What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

General Hospital

Valentin meets Martin, who says he’s glad Valentin showed up. Valentin wonders why he’s surprised, since Martin asked him to join him at the Port Charles Grill, but Martin says Valentin has been avoiding him for weeks. Valentin asks why Martin is being so dramatic. He has more pressing issues in his life. Martin says, apparently finding his mother isn’t one of them. All Valentin has been doing is wasting time with Jackie, who won’t do anything other than dig up dirt on his brother. They argue as Jackie walks in. She goes to their table, and says she found Martin’s mother. Does that help?

Phyllis cries over the damage at the Tan-O, and wonders how they’re going to recover from this. Lenny looks at the cash drawer, and says, damn. They were cleaned out. Phyllis starts to pick things up, but Sonny tells her, it’s best to wait for the cops, and she says he’s right; she wasn’t thinking. Sonny gets a chair for her, and she says she shouldn’t be so upset. It’s just things, but the level of destruction is so angry. She’s glad Sonny wasn’t there; he could have been hurt. Lenny asks where Sonny was. He was supposed to be watching the bar. What happened? Officer Finchley walks in, and says he’d like the answer to that himself.

Carly tells Jax, Diane wants to go over everything that happened with Nelle on the cliff, step by step. Jax wonders why, and Carly says, Diane wants to be prepared for whatever. She hopes Diane is right about what she anticipates, and the PCPD leaves well enough alone. She asks if Jax is okay, and he says he is, considering he just destroyed Nina.

Jordan tells Nina that Nelle probably just fell, but Nina says, Nelle wasn’t alone. Carly was on the cliff with Nelle when it happened. She’s been lying to them, and the police. Jordan asks why Nina supposes that is, and Nina says she wants Jordan to arrest Carly for Nelle’s murder.

Britt tells Jason that Cyrus’s research is fiction, and she thinks he must have complete control over Dr. Roberts. She did her own research, and the drug is addictive on the first use. Cyrus must have told the doctor and his team to change the data, so the Board wouldn’t vote against the drug. Jason asks if she still has her research, and she says she does. She’ll print it out and show him. Cyrus made a mistake thinking he could fool the Board and falsify data. It’s a good thing she ran her own tests and can prove the result, so she can expose Cyrus’s lies. Her laptop says, file empty.

Cyrus says he’s putting Brando on notice. He tasked Brando with finding his mother weeks ago, yet he hasn’t made any progress. Perhaps Brando isn’t as useful as he originally thought. Brando says he’s been trying to find Cyrus’s mother, and he’s made some headway. Cyrus says, go on, and Brando says he tracked the SUV caught on the security camera the night his mother disappeared. Cyrus says, and? and Brando says he can confirm it’s not the one that transported her off the premises. Again, Cyrus says, and? and Brando says, that’s it for now. Cyrus raises his fist and says, not good enough.

Jackie sits down, and Martin asks where his mother is. She says, Vermont probably, and Valentin asks her to please explain. She says Carly’s mother is working in Vermont, nursing a private patient. Martin says, she needs a job, but Valentin says, it makes sense that Carly would involve her mother. Bobbie is a competent nurse, and has unequalled loyalty. That would explain why Bobbie didn’t come back for Sonny’s funeral. Jackie says she’s going to Vermont to check it out, and Martin asks, when are they leaving?   

Portia explains Cyrus’s offer of refusing to cooperate and testify against Taggert. She says she can tell he hadn’t heard about it, and he says, it’s the first time he’s hearing about it. Why is she coming to him? She says, because Cyrus made the offer to Jordan, and she turned it down. He says, Jordan must have some leverage over Cyrus, and Portia says she doesn’t blame her for not wanting to take a deal from Cyrus, but once again, she’s out of loop on something that directly impacts her family. He says he doesn’t expect Jordan to check in with him on police matters, but Portia says, if Taggert isn’t protected and not prosecuted, he’ll go to prison. It will impact her daughter, so will he please talk to Jordan and find out what she’s thinking. He says he doubts Jordan will tell him anything. They’re officially separated.   

Jordan tells Nina that she’s making allegations about a case that’s been closed for months. Maybe she should take it down a notch. Nina says she’s not letting people turn a blind eye to protect Carly; not this time. Jordan says, that’s not what she’s doing, and asks Nina to sit and start at the top. Nina says she was at Sonny’s funeral, when she overheard Carly and Jax talking about what happened on the cliff. Carly heard Nelle calling out, and hesitated. She let Nelle fall, and left her there. Jordan says, Carly told the police that she fought with Nelle in the clearing, and Jax said that’s where he found her. They never went to the cliff. Is Nina accusing them of lying to the police? Nina says, that, and so much more. The truth has to come out about what happened to her daughter. Jordan says, her daughter? and Nina says, yeah. Nelle was her daughter. She fingers the necklace.

Josslyn comes home, and Carly asks if she’s okay. Josslyn says she was at Trina’s, trying to do homework, but couldn’t focus. What happened at the cemetery? Why did Nina lose it? Jax asks what she overheard, and Josslyn says, Nina accused him and Carly of doing something to her daughter. Carly tells Jax that she already explained to Josslyn that Nelle was Nina’s daughter, and Josslyn asks what Nina is accusing them of. What does Nina think they did to Nelle?  

Sonny tells Finchley that he drove a drunk customer to the motel in the customer’s car, and had to walk back. Lenny says, leaving the Tan-O ripe for the picking. Did he even lock the door? Sonny says he did, and Lenny can check the damage on the lock. Lenny says, none of it would have happened if Sonny had been there watching, and Finchley asks how long Sonny was gone. Sonny says, twenty, twenty-five minutes, and Finchley says, it took him that long to drive to the motel and walk back? Sonny says, he took the customer to his room. He didn’t want him found frozen. Finchley says Sonny is a regular good Samaritan, and Sonny says, he can’t say; he doesn’t remember. Finchley says that seems to be his answer for everything, and Phyllis asks what he means. What is he implying? Finchley says he’s not implying anything. He’s saying straight up that Mike/Sonny is a liar.

Jason asks Britt, what’s wrong? and she says, her research is all gone, erased; even her back-up. Jason says, obviously Cyrus found out and covered his tracks. She says she’ll confront Dr. Roberts, but Jason says he can’t let her do that. She says, don’t tell her what to do, and he says, he respectfully requests that she hear him out. The smart move is to do nothing. Take their time. She says, time is something she doesn’t have, and he asks, why? Is she going somewhere?

Jackie tells Martin, she works solo, but he says, not this time. He and Valentin are going. Valentin says he can’t drop everything for a Vermont road trip, and Martin asks, why? Is it ELQ, or Valentin’s obsession with his ex? His romantic woes can wait; they need to find Martin’s mother. Valentin says he’ll even pay for the trip, but if they find evidence, they’re to go directly to the Vermont police. Jackie says she’s not going to try and rescue Florence by herself, but it’s moot until they’re certain she’s there. That’s why she needs to keep a low profile. It makes sense for her to go first, and alone to scout the location. Martin says he’s absolutely going. End of conversation. She says, then prepare to fail. If he goes, he’ll ruin everything.

Portia brings Curtis into one of the examining rooms, so they can talk privately. She says she’s so sorry to hear he and Jordan are separated. She knew they were going through a rough patch, but thought they’d work through it. They obviously love each other. He says, it takes more than love to make a marriage, and she asks if he’s saying it’s over. He says, no. He’s saying it’s on pause, but he’s tired of living a life of lies and omission, no matter how well-intended. She asks if that isn’t the actual job description, and he says, he knows the boundaries of the job. When he and Jordan worked together in Baltimore, he knew more about her personal life than he does as her husband. Portia says she gets it, but she doesn’t think Jordan intended to shut him out. He says, it keeps happening, and Jordan is so good at it, he wonders what else she’s not telling him. He’s exhausted, waiting for the other shoe to fall. If they can’t be honest, what’s the point? She says, honesty is the backbone of a marriage. That’s why she and Taggert didn’t make it.

Nina shows Jordan how the necklaces match, and says, two halves of a whole. Nelle had it the entire time, even when she was a little girl. Nina didn’t know until it was too late. Jordan says she’s so sorry. She knows how long Nina had been searching. It must be devastating. Nina appreciates Jordan’s understanding, and says, now that Jordan knows, she can help. Nina wasn’t Nelle’s mother when Nelle was alive, but she can still fight for her. Jordan says she understands the instinct to do something, but as she explained… Nina says, Carly is responsible for Nelle’s death. She could have saved Nelle, and did nothing. She needs to be held accountable. Carly is the reason Nelle is dead.

Carly tells Josslyn that she hesitated; she thought it was a trick. She thought Nelle would pull her over. She finally looked, and saw Nelle dangling. She reached out, and tried help, but Nelle fell. She was kneeling there in shock, when Jax showed up. Jax says he was afraid if the police showed up, they’d accuse Carly of pushing Nelle, and Carly says, so they went to the clearing. That’s where she told the police she fought with Nelle, Nelle ran off, and it was the last time she saw Nelle. Josslyn says, so she lied, and Carly says, she did. Josslyn says she made the right call.

Phyllis tells Finchley, that’s an outrageous thing to say. Mike/Sonny has been open and above board with them. Lenny says, he had his doubts, but that was before he had the chance to see Mike in action; he’s a hard worker. Finchley says, good to hear, and Phyllis asks why he’s so dead set against Mike. Finchley says Mike showed up just as the smash and grab robberies started, including this one. Sonny says he wasn’t there, and Finchley asks if the customer had a name. Sonny says, they didn’t have a conversation; the customer was too drunk. Finchley can check with the motel. Finchley says he will. He won’t take anything Mike says at face value, especially since he ran Mike’s fingerprints. We all go, WTH? Does he know Mike is Sonny? But it’s a commercial.

Sonny says, Finchley ran his prints even though he said no? and Lenny says, it’s within the man’s rights. Lenny asks how Finchley got them, and Finchley says he took a cup he saw Mike/Sonny drinking from. Sonny asks if Finchley ID’d him. All this time, Finchley has been harassing him when Finchley knew who he was?

Brando says he’s proven himself to Cyrus over and over, but Cyrus tells him to prove himself again; find his mother. Brando says, he needs time. but Cyrus says he’s made himself perfectly clear. He hired Brando as a source of information about Sonny’s organization. Now Sonny is dead, and Jason has no loyalty to Brando. Brando needs to prove his worth in other ways. Find his mother. If he doesn’t, he’ll have Brando terminated.

Britt tells Jason, she has a full plate. She has a staff to manage, and a department to oversee. If Cyrus discovered she did her own research, he’s bound to come after her. Jason says he won’t let that happen, and she asks how he’s going to stop it. He says, any way he has to. He has enough leverage to back Cyrus off. She asks, what kind? but he says he can’t tell her. He gets a text from Brando, saying, Saint Street alley. ASAP, and tells Britt that he’s got to go; be careful. She says she can take care of herself; she always has. He leaves, and Britt looks at her hand shaking. She says, this, she might not be able to fight.

Carly says she doesn’t know if lying was the right or wrong decision, but it’s the one she made in the moment, so she’s seeing it through. Josslyn says she understands. She doesn’t want Carly going to prison for something she didn’t do. It’s like what happened with Nelle all over again, when Carly went to Ferncliff for pushing Nelle down the stairs. Even though she was innocent, she was locked up anyway. Josslyn never wants that to happen again. Jax says they’ll do everything in their power to make sure it doesn’t, and Carly says, Nina is grieving. She’s lashing out about the daughter she’d imagined, and blaming Carly. It’s not fun, but she’s survived worse. She and Josslyn hug.

Portia tells Curtis that she gets it. Taggert had so much locked away, she felt abandoned emotionally. Then she met Curtis, and she was the one holding back. Ultimately, the only thing they shared was Trina. Even when Taggert was home, they didn’t have enough life together to make the marriage work. Curtis says, everyone has a secret or two, and he understands, but the secrets Jordan has been keeping directly effect their lives. She knew TJ was kidnapped long before she told him, and she knew he blamed himself for Taggert’s death. Meanwhile, Taggert was safe, and in hiding. Jordan might have her reasons, but at the end of the day, he doesn’t want to live like this, no matter how hard it is to walk away.

Jordan looks at her and Curtis’s wedding photo. She gets her coat, and leaves her office.

Martin tells Jackie that he resents the implication. He’d never do anything to put his mother in danger. She says, not on purpose, but he’s too emotionally involved. He’ll probably charge in and try to rescue her the minute he lays eyes on her. Martin says he does know his mother is all right, and Valentin asks, how? Martin says he spoke to her, and Jackie says, how? When? He says he received a dedicated phone, and she asks if his mother said anything like the name of her nurse or her location, but he says all she told him was that she was being treated well. Nina walks in, and Valentin excuses himself. Martin says, they’re not finished, but Jackie says she thinks they are. He says, very well, and she says, then it’s decided. He says he’s coming with her.

Valentin sits with Nina at the bar, and says he hasn’t seen her in a while. She says, he knew that Jax knew Nelle was her daughter. She’s not asking how he knew, but it was just the tip of the iceberg. He asks, what happened? and she says, Carly was on the cliff when Nelle fell. Jax convinced Carly to lie, so she wouldn’t be arrested. For all his fancy talk, insisting he was protecting her feelings and saving her heartache and grief, the whole time, the person he was protecting was Carly. Valentin warned her, didn’t he? He was right. Jax always puts Carly first, and she can never forgive that.

Carly opens the door to Jordan, who thanks Carly for seeing her. Carly asks if she had a choice, and Jordan comes in. Jordan says she was hoping Jax would be there; otherwise, he was her next stop. Jax asks what they can do for the Commissioner, and Jordan says she’d like to do this privately. Carly asks Josslyn to go upstairs and check on Donna. They exchange I love yous, and Josslyn leaves. Carly says Jordan is aware Sonny’s funeral was a few hours ago, and Jordan says she’s sorry, but she had to come tonight. There are allegations against them, so she’s going to ask flat out, did Carly push Nelle to her death? BTW, regular Jordan is back. Funny thing, I never even noticed. I guess I’d already forgotten about tween Jordan.

Portia tells Curtis, she’s so sorry it’s come to this. She hopes Jordan realizes what she’s losing, and he finds it in himself to change his decision. He says, it’s not just about Jordan. He needs to refocus his own life. She asks, in what way? and he asks if she remembers their conversation at the gym. He’s tired of trading in secrets, his and other people’s. He makes a living uncovering other people’s dirty laundry, then blows their secrets wide open. He needs something new… something more.

Nina tells Valentin, Carly admitted she hesitated. How do they knew she put in any effort at all, with all the bad blood between them? And Jax blindly backs her without question. He didn’t care enough about Nina to think she deserved the truth. Valentin says, so he didn’t see Nelle fall, and Nina says, if Jax can lie about Nelle being her daughter, how can she believe anything he and Carly say about what really happened? Valentin says, she can’t.

Jackie tells Martin, there’s no proof Bobbie is looking after his mother; it’s just a hunch. He says that’s good enough for him. He’ll be her back up. She says she doesn’t need back up, and he says, what happens if she gets caught, or Bobbie gets wind she’s been asking questions? Jason will relocate his mother, and they’re back to square one. She says she’s not an amateur. She’s navigated war zones. She thinks she can handle a sleepy Vermont town. Cyrus approaches, and asks if they’re planning a trip.

Finchley says he couldn’t ID Mike/Sonny, and Phyllis asks why Finchley did it. It’s plain that he’ll make any excuse to blame Mike. Lenny says, Finchley took Mike’s fingerprints without his consent, and stole a cup from him to do it. Finchley says he’s concerned with stopping the robberies, but Sonny says Finchley isn’t catching anyone when he’s fixated on him. Lenny says, the robberies were going on before Mike got there, and Sonny offers for Finchley to check his room. He’ll see Sonny didn’t steal anything or bust up the place. Finchley says, don’t mind if I do, and goes upstairs. Sonny thanks Lenny and Phyllis for sticking up for him, and says Finchley isn’t going to find anything up there. Phyllis says she’s sorry, but he can’t stay there any longer.

Curtis tells Portia, now that he’s realized what he wants, he sees no reason to stay. The job he’s working on will be wrapping up shortly, and it might be the last one. Portia says, the nightclub? and he says, yeah. He’ll be stylin’ tomorrow night, and blending in. He’s going to finish the job and make his money. Does her offer to help with the case still stand?

Carly tells Jordan that she didn’t kill Nelle; it’s the God’s honest truth. She knows Nina made allegations. She barged in on Sonny’s funeral while they were laying roses on his grave. She got upset, and leveled unfounded accusations. Carly knows Nina is in pain, but so is Sonny’s family, and so is she. Jax says, Nina was distraught about Nelle being her daughter, and Jordan says she’s still wrapping her head around that, but it’s her job to investigate. Nina heard Carly say she had been on the cliff, but that wasn’t in Carly’s statement; why is that? Carly wonders if this is an official interview, and says she’s calling Diane. Jordan says, that’s not necessary, but before she leaves, she has to say something.  

Sonny tells Phyllis, he’ll go, but he just doesn’t want them thinking he did this to them. She says she’s not asking him to leave because she thinks he’s a criminal, and Lenny asks, what’s the deal? She says, obviously, Finchley is fixated on Mike/Sonny. If he stays there, the only way it will end is with Mike behind bars, and she doesn’t want that. Lenny says, so she doesn’t want Mike to go? and she says, of course (🍷) not. She’s thinking about what’s best for Mike. Sonny says, all right, he’ll stay. He’d like to think he’s needed there, and he needs them, but he’s got to tell them, he doesn’t think their troubles are over.

Valentin says he’s sorry Jax betrayed Nina’s trust, but Nina says he knew it was coming; so did Ava. Valentin says he takes no pleasure in being right. He doesn’t like to see her in pain. Nina says, ironic, considering how much he hurt her, and he says he’d do anything to make it up to her. She says, then prove it.

Cyrus takes his jacket off, and says, cozy. Martin says they were just enjoying a cocktail, and Cyrus says, and discussing Vermont. Jackie says she was looking into Martin’s allegations that Jason kidnapped his mother, and Cyrus says, Martin told her? Martin says Cyrus knows him, and knows he’d do anything to get their mother back safely. Jackie says she was thinking of taking a trip to Vermont to speak to the staff who were on duty when his mother disappeared, but Cyrus says her inquiry isn’t necessary. He’s confident that his man understands the urgency and the consequences if he fails.

Brando tells Jason that he can only put off Cyrus for so long. His time is up. Cyrus is going to terminate him if he doesn’t show results. Jason says, define terminate, which is what I was thinking, and Brando says Jason’s guess is as good as his. Cyrus is either going to fire him or kill him, unless they come up with a solution.

Sonny thinks the Tan-O is a target, but Lenny says, they’re not the only ones. The hardware store was also robbed. Sonny says, but this is the second time since he’s been there. He disarmed the first guy, but this time it’s more than a robbery. Look around. Whoever did this wanted to do as much damage as possible. Finchley comes back, and says Mike/Sonny’s room is clean. Lenny thanks him for coming by, and Finchley says he finds Mike’s story flimsy. It will be hard to prove with no name, and he could have checked out by now. Sonny says, law enforcement is harder than it looks, and Finchley says he’s got his eyes on Sonny. He leaves, and Phyllis says, what did she tell them? Finchley is like a dog with a bone. He’s not going to let up. Is Mike sure he wants to put himself through this? Sonny tells her, like he said, he’s not leaving them in the lurch, especially with all the kindness they’ve shown him. As long as there’s trouble there, he stays. Lenny guesses they’d best start cleaning up then, and Sonny says he’s Lenny’s man.

Portia asks if Curtis wants her to help with the case, and he says, nothing dangerous, he promises. She says she knows he’d never put her in jeopardy. Okay, she’s in. What does he need her to do? He says he wants her to be his Valentine.  

Jordan tells Carly and Jax, Nina is not going to let this go. She wants Carly arrested. Jax says he doesn’t care what she wants. Carly didn’t kill Nelle. Jordan says, Nelle’s body was recovered in Pennsylvania (on the other side of the river), and it’s out of her jurisdiction. She’s going to have to notify the Feds, and thinks it would be wise for Carly to alert Diane. She leaves.

Martin asks if Cyrus has any promising leads, but Cyrus thinks it’s best he keeps them to himself. Martin says he’s sure Cyrus intends to keep him in the loop, and Cyrus says he’s going to keep their mother safe at all costs. He tells them to enjoy their drinks, and leaves. Martin tells Jackie, he hopes she understands that if Cyrus finds their mother first, he’ll move her to another location, and she’ll be lost to him all over again. Please, he’s begging her. He’s got to find his mother. Jackie says, okay. She’s going to track Bobbie, and hopes it leads to Florence.   

Valentin says he’ll do anything for Nina. What does she need? Nina says, help her make Carly pay.

Josslyn comes back, and tells Carly that she changed Donna, and she’s asleep. She asks if Jordan left, and Jax says, yeah. Josslyn asks if Carly is going to be arrested, but Carly says, no. There’s no evidence, and the simple fact is, she didn’t do anything wrong. It’s just a formality. Everything will be okay. They hug.

Britt looks at her phone, and calls Dr. Todd Walsh. She says she’d like to make an appointment. The referring physician is Dr. Britt Westbourne… The symptoms are intermittent tremors in the right hand... She’d like the earliest available appointment.

Brando tells Jason, he’s doing everything he can, but he’s out of time. Cyrus is out of patience, and he needs a solution now. Jason says, Brando is right; that is a problem. He turns his back, and Brando says, so that’s it? Jason’s not going help him? He did his best for Sonny, and now he’s on his own? So be it. He walks away, and Jason shoots him in the back.  

I literally said, whoa! out loud, and something about what a dirtbag Jason is, but after some thought, I’m guessing he’s just putting Brando out of commission for a while. Even though I’m not really a Jason fan, I don’t see him shooting someone in the back. At least not Brando. If that’s not the case, then he is a dirtbag.

Tomorrow, it’s Valentine’s Day in Port Charles, Britt says there’s no one she’d rather be with, TJ says it’s a big night, and Jordan asks who someone is protecting.

🏖 The awful people living in Summer House were still just as awful tonight. I found it particularly distasteful when Luke tried to gaslight Hannah, while confirming she was in the friendzone. She said he was no friend of hers, and he said she was delusional and overly dramatic, but I’ve met his kind before. He’s a jerk whose M.O. is benching certain girls, and not worth her time. It’s been a while since I was in the dating pool, and while the meeting place might have changed, the players haven’t. Still far from Luke’s narcissism, Kyle comes in at second place for humble bragging about working 80 hour weeks in the Hamptons. But I thought summer was supposed to be fun?

📌 That’s a Fact…

On March 30, Alvin Ailey and a group of young, black modern dancers perform for the first time as members of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at New York’s 92nd Street YM-YWHA.

The rest is history, and you can read about it here:

https://www.alvinailey.org/about/history

📣 That’s a Quote…

I am writing this book to redefine Blackness and establish a new ‘Black Card,’ so to speak. Carriers of this car will no longer be ashamed of admitting that past traumas have hurt them….Trauma isn’t just war flashbacks. It’s having to raise your siblings because you were fatherless. It’s have to raise yourself because your mother was dealing with her own crises. It’s having a father who left you and your siblings at home while he roamed the streets looking for a fix. It’s being neglected because you were raised by a single parent who dealt with their trauma in silence. – AD Thomason, Permission to Be Black

🏇 That’s a Finish…

While there will be plenty of Port Charles Valentines and tea tomorrow, I have to work on some copywriting, so I’m off. Until we meet in the Saint Street alley, stay safe, stay sure of yourself, and stay the hell away from dudes like Luke.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFLy8eGtSYo