR…
As much as I’ll miss her, I totally understand why she left.
What can I say? Like Shannon Beador, I love a costume. And yes, I looked at all of them. How many Halloween parties can the Kardashians possibly go to?
🐣 I’ve also been watching Welcome to Plathville – Tuesdays, 10 pm on TLC, my second favorite channel. It’s about a family that lives somewhat off the grid. While they’re not like the Amish – although the Amish aren’t even like the Amish anymore, so many have cell phones – Kim and Barry Plath have raised their children minus a lot of the media that most kids are joined at the hip to today. They don’t know who Justin Bieber is or have ever had soda; IMO not bad things. The Plaths aren’t tyrants, however, and it looks like we’ll be watching some new experiences for the kids in this limited run series. I can identify somewhat, at least in their surroundings, since I grew up on a pseudo farm, and being in the great outdoors is still a passion of mine. (I know, you wouldn’t think so, since I watch so much TV.) I wonder if the parents fear, as I do, that the exposure from the series will drastically affect the family, and not in a good way. Hopefully, these kids will never lose their core values.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
Today’s episode of GH was preempted in most areas, however, I was able to watch it via my super-secret source. SPOILER ALERT – they will probably show this episode on Thursday, but if you want to be ahead of the game, read on…
General Hospital
At the station, Laura holds Lulu. Jordan tells Robert that the coastguard is searching, and they’re talking to anyone in the vicinity. Nina asks Valentin if he heard that; an explosion. Valentin says, Charlotte was nowhere near it, but she says, whatif…
Charlotte runs in, followed by Anna, and runs to Valentin. He holds her tight. Anna smiles.
Hayden tells Finn, good morning. He sees breakfast out, and asks if she cooked. She says, have they met? She got it from Kelly’s. She pours him coffee. He says she didn’t have to, but she says it was a special occasion. He says he barely slept, thinking about it all night. Violet is going to know he’s her father.
Dante goes back to Jax’s house, and Jax asks where he was. Dante says he had business to attend to, and Jax grabs him by the collar, slamming him against the wall. Jax says he had to lie to his own daughter, and now Carly is involved and has to lie. He’s about thisclose to blowing Dante’s cover. Quit leaving the house.
Trina doesn’t understand why Josslyn wants to move. Josslyn says there are no memories of Oscar in her dad’s house; it’s like a clean slate. Trina gets it. Josslyn doesn’t get why her parents are making her wait. She sees Carly, and asks if it was a rough night. Carly flashes back to seeing Nikolas.
There’s a knock at Ava’s door, but she says, no visitors this early. Sonny thinks she’ll make an exception for this one, and brings Avery in. Ava gets out of bed, and Avery hugs her. She tells Sonny she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t surprised, and he says Avery has been asking for her. She asks why he brought her, and he says he saw Laura the other night. She told him that Ava wasn’t dangerous or violent, and reminded him of his own history. Mental illness runs on both sides of Avery’s family, so there’s a greater possibility that she’ll have to deal with it when she’s older. He doesn’t want her to feel any stigma, or that she can’t ask for help. Ava doesn’t want that either.
Nina hugs Charlotte. Lulu and Laura come out, and Charlotte runs to Lulu. Lulu hugs her, saying she’s so happy Charlotte is safe. Laura says that makes two of them. Valentin says, Anna was a part of this rescue? Anna says, right place, right time. Charlotte tells Lulu that Anna saved her from that horrible Cassandra woman. Nina says, she is horrible. Valentin says he owes Anna, and she says, he owes Jason. He says, but he does owe her. He’s been so angry at her, and it’s made them both miserable. With this, she’s transcended everything. He can’t tell her how grateful he is. She thanks him. She says she hopes Charlotte never gets into trouble like that again, but he should know he has a very resourceful girl on his hands. He says Anna is hurt. He puts his fingers to his lips, and touches her hair. Lulu asks why Charlotte left the restaurant alone.
Hayden tells Finn, last chance. Say the word, and he can back out. He says he’s not going anywhere. Violet is his daughter, and he wants everything that comes with that. She was hoping he’d say that, and tells him, it’s going to change everything. Their talk meant a lot to her. He says, him too; it put everything in perspective. Violet runs downstairs, and Hayden says, show time.
Carly tells Josslyn that she was up with Donna a lot last night. Josslyn says, that’s weird; she didn’t hear Donna crying. Trina says she has to go. She’s grounded, and she’s supposed to be checking on her internship. Which, technically, she’s about to do. She leaves, and Carly says Josslyn is up early. Josslyn says she thought it would be a good time to finish their conversation about her moving in with Jax part time.
Nikolas says, Carly is a grown woman. If she chooses to protect Jax and Spencer, that’s on her. Jax says, she has to lie to her husband now, and Nikolas asks since when does Jax care about Sonny and Carly’s marriage? Jax says the three of them have committed to providing a stable home for Josslyn, and Nikolas needs to understand that.
Lulu asks why Charlotte left Kelly’s by herself, and Charlotte says she wanted to see if the launch was clear. Lulu says, the launch is nowhere near Kelly’s. This is completely unacceptable. She can’t wander off, especially at night. Valentin says, Lulu is right. Before Charlotte leaves anywhere, she has to check in with whoever is watching her. Charlotte says she’s sorry; she guesses she wasn’t thinking.
Jordan asks Chase to take the lead in the situation with the guard. They also need Anna’s official statement. She welcomes Anna back, and Chase says he knows someone who’s going to be especially excited to see Anna. Anna says, the feeling’s mutual.
Finn puts syrup on Violet’s waffles, trying to make a dog shape. He says he needs to work on his syrup pouring skills, but in his defense, Roxie doesn’t eat waffles. He pours Violet and Hayden some juice, and Finn tries to pour a fairy princess shape. I can relate to this, having had Goofy-shaped pancakes demanded of me once.
Chase asks if Finn knows Anna is back, but she says she was a little preoccupied. He says he has something to take care of, and tells her, welcome back. Lulu tells Charlotte, they’ll have plenty of time to discuss it at home, but right now, she wants Charlotte to thank Anna. Charlotte says, no, then turns to Anna, and thanks her. Anna says, any time, but Valentin says he hopes it never happens again. Charlotte tells Lulu, when she said no, she meant she wasn’t going home with Lulu.
Ava plays with Avery. She asks if Laura told him why she’s there. Sonny says, only because it involved her son. Ava says she’s seeing dead people. It’s pretty unnerving, especially when she thinks about what Sonny could do with the information when it comes to their daughter. Sonny says he only wants to tell Avery that her mother is getting better. So get better, for her sake. He asks Avery if she’s ready, and Avery tells Ava she loves her. Ava loves her too, and hopes she sees Avery soon. They start to leave, and Ava thanks Sonny. The nurse asks if that’s her little girl, and says she’s a doll. Ava says she isn’t arguing. The nurse gives Ava her medication, and Ava says she doesn’t think she’ll need it much longer.
Josslyn says she doesn’t want Carly to think she’s not enough, or that Josslyn doesn’t love her. She is and she does. Carly says Josslyn just needs to be somewhere that doesn’t remind her of Oscar. Josslyn says, while it’s not Carly’s fault, Carly knew Oscar and spent time with him, and Jax didn’t. It makes it easier for her to not be grieving and just be herself. Carly gets it, and she’s not mad. She’s going to miss Josslyn, but gets this is where she is right now. She just hopes Josslyn’s dad understands.
Nikolas says he’s handling it, and Jax tells him, shut up. This has turned into something that could hurt his kid. This is where a smart businessman would probably cut his losses. The bell rings. Jax says Nikolas knows what to do. It’s Jordan, and Jax invites her in. He asks how he can help her. She says, as he probably knows, Cassandra escaped. She got away in a rental van, paid for by a J.J. Jax of Alaska corporate credit card. He tells her, his card was stolen. She can check; he reported it. She says she already checked, but finds it interesting that it was used to break out a woman that he’s been investigating since he got back to Port Charles. Nikolas listens in.
Josslyn says she doesn’t understand why Jax wants her to wait. She’s fine with crashing on the couch. Carly says she’s not sleeping on a couch while she’s in school. In addition to the renovations, her dad is in a bit of a situation right now. Josslyn asks if he’s okay, and Carly says, he’s fine, but needs to deal with it first. When it’s all cleared up, her moving in will be a go. Josslyn says, okay, and Carly says she doesn’t want Josslyn to think they’re micromanaging her. Josslyn says, really, she’s fine. Carly asks what Josslyn is thinking, and Josslyn says she’s going back and forth on everything these days. She feels all over the place, and misses feeling confident. Carly says, she’ll get there. When you’re in the middle of this place, your decision making sucks. She knows from experience. That’s why not acting on impulse is important. Recognizing your judgement is impaired, you need to think things through carefully. Josslyn says, sounds like work, and Carly says, it is.
Charlotte says, it’s papa’s week, and she wants to go home with him. Please. Lulu says she missed Charlotte last night, and was hoping to make it up. Valentin says they need to teach Charlotte proper boundaries, and it is his week. Maybe it’s best for everyone if they stick to the schedule. Laura agrees, and Charlotte asks if Lulu is mad. Laura says they were just worried, and Lulu just wants to keep her close. Now that they’ve seen her, and know she’s okay… Valentin says, shall they? Charlotte hugs Lulu, and leaves with Valentin and Nina. Lulu can’t believe she just let her leave with him, and Laura says they have to find a better way to do this.
Robert tells Anna, nice entrance, but he expected nothing less. She asks what she’s missed.
Violet asks go to park, and Finn says, before they go, there’s something her mom and him wanted to talk about. Hayden says when Violet asks about her daddy, she always says her daddy loves her very much, but it’s a story for another time. That time is now. Finn says her mom and him aren’t just old friends. They were very much in love. Hayden says, Finn saved her life, and Finn says Hayden saved his back. They were so in love, they made a baby, and that baby is her. He’s her dad. Violet says, for reals? and Finn says, for reals. Violet asks if that doesn’t mean he loves her, and Finn says, yes, more than he ever thought possible. She asks if that makes Roxie her sister, and Finn guesses so. Violet says, cool. Finn says Violet can totally say no, but does she think he can give her a hug? She nods, and hugs him.
In the interrogation room, Chase tells Officer Sommers that he doesn’t know if she’s aware of it, but there’s evidence that after money was anonymously transferred into her account, she reassigned the prisoners who were on work detail. Cassandra should never have been cleared to leave the prison, yet she was – by her. You don’t have to be a detective to realize this facilitated her escape. The guard says she doesn’t know anything about that, and he asks what she does know. She says, just that she was asked to clear the prisoner for work detail. He asks, by who? He wants a name.
Jax tells Jordan, his interest wasn’t in Cassandra, but in Valentin. Valentin’s history, which is public record, was just one more stone he had to turn over in his investigation. Jordan says, now she’s dead. Someone provided a getaway boat, and it exploded shortly after it left the pier. Once the coastguard examines the blast, they could be looking at a murder investigation. Nikolas continues to listen.
Carly tells Josslyn, everyone tells teenagers not to drink alcohol, but it’s not about getting drunk; it’s about the decisions you make when you’re drunk. Like getting behind the wheel of a car, or jumping into a pool. Grieving affects you the same way; it impairs your judgement. You can choose not to drink, but you can’t just stop grieving. You can be aware though. Does it make sense? Josslyn says, it does. She just wants to get back to who she was. Carly says, and she will. Josslyn wonders how to do it without letting Oscar go. Carly says, that’s the hardest part. You feel like moving on is disloyal. Josslyn says she thinks she’s genuinely not ready to let go of who she was. Now she’s talking in circles again. Carly tells her, stop being so hard on herself. She’s right where she’s supposed to be. She’ll be okay. Carly hugs her, and Sonny comes in. He asks if he’s interrupting, but Carly thinks they’re done. Josslyn goes upstairs to write in her journal. Sonny asks if everything is okay, and Carly says he has to make more of an effort where Jax is concerned. She thinks it’s important for Josslyn. It’s good for her, and he needs to do it for her. Sonny asks, why not go back to their plan to have Josslyn move in with her father?
Jax hopes Jordan isn’t implying he had anything to do with Cassandra’s death. She says, no. They don’t even know if there was foul play, but if they do have to open an investigation. All kinds of people will be asking questions, so if he’s hiding anything, now is the time to tell her. He says he’s told her everything he knows. She says she’ll be in touch, and leaves.
Nikolas comes in (that seems to start a lot of sentences), and says he really appreciates Jax not saying anything. Jax asks if Nikolas murdered Cassandra.
Nina asks if Charlotte is okay, and Valentin asks if there’s anything she’d like to talk about. Charlotte says she’s okay, and Valentin asks if he can talk; ask her questions. She says, sure, and he says she knew how dangerous Cassandra was, and she knew what Cassandra looked like. How did Cassandra get her to go with her? What happened? Nina says Charlotte can tell them anything. Charlotte says she went because Cassandra said she’d send Nina to jail if she didn’t.
Officer Sommers tells Chase, they never met. She never got a name. She had no idea they were planning anything like that. Chase says, and she didn’t care, as long as she got the cash. They’re tracing the origins of the deposit. She says, her lawyer… and Chase says, is on their way. In the meantime, he suggests she think about her colleague who was almost killed, and ask herself, was it really worth it?
Anna tells Robert that she knows it was her idea, but can they table the catch up for another day? She just wants to go home. She wants to be in her own bed, and she wants to catch up with Finn. Robert says, before she does anything, he thinks there’s something she should know.
Hayden asks if Violet has any questions, and Violet asks where Finn has been. Hayden says, mommy and daddy had a misunderstanding, and mommy moved away. It’s not that her daddy didn’t want to be with her; he didn’t know. Finn says, mommies and daddies sometimes make mistakes. The important thing is that they forgive each other, and figure out a way to do things better. Hayden says, and that they love her. Finn says he’s glad in Violet is in his life, and Violet says, her too. And mommy too? Hayden says, that’sright.
Charlotte tells Valentin and Nina, Cassandra said Nina did something bad, but she wouldn’t tell. Valentin asks what Cassandra told her to do, and Charlotte says, show her the back way out of Kelly’s, and she did, but when they got to the pier, Cassandra took her phone. She said she was calling him, and if he did what she wanted, she wouldn’t tell the bad thing Nina did. Nina says she loves Charlotte, and that Charlotte was trying to protect her, but she needs to promise never to do it again. Never put herself in danger for Nina – ever. She loves Charlotte so much, she’d rather go to prison a thousand times over than have something happen to Charlotte. Charlotte says she knew it would be okay, because Cassandra was calling her papa. She knew he’d fix it, like he always did.
Jax tells Nikolas, don’t try to tell him it’s a coincidence. Nikolas says, is he going to cry tears over Cassandra’s death? No, but he didn’t kill her. Think about it. She had explosive (his word – ha-ha) information on Valentin. Now it’s gone. Jax says Cassandra was going to expose Nikolas. Maybe he did the math, and thought she was too much trouble to keep alive. Nikolas says, it wasn’t him. It was Valentin.
The doorbell rings at Windymere. Nina hugs Charlotte, and says there’s a horse out there who wants Charlotte to ride him. Valentin says, look who it is, and Laura and Lulu walk in. Lulu says she knows it’s Valentin’s week, but she missed Charlotte last night and thought they could have a snack together. Valentin says, that sounds pleasant, and Charlotte says, stop. She knows they can’t stand each other.
Anna tells Robert, spit it out. She’s exhausted. Robert says, Finn’s ex came back. Anna says, Hayden? She knows about her, and Robert says, that’s not what she needs to know. Anna asks why he thinks she would be threatened by Hayden. Chase walks up, and says he needs a word, but Robert says, this is important. Anna says they’ll catch up after. It’s good to see him, and Chase. She leaves, and Robert says, didn’t Chase think he was in the middle of something important? Chase says, poking holes in Anna and Finn’s relationship? Robert knows as well as he does, Hayden isn’t a threat. Robert says, that was before. Now, Finn has found out he has a child. Don’t think things won’t be different.
Violet asks if they can go to the park, and Finn suggests she play in Anna’s room for a while before they go; there are a lot of toys in there. He hugs her, and tells her, have fun. Finn says his heart exploded, and Hayden says, hers too. She thinks it went surprisingly well. Violet finally got a dad, and she thinks it’s awesome. It’s Violet’s best day ever. Finn says, his too.
Trina visits Ava. She tells Ava she wanted to check in and see how Ava is doing. She has bad news. She won’t be able to commit to this Wednesday. She got in trouble, and has detention. Sorry. Ava says, it’s okay. Don’t worry, Kiki. Trina says, Kiki?
Carly tells Sonny, you know what would be nice? If Sonny would be more accommodating. He asks, is it post-partum hormones talking, or what? Carly thinks Jax has something going on that’s stopping him from having Josslyn move in, and she’s asking him to do something – be kind to her daughter’s father, not just deal with him. She’s been putting up with Dev for Sonny, so she thinks he can do this for her. He says he thinks Jax is in trouble, and she knows what it is.
Carly says, if he must know, she thinks Jax is seeing someone. Sonny asks if Carly has met her, and she says she didn’t ask for details; it’s none of her business. He says, even if it effects Josslyn? She says, if Jax prefers she not meet her, that’s his prerogative. Sonny says nothing, and she says, what? Why is he staring at her? He says, no reason. If Jax has a guest, and doesn’t want Josslyn to know about it, he doesn’t have a problem, but it seems she does. He goes upstairs.
Josslyn writes while a song plays. These words remain…
Ava says, she meant Trina. The medication makes everything hazy. She knows who Trina is. Trina says, as long as she’s getting better, and Ava says, that’s the plan. What she needs now more than anything is rest. Trina says she’ll visit again soon.
Laura suggests she and Charlotte give her mom, dad, and Nina a chance to talk. She can tell Laura about what happened. They leave, and Nina says Charlotte is smarter than the three of them combined. Lulu says she does hate Valentin, but she thought she was doing a better job of hiding it. Valentin admits he’s not doing any better. Charlotte deserves more from them. Nina says, they have to present a united front for her to get through this. Valentin agrees, and Lulu says she’ll do anything for Charlotte.
Charlotte tells Laura, the explosion was so big, and Laura says she’s glad Charlotte was far from it. Charlotte says, what’s weird was, when everyone was looking at the flames, she saw a man. When she turned back, he was gone. Laura asks if Charlotte recognized him, and she shakes her head. Laura says he was probably just a dock worker. Charlotte says, probably.
Nikolas says, Cassandra held Charlotte hostage. What would Jax have done if it was Josslyn? Cassandra crossed Valentin and he killed her for it. Jax says perhaps Valentin is more lethal than he realized. Nikolas says, it’s a problem, but he’ll figure it out. Jax says, do that, or he walks. It’s his final warning.
Chase says, Finn has a child? and Robert says he sees Finn didn’t tell him. He and Hayden have a little girl named Violet. Chase says, he’s an uncle, and their dad is a grandfather. Finn never even.. Robert says, if it’s any consolation, Finn just found out. He’s sure Finn’s life has turned upside down. Give him time.
Finn says, whatever is going on in their lives, he and Hayden are Violet’s parents. She’s their first priority. Hayden agrees 100%. He asks why he’s sensing a but, and she says she thinks after what happened, they’ve earned the right to be honest with one another. Co-parenting is the number one priority, but she can’t guarantee the only way she’ll see him is as Violet’s father.
Anna comes in, and asks if Finn is there. She’s home. She looks over, and sees Finn and Hayden sitting together on the couch.
They had no preview. I suppose because they weren’t even supposed to have the episode. Again, I think they’ll be showing this tomorrow on ABC.
The Real Housewives of Dallas
Brandi and LeeAnne meet for drinks. Brandi says LeeAnne is a real housewife now. She gives LeeAnne a T-shirt that says, Recharging My Awesomeness, and a gift certificate for a couples massage. LeeAnne is happy for the opportunity to get naked with Rich.
Stephanie and D’Andra meet to shop for party outfits. Stephanie tells D’Andra that Kameron isn’t coming to Travis’s party because of something her kids have going on. We flash back to Kameron complaining that Stephanie used her kids to get out of going to LeeAnne’s shower. D’Andra says, what are the odds?
Bryan and Brandi pick up Stephanie and Travis. Travis has no idea where they’re going. In her interview, Stephanie says, Travis is worried about his father. He’s stressed out, and doesn’t know if his father is going to survive. She wants to make him laugh, and feel like a kid again. They pull up at Medieval Times. I’ve never been there, but I’ve always wanted to go. I’d want to dress up though. Bryan says he hasn’t been there since… The girls crack up laughing. The group is bestowed with paper crowns. A page tells the queen that for his 50th birthday, Travis desires to become knight of the realm. Travis is knighted, and Bryan is knighted as well. When they sit to eat, Bryan is a big baby who doesn’t want to eat without the proper utensils. There’s a jousting match that looks amazing. Stephanie asks how Travis’s dad is, and Travis says his dad wanted them to bring him back. He thought he was dying. He’s taking is medication, just less of it. Travis is frustrated because he can’t do anything about it. In Stephanie’s interview, she says Travis puts on a brave face, but he’s barely sleeping and stressed out. Travis says, it will be an interesting trip.
Court and Kameron take the kids to do archery. In her interview, Kameron says, Hilton is going to sleepaway camp, and most of them offer archery. She needs to look supercool for Hilton. She’s not athletic, but she’s good at Pilates. Court tells Hilton to stay as far away from mom as possible. Hilton does really well on her first shot. Court isn’t sure if Kameron holding a bow is attractive or terrifying. In Kameron’s interview, she says Hilton bonds with Court over football and soccer. She wants to bond over sports too. Kameron’s shot is way off. She doesn’t even hit the target circle. Court says, Hilton is crushing it. Kameron asks what the trick is, and he says, aim. He suggests she mentally put someone’s face on the target, but Kameron says she doesn’t do that. In her interview, she says she’s not shooting Stephanie. She’s annoyed about Stephanie bailing on the shower at the last minute, so she’s not going to Travis’s birthday party. She could probably make it happen, but surface friends don’t go to husband’s 50th birthdays. A target with balloons on it is brought out, and Kameron is good at that one. Hilton says, impressive. In Kameron’s interview, she says she nailed it. Maybe Hilton will see her in a new light. Bullseye.
Kary has a photoshoot to launch her website. When she started her company, it was a hobby. Now her hobby is turning into a reality. She’s excited. It’s important that her kids see her as financially independent. Eduardo has nothing to do with the business. She’s paying for the shoot with her own money. She and Olivia strike some poses. Stephanie joins them, and Kary says she wants to include Stephanie. In Stephanie’s interview, she says Kary has a strong personality. She’s surprised Kary agreed to a prenup where she gets nothing. She thinks Kary feels screwed, and this will empower her. She doesn’t need a man. She can do it on her own. Stephanie is proud of her. Kary asks if Stephanie has ever done ozone therapy. She went with Kameron this morning, and Kameron said Kameron said she’s not going to Travis’s birthday. She feels Stephanie isn’t making an effort in the relationship. We see a clip of Kameron and Stephanie talking, and Kameron says she’ll go above and beyond for a close friend, but Stephanie doesn’t want to put in the effort. Stephanie tells Kary, she’s trying to figure out how to have a friendship with Kameron without setting her off. She feels like it’s not easy for Kameron either, but she doesn’t want to beg Kameron to love her. In Stephanie’s interview, She says it bothers her that she’s not proving herself worthy of Kameron’s friendship. It’s so stupid. She tears up, and says she doesn’t know why this is making her cry. Kary says, it’s a sensitive issue. They all have sensitive triggers. It has a lot to do with chemistry. Some relationships and friendships are easier, and some take time. Stephanie says she was hurt in the past, and she’s not comfortable sharing. She doesn’t let people in unless she feels they won’t hurt or judge her.
Susan’s mom has come for the party. Stephanie says the party is going to be the death of her. In her interview, Stephanie says she loves having her mother there. She can tell Susan anything; she’s like a therapist. She is a therapist. She tells Susan about going to Thailand. She says Travis is going for work, and to see his dad, who’s not feeling well. He’s going to be working a lot, so she invited the ladies. She feels like she’s in a good place with all the girls, but she’s nervous. She and Kameron seem to be having a power struggle. When she does something wrong, or states her mind, Kameron gets upset. Kameron isn’t coming to the party because of her kid’s dance recital. She says it’s all about family, but told Kary that maybe she’d go if Stephanie called and made her feel wanted. Susan says Kameron is trying to manipulate the situation by making Stephanie bend to her standards in order to be her friend. That’s not what a friend is. She says Kameron doesn’t deserve this much energy. Stephanie says she seeks peace over resolution, and got it from Susan. In her interview, Stephanie says, when she was growing up, some people treated her mother like crap. They didn’t think her mom was good enough for her father because she was poor. Her whole life, she was taken advantage of. She would hold her tongue and be nice, and then cry in private. Susan says she taught Stephanie to be a good person to others, but not to herself. She says she wants to cry. She feels Stephanie’s pain; she’s been there. If she seems sensitive, just ignore her. In Stephanie’s interview, she says she and her sister were treated equally bad because of their mother. A group of women always made her feel like she wasn’t good enough, and it changed her. Stephanie tells Susan that Kameron brings her insecurity out. Susan says Kameron’s opinion doesn’t matter. Stephanie’s opinion of herself is the only one that matters. She’s sorry Stephanie is feeling this way. Susan hugs Stephanie, and tells her that she’s okay. In her interview, Stephanie says Kameron triggers her, reminding her of the worthless felling she felt as a child. She says she feels like she taught Kameron it was okay to treat her that way, and doesn’t want do that anymore. Susan says, a friend shouldn’t make her feel this way. She’s proud of Stephanie. It’s taken her sixty years to know she’ll be okay without certain people in her life. She’s not casting her pearls before swine. Kameron doesn’t deserve her friendship, don’t cater to her. Stephanie knows what makes her feel good, and asks if she’s Susan’s favorite daughter. Susan says she has two favorite daughters.
Stephanie gets dressed up to look like Peg Bundy from Married with Children. She says when she thinks midlife crisis, she thinks of Peg. She’s a hot mess, and the epitome of midlife crisis. The party is set up, and Travis thinks it’s awesome. Stephanie says, everyone is wearing costumes, and they’re having fireworks, a full bar, and lots of food. It cost more than her wedding. She thinks a midlife crisis costume would be wearing something not age appropriate. Travis’s outfit is absurd. It’s Gucci, and obnoxiously expensive. She thinks around $5K. He’s wearing a T-Shirt, pants, and baseball cap with the Gucci logo. I have no words.
In her interview, Kary says, even though she and Eduardo had a stressful dinner, she’s learned to move on. Life is short, and he’s a good husband. They have to figure out the financial situation, but that’s for another day. I dunno. I don’t think a good husband gives you nothing when they’re loaded like Eduardo is.
Brandi arrives as a Playboy bunny. In her interview, she says, who doesn’t like a bunny? Anyone in their 40s willing to wear the costume, obviously wants attention. Stephanie’s father shows up dressed as a pimp, sporting heavy gold jewelry.
Stephanie and Brandi sit on a swing in the yard. Stephanie tells Brandi that Kameron can’t come because of the children, but she told Kary that if Stephanie had expressed more effort, she would have come. She can’t live her life for pleasing other people. It’s all she’s done her whole life, and it’s exhausting. She’d like Kameron to be there, but wants her to want to be there. She asks if Brandi has heard anything about the baby. Brandi says they should have some news before they leave for Thailand. She’s been waiting and praying. In Brandi’s interview, she says they’re in a waiting pattern with the test to see if the baby is Bruin’s full sibling. She’s struggling with three children, and if the baby is only a half sibling, she’ll be more hesitant to adopt. Stephanie says they can sleep for twenty hours on the plane.
Kary and Eduardo come looking like Jersey Shore cast members. In Brandi’s interview, she says Kary is supposed to be Snooki, but that’s not midlife. She has it all wrong. LeeAnne is wearing a Hear Me Roar T-shirt and midi skirt. She says she couldn’t think of anything. The wedding stole all her creative moments. She tells the others that she couldn’t find a blowup doll that looked seventeen. In Stephanie’s interview, she says she looked like a hooker for LeeAnne, and LeeAnne couldn’t dress up for her. LeeAnne tells Stephanie that Rich is sick, and can’t be there. D’Andra walks in as Mama Dee, and LeeAnne says she has the attitude down.
D’Andra announces that she’s Mama Dee Simon Jr. In Kary’s interview, she says D’Andra looks like Mama Dee gone prostitute. Stephanie suggests D’Andra go to the bank and get what she wants out of the trust. They’ll never know. She tells D’Andra that her hair looks like Mama Dee’s, and D’Andra says that’s because it is. She merged her own midlife crisis with Mama Dee’s crisis. She tells Kary that LeeAnne coming along makes her feel better, since Jeremy can’t be there, and most of the husbands are there. Kary hopes now that LeeAnne is married, she’ll move on to the next phase.
Tiffany and husband Tyler make an entrance as middle-aged Barbie and Ken, complete in their boxes. I love it. LeeAnne asks if D’Andra got permission from Mama Dee to wear her wig, and D’Andra says she did. Stephanie gets up on stage, and everyone chants Travis. She introduces their kids, and says everybody they love is in this space. It means the world to them. Travis is the most amazing, wonderful, incredible father, and she loves him so much. The cake comes out, and everyone sings Happy Birthday. There’s applause, giant sparklers, and a band plays.
D’Andra has some shots, and gets in the Barbie box. Fireworks happen. LeeAnne says she’s not enjoying watching D’Andra get drunk over, and over, and over, and making an ass of herself. D’Andra takes off her jacket, and in Stephanie’s interview, she says, not just Mama Dee, but Mama Dee’s nips came out to play. In LeeAnne’s interview, she says, anyone who doesn’t know D’Andra would think she’s just being the drunk, funny class clown; but people who know her know it’s a slippery slope from getting drunk in private to getting drunk off her ass in public. Oddly enough, it’s Brandi who ends up falling over.
In her interview, Stephanie says she thinks D’Andra is trying to reach LeeAnne, but doesn’t know how to be around LeeAnne while she’s sober. D’Andra wanders around, looking for her jacket, and LeeAnne finds it. Kary says she thinks LeeAnne needs to babysit D’Andra. In Kary’s interview, she says LeeAnne loves to pretend D’Andra is like her child. We flash back to Mexico, and LeeAnne telling D’Andra that they’ll have conversation when she’s sober. LeeAnne tells Eduardo that his wife can do the babysitting. He asks, for who? and LeeAnne says, is he kidding? He can’t figure out who needs sitting? D’Andra takes a selfie, and Travis does shots with the girls. D’Andra yells that it will be fun in Thailand, and there’s lots of screeching.
Everyone packs for the trip. LeeAnne tells Rich that she heard women pop turtles out of their vaginas, but he thinks that’s an old wives tale. She says, the ping pong thing is true, and he says he knows nothing about that. She asks if he’s seen it, but he tells her that he’s not dignifying that question. I take that as a yes.
D’Andra has an absolutely massive closet. Bigger than Kyle and LVP’s put together. Mama Dee asks what’s going to happen with the company while D’Andra is gone. D’Andra says it would be better if she was there, but she needs to go on this trip. It will be nice to have a few days off from the stress. The Mexico trip was good, but it was really her 50th birthday celebration.
Travis’s sister tells Stephanie that it’s a humid, sticky, and horrible time to go to Thailand. Great endorsement. And it’s monsoon season. Stephanie says that makes her feel better.
While packing a million things she’ll never wear, Kameron tells her assistant that a lady never leaves down until she has to sit on her bag. She wonders if she’ll have a roommate. She hates not knowing, and hates surprises, unless it’s fabulous jewelry.
Bruin tries get into Brandi’s suitcase. Brandi asks if Brooklyn is going to miss her, and Brooklyn says, no, but Brandi will miss them.
At the airport, Court tells Kameron not to say anything bad about the king, or she’ll go to jail. Kameron says she’d never do that. In her interview, Kameron explains that Thailand time is the complete opposite of Dallas time. They’re traveling to the future. D’Andra is the last to arrive. In their interviews, the producers ask the women what they know about Thailand, which is basically nothing. Kameron says it’s far away.
On the plane, D’Andra thanks Stephanie for planning the trip. The drinking commences. In LeeAnne’s interview, she says it’s her first time going to Thailand, and she’s excited. She’d like to have a good time. Trips with the group haven’t always worked out. She says maybe they should do some flashbacks to see, and we flash back to several trips, ending with Mexico. LeeAnne says, no Bueno.
The plane ascends.
Next time, the Thailand trip; Kameron looks up the rules, and reads, do not start a quarrel easily and make a scene, and Stephanie thinks they’ll have issues; D’Andra tries LeeAnne’s Infinity dress; and LeeAnne and Kary are at odds.
🍕 I glanced at RHONJ, but there was nothing earth shattering. Marge and Danielle still hate each other. Teresa is still friends with Danielle. Juicy Joe is on ICE. Danielle said something snarky about Marge’s Joe#3, and I got very confused, forgetting there are three of them. The women ran an obstacle course to make Teresa happy, and everyone did fine until afterwards. Dolores had them over to her place, and it didn’t take long for Marge and Danielle to go at it. I’m not fully paying attention until RHOD’s season is done, but it doesn’t seem like much is going on except the same old. It doesn’t help that we all know how things shook out with Joe#1.
😢 While I would have loved to go to Bravocon, sadly, the tickets sold out in an hour – didn’t see that coming – and my attempt at entering their #1 Fan contest apparently failed. No doubt my meager essay on why it should be me was eclipsed by some kind of media extravaganza that I have no time to write, direct, and star in. In a subsequent stupid move, I missed out on entering to meet Lisa Vanderpump (all expenses paid!) because I misunderstood the cut off time, mistaking 12:00:00 for 12:00. But even through my rejection haze, I tip my hat to Andy Cohen, who loved pop culture so much, he became a part of it. I suppose I did too, in a way, with Rocky Horror, but he’s certainly living the pop dream big time.
💧 Everyone Else Got Snow…
And all we got was a bag of rain. Which sums up November by the Shore so far.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
I miss like, ten seconds of dialogue. Jax is angry, and Nikolas is explaining himself.
Nikolas says, what’s done is done; he can’t change it. Jax says, maybe he can. He can come clean, and sort this mess out. Nikolas says he’s not blowing the deal now. Finding the portrait is his best shot to claim what’s rightfully his, and Jax will get… Jax says he doesn’t need it. Nothing is worth this part. Carly knocks at the door, saying she needs to talk to Jax. Nikolas goes back out on the terrace, and Jax answers the door. He tells Carly that he’s glad she came back.
Hayden asks what Finn is thinking. Finn says he tucked his daughter in for the first time, and she asks how he feels. He says it’s a simple thing; pulling up the covers, and kissing her goodnight. Violet will never remember it, but he’ll never forget.
Robert arrives at the PCPD, apologizing for being late. He was tied up. He asks Jordan where they’re at, and Jordan says, Cassandra escaped while she was on work detail at Rice Park. They’re casing the area, but there’s been a complication. Cassandra might have a hostage.
Lulu says she should have been paying closer attention, but Maxie says it’s not her fault, and Laura says Lulu had no reason to believe Charlotte would run off. She’s never done that before. Lulu agrees she hasn’t, and Laura hugs her, saying, it’s not her fault.
Valentin and Nina get back to Windymere, and Nina asks if Valentin wants a drink. It might take the edge off. He says he needs to keep a clear head if he wants to rescue Charlotte. Cassandra will try to double-cross him. Nina asks if he’s sure he doesn’t want to tell the police, but he says, they’ll just get in the way. That’s why they had to get out of there, so he can take care of it without interference. The doorbell rings. It’s Jason, and Valentin asks what he can do for him. Jason says he has questions about Cassandra.
Cassandra says she imagines Anna is armed, and carries a phone. Just take them both out slowly, and throw them into the harbor. Cassandra has one hand tightly on Charlotte’s throat, and tells Anna to follow her instructions. This young girl shouldn’t be near a gun. Anna asks if Charlotte remembers her; she’s Emma’s grandmother. She tells Charlotte that she’s doing great, and Cassandra says, into the harbor. Anna tosses her gun and phone into the water, telling Charlotte, stay calm and it will be okay. Cassandra suggests they not get ahead of themselves. What does Anna want? Why is she back in town? Anna says she thought they could catch up, and Cassandra says she’s pressed for time. Anna asks how Charlotte is a factor, and Cassandra says Charlotte is coming with her.
Jason tells Valentin about Cassandra escaping work detail, and Nina says they’re aware of it. Valentin says they just came from the PCPD. They thought he might have a lead, but he doesn’t know where Cassandra is. Jason says they think Sam might have helped Cassandra escape, and he needs to find her. Valentin is her only associate in town. Valentin says he’s not Cassandra’s associate. They knew each other a long time ago. He wouldn’t help her then, and he won’t help her now. Valentin’s phone rings, and Jason asks if he’s going to get that. Valentin says he’d like Jason to leave. Jason asks, who could help Cassandra disappear? What offshore resources does she have, and where is she likely to run? Nina says Valentin doesn’t know anything, so stop hounding him. Please leave. Jason asks, what’s going on? and Nina says Jason barged into their home at this fragile time, and is interrogating them, which he has no right to do. Get out. Jason says they’ll get farther if they work together, and Valentin says he has no clue where Cassandra is. Jason trudges out.
Anna asks if Cassandra dropped a call. Reception can be sketchy on Spoon Island. Cassandra asks what makes Anna thinks she’s calling Valentin. She’s sitting on a lot of resources. Anna says she doesn’t need Charlotte then, but Cassandra says Charlotte figures quite prominently in her arrangement. Anna says Cassandra isn’t going anywhere. Cassandra tells her that she’d hate to see Charlotte suffer, and Anna says if she harms a child, she’ll have the wrath of all the law enforcement and civilians alike on her. She’d like to offer Cassandra an alternative. Let Charlotte go, and Anna will let her walk away.
Hayden thanks Finn for asking them to stay the night, and he thanks her for staying. She says she knows things are difficult, and Finn says, just a bit. It will take time to work through this, but he won’t allow his anger to detract from the gift she’s given him – his daughter. She says she was afraid she’d never have a chance to hear him say that. He says it’s because of her. She could have chosen to never see him again. She says she’s glad she didn’t.
At the station, Jason tells Jordan, the 911 caller said Cassandra was seen at Parkland and Telegraph, ten blocks from Kelly’s, and Charlotte disappeared within the hour. Robert asks, what happened? and Lulu says she and Maxie were talking, and Charlotte was doing homework at the counter. When Lulu went to get Charlotte, she was gone. Jordan says Brad thinks he saw a woman fitting Cassandra’s description there. Peter comes in, and Robert tells him, get out. No press allowed. Maxie says he’s not there as the press; he’s there as a friend.
Carly tells Jax that she thought she’d follow-up on their conversation. Josslyn loves the room he chose for her. Jax says, it will be amazing once it’s renovated. Carly doesn’t believe the room isn’t ready, and asks, what’s really going on? He says he’s involved with something, and she asks if he can be more vague. He says he can’t get into details, but he can’t have Josslyn near it or in danger. The situation is volatile, and if he doesn’t wrap it up soon, he’s going to cut his losses and move on. It’s no big deal. She says, it’s big deal to Josslyn. Nikolas comes in from the terrace and says, it’s his fault. Jax has been helping him, one father to another.
Cassandra tells Anna, let her get it straight. If she lets the girl go, she gets to go free. Anna tells her, she said nothing about free. She’ll give Cassandra a head start. Cassandra says, you never accept the first offer, and Anna says, counter. Cassandra says, she’ll let go of Charlotte, the charges get dropped, and she gets immunity. Anna says, no way, and Cassandra tells her to get down on the pier. Anna asks what she’s going to do. Cassandra can’t watch them both, and make a phone call. Cassandra says she has no shortage of resources. Turn around. Two guys are standing behind Anna, and Cassandra dials the phone.
Nina tells Valentin, sorry she was so out of control. She thinks Jason is suspicious. Valentin says, it doesn’t matter. Nina says Maxie speaks highly of Jason. He shot Faison, and could do the same with Cassandra. Teaming up might not be a horrible idea. Valentin says it might sound attractive, but Jason doesn’t know Cassandra. He’s one step ahead of her. He’ll save Charlotte. He needs to know Nina trusts him. A call from Charlotte comes in, and Valentin answers. Cassandra suggests he not ignore her call again. Charlotte will pay next time. He says he’s ready to make arrangements.
Hayden tells Finn, for a long time, she intended to raise Violet alone. Eventually, she’d be old enough to ask questions. Finn says, then what? and she says she’d make up a story about a man who never existed. That’s how she grew up; believing a lie. It’s contributed to the terrible choices she’s made, and she didn’t want Violet to repeat the pattern. She decided to tell Violet the truth, but she wanted to tell him first. Finn says, and when she was ready, he was with Anna.
Lulu thanks Peter for coming; she’s glad Maxie called him. He tells her all of his resources are at their disposal. Robert doesn’t think broadcasting that a little rich girl has been abducted is a good idea. Jordan says Valentin will be inundated with false leads. Peter says, abducted? and Maxie says he heard about Cassandra’s escape, right? Lulu says they’re afraid she might have Charlotte.
Carly says, it’s you, and Nikolas says, alive and in person. She says he didn’t die in Greece, and he says, it was a close call. Valentin shot him, and he nearly died in the water, but eventually, he was rescued. She asks where he’s been, and he says, recovering. He’s back to reclaim the estate for himself and Spencer. She doesn’t care about that. Who knows he’s alive? Jax says, himself, Hayden, and now her. Carly asks what about his family? and Nikolas says he needs to remain in hiding. Carly says, his mother needs to know he’s alive.
Robert says Laura found Cassandra last time. Any idea where she might go? Laura says she and Curtis found her by chance. She has no idea how Cassandra operates. Robert says he’ll contact the Bureau, and access whatever intel they’ve got. Jordan says she knows Laura and Curtis are solving a mystery case. Any chance it ties back to Cassandra?
Peter asks if Valentin knows about Charlotte, and Maxie says he just missed Valentin and Nina. Things got tense. He asks, how? and Lulu says Nina thinks it’s her fault. Nina thanks she upset Charlotte when she stopped the wedding, and that’s why she snuck off.
Finn pours a drink for himself and Hayden. Hayden says, Anna is a part of the situation too. Finn says, an important part. Hayden doesn’t mean to pry, but it would help to understand how Finn and Anna got together in the first place. I’d love to know the logic there. Help what or who? He says, it was by accident. They went out looking for Hayden; Anna wanted the diamonds, and he wanted a chance to see her. They even met with Hayden’s father. After that, Anna blackmailed him into going to Monaco to track down a criminal. She says, sounds romantic, and he says, like him, Anna has a lot of baggage. And like him, she always protects herself and her heart. Her first instinct is to run. Hayden asks if that’s what Anna is doing now; running.
Nikolas understands where Carly is coming from, but he has strong reason to believe there’s a codicil that can prove Valentin was disinherited. Carly says Laura needs to know he’s alive. She lost Morgan, and if he knew the grief over losing a child, he would never do this to his mother. She knows what she’d give to hold Morgan, and Laura aches for Nikolas. She needs to see him, and hold him. She needs to know he’s come back, and if he won’t tell her, Carly will.
Anna asks if the guys are associates of Cassandra’s. One of them says they’re contractors. Cassandra says, they do brutal, excellent work. She contacted them as soon as she was out of solitary. She wanted to make sure she had adequate back-up. Anna tells her, hired muscle isn’t going to help her; she’s never getting away. Cassandra says as long as she’s got Charlotte, she’s got Valentin, and they know how good he is with logistics. Charlotte bites Cassandra’s hand, and she lets go. Anna tells Charlotte to run, and she takes off. The guys grab Anna, and Cassandra says, knock her out. Better yet, break her neck.
Nikolas respects Carly looking out for his mother, and Carly says, then tell her. Don’t make her do it. He says he’s looking at it from his perspective as a father. She doesn’t think she can understand it, if he’s keeping his family in the dark. Jax says, he wouldn’t have gotten involved if he didn’t see the merit in it. If she listens to what Nikolas has to say, she will too. She says she’s listening. Nikolas tells her that there’s a codicil that disinherits Valentin. He’s returned to establish himself and his heirs. If Valentin gets wind of it, he’ll destroy the codicil. His best chance is if Valentin doesn’t see it coming. He can’t know Nikolas is alive. Carly says they’re talking about an estate and money. She’s talking about family and love. Nikolas says, so is he. Valentin was intent on murdering him. If he knows he failed, Valentin will go after Spencer and his mother. He wants nothing more than to go to his mother, sister, and son, and tell them that he’s still there, and how much he loves them. But if they find out the truth before he finds the codicil, they could all be in danger. He needs more time to claim what’s his, and what will eventually belong to Spencer. He can’t tell her what do. He can only hope she does what’s right for his family. Nikolas goes back outside.
Laura doesn’t think Cassandra is involved in what she and Curtis are doing. Jordan asks if she’d care to elaborate, and Laura says, it’s completely legal. Jordan says, great, and Laura says, sorry. Jordan says she knew it was a long shot, but she had to ask.
Maxie tells Lulu not to take what Nina said to heart. She’s coming from a place of fear. Lulu did nothing wrong. Lulu says, Nina was right about one thing. Charlotte was excited about the wedding, and despite Lulu’s best efforts to hide it, she and Valentin don’t get along. Maybe Charlotte could tell how she was feeling. Peter doesn’t buy it for a second.
Hayden tells Finn, sorry. His relationship with Anna is none of her business, mostly. He’s Violet’s father, and what affects him, affects Violet. She’s asking where it’s going, for Violet’s sake. Finn says there does seem to be a reason for Anna’s extended time away, but he’s sure the reason is valid. Yeah, she’s a professional spy on a personal mission. Did he miss that? Hayden asks if he feels abandoned, and he says, it’s not entirely Anna’s fault. He supposes he hasn’t been completely honest with her.
Val looks grim. He tells Nina, it’s done. He’s met all of Cassandra’s demands. She asks if he’s sure about this. He says, yes; why? and she tells him, he said so himself; Cassandra will double-cross him the first chance she gets. He says, she won’t while she can use Charlotte as leverage. If she’s smart, she’ll let Charlotte go when she gets what she needs. If she doesn’t, he’ll hunt her down. Nina says, what if Cassandra isn’t as smart as he is? What if she decides it’s safer to hold on to Charlotte?
Charlotte runs, and hides behind a trash can. One of the guys come through, looking for her. Jason comes out, and they fight. There’s a lot of swinging, and I have to say, I’ve never seen a fight scene with this much missing by a couple of inches. Was this guy afraid he’d hurt Steve Burton? It goes back and forth, but Jason finally gets the guy down, and punches him repeatedly. Honestly, I was laughing during that scene.
Cassandra tells Anna, Charlotte broke the skin with her little fangs. Human bites are the worst for being prone to infection. Being held by the other guy, Anna suggests she get that checked out. Cassandra says, Anna finds it amusing, and Anna says she thinks it’s great. Cassandra says when her man brings Charlotte back, she’ll have a front row seat to watch Anna die. She’ll be sufficiently cowed for the next leg of the trip.
Jason ties the guy up, and asks if Charlotte is okay. She nods.
Anna says maybe Cassandra’s henchmen lost the trail. Cassandra says maybe they found Charlotte’s hiding spot and shot her. Anna says she’s getting testy. Anna doesn’t blame her; her options are dwindling. Jason walks in, and the guy holding Anna is startled. Anna punches him, and then goes after Cassandra. They tussle, while Jason jumps on the guy.
Jax tells Carly that he and Nikolas had done business before, so he agreed to a meeting. Nikolas showed himself, and made a pitch to find the codicil. He’d sell Jax the entire shipping division of Cassadine Industries at a favorable price. She asks if it’s worth working with a man who’s faked his death twice. Jax says his first impulse was to walk away, but Spencer was also a factor. He thought she’d be more understanding. She says, why? and he says, keeping a secret for Spencer’s sake isn’t any different than keeping the secret about Dev. It’s the right thing for the wrong reason. Carly says, Nikolas will benefit most, but Jax says, it will eventually go to Spencer. He hasn’t forgotten the lie he told when he tried to claim Spencer as his own, and how she helped. Carly asks if he’s saying she should keep his secret as a penance.
Peter says Charlotte adores Lulu, and he’s seen their rapport. Lulu says, that’s sweet, and Maxie says, it’s the truth. Peter says, Charlotte was bored, mischievous, or saw something she wanted to look at. It was a momentary kid impulse. It happens. It’s not her fault, or indicative of her parenting skills. Maxie tells Lulu, what he said.
Jordan says when Cassandra was first arraigned, she made point of asking to speak to Laura alone. What did they talk about. Laura says, what she’d told them. Cassandra offered her dirt on Valentin in exchange for her help. She passed, but it looks like someone else took the deal.
Robert comes back, and says he went through all the files the Bureau has on Cassandra, but there’s nothing that ties her to a deal with Valentin. Jordan says, now what? He says, let’s look at it from another angle. How come Cassandra got on work detail that took her out of Pentenville? If that doesn’t scream plot, he doesn’t know what does. Jordan says, like the deal with the fake guard who helped Shiloh. Robert says, which brings him to another point. How come Peter visited Shiloh twice in the same day at Pentenville? What’s that about?
Valentin tells Nina, he never intended to be a father. He never wanted a child. When he was young, he was a bad man, and did bad things to people. He was fine being alone that way. No one had to pay for his mistakes. But through the demonic machinations of Helena, and embryo was created; his child Charlotte was born. From the moment they met, he knew he’d been changed forever. He held her, and promised nothing he’d done would come back to haunt her. He built a wall between the man he was and the man he became with her. There’s been a breech in that wall, and his past has reached through and taken his daughter. He cries, and says he’s doing everything he can, but he’s frightened. He’s afraid it won’t be enough. Nina holds him, and strokes his hair.
Anna and Cassandra fight, and Anna gets Cassandra down and in a headlock. Jason finishes off the other guy. Charlotte says, take that loser. Jason asks what she’s doing there, and Anna runs to her. Jason says he told Charlotte to stay put, but she says she wanted to see what was happening. Anna asks if she’s okay, and Charlotte says she’s fine. Anna tells Jason he has record timing, and Charlotte says, Cassandra is evil. She thanks them for saving her. Anna starts to say that Cassandra is going to spend the rest of her days in prison, but realizes Cassandra is gone.
Carly sighs, and asks if Jax is willing to wash his hands of Nikolas. Jax says if he exposes Nikolas, he exposes himself as well. Carly asks, how? and Jax says, Nikolas is an amateur. He used Jax’s credit card to rent a van to help Cassandra escape. She asks if the police know, and he says, not at this point. Only Jason. Sam gave him a partial plate number, and he had Spinelli trace it. It’s only a matter of time before the cops show up. Maybe he should get ahead, and just come clean. Call the authorities, and let them know. She says he can be charged as an accessory, and Josslyn needs him. He asks what she’s going to do, now that she knows Nikolas is alive. She says, it’s best if no one knows. They’ll have to keep Nikolas’s secret, like it or not.
Finn tells Hayden that he hasn’t told Anna about Violet. He wants to tell her face-to-face when she gets back. She says, even though he doesn’t know for how long? He says, yeah, but that doesn’t mean they have to wait to tell Violet. She asks if he wants to tell her, and he says he does – with her permission. She says, absolutely. Whenever he wants. He says, how about tomorrow morning? and she asks if he’s sure. He says they’re already staying the night. They’ll have breakfast as a family, and they’ll tell her then. He smiles.
Jordan tells Laura, maybe someone is helping Cassandra get away, and get to Valentin. Laura can’t think of who would be so desperate that they’d be willing to help Cassandra. Jordan ponders that.
Robert finds it curious that Peter happened to be on the pier the night Shiloh died. Maxie says, this is ridiculous. Lulu’s daughter is missing, and Peter is trying to help. He doesn’t need to be hounded about random visits to the prison that happened weeks ago. Robert says she assumes they’re random. Maxie asks if Robert has nothing better to do as DA than nurse his grudge against Peter. If Anna was there, he wouldn’t be saying any of this. Well, she should be there shortly, and we can find out.
Nina tells Valentin, it doesn’t matter about his past mistakes. That doesn’t change the fact he’s a good dad. Valentin says, a good dad would rescue his daughter. Nina asks what he’s going to do, and he asks if she can do him a favor. It might sound silly, but he’d like her to get the blanket they got Charlotte. He’d like to be close to something that means something to Charlotte. Nina says, it’s not silly; it’s sweet. She kisses him, and he says, Cassandra, where are you?
Anna, Jason, and Charlotte look out to the water. Anna says, she’s getting away. Charlotte wants to call her papa, but says Cassandra took her phone. Jason says, use his, and gives it to her. She calls, and says, please pick up. Valentin’s phone rings. The caller ID says private, and he picks up. He hears Charlotte’s voice, and says, thank God. Is she okay? Charlotte says she’s safe on the pier. He asks whose phone she’s using, and says, Jason’s. He saved her. Valentin asks if Cassandra is with them, but Charlotte says, she drove off on a boat.
Valentin gets another incoming call, and tells Charlotte, stay with Jason. He’ll call her back. Charlotte asks him to tell Nina that she loves her so much. Valentin says Nina loves her too. He takes the other call.
It’s Cassandra, calling from the boat. She says it’s exactly where he said it would be. It’s a testament to his good faith. She’s going to tell him who broke her out of the WSB. He says he doesn’t care. He just wanted to make sure she was on the boat. Goodbye. She says, what? She lifts a tarp, and sees a bomb underneath it. She says, no! and Valentin hits a red button on his phone. The boat explodes.
Anna says, that’s the end of that. An armed Nikolas peeks out from around the corner. Charlotte sees him.
Tomorrow, Josslyn wants to finish her conversation with Carly, Charlotte refuses to go home with Lulu, Robert thinks there’s something Anna should know, and Jax says he’s thisclose to blowing Nikolas’s cover.
The Real Housewives of Orange County
Ugh. Tamra. I think she’s only giving two of those three Fs.
Brian comes home, and makes fun of the turban Kelly is wearing. She says, it’s the biggest thing on the runway; the next fashion thing. Emily visits introduces self to Brian. He says he’s heard great things about her. In Kelly’s interview, she says Emily and Brian are smart, good, and genuine people, who give her great advice. She respects them. Emily says she’s glad Kelly is settling down. Brian asks what kind of law Emily practices. She says she practiced family law when she started, but in her old age, she prefers copyright. She asks if Brian has ever been married. In her interview, Kelly says she’s been proposed to three times, but Brian has never proposed to anybody. He says he’s been hanging out for the greatest girl, and Kelly says, not her? Emily tells them about Shannon bringing up their fight. Kelly says, it was twisted into something it wasn’t. She wonders what happened. She talks to Tamra every morning. We see a clip of Tamra telling Kelly that she thinks Shannon is jealous of them being friends. Kelly says she felt like she was in a safe place with Tamra. Brian says, you can’t control how people act, but you can control how you react to it. Kelly says Tamra heard a rumor and told Braunwyn, and now Braunwyn told everyone else. She thought it was Vicki. Well, that would be a good guess.
Tamra meets Gina, who asks how her trip was. Tamra says, it sucked. The first day was good; they went hiking. Then Kelly sent her a nasty-ass text message. In Tamra’s interview, she says Eddie was trying to take her away from everything. He wanted her to relax, and now she’s paranoid. She tells Gina, it makes zero sense. Eddie took her away because of the stress, since Ryan is in therapy, and one of her daughters is going to college Tamra wonders what she did. Gina says she had a drink with Shannon after their dinner, and she had to stuff say about Tamra. We see a clip of Shannon telling Gina that Tamra said she was fat, and said that she didn’t want to room with Shannon on the next trip. Gina tells Shannon that she remembers Tamra saying it. In her interview, Tamra says, it’s a different kind of ice out; it’s nonchalant. Shannon keeps saying they’ll talk later, but she’s full of it. If she did this to Shannon, Shannon would be screaming and yelling. Gina thinks Tamra should talk to Shannon. Tamra thinks that Shannon doesn’t like that she’s friends with Kelly. She has a gut feeling that Shannon is behind this. Gina says, something isn’t right.
Kelly tells Emily that she asked if Tamra was talking sh*t about her, but she said no. Emily tells Brian that Tamra likes to push Kelly’s buttons to get her to lose it on other people. Brian says, she’s a puppet master, and Kelly agrees, calling herself an idiot.
Braunwyn takes daughter Bella to orientation at Cal State Fullerton college. Braunwyn is excited for her to have the college experience, but when all the kids leave, and Braunwyn isn’t a mom, it will be a hard experience for her. Bella is running late, and Braunwyn tells her not to sabotage herself.
Shannon tells Sophie that they’re behind the eight ball with the college counselor. Sophie says, there are people who didn’t go to college who are billionaires. In Shannon’s interview, she says she doesn’t want to think about Sophie going to college. It’s going to happen fast. Her kids aren’t with her half the time now; she can’t imagine none of the time. Sophie says getting a degree from community college is the same as any other college, but Shannon says, it absolutely matters where you go. Sadly, although it shouldn’t, Shannon is right. She asks Sophie about her requirements, and Sophie wants school spirit, good gateways to life after college, and Southern boys. Shannon hopes one of those Southern gentlemen is the guy.
When they get to Fullerton, Braunwyn says, when she was Bella’s age, she met Bella’s dad. Bella says, then she got pregnant, but Braunwyn says, that was four years later. In Braunwyn’s interview, she says her biggest regret is how quickly she got engaged. She was already living with Sean, and it would have been nice to do the college thing. A girl meets them to give them a tour.
College counselor Yosepha arrives at Shannon’s house. In her interview, Shannon says it can cost thousands for a college counselor, and I say, wtf? Maybe you shouldn’t be going to college if you need a counselor to help get you there. Shannon says she’ll do anything to get her kid into college. The Beadors are above the law. No. Wait. She says she got that wrong. The Beadors are not above the law. A Freudian slip? Yosepha tells Sophie the three factors are, the standard tests, marketing herself, and building a school list. Schools are looking for leaders, and she has to shape and mold her experiences, so she stands out. In other words, enhance her resumé. Sophie says she’s writing a book about living with divorced parents. It’s hard sometimes. In Shannon’s interview, she says she’s afraid to read it. She’ll see how deeply her actions have hurt and affected her daughter. Yosepha says a lot of people have those ideas, but not the follow-through. That could make Sophie stand out. Sophie says she wants to be a psyche major, and Yosepha tells her that she could also go into marketing or business with that. It’s got a flexible career path.
Bella says she wants to major in the arts; music, dance, drawing, and painting. In Braunwyn’s interview, she says she’s excited about Bella’s path to her future. Kids grow up and live their own story, but when they start their story, they leave hers. Sean says, it could be worse. They could be excited she’s leaving. Bella says she worked hard to get there, and tears up. Braunwyn hugs her.
Kelly asks Jolie to help fold clothes. She asks if Jolie is excited to go to London. In Kelly’s interview, she says she’s proud of Jolie, going by herself. She’ll be going to museums and plays, and experiencing what the world is like. She won’t be stuck in OC with a bunch of rich kids. Jolie says Kelly is angry all the time; why is she mad? Kelly asks why Jolie thinks she gets mad at her, and Jolie says, because she doesn’t listen, but why is she mad at other people? Kelly says, people bug her. She hates people. Jolie says people who hurt, hurt other people. Kelly lets the haters stay with her. In her interview, Kelly says, Jolie is an old soul. She’s learned so much from her. She has a knack for brushing off haters. It’s bizarre. She asks Jolie how to be the bigger person, and Jolie says, don’t listen.
Tamra and Ryan go therapist Mcayla. (Yep. That’s how it’s spelled.) Tamra says she’s there to fill in the blanks or support. Mcayla says they did Ryan’s history and his motivation for being there. How is he feeling currently? In Tamra’s interview, she says the therapist thought it would be good for her to come in. Ryan’s not in a good head space. She tells Mcayla that she saw Ryan’s mood swings, and he’s at a point where he’s numb to life. Her theory is that when he’s overloaded, he shuts down. He’s not happy, and she wants to see him happy. Mcayla asks about the circumstances in the beginning. Was Tamra married to Ryan’s father? Tamra grabs some tissues, and says she was seventeen, pregnant, and still in high school. They got married, and it lasted a year. After that, she and Ryan were alone for thirteen years. She carries guilt because she feels like she let him down. She sees her other kids now having the opportunities Ryan didn’t have. He ran when he was eighteen, because he couldn’t stand his stepdad. In Ryan’s interview, he says it wasn’t the worst life, but the older he gets, he sees how his brother and sister are growing up, and he’s a little bit angry inside. We flash back to a million years ago, and Ryan complaining that Simon is controlling him. Mcayla asks what kind of emotions come up in thinking about his stepfather, and Ryan says he wasn’t there for his granddaughter’s birth, and he’s just not there. Mcayla asks if he knows what’s under the anger, and Ryan says he’s disappointed. It’s sad, and he’s hurt. She asks about his relationship with his daughter, and Tamra says she’s his world. Mcayla says they have an emotional connection? and Ryan starts to cry. Tamra says, he’s a good dad. She sees him putting all his energy into his daughter. In Tamra’s interview, she says she can see it in his eyes; he’s not himself. He’s so troubled by his past, and doesn’t want his daughter to have that life. He wants to protect her, and won’t let people in. He isolates with his daughter, and she’s worried. Mcayla says feelings and emotions are intertwined with thoughts, and you have to find where it’s coming from. Depression is a by-product. Mcayla reads what Ryan has written about himself, that he’s a failure, powerless, and doesn’t belong. He doesn’t matter. Tamra says it makes her want to die. She’s struggled with depression, and to hear him say these things scares her. Mcayla says Tamra is his mother, and knows the depth of his outlook. In her interview, Tamra says her biggest fear is suicide. Tamra shows Mcayla a list Ryan made when he was doing well. He wrote down his goals, and she keeps it in her wallet. It’s where he was six years ago. Mcayla tells Ryan not to give up on the process when it gets hard. She has confidence that he’ll do it. She tells Tamra that she did the best she could as a mother. His mother can’t be his therapist. Ryan thanks Tamra for getting him there.
Sidebar: Gina and Tamra are starting to deserve each other. Gina is so desperate to fit in she’s become a Tamra mini me
Gina brings her kids to the playground, accompanied by her parents Susan and Gino. She tells them Matt is looking for a job in the area. He’s being good with the kids. Susan asks if it’s for the right reasons. What if he doesn’t get back with her. Gina says she gets nervous because he’s jealous. She knows if she doesn’t end up with him, he won’t do it gracefully. In her interview, she says if Matt doesn’t get his way, it’s a problem for everyone else. She thinks he’ll make problems for her, and make co-parenting an issue. Susan says it sounds like Gina found herself, and asks if she still has feelings for Matt. Gina doesn’t know. She wants to work on it, but doesn’t know if she can get back to the place they need to be. She still wants the divorce regardless. She feels like that’s over. In Gina’s interview, she says when they got married, they were very young and immature, and ultimately the relationship failed. If they get back together, she doesn’t want to bring old problems into the new relationship. Gina says she wants to be in love, but she’s not there emotionally. She’s put her toe in the dating water, and discovered there are qualities that are non-negotiable. Dr. Hottie is very funny and polite. Gino says he doesn’t want to see Gina settle. Susan wonders if there will be a whiplash affect; where Matt is nice, but then blows up. Gina says she has to set boundaries. I think that ship might have sailed when she slept with Matt. Luca runs up, and says he doesn’t understand what chinchillas are. Gina says, they’re marsupials. He goes back to the playground, and she says she really has no idea. I can tell, because they’re not marsupials. They’re rodents. Very cute and soft rodents. Now I want one.
Tamra tells Eddie about therapy. She told the therapist about Ryan’s background growing up, and her view of what’s going on. It turned into a therapy session for the two of them. In her interview, Tamra says she never really opens up. It’s not the way she was raised. She tells Eddie, she thinks she carries guilt because she didn’t give Ryan a perfect childhood. A lot came out, and Ryan broke down. Eddie says, that’s the first step to recovery; breaking down. She says Ryan had to write a list of how he feels about himself, and it said, loser, not worth anything, going nowhere. It was sad. In his interview, Eddie says, Tamra is a great mom. Every kid is different, but when you’re struggling with your childhood as a man, you’re not a man. Get over it, grow up, and take care of your responsibilities. That’s life. Tamra tells Eddie that Shannon isn’t calling her, and Kelly is asking what she did. In her interview, Tamra wonders what’s going on. When she left, she and Kelly were fine. Eddie asks what prompted it, and she has the feeling Shannon is behind it. He says she needs new friends. She says she doesn’t need friends like that for sure.
Braunwyn, Emily, and Kelly meet for lunch. They get shrimp cocktails that have shrimp the size of my hand in them. Kelly says her brother Eric has been calling. He feels she’s not helping her mom. We flash back to Kelly and mom Bobbi in therapy, and Bobbi insisting she’s not telling Kelly what to do, while telling her what to do. Emily says she’s been through it, and thinks Kelly has to be willing to reach out. Kelly says her mother doesn’t want to talk to her, and Braunwyn can’t wrap her brain around being that angry with her children. Emily says Kelly should reach out directly. When Emily was in that position, she realized if something happened to her mother, she’d lose her mind. Kelly says, it’s scary, and Emily says if her mother rejects her, it’s on her mother. Kelly gets weepy, and Emily says Kelly can fix it. In Emily’s interview, she says she begged her mom to get therapy, and it’s been rewarding for both of them. We see a clip of Emily’s mother thanking her. Kelly thanks them for being supportive. Emily says she has to let her guard down sometime, and reach out. Braunwyn hopes it’s not like that with her girls. Emily says Kelly needs to figure out where she and her mother are at, and if it goes sideways… Braunwyn says Kelly will know she did what she needed to do. Kelly thanks them, and Braunwyn says they’re ride or die. No drama with them. Emily says she’s supposed to have dinner with Tamra and Vicki, and she’s worried it will be a Kelly bashing session. She doesn’t want to go there, and Kelly says, tell them off.
Shannon meets Tamra, and asks how she is. Tamra says, horrible; thanks for asking. Shannon laughs, thinking Tamra is joking, but Tamra says she thinks they’d better cut to the chase. Tell her what the sh*t storm is about. Shannon doesn’t know, but at dinner things were said, and she felt blindsided. Tamra asks, what things? and Shannon says Kelly told her how many mean things Tamra has said about her. She said Tamra thought she faked being hurt in Arizona, and said she wanted to room with just Kelly and Gina on the next trip. Gina remembered Tamra saying it. Tamra says she and Kelly were so drunk, they don’t know how they got home. She doesn’t remember planning a trip that’s not happening. What else was said? Shannon tells her, she heard Tamra said she’s getting fat. She told them, if what they were saying was true, it hurts. Tamra asks if Shannon stuck up for her, and Shannon says, in the beginning. Tamra says, but not at the end? Shannon says Kelly showed her a screenshot of Tamra making fun of her being hit in the head. Tamra says it’s just a video she sent, and asks, what’s the missing link? What happened to make Kelly switch? It makes no sense.
Braunwyn tells Kelly and Emily that when Tamra gets in trouble, she says Braunwyn did it. Kelly says Tamra is a master manipulator. Braunwyn says, it’s like a chess game with middle-aged women. Kelly says the others are calculated chess players, and they’re checkers. Braunwyn laughs, and says they’re just having fun. They’re beer pong. Emily says Kelly is the dumbest smart person she’s ever met.
Tamra tells Shannon for Kelly to switch like that makes no sense. She just started trashing Tamra? Shannon asks if Tamra is alluding that she’s behind this. We flash back to each of the women taling about something that Tamra did, and Braunwyn telling them that Tamra is manipulating them into fighting among themselves. Shannon says she’s been nothing but a good friend to Tamra, and Tamra tells her not to spin it. Shannon says she didn’t call because Tamra was on her trip, and Tamra tells her, don’t try to flip this. Shannon asks if Tamra is accusing her of orchestrating and provoking a conversation with Kelly. Tamra says Shannon is a puppet master; she’s so calculated. Shannon didn’t tell her anything in the past five days, and it’s been hell for her. Shannon says Tamra told her that she and Eddie were going to have sex all weekend; she wasn’t effing that up, and have Eddie say Tamra was upset because she called to tell Tamra about high school BS. Tamra says Kelly sent her a nasty text. Does Shannon think it didn’t ruin her day? Tamra pulls out a pile of texts she’s printed out.
Shannon says she doesn’t know what she did that was so bad. Maybe her repeating what Tamra told her about Kelly hurting that woman’s hand provoked it, but Tamra did tell her that. What’s the big deal? They said Tamra put the word train out there, and Tamra says Vicki claimed she had more info, and she asked if it was about the train. So she put it out there? (Well, yeah. That’s what Shannon just said.) Shannon says she could argue that Tamra is mad because she’s hurt, but it’s bullsh*t. She doesn’t understand why, when someone isn’t there, they’re bashed. She doesn’t believe they were bashing Kelly at Vicki’s birthday party though. They were just saying stuff; it was different. Omg. Do these women ever hear themselves? So is Tamra telling her that she said none of those things? Tamra says, not that she recalls. In Shannon’s interview, she says, Tamra brought up the train and told her about the barfight. It would be so much simpler if someone would just say they make mistakes, and they made one here. Own your stuff. Shannon says, she had dinner with the other women, and the consensus was that if there’s drama, Tamra behind it. But after her conversation with her best friend, she thinks others might be behind it. In Tamra’s interview, she says she doesn’t necessarily believe Shannon, but she has a deeper friendship with Shannon than she does with Kelly. She thinks it’s Kelly, and she’s done with her. She tells Shannon, for Kelly to say those things is bullsh*t. She’s playing a dangerous game. Ooh, I’d be scared if I was Kelly. Not really.
Next time, making a video, Braunwyn invites the women to Miami, Gina tells Emily that Matt is upset about her dating, and Kelly is removing herself from the drama.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
At the PCPD, Jordan tells Jason that she can’t allow him near the Cassandra Pierce search. For one, he’s not a cop, and two, someone could say Sam helped Cassandra escape. He says Sam tried to stop her and helped the guard, but Jordan says, what transpired could be interpreted all kinds of ways. He needs to keep his distance.
Laura thanks Valentin for coming to the station. He says he didn’t have much choice. He was told he’d be arrested if he didn’t, but no one mentioned on what grounds. Laura says she asked the Commissioner to bring him in. He asks if it’s something specific, or is this just garden variety harassment? She says Cassandra escaped, and she thought he could help to find her.
Nikolas sneaks into Jax’s place via the terrace door. Jax turns on the lights, like what your dad would do if you were sneaking in after curfew. He says he left the door unlocked for Nikolas in case he was coming back. Nikolas says he tried calling Jax, but got voicemail. Jax says he got Nikolas’s message saying their situation was compromised. Nikolas asks where Jax was, and why he didn’t pick up his phone, but Jax says he’ll ask the questions. Where was Nikolas? Nikolas flashes back to picking up Cassandra at the park.
Finn sits on the couch, eating, reading, and using his laptop, as we all do. He starts to type, and the doorbell rings. It’s Hayden and Violet. Hayden asks if there’s any chance Finn is up for visitors.
At the cemetery, Julian says he hopes Lucas doesn’t mind him showing up. It’s fitting, since their first conversation as father and son happened there. Lucas says Julian rejected him for being gay. Julian says they’ve come a long way; he’s come a long way. Lucas doesn’t think so. His progress was an illusion. Julian hasn’t changed. He’s less homophobic, but he’s still a liar, and Lucas wants nothing to do with him.
Obrecht sits next to Brad at Kelly’s counter. She says he’s looking pitiful, and he says he didn’t ask her to join him. He’s not in the mood. Obrecht says his mood is irrelevant. They have a more pressing matter to discuss. Those tests he manipulated for her; what has he done to cover his tracks?
Lulu asks Maxie when Peter’s move-in date is, and Maxie says, in a couple of weeks. That gives her time to clear out a closet. She suggests planning a dinner for the four of them; her, Maxie, Peter, and hot Dustin. Peter needs more friends, and hot Dustin is great. Lulu says he is great, but she feels it’s too soon for a couples dinner. Speaking of dinner, she needs to get Charlotte home. She looks at the counter, but Charlotte isn’t there. She wonders where Charlotte went.
Valentin asks when Cassandra escaped, and Laura says, this evening. It’s very important that they find her. Like she needs to say this. That’s why Valentin was brought in for questioning. Cassandra’s first phone call was to him after she was apprehended. What did they talk about?
Jordon tells Jason that she’ll have to do a press conference. In the meantime, stay out of this. And they didn’t have this conversation. He says, got it.
Valentin says they dragged him there, and inconvenienced Nina. Nina says she wanted to come. They’re trying to make this Valentin’s fault. Laura says, no one is blaming Valentin. On his way out, Jason calls Spinelli, and tells him that Sam got a partial plate number from the van that picked up Cassandra. He thanks Spinelli, and says he’s on it. Jordan joins Laura, and Laura asks about Valentin’s meeting with Cassandra when she was in custody. Valentin says Cassandra wanted his help; she wanted to trade on their prior association. They knew each other briefly in Europe before he knew she was a criminal. When he found out, he broke it off. Jordan asks why he wouldn’t have ignored her call, unless she had leverage. Valentin flashes back to asking Cassandra if she’s threatening him with telling the police that his wife drugged her. Cassandra says, hardly. It’s not likely they’d take her word over Nina’s, but Nina doesn’t know that, does she?
Jax asks Nikolas where Cassandra is. Nikolas says he doesn’t know. He arranged for her escape, and she managed to escape from him. Jax asks, how? and Nikolas says she jumped out at a red light. He tried to reach Jax to call 911, but Jax didn’t pick up. He had to call 911 himself. Jax asks why Nikolas was helping her, and Nikolas says he thought Cassandra was cutting a deal. He couldn’t risk her telling anyone that he’s alive. He had to help her before she gave him up. Jax says, she’s a huge criminal; a drug dealer. Now he finds out, not only is Nikolas connected to her, he helped her escape prison. He didn’t sign up for this.
Violet asks if this is Finn’s house, and he says he lives there. Hayden says the hospital told her that he was gone for the day, so she thought they’d stop by. He says they saved him from a solo dinner of a turkey sandwich with a side of research. Violet says, what? and Hayden tells her, it’s Dr. Finn’s way of saying he was having a snack while working. Remember how he made her feel better? He has to study up, so he can make other people feel better. He helps lots of people. Violet is glad they’re friends, and Hayden says she’s glad too.
Julian asks Lucas, where is this coming from? Lucas says if he didn’t know better, he’d buy Julian’s innocent act. But he does know better. Brad told him everything. Brad never had an affair. Julian framed him, hoping to break them up, and didn’t care about breaking up Wiley’s happy home, or Lucas’s pain, or his love for his husband. Julian says, not true, and Lucas asks how he can say that. He deliberately set Lucas up to break his heart, thinking he’d shrug it off, and he could buy Wiley enough toys that he wouldn’t miss his other father. Julian says Lucas is wrong; it’s just the opposite. Lucas says Julian attempting to deny it, is how he knows Julian works. He denies everything until one day, the truth comes out. Is that how he wants to play this? Julian says he’ll tell Lucas the truth. He did stage the affair.
Brad tells Obrecht that he admitted to Lucas that he did extracurricular lab work for her. She asks why on earth he would do that, and he says Lucas was questioning his behavior. She laughs, and says, he’s just questioning it now? Brad has always been a furtive weasel. Brad says Lucas knew he was hiding something, and he needed a plausible explanation, so he confessed. She needs to keep her distance; no more special projects. She says Brad might repair his marriage, and perhaps that might work for him, but it doesn’t work for her at all. Brad’s marital problems will get worse when she tells Lucas that Wiley was stolen.
Lulu says she’s checked the whole building, and Maxie says there’s no sign of Charlotte outside. Lulu says, they know Charlotte is independent and impulsive, but she knows better than to wander off at night. When she calls Charlotte’s phone, it’s going straight to voicemail. Either Charlotte has the phone turned off, or she’s ignoring it.
Down by the docks – I’m not sure why anyone hides there, since it’s like Grand Central Station – Charlotte asks if Cassandra is sure Nina is okay. Cassandra says, Nina is fine, and she’ll stay that way as long as Charlotte cooperates. Charlotte says she is cooperating. She came with Cassandra, but all Cassandra has done is play with her phone. When is she going home? Cassandra tells her, be patient. If she tells the police what Nina did, Nina will go straight to prison. Charlotte says Cassandra promised not to; that’s the only reason she helped. Cassandra says, when Charlotte goes home, she’ll find Cassandra is a woman of her word, but she has to exercise patience. Charlotte’s parents put a tracking device on her phone, and Cassandra is a bit of a technical wizard. She knows how to turn it off. Charlotte says, papa needs to know where she is, and Cassandra says Valentin is lucky to have a daughter who’s so devoted. She’ll change her tune in the next year or two, but meanwhile, she suggests Charlotte try to be more pleasant. No one is finding out where Charlotte is until Cassandra wants them to.
Nikolas says he had no idea about Cassandra’s criminal past, and took the trouble to revive her solely to get information about Valentin. He thought they’d never intersect. Jax says, clearly, he thought wrong. There’s a knock at the door. It’s Jason who says he’s got to talk to Jax.
Violet skips around. She sees Anna’s ceramic bulldog with the Union Jack bandana. She asks if it’s Finn’s, and he says it belongs to a friend of his from England. Has she ever heard of England? Violet says, no, and Hayden says she’s never been there, but she’s a fan of one of their customs; the tea party. Violet asks if they can have one right now, and Hayden and Finn laugh.
Lucas says he’s impressed. He expected Julian to lie his way out. Not that it would have done any good. Brad recorded their last conversation, and he heard it himself. Julian says, all of it? and Lucas asks what he means. He knows enough to know Julian tried to frame Brad. Julian says he was trying to protect Lucas. Brad is into something shady, and he didn’t want it to blow up in Lucas’s face. Lucas asks, why not tell him? but Julian says Lucas would have confronted Brad, who would have denied it, which is what he does. Lucas would have been forced to choose between his husband and the father he just let back in his life. He would have chosen Brad, because that’s exactly what happened.
Valentin says Cassandra called him, and thought she’d blackmail him, suggesting she had incriminating information on him, and she was willing to give him up. He called her bluff. She knew nothing; he never committed a crime in his life. Jordan suggests he’s had ample time to cover anything up while Cassandra was with the WSB. He says she had nothing, and she knew that he knew that. That’s the last he heard from her. Nina says, when they thought Sasha was her daughter, Cassandra targeted Sasha, and almost killed her. Even though she’s severed ties with Sasha, she wants to see Cassandra punished. Valentin says Jordan had assured him that Cassandra had been extradited to the Hague to face trial. He’s answered her questions, now answer his. Why was Cassandra allowed to stay in Port Charles?
An officer calls Jordan over to the phone. It’s Lulu, who asks Jordan to send an officer over to Kelly’s. Charlotte wandered off, and she’s not picking up her phone. They can’t find her anywhere.
Jason continues to bang on the door. Nikolas hides. Jax answers, and says, sorry. He was out on the terrace. What’s the urgency? Jason says he’s there about Sam. She was on work detail, when Cassandra escaped. Cassandra hit the guard in the head, and Sam stayed to help. Whoever arranged her transportation could be charged as an accomplice. She met a guy driving a van, and Sam got a partial license plate number. He had it traced, and the van was rented using a credit card from Jax’s holding company, J. J. Jax Alaska.
Hayden asks Finn if he’s sure it’s okay to use the nice China. Finn says Violet seems skillful in pouring; she’ll make a good surgeon one day. Hayden says they’re using apple juice. The pour is the same, but there’s no chance of being scalded. When they have a tea party, they usually have more guests. Finn asks if Violet invites her friends, and Hayden says Bella and Otto join them; they’re stuffed toys. Bella has been around since Violet was three months old, and is very soft and well loved. Otto is an owl who came along when they were in a toy store in Italy. She told Violet that she could get whatever she wanted, and she wanted Otto. He’s wise-looking, and on the formal side; not the most approachable stuffed animal, until you get close enough to hold him. He’s soft and squishy. Finn says he’d like to meet Otto, and Hayden says she knows they’d get along great.
Julian says he was trying keep Lucas free of the hole Brad dug. Lucas asks how Julian justifies using cruelty and deception to help out? He’s not going to let Julian use family as an excuse. He’s done for good. Julian says, don’t do this, but Brad says, no; he’s done. No more lies and betrayal. It’s too exhausting. Even if he could take it, why should Wiley have to?
At Kelly’s, Lulu gives the officer a recent photo of Charlotte. He asks her to text it to him, and she does, while describing what Charlotte was wearing. She doesn’t know how it happened. Charlotte was sitting at the counter, doing her homework. Maybe she got impatient. She can be impetuous. Lulu suggests maybe she went to a pop-up T-shirt stand they passed, but Maxie says she checked there, and the stand is gone. Lulu says maybe Charlotte is out looking for it, and asks the officer, please, just find her.
Obrecht tells another officer that she didn’t see Charlotte. She’s sure she would have noticed; Charlotte is like a niece to her. Brad says he saw Charlotte earlier, but didn’t notice her leaving. He was talking with Willow, then Obrecht. The officer shows them a picture of Cassandra, and asks if they recall seeing her today around Kelly’s. Brad says there might have been a woman who looked like her, but he can’t be sure. The officer talking to Lulu shows her the photo. Lulu says her mother helped apprehend Cassandra, and he says, she’s believed to be in the general area. Lulu says her daughter is missing, and an escaped fugitive is on the loose.
At the station, Valentin is on the phone, and asks if they’ve seen or heard from Charlotte. Laura says her granddaughter is very headstrong and independent. She may have decided to head to Windymere on her own. Valentin says he just spoke to the launch captain, but he hasn’t seen her, and neither has the housekeeper. Jordan wonders if there’s anywhere else Charlotte could show up, and Nina suggests Crimson. She tells them to check the freight elevator and the sample closets. Laura asks Jordan to send a car to Lulu’s house. Maybe Charlotte went home on her own. Nina asks if Valentin is waiting for Charlotte to call, and he says, not Charlotte; Cassandra.
Charlotte tells Cassandra that her papa will give Cassandra what she wants. Cassandra can go away, and never tell about the bad thing Nina did. Cassandra says she’s going to wait, and give Valentin time to get good and scared. Charlotte says he’s never scared, and Cassandra says she has so much to learn. She’s the apple of Valentin’s eye, and he loves her without reservation. He’s terrified harm will come to Charlotte, and she’s going to take full advantage of that fear.
Jordan says there’s been no sign of criminal activity at Kelly’s, and no one remembers seeing Charlotte leave. Laura says there haven’t been any calls about Cassandra sightings since the call to 911. The PCPD is canvassing the area, but she’s concerned it was a diversion. While the authorities are concentrating on one area, Cassandra could have fled elsewhere.
Valentin tells Nina, Cassandra has Charlotte, but Nina says Charlotte was warned about her. Valentin says, Charlotte is a child, and no match for Cassandra. He doesn’t know how she did it, but Cassandra knows he’d do anything for his daughter. She’ll contact him soon enough. Nina asks if he’s going to tell the police.
Julian tells Lucas, life doesn’t go according to plan. He got to know his grandson, and Lucas. They bonded as a family, and it’s meant everything to him. When he saw Brad putting that in jeopardy, he tried to protect Lucas; it’s what parents do. He admits he overreacted, but Lucas says it’s more than making a bad choice. It was a calculated attack on his family. He’s not jeopardizing his family to give Julian another chance. He’s done. Julian asks, what if he says something to help Lucas understand? But he has to listen with an open mind. Lucas’s phone rings. It’s Brad, who says he’s at Kelly’s. Heads up. Charlotte disappeared, and they’re started to worry that she wandered into the path of an escaped prisoner.
Violet sleeps on the couch. Hayden says Violet was having so much fun, she didn’t want to break up the party. Finn hopes there will be more, but the first one will always be his favorite. She says, her too. She’ll give the dishes a quick wash, and they’ll be on their way. Finn suggests putting Violet in the guest room, and then doing the dishes together.
Jax tells Jason that he had nothing to do with Cassandra’s escape. Jason says he didn’t think Jax did, but thinks the card information was stolen. Jax says he charges most of his expenses to his Aurora credit card; the one from Alaska is only for international transactions. It could have been hacked. Jason asks if there’s any chance Jerry was involved, but Jax says, none whatsoever. Jason asks if Jax has any other ideas, and Jax asks if Jason has any leads. He takes it that he should expect a visit from the cops. Jason says Sam didn’t tell them about the license plate, but eventually they’ll trace it to Jax. Jax thanks Jason for letting him know. Jason looks around a little, and sees wet shoe prints near the fireplace. Outside on the terrace, Nikolas looks at his wet shoes.
Lulu tells Maxie that she doesn’t know how this happened; she was right there. Cassandra is at large. What if Charlotte ran into her? Maxie says, maybe Charlotte just snuck off to avoid punishment. She would have done the same thing at Charlotte’s age. Lulu hopes the worst thing is that Charlotte is avoiding a stern talking to and tough consequences.
Valentin tells Nina that the PCPD is incapable of handling Cassandra. He’s going to handle her himself, but he may need Nina’s help.
Obrecht tells Brad, she prays no harm comes to Charlotte. Brad says, she prays? She says, when the situation merits it. Brad might consider turning prayer. He could use divine intervention. Brad thinks everyone is overreacting. Charlotte is known to be a brat. She probably walked off. Obrecht says, typical. A girl who’s strong-willed and has spirit, is a brat. A boy would be considered assertive. Brad says Lucas is coming, and he and Obrecht can’t be seen together. She has to leave. Obrecht says she hasn’t had dinner. Brad is up to his neck in secrets, and expects her to keep them. Brad says, Lucas thinks it’s just one. They see Lucas about to come in, and Obrecht jets out the side door.
Jax tells Jason, the footprints could be from anybody. He has construction going on right now. People are coming and going. Jason says, none of it adds up, but Jax says Jason doesn’t think he’d help a drug dealer or jeopardize Sam’s freedom, does he? Jason says, Jax wouldn’t be withholding information, would he? but Jax says he’s told Jason everything. Jason says Carly and Josslyn are important to him, and he’d do anything for them. He and Jax aren’t always on the same side, but if Jax is in trouble and needs help, no questions asked. Nikolas watches and listens.
Nina asks Lulu what she did to upset Charlotte. Maxie says Lulu is upset about her daughter, and there’s no reason to start a fight. Nina says they all agree Charlotte probably took off. Does Lulu know the reason? Has she been repeating her allegations that Valentin is behind Sasha’s lies? Laura says, this isn’t the time or place. Nina says Charlotte wanted her and Valentin to be married, and Lulu disrupted that. Maybe Charlotte was talking about it, and Lulu scolded her. Lulu says they weren’t fighting. Charlotte was doing her homework at the counter. Nina says, so they were in perfect harmony with the family? Lulu says Charlotte asked to go to Windymere and check on Butterscotch, and she told Charlotte she’d think about it if she did her homework. Valentin gets a call from Charlotte’s phone, and asks, who is this? Cassandra says, who were you expecting, papa? and he asks where his daughter is.
Jason says maybe Jax would like to get closer to the edge, but now that he’s there, Carly and Josslyn can get hurt. Jax says he’d never put them in harm’s way, and Jason says, not intentionally, but if something went sideways… Jax says if he thought that was the case, he’d take Jason up on his offer. Jason hopes he means that. He says if Jax gets a lead on Cassandra, he wants to hear from him. Jason leaves, and Jax grabs something off the mantel and throws it, saying, son of a bitch. Nikolas comes in, and Jax says Nikolas took his credit card, and left a trail tying him to Cassandra’s escape. What was he thinking? He wasn’t thinking, was he? He’s an amateur. Give him one good reason not to hand his sorry ass over to Jason.
Obrecht listens while Brad tells Lucas that the initial theory was that Charlotte took off on her own, but Cassandra has escaped. She was spotted, and now he thinks they’re worried that she has Charlotte. Lucas says Cassandra targeted Sasha by weaponizing a virus. Does Brad think she was in there? Brad isn’t sure, but he was positive enough to ID her, so she might have been. It’s so creepy. Lucas says, it was dangerous. What if Brad had been in the middle of it? He doesn’t know what he’d do if something bad happened to Brad. Brad says he has no intention of leaving Lucas or Wiley. They hug, and Julian watches them through the door, all stalkerish, and totally creeping me out.
Hayden tells Finn that Violet is probably better off on a bed, and asks him to show her where the guest room is. He asks if it’s okay if he takes her, and Hayden says it is. He picks Violet up, still wrapped in her blanket, and takes her upstairs. Hayden follows.
Valentin tells Cassandra, he’ll meet her terms, but only if she follows his to the letter. Let Charlotte go, in public, in a safe place. Understand? He listens, and says, yes, he can do that. He’ll make arrangements.
Nina tells Lulu that her grudge has to stop. Charlotte loves her father, and she knows Lulu hates him. Laura says, that’s enough, and Maxie says it’s got to stop. Where’s Nina’s compassion? Laura calls Jordan over, and Valentin asks, what’s going on? Laura thinks it’s getting too crowded, and Valentin and Nina should wait at home. Valentin says his daughter is missing, and they’re being thrown out? Jordan says they’re being sidetracked when they’re in the middle of two active investigations. They should go. They leave, and Nina tells Valentin that she hopes it’s worth it. He says it might save Charlotte’s life.
Cassandra tells Charlotte, fate is good to bring Charlotte to her. She’s a great hostage. Charlotte wants to go, and Cassandra hates to disappoint her, but says she can’t give Charlotte back just yet. Charlotte says she heard Cassandra promise, but Cassandra says she needs to keep a close guard on Charlotte, so her papa is on good behavior. He’s a tricky one. Charlotte says Cassandra is a tricky one. She’s acting like Charlotte has a choice not to help. Charlotte starts to run, and Cassandra makes a grab for her. Charlotte kicks Cassandra in the shins, but Cassandra gets ahold of her, and says she’ll do as she’s told, or else. Charlotte says, or else what? and Cassandra says she knows how to hurt a little a little girl.
Anna appears, and says, unhand that child. Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?
Nice.
Tomorrow, Hayden has dreamed of hearing Finn say that, Peter doesn’t buy it, Jason has questions about Cassandra, and Anna tells Cassandra if she unhands Charlotte, she’ll let her walk away.
Below Deck
Simone wants to give Abbi a hug. Abbi just wants to leave. The guests go wild on the slide. Brian asks Abbi, what’s wrong? and she says she needs to quit. In her interview, she says it’s not the right job for her. The perfectionism and level of professionalism isn’t for her. She’s used to knowing what she’s doing, and everyone wonders what wrong with her. She cries, and tells Brian that she’s always so happy all the time.
Kevin checks over his menu. Mccall asks Kate to give everyone fireball shots. Brian tells Ashton that Abbi is crying her eyes out. She’s not happy with her situation, and wants leave. Ashton asks where she is, and Brian says, in her cabin. He told her to relax and not worry for the moment. Ashton goes to see Abbi, and she says she doesn’t like the job, and wants to leave. Ashton says she doesn’t have to stress or feel bad. It is what it is. They hug. In Ashton’s interview, he says he does care about Abbi’s happiness, and doesn’t want her to be there if it’s not what she wants, but in reality, they’ll be a man down. He asks if she’s leaving now or finishing the charter, and she says she’ll finish. In his interview, Ashton says, it’s not good. They’re in a remote location, and it’s going to be a struggle to find someone qualified to replace Abbi. Captain Lee won’t be happy. In the laundry room, Simone says, it’s like it’s raining towels.
The captain stops by to see the guests, and tells them he has a water park scheduled for them. It’s basically a lot of different water toys on a floating platform. Kate says she might need Courtney for help with the Thailand party tonight. Brian and Ashton are going to be shirtless servers. She wants to simulate the feeling of being on a lot of drugs. Ashton says he needs to talk to the captain, and Captain Lee wonders why this isn’t giving him a warm, fuzzy feeling. Ashton says he’s noticed Abbi has been feeling depressed, and she’d like to leave the boat. She’ll ride out the rest of the charter, but Ashton thinks they should find a replacement asap. The captain asks if it’s the workload, but Ashton thinks it’s just different from where she worked before. In his interview, Captain Lee says, it’s a classic example of writing a check with your mouth your ass can’t cash. You’re on a beautiful boat in an exotic location, and getting paid for what most people would do for nothing, and you think life sucks. Are you kidding? He tells Ashton, they’ll probably have to do the next charter short-handed. It’s frustrating. Ashton says, he’ll get on it.
Tanner feels like sh*t. He tells Brian that he just needs water; his mouth dries out in a second. Ashton tells them, Abbi is going to stay until the end of the charter, but then she’s leaving. In Tanner’s interview, he wonders, wtf is going on?Abbi is a tornado of emotions. She just got engaged, and now she’s quitting the boat. Tanner hasn’t eaten in three days, and feels like absolute death. He has to push himself to get anything done.
Captain Lee is eating dinner with the guests, and Kevin is nervous. After the last charter, the captain isn’t his best friend, and has him by the balls. We flash back to Captain Lee reading Kevin the riot act. He has to think outside the box, and already has an ulcer in his mouth. It’s stressful. Kate tells Simone that she’s going to the beach with the guests. In Simone’s interview, she says she loves to see amazing places, and loves getting off the boat. No more laundry. Hallelujah.
The guests head out on the tender for Railey Beach. They play on the water toys. Ashton asks Simone, what’s happening? and she says she was basically a laundry machine. Kate is trying to get her out of the laundry room. Courtney isn’t helping. Simone doesn’t think Courtney has ever ironed. In her interview, Simone says she’s feeling more like the third stew than the second. She thinks she shot herself in the foot. Just because she’s good at something, doesn’t mean she wants to do it the whole season.
Kevin talks to Kate about dinner. He’s making beef tongue. In Kate’s interview, she makes a face that makes me literally lol. She says she’s not sure she’d be super-excited to have tongue in her mouth. She laughs at her own joke. She tells Kevin that he’s a maniac. It’s an interesting menu.
Ashton radios that the guests are on the way back. Kate ask how Abbi is, and Abbi says she’s leaving. This isn’t for her. Kate asks if she’s sure; they only have four and a half weeks to go. In Abbi’s interview, she says it’s hitting her all at once. She’s letting people down, and needs to come to terms with it. The guests struggle to get from the tender to the yacht, even with Ashton and Brian helping. I’m not sure if they’re drunk or just really uncoordinated. Kevin preps the tongue. In his interview, he says most people would think it’s blech, but he’s done it many times and it’s delicious. I’m an adventurous eater; I’d try it. Simone suggests Tanner drink some warm ginger beer. He heats it, and it bubbles over. He jokes, maybe next time she could make it for him, and be a real friend.
The centerpiece is a profusion of sea/Thai themed trinkets. Kate says, it’s like a children’s room .She feels like she’s fifteen again. Tanner continues to be sick. Brian says he doesn’t sound well at all. Sitting in the sky lounge, the captain asks if the guests had fun with the water park, and remarks that Mccall has great color. She gets all happy over the compliment. Brian tells Ashton that Tanner is still sick. In Ashton’s interview, he says he has the situation with Abbi, and now this. It’s a big boat, and it’s just him and Brian. Could this day get worse? Bring it on; he’ll take it all now. He tells Tanner to stay in bed.
Kate makes drinks in buckets that have several straws in them, and mushrooms floating on top. She says there’s so much vodka and other stuff in it, they’ll never taste the mushrooms. In the captain’s interview, he says, the presentation was good last night – as it should be every night. Over the top. It needs to be consistent. Go big or go home. If Kevin doesn’t do that, it’s time to pack his sh*t and leave. The first course is a dish using local scallops, and Captain Lee pronounces it outstanding. Kate tells Kevin, they’re loving it. In his interview, he says he’s taking a huge risk on the beef tongue dish. All he needs is one person to be a loudmouth, and say it’s disgusting. It could be his last meal. It looks good, not like what it is. He visits the table, and says he’d like them to try it. He doesn’t think it’s something they’d ever order on off a menu. One guest asks if it’s a brain, and he tells them, it’s beef tongue. Another guest wants to know who put that on their preference sheet. They’re good sports though, and everyone tries it, finding it delicious. Captain Lee says, a little tongue never hurt anyone, and someone says, that’s what she said. In Kevin’s interview, he says he’s killed two birds with one stone. He got the captain off his back, and the guests are super happy. He sings in the galley.
Mccall asks if the captain has heard of ping pong shows. He says he hasn’t, but imagines it doesn’t involve paddles. I don’t believe for a second he doesn’t know what they are. Even I know what they are. Kate asks Ashton if he and Brian can get painted. In Abbi’s interview, she says it’s been a hard day, and she never wants to work on a motor yacht again. She’s going to focus on her passion, sailing around Greece with Patrick. It’s what they both want, and it’s all that matters. Ashton asks Brian if he’s had his body painted before, and Brian says it’s his first rodeo. Kate says they’re wonderful canvases. In Brian’s interview, he says being painted for a full moon party isn’t his vibe, but he’ll take one for the team. He’s glad Courtney got involved. He’d rather her paint him than Ashton.
Brian and Ashton help serve some kind of flan dessert. Mccall fans herself, and says her mouth is watering. Kate asks if Courtney saw the penis ravine on Brian. I’ve never heard this term, but she’s referring to the abdominal muscle that makes a V toward the pelvis. (Does that sound clinical enough?) Kate says she usually doesn’t like that kind of body (I say, what?), but that muscle is pronounced. It’s aggressive – in a good way. The guests applaud Kevin. Kate thanks the guys, and says they did great. In her interview, she thinks all men should get penis ravine implants. They can even have a small penis if they have a big ravine. She laughs again at her own joke. Kate is feeling her bad self tonight.
The guests go to bed, and the crew cleans up. The captain goes to the galley, and says, about dinner… Kevin stepped his game up quite well. He can find no fault with anything, and he appreciates the effort. Kevin thanks him. In Captain Lee’s interview, he says, Kevin brought his A-game, but the fact remains that the food has to be at a consistently high level. He hopes the trend continues. They don’t do mediocre on his yacht.
Kate serves coffee, mimosas, and breakfast. Mccall says she had a great time. The captain knows how to take care of his ladies. Someone says, that’s what she said, which doesn’t really work here. Courtney is on laundry, and Simone does the cabins. Courtney brings the ironing board into the crew mess, and tells Brian that she hates ironing. Kate checks on Tanner, and asks if she can bring him anything, but he says, no worries. Ashton asks Abbi to pack before they dock. She asks if he’s serious, and he says, after the guests leave, they’ll have a meeting with the captain, and then she’s off the boat. In her interview, she says, it may be impulsive and stupid, but that’s who she is and how she deals with situations. Well, I guess that says it all then. Good luck, Patrick!
Kate asks if she and Captain Lee can have a chat. He says what he needs is green tea mouthwash. She thinks that’s the least of his worries. She tells him that Tanner is pretty sick. He’s been in his cabin all morning, in the dark, in bed, and didn’t sound well. In the captain’s interview, he says, Tanner is sick, Abbi is leaving; they’re dropping like flies. He can’t afford to lose anyone else. He tells Kate that he’ll get Tanner a doctor. Brian asks what Courtney’s parents do, and she says her dad is in finance and her mom didn’t work while she was growing up. He asks if they’re still together, and she says they are. He says, very cool. His parents divorced, then his dad died. They said it was a heart attack, but he OD’d on drugs. Courtney says, that’s sad. In Brian’s interview, he says he didn’t have a good relationship with his father. He wasn’t a good person, but it’s given him the motivation to be a good father. His family has seen a little chaos, and he wants to give his daughter the life he didn’t have, and be there when she needs him.
Anchor is pulled. Ashton says Abbi is upset that he told her to pack and go. What did she think was going to happen? Free vacation for you? Abbi tells Kate that she doesn’t know where to go. They just put her on the dock, and good luck? Kate says, that’s the thing about working in yachting; you’re not just unemployed, but homeless. She suggests Abbi go to the airport.
The guests don’t want to leave. Brian tells Ashton, Tanner is still feeling like sh*t. The captain announces the final approach, and they dock. Kevin helps tie the lines. The crew goes to the aft deck to say goodbye to the guests. Mccall says, the service was fantastic and the food was amazing, every minute of every day. She gives the captain the traditional envelope. After the guests are gone, Captain Lee wanders around the wheelhouse for a while, then radios Ashton and Abbi to come there.
He understands Abbi is leaving today, and he doesn’t have time for this. Abbi says she doesn’t want them to take it personally; she loves working with them. The captain says he doesn’t take it personally, but there’s protocol. He hands Abbi her passport and her share of the tip, and tells her that’s all he’s got to say. Ashton says he’ll help her with her luggage. In his interview, Captain Lee says, what’s he going to do? There will be a lot of things in life Abbi is going to bail on. She’s not cut out for yachting; yachting’s not for quitters. Brian says he feels bad about Abbi being in a situation she doesn’t want to be in, but work is work, and this makes it more difficult. In Abbi’s interview, she says, the hardest part is saying goodbye. She knows it’s the right decision, but she’s still having feelings of sadness. She tells everyone it was awesome working with them, and wishes them good luck. Ashton hugs and thanks her, telling her, get home safe. In her interview, Abbi says, working on motor yachts isn’t for her, but she’s happy she tried. At least she knows. She’s getting married at some point. She doesn’t know what she’s doing, but she’s excited to get back on the sailboat.
The captain calls the crew to the crew mess for the tip meeting. He says as they know, they’ve lost a member of the deck crew. He didn’t get or understand it, but it’s not for everybody. She’s been compensated and she’s gone; they’re moving on. He says, the girls were great. He can’t remember the last time he laughed so hard. He says, they left a nice tip– $19,000, $1700 apiece. He tells Kevin that he nailed it; he was impressed with everything. He has a doctor coming to see Tanner, and depending on what’s wrong, it’s possible they’ll be two down. They’ll wait and see how it plays out. They know what they have to do. Let’s go.
The doctor arrives. The captain gives Tanner his share of the tip. Tanner doesn’t think he can accept it, but the captain says he has no choice. It’s the way they do things. Captain Lee says the doctor is there for him. The doctor examines Tanner, and says he has a viral infection of the stomach, and gives him an injection. In Tanner’s interview, he says he had what’s called sweet belly. It’s a common bug, and nothing serious, but he’ll never eat a cheeseburger in Thailand again. The doctor tells the captain that Tanner should be better by tomorrow, and the captain tells Tanner to get some rest. He’s glad it’s nothing serious, and Tanner says, him too. He goes back to bed.
In Kate’s interview, she says she hopes Brian and Courtney hook up. Someone needs to be banging Brian. He’s so hot. Brian takes Courtney out on the tender to go swimming. In Courtney’s interview, she says she’d like to get to know Brian better. She’s usually attracted to a guy’s mind, and notices their body in retrospect. She doesn’t notice until she gets to know them. Well, that’s just weird. I can understand it not mattering, but not to notice? That’s weird. Brian asks what she’d be doing if she wasn’t in yachting, and she says being the lady of the house. Back at the boat, Simone tells Tanner she’s glad he’s alive. He says he should be back to eating soon. In her interview, Simone says she was hoping to spend some time with him. Her parts have been ignited.
Captain Lee makes a phone call. He says he knows they weren’t available at the start of the season, but he needs them in Thailand in less than two days. Pack a bag.
Courtney says she heard Brian had a daughter. He says he does, and asks if she has any kids, is she married, or does she have a serious boyfriend? She says, no to all of the above. He says, no serious boyfriend? Isn’t she thirty? She says she’s twenty-six, and Brian is embarrassed.
Tanner tells Brian that his FOMO is off the charts. Ashton asks Brian how it went with Courtney, and Brian says, good. Ashton asks Courtney if Brian got to her. Whatever that means. In Ashton’s interview, he says Brian and Courtney have a little flower garden growing nicely, but he doesn’t mind competition. I hate to break it to him, but I don’t think she’s interested. Everyone gets dressed, and they take a taxi to a club called The Library.
This place is lit. It’s humongous, and the décor is what you’d expect – lots of books – but they’re not all on conventional shelves, some are suspended from the ceiling. The bartenders would put those guys from Cocktail to shame, doing all kinds of crazy magic with shakers and shot glasses. Simone says, this club is the one. The music is amazing, and everyone is partying. Simone dances with Ashton, then the girls dance while the guys do shots. Brian tries to convince Ashton that Kate would go for him. In his interview, he says Ashton can be a c*ck block, and he wants to flirt with Courtney. He suggests Ashton have another tequila. In Courtney’s interview, she says, Ashton is trying way too hard. Ashton sees Brian kiss Courtney (nothing real passionate), so he kisses Kate. She asks him if it’s New Year’s. Why are they doing this? In Kate’s interview, she says, no. She doesn’t want to do this. Don’t use her mouth as a receptacle for your insecurity and jealousy. This is why she has trust issues. She tells Ashton, she loves him, but not in that way. She goes to sit with Simone and Courtney, and Simone says Kate kissed Ashton; she saw it. Kate says she did not. She pulled away. It was like he was her cousin, and she was scared.
Back in the taxi, Courtney says she just wants breakfast. She has her feet over the back of Brian’s seat, and he licks her foot. She says, that’s disgusting. Kate says she doesn’t want to be a spectator to their foreplay, and Brian jokes not to make it about him when it’s about the two of them. Kate jokes back, just leave her alone. On the way back to the boat, Ashton says they’re all walking zig-zaggy.
Everyone heads to bed. Ashton makes a plate of toasted cheese sandwiches. He asks if Courtney is into Brian, and says he knows she is. She says she said no such thing, and Ashton says he’s saying it. Brian comes by, and Ashton asks him to get some hot sauce. He brings tangy barbecue instead, and tells them, goodnight. In Brian’s interview, he says when Ashton drinks, he gets way too involved. He’s pretty sure Courtney will pick the better man. Ashton tells Courtney that Brian is into her, but he went to bed. Brain is his friend, but that’s not cool. He starts not making sense, and says, wait. He’ll start again. Courtney says she’s going to bed. In her interview, she says she finds it astonishing that Ashton is thinking he has any luck at this point. She can’t imagine anyone having less of a chance than Ashton.
Back at his bunk, Ashton says he wishes they had girls who wanted to have fun and bang. He’s tired of working so hard to get his d*ck sucked (a remark that has come back to haunt him). Kevin says, these girls have standards.
Next time, beer bong, Simone is hit on by a creepy guest, a beach picnic, and a new deckhand that Ashton already knows. I can find no information on that either.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
The Walking Dead
Carol wakes. It’s still dark out. She washes her face, and makes some coffee. She packs her knapsack and arms herself. She looks at her gun in the drawer.
Daryl is sitting on the porch smoking I don’t know what. Carol gets some food to-go, and heads out. Daryl comes up behind her, and asks if she’s feeling better. He asks where she’s going she tells him, to look for Negan. He asks if he can come along.
They get to a cliff in the forest, and Daryl asks if she thinks he crossed the border. He can’t see Negan putting on a mask, but she says, stranger things have happened. She takes out binoculars, but Daryl says Negan isn’t going to be wandering around to be spotted. He’s not dumb. She scans the vista, and Daryl asks her to tell him what they’re doing out there. She says, looking for Negan, and he says, tell him what they’re really looking for. She says, the horde. They have to find it and destroy it.
In the infirmary, Dante jokes that a tiny part of Cheryl is thrilled that she’s sick, so she can spend more time with him. She says, oh yeah. She’s puking because she has a crush. He says it’s a textbook case of the butterflies. Emotions manifest themselves in different ways.The heart wants what it wants. He checks her vitals, and she says she’d break him like a twig. Siddiq comes in, wearing Coco in a snuggly, and asks Cheryl how Dante is doing. She says, the jury is still out. Dante acts crushed, and says he thought they were having a moment. Siddiq says, this makes seven, and Dante asks how Rosita is. Siddiq says, same as everyone else. They have to keep everyone hydrated, and wait it out. Dante tells Siddiq to lap up the daddy/daughter sh*t while he can. They grow fast. He reaches to hold the baby, but Siddiq says he has some boundaries. Dante says, his bad, and tells Siddiq, go; have fun. If Siddiq needs him to peek in on Rosita, say the word, and he’ll make sure she’s on the mend. Boundaries again? Siddiq nods, and Dante says, noted.
Carol she’s Daryl a map, and says she’s been tracking them along the border. A small group connected at the jungle area. She thinks they should stake out a spot, and Daryl says they should see where the Whisperers go. They’d need a big place. He points to a spot on the map, and says they wouldn’t be able to sneak in without starting sh*t. They should figure out where they are, and tell the council. He asks why she didn’t say anything, and she says, after what happened with Alpha, she didn’t want to worry him. She asks if he’s sticking around, and he says she’ll need him, but she tells him that she’s picked up a few things over the years. He says they’ll see.
As he walks blindfolded with the Whisperers, Negan says he wants to join; he’s a joiner. Give him a damn application. They’re a class outfit, with their back to nature paleo vibe. And no more being eaten by the dead; that’s the real selling point. They’re a survivor’s wet dream. He asks if they’re going commando under there, and Beta has enough. He turns around, and puts crisscrossed knives against Negan’s neck. Negan calls him the Jolly Green Giant, and tells him to cool his jets. Beta says, no more noise. He’ll slit Negan’s throat and be done. Negan says he’s never properly introduced himself. He’s Negan (as we all are, I add in my head). For the last eight years, he’s been locked up by their enemy. Take him to his leader, and he’ll spill every secret he knows. Beta takes Negan’s blindfold off, and puts it in his mouth as a gag. I laugh.
Eugene thanks Nabila for choosing to assist in the radio relaunch boon. She says she’s happy to be part of the Hilltop AV club. He asks if he can show her the souped up soviet satellite version of the radio, and asks if she can parlez-vous Russian. She says, nyet. That’s all she’s got. He says, you haven’t lived until you’ve bounced a transmitter off the biosphere. She says, it sounds cool, but she’s got to get back to the kids. He tells her, there’s no expiration date on the invite, and she tells him to have fun. When she’s gone, he says, solo trip it is. Let’s see how far you fly. He turns the radio on hears Rosita’s voice. She tells him that she was looking for him. She just wanted to see what he was up to. She jokes that she has a fever, so she could be delirious. He asks what she has, and she says, it’s just a bug; she’ll be fine, and Coco is okay. What’s he up to? He says he’s revamping the radio set-up, but everyone wants a slice of Eugene. She asks if he’s coming back soon, and he says, to be honest, he hadn’t given it much thought, but it’s good to hear her voice. She says, her too. Some sparks fly out of the back of the radio, and he says there’s been a malfunction. Mother of pearl. She asks if he’s okay, and he says, he has to fix the radio proto before it all goes fubar. He’ll call back this afternoon.
Daryl and Carol (why do their names have to rhyme?) take turns throwing acorns at a can, trying to knock it over. Both fail miserably, missing by a mile. Carol says, without his crossbow, his aim isn’t that good. He says, it’s not his thing, and she says it’s not hers. His acorn grazes the can, and he says he wins, but she says he’s got to knock it over, not kiss it. He calls her a sore loser. She finds two acorns fused together, and says she’s got a double-capper. She says it’s good luck, and gives it to him, telling him, maybe it will help with his aim. He tells her to watch her own throws. She asks how Hilltop is, and he says, fine. The king sends his best. She asks how Connie is, and he says, she’s fine too. Carol says she sees, and he says, it’s not like that. She says, why not?There’s not many people left to find, much less good ones. Why not? He asks why it matters, and she says, because it does. They don’t have to be alone. He can’t hide out with Dog forever. Daryl knocks the can over, and says, see? His aim is better already. He says he’s hungry, and asks if she has any food. She takes out the loaf of bread she got for the trip. He glances in her bag, as she breaks off a hunk of bread for him. He looks out, and says, see that? She looks through the binoculars, and a group of zombies comes trickling out of the woods. She gives the binoculars to him, and he says, Whisperers. She smiles.
Beta tells Alpha that Negan cannot be trusted. She looks over at Negan, and says, test him. If he passes, he’s worthy; if not, kill him. Beta says, it’s a mistake, showing him their ways. Alpha says questioning her judgement is becoming a regular occurrence. The Alpha is to be obeyed. He says he was only thinking of their people. She asks if it’s finally time for Beta to be the Alpha, and he kneels before her. Negan watches, as Beta says, never. Negan smiles.
Negan asks Beta if he’s Beta with benefits, and he slides his little omega in on the side. Beta says if Negan says anything about Alpha, he’ll kill him. Negan says, keeping it professional; he respects that. He saw Beta kneeling – not that there’s anything wrong with that. It’s tickled the d*cks of many a fine man. He’s had people kneeling before him, and understands the benefit that sh*t provides. He’s never done it himself, and admires Beta’s self-restraint. And respectfully, the bald head thing tightens his britches.
Siddiq goes to Rosita’s house to grab a change of clothes. He finds her on the couch, and says he thought she was supposed to be in bed. She says she was feeling better, but now she feels worse. He says she’s going on a field trip to the infirmary. She protests that she has so much to do, and sits up. She says, sh*t, and Siddiq says, how about if they all go? He helps her up and out the door.
Eugene sits at the radio, trying to call Hilltop, but only gets static. He plays with the dial, and says, it’s Tater Bug, live over open channels. If anyone is out there, give him a copy.
Continuing to watch the zombies, Carol says, it’s getting bigger, and Daryl says, they’re gathering strays. Carol says the sun is going down. They should see where the zombies go, but they have to get closer. Daryl asks if they were to cross the border, would she? and she says, if that’s what it takes. He asks if she’s sure she doesn’t want to take another shot at Alpha, and she says she didn’t say that. She asks what his problem is, and he says, if they’re going to do this, they have to be smart. They have no back-up. It’s just them in the middle of the night. Carol asks, since when are they not enough? Daryl says if they mess up, everyone else pays. She says, they already did, and they’re going to keep paying, no matter what side of the line they’re on. She tells him that she has to pee, and leaves. When she’s out of sight, he looks in her bag.
When Carol comes back, she asks if he found what he was looking for. He asks if she brought her gun, and she says, no; he took the ammo. He says there’s still ammo in the storage room, and she says she didn’t bring the gun. He can frisk her; go ahead. He says, okay. She asks if they’re enough or not, and he says, all right; he’s still in. It might as well be them. They move ahead.
Negan asks if he’s going to be bathed and reborn into the Whisperers’ image, or will he have a mission or quest? Beta throws a shovel at Negan, and says, dig. Negan says, he can do that. Is there anything in particular Beta is going for, as to size, depth, or width? Beta says, just dig. Negan digs. The background music is a twist-type song, Yo-Yo (see below, yo), as Negan hangs a piece of skin on a branch. It’s not that big and kind of ragged, and Beta hangs a piece next to his that’s a larger, perfect square. Negan is digging up bodies, and he and Beta drag them to a pile. I wonder when Negan got a fade? Is the a hair stylist among the Whisperers?
At the Whisperers’ camp, Beta, a boar hunting expedition is in progress, and Beta gives Negan a pocketknife. A Whisperer shoots a boar with an arrow, and Negan is left to finish it off. It knocks him down, but he still manages to kill it. It’s put in a cooking pit, and covered with dirt.
Siddiq brings Rosita to the infirmary, where a lot of people are waiting. Dante yells out to grab a seat; he’ll be with them in a second. Siddiq asks, what the hell is going on? Dante thinks the illness is spreading faster, and they’re out of antibiotics. Siddiq gets angry, and tells Dante to start crushing herbs, giving him a list of what to put together. It’s going to get worse if they don’t get ahead of it.
Daryl and Carol go to the border. Daryl says, if things go sideways, they head back. If they get split up, this is where they’ll meet. Carol says, be safe, and Daryl says, luck is on their side. They go into the woods.
Negan says he took the bastard down. This is the kind of badass sh*t he’ll do for his new family. Beta says, only those good enough to walk among them may eat. Negan says he helped cook, and kill the damn pig. He at least deserves a piece of bacon. Beta throws him to the ground, and Negan says, whatever you say, boss. He sits with another Whisperer, who gives him something to eat. Well that was nice.
Eugene says, it’s Tater Bug on the open air. Any interested airholes, come on back. Anyone, anywhere, it’s Tater Bug. A woman’s voice says, hello? She receives him loud and clear. He asks if she’s really out there.
The group of zombies moves into a clearing. Carol and Daryl watch. Daryl signals Carol to go another way, but she shakes her head, indicating she wants to stay. He starts to step forward, and his foot crunches some twigs. The zombies have supersonic hearing, and follow the noise. Daryl backs up against a tree, and they go past. He lifts the crossbow, and begins to slink away. A straggler heads in his direction.
Eugene says he would have prepared the proper remark if he’d known he was going to establish first contact. He thought he was wasting his time. He thinks they should exchange questions in order to grease the wheel. He asks where’s her location, how long she’s lived there, and how many people live there? And do they need to continue to say over? Over. The woman doesn’t think she should share that information, but she’s okay with not saying over. He understands. He asks if she’d like to hear his life story. Should he skip ahead? She suggests he start when he was born, and he tells her that he was born in Dallas. She says she’s from Pennsylvania. Stroudsburg. He says he knows it well. As an adolescent, locomotives were his jam, and his parents took him to the railroad museum for his birthday. He mentions the ice cream shop, and she says, the Inside Scoop. She was there all the time. They might have been there on the same day. He says he does have a critical question. Cake cone or waffle cone?
The straggling zombie comes up behind Daryl, and he cracks it’s neck. He slits it open, and pulls out its guts, smearing them on himself. Other zombies come by, but just keep walking. We hear whispering. I think it’s, why are you here?
Siddiq sits by Cheryl’s bedside, and she says it’s been ages since got so much attention from a young man. Siddiq says, it’s kind of his job. She says he’s all gloom and doom. She feels like she’s napping next to the Grim Reaper. He says, sorry; he’s just concerned. She says, in this world, most people don’t get the luxury of drifting off in a comfortable bed. Dante comes in, and Siddiq tells him to get some rest. About what he said… Dante says, no worries. He gets it. They’re stuck with pre-industrialized meds, but they’ll figure it out. Siddiq appreciates his help, and Dante says he should. He’s kind of amazing. They laugh, and Siddiq says, get some rest.
Siddiq checks Rosita’s forehead. Coco cries, and he picks her up. He tells her, it’s okay, and rocks her. He starts to drift off, and hears whispering. He opens his eyes, and he’s on one of the windmills, holding Coco.
Negan continues to travel with the Whisperers and their zombie crew. He says he and Beta are clearly not jiving. He gets it. Beta’s got to be a tough guy to keep everyone in line. He had guys to keep his sh*t tight. Beta says he’s not like Negan, and Negan says, whether Beta likes it or not, he’s joining. They’ll have to find a way to get along. Beta says Negan will never be one of them. He’s too loud, too weak, and too full of ego. He’s a waste. Negan says, cards on the table, he’s not there for Beta. He’s there for Alpha. Throw him, test him, he doesn’t give a sh*t. He ain’t going nowhere. Beta says, finally. Something they can both agree on. Negan won’t be going anywhere. Beta kills a zombie – or a Whisperer, I have no idea. Negan says he was just making a joke. He thinks Beta would be impressed if he wasn’t so pissed off. Negan kills another zombie and/or Whisperer, and the knife breaks. He’s suddenly surrounded.
Daryl finds Carol with a Whisperer she has tied up. Daryl says, what the hell? Carol says he saw them, and she’s taking him back. They can see what he knows. Daryl asks if this was her plan all along, but she says no. He asks, what’s this? indicating the plastic tie around the man’s wrists. She says it was in her bag; he must have missed it. She tells him they have no time to argue.
Still talking over the radio, Eugene says roller rinks make no sense, according to the risk and reward analysis. Along with the combined humiliation, it wasn’t his favorite pastime. He says it’s been a very enjoyable conversation, and at the risk of said humiliation, can they have a real talk? She says, it’s been great, but she doesn’t know him. He might be a threat. He asks what if he shares specifics, and she says, who’s to say she’s not a threat to him? People are dangerous. Eugene says he’s well aware of that, yet he has a twinge in his belly that leans toward the good column in the alignment chart. He does know her. His given name is, Eugene Hermann Porter. He proposes they continue their convos in the hope of building more approval and interest. There’s a moment of silence, and she says, well, okay, Eugene Hermann Porter. She’d like that very much. He says, so they’re in agreement? She says, they are, but they have to keep it between them for now. She wants to trust him, but if she hears anyone else, she’ll know she can’t. He says, okay. Just her and him. Copy that. Over.
The Whisperers work at hanging skins. Beta tells Alpha, he was weak. She says she expected more. Negan comes out of the woods, and says he’s ready for his goddam skim suit. They’ll need an extra-long tape measure for his humongous balls. He walks up to Alpha, and says, he’s Negan. They haven’t formally met, but he sure as hell knows who she is. Whether his reputation precedes him or not – he kneels – he’s all in. Whatever she wants, whatever he’s got, it’s hers. Beta is like, whoa. Alpha looks Negan over, and puts her finger to her lips. She says, shh… and he smiles.
They were definitely speaking my language with this episode. Negan is exactly what the Whisperers needed.
Next time, Carol tells Daryl it’s the only way, Alpha tells her people that she lvoes them, and Siddiq jumps into the water.
💢 Exactly Why I Stopped Watching…
While I never mind the occasional catfight, these girls take it too far.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Sam tends to the guard. Jason shows up, and asks, what happened? Sam tells him, Cassandra escaped.
Cassandra asks if Nikolas is sure he’s not driving in circles. He tells her the trees only look similar; they’ll get where they’re going soon. She suggests perhaps he take a more direct route to the private airport, but he says they could get caught. He tells her, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. She says she doesn’t have much choice, and he says, that’s the spirit. Don’t worry. He’s taken care of everything.
There’s a knock on Ava’s door, and she says, go away. Jax comes in, saying the doctor cleared him for a visit. She asks what he’s doing there, and he says he thought he’d check on her. How is she? She says, okay. She’s tired because they gave her a sedative. Her mind is playing tricks on her. He says what happened to her is his fault.
Lulu, Charlotte, and Maxie walk into Kelly’s Charlotte asks if when she finishes her homework, she can check on her pony at Windymere. Lulu is sure Butterscotch is fine, but Charlotte is insistent, and Lulu says she’ll think about it. Charlotte asks if she can sit at the counter so she can concentrate, and Lulu says, of course (🍷). Maxie says she’ll have to remember saying she’ll think about it after the homework, when James is old enough. Lulu says Charlotte loves riding, and she’s glad Charlotte can share that with Nina and Valentin. Although she thinks Valentin bought the pony so Charlotte would spend more time there, and asks if she sounds paranoid. Maxie says, not in the least.
Willow sees Brad sitting at the counter, and asks if he’s okay. He says, it’s been a tough day, but Willow is sure when he gets home, and cuddles with Lucas and Wiley, his bad day will disappear. Brad flashes back to telling Lucas about Julian, and says Julian is falling apart. They can’t let Julian drag them down with them.
Julian goes to the hospital, and tells Bobbie that he’s looking for Lucas, and asks if Lucas is on duty. She suggests he try calling before bothering her. He says Lucas isn’t answering, and he needs to speak to Lucas; it’s very important. She checks the computer.
Lucas is at Tony’s grave. He says he misplaced his trust in Julian, and his husband is lying to him – again. Right now, the one thing he knows for sure is that he could really use Tony’s advice. He says, I miss you dad. I’d give anything to talk to you again. He turns, as someone walks into the cemetery. It’s Tony, who says, hello son. It’s been a while.
Jason tells 911, the guard is semi-conscious, and the paramedics are on the way. She tells him, there was another guard. Chase and another officer show up, and Chase tells Jason and Sam to freeze. Sam says, the guard was hit in the head; she’s in and out. Chase tells the officer to check the guard. He does, and says, her pulse is good, but she’s out of it. Chase says he got a call from 911, and Jason says it was him. Chase says, and there was an escaped prisoner. Sam tells Chase, it was Cassandra Pierce. She hit the guard in the head with a shovel, and took off.
Nikolas tells Cassandra, it will be a few minutes; he thinks they should talk. She says, about what? and he says they had a mutual understanding, until she chose to blackmail him. Cassandra asks what he wanted her to do. Continue rotting in that local penitentiary? He knows how dangerous the environment is to a person with her constitution. The mildew alone is deadly. He says perhaps she should have stayed away from Port Charles altogether. She says, lucky for both of them, she’s on her way out. Just get her to the airport. She’d be happy to continue their partnership with mutually agreed upon terms from a safe distance. He says, that’s the problem. Her actions have dissolved their partnership.
Lucas hugs Tony, and says it’s good see him. Tony says since Lucas conjured him up, it must be important. He sees Lucas is a doctor now, and Lucas says just like his old man. And Tony has a grandson, Wiley. Tony says he’s proud of Lucas, and asks what’s on his mind.
Willow says she didn’t see Brad at the hospital today, and Brad says he switched his schedule around; he had errands to run. She says, in case she wasn’t clear, she doesn’t just think of him as just Wiley’s dad. She thinks of him as a really good friend. He says it’s kind of her to say, and she says, because of him, she has a place in her little boy’s life. He guesses he did do that, and she says he did, so if something is troubling him… He tells her like he said, it’s been a day.
Lulu suggests she and Maxie talk about something more gratifying. Maxie says, as in hot Dustin? but Lulu says, as in Peter. The way Maxie has been smiling, he must have done something wonderful. Maxie says there might soon be a change in their living arrangements. Lulu says, he got the place? but Maxie says, that didn’t work out. He’s moving in with her. Lulu thinks that’s even better, and Maxie says it’s been her home forever; more important, James’s home. Lulu says, it’s about damn time. Maxie says she was afraid, then he was afraid, then they took turns being afraid. They’ve finally accepted that they can be happy together, and the world won’t go up flames.
Ava asks Jax how her vacation from sanity is his fault. He says they should have kept an eye on the message boards after they did… She says, that hatchet job? and he says they were her words. He knew the reaction would be strong, but didn’t expect the rudeness. Ava says, rudeness? It was hatred; a complete lack of humanity and compassion. He says he doesn’t want to provide a platform for trolls. It was brutal, and he should have put a stop to it. Ava says she’s going to be more merciful to him than he was to her. The reason she’s there isn’t his fault. He asks, then why? She says she’s being haunted by restless souls. The line between the living and the dead has become very blurry. She just wanted to reach out to Kiki now… Tell her something. Does he believe they can awaken the dead?
Jax knows Ava has taken some questioning paths to contact Kiki, and Ava says, Kiki wants no part of her. Eternity isn’t even long enough for her to stay away from Ava. She’s being haunted by another lost soul. He was there at the gallery. She had him at gunpoint, and told him to take off his mask – it was Halloween and he had a mask on. When he removed it, there he was; so real, she could have reached out and touched him. Jax asks, who? and she says, Nikolas Cassadine.
Chase tells Sam and Jason, the prisoners are heading back to Pentenville. There will be a second transport for Sam as soon as he gets her statement. Sam asks about the guard, and he tells her, the guard is stable, and she’ll regain consciousness. He asks her to take him through it, and Sam says she was on work detail with Cassandra, and they were assigned to plant a tree. Cassandra had a shovel, and faked a sprained ankle. She hit the guard with the shovel and took off. There was a van parked across the road, and as soon as she saw it, she took the first opportunity. She tried to get the guard’s gun, but Sam stopped her from getting a weapon. Chase says, well done, and asks her to describe the driver. She says, it was pretty far, but the driver was male, and the van was white and not too old. She’s sorry, but that’s all she’s got.
Julian tells Bobbie, he can see the animosity. He’s proved himself to Lucas, and was accepted back into Lucas’s life and Wiley’s. He’s not walking away now, or ever. Bobbie reminds him that, whatever ground he’s gained with Lucas, there’s only one man who will truly be Lucas’s father.
Lucas tells Tony about Wiley running around nakey after his bath, and Tony says Lucas was the same way. He and Bobbie called him the streak. Lucas says it’s brought back so much of his childhood. Things he hadn’t thought about. Tony would be exhausted, coming home from a 36 hour shift, and still sit with Lucas to do homework, or put Lucas on his lap to teach him guitar. He always had time for Lucas. Tony says he never wanted Lucas to think being a parent was a chore or a favor. He wanted Lucas to feel safe and loved. He never wanted Lucas to doubt that he was the most important thing in his life . Lucas says he succeeded, and Tony says, good to know. Lucas wants the same thing for Wiley; to feel as safe and loved as he did when he was a kid. But he thinks he just burned it to the ground.
Cassandra tells Nikolas not to let a couple of tiny misunderstandings and setbacks dismantle an otherwise profitable arrangement. He says she put the entire operation in jeopardy. She admits her time in the claustrophobic confines of Pentenville may have compromised her judgment, and compelled her to misstep. Now they’re back on even ground, and no harm done. Nikolas tells her that she said she could deliver information that could destroy Valentin, and so far she’s come empty-handed. That makes her a liability. She says he’s not taking her to an airport, is he?
Nikolas stops the van. He says she wouldn’t appreciate it if he broke his promise to her. How is he supposed to respond when she breaks her promise to him? She says, it’s just been delayed, and he tells her, good. He hopes she considers this drive as an incentive to honor her obligation. She says as far as incentives go, she doesn’t see them any close to an airport. He says her actions have forced him to make alternate arrangements. She jumps out of the van, and runs.
Maxie asks Lulu if the dance was romantic or nostalgic, but Lulu says, it was a nightmare. On one hand, she was surrounded by teenage angst and ricocheting hormones; it was exhausting. Maxie says, on the other? Lulu says, Dustin was… Maxie says, hot? Sexy? Gorgeous? Lulu says, he was adorable and funny, and surprising. He had the biggest collection of dad jokes. They were so lame, she couldn’t stop laughing. Maxie says it was less romantic than she was hoping for, but Lulu says, it was romantic. Let’s just say, the kids weren’t the only ones hoping to score that night. Maxie is happy to see Lulu caught up with someone again.
Willow tells Brad, she doesn’t mean to pry, but Julian mentioned he was worried about him. She knows it was her idea to keep Julian away from Wiley during the adoption process, but she thinks Julian only wants what’s best for Wiley.
Tony tells Lucas, every parent worth their salt worries that they’re going to ruin their child’s life. But he can’t believe that, even accidently, Lucas would compromise Wiley’s happiness. Lucas says he let his guard down, and Tony says he should with the people he loves. Lucas says the problem is, the person he loves, he doesn’t entirely trust as much as he wants to. He loves Brad so much. Tony says he knows, but tell him about the horrible mistake Lucas made that torpedoed Wiley’s life. Lucas says, long story long, from day one Brad was an anxious parent. It’s been over a year, and he’s only gotten worse. They found out the birth father is a psychopath, but even though Shiloh is dead, Brad didn’t get any better. It was the opposite. Tony asks how Wiley is handling it, and Lucas says, he smiles. One thing they’re good at is hiding their stress from him. They’re experts. They can’t share it with each other either. Tony asks, how can he help? Lucas says he just keeps asking himself, what would his dad do? It made him desperate enough to let Julian back into his life; he wanted a father to lean on so badly. Tony says he was never Julian’s biggest fan, and Lucas says, him neither. Not at first. But he wanted to believe in him so badly, he let Julian get close to his son.
Ava says Jax doesn’t believe her, but he says he does. She says he believes that she believes it; that’s what Laura said. But Nikolas was as real as he is. Jax asks if anybody else saw Nikolas, like Laura or Lulu, but she doesn’t think so. He wonders why Nikolas would come to her first, and she says they formed a special bond in the days before Nikolas was killed. Would it be enough for Nikolas to show his face to her before anyone else? Probably not. Jax says, she seems to be arguing that Nikolas wasn’t really there, and she says, he was definitely there. He wanted to punish her. She was there when he was murdered, and she was going to speak out and tell the court what Valentin did. She’d promised Spencer, but Valentin made her an offer she couldn’t resist. (Thank you for not saying couldn’t refuse.) She’d been terribly scarred in a fire, and he said he could have her face restored in exchange for her silence. In the end, she betrayed Spencer and his father’s memory. Jax says he thinks she made the right call. Valentin would have slipped out of the charges anyway, and she would have been left scarred for life. Ava says they’ll never know, will they? Jax says she doesn’t believe Nikolas came back to haunt her because she chose to live life. She says she doesn’t know what to believe. She doesn’t know what’s real. That’s why she’s there. He asks why she thinks this happened to her now. Did something happen? Did she see someone or something that reminds her of the Cassadines?
On the phone, Chase says they have personnel in civilian clothes watching the airports, bus stations, and train stations, and they have roadblocks and traffic stops at the main roads out of town. He tells Sam, good news; the guard is awake and alert. Sam says, that’s great, and Chase tells her to make sure her lawyer knows. He’ll back her up, and it’s got to help. Jason asks, what’s happening with Cassandra? and Chase says they’re combing the city for the van and Cassandra. But he’d like to know what Jason was doing at the park. And before he says he’s not answering questions about his attorney, they could say Sam was an accessory to Cassandra’s escape. Sam says she tried to stop Cassandra, and Chase says, the more Jason cooperates, the better it looks for Sam. Jason says Sam told him when he visited, she’d be on work detail there, and Chase asks if Jason thought he’d pop over to say hello. She says she wanted to make sure her kids didn’t come there, and Jason says when he got there, the guard was on the ground, and Sam was doing what she could to help. Chase asks if it occurred to her to run, but she says, no. She was helping the guard. Why would she take off, and look guilty when she’s not?
Nikolas slams the van door shut, and says, dammit.
Bobbie sees Julian looking at the wall of staff photos. Bobbie asks what he’s doing, and he says he never thanked Tony. Bobbie says, when Julian was hiding, pretending to be Derek Wells, or is he referring to a more cosmic gesture of gratitude? Julian says Bobbie doesn’t think he’s capable of gratitude, does she? She says, no, and he says he knows he’s done terrible things. His efforts to go legit – and he’s succeeded – are probably too late. She says, there’s no probably about it, and he says he’s still a person; a father and a grandfather, and their son is a good man. She says, no thanks to him. He says he understands she and Tony loved and raised Lucas, and he’ll be grateful for the rest of his life. She says they didn’t do it for him, but he tells her, take the win and the thank you. He’s not trying to fill Tony’s shoes, but wants to carve out a space of his own with his son. He leaves, and Bobbie looks at Tony’s picture, saying, fill his shoes. As if.
Tony tells Lucas, the great thing about being dead is, everyone forgets your faults, or at least forgives them. He wasn’t a perfect parent. Lucas disagrees, and Tony says that’s sweet, but Lucas is proving his point. Lucas says if he wasn’t perfect, he was within the margin of error, and Tony says, so is he. Lucas says it doesn’t feel like it right now, and Tony says that’s because he’s going through a bad patch. Everything is gloom and doom right now. Did he forget the first time saw his baby smile, and realized he could take it personally? You forget the feel of your child’s hand inside yours when you’re going to the post office. He thinks when things get rough – and they did between him and Lucas’s mother – these happy memories, these little gifts, these miracles, are his arsenal of weapons against doubt, uncertainty, and fear. Those same memories will build a foundation for Wiley to lead a happy life. Okay, I’m about to lose it.
Lucas says, say he’s adjusted his outlook. Now what? He still can’t decide what’s worse; that Julian framed Brad for having an affair, or that he believed Julian. That’s the state of his family. Tony thinks Lucas knows who the most important person is in all this. Lucas says, it’sWiley. Now he has to decide who to trust and keep in his life and Wiley’s life. Lucas asks if Tony can’t just tell him what to do, but Tony can’t remember it ever being all that effective. Lucas guesses he’s right, and Tony says when Lucas’s sister died, he didn’t have the strength or motivation to get dressed. He’d pick up his shoes, and just stare. Lucas asks what he did, and Tony says, not a damn thing. It was what Lucas did; does he remember? Lucas says, no, and Tony says, he came into kitchen and Lucas had put out breakfast. He wasn’t old enough to use the stove, so he put all his favorite cereals into a big mixing bowl. Lucas says, it’s starting to ring a bell. Tony says, next to it, Lucas had packed his lunch. It was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, an apple, and a cookie. He’d had no intention of going in that day, but Lucas was having none of it. Lucas asks what he did, and Tony said he crawled next to him on the chair and said, dad, you have to go back to the hospital… Lucas says with him, all those sick people miss you. Lucas finishes, and they need you to make them feel better. Tony says, he remembers. He has a brave heart. All Wiley needs is for him trust it. He takes Lucas’s hand. Lucas’s phone rings. He answers, and I say, don’t go, Tony. It’s Bobbie. She asks if he’s okay, and Lucas says he’s fine. What’s up? Bobbie says Julian is combing the halls in the hospital, hellbent on finding him. He won’t leave. What should she tell him? Lucas says, tell Julian if he wants to see him, he’s with his father. He turns back, and Tony is gone.
Nikolas calls Jax, and tells Jax to call him back. Their situation has been compromised.
Ava thanks Jax. He reminded her of something she hadn’t realized she’d forgotten. He asks, what’s that? and she says she heard Laura call him after she’d seen Nikolas at the gallery. She overheard Laura tell him that he and Hayden shouldn’t ask her about the painting of Helena. Now it makes sense why he’s there extending his sympathy. Jax insists it’s 100% genuine, and Ava says, right. He’s overflowing with sympathy for her; the woman he accused of killing Connie. The only thing he wants to unburden her of is the painting of Helena. Jax says he was going to ask her about it when she… She says, when she what? She sees him; him and his friend the mayor. So kind, thoughtful, and compassionate. Did they think they could take advantage of her? He says that’s not what’s going on, but she says, they’ll take nothing from her. Not now, not ever. She made the mistake of trusting him once, and she won’t make that mistake ever again. He’ll going to take advantage of her.
Maxie tells Lulu, so they spent Halloween with a mob of teenagers. What’s next? Lulu doesn’t know, and Maxie says, please tell her that she said she had a great time with him, and can’t wait to see him again. Lulu thinks she generally conveyed that message, and Maxie asks if she conveyed it with a kiss. Lulu can’t believe Maxie is asking her that, and Maxie says she’ll take that as yes. She looks at Lulu, and Lulu says, what? Maxie says them, having tea and gossiping about themselves and others. Lulu says, are they becoming normal? Maxie wouldn’t go that far, but they can allow themselves one normal night. They toast, tobesties; no drama.
Willow tells Brad that he has an open invitation if he wants to talk about anything. Brad says he’ll remember that. She’s sure he’ll sort it out, and tells him to give Wiley a hug for her. She leaves, and Brad smiles. As she goes out the door, Willow smacks into Cassandra. She asks if Cassandra is okay, and Cassandra says she’s fine. She just needs her evening sugar fix. Willow says, insider tip; they have chocolate chip, and chocolate chip with bacon. Either way, she’s a winner. Cassandra says she’s a lifesaver. Cassandra looks inside, and sees Charlotte at the counter.
Brad leaves a message for Lucas that he’s at Kelly’s, and to let him know if he can bring Lucas anything.
Julian shows up at Tony’s grave. He tells Lucas that his mom said he could find Lucas there. Lucas asks what he wants.
Bobbie looks at Tony’s photo on the wall, and touches it. She wishes he could be there, and see their son becoming a father. He’d be so proud of their boy. She feels Tony behind her, touching her hand. He leans his head on hers, and fades away. She touches her cheek, and smiles.
Jax says he’s sorry Ava misunderstood. He’ll come back when she’s more herself. Ava says, no, he won’t. She won’t let him get his hands on the painting, but have fun searching. She’s stashed that monstrosity in a place no one will ever find it. He tells her, take care, and feel better. Ava says she may be crazy, but she’s not crazy. (If this was a Tarantino movie, that line would be slightly different. There would be another word before the second crazy.)
A guard tells Chase that he’s there to take Sam back to Pentenville. Chase asks him to give Jason and Sam a minute. Jason and Sam hug, and he says he’ll see her soon. Be safe. They exchange I love yous, and the guard takes her. Chase’s phone rings, and he says, put him through. He tells Jason, Cassandra has been spotted.
In the van, Nikolas says he saw the woman they’re looking for. She’s on Telegraph near Parkland. Chase asks him to describe her, and he does. He adds that he can’t be positive, but he’s pretty sure she has a gun. Chase thanks him, and he says he’s just trying to do his civic duty.
Cassandra walks into Kelly’s. Maxie gripes to Lulu about closet space, and Cassandra goes up to Charlotte, sitting next to her. She says, remember her? Charlotte opens her mouth, and Cassandra says, don’t scream or Nina will be in a lot of trouble. Charlotte asks what she means, and Cassandra says, shhh… Charlotte can save her, but she has to do everything Cassandra tells her.
On Monday, Julian asks Lucas not to do this, Obrecht asks Brad what he’s done to cover his tracks, and Cassandra tells Charlotte that no one is going to find them.
A point of view can be a dangerous luxury when substituted for insight and understanding. – Marshall McLuhan
Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. – William Arthur Ward
I don’t know how I know it. – dude on Cash Cab when surprising himself with his own correct answer
How do you fold egg? It’s impossible. It’s witchcraft. – Carrie Heffernan (Leah Remini), King of Queens
Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clean to the bone. – Dorothy Parker
How are you late for work on a yacht? You have no commute. You roll out of bed, and you’re there. – Kate Chastain, Below Deck
What’s great about this country is that America started the tradition where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest. – Andy Warhol
You can’t ride two horses with one ass. – Dr. Phil
Love is a gross exaggeration of the difference between one person and everybody else. – George Bernard Shaw
Don’t compare yourself to others as you never know what others had to or are overcoming. – Emily Liou
The question is not how much time you spend, but how much value you create. – Author Tony Schwartz, talking about energy management over time management.
🍂 Favorite Season, Favorite Place…
See you on the deadside. And don’t forget to thank a veteran.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
In the park, Sam and Cassandra are told to dig. Curtis comes by, and calls to Officer Sommers, asking if she remembers him. She does, and he asks if she minds if he talks to Sam. She’s his co-worker, and he promises to keep a respectable distance and make it brief. Sam goes over to him, and he says, hey, and tells her that she’s rocking county orange. He asks how she’s holding up. She says there’s been some annoyances – she glances at Cassandra – but she’s okay. He feels bad that she got the short end of work detail. She says, that’s not bad, but Cassandra is her cellmate. He says she’s kidding him. Cassandra complains to the guard that she’s doing all the manual labor while Sam chit-chats.
Nina visits Nathan’s grave. She wonders who takes the change that’s left there, and hopes it brightens their day. She’s sorry it’s been a while. So much has gone on. It turns out Sasha is a fraud. Remember how she told him how much she loved Sasha? She loved Sasha with all her heart. She should be too mad to care, but hurts so much lose her. And now everyone is blaming her; judging her for being back with Valentin. She wishes he was there. He never judged her; not once. She could confide in him, and be honest. She wishes he was there, so she could tell him what’s really going on. What’s in her heart. Valentin joins her, and asks, how about him?
Coming in from the terrace, Nikolas tells Jax that he forgot how brisk early November is there. He should be gone before the snow falls. Jax hopes so, and Nikolas says how long he stays is up to Jax. The sooner they locate the codicil, and Valentin falls, he can go back to his life. Jax tells him, keep a low profile, entertain himself, and stay out of the way. Nikolas says he has somewhere to be, and Jax says, in Port Charles? What if someone spots him? Nikolas says, he’s dead. It would be odd if anyone recognized him, since he’s non-existent. The doorbell rings, and Jax says, Nikolas was saying? Nikolas makes himself scarce, and Jax opens the door. Josslyn says she came to check out his new place.
At Kelly’s with Wiley, Carly asks, how lucky is she? She gets alone time with Wiley, and a Kelly’s muffin. Wiley – who gets cuter every time we see him – reaches for a piece, and she gives him some. She says she loves being a mom, but aunt is awesome. She gets the cuddles and fun, but when it’s time for discipline, she gives them back to their parents. Michael comes in, and says he thought Wiley was with Bobbie. She tells him that Brad and Lucas needed some alone time, and their mom had to go to work, so she’s subbing. She asks, what’s going on with his life? and Sasha walks in. Carly guesses Sasha is there to see Michael.
Nelle glad is glad to see Martin. She’s not up for another parole hearing for another 525 days. He asks if she’s counting the hours, and she says she’s good with numbers. He says he expected her parole to be denied, but she was so convinced it would go her way, he did some digging to see if he missed something. It turns out he did. Nelle says he found out she has a husband? and he says, yes.
Jax asks why Josslyn didn’t tell him that she was stopping by. She says she wanted to surprise him. She loves his new place, and asks, what’s out on the terrace? Before he can stop her, she goes out. She says, the view is amazing. She loves that he’s close to the water. Jax is glad she approves, but that’s not the only reason she’s here. How did she get there? She says Milo dropped her off, and she didn’t call because Jax and Carly confiscated her cell phone. He says she’s lucky she has a car and driver at her disposal. Most kids who got caught drinking at a school dance would have to take the bus. Josslyn agrees that she’s lucky; it could be worse. She says it’s chilly, and wants to go inside. Jax says he’ll make a fire, and while he’s working, she can tell him why she’s really there. She says she’s there because she wants to move in.
Carly asks if Michael and Sasha are there for dinner, but he says they’re meeting Curtis. He wants to follow-up with Sasha on how things went down with Nina. Carly thought Nina dropped the charges against Sasha, but Sasha says Curtis wants to find out what went wrong for his own sake, since he’s the one who found her. Carly says she’d love it if they’d join her until he gets there.
Nina asks Valentin what he’s doing there. He says she wasn’t in her office, and she’s not picking up the phone. He knows how much she’s had on her mind, and thought she might be there. She doesn’t know if it’s frightening or flattering how well he knows her. He says he does know her, and he loves her. Whether she wants to talk or be left alone with her brother, say the word.
Curtis tells Sam, Cassandra is dangerous. If she has any trouble, let him know. Cassandra tells the guard, this is inhumane. She’s touching all this dirt, and coming in contact with pesticides and toxins. I love how they made her a germophobe. It’s little details like that, that add dimension to the characters. Officer Sommers tells her, back to work. Curtis says, Cassandra has a lot of enemies, and it’s hard to watch your back on work detail. When word hits the streets that she’s out and vulnerable, Sam might just find herself alone in her cell tonight.
Curtis asks Sam if Cassandra said why she’s in Port Charles. Sam says Cassandra keeps to herself, but seemed interested in the fact Sam is related to the Cassadines. Officer Sommers tells the other guard to take some of the prisoners to clear out the undergrowth on the other side. Curtis tells Sam, Cassandra and Valentin were allies before they were enemies. They have a connection. Maybe it will shake out when Valentin comes crashing down. Sam asks if that’s possible, and he says, an interested party is working hard to bring Valentin to justice. Cassandra asks the officer why Sam is allowed a personal interlude, while she’s left to toil alone. Officer Sommers tells Curtis to move along, and he thanks her. When he’s gone, Cassandra tells Sam that he’s married to the police commissioner. She doubts Sam can take advantage of him. Sam says, he’s a friend, and Cassandra says, please. Friendship is fleeting. What’s important is to know how someone can best serve you. She wonders how long they’re going to work. It’s getting dark. Sam asks, what’s wrong? Is Cassandra afraid one of her enemies might come and get her?
Nikolas sits waiting in the car.
Valentin tells Nina, it’s been hard since they learned the truth about Sasha. She says she’s sorry she keeps seesawing between anger and sadness, but he says she can vent to him. She says he seems distracted lately, and wonders why he came by Crimson. Is there something on his mind? He says she’s all that matters, and she says he’s sweet, but it goes both ways. Whatever is bothering him, he can tell her. He says, it’s not a what, but a who. Jasper Jax.
Josslyn knows she and Jax already talked about her moving in, but she’d overreacted when she saw the boarding school brochures. She gets why he didn’t want her to move into the hotel, but now he has a place, so why not? She’s not talking about anything permanent, but maybe she could do alternate weeks. He says she caught him off-guard a little, and he wants to think about it. She says he wouldn’t have to be by himself. She asks if she has a room, and he says, of course (🍷). She tells him, she can’t wait to see it, but he wants to speak to her mom. Does she know Josslyn is there?
Carly says Sasha must be relieved that Nina forgave her. Sasha says, Nina didn’t forgive her. Not even a little bit. She just decided not to move forward and not press charges. Michael says they’re thankful Sasha is free, and Carly says she’s happy for them both. Michael has been Sasha’s biggest supporter, and she’s glad his faith in Sasha has been justified. Carly’s phone rings, and she says, it’s Jax. Jax tells her that he’s there with Josslyn at his new place, and she has something important to discuss with them. Carly says she has something to do, and then she’ll be right over. She tells Michael, Josslyn is going through stuff; she’ll tell him about it later. She asks him to help her get Wiley in the car, and Michael suggests she leave Wiley with them. Carly says she’ll give Lucas a heads up, and offers Michael an anchor for the car seat. He goes out to get it, and Sasha thanks Carly for being cool. Carly says she told Sasha when they talked about her making amends, it’s a big deal. Owning what she did goes a long way with Carly, as long as Michael is happy.
Nelle doesn’t see how her recent marriage would have had any bearing on her parole hearing. Martin says, it would have shown stability; that she has a home and family, someone to support her. The parole board takes note of such things. That’s why they encourage affidavits from friends and family, like the one from her friend Brad. Why wasn’t her husband at the hearing? She doubts it would have impacted anything; his biography might not work in her favor. Martin says he checked the file, but didn’t see a name, only that her status changed to married. Does she want to tell him who this man of dubious distinction is? I’m thinking… Shiloh?
Martin says, Nelle is a widow? His condolences. She says, sadly, yes. Her marriage was short-lived. She had nothing to do with his death. Martin says he didn’t ask, but given her history, it’s reassuring to hear. She says now that he knows, does it change anything? Can he get her a new hearing? He says, probably not, but she tells him to find some way to expedite her release. He says he’s not sure he wants to represent her, and she says, he’s dropping her as a client? He says technically, she’s not a client. He’s working pro bono, and hasn’t seen a dime. He’s not comfortable with her lack of forthrightness, and wonders what else she’s not telling him. She asks if she’s still protected by attorney/client privilege, and says as soon as she gets out, there will be a large payday waiting for her, and for whoever represents her. He says, is that so?
Sasha plays with Wiley. Michael comes back, and asks if Wiley is making moves on his girl. Sasha says, she’s a goner. Nice knowing him. He says she’s good with kids, and she says she did a lot of babysitting in high school, but she hasn’t been around kids since then. Until Charlotte. Michael says, Nelle was Charlotte’s nanny for five minutes, when she was pretending to be a beacon of kindness. He got to know Charlotte, and she’s a sweet, bright, funny kid. Sasha says, she’s Valentin’s saving grace. He loves her like nobody’s business.
Nina tells Valentin, if it has anything to do with Jax helping her after the wedding, don’t worry. He’s not a threat. Valentin didn’t mean it like that. Jax and Hayden were looking for something the night they were at Windymere, but he doesn’t think they found it. He thinks Laura is up to something, but doesn’t know if there’s a connection. She’s interested in the portrait of Helena, but her story makes no sense, claiming Spencer wants it. The artist supposedly hid messages in his paintings, and he wonders if there’s something to that. Nina asks if he has any idea what it might be, and he says Laura thinks it’s something detrimental to him. He’s glad it’s rotting in a landfill.
Carly tells Jax that she loves the house, and asks, what’s going on? Josslyn says she loves the house too, and not just because it’s super cool, and matches his personality. Jax suggests she’s buttering him up, and she says, it’s a place where Oscar never was. She can look on the stairs and not see him sitting there. She can go out on the terrace, and watch the sunrise without seeing them together. She thinks she needs a break from everything Oscar, and staying there with her dad could help.
Sam tells Cassandra, this is a two-person job, and Cassandra says, which she did mostly herself while Sam was chit-chatting. Sam says Cassandra made almost no progress; she just moved dirt around. Cassandra wonders where Sam’s tenacious can-do attitude is; her claim to fame. She tells Sam, go for it. Sam says, if they risk leaving it unfinished, it could disqualify them for work detail in the future. Or maybe Cassandra is just a bitch. Cassandra says Sam has no idea. She looks around. Nikolas waits impatiently in the car. Cassandra grabs a shovel, and looks at the guard.
Curtis comes into Kelly’s, and asks who Michael and Sasha’s friend is. Michael says it’s his godson; Brad and Lucas’s little boy, Wiley. Curtis and Wiley fist bump. This kid is killing me. Curtis knows Sasha has cause for celebration, since Nina let her off the hook, but he didn’t. Michael tells him to say his piece, but be respectful. Sasha tells him, whatever he has to say, she totally deserves it. Curtis says he’d like to hear the truth from her. He’s been turning it around in his head since Nina got back with Valentin. Sasha took full responsibility for everything, including, and he quotes, a well-placed friend, who manipulated three DNA tests. She’s one smart cookie. Michael says, it’s between Nina and Sasha, and it’s over, but Curtis says let him explain his investment. He’s the one Valentin convinced to protect Nina, and he became an unwitting accomplice to fraud; something he doesn’t take lightly. He says if she knows how to pull something like that off, sorry, but prove it. Who else was in on it? He doesn’t believe she did it alone, but she says she’s not getting Valentin into trouble over something she did. Curtis appreciates her integrity, but it’s misplaced. He’s the one who ordered the original test, and he just ordered another one using the original samples. Subject A is closely related to Subject B. They’re a match as mother and daughter.
Jax says he thought he and Carly agreed to table the idea for now, and Carly says, don’t look her. Josslyn says, they were already discussing it? Jax says they discussed the possibility. Carly understands that Josslyn wants a break, and how painful it was to lose the watch, but Josslyn didn’t lose it deliberately. She was focused on the volleyball game, which shows her perspective is shifting. She’s looking to the future. Josslyn says, then help her. Living there will take her away from the reminders of the past. Jax says, as long as she doesn’t think of it as a place to hide.
Valentin tells Nina that Laura sought him out at the Halloween gala. She was talking about the portrait again, and said his time at the Cassadine table is almost up. It could mean anything or nothing. Nina says the more he dwells on it, he gives Laura what she wants. Valentin says Laura blames him for Nikolas’s death, even though Nikolas was a fugitive, and it was self-defense. She buys that Nikolas was a defenseless innocent, and she’s his eternal avenger. Nina says she’s sorry, and he says he’ll handle Laura. She asks if he isn’t getting tired, putting out one fire after another, but he says he’s good at it. Cassandra is the WSB’s problem now, or the state of New York’s. She asks if he thinks it’s that simple. Someone went to a lot of trouble to break her out before. What if they decide to do it again?
Nikolas says, come on Cassandra. Cassandra wanders around, and Sam urges her to go back to work. Cassandra says, the aesthetics are all wrong. Is Sam sure she’s digging in the right place? Any competent landscape designer wouldn’t pick that spot for a tree. It will spoil the symmetry of the vista. Sam has cost them extra work, prepping the hole in the wrong place. Cassandra suddenly doubles over like she’s in pain, and when the guard comes to investigate, Cassandra smacks her with the shovel.
Cassandra stands over the guard, and Sam tells her, stay the hell away. Cassandra jets, and Sam yells for help.
Cassandra gets in the car with Nikolas. She says he could have warned her about where he was going to be. He tells her, you’re welcome, and tells her to change in the back. He doesn’t want anyone to see his passenger wearing orange. She asks what the plan is, and he says, same as it was. She asks how he can say that, when he’s already changed it?
Nina says Cassandra is a threat to their lives. She threatened Sasha’s life with a virus. As angry as Nina is, she knows Sasha’s suffering was real. When she was in isolation, Sasha was brave and strong, despite her fear and how bad she felt. She hopes Cassandra dies des in prison, but hates to think she might escape. Valentin thinks Cassandra is out of friends. He says, speaking of Sasha, there’s something he’d like Nina to consider. She tells him not to tells her to forgive Sasha or be reconciled with her. She said she won’t press charges, but that’s as far as she’ll go. He says he’s on a completely different track, and asks if she wants to continue the search for her real daughter. Maybe her mother was lying, and there’s nothing to find, but they’ll know they’ve done everything they can to find her. She says Valentin told her that he came up with nothing. He says he did, but they can do it together, and maybe find her. At the very least, Nina will have closure.
Curtis tells Sasha and Michael, the GH lab reran the tests. For Nina’s sample, Valentin got hair from her hairbrush. What did Sasha provide? Sasha flashes back to Valentin telling her to be reluctant to do another test at first, but then agree, and give them this. He hands her a container. Curtis says all this time, he thought the tests were tampered with. Now he believes the samples were compromised. If Sash provided a sample that matched Nina’s, the only person with the means and the motive is Valentin.
Nelle asks if Martin understands now why she didn’t say anything. He says he has to hand it to her. If she pulls this off, there will be a significant pot of gold at the end of her rainbow. She says she still has a fight on her hands, and can’t pull it off if she’s locked up. That’s where he comes in. He needs to do everything he can to expedite her release, and look after her interests. He says there’s one flaw to her plan. By her own admission, she’s guilty of capital felonies. As good as he is – and he’s very good – he can’t undo a situation she’s created. Early parole isn’t an option. She says, make it one. If she doesn’t move fast, the pot of gold will be gone.
Josslyn asks, what’s the difference between hiding and taking a break? Jax says, one is restorative, and one is paralyzing. They don’t want her to distance herself from her friends, family, and volleyball. Oscar wouldn’t want that. She told him that Oscar said she could do anything she wanted. He’d be glad her life is filling up with things to look forward to. Carly says that doesn’t mean she loves or misses Oscar any less; it means she’s healing. It would be nice if healing was pain free, but it doesn’t work that way. The only way out, is through. It’s normal and it’s progress. Josslyn tells them, Dustin said the first year is the hardest. She’s already six months in, so she guesses she is making progress. Jax says they’re proud of her, but Carly says, don’t think her punishment is lifted. Josslyn knows it’s been a lot, but she looks at what Cameron is going through, and it makes her realize how lucky she is to have so much love and support. Carly thinks it might be too disruptive, one week on and one week off. She thinks they should start small with weekends. Does that work for Jax?
Nelle tells Martin, if she’d had a decent attorney to begin with, she wouldn’t be there. She was without the means, but that will all change. Martin says, so her expectation is that she’ll come into money? Like she expected money from Zack and Michael? Both times, she was disappointed. Who’s to say she won’t be again? She says she has him on her side, and he’s the best. He’ll get his full price, as soon as she gets what she has coming. He has to get her out. She calls him Martin, but he says his friends call him, Marty, and they shake hands.
Sasha tells Curtis, it’s a misassumption, and he says he just needs her to tell him what went wrong. He’s not pursuing a personal agenda. Michael says he doesn’t like Valentin either, but that doesn’t give Curtis the right to pressure Sasha. Curtis says he’s just finding out the truth. He wants to know what Nina is up against with Valentin. He gets it. Sasha doesn’t want to involve Valentin to spare Nina the pain, but she’s not helping in the long run. Sasha knows Curtis has the best of intentions, but it’s not his call. Michael says they appreciate that he wants to sort it out personal for Nina, but it’s been tough enough. Curtis says, so Valentin is walking on sunshine. Sasha says, let Nina have her life, and let her have hers.
Valentin tells Nina, they’ll do it together. He’ll get a referral for a good security firm. Nina says she already knows the outcome. They’ll look, but they won’t find her daughter, because the baby was never born. The locket her mother gave her was a tease; another way for her mother to hurt her. A lie, like what her mother told him. She’s done. She can’t keep getting her hopes up, and have her heart broken again. He says he really wants to make things right. Nina thanks him, but says he’s already done more than enough. I swear, she keeps dropping these hints, like when she said she could tell Nathan what’s really going on. Valentin’s phone rings. Nina touches Nathan’s gravestone, and kisses Valentin. She leaves, and he answers his phone, saying, this better be important.
Martin says, good news is always important. The project he wanted to explore? A new avenue just opened up.
Jax says he needs to do some work on the house. He knows Josslyn can rough it, and if that was their only option, he’d make it work, but she’s still in school. He thinks it’s best they wait a little. Josslyn is fie with that. She’s not trying to run away. Donna is there, and she’s totally adorable, and Avery is her little shadow. She’s fine with waiting, but since she’s there, can she check out her room? Jax says she can. She can give him some input. They go upstairs.
Cassandra tells Nikolas, wait. This isn’t the way to the airport. Where is he taking her?
Sam tells the guard, it will be okay, and asks if she can hear her. There’s no response, and Sam reaches for the guard’s waistband, saying, she’s not going for the gun. She takes the radio, and says she needs paramedics. She’s in Rice Park. She’s a prisoner on work detail. A guard is down, and a prisoner escaped.
Cassandra says Nikolas told her that he was taking her to a private air strip, where a plane is waiting. Nikolas says he’s taking her back to where no one will ever find her.
Tomorrow, Willow tells Brad that Julian just wants what’s best for Wiley, Jax tells Ava what happened to her is his fault, and Nikolas tells Cassandra don’t worry – he’s taking care of everything.
🚤 Tonight, Bravo had reruns of Below Deck’s latest season, as well as Behind the Episode 701. It was basically a rerun of the first charter this season, but included behind-the-scenes content from the crew and producers. And by content, I mean little dialogue boxes with extra info. It was fun, but nothing earth-shattering was revealed.
🙇 My Kind Of Meditation…
Funny, but warning – bad words. Probably most of the bad words you can think of.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Jason visits Sam at Pentenville. He asks how she is, and she says, hanging in there. She asks how the kids are, and he says, good. They’re at Monica’s, but he’s spending the weekend with them at home; just the three of them. She’s glad he’s able to spend time with them. She wonders how her mom is taking it that she went with Diane’s legal strategy. Jason tells her that her mom is in the hospital.
Kendra visits Alexis at the hospital. Kendra says she’s glad Alexis is okay; she was worried. Alexis says she’s getting there. Finn is working on a prognosis. Kendra says she’s there to help; what does Alexis need? Alexis doesn’t want Kendra to neglect her other clients, but Kendra says she has a friend subbing for her. She feels like she owes Alexis, since maybe she pushed Alexis too hard and too fast. If she hadn’t been run down, she might have been able to fight her illness. Alexis says Kendra isn’t to blame for her being in the hospital.
Robert goes to see Cassandra, and she asks what this is about. She’s not talking to him without her attorney present. He says her attorney remains indisposed, and she asks why she should speak to him without legal representation. He says he’ll be perfectly happy to wait until Alexis’s health improves, but the offer he’s bringing her has an expiration date.
Hayden brings Violet over to Finn, and tells him that Violet has something she wanted to tell him. Violet thanks him for making her feel better, and he says she’s very welcome. She asks Hayden if she can go draw, and Hayden tells her to stay where she can be seen. Hayden wants to thank Finn too. She knows he’s still mad. He says that doesn’t begin to describe how he feels. She says she understands. They’ll work it out. He says, yeah; they will.
Elizabeth opens the door to find Kim, and asks what Kim is doing there. Kim says she wanted to give Elizabeth some space after the hearing, but they’re long overdue for this. Unless it’s Elizabeth punching Kim in the face, I can’t imagine what’s overdue.
At Oscar’s Meadow, Franco thanks Scotty for coming. He has something to tell Scotty. Scotty says he has something to tell Franco too. Franco says before Scotty says anything, he wants Scotty to hear it from him, not anyone else. He and Kim are leaving town.
There’s a knock at Jax’s door. Nikolas gets up, and hears Laura ask if Jax is there. She needs to talk to him. She almost leaves, and Nikolas touches the door. She turns back.
Sam asks Jason, what’s happening with her mom? He says Molly found her at home on Halloween. She was weak, dizzy, and nauseous. Finn is treating her. Sam asks, for what? What’s the prognosis? He says, they don’t know yet. Finn is still running tests.
Alexis tells Kendra that she has the best doctor at GH, scrambling to come up with whatever it is. She’s sure it’s nothing, and wants Kendra to stop with the guilt. Kendra says Alexis isn’t just a client. Over the two months they’ve known each other, she thinks of Alexis as a friend too. Alexis says, same there. Julian pops in, and asks if Alexis is up for another visitor. He has a huge bouquet, and Kendra says she’ll go find a vase. Alexis says, good job; he scared Kendra away. Julian says he was under the impression that Alexis wanted to be alone, but Alexis says he was mistaken. He gives her the flowers, saying he was sure her shrink would have brought some. She says Neil brought her a book on Russian aristocracy. Julian asks if they’ve figured out what’s wrong. She says, not yet, but Finn is on the job.
Hayden tells Finn that she spoke to Elizabeth, who says she and Violet are welcome to stay as long as they want. He asks how long that is, and she says until she finds a place to rent or buy. It’s important that Violet be in Port Charles with her mother and father. If he’s interested. Violet comes back, and asks if she can come visit Roxie. Finn says he’d like that very much, and Roxie will really like it. Hayden tells Violet, soon, and Violet says she’ll bring lettuce. Finn says, that’s Roxie’s favorite. He has to see a patient, and tells Violet to take care of herself. Violet says, okay, and they wave to each other as he leaves.
Cassandra tells Robert that she’ll have to decline any offer. The last she heard, his case was in jeopardy, since Sasha was exposed as a fraud. He laughs, and says, it’s embarrassing when your star witness is brought into question. His office is moving in another, more promising, direction. Alexis’s petition for Cassandra’s extradition to be delayed has been denied, so his office is now disinclined to want to pursue it. Sometime next week, Cassandra is going to be on a plane to the Hague. He’s not entirely helpless though. She says, he could have fooled her, but he says he can still pull some strings at the Bureau. He can get her a private cell, and an endless supply of hand sanitizer. She says, in exchange for what? and he asks who broke her out of WSB custody last year?
Laura asks if someone is there. Nikolas puts his hand on the doorknob, and she touches the door.
Kim tells Elizabeth that she wanted to check and see how she was doing. Despite the unpleasantness between them (unpleasantness? is that what she calls it?), she still considers Elizabeth a friend. Elizabeth can’t say the same. She’s been hurt too badly. Kim says she wants to try and make peace, and Elizabeth says, how? By showing up there, when Kim is responsible for her grief? Kim says she’s not doing this. Drew… Elizabeth says, Franco. Maybe Kim didn’t force him, but Kim slept with her husband. Yes, he’s still her husband. Until the divorce papers are signed, they’re still married, no matter who he thinks he is.
Scotty says being there must bring Franco closer to Oscar. He knows what it’s like, grieving a child you didn’t raise. Now that Franco has won the hearing, he can add him to the list. Franco says he didn’t realize Scotty had lost a child, and Scotty says, two. Franco says, sorry. He had no idea. Scotty says maybe that’s why he and Franco were so close. They both lived lives full of tragedy.
Kendra brings water for the flowers, and Alexis says, isn’t she the best? Julian says, she seems to be. Kendra asks how his face is, and he says, recovered. Alexis asks, what happened? and he says Kendra witnessed an altercation between him and Kim at Charlie’s. Kim slapped him good. He’d disclosed personal information about her to Scotty.
Cassandra tells Robert, the last time she didn’t supply any information on the party who liberated her. What makes him think it’s different now? Robert says he doesn’t give a rat’s ass what happens to her when she gets to Steinmauer, but wants her to know, they sleep twenty to a room. Unless you have a private cell. She says why doesn’t he give her suggestions, and she’ll say yes or no. He says, Valentin, but she says he wouldn’t life a finger to help her. He says what about someone close to Valentin? Peter. She tells him that he’s barking up the wrong tree. He tells her to guide him to the right tree. She says she doesn’t want to talk until her attorney is present and a proper deal is on the table. He says the only deal she’s going to get, runs out at midnight.
Jax walks up behind Laura, startling her. She asks if someone is staying with him, but he says it’s just him; why? She says she thought she heard somebody inside. He tells her, if an intruder was there, his security system would be blowing up his phone with alerts, and it’s not. He assumes she came see him, and she says she did. She went to visit Ava. He asks how Ava is, and Laura says, there’s a lot to tell. Should they go in? Jax says he has nothing in his cupboards, and suggests he take Laura out for coffee. She says, that would be great. She looks at the door again before following him. Inside, Nikolas ponders.
Alexis wonders how Kendra got dragged into Julian’s drama, and he says he ran into her in the alley by Charlie’s. Finn walks in, and says, someone is popular. Alexis jokes that she needs some security for her room. Finn hates to spoil the fun, but has to run some tests. Julian and Kendra leave, and Alexis asks Finn to tell her that he found a miraculous diagnosis, and an even better cure. He says he wishes. He wants to redo the pressure test to check her pain levels. She asks if that isn’t below his pay grade, but he says, not when it comes to friends. He squeezes her palm, and asks if it’s better or worse. She says she’s ready, but he says he already started. She doesn’t feel anything? She says she feels him touching her, but doesn’t notice any pressure. He says, now? and presses again. She says, no. What’s happening to her?
Jason tells Sam, he should get word soon, and he’ll update her on Alexis. Sam hates not knowing what’s going on. That’s the worst part; that, and her cellmate, Cassandra Pierce. Jason says he’ll call Diane. Cassandra might have a grudge against Sam, and Diane can petition the court that she be moved. Sam says she wants no special treatment or any attention. She just wants to keep her head low until her trial.
Kim says she’d hoped Elizabeth was better, but Elizabeth says how, with Kim stealing her husband? Kim says she and Drew love each other, and Elizabeth says, when Cameron saw Kim kissing Franco, she told him not to get angry because Kim was grieving. He’s a kid, but he’s not here. She’s furious. Her husband came by to say he was leaving with Kim tomorrow. She thought she’d have more time. Kim says to trash their relationship and tear it apart? She tells Elizabeth not to act like that’s not in her wheelhouse. Julian told Scotty how she drugged Drew to try and get pregnant, and dredged it up in court to make her look crazy. Elizabeth says she doesn’t think Kim is crazy, but thinks she needs help. She lost Oscar, and it takes time to get over a trauma like that. She knows; she lost a child. Kim tells her not to say she understands. Jake came back; Oscar never will.
Franco tells Scotty that he’s sorry Scotty is losing a son, but he’s not there to relitigate the hearing. Scotty says that’s not what he’s there for. He just wants to tell Franco something important. Hopefully, it will be enough to convince him to do the right thing of his own free will.
Violet literally runs into Robert, and Hayden asks what she said about running ahead, calling her Violet Barnes. Robert says she didn’t know Hayden had a daughter. Violet introduces herself, and Robert says she’s sweet. She asks if he knows her mama, and he says, yes, but he’s not sure he knows her daddy. Robert. Really? Saying that to a kid?
Finn tells Alexis, it’s a good sign that she can still feel something; she hasn’t completely lost sensation. Alexis asks if that’s going to happen, but he can’t say for sure. She asks what he can say, and he tells her that he’ll have more accurate information after more tests, and a better chance at diagnosis, so he can prescribe treatment. He asks her to revisit the day she started experiencing symptoms. She says she exercised, went to Kelly’s with Kendra, and went home to work on Sam’s case. Neil came by with takeout, but she couldn’t eat because Jason showed up to talk about Sam. That’s when she felt strange. She got the chills, and thought it was the flu. She didn’t feel like eating, and asked Neil to go home. She went upstairs to bed, and the next morning, she felt achy, and passed out on the couch. Finn asks if there was anything out of the ordinary preceding it. Any change in her diet? She says she’s been taking a supplement for the past two weeks, but she took it to her GP, who said it was safe.
Kendra asks if Julian is going back to see Alexis after her tests, but he says he has to go. She says she’ll stick around; she doesn’t want to leave Alexis alone. She thinks Alexis feels more scared than she’s letting on. Julian says he does too, and asks her to keep him in the loop. He doesn’t want to hover. Kendra puts her number in his phone, and says maybe he can return the favor. He brought up seeing her in Charlie’s earlier, but she’d prefer he not mention he’s seen her there. He asks, why? and she says the food and drink there is criminally good, but doesn’t fall into her fitness plan for her clients. They need to think she practices what she preaches. They don’t need to know what she eats when she’s off the clock. Has she seen The Rock’s cheat day menu?
At the little café, Laura thanks Jax for the tea, saying it’s a nice pick-my-up after the morning she had. He asks if Ava isn’t doing well, and she says she brought Scotty to cheer her up, but Ava’s in a bad place. She’s probably adjusting to the meds. Laura had no opportunity to talk about the painting. Jax asks how long Ava is going to be in Shadybrook, but Laura doesn’t know. However long it takes for her to stop seeing ghosts.
Nikolas wanders around Jax’s house. His phone rings. He answers, and the operator says there’s a collect call from an inmate in Pentenville. Does he accept the charges? (Wrong answer sound. They would tell him who was calling.) He accepts, and asks what they want. Cassandra says, now, now. Is that any way to great an old friend?
Violet tells Robert that she doesn’t have a daddy – or a puppy. Not a real one, but she has a stuffed one. He’s guessing she’d like a real one all her own. She says she would. Or a Pegasus, or a dragon. Dr. Finn has a dragon named Roxie. Finn joins them and says Violet has a playdate with Roxie. He tells Hayden that Violet’s doctor wants to do one more test before she’s discharged; they’re waiting upstairs. Violet tells Robert, goodbye, and goes with Hayden. Robert says, she’s quite the charmer. If they weren’t in a public place, he’d happily kick Finn’s butt to the moon for keeping his daughter from Anna.
Nikolas says he told Cassandra never to call him directly, but she says Robert just paid her a visit. Their timetable has been moved up. Nikolas says they’re not a team. She’s been a means to an end; that’s it. She tells him that she’s about to be extradited. He has to stop it, or she’ll give him up to Robert. She’ll tell Robert that he hired those goons last year to extract her from the WSB, and kidnapped Anna and Finn, coercing them into reviving her.
Jax knows how painful it must be for Laura, with Ava insisting that she saw Nikolas. Laura says, it’s upsetting, but Ava can’t help it. Jax suggests Laura visit later in the week, when Ava has adjusted more to her meds. Then she can ask if Ave remembers the painting. She says they don’t know if Ava has it. For all they know, it’s been sold. Jax doesn’t think portraits of Helena are in high demand, and it’s their best lead. Laura says, okay. She’ll try to talk to Ava about it. Jax says he has to speak to his Tokyo office, and left his notes. He leaves, and she finishes her tea.
Finn tells Robert that until two days ago, he had no idea. Robert says he’ll have some adjustments to make. Does Anna know? Finn says he hasn’t told her, and Robert asks what the plan is. Is he going to let Anna run into Violet like he did? Finn says he wants to tell Anna in person, so he’d appreciate Robert keeping it quiet until he has the opportunity. Robert says, it might be months before he sees Anna. So he’s going to perpetuate the lie for that period of time? Because that’s what it is – a lie by omission.
Jason tells Sam that Cassandra wanted to do business with Sonny, and he turned her down. That could go against her. Sam says Cassandra seemed more interested in her connection to the Cassadines, and Jason says, that seems random, but Sam says, it’s probably because of Valentin. She thinks he and Cassandra worked together at some point. The guard says, time’s up, and Sam tells Jason that she has to go. She asks him not to bring the kids for anything. She doesn’t want them to see her like this. She says, tell Danny and Scout that she loves them, and he says he loves her. She says she loves him too, and they put their hands against the glass. Sam looks back at him one more time before she leaves with the guard.
Scotty asks if Franco remembers living with Betsy Frank. Franco says, vaguely. He was really little when she gave him away to the state. Scotty asks if he remembers what Betsy called him. Franco says, Andy, and she called Franco Bobby. The two of them spent a lot of time together. Scotty asks if he remembers Betsy’s boyfriend Jim Harvey. Franco says, he used to babysit, and Scotty says, he shared special attention with Bobby; they went off together. Franco asks what he’s getting at, and Scotty says, Jim Harvey sexually abused Franco. Then he started setting his sights on Drew. Franco tried to protect Drew by putting him in the basement, but he fell down the stairs. Betsy thought Franco was trouble, and sent Drew away for his own protection. Franco was not so lucky. Franco says, Bobby was just trying to save him, and Scotty says, he did save him. He saved him, then stifled the memories of abuse for many years. When he was able to process it, and live a life – a happy life of his own – then he was robbed of that. He’s living it in Franco’s place.
Kim says Elizabeth has no empathy for her, but she can’t begin to know how Kim feels. Oscar is gone, and Drew miraculously came back; the Drew she loved. Elizabeth can’t blame her for fighting for him. Elizabeth says she blames Kim for refusing to acknowledge that Franco had a life first. Kim says the judge ruled in Drew’s favor, and she hopes Elizabeth can accept that, and make peace. Elizabeth says Kim just wants to ease her conscience for stealing her husband. She can’t give him to Kim; she won’t. Kim says she should go, and Elizabeth says, great idea. She opens the door. Kim says Elizabeth was her rock when Oscar was sick. She can’t repay her for that, but wants Elizabeth to know she’ll always be grateful for their friendship during that time. She says, goodbye. Elizabeth closes the door, and leans against it.
Robert asks Finn if Anna is going to have a fiancé by the time she gets back. He’s seen the looks Finn and Hayden have shared, and noticed Finn is angling to be a family. Hayden comes out, and thanks Finn, telling him, Violet is with Epiphany. She asks if he and Robert are okay. Robert says he’s fine. He’s not too sure about her ex. He leaves, and Hayden says she’s so sorry. She didn’t mean for him to find out. Finn says, too late, and she asks if Robert is telling Anna. Finn says let him deal with that, and Hayden says she’s available when he wants to talk. They need to figure things out. She tells him to check his phone, and he sees a picture of her and Violet when the baby was just born. She says she doesn’t know if it will make up for lost time, but maybe it’s a start.
Laura sees Robert at the hospital, and they hug. She says she was hoping to find him there. She’s trying to locate a portrait of Helena. He says, the nude? and she says, God no. It was done more recently, before she died. She left it to Nikolas, and it was hanging in Windymere. Valentin got rid of it, and it turns out it could be very useful. He asks, how so? and she says, as a weapon against Valentin.
Cassandra tells Nikolas that she’s been more than patient. It’s time for him to hold up his end of the bargain. Break her out tonight. Nikolas says she’s the one who insisted on coming to Port Charles, against his instructions. She got herself into this situation, and she’s in no position to make demands. She says he’s wasting time he doesn’t have. Break her out or she’ll blow his cover. She hangs up, and Nikolas makes a call. He says, it’s me. We have a problem with Cassandra. Take care of it.
Robert says, a weapon against Valentin? and asks Laura to tell him more. She wishes she had the time. An enemy may want to acquire it. Any idea who? He says, Spencer, the clan Cassadine; Cassandra is locked up, awaiting extradition. He asks her if everything is all right, and she says, nothing is all right. She had the weirdest sensation earlier, and she’s spent the day trying to shake it. He asks, what kind of sensation? and she says, it’s kind of hard to describe. It’s ethereal. Like someone walked on her grave.
Franco thanks Scotty for sharing, but what does he want Franco to do. Scotty says, the right thing. Franco asks if Scotty wants him to sacrifice his life for Franco. Franco saved his life when they were kids; it’s not his fault. Scotty says, or Franco’s fault. Just ask himself, is his second chance at life worth Scotty’s son’s first chance?
Hayden and Violet arrive at Elizabeth’s house, and Hayden introduces Violet to her aunt. Elizabeth says, it’s so nice to meet her, and Violet asks if she can have a hug. Elizabeth says she would love that. It’s exactly what she needs right now.
Finn sits down, and takes out his phone. He looks at the picture of Hayden and Violet.
Kendra goes back to Alexis’s room, and Alexis asks if Julian is still there. Kendra says he had to take off, but she’s there to provide a distraction. It must be maddening, not knowing what’s going on. Alexis says she’s going stir crazy, and Kendra suggests they go for a walk. Alexis says she doesn’t think she’s ready to be seen in public. She looks worse than she feels. Kendra gives her a mirror and brush, telling her to put herself together. She’s going to tell the nurse that they’re taking her IV pole for a walk. Alexis asks what she did to deserve Kendra.
Julian puts something into the dumpster, and a dead rat falls out. Surprise!
Alexis brushes her hair, and discovers it’s falling out.
Jax goes back home, and Nikolas asks how his mother is. Jax says, how does he think? She went to see Ava, and had to listen to her ramble about how she saw him. Nikolas says, another reason Jax shouldn’t have involved his mother. Nikolas says he can thank Hayden for that. She’s the one who brought Curtis and his mother in without his knowledge or consent. Not that it matters. Laura is a part of it now, but the longer he stays, the greater the chance of her finding out. Unless that’s what Nikolas wants. Nikolas says he can’t show himself until Valentin is neutralized.
Cassandra and Sam are brought into the hall, and Cassandra asks, what’s going on? Sam tells her, it’swork detail, but Cassandra says, these hands don’t do that. The guard says, they do now. She has work detail. Cassandra says, no one told her. The guard texts, it’s handled, to an unknown number. Sam guesses it’s Cassandra’s lucky day, and Cassandra says she supposes it is.
Tomorrow, Valentin tells Nina that he’s bothered by Jax, Carly tells Sasha that owning it goes a long way with her, and Nikolas says the chances of him getting recognized are non-existent.
The Real Housewives of Dallas
We backtrack a little. LeeAnne’s cousin Katie says LeeAnne’s mother isn’t there yet. Rich gets ready to go in, and says he’s walking the green mile. Katie calls LeeAnne’s mom. LeeAnne dabs at her eyes with a hanky.
Mom Margaret squeaks in at the last minute. LeeAnne smiles. The music from Ordinary People (otherwise known as Canon in D major, by Johann Pachelbel) plays. Rich’s daughter walks down, bringing the ring pillow, and Rich follows. The curtains part, revealing LeeAnne. The traditional wedding march plays. We flash back to Tiffany telling Rich that LeeAnne has to do it before she’s fifty, and him saying she told him she was thirty, so… Tiffany says, just give her a ring. We also see clips of D’Andra harassing LeeAnne about Rich cheating, and how they’re never going to set a date. I’m glad she’s not there. Margaret cries.
The pastor says blah-blah-blah be kind to one another. When Rich says, I do, LeeAnne goes, whew! Everyone laughs, and the pastor says he hates to tell her, but there are several more opportunities. They share the vows they wrote, and Rich says LeeAnne taught him true love and total acceptance. They’ve both said they come from the land of misfit toys, but they’ve managed to help fix each other, and will continue to do that for the rest of their lives. He promises to love, serve, and protect LeeAnne like a SWAT officer should. He says she’s scary smart and hilarious. It’s like he’s marrying five women at one time. She says, just five? LeeAnne says she never felt loved, wanted, or accepted. Rich made her feel those things. He’s shown her how to love deeper than she thought possible. She promises she’ll be reminding him to do that for the rest of their lives. She tells him how special he is, and says her heart belongs to him always. The pastor has them repeat a promise to see the other’s innocence in their eyes, and Rich says, his eye. Everyone laughs, and they exchange rings. The pastor declares them married. As they walk down the aisle, Rich’s tag changes from fiancé to husband. In her interview, Kameron says, LeeAnne has waited so many years. It’s a real fairytale, and gives her the warm fuzzies.
In the hallway, Steve hugs Rich and LeeAnne. Margaret says LeeAnne is a great kid, but she wishes LeeAnne would come to the realization that she was loved as a child. I say it doesn’t matter what Margaret thinks, if LeeAnne didn’t feel it. Kameron says, it was the most amazing ceremony. In Kameron’s interview, she says she’s never seen such a big crown as the one LeeAnne is wearing. She thinks the break in between the ceremony and reception is a nuisance. Who wants to wear the dress they’ve been sweating in for five hours? (Just a thought, but, bring one to change into?) In LeeAnne’s interview, she says the purpose of a five-hour break is because she wants to shtup her husband. When I was a kid, I went to a lot of Lithuanian and Polish weddings, and it was traditional to have a wedding breakfast after the ceremony, and then hang out at someone’s house until the reception in the evening. I was actually surprised the first time I went to a wedding that didn’t have all that.
In the limo, LeeAnne tells Rich that she wants a footlong, and he says she’s already getting one. They get some fast food at a drive-through (Sonic?), and LeeAnne says, best wedding ever. Rich tells the person at the window not to tell anyone they’ve seen him. LeeAnne wants to eat in the car, and promises not to mess up her dress, but Rich is more worried about the car. When they get to the hotel, Rich lies down, and LeeAnne calls him lazy. He says he married her; that’s not lazy. She wolfs down a chili dog.
There are all kinds of acrobats, cowgirls on saddle swings, people in costumes made of mirrors, and living lamps with sequined bodies and lights on their heads. Kameron says, it’s amazing. Kary says, LeeAnne is back to the carnival. She wanted to relive the childhood she hated so much. I don’t think LeeAnne ever said she hated the carnival. LeeAnne copies me by having a castle as a cake topper. Friends made mine for me, since we could find one nowhere. In Stephanie’s interview, she says it’s everything she thought it would be. It’s like she took drugs; she doesn’t even know where to look. Where did LeeAnne find these people?
D’Andra and Jeremy are doing a cooking competition; a seafood challenge. Jeremy brings out shrimp, halibut, and softshell crab. In D’Andra’s interview, she says food is the most important thing in her life. She loves to cook. Jeremy says he’s going to work on the images for the website over the weekend. D’Andra is glad they’re not at the wedding. Who would have thought, eight years ago, they wouldn’t be there? In D’Andra’s interview, she says she looks back, and thinks it was a fun time. She and LeeAnne were close, but she’s lost hope for the future of their friendship. Celebrating her own marriage by she and Jeremy doing something together is just as satisfying.
LeeAnne changes to a different gown that’s more festive and sparkly. She and Rich are introduced as a couple, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Whatever-His-Last-Name-Is. Margaret complains that she can’t get close enough. LeeAnne isn’t unfriendly to her, but there’s a definite chill. Pictures are taken, and Margaret says she’s glad Rich has taken LeeAnne off her hands. Like LeeAnne is even around her much. Margaret leaves, and the dancing commences.
The drink glasses look like disco balls. Travis asks Rich if they’re still married, and Rich says, so far. LeeAnne removes the skirt from her outfit, and it turns into a jumpsuit. Cary, Kary, and Kameron pose on one of the saddle swings, and get their picture taken. Kameron says they’re a bad influence on her, and Cary says, the K/Carys are a bad influence. Stephanie complains that there’s not enough food, and says she’s glad she ate beforehand. I dunno. It’s not a dinner situation, but it looks like there’s plenty in the way of charcuterie trays and such. I prefer picking around myself.
In her interview, D’Andra says the cooking competition takes her mind off serious business, like saving the company. Jeremy says, let the ass whoopin’ begin. D’Andra keeps asking him for ingredients while they’re cooking. They sit to taste the dishes, and Jeremy says, 100% honesty. D’Andra thinks Jeremy’s dish tastes like sandpaper, and she gets one point for her shrimp.
Kameron tells Kary, they ran out of water at the bar, and she had to get it from the bathroom. Kary wonders, where’s the food? In Stephanie’s interview, she says she’s been to a lot of weddings where there’s been just cake and nuts, but at least they had nuts. In Kameron’s interview, she says any event after 7 pm is required to serve a meal.
D’Andra has two points, and Jeremy gets one for his halibut. He tells her, since it’s the main dish, he should get two points, but she’s taking full victory. She tells Jeremy that she’s getting dessert. At the reception, the cake is cut. LeeAnne is happy, and says, it felt perfect. In her interview, she says the wedding was filled with nothing but love and joy. It’s the happiest day of her life. She and Rich get in the limo, and she says, baby, come to mama.
Brandi and Travis go out to lunch, bringing Bruin. Bruin sees a balloon up by the ceiling, and freaks. Brian asks Brandi why no daycare today, and she says they were snuggling. Brian says, because she needed sleep? He asks if she had fun in Nashville; he did. She says she has no regrets about missing the wedding. In her interview, she says she had a fantastic time with her husband, got wasted, and had sex. Brian asks if she has any details on Bruin’s potential sibling, but she says, not yet. Once you get to three or four, it’s no big deal. That reminds me of when I said, what’s one more dog? Brian says he grew up with four. She says they’ve got to move anyway. Brian says, with six, they’ll need a third bedroom. In Brandi’s interview, she says her heart is telling her that she needs and wants to adopt the baby. It’s Bruin’s sibling; his blood. How can she say no to that? Brian asks why she feels so strongly. She says, it make sense. They’ll always have each other. Bruin is making a humongous mess, and Brandi says she’ll clean it up. Um… they might possibly need a rug shampooer. In her interview, she says, to get Brian on board, she has to convince him that she can handle it all. She can never complain. She’ll be sucking it up and miserable, She can do this. Brian says, two at once will be a handful. What if Bruin’s mother has another one? It’s hard as it is, and Brandi wants to take on a newborn baby. She says she feels like it will be worth it in the end. She’s not worried about love; they have that. She just worries about handling it. Brian say he remembers being the oldest was hard. His parents had to give so much attention to the babies. He felt like his mom was busy with the babies, and worries about Brooklyn in particular, We flash back to Brooklyn being a mini bitch. Brian says, she’s close to being a teenager, and already acts like one. He remembers his sisters. In Brandi’s interview, she says maybe Brian is right that having another child will add more stress, with her being pulled in another direction. Brandi says, it’s especially worse when they’re in diapers. With four, everything will be doubled.
Everyone gets back to their regular lives. Travis relaxes in the hot tub, and Stephanie asks how it’s going with his party. What do they need to do before his magical day? In Stephanie’s interview, she says Travis is going to be 50, and the theme is his life now – a midlife crisis. We flash back to Stephanie popping out of his cake. She says Travis wanted her to private message John Legend to sing at his party, but one, she doesn’t know him; and two, it’s insane and stalkerish. I’ll bet he’d do it though. He and Chrissy love Bravo. Travis says he has no idea how many people he invited. They have the DJ, the band, the liquor, the caterer, the lights, and the yard has been redone. She asks if his dad is coming. In her interview, she says Travis’s dad travels between Thailand and Viet Nam a lot of the time, because he has friends there. Travis doesn’t think his dad is taking his meds, so he’s going to Thailand in a couple of weeks. In Stephanie’s interview, she says that Travis’s dad tends to stop taking his meds, and then has a hard time. He’s traveling, and Travis is concerned because he can’t get ahold of him. Travis says if Stephanie wants to come, this is probably the year to do it. Stephanie doesn’t want to be by herself if Travis is working, and suggests she bring her friends. She tells him, it seems like Kameron gets mad, and kind of blows up, spins, then they’re fine. In her interview, Stephanie says a few months ago, they were fine, and now they haven’t been able to get back on track. If she takes Kameron to Thailand to see an elephant, Kameron will like her again. Travis talks about ping pong shows, and Stephanie asks if they play ping pong. He says, not with their hands. She’s puzzled, and says, with their mouths? He says, lower. The lightbulb comes on, and she gets it, and she says, gross.
Stephanie calls everyone about the trip to Bangkok. LeeAnne is in right away. When Stephanie tells Brandi about the ping pong shows, Brandi asks if she’s planning on doing this. D’Andra says she doesn’t want to eat alone, and Stephanie will have to be an adventurous eater. Kameron says she’s going to need a long time to pack. In Kameron’s interview, she says she’s super shocked that Stephanie invited her. Is it her way of saying they’re good? Stephanie tells her, it will take at least a week, considering how much stuff she brings. It’s ridiculous.
Kary gets Stephanie’s call while going out to dinner with Eduardo, and asks if she’s serious. Eduardo says he’s jealous, and Kary tells him that she’s psyched. In Kary’s interview, she says she’s been to Thailand twice. She loves the food, the massages, and the culture. Me too, even though I’ve never been there, and it’s doubtful I’ll ever go. Kary flashes back to telling D’Andra about the wedding, and how there was no food, only platters of cheese and whatnot. D’Andra says LeeAnne probably couldn’t get it donated. Eduardo thinks the food situation was strange. If there’s not enough food, people get sh*t-faced. They order, and Kary tells him that she’s excited about Thailand. She wants to go to the same store where she got pearls for her jewelry line, so she’ll be doing a little work. Eduardo thinks she should definitely visit a temple they were at. She points out that she’s wearing new earrings she just made (love them, also pearl). Because they’re having two different conversations, Eduardo starts talking about his mother’s walking program. Kary says she doesn’t care. In her interview, she says, it’s important to her to talk about her business, and he’s changing the subject to talk about his mom’s walking trip. She could give a sh*t. Eduardo say if she’s going to be like that, it can kill the mood.
Kary says, it doesn’t matter. They eat in silence for a while, and Kary finally asks what Eduardo is wearing to Travis’s birthday party. He says he hasn’t thought about it, and Kary says it will be there before they know it. In Kary’s interview, she says, Eduardo isn’t good at communication. It’s one of their biggest issues. She likes to talk, and he’s the opposite; he doesn’t want to talk at all. Kary asks if he doesn’t want to talk anymore, and he says she just wants to talk about what she wants to talk about. She says she doesn’t want to talk about his mom’s trip, and he says he’s turned off. Kary says he’s just going on and on about it (not really), and he cut her off when she was talking about her jewelry. He changed the subject, and it’s something huge going on in her life. He’s not asking questions, or showing more interest. He says they’re having a nice dinner. It’s not just about one thing. He’s been supportive the whole time. She says when Eduardo started his business, he talked non-stop about it. He says they’re both trying to catch each other up. Kary asks, what else is going on? and Eduardo asks what she wants to talk about. She says she’s been trying to tell him that she’s excited to go.
In Kary’s interview, she says she thinks it’s a power struggle between them, built on control. Eduardo can’t control her. The finances are the only thing he has over her. Eduardo asks how many girls trips she’s been on, and Kary says, a lot. She loves her girls trips. He asks if she can’t live without them, and she says can’t. it’s like her therapy.
Next time, Travis is knighted at Medieval Times, Stephanie feels like she’s never enough, Travis’s birthday party happens, and LeeAnne isn’t enjoying watching D’Andra getting drunk over and over, and making an ass of herself.
🍷 8 pm is too early for watching Wives, and I’m all about this season’s American Horror Story: 1984 at 10, so The Real Housewives of New Jersey has gotten a little abandoned. No recap, but here were the highlights and feels.
🍝 Dolores still lives with Frank, Frank Jr. is modeling, including romance book covers. Is he the new Fabio? David is more on the scene, and everyone is one big happy family. More power to them. I wish I had a Frank – a dude who will do everything for me, and expects nothing in return except my scintillating company.
The Marge is looking good, as is Marge Sr. who’s taken a bookkeeping job in Manhattan, and is reliving her youth. Go OG Marge! Not loving Jennifer at all. She’s obnoxious, and it often seems like she’s being dramatic on purpose to get camera time. Giving her props though, for looking well put together, even though a lot of it is via plastic surgery, being the face (or other body parts, as it were) of her husband’s practice. She caused a rift with Jackie when she did an impression of Jackie (i.e. made fun of) in a restaurant, while Teresa filmed and put it on social media. When Jackie called her out on it during a Bring Your Booty Back event, Jennifer claimed it was just a joke. Then followed Jackie around the party, screeching at her.
Melissa defended Teresa for encouraging Jennifer’s dumbass behavior and stepping out on Juicy Joe with a dude so young he wears a backpack. She claimed he was just a friend. Uh-huh, I always hold hands with my male friends. Teresa was done with restitution, and putting in a pool. Joe #1 was detained on ICE indefinitely, awaiting the judge’s ruling on his appeal. If he went to Italy, he wouldn’t be allowed back in the country, and Gina had given him an old tomato ultimatum – if he went to Italy, he couldn’t have a relationship with her. Joe – who now looks like a mini version of Mike Sorrentino aka The Situation – felt he was wasting his life there. Well, we already know how that turns out.
Marge gave us the best quote of the night: cake fixes everything.
This season, hair pulling, a trip to Jamaica, skydiving, Melissa wants another baby, Danielle blames Marge for her divorce, the news that Joe #1 is getting deported, glass throwing, and the best of friends become the worst of enemas enemies.
💎 When Did It Become Citrine…?
Brush with greatness moment. One time I was at the same Christmas party as FredSchneider. They had karaoke, and I was singing Carrie Underwood‘s Before He Cheats. Fred walked by, and told me, nothing said Christmas like that song.
The Man In Black…
What I Watched - TV With Theresa 