Monthly Archives: November 2021

November 15, 2021 – The Mystery Man Reveals Himself, Total Idiots On Deck, News Of the Dead & Joe

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Outside Kelly’s, Brook asks if Chase is accusing her of lying, and he says, Brook Lyn… She says, don’t Brook Lyn her. She thought they’ve reached a point in their relationship where they actually consider each other friends. He says, they have, and she says, friends who not only puzzle together, but also watch movies together, because it’s an act of trust. Chase and I both look confused, and she says, there’s nothing worse than watching a movie with someone who doesn’t like the movie you picked, and the whole time just makes snarky comments and complains. He says he doesn’t do that, and she says, that’s exactly her point. They have a good thing going. Why mess it up? He says, he doesn’t want to mess anything up, which is why she has to tell him exactly what happened the night the baby was born.

Gladys sees Brando and Sasha at the hospital, and asks if the baby’s okay. Sasha says, everything’s fine. She just had to pick up some prenatal vitamins, but what is Gladys doing there? Gladys says she’s picking up something for her migraine, and Sasha asks if it’s the office lighting. Gladys says, it’s her demanding job. BLQ’s piling on the work like there’s no tomorrow. She even insisted Gladys eat lunch at her desk, and stay until five. Brando says, despicable, and Sasha says she thought Brook was rewarding Gladys with some me time. What changed?

On the phone, Valentin tells Charlotte that he’ll be home in time to see her and Butterscotch win their competition. Before she goes will she do him a favor, and put Bailey on the speaker, so she can hear his voice? Anna walks out of the room behind him, and he speaks in French to the baby. He tells her to be a good girl. He misses and loves them both.. Anna says he’s so good at that; he was born to be a father. He says he’s made plenty of mistakes, and she says, her too. She doesn’t want to make anymore. At the risk of sounding redundant, but they have to find Peter, and they’ve got to stop him. Robert comes along, and says, from what he understands, there’s a way… but Valentin says, the WSB can’t grant Victor immunity. There’s got to be another way.

Scotty is outside the PCPD cell area, and says he demands to see his client. Victor sits up, and he says, tell the guard they have things to discuss. Victor says he and Scotty have a right to privacy, and asks the guard to please leave. The guard lets Scotty in, and Victor says, they hardly know each other, and he certainly hasn’t hired Scotty as his attorney. Scotty says, true, but they have one thing in common – Liesl Obrecht – and Victor is going to help him find her.

The Photo Ark exhibit has begun, and Nikolas hands Ava a glass of champagne. He tells her, good luck, but doesn’t think she’s going to need it; she has a hit on her hands. She says, thanks to Trina. She’s just glad she gets to share it with him. When she thinks about how close they came to losing each other… They see Spencer walk in with Esme.

Esme asks if Spencer is sure he’s up for this, but he says, it’s not about them. They’re here for Trina. This is her big night.

Trina walks in with Cameron, and says, Joss is coming, right? He says, she’s just at volleyball practice right now, and Trina asks if they’re okay. He says, things are good, when Portia approaches, and says, this show is spectacular. She can’t believe she’s the mother of its curator. Trina says, well, Ava deserves the credit for hosting it, and Mr. Quartermaine for underwriting it. Cameron says, and Trina, for coming up with the idea and making it happen. Portia says, amen. There is no need for false modesty here. Trina says, speaking of spectacular, Portia looks amazing. Is Curtis joining her? Portia says, Curtis is coming. He probably just got held up at the club.

Curtis asks Marshall who the hell he is, and what does he want? Marshall says, Curtis really doesn’t know, does he? and Curtis wonders why he should. Marshall says he guesses he’s the man Curtis has been searching for his whole life. Now Curtis has found him.

Chase says, just talk him through it, step by step. How did she manage to pull a fast one and slip away, then have her baby in a hotel? She says, this is none of his business, and Chase says, whatever’s going on has to do with Bailey. Valentin is going to start suspecting something sooner or later. She can talk to him; what is she hiding? She asks if he really wants to have this conversation right now; it’s kind of cold. He says, fine, and opens the door to Kelly’s. Let’s go inside. He has time.

Robert says, Valentin has no say in what the Bureau will or will not do for people, and he says, neither does Robert. Anna asks if Robert talked to the mercenary that they have in custody. He’s just down the hall. They had him airlifted in from Greece, and he’s lucky to be alive. She’s sure he’d be cooperative. Robert says, nice try, kid. That guy’s a guppy and she knows it. Victor’s the big fish. They get him to flip, and they might actually lay their hands on Peter. Valentin says, at what cost? Are they going to let Victor set his own terms? Robert’s phone rings. He answers, and says, he’ll be right down. Anna asks, what is it? and he says, seems that Victor’s got himself a visitor. He’d like to check it out. And by the way, the Bureau has accorded him and Anna to make a recommendation on Victor’s behalf; a courtesy call, if you like. They’re going to do what they want to do anyway. He leaves and Valentin says, translation: we can’t stop the WSB from making a deal with the devil. Anna says she has an idea.

Victor says he knows Scotty by reputation, and Scotty says, ditto. And what he knows about Victor, he doesn’t like. He’s not fond of criminals who hijack him, drug him, and throw him out of a plane. Victor says, yet here he is, and Scotty says, and here Victor is in jail. Funny how that worked out. Victor says, had it not been for him, there would have been no parachute, but Scotty says he doesn’t think Victor will be getting a thank you card from him. Did he really do that out of the kindness of his heart? Victor says, no. He did it for Liesl’s heart, so Scotty’s right about that. They do have that in common. They both care for Liesl very much. Scotty suggests they not compare obsession with love, and Victor says, they’re not friends and he didn’t hire Scotty, so why is he here? Scotty says he already told Victor; Victor is going to help him bring Liesl home. As far as hiring him, does Victor want to walk out of here, free as a bird? Then Victor needs him.

Trina asks Portia to promise she’ll chill; Spencer cut ties with his dad. Cameron says, Spencer didn’t like that Ava was in charge of his trust fund, so he told both of them that he didn’t want or need the Cassadine money. Portia asks if they’re telling her that Spencer Cassadine is in the wild on his own, and Trina says, he’s independent and working at Kelly’s. Cameron’s his boss. Cameron says, that’s a fact, and Portia says, that’s a step in the right direction for Spencer. She just hasn’t forgotten how he treated Trina, and hopes Trina doesn’t forget either. Trina says she doesn’t have time for Spencer. She has a show to run. Portia says, that she does. She’ll let Trina get to it.

Spencer tells Esme, good. Trina’s mom left. Now they can go over and wish her good luck tonight. Esme says, then again, she bets Trina would rather be alone with Cameron.

Brook looks at the menu, and Chase takes it out of her hands, saying, enough stalling. What’s going on? She says he’s right; she gave Yuri the slip. She had no guarantee that she was going to give birth that night, but she knew she wanted to do it alone. He says, without the father’s knowledge? Why? She says, she and Valentin weren’t on the best of terms at the time. They had that one night, but didn’t exactly trust each other. That’s why he put a bodyguard on her to watch her every move. He says he remembers when she came to his apartment with Yuri, and also remembers her being stressed about the pregnancy. She says she was looking at a lifetime of being chained to Valentin, and didn’t want to be controlled. Chase knows how Valentin is. He takes ownership over everything. They had an agreement, but she had no guarantee he’d honor it. So as her due date rapidly approached, she felt like she had to get away, send a message that Valentin couldn’t control her or her baby. Given Valentin’s history, can Chase believe her?

Curtis picks up the sketch, and says Marshall should take a look at this. It’s a sketch of a man who’s been going around town, asking questions about him. He started with Curtis’s nephew, and moved on to his friend. He even asked Curtis’s bartender questions. He opens the sketch, and says, this is Marshall, and he comes in there saying Curtis is looking for him? Make it make sense. Marshall asks if Curtis went to the cops. Is that a police sketch? Curtis says, that’s what concerns him? What is his deal? For all he knows, Marshall is the one who scared off the band he had booked the other night. Marshall says, so what? A talented artist showed up, and Curtis had a great night. Curtis says, luck had nothing to do with it. Marshall’s boy Linc said he owed Marshall a favor. Linc also claimed that he wasn’t mobbed up, but maybe Marshall is. Don’t think Curtis didn’t notice that Linc double-timed it out of there when Marshall told him to kick rocks. That’s the same night Joey Novak got jumped, because he was trying to muscle in on something Marshall wanted. It’s all connected, isn’t it? Marshall says, it’s connected, but not like Curtis thinks. Curtis says Marshall has about ten seconds to clarify things before Curtis throws his ass out of here.

Chase says, Brook and Valentin have some binding agreement where he gave up his shares in ELQ, and she says, so he could share in Bailey’s life. He asks if that didn’t include Valentin being present at her birth, and she says, it did. The problem is, as soon as the ink dried, everyone told her not to do it. Her family… He says, Maxie too? and she says, Maxie was very persuasive, and as her due date got closer, the more unsure she got. She knew she couldn’t back out of the deal, but she couldn’t share the birth with Valentin. It was too intimate; she would be too vulnerable. So she told everyone she was going to Brooklyn. Her friend CeCe helped her cover, and she got a room in a hotel. He says, in Ithaca. Why a hotel and not a hospital? She says she couldn’t risk Valentin tracking her down, so she had the doula meet her in the hotel, and she ended up giving birth that night. That’s when she called Michael to pick her up. He came with Willow to take her and the baby home. When they arrived, Valentin swooped in, and became immediately involved, but at least she had that time with Bailey to herself. End of story. He tells her, what she’s saying makes sense from her point of view. He gets her family history, and knows Valentin’s history. It’s a good story. It’s almost too good.

Gladys tells Sasha, the only thing that’s changed is Brook started treating her like dirt. So much for her raise or promotion. Now she’s back to shopping at Soles for Less, and settling for last year’s markdowns. Sasha says she and Brando better get going, or they’ll be late for the opening, and Gladys says, what opening? Sasha says, Ava Jerome’s art gallery; there’s a new exhibit. Gladys says, la-di-da. Have fun. She’ll just go back to the apartment, microwave something, and deal with the pile of paperwork she brought home. Sasha tells her, as senior partner, she says Gladys will do no such thing. She’s coming with them. Right, Brando? He says, she’s the boss, and Gladys says, thanks, but Sasha knows she doesn’t deserve that. Brando says, probably not, but it is rude to turn down an invitation. Gladys says they wouldn’t want that, and asks if they can stop by the office, so she can pick up some makeup. It’ll just be a quick stop. Brando says he thought she had a headache, but she says she’s starting to feel better.

Spencer says, this exhibit is amazing. Kudos to Trina. How was she able to land this? Cameron says, what Trina is too modest to say is, when she puts her mind to it, she’s absolutely unstoppable. Esme says, Cameron would know, right? He says, what? and Spencer asks where Josslyn is. Trina says, she’s at volleyball practice and will be here later. Esme says, hopefully, she’s not too late.

Portia tells Ava and Nikolas that she’s glad she was able to clear her schedule to be there tonight to be there for Trina’s sake. Nikolas says she probably has yet to forgive him for what happened between him and Spencer, and Portia says,  what happens between Nikolas and his son is really none of her concern, but those things affected her daughter, and Trina is always going to be her priority. Trina tells her that Spencer is trying to change, and she honestly wishes him well. She sincerely hopes he sets a good example for his father.

Valentin goes into mercenary Lex’s room, and leans over him. Lex opens his eyes, and says he knows Valentin. Valentin says he thought Lex might. He was a prisoner at the compound, and Lex was a guard. He doesn’t care about Lex, he’s looking for Lex’s boss. Lex says he’s not talking, and Valentin tells him, he was expecting him to say that, and takes out a syringe. Lex asks if it’s truth serum. How did Valentin get sodium pentothal? Does he have a doctor in his pocket? Valentin says, this is a reputable hospital. You don’t just get truth serum. This is a syringe full of air. You know what it does when it enters the bloodstream? It makes a bubble that will go straight to your heart, or your brain, and you die. Lex looks at the call button, but Valentin snatches it away, and asks if he wants to try again.

Curtis says Marshall has about five seconds, and Marshall says, maybe that’s why he’s here; to answer all of Curtis’s questions. Curtis asks him to stop talking in riddles. What is he doing here? Is he trying to ruin Curtis? Is he after Curtis’s business, or is it personal? Marshall says, it’s personal, but it’s not the way Curtis thinks. Curtis has to believe him. He’s not Curtis’s enemy. Far from it. Curtis asks, then what the hell is he? He says his name is Marshall… Thomas Ashford. Who he is, is Curtis’s father. Curtis says, he’s lying. HIs father died of a heart attack when he was a kid. He’s asked why Marshall is here, and Marshall won’t tell him, so get the hell out before Curtis physically removes Marshall himself. Marshall says he knows it’s hard to accept. He must seem like some distant memory to Curtis; something he can’t fit in in the life he has now. He gets that, but look at him. Look at him through a son’s eyes, and tell him he can’t see it. That Curtis can’t recognize him.

On the phone, Portia asks how the gunshot wound patient is responding to treatment… Did they ever receive Mr. Fraser’s medical records from Crete?… She guesses it’s enough he was airlifted there… No. The last thing he needs is to be questioned about Peter August and Victor Cassadine right now. He needs to rest. No visitors. Nikolas listens in, and Ava gives him the side-eye.

Cameron says he’s not sure where Esme is going with that. To be clear, he and Trina are friends, first, last, and always. Trina says she needs to circulate, and they leave. Esme tells Spencer, methinks the gentleman protests too much.

A waiter walks around with champagne, and Sasha says, none for her, but Gladys says she’d love some. The waiter tells her, enjoy, and Sasha says she has a confession. After weeks of bedrest and resting, she missed the glitterati. Gladys says her too. If it were up to Miss Bossy Pants, she’d never get to attend a function like this again. Brando says he’ll get Sasha a glass of sparkling water, and Gladys asks him to grab another glass of champagne while he’s at it. She’s planning on a fun night. A waiter bumps into her, and she says, excuse her. She looks at him weird, and Brando asks, what’s wrong? She says, for a second, she thought she knew him. It must be the bubbles. Speaking of the bubbles… Brando says, one sparkling water and one glass of champagne coming up. We see the waiter who bumped Gladys is Kip.

Brook says she had to keep what she did secret, even from Chase. She couldn’t risk anyone giving Valentin doubt in her story, for fear he’d cry breach of contract, and take back the ELQ shares. She’s sorry, but she couldn’t let that happen. He says, so she came up with a lie. She gets up and says she did what she had to ultimately to protect the people she loves. If he wants to arrest her, go ahead, but he’s really ruining their movie night. She holds out her wrists.

Victor says, there’s a surprising amount of merit in what Scotty is suggesting. If he’s willing to make good on his claims, it’s possible Victor might retain his services. Robert comes in, and asks what Scotty is doing there. He’s a bit out of his depth, isn’t he? This is a bit bigger than a slip and fall. He tells the guard, show this man the exit, but Victor says, Scotty is his attorney. Robert says Victor is more desperate than he thought, and Scotty says, listen here, Mr. DA. He knows Robert is no longer with the WSB, but he does have a direct line there, so he might want to give them a heads up. Robert says, about what? and Scotty says, in about an hour, he’s going to host a press conference with every major outlet. He’s going to tell them how the WSB goofed up. They could have had Peter August’s head on a platter, but instead, they dropped the ball. Robert says, Scotty might get The Invader to turn up to something like that, but no one else is going to care. Scotty says, he’s not finished. Then he’s going to tell them how the WSB is afraid of his client. Not just because of what he knows about Peter August, but all the dirty dealings that went on in the WSB when he was the director. Robert says, Scotty will be tied up in espionage suits for the rest of his life, and Scotty says, that might be true, but the damage will be done. Robert says, this smells like Victor’s idea, but Victor says, actually, Scotty came up with it. Kind of brilliant for an ambulance chaser, wouldn’t Robert agree?

Lex says, Valentin can’t do this. Help! Anna comes in, and asks what Valentin is doing. He’s just supposed to talk to him. Lex says, he’s crazy. Valentin is trying to kill him. Anna says, that’s not what they discussed, and Valentin is about to put the syringe into Lex’s intravenous tube. He says, all he has to do is push in the plunger, and Victor sends one less holiday card this year. Lex says, Valentin has it all wrong; he quit Victor. Anna says, he got a better offer from Peter? and Lex says, he changed sides, and look what he’s got to show for it. Another inch, and they said the bullet would have hit his heart. Valentin asks if he knows where Peter was heading when he left the compound, and Lex says, possibly. What’s it worth to him? Valentin says, he wants to negotiate, and Lex says, let’s start with six-figures and a new identity. Valentin tells Anna, he guesses their hands are tied, and she says, she guesses so. She grabs the syringe from Valentin, and plunges it in Lex’s arm. Lex says, she’s crazier than Valentin. If this air bubble reaches his heart… She says, he’s going to wish the bullet had reached his heart. Lex says, do something, and Valentin says, there’s always a hyperbolic oxygen. It’s the only way he knows how to break up a bubble. Anna says, he’ll need a doctor for that, and Lex says he’ll tell them what they want to know. She asks where Peter is, and Lex says, help him, and he’ll tell them. Valentin says, let’s get out of here, and they start to leave. Lex says, Cassadine Island. Now help him. Get a doctor. Get the air bubble out. Anna says, what air bubble? and leaves with Valentin.

Victor tells Robert, he’s sure the press will be especially captivated by the details of the coup the WSB orchestrated in Central America. Remember that one? It’s up to you, amigo. Robert says, Scotty’s already pointed one thing out; he’s no longer part of the agency. Scotty says, but he’s the facilitator. Peter’s got Liesl. He knows Robert doesn’t care about her, but he does, and he knows Robert cares about Maxie, and as long as Peter’s out there, she won’t be safe. They can wrangle all day, but he thinks they should cut to the chase. There are lives on the line; loved ones lives. Robert says, for this to work, the info has to be legit or the Bureau’s not going to buy it. Victor says, it’s up to Robert to convince them. Make it happen. Get him released, or Peter is going to get away with murder – again.

Ava asks if Nikolas knows the patient from Crete, and he says, the airlifting aspect got his attention. He asks when the star of the evening is arriving, and she says, he changed the subject. She wonders why. Like maybe there’s an actual threat out there. Maybe from his own family?

Portia tells Trina, it’s official. The panda photo is her favorite. Esme says she’ll have to look out for it, and Portia asks Trina to introduce her to her friend. Trina says, Esme is Spencer’s girlfriend, and introduces them. Esme says she was just telling Trina how impressive all of this is. She’s sure Portia’s very proud. Portia says, that she is. She heard Esme’s been in town as long as Spencer has. Either she’s the angel on Spencer’s shoulder or something else altogether. Esme says she’s just the girl Spence loves. She’ll be looking for that panda. She leaves, and Portia tells Trina, steer clear of that one. Trina says she’s trying.

Curtis tells Marshall, his earliest memories of his mom and Aunt Stella, two of the most honest people he’s ever known. They took him and his brother to the cemetery to put flowers on his father’s grave. Why would they make that up? There was a plot and a headstone, and they stood wiping the tears from two little boys’ eyes. Why would they make that up if it wasn’t true? Marshall says he knows Curtis has a lot of questions, but it’s going to take time. Curtis says, forget time; it takes facts. The fact is, his father died just after his third birthday. He held on to the birthday present his father gave him for that birthday long after he’d outgrown it. Those are facts. Marshall says, the toy lawnmower, and laughs. He says he’s glad, and Curtis asks how he knew that. Who told him? Marshall says, no one had to tell him. He gave it to Curtis.

Curtis says, Marshall let his late mother and brother, and his Aunt Stella and him, believe he was dead, but the truth is… Marshall says, if Curtis will just give him a chance, he’ll try to explain. Curtis says, save it. He doesn’t need to hear it, because anything Marshall says will be about himself, not about Curtis. There’s nothing he can say to justify this. Marshall was right earlier. His father is a distant memory, and there is no good explanation for Marshall making his brother and him grieve their entire lives over a man who wasn’t dead. Marshall says he understands Curtis is upset, but Curtis says he can’t possibly understand. They thought he died of a heart attack. Does he understand what it’s like for a child growing up under that shadow? Knowing from the start that life is short and the good guys don’t always win. Does he know how hard it was to watch his mom and Aunt Stella scrape and save every penny to make ends meet, trying their damnedest to raise two little Black boys in Baltimore, Maryland, a complicated place to navigate? Does Marshall know what that’s like? Of course (🍷) he doesn’t. Does he know what he did? He put in motion, a lifetime of uncertainty, and instability, and pain throughout Curtis’s whole family. All because the man of the house, the breadwinner, their protector, their father, supposedly died and wasn’t there for them.

Chase tells Brook to spare him the dramatics. He’s not accusing her of a crime, he’s just trying to find Maxie’s baby. She asks, then why is he interrogating her? and he says, he put together all the steps leading up to the abduction, and stumbled on her giving her bodyguard the slip that night. Brook says she’s not sure how this relates to Maxie, and he says, he’s not either at the moment. But when a bell goes off in his head, he asks questions until he gets answers. She says he told her that he was rusty with his detective skills. Chalk this up to a night of her helping him sharpen them. She has to go; she’s going to Ava’s gallery opening. He says, nice try. He knows there’s something else she’s hiding.

Valentin says, when Anna picked up that syringe and shoved it in Lex’s arm, he thinks he was as shocked as Lex was. It was classic, gutsy, diabolical. She says, he’s such a flirt. Robert joins them, and says, word has it, their friend from Crete had a strange encounter with a syringe. Anna says, he must be delusional, and Robert says, whatever. He just doesn’t want to know about it. She says, great, because they got a good lead on Peter. Robert says, him too, but they’re not going to like it.

Nikolas hands Ava a glass of champagne, and says, she’s the toast of the town tonight, so let’s toast to that and forget everything else. She says, Victor is here in a PCPD jail cell, and now one of his mercenaries is at GH. Is she supposed to ignore the Cassadine stain that’s spreading to their doorstep? Maybe he can, but she can’t.

Kip is serving canapes, and Gladys says, she’ll have one of those. He turns around, and she says, hi, Pauly. What’s new?

Marshall supposes he deserves everything Curtis said. Maybe he shouldn’t have sprung things on him this way. Curtis asks, why did he? Even if it’s true, why now? Why today? Marshall says he wanted come before, but he couldn’t, and Curtis asks what he means. Marshall says, it wasn’t safe, and Curtis asks what he’s talking about. Marshall says, it wasn’t safe for all of them, but when he was finally able to show his face, he saw Curtis needed him. That’s when he came forward. If they could just take it a step at a time, he promises Curtis will understand. In time, he’ll understand everything.

Cameron tells Trina, this place is amazing. She crushed it. They hug, and Esme asks Spencer, so those two were almost a thing? He asks why she keeps bringing it up. Cam said it was no big deal. Clearly, they’ve moved on. She says, maybe, but from what she can see, the sparks are still lingering. Portia sends Curtis a text that says, where are you? I miss you.

Marshall wonders how he can get Curtis to trust him, but Curtis says he can forget that. He doesn’t know Marshall, and doesn’t trust him, and damn sure doesn’t need him. He can get the hell out, and don’t do him any favors. Marshall says, fair enough. He’ll go… for now. He takes something out of his pocket, and says he knows Curtis probably doesn’t have any family photos with him in them. Maybe this one with him and Curtis’s mama, Curtis, and Tommy will make up for that. He puts it on a table, and says, it’s precious memories… precious memories. He leaves, and Curtis sees the back says, June 1985. He looks at the photo, and gets tears in his eyes. Didn’t he wonder why there were no pictures of his father when he was growing up? Just asking.

Kip says he thinks Gladys has him confused with someone else, and she says, she’s confused all right. First, he scares her into keeping her trap shut about Brook’s baby, and now he’s a cater waiter? Another waiter comes up, and tells Kip, Billy just booked a commercial. Tomorrow, he’s going in as Nathan Detroit. Congrats. The waiter leaves, and Gladys says, Kip. He’s an actor? What else is fake about him? Like he’s the father of Brook’s baby for instance?

Chase tells Brook, sooner or later, the truth always comes out. He wishes she would forget he was a cop, and trust him as a friend. She says she’s got to go. Her father is underwriting the exhibit, and she doesn’t want to disappoint him. Chase says, that’s what worries him.

🤬 Unreal. Here is where there’s literally a minute of the show left, and there’s an interruption about the infrastructure bill being signed. This couldn’t wait a minute? I say, WTF? over and over. But I finish through the magic of  the internet.

Ava asks if Nikolas can blame her for worrying. As long as Victor remains in town, remains in his life, there’s going to be trouble. He says his uncle has no hold over him. He let the world believe Victor was dead, and Victor returned the favor. They’re even; all debts are paid. Besides, he’s behind bars; he’s about to be shipped off to the Hague, or some other WSB facility, never to be heard from again. She asks if he promises, and he says he does. He tells her, relax. Enjoy her big night. Everything is going to be all right.

Valentin tells Robert, don’t do this. They don’t need Victor. They can track Peter on their own. Anna asks, what happened? and Robert says, this isn’t just about finding Peter, and Valentin says, of course (🍷) it isn’t. Victor was director of the WSB. He knows where the bodies are buried. The things that can’t see the light of day. They just don’t want him to talk.

Scotty tells Victor, all the paperwork has been signed, sealed, and delivered. Now tell him where Liesl is, so he can go get her. Victor nods to the guard, and walks out past Scotty. Scotty says, they had a deal, and the guard closes the outside cell door in Scotty’s face. Victor walks down the hall, taking off his prison shirt.

Tomorrow, Esme hopes Trina has a night she never forgets, Ned asks what Olivia is hoping for tonight, and Peter says Drew will be the one to make it happen, or he’ll die trying.

Below Deck

When we last left guest Justin was getting aggressive with guest Terri, and told Heather, f*** you, after following her down the hall. Eddie stands in the doorway, keeping them from getting in, and Justin says, it’s the whole effing circus. Someone is getting shoved off the boat tonight. Eddie says, maybe it’s best that Justin and Terri stay away from each other. Terri tells Eddie, make it stop, and Eddie tells her, stop overreacting, and it will stop. It’s for everyone’s safety, including hers. Justin tells Rachel, it’s not his problem, and she says she doesn’t give a f***. Guest Colin shows up, and asks Heather what he can do to help. Heather asks him to get Justin into his room, and Colin asks Justin, now sitting down with a drink, what the problem is. Justin says, everyone can f*** themselves. Colin can f*** himself, and throw himself off the back of the boat. Somehow Colin persuades Justin to walk back to the room with him, telling him that he can bring his drink. Justin gets moving, but says, STFU, on his way downstairs. In Eddie’s interview, he says he can’t wait to tell Captain Lee. He doesn’t know what the captain is going to do, but it’s going to be priceless. Eddie tells Heather, if there are any issues, wake up him up. In the cabin, Colin tells Justin to stop acting like a stupid, self-centered POS. Justin says, well, that’s a bit much, suddenly sounding so rational, I laugh.

In the morning, Jessica wrestles with the laundry. In her interview, she says, the last boat she worked on was a cakewalk. She wonders when she gets a day off. Wes says, everything is all shiny, and the guests start to trickle out. Colin says he’ll be surprised if the others get up. In Rachel’s interview, she says, it takes several hours to roast a whole pig. It’s so effing gross. We see a pig sitting in the oven, and yeah, it is. I don’t eat meat that much anymore, but I did attend a pig roast once, and I can’t even begin to describe how heavenly the smell is. It also tasted amazing. Eddie asks if the captain heard all the yelling, screaming, slamming doors, and crying last night. Justin tells the other guests that they may get kicked off the boat. Eddie tells Captain Lee that Justin and Terri were arguing, and Terri was in tears. Justin told Heather to f*** herself. Heather comes to the wheelhouse, and the captain says he wants to discuss the elephant in the room. Heather says, Justin crossed the line hard core, and in the captain’s interview, he says, he’s livid. His crew isn’t there to be abused. He can’t talk to the guests right now because he’ll lose it, but it’s going to be a come to Jesus meeting. He tells Heather, he’ll have a discussion with them, and it’s not going happen again. Justin is unsure about what happened last night, and Jake has a meeting with the deckhands. He changes their schedules, and puts Rayna on nights. She says she’ll die if she’s up all night, but Jake says she’ll still get her eight hours. In Wes’s interview, he says, Jake is being bossy, and Rayna is overreacting, and he’s in the middle. Rachel’s breakfast special is lobster benedict, which sounds like my kind of breakfast. The captain tells Eddie that he’s going to be pulling anchor in a few minutes, and wants clear, concise direction. He’s going to let Jake take them out.

The guests have breakfast, and anchor is home. Primary Michael says it’s the best breakfast he’s ever had. Jake isn’t happy that Rayna is giving him sh*t, and she says she just needs alone time. He tells her that it’s nothing to be frustrated with; it’s work. In Rayna’s interview, she says, Jake is confusing, but she doesn’t know him. What if he’s a crazy person, and she kissed him too soon? She definitely kissed him too soon. Now he’s a jackass. IMO, he’s being a boss. I guess she thought she was going to get special privilege because she kissed him. Justin walks past Heather in the lounge, and she asks how he is. He says, other than a headache, not too bad, and in Heather’s interview, she says she never had a guest treat her like that. It’s reminding her of being bullied in high school in Hawaii. She had her arm broken, her face battered, and lunches thrown at her because she was the only white blond girl at the school. It was bringing up past trauma. Fraser tells Jessica about the screaming match.

Michael and Justin are summoned to the wheelhouse, and Eddie tells the deckhands, he would not want be them. In Captain Lee’s interview, he says, he’s not letting some a-hole insult his crew. It makes him want to take a sh*t in their mother’s dinner plate. He tells them that he wants to chat about what transpired last evening. Telling Heather to go f*** herself is totally improper. He doesn’t talk to his crew that way, and doesn’t tolerate other people doing it. Justin says, he doesn’t know what happened… and the captain says he doesn’t want excuses. Get his sh*t together, and if it happens again, their charter will be over. Make no mistake about it. Justin says he’s really sorry, and thanks the captain, and Michael apologizes for his friends. Outside, Michael says Justin was being a complete jerk. Captain Lee tells Heather that he doesn’t think there will be a repeat performance. If there is, the charter ends. She says they’ll see how the day goes.

Justin tells the other guests that he’s sorry for how this relates to them. Eddie tells the deckhands to pack the gear for the picnic. Heather tells the guests that since they’ll be cooking the pig on the beach, the meal will be around 3 or 4 o’clock. In Rachel’s interview, she says, she’s had experience cooking a whole hog. Logistically, it’s too long of a time to cook it on the beach, so she precooks it in the oven, then throws it in the pit. When the guests arrive, she pulls it out, and it’s done; fire roasted pig on a spit. Justin goes back to Heather, and says he sincerely apologizes, and she says, she appreciates it, but every day is a new day. Enjoy the blank page. In her interview, she says, but really, go f*** yourself. Ha-ha! For a second, I thought she was being overly generous. Rayna acts resistant to anything Jake has to say. Eddie says, it’s time to go, and they take the picnic supplies over. In Wes’s interview, he says he grew up in the Caribbean, and loves a beach picnic. It reminds him of home. In Heather’s interview, she says, it’s important that the luau go off without a hitch. She didn’t deal with everything yesterday to come out with sh*t tip. Even if it takes twenty tenders, they’ll give the guests what they want. There’s no room for error. She wants to do her people proud.

They take more stuff over, and Heather and Rachel go over to the beach. Wes curses the gazebo he’s trying to set up. In Jessica’s interview, she says, it’s exhausting being a stew all day. The money makes it worth it, but she’d rather be home driving around, eating a burrito, and listening to music. It would be less stressful. I see there’s a real work ethic among this bunch. The guests are taken over to the beach, and the pig catches fire. Rachel flies over to it, and in her interview, she says, this has the potential for ruining the meal. Thank God it was only the skin. She’ll put it upside down, and the guests will never know. The guests arrive, and Heather welcomes them to their beach luau. Colin says, everything is perfect.

Rayna calls her mom, and says she’s ready to kill someone. Jake has been a lead deckhand for one day, and talked disrespectfully to her. She gets all weepy, and in her interview, she says, connecting with new people on a boat is difficult, and the first one she connected with was Jake. Now he’s the one she’s having issues with. Today has been sh*t. She’s over it. Fraser is jealous of the guests; everything looks so good. The guests play corn hole. On the boat, Captain Lee threatens to get a shotgun to shoot the fly bothering him. In Heather’s interview, she says she’s thankful. For someone who’s not Hawaiian, Chef Rachel killed it. It’s the taste of home she needed. A luau brings people together, and it’s fun. Justin went from being an a-hole to a chill kitty cat on the beach. That is the power of a luau. Heather goes back to the boat, leaving them in Fraser’s hands. Jessica cleans a guest’s shower, and sings that it smells like pee-pee.

Heather tells Captain Lee that the luau was successful. He asks how Justin is doing, and she says, good. The captain says he gave Justin a shot at redemption, and Heather says, the deck team was awesome, and the interior was great. The guests come back to the boat, and drink some more. The stuff is loaded on the tender to go back. When it gets there, Jake tells Rayna to go as quick as she can, and she argues with him. He says she’s not pulling her weight, and she says, that’s not true. He needs to rethink the way he’s talking to her; she’s not the one. He tells her that she needs to start pulling her weight, and in Rayna’s interview, she says, calm down. Real life delusional. She can’t believe the way he speaks to her. That’s crazy. In Heather’s interview, she says, welcome to the newest trend of 2021 – linner. It’s jamming lunch and dinner into one, so the guests don’t want dinner and go to bed early.

Eddie tells Captain Lee that he’s proud of his team; they killed it today. The captain says he likes how Jake pays attention, and listens. He’s leaning toward them having made the right call. Rayna tells Jake that he’s crazy AF, and Jake says, it’s not the first time he’s been called crazy. He just wanted to get sh*t done as quick as they could, and she says she doesn’t have an attitude; she’s just not happy all the time. He says they’re good. Jessica tells Heather that she feels queasy, and Heather suggests she knock off a little early. Eddie asks Rayna, what’s wrong? and she says she doesn’t want to get anyone in trouble, but gives him an earful about Jake. Eddie says, he understands how it can be hurtful, and she says, everything would be fine if Jake would speak to her correctly. Eddie says, at the same time, remember Jake is the lead deckhand, and he’s taking his role seriously. Maybe she should try to absorb some of it. Jake’s doing a good job. She says, Jake was kind of aggressive, and he says, it’s an aggressive season they’re in, but she did a good job. Jessica tells Wes that she thinks she was a cat in another life. She can just lie around. In her interview, she says, Wes is a good, down-to-earth person. She tells him that she was in quarantine for a year, and lived in her bathrobe. This is kicking her ass. Heather tells Rachel that Jessica claimed she was sick, and she’s flirting with Wes in the crew mess.

In the morning, Rachel makes king crab, snow crab, and huevos rancheros. In her interview, she says, bump up the tip. Captain Lee says, he doesn’t need any f*** ups, and wants radio silence. The deckhands put out the fenders, but one loses a cover, and starts blowing in the wind. Eddie tells the captain, a fender isn’t secure; they lost the cover. In Eddie’s interview, he says, it’s frustrating. It’s little things like that, that show Wes is inexperienced on a mega-yacht. The guests start packing, and Captain Lee tells the deckhands to get the lines out. Eddie says, locked in, and the captain radios for the crew to get in their whites for guest departure. Everyone thanks the crew, and Justin apologizes again for his actions. Michael thanks them for being patient on the first night, and says, the pig roast was awesome. He gives the captain the tip envelope, to show their appreciation. We see the crew in Brady Bunch boxes, and Eddie says, all together now, and they give the finger. The captain radios for them to meet in the crew mess.

Captain Lee says, overall, he thinks the charter went pretty good, especially after dealing with the first night. This morning’s docking didn’t look coordinated, and they need to pay more attention to the fenders. Eddie says, it’s not acceptable for things to be flying overboard. In Eddie’s interview, he says, it’s embarrassing for them not to pay attention to detail on a mega-yacht. Get your sh*t together. The tip is $19,800; $1650 each. The captain says they deserve a celebration. In Jessica’s interview, she says, the guests can tell Heather to go f*** herself anytime if it leads to a $19K tip. Eddie tells the crew that it’s his fifth year working with Captain Lee, and Fraser asks what’s the last thing he did to piss the captain off. Eddie says his worst mistake was sleeping with a stew in the laundry room. The captain wasn’t angry, but he was disappointed. We flash back to that, and Eddie says he had a girlfriend back home. He f***ed up, and felt embarrassed. He destroyed a relationship he’d cared about, and took five years off after that. Everyone gets ready to go out.

They sit outside at a restaurant, and play truth or dare after they order. When Jessica is asked what’s in her bedside drawer, she says, it’s a drawer full of candy, and in Rachel’s interview, she says, that’s so sad. Wes is asked if he’s made out with anyone on the boat. He says, no, and Rayna asks who he’d like to make out with, and gets everyone to chant Jess, embarrassing both Wes and Jessica. In Jessica’s interview, she says she could show him a thing or two, and I think, her fuzzy slippers and robe? Jake has to give a lap dance, and gives it to Eddie, while Rachel films. In Eddie’s interview, he shows a fan of dollar bills, and says, he’s ready for Jake next time. Now they know why he’s lead deckhand. Fraser asks Jake what the game plan is for the rest of  the season; what about Rayna? Jake says, they’re just having fun, and asks if Fraser has his eye on anyone. Fraser says he doesn’t have much choice since he’s gay, and in his interview, he says he’s shocked it took Jake this long to piece that together. Me too. They go back to the boat, and get in the hot tub. Jessica finds a random sock a guest left behind. They drink and wiggle their butts. Jessica cuts out, and Eddie leaves next, saying, he’s going be hungover. He feels it. He goes into his cabin, and in the crew mess, Fraser says he needs a shower and a glass of champagne. Eddie calls his girlfriend, and tells her that the entire crew was in the hot tub. He hoisted the chief stew up, and dunked her in the water. That’s it; she has nothing to worry about. In his interview, he says, it’s not easy to have a relationship with someone who’s gone for weeks on end, and she’s handling it well. No, he’s lying. He tells her if it’s not what she signed up for, he understands. If she needs to take off, do what she needs to do. Jake, Rayna, and Fraser have three-way kiss. Wes jets, and the night starts winding down. Fraser and Jake have snacks in the crew mess, and Rayna joins them. Jake says he’s engaged, and in Rayna’s interview, she says, he’s a liar, and should have told her. She feels like an idiot. Jake says, they don’t understand the full story, and Rayna says she hates men. Jake wonders if he said something wrong, and in Fraser’s interview, he says, this is a classic example of why you shouldn’t do crew romances.   

Next time, a kid with a nanny, a female guest is enamored of the captain, Fraser doesn’t think Jessica wants to be there, and Eddie doesn’t want another effing thing falling off the boat.

⚰️ Dead Leftovers…

I was just too tired to scout for news last night, but here you go.

Walking Dead/World Beyond

https://screenrant.com/walking-dead-belshaw-death-rick-jadis-theory-wrong/

Fear the Walking Dead

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/fear-the-walking-dead-leaving-texas-for-georgia-season-7-season-8/

🌳 Going To Visit the Dreaming Tree…

Be here at the same time tomorrow, more or less, for some soap, some Rules, and as always, a tune. Until then, stay safe, stay appreciative, and stay being absolutely unstoppable.

November 14, 2021 – Dwight Rides a Dark Horse, Lyla Weaves a Tangled Web & Sweet

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

A Stalker pushes a cart down the road, and whistles. Another comes out of a nearby building. Stalker 1 says, look what I got. It’s clean. He checked it. Stalker 2, aka Eli, asks what it is, and the other says, they call it dragon fruit because of the thick and spiky skin. He thinks it looks like a strawberry pear. The fruit is shot out of his hand, and they see two people on horseback. Stalker 1 says, who is that? and the other says, they’re the Dark Horses. (For simplicities sake, it’s Dwight and Sherry, which isn’t revealed until the end of the scene, since they’re wearing masks.) Stalker 1 says, they don’t want any trouble, and Sherry says, then why are they stealing sh*t? Stalker 1 says, they’ve got to eat, and Dwight says, so do the guys that he stole it from. Stalker 1 says, all this for a piece of fruit? and Dwight says, it’s the principle. Sherry says, they’ve got a code, and Stalker 1 says, if he returns it, they’ll leave him alone? Sherry says, right again, and Stalker 1 says, screw their code. If you play with fire, you get burned. The Stalkers try to fight, but it’s a losing battle, and Stalker 1 takes off, but Dwight shoots him. Some zombies come out of the woods, no doubt drawn by the sound, and while the Dwight and Sherry deal with them, Eli takes off. Sherry takes off her mask, and so does Dwight. She asks if he’s okay, and he says he didn’t want to kill anybody, but she says, anyone who will kill over fruit deserves what they get, and the more people hear about what they do… He says, he knows, the fewer people they’ll have to go to. He calls their horses, and Sherry says, they stuck to the code. The kill was clean. He says he doesn’t know what he’d do without her, and they kiss. She says she hopes neither one of them has to find out again.

They go back to the cellar, Sherry shows the Larsons the fruit they were given for returning what was stolen to the owner, and Dwight gives Briga a Gameboy to pass the time. She hugs Dwight, and thanks him. Sherry says, she’s been listening to the radio all day, but there’s been nothing about Padre. Dwight tells her, keep listening, and they’ll keep looking, and eventually they’ll find it. Kim suggests Briga go play while they catch up with  Dwight and Sherry. Kevin tells them, there’s no easy way to say it, but they can’t wait anymore. Sherry asks, for what? and Kim says, this place is falling apart, and they’re running out of food. Kevin says Dwight and Sherry can use the cellar as long as they like, but they have other things to consider. They have to find someplace else. Dwight says they wouldn’t be there doing what they’re doing if the Larsons hadn’t opened their doors, but they’ve got to find Padre. Kim says they don’t even know what Padre is; it’s just rumors on the radio. Kevin asks how they know they’ll find it, and Dwight says, they keep hearing about it. If they keep doing what they’re doing, they’ll find it. It’s only a matter of time. Kim and Kevin can trust them. Kevin says he reckons they can wait a bit longer.

The credits reveal Lennie James (Morgan) directed the episode.

Back on their horses, Dwight says, is Sherry sure this is the spot? and she says, these are the coordinates. Dwight says he doesn’t know how long they can keep this up, looking for Padre. Promising something they can’t deliver on. Sherry says, it will be a new base for them to keep doing what they’re doing, a new place for Briga to grow up in. They just need to keep doing what they’re doing. Someone yells, over here; they need help. They were attacked. Sherry and Dwight run over to where there are two guys in protective gear, one slumped against a tree, and the other tending to him. Dwight asks, what happened? and the man in front steps aside, both of them drawing guns. Others come out, including Howard, who says, they’re the ones who call themselves the dark horses? Lose the mask. The readings are clear there, and if they’d wanted them dead, it would have been done already. Their reputation is the reason he was asked to find them. Sherry says, asked by who? and a hood is put over her head.

Victor sends a golf ball off the roof, and his assistant places another on the tee. Howard comes out with Sherry and Dwight, and says, the dark horses, per his request. Victor laughs, and says, so they’re the outlaws he’s heard so much about? What delicious irony. Howard asks how they know each other, and Victor says, they go way back. Sherry says, they would have come if he’d just asked, and Dwight asks, what the hell is this place, and what’s that sound? Victor says, ambiance… apologies. They’re particular about who they let into their sanctuary. Had he known it was them, he would have used gentler tactics. Dwight asks why brought them there, and he says he has a proposal. Sherry asks, what kind of proposal? and Victor says, right down to business, but don’t deny him the pleasure of showing them around. Dwight asks what business he’s talking about.

Inside, Victor says, people look at the dark horses as peace officers of modern frontier. Sherry asks how many people are there, and Victor says, two hundred, but they estimate they can hold two thousand. Dwight asks if they go out and find people, but Victor says, it’s a bit more complicated than that. June is there, and Wendall, and John’s father. Dwight asks if Morgan is there, and Victor says, they’ve crossed paths. Grace and Sarah too. Dwight asks if they’re there, and Victor says, not exactly. Dwight asks, why not? and Victor says, they’re particular about who they take in, which brings him to Mickey, one of their denizens. Dwight says, if he didn’t open the door to Morgan, Victor can shove it up his ass, and Victor says, Mickey was starving and delirious when they found her, and made an extraordinary recovery, but she’s fixated on finding her husband when his fate seemed obvious to everyone but her. Sherry says, so she went to look for him. Why does Victor care? Victor says he invests in his people in the tower, and can’t sit idly by while Mickey puts her life in danger for a place that doesn’t exist, a transmission she heard. Dwight asks what place, and how does he know it doesn’t exist? Victor says the only inhabitable place within miles is where they’re standing, and Dwight asks what he needs them for. Victor says, they know where Mickey is holed up, but anyone who goes there comes back bruised and tattered, if they come back at all. He thought the Dark Horses would have success where they failed. Sherry says, it sounds like she doesn’t want to come back, and he says, sometimes people don’t know what’s good for them. If they bring Mickey back, they can have residency there. Dwight says, they already have a place, and Victor asks how that’s working out. Dwight says, they’re getting by, and Victor says he’d think they want more than just getting by. Sherry says, calling the tower a sanctuary makes her think it’s anything but. They see the photos on the wall, and Victor says, it’s their way of keeping track of the dead. He begs them to help him save Micky from this fate. Sherry thanks him for the tour, but says, they have to pass. He asks, why? and she says, they have a code of honor. He asks what that entails, and she says, keeping people safe from a-holes like him. He laughs, and says, it’s a new world now; they know, they’ve been out there. To use their parlance, it’s a-holes like him who are keeping people safe. Should they change their mind or require his assistance, they know where to find him.

Howard brings Dwight and Sherry back to where they were, and removes their hoods. Dwight asks how he finds them. Howard says, the horses are theirs to keep. Consider it a down payment in hopes they reconsider. Sherry says, he didn’t answer the question, and Howard says, he won’t. It’s to keep the place safe. Don’t follow them. They leave, and Dwight says, they were supposed to keep Kevin and Kim safe, keep Briga safe, but they’re not safe. Victor’s tower would be a sure thing. Sherry says, they know nothing worth having is a sure thing, and he says, so what do they do? She says, help find Micky and her husband. They can all go Padre together.

Mickey puts together makeshift armor. A zombie sticks it’s arm through the window, and she asks if it wants to test it out. She stabs it in the throat, and hears someone human outside. Sherry asks if anyone is there, and Mickey says, go away. Tell Victor she’s not coming back. Dwight says he just wants to talk, and comes in, hands raised. She asks if he wants to put his gun down, and he puts it on the table. She holsters her knife, and twists Dwight’s arm behind his back. She asks how they knew where she was and what her name is, and he says, it’s not what she thinks. They’re not here to help Victor. Sherry comes in the back way, holding a gun, and says, they can help Mickey find her husband. Now how about letting go of hers?

Sherry, Dwight, and Mickey are having a beer, and Mickey asks what else Victor said. Sherry says, he told them that he’s worried about her, but Mickey says, she doesn’t think so. They only thing Victor is worrying about is how she got out. Victor and his men have their own way, but for the rest of them, the only way out is to walk through the dead. Why do they think Victor wants her brought back? Sherry says, so no one knows how she escaped, and Mickey says, she’s got it. Sherry says, Mickey made the suit, and Micky says, every night when the guards weren’t looking. Dwight asks if she’s sure they don’t know each other, and she says, no offense, but she wouldn’t forget a face like that. He says, Dearly Beloved. She’s the bride. He tells Sherry, Micky was amazing. What’s that special move she had? Sherry asks what he’s talking about, and he says, Micky and her husband were one of the best tag teams in wrestling. He was there when she won the belt in ’05. His dad took him when he was a kid. That’s her, right? Mickey says, people stopped recognizing her before the world went to sh*t, and Dwight says, one of her fans is still here. What happened? She says she stopped touring, and they opened a gym. When the bomb went off, Victor found her and took her in. She’s been trying to get back to the gym. Dwight asks what stopped her, and she says her suit couldn’t handle a herd of that size. Sherry says, they can help her, and Mickey asks, why? Dwight says, they’re a tag team themselves, and Mickey says, what kind? He says, the kind that protects people from people like Victor. Sherry says, they spent a lot of time crisscrossing the country, and they found each other, and Dwight says, if they did that, they can find Padre. Mickey asks if they know where it is, and he says, they’ve heard messages, and can work together to find it. Sherry says, they can make stops along the way for weapons and supplies, not to mention the people they can bring in when they find it. 

Mickey rides with them, and asks, how much further? Dwight says, they should be there before dark. Micky needs to show him that move she made. She says she can’t do it without her husband, and Sherry says she’ll be with him soon enough. They stop, and see smoke coming from the cellar door. Dwight and Sherry run down, and see Kim and Kevin are dead, shot through the head, and Briga is a zombie, leashed to the wall. Dwight takes her arm, and takes out a knife.

In the woods, they bury everyone. Micky says she’s so sorry, but they shouldn’t stay there long. Whoever did this might come back. Dwight leans on his shovel, and says, if you play with fire, you’ll get burned. They wanted to leave. Sherry says, it’s not their fault, but Dwight says, they stayed because they thought they’d be going to a better place. She says, they stayed to the code and helped people, but he says, maybe that’s not enough; maybe Victor is right. This is a new world, and maybe the sure thing isn’t Padre. He calls to Micky, and says, they tried to help, and they were doing the opposite. He doesn’t want that to happen to her. She says she doesn’t understand, and he says, odds are, they can’t find Padre, but Mickey says, they found each other. He says, they may not get so lucky again. He thinks Victor’s tower it the best place for her. She calls them chicken sh*ts, and Dwight says, the people they were trying save got killed. Victor will give her a second chance. She says, Victor will lock her up and throw away the key. There’s no way she’s going back. Don’t do this. Dwight says, she’s going to die, but she says she’s made it this far on her own. Sherry says, Mickey’s not doing this alone; she’s coming. She tells Dwight that it’s not right. They can’t hand over Mickey to Victor. She thought they agreed they have a code for a  reason. He’s saying it’s for Mickey, but she thinks it would really be for them. She tells him, the old bar; go back there. She’s going to help Micky get Cliff, then she’ll come back to him, and they’ll figure out what’s next. He calls after her, but she and Micky ride off .

Micky says, they’re almost there; Sherry can make it back to the bar before nightfall. Sherry says she’s not leaving until they find Cliff, and Micky says, she used to do the same thing when she had an argument with Cliff. Take walk, and let him cool down. She thinks she and Sherry are a lot alike. Sherry says she doesn’t know what got into him, thinking taking her back to Victor would be keeping her safe. Mickey says she doesn’t know why they didn’t take Victor’s deal, but Sherry says, they made a bargain with a guy like Victor before, and it nearly tore them apart. Mickey says, they got separated and found each other. Whatever this is, sounds like nothing. Sherry says, she’d given up before, and told Dwight to stop looking for her in a letter, but he found her. Mickey asks why she told him to stop, and Sherry says she didn’t want him getting killed doing it. Mickey tells her, Cliff said the same thing to her, and Sherry says she thought she and Cliff were meeting at the gym. Mickey says she just told them that so they’d be more inclined to help. He may or may not be there, but it was the last place she thought to look. Sherry says, Mickey can’t do what Cliff said. Maybe she and Dwight are alike. They come to a ramshackle building with a sign that says The Grapple Chapel, and Mickey says, this is their humble abode. There are zombies gathered outside, and Sherry stabs one that went rogue. She asks how long Mickey thinks her suit will hold up, and Mickey says, not as long as last time. Escaping the moat did a lot of damage. Sherry says she has an idea.

Dwight sees his horse, and says he’d thought he’d lost him. There’s the sound of a gun cocking, and Eli says, you did. Turn around, hands up, nothing stupid. Take his mask off or he’ll take off for him. He found Dwight, which means Dwight is his now, and Dwight knows what happens when someone tries to take back what’s his. Dwight says, the people in the cellar were good people, and Eli says, so was his friend, but that didn’t stop Dwight from killing him. At least he got something besides a horse. He holds up the Gameboy, and Dwight lunges at him, but Eli throws Dwight to the ground, saying, he told Dwight, nothing stupid. He’d rather not waste a bullet if he doesn’t have to. Dwight makes a kissy sound, and the horse kicks Eli, who goes flying. I literally LOL. Eli is hurt, and can’t get up. Polaroids have fallen out of his gear, and Dwight looks through them. Seeing a picture of Kevin, he says, Victor put Eli up to it, didn’t he? and Eli says, he doesn’t know his name. Dwight kicks him, and asks what Victor offered him. he says, a place in his settlement if he took those people out. He got what he wanted, and got to screw Dwight over. Zombies are headed their way, and Dwight takes Eli’s gun. The zombies descend on him, and he says he thought Dwight had a code. Dwight rides off.  

Sherry covers Micky in zombie guts, and Micky asks if she’s sure it will work. Sherry says, it has in the past. She’ll get used to the smell. If anything goes wrong, she’s got Micky’s back. Micky asks how Sherry is going to get inside, but Sherry says, they’ll worry about her first. Micky thanks her, and puts on a helmet. She walks through the crowd to the door, but it’s chained from the other side. She starts to walk back, and a zombie tries to bite her. She falls, and Sherry shoots the one closest to Micky and says, over here a-holes. Micky starts stabbing at them, but ends up with one on each arm, biting at her pseudo armor. Sherry shoots the glass in the door, and tells her, go, but Micky says she’s not going without Sherry. Sherry runs through the zombies, stabbing them. She gets to the door, shoots one of zombies that has Micky, and runs out of bullets. Micky gets to the door, and says she’s out too. Sherry says, now what? and Mickey says, they made it. Now they have to figure out how to keep them out.

They block the door by bracing themselves against punching bags, but arms are still getting through. They talk about where Cliff might have gone, and Micky says, maybe he found Padre. Sherry tells Micky that they’ll find him, and Sherry wonders if they get to the boxing ring, can they pick them off one by one. Sherry runs to the ring, and gets up on it. Micky starts to follow, but when she gets to the ring, she finds her husband, who is now a zombie. Micky goes to him, taking his head in her hands, and he snaps at her. Sherry reaches down, and stabs him in the head, telling Micky, keep moving. She pulls Micky up into the ring, and hugs her. Micky cries, and says, it’s over. Sherry tells her, Cliff said if they split up, he’d want her to keep going, and Micky says, for what? Sherry says, she’ll find something. It might not be what she sought, but something. The ring suddenly collapses, making them even with the floor. Sherry says she’s calling Victor. Maybe he’s right. The world different now, and this is how it has to be. Dwight stands at the door, and asks who she’s calling. She says, Victor, and he says, don’t do it. He hired Eli to kill Kim and Keven. Sherry asks, why? and he says, maybe to make them see that his way is the only way, but it’s not. He’d rather die fighting with her, than live fighting for Victor. He tosses them guns, and the three of them shoot zombies. As the crowd thins, Sherry goes down to the floor, and she and Dwight stab them. Micky shows Dwight her wrestling skills using a zombie, and cool Reggae music plays. There’s one left, and Dwight calls to Micky. She gets above the zombie, and jumps down with the knife pointing down, and spearing it in the head, obviously pleased with herself.

Sherry walks over to sit on the bleachers with Micky, stabbing a leftover zombie on her way there. She tells Micky that she’s so sorry, and Dwight joins them. He says he cleaned Cliff up as best as he could, if she wants to say a final goodbye. He also found this. He hands her a note in an envelope, and she reads: Micky, if you’re reading this, it means I didn’t make it. He looked everywhere, and hoped she’d find him. There are maps in the desk that can help her know where not to look. Don’t give up, baby. Keep going. Find it. And don’t stay sad for too long. Find someone else to stand in her corner like he did. Don’t do it alone. Til death do us part. She says she waited too long to get started. She’s got to find Padre for him. Dwight says, they will. And she has him and Sherry standing in her corner. Micky goes out to say her goodbye, and Sherry says she’s sorry for ditching him. He says he’s sorry for being a d*ck, and she says she gets why he wanted to take Victor’s offer; it would have been happier for them. He says, it’s not about that, and she asks what it is about. He says he doesn’t know if it’s because he was thinking about his dad, or what happened to Britta; maybe both. He realized something he’s been thinking about a long time. He wants them to have a family. She asks why he didn’t tell her, and he says, he didn’t know it was what wanted. The life they’re living is good for them, but he didn’t see room for a family. Looking at the Larsons, he thought the only way to do it would be to go with Victor. She says if they did, they couldn’t face each other, but there’s room. Look at Mickey. You don’t have to wait until everything is perfect. They’ll just let life happen. She kisses him, and on Sherry’s radio, a voice says, he heard they’re the Dark Horses, and Sherry says, they heard right.

Mickey, Dwight, and Sherry ride down the road, and Mickey asks how this works. Sherry says, they find a-holes, and Dwight says, and give them hell. Mickey says she can do that, and he says he knows she can. They see a man in protective gear, who says, so you’re the Dark Horses? They get down, guns drawn, and Dwight asks if he thinks he’s the first person to ambush them. The guy says, it’s not an ambush. Other men come out, dressed the same, and the guy says, it’s an invitation to work together. Word is, they know how retrieve people and things. Dwight asks what they want found, and the guy says, not what, where. They want to find Padre, and the Dark Horses are going to help them.

Next time, Al tells Morgan, the reclamation team has one mission: to destroy evidence that they were there, meaning them; and Morgan says, they have company.

The Walking Dead: The World Beyond

Lyla flashed back to telling her assistant they’d check the test subject’s bloodwork for abnormalities. I thought the test subject was Percy, and it’s not, but it’s weird how eerily alike they look. Lyla told the assistant they’d start at dawn; she was having dinner with Leo and his family. She remembered the dinner with Leo, Iris, and Hope, and the power going out. At dawn, the test subject asked the assistant if she had family. He did too, and maybe they were dead already, but this plan was bullsh*t. Maybe what he did was bullsh*t, and it’s all he’d ever be, but they spilled blood and lies. The assistant spoke into a recorder, giving test subject 8481’s vitals, and said she was standing by to proceed with exposure. Iris and Hope watched as Leo concocted something, and he told them that this was how they killed that many people. The gas bonded to the lung tissue, and allowed the victim to choke until they drowned from inside out. Hope said they couldn’t get away with this, but Iris said they already had unless they stopped them. Hope said the liquid should be colorless, and Leo said they did something to it. At the secret lab, Lyla’s test subject died, and she repeated to herself, this is how we have tomorrow. A guard came in, and said he was afraid they had a problem.

Jadis came in to question Silas, and commented on his big feet. She asks if they told him why they took his boots, and he said, so he wouldn’t run. She said she bet he could; he could skip through a rockpile with those feet. She introduced herself, and said he wasn’t where he was supposed to be. He said he was lost, and she asked if he liked where he was. He said he did, but it was kind of like living in a junkyard, and she told him, he said that like it was a bad thing, which was funny, considering where she came from. He said, it wasn’t bad, just different. She said he was different, and so was she. What was he doing there without clearance? He told her again that he was lost, and didn’t want to ask directions. She said if he had, he’d still be in there. Dennis came in, and said Jadis was sh*tting him, but she said, I sh*t you not. He said it had been a long time, and she said she heard he made soldiers. Did he think he could make Silas one? Silas said he was lost, and trying to decide if he should ask directions. Did Dennis believe it? He told Silas, come on, and Jadis asked him again. He said, maybe, and she told Silas that she had a feeling. Make her regret it, and he’d regret it more. So would Dennis. He was being given another chance. Don’t get lost again.

Hope just got done hiding the vial in a stereo speaker, when Mason found her. He said he heard about her sister, and her yeast theory had sparked something. That was huge. She asked if he wanted to hang later. Leo looked at a book containing information on chemical warfare, when Lyla came by. She said they didn’t have a lot of time. They were coming to take Leo in for questioning. She knew he took a vial from her lab, and brought her in. The vault where the vials were stored had security sensors, and they knew when one was missing. She said she’d told them she’d misplaced it, and if he gave it back, he and his daughters wouldn’t be in danger. She left, and a guard pounded on the door. He had a team with him, and said Leo needed to come with them.

Iris asked Percy if he was okay, and he said it still hurt, but it was better when she was there. She looked out the window to see Leo being taken for questioning. Felix came out, and said he was Leo’s security detail, and nobody was taking Leo anywhere without him. The head guard said, have it his way. Iris came outside, and Felix told her that he had her dad; find her sister. Percy told her to find Hope, and he’d find Huck. Iris found Hope with Lyla, who wanted to make them an offer. She knew they had no reason to trust her, but she’d show them what she was doing. They needed to give vial, and had to decide now. Their father’s life depended on it.

Huck asked Jadis what was going on, and Jadis said she’d sent an agent to get Huck because sh*t was going down. There had been a security breach regarding sensitive research material. Huck might help her see things she missed. Something valuable was missing, and they needed to know if someone took it. They needed it back, and she needed to know if Huck could help her with that. She took Huck the room where Leo was being held.

Lyla brought Iris and Hope to her super-secret lab, and said the stolen vial’s contents had been developed there. No one was supposed to know about it, including their dad. Hope told her, they never said they took it, and Iris asked what happened there. Lyla said they studied regeneration, but she needed to observe what happened when the subject was dying. Iris said, they killed people for research? but Lyla said most of the subjects were found bitten in the wild, and would have died in vain, instead of passing on a gift to science and tomorrow. Hope said Lyla told them most of the subjects were from the outside, and Lyla showed them a webcam of a fresh zombie chasing a rat. Lyla said, eventually the rat would get tired, but the dead won’t, not ever. They were perpetually in motion, and none of them would be safe as long as that existed in the world. Hope asked how this tied into Omaha, and Lyla said they were investigating delaying the time between death and reanimation. She’d been told about secret military operation where tens of thousands of people were to die, but it was critical to their survival. It gave them their chance to test their theories out in the field. Dr. Abbot had threatened to tell people outside the walls what the military was doing. Iris asked, why so many people? and Lyla said she’d asked that, but was told not to ask again. Hope said Lyla was putting her own safety first, but Lyla said she could have ended up dead for something she couldn’t stop, instead of turning it into something that will save humanity. Hope asked if it was to find answers, and Lyla said, it was about data. Telling the truth about the vial would save their father. She told them that she’d misplaced it. Showing them she has it will take the suspicion off of Leo, and save him. Iris said Lyla wanted to save herself by pretending she cared about Leo. Lyla said she did care about him, and it could keep the both of them alive; maybe all of them. Hope told her it was in the stereo speaker, and Lyla told them to wait there for a few minutes after she left. They shouldn’t take the risk of being seen together more than they had already. When she left, Hope told Iris that she had no choice, and Iris asked if she actually trusted Lyla. Hope said, of course not, but they came there to keep their dad safe. The zombie was now eating the rat, and looked at the camera.

Dennis told Silas that he was on guard duty; they had a supply drop coming in. Silas said he wasn’t lost, and Dennis said he knew that. Silas was trying to find his friends again. Silas wondered why Dennis had backed him up, and Dennis said he didn’t know what would happen to Silas if he didn’t. Silas asked what if the CRM wasn’t what Dennis thought, and Dennis wondered why Silas would ask that. He said Silas was a good kid, and he didn’t want to see him screw up. Silas said he thought Dennis was one of the good soldiers, and Dennis said Silas could be too, but he had some sh*t to get rid of.

Jadis said Leo had violated a bunch of rules, and Leo said he wanted Felix with him. That was a hard no, and Jadis asked where he was last night. Huck said he had a relationship with Lyla, and asked if he was with her. He said he’d invited Lyla to meet Hope and Iris, and Felix was with Huck on security patrol. Lyla got caught up at work, and showed up an hour late. Hope told Iris that she thought Lyla really cared about Leo, and Iris said, an entire city was dead because Lyla let it happen. Hope shouldn’t have made the decision without her. Hope said like Iris did when their mom died? They saw soldiers outside the door on the security camera. Huck said, after ten years of being a single father, why did Leo choose Lyla? He said she was special. She was kind and smart, and laughed at his jokes. He could tell her stories about his family, and she absorbed the details like she was there; like she wanted to be part of the family, so he wanted her to be. Huck said it sounded like he loved her, and he said, maybe he did. Afterward, Jadis asked Huck if it sounded like Leo had fallen out of love with Lyla, and Huck said she thought he used to love Lyla, but not anymore. Jadis asked why they would share the lie, and Huck said Lyla still cared about Leo and was covering for him. Jadis told the head guard to find Lyla. They’d found their conspirators. Down in the lab, Hope told Iris to run.

Hope and Iris hid where the test subjects were, and dodged the guards, who were looking around. Jadis told Huck that Leo claimed he wasn’t working with Lyla, but Huck helped her see it. Iris and Hope continued to sneak around and evade the guards, getting a little too close for comfort to the test subjects. Jadis told Huck that Lyla had suspected Leo took the vial, and went straight to Elizabeth. She radioed the guards that the suspects had been located, and the guards left the lab. Lyla was brought in, and she told Jadis that she’d found the missing vial. Jadis asked, where? and Lyla said, to be honest, Leo had stolen it with his daughters’ help. They’d been suspicious that she was involved in classified experiments, and took it from her freezer. She told Leo that she was sorry, but no more lies or deceit. She thought she could manage it to everyone’s benefit, but they can’t hurt Leo; he was too valuable, and she needed his help with Project Lotus. She explained to Leo that she used live test subjects, and through their deaths was able to further her research on their animation. Now he knew the truth, and they should let him go. Jadis asked, why? and Lyla said she thought she was on the verge of a breakthrough. They’d been able to delay reanimation for eight hours. It could be a step forward if she had Leo’s help, and he could openly pass on his knowledge to Hope. Think of the progress they could make. Jadis said she believed Lyla, and Lyla said, if Leo walked away, could he refocus his efforts on their priority? Leo said they had a deal, and Lyla asked if he could move past this. It was life versus death, but it didn’t mean some wouldn’t die along the way. Jadis brought Huck along to visit Lyla’s lab, and wondered if Huck’s mom knew about it. The test subject was officially zombiefied, and Jadis said Lyla hadn’t broken eight hours, and Leo wasn’t going to be helping her. It was Jadis’s job to eliminate security threats, and Lyla had already handed the baton to her successor. Leo was easy to control when his family was threatened. Jadis cut the test subjects restraint straps, and she and Huck left Lyla in the room. Jadis said, the rat eventually gets tired, but the dead won’t, She couldn’t have put it better herself. Lyla banged on the window, and after a half-hearted attempt at evading him, he grabbed her, and bit her neck. Blood spattered all over the window, and I thought, if she’d been smart, she would have looked to see if there was anything she could use for a weapon. As I always say, being a New Yorker is always knowing where the nearest weapon is. Jadis told Huck, another tragic accident; these things happen. If Huck’s mother doubted her allegiance, she could now verify it. They’d used her to being in Leo, and it was a productive day. Huck asked if the Campus Colony and Omaha were part of a tactical op, and Jadis said what they were doing would confirm the future for years to come.

Huck went back to her room to find Percy sitting there with a big knife. He said Iris thought she was going to help her dad, not be the one to interrogate him. She reached for her gun, but he was faster, and she said if he was to kill her, do it. She deserved it. That was the  pistol she shot him and his uncle with. Or don’t shoot her, since it would be doing her a favor, but either way he wasn’t leaving the building. Leo, Hope, Iris, and Felix gathered in Leo’s room. Iris said Percy had gone to talk to Huck, and she hadn’t seen him since. What the CRM was doing was too big to stop. Percy returned, looking upset, and Huck went to see Dennis. Percy told the group that the CRM was going to light up Portland, and Huck explained to Dennis how they wiped out Omaha and the Campus Colony. They planned to kill 87,000 people, and there was no way to warn them without getting intercepted. They weren’t going to know what hit them. Iris suggested destroying the gas, and Hope said they’d have to destroy the whole place, with them in it. They needed to get the scientists out, along with their research. She wondered how they could do it. Huck told Dennis she wasn’t sure how they’d work it exactly. Iris said, someone might talk, and scientists weren’t fighters. Alone with Iris, Percy told her that he’d wanted to kill Huck, but didn’t because of her. He wanted to see her again. They got busy.

Hope had a beer with Mason, who said, sometimes it felt normal there, and sometimes like a prison. His dad was probably disappointed that he wasn’t in the military. His dad was Major General Beale. Silas saw Huck kiss Dennis, and no doubt got the wrong impression. Huck turned around to see him standing there with his zombie pokey stick in his hand.

Next time, Leo says they need to save themselves, Iris says they’ll do what they have to in order to make sure they win, and Jadis orders a facility lockdown.

😴 Please Send Sleep Immediately…

It’s time to put this baby (and me) to bed, so Dead news tomorrow, along with soap and what’s on Deck. Until then, stay safe, stay spicing your life with variety, and stay just letting life happen.You don’t have to wait until everything is perfect.

November 12, 2021 – Chase Starts To Figure It Out, G’Day Mate, a Patriarch Departs, Returning Wife, Freed, Quantum Goodbye, More Games, a Balanced Number Of Quotes & Rose Hip

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Sonny sees Spencer at Kelly’s, and says, when Josslyn told him Spencer was getting a job there, he almost didn’t believe her. He’s a workin’ man. Congratulations. Spencer says, congratulations for what? Having a job that needs no experience, and pays accordingly? Sonny says, everybody’s got to start somewhere. He didn’t start at the top. But he’s working; how does it feel? Spencer says, like the worst mistake he ever made in his life.

At the hospital. Maxie says, good morning, to Austin. He returns the greeting, and asks what she’s doing there. Wasn’t she there last night? She says she was, but Bobbie’s car broke down, and she gave her a ride. She thought since she was in the building, she’d say hello, but if he’s busy… He says he’s sorry. He had a really terrible night last night, but it’s nice to see her. Chase walks in and says, Maxie’s saved him a trip to the Deception office. He needs to speak with her and Austin. Austin says they’re kind of in the middle of something, and Chase says, something more important than finding Maxie’s missing daughter?

Valentin flashes back to Austin telling him that Gladys thinks Brook is pulling a scam on him. Gladys comes to his room, and asks how he does it. He must be exhausted, but still looks incredibly handsome. He tells her, what can he say? When she’s around, he perks right up.

Portia goes to The Savoy, and Curtis tells her, good morning, and kisses her. She says, it is now. She’s so happy for him. The audience reaction to the artist was amazing. The Savoy was already on its way to being one of the best spots in town, but last night kicked it into another gear. Curtis says, in more ways than one, and she asks what he means. He says, he may have some unwanted help he needs to get rid of.

At the gallery, Trina gives Ned a flyer for the Photo Ark exhibit. She says, it’s the same ad that’s been running online for weeks (weeks?), but she wanted him to see a hard copy. He says, it looks terrific, and thanks her again for bringing the project to his attention. She says she should be thanking him and ELQ for underwriting the exhibit. It’s so important to her, and she’s thrilled they get to be the gallery that displays it to the people of Port Charles. He says, when you run a large organization, you’re constantly approached for donations because people know they’re tax deductible. It’s always nice when the project is so well-intentioned. He’s proud to see ELQ involved with this. She says he’s also doing this for his wife, right? Because Olivia is a big animal lover? Trina bets he can’t wait to see her face when he brings her tonight.

Olivia looks at the painting Ned gave her, and wonders where she’s going to hang it. Robert comes in, saying, a large gentleman from Belarus said he could come in. He hopes it’s okay. She says, much better than okay, and hugs him. She can’t believe Ned punched him over a stupid, meaningless little kiss. He says, let’s be realistic. That kiss was anything but meaningless.

Chase wants to ask Maxie and Austin questions about the night Louise was kidnapped, and Maxie says they’ve already given statements, and answered a bunch of questions. Chase says, that was before Peter resurfaced, and said he has no idea where his daughter is. That brings them back to square one. Their best shot to find Maxie’s daughter is to revisit the night she was born. Since fake nurse Chloe is dead, that leaves the two of them. Austin asks how he knows Peter’s not lying, and Chase says, Nina said Peter was blackmailing her to find Louise. It doesn’t sound like something he would do if he was lying. Austin says, Peter is malignant and ruthless. There isn’t anything he wouldn’t say or do to pursue his own agenda. Chase says, that sounds like someone else he knows, and Maxie says, okay, that’s enough. She can see Chase is letting his personal feelings color his investigation. Does she need to report him to Mac?

Valentin asks why Gladys would be surprised that he delights in the pleasure of her company. Gladys says she didn’t know how he’d be feeling… physically, and he says he’s a little over being stuck in this hospital bed, so why doesn’t she stick around and entertain him? He’s got nothing but time; tell him a story. She says she’s happy to help him fill some time, and closes the door. She sits next to the bed, and says she’s got a terrific story about her neighbor Ethel’s cousin… but he says, no. Tell him a work story. She says she answers phones for Miss Bossy Pants. She doesn’t do anything as important as him. He says, they both know the assistant knows where all the bodies are buried.

At the Bistro, Brook asks Ned what the plan is for the ELQ vote next week. He asks if she can give him five minutes until the caffeine kicks in, but she says, it’s too important to wait. He says he has plenty of time to strategize over the next week, especially now that Austin has withdrawn his claim to the ELQ shares. The last major threat is gone. She says, Valentin Cassadine is the major threat. You’d better believe he’s spending all this time figuring out how to outmaneuver them. He says, last he checked, Valentin was recovering at GH, and she says, so? That just means he has nothing but time to figure out a way to beat them. Don’t pop the champagne just yet. He says, good point. He’ll call Michael again. She says, he seems distracted, but he says he’s fine. She says, tell his face that. He hasn’t cracked a smile yet. Does this have anything to do with Olivia? He says he walked in on her kissing Robert Scorpio. She says, oh no. Is he sure he didn’t misinterpret it? He says, no, but of course (🍷) he reacted like a jealous fool, and punched Robert in the face, for all the good it did. He thinks it’s time to face the fact his marriage is over.

Robert tells Olivia, they’re friends, good friends. But there’s also something more. It’s a pull, and attraction, call it whatever you like, but now that she kissed him, they can’t deny this any longer. She says he’s right, and going to Monte Carlo with him just made it stronger. He says he woudn’t have called her if he’d known she and Ned were having problems back then, and she says, she and Ned have been having problems for a while. He says he can’t help but notice, they’re drawn to each other when she’s having issues, and she asks what he’s saying. He says she seems to use him not to deal with stuff with Nedly.

Portia asks if Curtis still thinks Linc showing up wasn’t a coincidence, and he says, he’s convinced someone sent him there as a front. Think about this. The band he originally scheduled, cancels out of nowhere with a flimsy excuse. According to Brook, Linc is a pariah in Port Charles, and he shows up with an artist that’s eager to perform in a club that was recently in the news for mob activity. Portia says, when he puts it all together, it sounds way too convenient, and he says, someone must want him to owe Linc a favor. She asks who he thinks might have sent Linc, and he says he thinks it’s like Dante warned. He believes the mob is trying to get a foothold in The Savoy.

Sitting at a table, Sonny asks what prompted Spencer to get the job, and Spencer says his dad put Ava in charge of his trust. He refuses to be under her thumb, so he renounced his inheritance, and all that goes with being a Cassadine, including his father. Sonny says he respects Spencer’s decision not to take the easy way out; he’s being his own person. That’s amazing. He’s proud of Spencer. Spencer says, don’t be too proud. He was thisclose to crawling back to his father, and telling him and Ava whatever they wanted to hear, doing whatever they wanted. Sonny asks, what stopped him? and Spencer says, a friend called him out.

Trina puts out companion books to the exhibit, when Esme walks in, and says, this is so exciting. Trina says she still has a lot to set up for the show tonight, and Esme says she’s so stoked. She’ll be there to cheer Trina on, since she has it all mapped out; it’s Disney+ day, so they’re going to be watching Jungle Cruise. (Plugging the parent company, I see.) Trina says, really? Us too. Esme says, us? and Trina says, her and Joss, maybe Cam. After the exhibit, they’re going back to their dorm room, microwave some popcorn, kick back, and stream the movie. It’s a good way to decompress. Esme says she and Spence are going to watch the movie before the exhibit. Interesting how their plans are the opposite. Trina tells Esme, she wouldn’t say the opposite, but Esme says, she would, which is probably for the best. She and Spence need to do their own thing. Trina says, well, enjoy the movie; she still has a lot to set up. Esme says, if Trina doesn’t mind, she just has one question first. She needs to know exactly what’s going on between Trina and Spencer.

Sonny asks what Spencer’s friend said to make him change his mind, and Spencer says, she made him realize he really does value his self-respect, which is a lot more compelling in theory than the reality of working an eight-hour shift there. Part of him wonders if he should just go back to his father and play nice. It’s just that every time he shows up there, he can’t help but feel, whose life is this? Sonny says, Carly caught him up on everything when he was gone. Spencer’s life now is at Kelly’s because of the decisions he made, good or bad. He has to own up to that, and when he does, then he can figure out where he goes from there.

Trina asks what Esme is talking about; nothing is going on between her and Spencer. Esme says, all she knows, is Spencer gave up his trust fund, and severed all ties with his father. All because of Trina. That doesn’t sound like nothing to her. Trina says she didn’t stick her nose in Spencer’s business. He purposely sought her out, asked for advice, and she gave it. That’s it. Whatever Spencer decided to do, that’s on him. He makes his own decisions. Esme says, not when it comes to Trina. Spence seems to be taking her advice a lot these days. She can’t help but wonder. Is Trina trying to steal her boyfriend?

Chase says, he knows it’s traumatizing for Maxie, but truly believes the only way they’ll solve the case is to revisit the night she gave birth. But if she’s not ready to do that, he understands. Austin says he can’t speak for Maxie, but he’s ready to do it. Maxie says he doesn’t have to, but he says there isn’t anything he wouldn’t do to help her find Louise. Chase thanks him, and says he appreciates Austin’s cooperation. He tells Maxie that she can go, but Maxie says, that’s not going to happen. Someone needs to keep Chase in line. Austin says, go ahead; ask away.

Gladys says Valentin is right. As Brook’s executive assistant, she’s privy to sensitive information that most of the other office drones know nothing about. He asks if it’s sensitive information he should know something about, but she says he has his own assistant, doesn’t he? If he or she isn’t keeping him well-informed, maybe it’s time to find a new one. He could always poach her from Brook. He says, last time she was there, she said she had something important to tell him, then Brook came in and ushered her right out. Brook’s not here now. What did she want to say? She says, it was nothing important… She can’t tell him, because if she does, somebody could get hurt.

Olivia tells Robert, she’s tired of fighting. She just wants to be happy. Is that so wrong? He says, of course (🍷) not – they sit – but she’s not going to find it with him. She says, he makes her laugh, and she knows he cares about her. He says,  both true, but she’s made no secret of the fact she’s followed his career. She likes the adventure and danger. In her eyes, he’s this hero, this larger than life character, this ideal. She says, he knows that’s just a bunch of BS. She sees him as a real person. She sees him as her friend. He asks if she’s telling him, when Ned doesn’t provide her with what she requires at home, she doesn’t turn to him, this fantasy figure? This thing too good to be true? She asks why she wouldn’t want a partner she can count on standing be her side. After everything she’s been through in this life, doesn’t she deserve that? He says, all that and more, and she says she doesn’t get that from Ned. She can’t rely on Ned anymore.

Portia says, Curtis opened the club because he was looking for a fresh start; as a way to leave behind all the danger and violence of his life as a P.I. Now it seems like that danger is knocking on his door again. He says he’s going to slam the door in danger’s face, and she says, how? She knows he likes Sonny and Jason, but if he asks for their protection, this place will still be known for its mob connections. He says he left a message for Linc to call him back. The first thing he needs to know is who Linc is working for. She hopes he finds out. She sees how hard he works for this place. She hates that someone is trying to corrupt it. He takes her hands, and says she’s adorable. She’s been his biggest cheerleader for The Savoy, ever since the first time they came there on Valentin’s Day for one of his last P.I. cases. She says, of course (🍷) she supports him. She sees how happy this place has made him, and hates that someone is trying to come in and disturb the peace he’s found. He says, this is his baby, and he’ll put a stop to anyone who tries to take what’s his.

Ned thanks Brook for the vote of confidence, and she says, they live in the same house. She’s watched him and Olivia over the past few months, and they seemed to be falling back in love. He’s just going to throw in the towel because their problems haven’t gone away? Nobody’s problems just disappear; that’s called being in a relationship, isn’t it? He says he thought they were both fighting for their marriage. Then he suggested they take Leo to a specialist, and Olivia shuts him out. That is not the sign of a healing marriage. From Olivia’s point-of-view, because he didn’t rubber stamp her beliefs, he’s not supporting her. She can’t see he’s only trying to help Leo. He loves that little boy. She asks if it’s occurred to him that maybe Olivia doesn’t need him to solve this problem, and he asks, how can she if she’s not even open to the possibility that Leo might have an issue? Brook says she hasn’t been a mother long, but if a doctor said something was wrong with Bailey, her first reaction would be to be scared. They all know Olivia is a terrific mother. Instead of telling what do, and leaping into action, maybe he should try just listening to her. Help her face whatever fears she’s having. He says, how can he when Olivia goes running off to Robert the first chance she gets? She says, Olivia is his wife, not Robert’s. He has to figure this thing out, or is he telling her that he’d be okay with losing Olivia?

Olivia tells Robert that she’s felt alone so many times in this marriage. When Valentin was trying a hostile takeover of ELQ, Ned just kept putting the company in front of his family, and had the nerve to be angry with her for going to Europe to try and save her own son, when Ned’s daughter was in the hospital at the same time. Then he wrongly assumes they’re having some kind of affair. Does he give her the benefit of the doubt? Does he ask her? No. He jumps right in bed with Alexis. Robert says he thought they worked that out, and she says, they tried. For a while, it seemed like Ned was becoming a man she could trust again, then this whole thing with Leo happens, and once again, he can’t take her side. He says, Ned thinks the world of Leo, and she says, that’s not in question. He’s not being a partner to her. Robert asks, is that the problem? From where he’s standing, it looks like she’s scared.

Spencer tells Sonny, he knows he made a mistake, and he’s paying for it now. He has this humiliating minimum wage job. He turned down Ava’s horrible deal, which would have made his life much easier, but he didn’t want to be under Ava’s control. He feels like he’s doing a pretty good job of manning up here. What else can he do to prove it to Sonny? Sonny says, Spencer broke his trust. It’s going to take a while to get it back. Spencer says, really? That’s all Sonny has to say? Sonny’s not even going to give him a hint where to start? Sonny tells him, stop looking for shortcuts. He always felt Spencer’s father gave him too many privileges. This isn’t about shortcuts; it’s about working hard. He’s got to get used to that.

Valentin asks Gladys, who will get hurt? and she says, she just means gossip in general. When people say things they shouldn’t, others can get hurt. He says, no. The other day, she had something specific to tell him, and Brook rushed her away. Does it have something to do with Brook? Is it something that concerns him? She says, he totally misunderstood what she was saying, and he says he doesn’t know why she’s being evasive, but there’s something she should know. He can be very generous to those who are kind enough to help him. She says, good to know, and he says, likewise, he can be very uncharitable to those who cross him. She needs to ask herself, does she want to be on his bad side?

Portia goes to get some sparkling water, and sees the sketch. She asks Curtis, what happened with that mystery man TJ’s patient who ran into her, and also came there, always asking questions about Curtis? Did he ever show up again? He says not that he’s aware of; why? She says she doesn’t know if it’s worth mentioning. She has no proof; it’s just a feeling. He says he’s a big believer in feelings. Go ahead. She says, a man shows up asking questions about him, and now the mob seems to be making a move on The Savoy. Could they be related? He says he just doesn’t know. According to Nika, the man asked just as many questions about live music as he did about him. On the other hand, he can’t rule anything out. She says she’s got to go to work, but please be careful. He says she knows he will, and she kisses him goodbye. She leaves, and Curtis’s phone rings. He thanks Linc for getting back to him so soon. Linc says, congratulations on his big success last night. It’s all over social media. Curtis says he noticed that. He couldn’t have done anything without Linc’s last minute save. Linc says, The Savoy’s a great spot. His guy really loved playing there. He’s just happy he could connect the two of them. Curtis says, that’s exactly why he called. Why doesn’t Linc come to The Savoy, and they can discuss a potential future partnership?

Sonny tells Spencer, there’s always more than one option in life. Has he considered apologizing to Ava? Spencer says, Sonny did not just suggest that, and Sonny says she’s not his favorite person in the world, but she is the mother of his daughter. It’s not about Ava; it’s about Spencer. Spencer says, so Sonny is saying, if he apologizes to Ava, he’ll trust him again? but Sonny says, this isn’t a transaction. If Spencer apologizes to Ava, he has to do it sincerely because he messed up and he’s going to own up to that. Spencer says he has owned up to it, but Sonny says, Spencer’s behavior has hurt a lot of people, including his daughter. Spencer’s not a kid anymore. He can’t just excuse everything away. He knows better than that, because if he doesn’t, Sonny can’t help him.

Gladys says, if she didn’t know any better, she’d say Valentin was threatening her. He says he doesn’t want to threaten her, but this is her last chance. Please tell him what she knows. She tells him, she’ll say this much; he shouldn’t trust Brook. He says, why not? but she tells him, that’s all she can say. He says, then she disappoints him. Chase comes to the room, and says if Valentin is up for it, he has a few questions. Gladys says, good timing. She and Valentin are done. She jets, and Chase asks if he wants to know. Valentin says, must be happy hour somewhere. What can he do for Chase? Chase asks how well Valentin knows Austin.

Austin says Maxie really went after Chase. He’s only trying to do his job. She says she thinks Chase is a good guy. She’s just sick of everyone being suspicious of Austin. It’s frustrating. Her baby is out there somewhere, and the police are focusing on the wrong guy. He thanks her, and says he’s lucky to have her in his corner. She says, likewise, and Austin sees Gladys waiting for the elevator. He asks if she’s okay, and she says she had the worst morning. He says he’s sorry to hear that. Does she want to get some coffee, and tell him all about it? She says, not today; she has a lot on her plate. Maxie asks if Brook knows she’s not at the office, and Gladys tells her to try lightening up, or she’s going to need a ton of Deception’s wrinkle cream. She gets in the elevator, and Maxie says she didn’t know Austin was friends with Gladys.

Ned tells Brook, of course (🍷) he doesn’t want his marriage to end. He loves Olivia, but if they can’t get on the same page, what chance do they have? She says she knows he wants what’s best for Leo, and so does Olivia. Maybe they could come together on that common ground, and go from there. He says, it takes two people to make a marriage work. He’s beginning to wonder if Olivia’s heart just isn’t in it anymore.

Olivia tells Robert, the only thing she’s afraid of is spending the rest of her life in a marriage with a partner who doesn’t support or trust her. He says, she doesn’t think for a moment Ned might be thinking the same thing? Think for one minute. What if Ned is right about Leo? Simply do what he suggests, and if he’s wrong, he’ll back off. She says, it doesn’t sound so threatening when he says it like that, and he says, he’s always looked at her as a very brave woman. Is she prepared be wrong in this case? She says she would do anything for Leo, and he says, there she has it. She can be the hero in her own story.

Sonny leaves Kelly’s, and Brook is outside. She hugs him, and says she heard what happened to him. She’s so happy to see him with her own eyes. She’s glad he’s home safe. He says, so is he. Michael told him she had a daughter. She says, Bailey; she’s perfect. Every day she’s changing and discovering something new; Brook can’t keep up. He says, it’s a great age. It’s a magical age. If they’re talking, it’s even better, but you don’t want them to be teenagers, because then they start talking back to you. Brook laughs, and Gladys stands by the gate. He tells Brook to bring Bailey by the house, so he can see her, instead of watching Valentin lurking around. She says he’s got it, and looks over to see Gladys. Sonny follows her gaze, and Gladys smiles broadly.

Chase tells Valentin, now that he’s back to work, he’s looking into Maxie’s baby’s kidnapping. Valentin has done business with Austin; has he ever said anything about the case? Valentin says, Austin was particularly helpful when he and Anna visited Pawtuck, investigating the case. He seemed legitimately interested in helping find Louise. Chase thanks him, and says, if he thinks of anything else, Valentin knows where to find him. Valentin says he’s got it, and Chase wishes him a speedy recovery. Brook would never admit it, but he knows she misses having Valentin around the house. Valentin says he knows Chase and Brook are tight, and he’d never ask Chase to betray her trust, but is she okay? She seems a little frazzled. Chase says, she’s definitely stressed about something. Seeing Linc, her old music producer, at The Savoy last night didn’t help. Valentin says, is he still around? He’s awful. Is she okay? Chase says he stepped in, and kept Linc away from Brook. Valentin says, she gave Yuri the slip, huh? She tends to do that. There was one night she got Yuri to build Bailey’s crib, despite the fact that there was plenty other staff who could have done that. That was the night she snuck out for girls night, and of course (🍷) she ended up giving birth to Bailey in a hotel room. If Yuri had been there, he would have made sure she got to a hospital, and Valentin could have been there for the birth of his daughter, but it didn’t happen. She made sure she was all alone.

Robert says he’ll always be there for Olivia, and they hug. Ned walks in, and Robert says, oops, gotta go, and leaves.

Trina says, steal Esme’s boyfriend? She doesn’t know why Esme thinks that, but no. That’s not her. She and Spence are friends, and that’s it. If Esme has a problem with that, she can take it up with him. Esme says, okay then; they’re good. She feels really silly about how much she needed to hear Trina say that, but Trina understands where she’s coming from, right? Trina says, no, she doesn’t, and Esme says, it’s just that certain friendships can push the boundaries of what’s appropriate and what’s not. Spence talking to her about his inheritance and his dad is just way too intimate. Trina asks if Esme is telling her not to be friends with Spencer, and Esme says, she’s just gently suggesting that the next time Spence tries to engage Trina in such an intimate conversation, just remind him that certain topics are off limits for friends of the opposite sex. Trina says, they’ll have to agree to disagree, because if any friend comes to her with a problem, she’s going to help, no question about it. Because that’s who she is. She walks in the back.

Curtis thanks Linc for coming in, and says he knows Linc is a busy man, so he’ll get to the point. Now that he’s launched The Savoy, things are going well, he’s focusing on his next goal. How to make this the number one place in Port Charles to listen to live music. To do that, he’s going to need help; help from someone like Linc, and his many contacts. Linc says he’d be up for that, and Curtis says, before they enter into a partnership, he needs to know he can trust Linc. So he’s giving Linc the opportunity to tell him anything he needs to know about who he does business with. Linc says, if Curtis doesn’t trust him, he can’t partner with Curtis, and starts to leave. Curtis says he’s not going anywhere until he admits  that he wasn’t here by coincidence the other night; someone sent him. Linc says Curtis is right; he owed someone a favor. That’s all. Curtis asks, who? and Linc says, someone who wants to remain anonymous. Curtis says he used to be a cop; after that, a P.I. He could start going through all the skeletons in Linc’s closet if he wanted to. Why not make it easier on both of them, and just talk to him. Is Linc working with the mob? Linc says, no, absolutely not, and Curtis says, then who sent him? Curtis goes around to the other side of the bar, and gets the sketch. He shows it to Linc, and says, was it this man? Linc doesn’t say anything, and Curtis tells him, he’ll take that as a yes. Obviously, Linc knows this man; who is he? Linc tells Curtis, he can’t say, and Curtis says, Linc told him that he’s not with the mob, so let him tell Linc something. There’s no way he’s going to let some jerk muscle his way in on his business. Linc says, he’s just the messenger, and Curtis slaps the sketch on the bar, and grabs Linc by the lapels. He says, whoever he is, he’s been asking questions about him and his family all over town. Who is he? Marshall yells, let him be. He points to Linc, and says, you, get lost. He tells Curtis, I’m the one you want, my man.

Ned asks what Olivia and Robert were talking about, and Olivia says, they were just clearing the air. He hands her the flyer, and says, there’s an exhibit tonight at the Jerome gallery. It’s being underwritten by ELQ Charities. If she can make it, she should come. She says, ELQ is making a matching donation to the local animal shelter. He says he knows it’s an important charity to her, and leaves. She looks at the painting.

Trina comes back out, and says, Esme’s still here? Esme says, because she wants Trina to know she respects her being such a good friend to Spence, and she appreciates Trina listening to what she had to say. She hopes Trina will think about it. She’ll see her at the show tonight. Break a leg. I’d be afraid Esme meant that literally. Outside, Esme uncurls her palm, and there are bloody crescents where her nails have dug into it.

Gladys says she feels like Sonny has been avoiding her, and Brook says she wonders why. Gladys says, they have to catch up. They have so much to talk about. He suggests she start with her telling Cyrus that he and his family were harboring Dev illegally. She says, it’s just something that came out in conversation, and he says, he bets. He tells Brook to bring Bailey by, and leaves. Brook asks if Gladys really thought Sonny would side with her over his niece.

Austin tells Maxie that he ran into Gladys at The Savoy the other night, and they sat at the bar and chatted. She seems like somebody who could use someone to talk to right now. Maxie says, take her advice, steer clear of Gladys. She’ll do whatever it takes to get ahead. He says, this is kind of ironic, coming from the woman who calls Brook Lyn Quartermaine her BFF. He doesn’t know what Maxie sees in her, but he doesn’t question it; he just accepts it. She can’t afford him the same courtesy? She says, she’s in his corner, remember? Gladys is shady. Austin says, at least she’s up front about it, and walks off.

Brook asks Gladys what that comment to Sonny was about, and Gladys swears she hasn’t told anyone Valentin isn’t Bailey’s father. Brook says, keep it that way, or Pauly’s gonna be pissed. Gladys storms into Kelly’s, and Chase asks, who’s Pauly? Brook turns around to see him standing behind her.

On the phone, Valentin tells Yuri that Brook is in danger from Peter August. It’s imperative that he watch her every move; everyone she sees, everywhere she goes. It’s the only way they’re going to protect her. Valentin is counting on him. He needs to know every last detail of her day.

Brook tells Chase, they were just discussing some Deception business. Just because he’s a detective, doesn’t mean he gets to sneak up on people like that. How long was he standing there? He says he just got here. Why is she lying to him? She says she has no idea what he’s talking about, and he says, she’s lying about the night Bailey was born.

On Monday, Brando tells Gladys that it’s rude to turn down an invitation, Scotty asks if someone wants to walk out of jail free as a bird, Valentin says he and Anna can’t stop from making a deal with the devil, and Curtis wants to know what someone is doing here.

🐨 Where’s Ingo…?

The saga is here and gone. Apparently, it wasn’t the transphobia that got him in the end.

It didn’t help though.

His side.

🥀 Final Bow…

Another soap legend laid to rest.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2021/11/10/jerry-douglas-died-young-and-restless-patriarch-john-abbott/6381565001/

🍊 Like a Bad Penny…

It’s probably like childbirth. She forgot how painful it is, so she’s doing it again.

https://ew.com/tv/real-housewives-of-orange-county-season-16-trailer-heather-dubrow-returns/

And her first order of business.

🦋 Gilded Cage Opened…

Normally, I might not care that much about something like this, but when I heard she had an IUD put in against her will, plus she wanted more children, that was just no. I’m very happy to hear this nightmare is over for her.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2021/11/12/britney-spears-conservatorship/6379139001/

🏃🏻 Last Leap…

He was one of the busiest men in Hollywood.

🐙 Playing a Second Round…

Contains a SPOILER for the ending of Squid Games, and it’s at the beginning of the article. DO NOT enter here if you’re still contemplating watching it for the first time.

https://ew.com/tv/squid-game-creator-hwang-dong-hyuk-alternate-ending-season-2-plans/

🐣 Quotes of the Week

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time. – John Lubbock

If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people. – Virginia Woolf

Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.Dale Carnegie

You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else. – Albert Einstein (The first guy to figure out Survivor…)

We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty. – Maya Angelou

You have to love dancing to stick to it. It gives you nothing back, no manuscripts to store away, no paintings to show on walls and maybe hang in museums, no poems to be printed and sold, nothing but that single fleeting moment when you feel alive. – Merce Cunningham

The old man was nuttier than a squirrel turd. – Little Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), The Lord God Bird

Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity. – W. Clement Stone

🦥 Dreaming On…

Time to pull down the blinds on another workweek or just keep doing what you’re doing, if that’s your chosen path. See you at Dead time. Until then, stay safe, stay firm in your ideals, and stay knowing it’s not about shortcuts; it’s about working hard.

November 11, 2021 – Sonny Gives Nina Advice, Soap Singing, Good Son, Skaters On the Runway, Designer Workroom & Fresh Off His Tour

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Curtis tells Linc, it looks like a good crowd. This night is turning out better than he’d hoped. He can’t thank Linc enough. Portia asks if Curtis has seen what’s going on outside. There’s a line around the block. He has a hit on his hands.

At a table, Elizabeth says Finn really went all out for her birthday. He says she deserves it, and much more. She says she appreciates it. It’s nice being out of the house and being adults for once. Now Josslyn and Cameron can study for midterms and have the place to themselves.

From the kitchen, Cameron tells Josslyn, they have sea salt, regular salt, Himalayan salt, and kosher salt. He’s very well prepared. He takes the condom out of his pocket and looks at it. In the living room on the phone, Josslyn says she already told Trina that she has plans with Cameron tonight… She hasn’t changed her mind. She knows Trina packed some makeup for her. She can’t find that lip gloss she likes. She looks in her purse, and pulls out some condoms. She says she thinks she found it.

Carly sits with Michael and Willow at The Savoy, and thanks Michael for scoring the tickets. He says, Aurora gave Curtis a break on ad rates when he opened The Savoy, so in return, he gave them tickets. Willow says, they would have been happy to see Downtown, but Phideaux is way better. Michael is surprised Sonny didn’t snag tickets, but Carly says, after what happened yesterday, they didn’t want to trouble Curtis. It’s fine. Everything has been handled.

Sonny asks Nina how it was catching up with Shawn, and she tells him, she woudn’t say they were catching up, but they were having a great conversation. She and Shawn are barely acquaintances, but they do have something in common. Sonny says, what does that mean? and Nina says, Shawn went to prison for Sonny, and she’s probably going to prison for what she did to him.

Chase tells Brook that he’s doing security at The Savoy to make up for being on desk duty. She says she actually left her security at home; he’s babysitting Bailey. Chase asks if babysitting isn’t a little menial for Yuri, but she says, he makes bank off Valentin, but Valentin had better watch out, or Monica is going to adopt her bodyguard and start calling the shots at ELQ. He says, that’s not squared away yet? and she says, the vote is actually next week. Valentin will finally be out of the CEO chair, and a Quartermaine, mainly her father, will be back in charge of the family business.

At the hospital, Austin asks Valentin how he’s doing, and Valentin says the progress is a little slower than he’d expected. Austin says, progress is progress, and Valentin says he’s awfully cheerful for a man who just lost his voting rights to ELQ. Austin says his dad warned him not to tangle with the Quartermaines. He didn’t listen, and had to learn firsthand how horrible they are. He wishes he hadn’t had to be suspended from his job and almost lose his medical license to find out. Valentin says, and his eyes are wide open now, and Austin says, they sure are. He closes the door, and shuts the blind, and says, the question is, are Valentin’s?

On the phone, Ava says, thank Mr. Sartore again for agreeing to display the Photo Ark at the gallery. They’re so incredibly honored. She hears something, and says she has to run, but thanks them again so much for everything. She comes out, and Scotty is adjusting a painting. She asks what he’s doing, and he says, this was crooked. She tells him to keep his hands off of it, and gets closer. She says, he stinks. He’s been drinking, hasn’t he? He says, what if he has? and she tells him to sit down. She’ll get him some water. He says, water’s not going to help, the government’s not going to help, his so-called friends aren’t going to help. She says she’s his friend, and he asks how she’s going to help him bring Obrecht home.

Valentin tells Austin, he’s locked horns with the Quartermaines plenty over the years. He’s not surprised by anything they do. Austin says, Brook outmaneuvered him. She got Valentin to sign over his shares of ELQ in exchange for access to his daughter. Valentin says, that’s true. His brief moment with Brook gave her leverage, but it also gave him Bailey, and he woudn’t trade her for all the shares of ELQ. Austin says, it’s good he knows that because the board vote is coming up, and Valentin is going to be out. Valentin says, it looks that way, and Austin says, what he’s trying to figure out, Valentin is laying there telling him how wise he is to the ways of the Quartermaines, yet Brook saw him coming from a mile away.

Chase tells Brook, now that the future of ELQ is squared away, she can help him with Maxie, instead of running interference for her like she did at the hospital. Brook says she’s just looking out for Maxie, and he says, the department is out of leads. Maxie is the last person to have seen her baby. She could have a key piece of evidence, and just doesn’t know it yet. She asks if Maxie wouldn’t have remembered something by now, and he says, not necessarily. Brook would be doing him and the PCPD a huge favor if she stopped acting like Maxie’s guard dog, and convinced Maxie to talk to him. Otherwise, that little girl might never come home.

Josslyn shoves the condoms back in her purse, and tells Trina that she’ll be fine; she promises. She asks Cameron if something is burning, and he runs to open the microwave. He says, everything’s fine, and takes out the bag of popcorn, and throws it in the trash. He grabs a bag of pretzels and puts them in a bowl. He comes in, and Josslyn is applying her lip gloss. He says, change of plans. He hopes she likes pretzels. She says she does. Popcorn is overrated anyway.

Carly asks if her presence at The Savoy is a problem for Curtis, and he says, it shouldn’t be. Has she had any more problems with Joey Novak? She says, no. He and Sonny came to an understanding. He says, so no more trouble from Joey, and she says she can’t really speak for her husband’s business anymore, but if Sonny says the problem’s solved, the problem’s solved.

Nina tells Sonny, Diane said Michael wanted her brought to justice, and he’s getting what he wanted. She guesses she should probably get used to calling prison her new home. He says she’s getting way ahead of herself. She hasn’t gone to trial; she hasn’t been convicted. She says, yet. Does he plan on using his power to keep her out of prison? He says she has no idea what he can do with his power, then turns her into a cat. Just kidding. She says, probably not, but she does know this. When she goes to trial, DA Sheridan is going to call him up to the stand and ask him about everything that happened in Nixon Falls. All the lies that she told, the false life she created, the real life she kept him from. He says she’s speaking a different language from him. What if she goes to trial, what if what happened in Nixon Falls is revealed… The point is, you don’t worry about what ifs. She says she envies him, because what ifs are all she’s about. What if Jay (Nathan) never died? What if her baby was never taken from her? What if she was allowed to watch her baby grow up, or at least find her before she spiraled so out of control it was too late to save her? What if she’d told him the truth the first time she saw him in Nixon Falls? What if she and Mike had… He says, that’s a total waste of time because you can’t change the past. All sorts of things could happen before the trial. She says, like what? and he says, like the DA can decide trying to prove identity fraud is more trouble than it’s worth; trying to get the conviction isn’t going to give him the headlines he wanted, and drops the charges. She tells him to stop now. If he keeps talking, he just might make her feel better.

Austin thinks Valentin underestimated Brook. He thinks Valentin thought she was a lightweight, and she played him. She could do it because he was so focused on Ned and Michael. Valentin asks how Austin is implying she played him, and Austin says, he thinks Valentin needs to talk to Brook’s assistant Gladys. He thinks Gladys has all the answers Valentin needs.

Chase says, Brook is close to Maxie. Just talk to her. If anyone can convince Maxie he’s not the boogeyman, it’s her. She says, of course (🍷) he’s not the boogeyman. She’ll talk to Maxie, but can’t make any promises. There are limits to her superpowers. He says, yeah, right, and she asks, what’s with the attitude? He says, she sure seemed powerful when she took a girls night out just hours before she had to pull over and give birth. She says, he remembers? and he says he stopped by the Quartermaines. Actually, he and Yuri bonded over putting together Bailey’s crib. That thing could have collapsed; there were a lot of missing parts. Brook flashes back to telling Yuri that she found parts on the floor, and the crib was super rickety. She says, Chase helped fix the crib. End of story.

Portia asks how Elizabeth’s birthday was back at home, and Elizabeth says, it was nice. Aiden baked her a cake, and the kids decorated, they made her a banner, and to top it off, Finn has taken her out. She’s excited to see the performer. It’s been a long time since she enjoyed live music. Portia says, but it takes some getting used to, right? Being out without Franco, and with Finn instead. Elizabeth says, Finn is a really good friend, but Portia says she’s seen them at the hospital. Sometimes, Elizabeth can’t stop smiling, and other times, she seems so hesitant, like maybe she’s not ready to move on. Elizabeth flashes back to her and Finn’s almost kiss, and says, at times it does seem overwhelming. Portia says, if it doesn’t feel right to be out, with or without Finn, don’t be out. Finn will understand. He certainly knows there’s no timetable for grief. If she wants to go home, she’s got to do what’s best for her.

Cameron and Josslyn are on the couch, when Cameron’s phone dings. He says, it’s probably nothing, but she picks it up, and says, it’s Spencer. He’s not going to stop until Cameron responds. Cameron looks at the phone, and says, he doesn’t know how to work the register. Josslyn says, that’s funny, since he sure knows how to spend money, and he says, maybe Spencer would know if he’d focus more on his job than Esme. He turns his phone off, and suggests they ditch the movie. She asks if he really likes Esme, and he says, undecided. She’s Spencer’s girlfriend. Josslyn says, so? She can’t believe he doesn’t see what a total fake she is. All this, I’m from Europe, and I’m so worldly stuff. Please. He says, she is from Europe, and she’s seen a lot more of the world than he has. Josslyn asks why she’d want to go on a weekend getaway with Esme and her condescending attitude? He says they don’t have to go, but she says, yes they do. Esme won’t leave them alone if they don’t. He says he doesn’t really want to think about Esme, or what she thinks about them, and she says, she doesn’t want to either. He says, you know what he thinks about? Her. They kiss.   

Ava tells Scotty to have some coffee; they’ll get him dried out. He says he doesn’t need drying out. He’s thinking better this way. She says he’ll be of no use to Obrecht with a mind like Swiss cheese. He says, what kind of a guy is he? He gets chucked out of an airplane like a sack of potatoes; then his girlfriend is whisked off to parts unknown. Ava pulls up a chair, and says, none of that was his fault. He was tricked, duped, drugged. Just be glad he’s alive now, and can work to bring Obrecht home. He asks, what has that done for him? All his time, energy, and resources, and he’s got goose egg; he’s got bupkis. He even put up a reward, and nobody’s responded to that. The only thing he does know for sure he succeeded at, is losing Britt, just like he lost Obrecht. She says, nobody can blame him for losing Britt, but he says he knew it was a mistake bringing Jason in. He knows who Jason is, and he badgered Britt to get him. Why couldn’t he have been a good little assassin, and done it by himself? But no, they both go. Now they’ve both gone missing. She says, there could be any number of reasons for that, and he says, none of them good. If Obrecht comes back, and finds her daughter missing… fireworks. She says, Britt’s a grown women, so she’s going to guess Obrecht respects her daughter’s choices. He says she doesn’t get it. He and Obrecht are in love. He had one job, to protect her. And he didn’t. He failed.  

Josslyn and Cameron make out on the couch, and he asks if she’s okay. She says, his hands are cold, and he says, sorry. She says, no big deal, and he asks if she’s sure this is okay. They kiss some more, and she says, something is poking her. She feels around, and pulls out a wooden spoon. He says, Aiden was looking for that. He should have prechecked the couch for cooking utensils and art supplies. Sorry. Why don’t they take this to the bedroom? There’s no wooden spoons there. She says, yeah, sure, and they get up. They see headlights outside.

Willow asks Michael to help her up on the table so she can tell the room how much she loves him. He kisses her hand, and thanks her for being her. She doesn’t have to jump on the table, even though he’d absolutely love to see that. He believes her. She says she’s going to keep saying this as many times as he needs to hear it. They don’t always need to agree. They won’t always agree, but she still loves him. She’s there for the long haul, like it or not. He says he likes it very much, when Carly comes back, apologizing for disappearing. She just wanted to call Sonny and see how it’s going. He’s going to be there soon.

Sonny says Nina doesn’t need his help to feel better or worse. She’s perfectly capable of doing that herself. She says, in other words, quit her complaining, and act like a grownup. Some things don’t change. He asks what she means, and she says, Mike was full of advice, whether she wanted to hear it or not. One positive thing is, Phyllis is going to be in her life, and she’s going to stay in Port Charles. He says, at least she’s managing the place, and Nina says, that’s a good thing. It will give her a fresh purpose, whether she sees it or not, and the job will keep her busy. Nina will just have to find a new watering hole. He says, she finds out Phyllis is putting down roots in Port Charles, and now she’s going to do everything she can to keep her distance. She says, he’s the one who told her to stay out of his life. He owns the place, so how is she supposed to do that? She doesn’t make the rules, she just follows them. He says, maybe he’ll change the rules.

Brook tells Chase, she had nothing to do with that super rickety crib. She’s sure Yuri thinks it’s all her fault, but he’d better watch it; he’s paid for his discretion as much as her protection. Linc approaches, and says, if anyone needs protection, it’s this poor man from her.

Austen wonders why Gladys was so desperate to talk to Valentin, and Valentin says, she claimed to have something to say to him, but then Brook showed up and shooed her out of the room. Austin asks if he wasn’t curious, and Valentin says he was heading into surgery, so he was a little preoccupied, but he’s curious now. Austen says, Gladys is running around town with Brook’s corporate credit card, spending it in decidedly uncorporate ways. She treated him to drinks – plural – at The Savoy. Valentin says, she must like Austin, and Austin says, and she let slip that she thinks Brook is pulling a scam on Valentin.   

Josslyn says she thought Cameron’s mom would be home later than this, and he says, it seems she will be. Someone’s just using the driveway to turn around. He asks if Josslyn is okay; she seems a little off. She says, too many pretzels, but he says they didn’t have any. They don’t have to do this. She says she’s good; it will pass. Besides, doesn’t he want to? He says, of course (🍷) he wants to, but only if she does, and to be honest, it seems like she doesn’t.

Curtis says he’ll have Nika get Finn and Elizabeth a bottle of champagne, and Finn tells Elizabeth, go ahead. She deserves it. She says, what the hell. She’d love some.

Austin reaches to touch Valentin’s flowers, and Valentin moves the vase. He asks what else Gladys told Austin, but Austin says, nothing really. He gets up, and says, she did ask him if he wanted to have a drink at the MetroCourt, but he’s in the middle of his shift. He called her a bunch of times, but she hasn’t returned his calls. Valentin asks if Austin thinks Brook got to her, and Austin says he does. He thinks Brook either terrified that poor woman, or paid her off to keep her mouth shut. He hopes Valentin has more luck with Gladys, but Valentin says he doesn’t need luck.

Brook says, please tell her that she’s having a nightmare, and Chase says he remembers Linc. Linc says, he should; Chase arrested him. Chase says, he’s Brook’s music producer, and Brook says, ex-music producer, and total sexist and skeezy sleaze. Linc asks if that’s any way to talk to an old friend, and she asks what he’s doing there. She hoped he’d been dumped on a toxic waste site. Linc says he’s there to see the show on the stage, not the show on the floor, and Chase says they don’t want a disturbance, but if Linc comes within ten feet of Brook again, he’ll be out on the street. Linc says, there’s no need to manhandle him. He knows when he’s not wanted. Good to see Brook again.

Nina says, Sonny Corinthos is changing his rules, and for her, and he says he didn’t bring Phyllis in to run Charlie’s just to have Nina stay away. Phyllis doesn’t know it yet, but she belongs in Port Charles. She can see who she wants to see. She says, even if it means he’ll have to breathe the same air as she is? and he says, he’s telling her again, stay away from Carly, and respect Michael’s wishes when it comes to Wiley. She promises, and says she knows he said he could change the rules anytime, but she just never thought it would be this soon and in her favor. Sonny says he’s doing this for Phyllis. If the rule change works for Nina, so be it. Nina and I both go, hmm…

Ava says, she knows the WSB knows more than they’re letting on to the public, and Scotty asks what she means. She says, they captured a man during the assault at the compound in Crete, and he says, the one Nikolas owns? She says, used to own. Anyway, the man they captured claims to have a lead on Peter. He says, if that’s true, why is nobody telling him? He’s been running around like a chicken with no head. She says she doesn’t know, but the man in question is demanding a heck of a lot in exchange for cooperation. He asks how bad the guy can be, and she says, apparently, he’s committed many crimes and acts of espionage going back decades. The WSB wants to prosecute him, not cut a deal. He says she’s got to help him; Obrecht’s life is at stake. Who is this guy? She says, Nikolas’s uncle Victor Cassadine. He jumps up, and says, for cryin’ out loud, now this all makes sense. That’s why Nikolas didn’t help him out; he was protecting his uncle. And that’s why she didn’t help him, because she was protecting her husband. She says, he’s not drunk at all. He just tricked her so she would spill her guts. He says, he did, to get the truth, and she says, get out of here, you cretin. He should be ashamed of himself. He says, if the shoe was on the other foot, he would do exactly what she’s doing. So isn’t life and love all grand? He walks out.

Josslyn says she feels so dumb. She was the one pushing for this, now she’s hitting the brakes. He says she’s allowed to change her mind, and she says she just doesn’t want to disappoint him. He says, this is supposed to be about the two of them, not just him. He wants to have sex with her more than anything, but it wasn’t even on the agenda until this morning, when it was suddenly put there. She says she knows. Maybe it’s being in college, or being around Esme, who never misses an opportunity to remind Josslyn how advanced she is. She’s embarrassed to admit it, but he knows how competitive she is. She thinks part of her just wanted to keep up, and the other part of her just wanted to get it out of the way so it wouldn’t take up so much space in her head. He says she shouldn’t have to think about it that way. It’s not like a volleyball game she has to win. She says she knows, and she truly doesn’t want her first time to be about something between her and Esme, or anyone else at PCU having sex. She wants it to be about her and Cameron. He says he just wants it to be right.

Sonny arrives at The Savoy, and asks if he missed anything. Michael says he didn’t, and Carly says she’s just glad he made it. Is everything okay? He nods and smiles. Curtis asks if he can have everyone’s attention. Tonight is a very special night at The Savoy. He thanks them all for being there, and says, it’s his privilege and honor to present, fresh from his sold out summer tour, Phideaux (see below). The audience seems like they’re enjoying it, but aren’t moving around to music much. It brought to mind what another actor said once, when we were doing a play together: is this an audience or an oil painting?

Curtis tells Chase that he noticed Linc was bothering Brook. Does she know that guy? Chase says, he was her music producer, and they have a history. Brook and Linc got into it, and he ended up arresting them both. Curtis says, really? Excuse him. He goes over to Brook, and apologizes for Linc bothering her. He’ll be happy to refund her ticket. She says, that’s sweet of him, but Linc wasn’t bothering her. She was just surprised to see him. She thought he knew better than to show his face in Port Charles again. He asks if the Quartermaines ran Linc out of town, and she says, just one Quartermaine, her dad. He says, if Linc gets in her face again, let him know.

Josslyn says, she was afraid if they didn’t do it, Cameron would be upset and dump her. He says, like that’s going to happen, and she says, it’s not like he can’t find someone else; the girls would be lining up. He says, A, that’s just not true, and B, the only girl he wants is her. He waited years to hold her hand. He can wait a little bit longer for sex. They hug, and he says, however long it takes, he knows it will be worth it.

Finn says, if Elizabeth has had enough, they can sneak out, but she says, is he kidding? She asks why he looks surprised, and he says he was concerned it might be too much for her. He knows it’s not an easy birthday. She says, it’s not, but he’s making it special for her.

Scotty taps Nina on the shoulder, and says, he’s sorry he’s late, but for good reason. He got a line on Obrecht. She asks if he took it to Anna, but he says, Anna is the last person to take anything to. She says, please don’t go to Obrecht’s rescue like Britt did, on his own. They all want to find her, and he’s got to put the WSB in the loop. He says he intends to go to the WSB, but when you do, you can’t make mistakes. Like when you go to Sonny Corinthos.

Carly asks Sonny how it went with Phyllis. Did she agree to manage Charlie’s? He says, on a trial basis; it’s her decision, not his. She says, that’s great, right? She knows how important Phyllis is to him. He says, it’s the right decision, and Phyllis is going to be a terrific manager. She says, they’ve never hung out at Charlie’s, and he says, Julian Jerome didn’t exactly make it appealing. She says, that’s true, but Julian is gone, and Phyllis is running the place, so there’s our excuse to get to know Charlie’s better. D’oh! all over the place.

Scotty says he can’t help Obrecht tonight, so he and Nina should strategize about her trial. He thinks the best defense is a good offense. They’ve got to get Sonny and Michael to back off. She asks if he has something in mind, and he says, the only thing she has in common with that family is a legitimate claim, but she says, no. Wiley’s out of bounds. He says, now that Nelle’s gone, she has legal rights to her grandson. She has to use those legal rights, and push them to get Sonny to back off. She says she’s not going to use her grandson, and he’s looking at this the wrong way. Michael is the one who got the DA to press charges on her, not Sonny. He says, Michael takes his cues from Don Vito. She says, maybe the pre Nixon Falls Don Vito, but not the man Sonny is now.

Portia tells Curtis, the band is amazing, and so is this night. She’s been table hopping, and everyone is having a wonderful time… except for him. What’s wrong? He says, Linc, the band’s producer. Chase arrested him a while back, and Ned Quartermaine ran him out of town. She asks, why? and he says, something he had against Brook. He’s beginning to think Linc’s appearance there wasn’t a coincidence. She says, so he thinks Linc deliberately came there to help him out when his original band canceled? and he says, he thinks someone put Linc up to it.

Valentin asks what Austin wants for the information on Brook and Gladys. He must want something. Austin says, no; they’re good on that. He could tell the way they were talking, Brook may soon find herself in the hottest corner of hell. Valentin says, that’s enough for him? and Austin says, Brook’s misery will be his joy. If Valentin is feeling extra generous, and wants to show his appreciation when Brook gets what’s coming to her, just tell her Austin says hi, and give Brook his regards.

Tomorrow, Robert tells Olivia that the kiss was anything but meaningless, Brook says don’t pop the champagne yet, Esme asks if someone (probably Trina) is trying to steal her boyfriend, and Curtis tells Portia that he’ll stop anyone who tries to take what’s his.

🎸 Replacement Act…

This guy was not bad. He actually reminded me of Billy Idol.

💰 I caught the end of Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles again, and this is the second week in a row that it was warm and fuzzy. JoshA got house for his parents, and in his interview, he said it put a bow on the last twenty years of his life. Aww! Are we getting kinder, gentler brokers this season? No one seems very happy with Fredrik though.

Project Runway

Aaron was missing Darren, and pointed out that you could become close with the other designers, but one day you were here, and the next you weren’t. One bad day was all it took. The designers were paid a visit by Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir, BFFs and former skating partners. They were now commentators, and needed looks for the 2022 Olympics in Beijing. They’d be wearing the winning look live. Anna was hoping to win, and represent the Asian community. The designers were split into pairs; one team member would make an outfit for Tara, and the other for Johnny. Johnny randomly passed out cards to match them. He reminded them that he and Tara were only seen from the waist up – you didn’t see the legs they’d worked their whole lives for, because they were commentators now. He told the group to concentrate on things like color and neckline. He said he liked to go full-on Hunger Games in structure, and I had no clue what he meant, getting a mental picture of him in suede with a bow and arrow. Or on fire. He said they were looking for something special and unique. They liked everything, but also nothing. It was a one-day challenge, which I thought was a little cruel.

The pairs were, Chastity and Zayden, Aaron and Shantall, Prajje and Sabrina, Katie and Octavio, Anna and Bones, and Kristina and Coral. Aaron was worried because Shantall had immunity. He didn’t know if she would show up, but I thought, come on. Only an idiot would think the judges wouldn’t notice they didn’t try, and file that away. In Katie’s interview, she was concerned about keeping her voice within the team, since she’d been in the bottom last week. The designers were given 45 minutes at Mood, and a $1200 budget. I love how crazy they get in that store. I guess the equivalent for me would be a movie material store or B&N.

When Christian came in to harass them, he said he had a Siriano Save. He could use it if he felt a designer’s elimination was a case of bad timing, bad luck, or it was just bad. Zayden did an ice skating twirl to demonstrate his expertise. Bones used Anna’s fabric, but they managed to work it out without a fight. Shantall thought Aaron was pushing her in a good way. In Katie’s interview, she said she’d been brought up to dress modestly, which explained a lot of the Peter Pan collars and such, although I think she wears some amazing prints. It also explained one of her problems in designing; she tended to design for herself. In Sabrina’s interview, she revealed that she’d suffered from arthritis at a young age, and sometimes her body took its toll on her mind. She began to have difficulty toward the end of the day, and had to step away to get it together. Since she hadn’t shared this information with anyone, Prajje was less than sympathetic. In Aaron’s interview, he said, immunity never mattered, and Shantall had worked as hard as he did. The designers were sewing up until the models went on the runway. Tara and Johnny were also the guest judges.

One favorite look of the night came from Anna and Bones, who wanted their outfits to conjure up the thought of ice. Anna’s dress for Tara had a plunging neckline (although in-between netting kept it from being too revealing for prime time), and incredible beaded fringe, very flapperish. Designing for Johnny, Bones had done a beautiful sheer shirt and white pants, but as Brandon said, the vest was a challenge. While Anna’s beading was elegant and high-end, Bones’s vest was more crafty. That was the perfect word, since it literally looked like something you’d make from a virtual class in crafting. It was cool, but not haute couture. Shantall and Aaron were also at the top, although Brandon thought their look was a little Night at the Roxbury. I thought it was a little dark colorwise, with black and navy. At the bottom were Prajje and Sabrina, who went for the gold in their look, but the judges felt the collaboration wasn’t strong. Johnny said the outfits looked like cartoon versions of what a skater would wear. Katie and Octavio scored low too, and Octavio kept trying to throw Katie under the bus, but his shirt for Johnny dwarfed Katie’s outfit for Tara. Brandon said Katie had designed a party on the bottom, and business he didn’t want to be a part of on top. Their model looked pissed, which was kind of funny. Brandon said it seemed like no one got along, and their looks reflected that. They should have been lifting each other up.

The winners were Anna and Bones, with Anna getting the big win. In her interview, she said it would be her lifetime job to represent the Asian community. Brandon told the bottom four, they had been working as team, designing for a team, but lost because there had been no teamwork. Sabrina was out, which surprised me, since I was sure it would be Katie, who’s been consistently disappointing to the judges. Sabrina said, having been born in Afghanistan, she was excited to represent girls who didn’t have opportunities, and show them there’s hope. Johnny said he couldn’t wait to wear her, which would have been creepy coming from that guy in Silence of the Lambs. In Sabrina’s interview, she said she knew she could do better, and it hurt to know that this outfit was her swan song, but the competition had helped her go for her dreams. Christian said Sabrina was a strong, talented, amazing designer who would do great things.  

Fun Fact: Johnny Weir said he’d worn off-the-rack Brandon Maxwell during the last Olympic commentary.

Next time, each designer works with an accessory designer.

🌿 On the Street Where They Live…

The Duggal Greenhouse is where the designers do most of their work. You, too, can rent it for what I’m sure is a modest sum. If you’re a millionaire.

https://duggalgreenhouse.com/

🏎 Ciao, Bella Or Not…

Hope to see you tomorrow for soap, tea, and stuff other people said. Until then, stay safe, stay appreciating the small stuff, and stay not worrying about what ifs. It’s a waste of time since you can’t change the past.

November 10, 2021 – Karma Smiles On Curtis, High School In the House, My Problem, Honoring Veterans & America

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Elizabeth walks in, and everyone yells, surprise! A banner hangs over the fireplace that says, Happy Birthday, Mom!

Curtis says, the premium liquor has arrived, and Nika says, no one’s going thirsty tonight, unless they’re too interested in the music to drink. He says, unfortunately, they might have nothing to do but drink. Their band from Detroit just canceled. She says, Downtown? He’s kidding. He says he wishes he was. Every band within a 50 mile radius is booked. He’s afraid there isn’t going to be any live music at The Savoy tonight.

Maxie asks Sam how her trip was, and what is she doing at GH? Sam says she’s there to pick up her mom, and Maxie asks if her mom isn’t in prison. Sam says, her mom has been released.

On the phone at the hospital, Dante says, Novak is undergoing tests right now… He doesn’t have a description of the attackers yet; he’ll get that later. He has to go over to the PCPD… Okay. He literally runs into Alexis as he goes around the corner.

Nina orders a chardonnay at the bar in Charlie’s, and Shawn says, he knows her. Nina Reeves, right? She says, Shawn Butler, right? Long time, no see. He says, and at Charlie’s of all places, and she asks, what’s wrong with Charlie’s? He says, nothing. Great pizza and bar snacks. Just not what he expected would be the first choice of the editor-in-chief of Crimson. She says, it’s a long story, but she is persona non grata at the MetroCourt, and a pariah in town generally. It’s the price she has to pay for choosing to stay in Port Charles.

Outside, Phyllis tells Sonny, it looks like a nice place, but she already told him, she’s not hungry. So what are they doing here? He says she’s about to find out, and smiles.

Trina meets Josslyn at Kelly’s, and says she brought Josslyn’s stuff. Josslyn thanks her, and apologizes for not doing it herself. Volleyball practice ran late, and with studying for exams, she couldn’t make it back to the dorm on time. Trina says, that’s all right. The room is so cluttered with her Photo Ark exhibit; she’ll clear it out. Josslyn says, that’s okay. She should have the place to herself to focus, and doesn’t need Josslyn in the way. Also, she’s going to be home late tonight, so don’t wait up. Trina says, she’s coming back tonight? She thought Josslyn was spending time with her family. Josslyn says she’s sorry she misled Trina. She and Cam are at his place tonight; they’re studying for midterms. Trina says, she needed her toothbrush and toothpaste for that? Deodorant? Her favorite soap? A sexy pair of undies? Why does she have the feeling that Josslyn and Cameron plan on doing more than studying for midterms? Josslyn says, Trina’s right. Tonight, she’s losing her virginity to Cam. She waits, then says, well? She’s telling Trina that she’s going to have sex for the first time in her life, and she’s just sitting there. Doesn’t Trina have anything to say? Trina says, that explains the scented candle she had to pack. Josslyn asks why Trina is acting like her having sex with Cam is no big deal, and Trina says she knows it’s a big deal for Josslyn and Cam. She figured it would happen sooner or later. She just thought they planned to take things slow. Josslyn says, it was never a plan to go slow, but life keeps interrupting. Every time things would heat up, something crazy would happen. Trina says, like her stepdad returning from the dead? and Josslyn says, exactly. And before that, she was distracted by her mom and Jason’s wedding. Plus, it’s semester one in college, with full-time volleyball. On top of that, Cameron doesn’t even live on campus, so opportunities have been scarce. It was never spontaneously the right moment, so they need to make the right moment happen. That’s what they’re going to do tonight.

Finn adjusts a birthday hat on Elizabeth, and Cameron asks if she likes the banner; Jake supervised it. She says, all the way from Washington DC? She’s happy he took time out of his trip to collaborate on the banner. There are balloons everywhere, and she says she can’t remember the last time their house was this dressed up. Aiden says, it was for her wedding anniversary with Franco, and Elizabeth says, right. Silly of her to have forgotten. The doorbell rings, and Cameron goes to get it. Finn says, the boys and Violet really wanted to throw her this party. Bad idea? She says, no. She loves that the kids wanted to do this for her. They also threw her a surprise party at work. It’s really nice to be celebrated, which is so ironic since she kind of hates parties. Nikolas joins them, and says, what’s this about hating parties?

Shawn says he’s sorry Nina is having a difficult time. She thanks him, but says, she brought it on herself. He says, that may be true, but it doesn’t make the day to day any easier. He sympathizes. She says, that’s right, he… That’s right. She asks how it feels being back in Port Charles, and he says his family’s great. It’s been a while, but things are going well. She asks if he has any advice he’d like to share with her, and he says, there’s no rule that says what they’ve lost is lost to them forever.

Sonny and Phyllis go into Charlie’s, and see Nina at the bar. Phyllis asks if he wants to go somewhere else, but Sonny says he’s good. He asks how she likes the place, and she says, it’s homey, good energy. She tells him that he looks relieved, and he says, he’d hate to think he made a bad investment. She says, he bought this place? He says, lock, stock, and bar, and she hugs him.

Alexis tells Dante that she hasn’t escaped, and he says, that wasn’t his first thought, but what is she doing there? She says, meeting, nine months, and shows him her chip. He tells her, congratulations, and asks if they don’t do that at Spring Ridge. She says, apparently, he hasn’t heard. Him being the victim, she would have thought the Department of Corrections would have notified him, but she’s been pardoned.

Maxie says, Sam’s mom was released? That’s incredible. Sam and her sisters must be thrilled. Sam says, it’s been an eventful few weeks, and Maxie says she got Sam’s text that she had to go out of the country. Where’d she go? Sam says, Crete, and Maxie says, as in Greece? Didn’t Anna and Valentin go there? Why was Sam there?

Curtis tells Nika, Downtown’s booking agent just called and said he accidentally double-booked the band. So they’re in Hanover, Michigan right now. She asks if he’ll get his money back, and he says he’ll get his deposit back. He’s out the money for the advertising and liquor, but more important, his customers are out of a great experience. He doesn’t want The Savoy to look unreliable, like sometimes you get a live band, sometimes you don’t. He doesn’t want it to look like they’re doing the old bait and switch. Pull people in, promising live music, that never materializes. Portia comes in, and says, not to worry. The show will go on.

Josslyn tells Trina, she and Cam have been letting life dictate their relationship. Suddenly, she realized they’re missing out on something really important, and they need to commit. Trina asks, what’s with this suddenly? and Josslyn says, she doesn’t mean it like that; she just means lately. Trina asks, what made her decide lately that now is the time to commit to something with Cam? and Josslyn says, what’s with the third degree? This is just the next step. Trina says, Josslyn knows she’ll support any decision she makes, and if she says she’s ready to have sex with Cam, then she’s ready. But she wouldn’t be Josslyn’s best friend if she didn’t say it seems impulsive. It actually fells like a knee jerk reaction to… something. She gets the feeling there’s more to Josslyn’s decision than she’s saying. What is Josslyn not telling her?

Nina says, to tell Shawn the truth, she lost the love and friendship of someone she cares about… a lot, and she doesn’t see it coming back any time soon. He says, never say never, but until then, he could always use a friend. She says, he might want to give that a second thought, because he’s connected to one of the people she wronged.

Phyllis asks, what’s going on? Is Sonny looking to recreate his experience at the Tan-O? He says, no; the Tan-O’s irreplaceable. He just feels like if you have a bar and restaurant with people who enjoy it, and someone to manage it right, you can make money. He checked the numbers there, and it’s a good investment. So does she think there’s potential? She says, sure. It’s got a terrific, welcoming atmosphere. He says, great, because he needs someone terrific to manage it. She asks why he’s looking her, and he laughs. He says, because she’s a miracle worker with a bar, and this is a bar without a miracle worker. She says she knows exactly what he’s up to.

Portia says, when Curtis told her the band canceled, and he was having a hard time finding a replacement, she realized she could help. He asks if she was a member of a professional rock band, and never told him, and she says she wishes. She has a patient who plays bass in a band called Punch Drunk. It’s actually very popular. He says, and not available. He already checked. She says, they’re taking a break from touring, but Isaac agreed  to do the gig at The Savoy tonight, as a favor to her. He says, because she saved his life? and she says, the point is, now he’s going to save Curtis’s. Curtis hugs her, and says he can’t repay her, but she says he’ll think of something. He says, she’d better believe it, and they kiss. A man goes to the bar (hint: we’ve seen him before), and Curtis says, duty calls. Curtis asks what his bartender can get for the man, and the man says, two fingers of bourbon, and a good show. Curtis says, both orders, coming right up.

Elizabeth thanks Nikolas for the gift, and helping her celebrate. Cameron takes the gift bag, and Elizabeth asks if Nikolas would like a drink, but he says he’s okay. Cameron’s phone dings, and then the doorbell rings. He says he’ll get it, and opens the door to Scotty. Seeing the phone in Cameron’s hand, Scotty asks if he’s day trading or learning the new TikTok dance. Cameron says, what? but Scotty says, never mind. He tells Finn that he needs to talk to him, but he doesn’t think Finn is going to like it. Finn wonders what he did now, and Scotty says he doesn’t have an update on Obrecht, Britt is off the radar, and Anna’s not returning his calls. Finn asks what that’s got to do with him, and Scotty says, he wants Finn to get his girlfriend to update him.

Sam tells Maxie, they were looking for Peter, just like Anna and Valentin, but they didn’t want to say anything to her, because they didn’t find him. Maxie says she figured Sam would have told her, and Sam says she’s sorry; we tried. Maxie asks, what’s with this we? Who went with Sam? and Sam says, Dante. Maxie says, the PCPD sent Dante to Greece? It seems a little out of their jurisdiction. Sam says, Dante didn’t come as a cop; he went with her as a friand. She had a hunch, and he wanted to help. Maxie says she’s glad Sam had back-up. She knows how dangerous Peter can be. Sam says she doesn’t know what she would have done without him, and Maxie asks if Sam and Dante are more than friends. Are they an item?

Alexis tells Dante that Nikolas lobbied the governor for a pardon; she didn’t advocate for one. She actually thought she should serve out her sentence. She doesn’t think she has the right to be free. Dante says, when he testified, all he asked her to do was take responsibility for what she did. She says, she understands, and promised she would, and he asks if she kept her promise.

Finn says he and Anna aren’t together any more, and even when they were, she never talked to him about WSB business. Scotty says, what about Nikolas? Greece is his stomping grounds. He must have someone over there who could help him find Obrecht. Nikolas says he wishes he could, and Scotty asks, what about all those resources Nikolas promised him? Nikolas says, they didn’t pan out; he’s sorry. Finn says they all feel for Scotty, but it’s Elizabeth’s birthday. The kids went all out, so maybe there’s something more festive they could talk about? Scotty says he didn’t mean to skunk up Elizabeth’s birthday. It’s bad enough he parachuted into their camping trip. Finn flashes back to almost kissing Elizabeth, and Cameron brings out the cake.

Josslyn tells Trina, Esme invited her and Cam on a weekend getaway, and assumed they’d wan separate bedrooms. Trina says, she’s losing her virginity because of Esme? and Josslyn says, of course (🍷) not. This isn’t about her and Esme; it’s about her and Cam. They’re in college; they’re adults. Trina says she guesses, but doesn’t that mean they should be making their own choices? Josslyn says, she thought she was? and Trina tells her, she said with a question mark. Josslyn says she despises Esme, which means she extra hates the fact that Esme pointed out that she and Cameron weren’t having sex. She wanted to slap Esme, but also realized she makes a valid point. They’ve waited too long already. They should be together. Trina asks why it sounds like she’s checking something off a bucket list, instead of making a physical and emotional commitment to Cam?

Alexis says she did try to keep her promise to Dante, and to her daughters, and to herself. Most of all, to be accountable for what she did; no excuses. Dante says, she didn’t try; she did. She pled guilty, she accepted her sentence, she went to Pentenville. Hell, she even helped out prisoners, like Shawn. She says, but she didn’t serve out her sentence; she was released. He says, that wasn’t her. Other people made those decisions. When is she going to stop carrying the burden of guilt on her back?

Sam tells Maxie that she wouldn’t call her and Dante an item, but they do care about each other. Maxie says, like good friends, or something more? Sam says, they might have come to realize they may have a future together, and Maxie says, oh my God. She never would have predicted this. Then again, she never would have predicted her fiancé would be a monster and she’d be separated from her baby girl. Sam says, that’s an interesting comparison, and Maxie says, what? Sam says, when Maxie just lumped her seeing Dante with two negatives. Is Maxie trying to warn her off Dante because he used to be married to one of her best friends?

The man tells Curtis, he’s heard good things about this place. Is he the owner? Curtis says he is, and introduces himself, and the man says, he’s Link Brown. He’s looking forward to the entertainment tonight. He’s been following Downtown for a while. Curtis says, sorry to disappoint him, but they just canceled. Luckily, they were able to schedule and incredible replacement, and thinks he’ll be equally impressed with Punch Drunk. He tells Nika that Link’s first drink is on him. Link thanks him and sits down, and Portia says Curtis is pretty good at this nightclub thing. Clearly following his instincts and making a career change worked for him. Curtis says he’s just a man who knows what he wants. Portia’s phone rings, and she says, Isaac. She’s at The Savoy right now. She’ll let him talk to the owner so they can discuss the details… The band’s not coming? Why not? Link watches.

Sonny asks what he’s up to, and Phyllis says, distracting her. Offering her an opportunity to feel vital again. He says, there hasn’t been a second in her life when she wasn’t vital. She says, maybe she fooled him, but after Lenny died, she felt so disconnected, even before the Tan-O burned down. He says, that’s normal; everything that was familiar is now up in the air. She says she guesses they’re both navigating new lives, and he says, his new life is his old life. She asks how he’s handling the transition, and he says, it would be easier if she agreed to manage Charlie’s. He trusts her. She says, she’ll go freshen up, and when she returns, she’ll see if Charlie’s bartender was as good as the Tan-O’s. She leaves, and Sonny looks over at the bar. Nina tells Shawn, don’t get her wrong. She loves bubble gum ice cream, but she forgot to cancel the grocery delivery. When she got home and opened the freezer, there was about 50 gallons of it.

Everyone sings Happy Birthday, and Elizabeth blows out the candles on the cake. Violet says, Aiden made the cake himself, and Cameron asks how old is she now? Elizabeth says, hey, watch it. She can’t wait to taste the cake. Aiden says, it’s not as good as the one him and Franco made last year, but Finn tells him not to sell himself short; it looks amazing. Scotty says, Aiden made the cake; his mother will love it. Cameron asks if they’re ready to start slicing it. Aiden has to get to his sleepover at Riley’s, and Elizabeth has to see Downtown at The Savoy. He goes to get more napkins from the kitchen.

Nina goes to the restroom, and Sonny goes over to Shawn. They hug, and say it’s good to see each other, and Sonny says he’s been meaning to get in touch with Shawn since he heard Shawn got out. Shawn says he’s sure Sonny’s had a lot to deal with since he’s been back, and Sonny says, he owes Shawn. Carly said she offered Shawn to come back to the business, and he doesn’t want to do that. Sonny understands, but whatever Shawn needs to get back on his feet, sonny is there. Shawn says, they’re squared away. Sonny made sure he was taken care of in Pentenville; his friendship is good enough. Sonny says it looks like Shawn took care of himself, and Shawn says he’s just trying to navigate through life. Sonny asks what he’s up to, and Shawn says, it’s a lot to get into now. He has several irons in the fire.

Nina says it’s good to see Phyllis. What brings her and Sonny to Charlie’s? Phyllis says, Sonny offered her a job managing the place. Did Nina know he owns it? Nina says she heard something about that, so what does Phyllis think? Is she going to take the job? She’d personally be more than thrilled if Phyllis stayed in Port Charles. She just makes everything better with her sheer faith and tenacity. Phyllis says, how about Nina? How’s her faith these days? Nina says, it’s a bit shaky.

Maxie tells Sam, she’s just trying to say life can be unexpected, and hard, and it’s nice to have someone to be there for you during the rough patches. She’d never begrudge Sam that someone. Sam thanks her, and they hug. Maxie asks if Dante is that guy Sam said kissed her a while back, and Sam says she has to go. She’s got to find her mom.

Scotty goes to the kitchen, where Cameron is on his phone, and asks if there’s someplace Cameron has to be. In the living room, Elizabeth says she’s kind of tired, and asks if Finn will take a raincheck. Scotty asks Cameron, what’s going on? He’s as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs. (That’s the second time I’ve heard that this week. Captain Lee said it on Below Deck too.) Cameron says, he’s just expecting company, and Scotty says, tell his mother. He’s sure she’ll get out of his way. Cameron says, it’s more of a privacy thing he’s worried about, and Scotty says, if he lived on campus, he could put a sock on his door. Cameron says, living there is cheaper, plus he can help his mom. Scotty says he’s a good kid. With Franco being gone, he had to grow up faster than most. Elizabeth listens in, and Cameron says, it doesn’t feel right that Franco’s not there celebrating with them, and not there for other things. Scotty says, giving Cameron advice, and Cameron says, he was good at that. Scotty says, no one can replace Franco, but he’s there. He won’t tell Cameron what to do, but he’ll listen.

Trina says, Josslyn and Cam should stop thinking about what they should, and do what feels right. Use the stuff in the backpack, but only if it feels right. Josslyn checks the time, and says she should head to Cam’s house. She starts to leave, but turns around and says she has a confession to make. Trina isn’t sure if she can handle two in one day, and Josslyn says she lied when she said she was too busy to get her things herself. The truth is, she needed a reason to talk to Trina. Trina gives her something she can’t check off the list. She needs Trina to know she’ll always be so lucky to have her as a friend. Trina says, same, and they hug.

Curtis tells Portia, one band cancels, it’s bad luck, but a second? It feels like something more. She says, according to Isaac, some of the other band members read some unsavory things online about The Savoy attracting mob violence. Curtis says, dammit. Is this about that Joey Novak and Carly Corinthos thing? He handled it. She says she knows, and so do his regulars, and he says, now he understands why Downtown had a scheduling conflict. This is exactly why he didn’t accept protection from Jason. He didn’t want his club to be associated with any kind of mob connections. How is he supposed to book any legitimate acts now? Link approaches, and says he didn’t mean to overhear Curtis’s conversation, but it sounds like there’s no live music tonight? Curtis says, he’s afraid not. The second act canceled too. Link says, where Curtis sees loss, he sees opportunity. Does Curtis believe in accidents, because he sure doesn’t.

Finn asks if Elizabeth is sure she doesn’t want to change her mind about The Savoy. He knows she was interested in hearing the band Curtis booked. She says, he’s right. It’s her birthday, and it’s a great band; she’s going to rally. He says, good for her, and Violet says she has icing all over her fingers, but no napkin. Finn excuses himself for an icing emergency, and Nikolas tells Elizabeth, happy birthday again. He hopes all her wishes come true. She says she hopes his do too, and opens the door. Josslyn is there, and tells her, happy birthday, handing her a gift. Elizabeth suggests Josslyn grab some cake before she and Cameron hit the sheets books.

Curtis wonders how two cancelations could turn into an opportunity, and Link says, he happens to be traveling with a performer who has a gig in Buffalo. Tonight is his night off. Curtis asks if he represents the performer, and Link says, he’s his producer. He loves jamming between gigs. It keeps him sharp, and he can have fun without a set list. Curtis says, sounds good, but what makes Link think his artist would be interested in performing there? Link says, he was already coming to hear Downtown, it won’t take much to entice him to perform, especially in a venue of this caliber. Curtis says there’s no time to draw up a contract, and Link says, whatever Curtis was paying Downtown will work for his guy. Curtis says, as much as he appreciates Link’s generous offer, he’s not sure Link’s artist is the right fit for his club. Link tells Curtis to check his website, and decide for himself, but he’s sure the partnership will benefit all of them.

Nikolas looks over Trina’s shoulder at her tablet, and says, incredible. She says, aren’t they? Ned Quartermaine had the same reaction. Did Ava tell him about the Photo Ark exhibition she’s putting together? He says, not only did she tell him, she can’t stop bragging about how Trina came up with the idea, made the connection, and got Ned to underwrite the exhibition. Ava is very proud of her. Trina says, Ava is a great boss and mentor, and generous with people she cares about. Nikolas says, Trina and his wife are a lot alike in that way. Trina cares about her friends and Ava. She even supports his son. She says she’s not sure Spencer would agree. She gave him an earful at the gallery. Nikolas asks if she knows where his son is right now; he wanted to talk to him. She says she hasn’t seen him since he left the gallery, and he says he’s surprised Spencer didn’t pick up another shift. Since Spencer renounced his name and his inheritance, Nikolas thought he worked every second to earn money. Did she convince Spencer that he didn’t need his family fortune? She says, she kind of told Spencer that he needed to be his own man, not a money grubbing little phony. He says, good for her, especially since his son listened to her. Maybe she’s the only person who can get through to Spencer.

Phyllis says, Nina is facing some daunting challenges, but if she keeps on putting one foot in front of the other, one day she’ll look around and see how far she’s come. Nina says, what about Phyllis? Will she take the same steps, and accept Sonny’s job offer? Sonny joins them, and says he wants to know the answer himself. Phyllis says, the answer is yes, and Sonny hugs her. She says she’ll be honored to manage his bar. He asks when she wants to start, and she says, as soon as she heads somewhere quiet to share the news with Lenny. It’s good to see them both. She leaves, and Nina says, offering Phyllis a job was brilliant. Better than gifting her Charlie’s. He says, Nina was right earlier, when she said Phyllis wouldn’t accept a gift of that magnitude. Nina says, Phyllis will just dip her toe in the water, and see how it works out. Maybe it will be permanent, and she’ll stay in Port Charles. She tells him that he cares about the people he loves just as much as Mike did, then says, she’s sorry; that came out wrong. He says, that’s okay. He knew what she meant. Shawn comes by, and tells Sonny it was good to see him, shaking his hand. He gives Nina his number in case she wants to continue their conversation, and Nina says, she’ll take him up on it. He leaves, and Sonny says, he’s a good guy. Nina agrees, and says, the Tan-O was so magical. If Phyllis can do half as much to Charlie’s… He says, this place is going to be magic. She says, he misses the Tan-O? and he says, the best place on earth, and smiles.

Trina says, she’s not equipped to be the one who gets through to Spencer, but Nikolas says, don’t sell herself short. She’s having a positive influence on his son. She says she’s only tried to be a good friend, and he says, even if Spencer hasn’t always been a good friend to her. He’s afraid his son learned his bad habits from him, but she says, Spencer learned his bad habits from Spencer. He says he wishes that were true. In the past, he made the mistake of not treating his friends and family well, but at least Spencer has her in his life. He hopes Spencer recognizes how lucky he is, and continues to listen to her.

Dante walks past Maxie, saying, see ya, and she says, Sam told her that they were seeing each other. How’s that going? He says, it hasn’t been easy, and she says, making the decision to move on never is. But anyone who loves him would want him to be happy.

Elizabeth comes downstairs after glamming up, and Finn says, wow. Violet says, she looks so pretty, and Elizabeth thanks her. Violet says, daddy has to get dressed up too, and he says, just as soon as they get home. Carrie is meeting them there. Cameron asks if they shouldn’t get going. They don’t want miss the band. Finn helps Elizabeth on with her coat, and it’s the cutest thing. Cameron opens the door, and says, have fun. Scotty comes out of the kitchen, and says he put the food away and did the dishes. Elizabeth thanks him, thanks Josslyn for the gift, and leaves with Finn. Scotty pauses at the door, and tells Cameron, Franco would be proud of him. He’d want Cameron to be patient and safe. He shakes Cameron’s hand. Cameron closes the door, and sees that Scotty has slipped him a condom. Josslyn says she guesses they’re finally alone, and he puts it in his pocket. He walks closer to Josslyn, and says, finally. You know what’s going to happen, right? He’s going to forget that’s in his pocket, and Elizabeth is going to be washing his pants, and…

Curtis looks at the website with Portia and Nika, and Portia says, he’s so good. Curtis says he’ll be lucky to have him. He gets a text from Linc saying, singer’s a go, and he texts back, so are we. He says, is this really happening? They just had a major singer fall into their laps. Portia says, karma’s on his side, and he says, ladies, tonight The Savoy will be poppin’. They fist bump.

Outside, Linc says, it’s all settled. He offered the singer to Curtis, and he was sold. Crisis averted. Linc did like he asked. We see it’s Marshall, and Linc asks if they’re all settled up.

Tomorrow, Portia tells Elizabeth that she’s not ready to move on, Cameron wonders if they should take it to the bedroom, Carly asks Curtis if her presence is a problem, and Nina asks if Sonny is using his power to keep her out of it.

Winter House

Paige told Ciara about Andrea bench pressing her. He was being flirty and would make out, but not ask her on a date. She didn’t think he’d asked her one question about herself. Austen told Craig about his date with Ciara, and said, it felt nice to be liked again. Craig said Madison was so toxic, and he’s so right there. Paige said Ciara was giddy, and Ciara said it went well, but she was freaked out. She was scared to like someone, and afraid to be vulnerable. Paige asked if she’d rather not find love because she’s closed off, and in Ciara’s interview, she said she had daddy issues, and a fear of rejection. The housemates were planning a low country boil, and in Craig’s interview, he explained the process. Austen wanted oysters and champagne as well, and Craig said he thought that was weird at a boil, but Austen was an idiot. Andrea said the two things he loved most were eating and the ladies, and he wanted to keep his options open. Gabby had been pissed about Julia acting flirty with Luke, and in Julia’s interview, she said Gabby was clearly upset with the lack of attention, but she was taken, and Luke looked like her brother. She’d like to move on. She brought a glass of wine to Gabby as an olive branch, and promised to be more aware. Paige was concerned about repeating the same pattern of finding guys who would make out with her, but didn’t care about getting to know her. Amanda told her not to overthink it.

Everyone got all dressed up for the boil, although I have no clue why. Lindsay said it had been rough this trip, but she had to move on, and we flashed back to Austen friendzoning her. She told Jason that for once in her life she wanted to focus on herself, and I wondered when she hadn’t focused on herself. Julia thought Luke, who was wearing a faux fur coat, looked like a Justin Timberlake hot version of a pimp, whatever that means to you, and she wanted to jump his bones. In Luke’s interview, he said he had no idea what she was saying about him, but he could see she dug him a little bit. Craig said they were going to say cheers with their bottles of champagne, shake them up, and throw them in the air. Andrea put on a trash bag, and I mean that literally. Paige was weeping about being single to Ciara and Amanda in the kitchen, when Andrea walked in, and couldn’t do an about-face fast enough. It was pretty funny too, since he was wearing that trash bag. They each took a bottle, and went outside. Craig thanked them for coming, and they sprayed champagne everywhere. Luke told Julia, let’s get out of here, and they went to his, her, or somebody’s room. Julia told Luke her thoughts, and he said he thought she was beautiful, but saw them as friends. Julia said she saw no strings, but if it became more, then beautiful, but Luke said he had to be real. In Luke’s interview, he said, on paper, he and Gabby were a match made in heaven. But he just wanted to figure out which beer to drink, while Gabby was concerned about her mantra for the day. It was awkward. How did you say no? This is exactly what he did with Hannah in Summer House, although I’m pretty sure they had some form of sex. Craig said he was lonely, and Gabby came back out, and told them that she’d just gotten rejected. She took off, and in Craig’s interview, he said he’d had a big crush on Paige years ago, but she had a boyfriend. Now he has a girlfriend. It’s that old bastard, timing.

Andrea asked Paige why she’d been crying, and she said she’d gotten emotional with her girlfriends. He said he was thinking maybe they could go somewhere, and she wondered if he was asking her on a date. He said he was, and she said she’d love to. In Andrea’s interview, a producer asked if he’d felt obligated to ask Paige out, but he said no. He’d been planning on it. He wanted to see her happy again. Amanda had a hard time getting out of her skinny jeans, and I identified. Of course, I usually don’t try to take mine off over my shoes. Andrea told the guys that he wanted to get to know Paige more, and brought her coffee. She asked if he’d really asked her out. Andrea arranged for a sleighride, and Kyle and Amanda FaceTimed with his parents. Kyle said it was weird being in Stowe without them, and they should join him and Amanda next time. At first, I thought he said it was weird being stoned without them, which gave it a new meaning for a millisecond. In his interview, Kyle said he practically came out of the womb on skies. He wanted Amanda to feel like part of the family, and for that, she’d have to ski.

Jason said he’d been raised by strong, independent women, and found those to be attractive qualities. He was intrigued with Lindsay. Apparently, he confuses psychotic behavior with being strong and independent. Andrea told Paige that he wanted to go back to Italy eventually, but planned to spend a few more years in the states. In Paige’s interview, she envisioned a mountain top wedding; lemon trees and prosciutto. They made hot toddies, which made me think of Erika Jayne. I’ve never had a hot toddy, but I’m getting one asap now that it’s getting cold out. Luke made ice blocks, and the group discussed Paige and Andrea’s date. Craig said, if you couldn’t see a future, what was the point of going on a date? Andrea had said he was enjoying being single, and Craig didn’t see it being long term. Lindsay said she thought it was weird for Andrea to take Paige on a date if on date if he wasn’t interested. Amanda thought she should tell Paige, and in Lindsay’s interview, she said, it was the classic game of telephone. In Amanda’s interview, she said if she were Paige, she’d want to know what was being said. Kyle was his usual mature self, seeing how loud he could yell, wassup? The evening’s dinner theme was Back to School, and they were to dress as stereotypes of high school. Nothing has ever been more appropriate.

Paige told Amanda and Ciara about the date, and said she thought she and Andrea would hang out after they got home. Everyone got in costume, and punk rocker Craig had some wild, high hair. In his interview, he said he’d been voted most dramatic in high school. Amanda was an art student; Austen, a jock; Paige, a prom queen; Julia, a cheerleader; Andrea, a nerd (all he knew of American high school was what he’d seen in the movies); Ciara, a teacher’s pet; Jason, a Boy Scout; Lindsay, a drunk principal; and Gabby, a private school girl. As an emo kid, Kyle looked like Alice Cooper, and Luke was a stoner, the opposite of what he’d been in high school. In Amanda’s interview, she fretted because Paige was on cloud 9. Luke slipped Julia a note, asking if she wanted to hang out later, and in Luke’s interview, he said he was only attracted to Julia. She said she had a boyfriend, but he’d heard they were off and on. The worst that could happen was, people would yell at him, and he was used to it. We flashed back to that, and I sensed a pattern here. There was a lot of drunken horsing around.

Lindsay kinda sorta spilled the Andrea beans to Paige, being vague, and saying Paige had to talk to Amanda. Not surprisingly, Amanda was pissed when Lindsay told her that she’d paved the way. Paige said her high school party had turned into actual high school, and I wondered if we’ve been watching the same show. When haven’t they been high school? Paige hunted Amanda down, and Amanda told her that Andrea said he didn’t see himself with someone after this. Julia told Luke that he’d made her feel uneasy. She knew Gabby was interested in him, and she had already squashed some drama. Kyle watched disapprovingly from the sidelines. Amanda started crying, and Craig said Andrea wanting to be single had nothing to do with Paige. Julia told Andrea that she was shocked, and he said he wanted to take things one step at a time. She said that was different than not wanting anything at all. Austen told Paige, all Andrea said was, if and when it happened, they’d have a conversation about how to move forward. In Paige’s interview, she wondered why take her on a romantic date? Don’t start what you can’t finish. Oh, and Lindsay and Jacob hooked up

Next time, a Viking drinking party, skiing with Kyle’s parents, Ciara says she’s in love, and Madison texts Austen. Omg, leave that guy alone already.

🏚 So, here’s my problem. These people are too old to be behaving like this. I would swear they were all 20 year olds who still lived at home. Or really, fifteen year olds who can buy liquor and stay out all night. I’m horrified, but can’t look away. It’s like the worst of Jersey Shore and Real World combined.

🌝 By the Light Of the Silvery Moon…

Stop by tomorrow for soap and a walk on the Runway. Until then, stay safe, stay rolling with the punches, and stay seeing opportunity where others see loss.

November 9, 2021 – Peter Demonstrates Control, Mushroom Tea Deep Dive, Kip Brings the Ham & Sit

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Michael and Willow bring Wiley to the MetroCourt, and Carly hugs him, asking, what he’s doing here? Michael snaps a picture.

Austin puts his hospital ID badge back on, and someone slides a potted plant toward him. He says, somebody else is glad he’s back in rotation, and turns to see Gladys. He says, hello, Gladys, and she says, he remembered her name. She certainly didn’t forget him. He thanks her, and asks, what’s with the plant? She says, it’s her way of thanking him for lifting her spirits when that awful Joey Novak tried to threaten her and Carly at The Savoy. Joey has none of the charms of his Uncle Vincent. She heard they beat the louse up. How’s he doing? Not that she cares. Austin says, he’ll live, and she says, too bad. If you ask her, he deserved it. He says, well, okay. Remind him never to cross her. She says she knew he was a smart man, unlike some other people who never learn.

Maxie and Brook go into the Quartermaine mansion using the back door, and Maxie asks why Brook wanted to meet at her house. Won’t it arouse suspicion? Brook says, Monica is at GH, Olivia is at work, and Yuri just left with a long list of errands (because you always send the bodyguard to the store). They’re in the clear. Maxie says, okay, bring him in. Brook signals to someone outside, and a man comes in, and looks around. He says, wow. This is what he calls authentic old school luxury. Brook says, tell her again how Maxie knows this guy, and Maxie says she doesn’t actually know him. She’s familiar with his work. He’s done a little acting for Nina for Deception. He holds out his hand, and says, he’s Kip. Does she actually live here? Brook says she has a young baby, so she likes to limit her contact with strangers. She gives him an elbow bump, and he says, suit herself. The work he did for Nina was just for fun. His real love is the stage. He grabs a grape from the bunch on the table, and says they should have seen him in Guys and Dolls. He sang, danced, and was really convincing as a badass bad guy. Maxie says, good. That’s just what they need, someone who can be intimidating. He says, intimidating is so in his wheelhouse. So tell him, this little drama of theirs, who is he going to play? Brook says, her baby daddy.

Britt opens the door, and sees Jason and Drew chained to the wall. Peter follows her in, and says, don’t be shy. She doesn’t want to miss the show. He says Drew looks like he’s back to his old self, and Drew says, you smug bastard. I am going to kill you. Peter says, that’s not going to happen, but Drew will kill someone. Jason asks if Britt is okay, and she says she’s much more concerned about him. Peter says, it’s really too bad Jason chose to marry Carly instead of her. They could have been in-laws, but at least this way, Jason won’t be making his sister a widow. Isn’t that right, Britt?

Carly says, it’s the best surprise to see her grandson, and she loves surprises. It’s nice to see his parents too. Michael says they just took Wiley to the aquarium; he’s into whales now. He says, it looks like Carly is busy, but she says she’s never too busy for her grandson. Michael’s father stepped away to make a phone call, but they were going to her office to have a private conversation, and she thinks that conversation affects Michael. He says, if it affects him, it affects Willow, so does she want to come too? Willow says she thinks he needs to have some private time with his parents. She and Wiley will just wash up before lunch. They’ll be waiting at their table. Carly suggests she and Michael go to her office. His father is waiting there, and she thinks he has some things he wants to explain to them.

Austin tells Gladys, he’s from this tiny little town called Pawtuck, and maybe it’s the small town in him talking, but he doesn’t think what happened between them at The Savoy is anything unusual. Where he’s from, it’s really cool to be nice to people. She got him a plant. Can he repay her with a cup of really mediocre coffee? Gladys says, sure, and Austin says, it’s in the doctor’s lounge. He can go back in there, now that Gladys’s boss doesn’t want anything. She says, that’s Brook Lyn Quartermaine for you; she’s all heart. He didn’t deserve what she did to him. He says, he didn’t. Brook is entitled. She sees all people as a means to an end, and in his case, the end is the Quartermaine stock portfolio. She says, it’s unconscionable, and totally unforgivable. He’s her family, and that’s what matters in Gladys’s book. Don’t worry. Brook is going to learn her lesson the hard way. He asks, what lesson’s that? and she says, you reap what you sow.

Brook asks if Kip understands. He looks tough, and like he’s crazy in love with her. And he leaves the talking to her. He says, she’s got it; one tough guy coming up. He gets up, pauses a moment, and says, I’ll be back, in a Terminator voice. Brook says, what is that? Who said anything about an accent? and he says, come on; it’s a classic. I’ll be back. She says, no, no accent. Maxie says, the clothes need to be changed too; way too generic. Brook says she has that covered. She actually borrowed some things from the Crimson closet. Kip says, that’s the great thing about him. He can rock a tuxedo or a leather jacket. Brook tells him, calm down. He already has the job. Besides, he has an audience of one, and Gladys might talk a big game, but as soon as she’s threatened, she folds like a discount lawn chair. Maxie suggests they get Kip in his new wardrobe, and get this show on the road. Kip says, slow down. He’s a method actor, so what’s his motivation? Maxie says, they already agreed on his payment, but he says he’s not talking money. If he’s Brook’s baby daddy, why is he okay with another man raising his kid? Is he just a player, who can’t be tamed by one woman? Or is he so madly in love with her, that’s he’s just fine being her sidepiece? Brook says, fine, Mr. DiCaprio, what kind of motivation do you require? He moves to kiss her, and she asks what he’s doing.

Two guards come in, and Peter says, silence Mr. Morgan. Britt says, no, but Peter says, get back. He only wants Jason gagged, which seems redundant, since he never talks. Drew asks, then why bother? and Peter says, because he’s a cautious man, and because he can’t stand Jason. This is how it’s going to go. Jason is going to let these men gag him, and he’s not going to resist, because if he does, Peter will take it out on dear Britt. Britt says, wow. She’s really feeling the brotherly affection. A guard puts duct tape over Jason’s mouth, and Peter says, one brother down, and one to go.

Sonny closes the office door, and Michael asks why they have to meet behind closed doors. Carly guesses this has something to do with Sonny’s meeting with Ms. Wu, and Michael says, she was at the wedding, one of the heads of the Five Families Salsa di Pomodoro (isn’t it three now?), but she wasn’t in the limo with Novak and Buscema that exploded. He’s guessing that wasn’t a coincidence. Carly says, it wasn’t, and Sonny says Michael knows how hard he’s worked to keep Michael separated from that part of his life. Sometimes the lines get blurred. Michael says, and this is one of those times, and Sonny says, Ms. Wu called in a favor. This time it’s not business, it’s personal. Carly says, and it involves Michael? Sonny says, it involves all of them.

Willow tells Wiley, he has his coloring book, and while they’re waiting for daddy, they can read all about Beluga whales. Harmony approaches the table, and says, what a nice surprise. Willow says, Harmony was the last person she expected to see there, and Harmony says she had no idea she’d run into them. She had a long, hard day at Spring Ridge, and thought she’d take herself out for a little splurge, but if it makes Willow uncomfortable, she can go somewhere else. Willow says she doesn’t have to go. They live in the same town, and it’s a public place, they’re bound to occasionally bump into one another. Wiley’s engrossed with his picture book, so sit down; they can catch up. Harmony sits down, and says she appreciates the offer, but is Chase with her? She knows how Chase feels about her; he made it clear at the birthday party. Willow says, Chase and her… things didn’t work out. Harmony says she’s sorry. Willow doesn’t owe her any explanation, but whatever happened, she hopes Willow finds her happiness. Willow says she did find it, with Wiley and his father.

Austin brings Gladys over to a bench, saying, it’s his safe and quiet place. Feel free to share; speak freely. She says, Brook screwed him to the wall to score points with daddy darling, right? He says, something like that. What did she do to Gladys? Gladys says, she’s not a gossip, but it’s not what Brook did to her; she can take care of herself. It’s what Brook is doing to a dear, kind, extremely handsome friend of hers. He says, Valentin Cassadine, and she says, who told you? He says, the other day, he mentioned to Brook that Gladys was there at the hospital to visit Valentin. It seemed to really upset her. She says she bets it did. If he’s free, they can go to the MetroCourt, and continue their conversation with some adult beverages. He says, he’d love that, but he has to go back to work. She says she understands. She bets his patients are happy he’s back on staff. Just promise her a raincheck. He says, deal, and she leaves.

Brook says, what the hell was that? and Kip says, good. Use that anger. He thinks they should be a couple who argues really passionately, like in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, but then there’s really hot make up sex. She says, look buddy. They are not doing some bus and truck production of Hello Dolly. He’s being paid to make believe he’s trouble for anyone who crosses her. He does that, he gets his money, and goes home. They don’t need to come up with some storyline about how they made Bailey. He asks, who’s Bailey? and she says, her baby, who he’s the father of. Now does he understand? No funny business. Kip tells Maxie that he had to work with someone like Brook in summer stock once. D-I-V-A. Maxie says, they really need this to work, or does he want to go back to waiting tables? He says, fine, but if they don’t get his best work, it’s not his fault. Brook tells Maxie, let’s pick out a suit for this guy. Outside the room, Brook asks if Maxie thinks this is going to work, and Maxie tells her, you know what they say; bad rehearsal, great show. Break a leg. She jets, and Brook says, if this doesn’t work, she’s definitely going to break something.

Peter says, release Mr. Cain, and Britt says, he’s letting Drew go? Peter says, in a manner of speaking, and she asks what that means. He says, she’ll see, and Drew looks at Jason, but Jason shakes his head. The guards take Drew’s shackles off, and he struggles with the guards. She asks what Peter is going to do to him, and Peter says, watch and learn. He shows Drew The Tower card, and says, you’re active. Drew stands up straight, and Peter says, soldier. Drew says, reporting for duty.

Sonny says, if it weren’t for Ms. Wu stepping up, he would have come home to a grieving family; no wife, no best friend. To say their family owes Ms. Wu is an understatement. Michael agrees, and Carly says, Sonny told them his conversation with her wasn’t about business; it was personal. Sonny says, she wants some consideration for someone in her family, and Carly asks, who? Sonny says, a nephew she’s close with, and Michael asks if it’s someone they know. Sonny tells them, he’s sorry to say, her nephew is Brad Cooper.

Harmony tells Wiley that she knows a little something about baby whales. She and his mom moved around a lot, and lived in a lot of different communities. Once they lived by the ocean, and that’s when she learned baby whales, even when they learn to swim and manage on their own, they stay with their mommies. They swim together, then the baby swims in the mommy’s wake to make it easier and faster. Of course (🍷) people aren’t the same as whales. Willow says, whales have been found to be very high in intelligence, a lot like human beings. She asks Harmony, is something going on? and Harmony says, an inmate got pardoned today at Spring Ridge. She’s so intelligent, but she’s an overthinker and worries a lot. They’d been having regular talks lately. Willow says, Harmony is going to miss their talks, and Harmony says, it sounds so incredibly selfish. How can she be anything but happy for someone getting out of prison? She guesses she’s just a bit lonely, so she decided to take herself out for dinner. It’s nice to see people talking, even if they’re not talking to you. Willow says Harmony doesn’t have to explain herself; it’s nice to see her. Harmony says, it is? and asks if she’s keeping Willow from Michael. Willow says, Michael had a family situation, and Harmony says, Willow is Wiley’s mom. What kind of family situation doesn’t include her?

Austin sees Maxie at the hospital, and asks if she’s okay. She says, she’s fine. She’s just going to the GH milk bank. She’s been donating. She figures if she can’t be with her baby, she might as well help other babies and their moms. He says, awesome, and she’ll still be lactating when she gets Louise back; that’s smart. She says, maybe. Obviously, whoever has Louise is giving her formula. She might not even be interested in breast milk when she gets back. He says, still, it’s a really generous donation. Maxie is courageous and selfless. She says, if he knew her better, he’d know she’d do anything to stay connected to her baby. He thinks they should fix that. He’d like to get to know her better.

At the MetroCourt bar, Gladys says she’ll have a Manhattan with an extra cherry, and she’s starting a tab, courtesy of her boss. Just so he knows, her boss is an excellent tipper. Brook sits next to her, and says she’ll have whatever Gladys is having, and Gladys says, by all means. It will give them a chance to revisit their arrangement. She wants to make some additions to her wish list. Brook says she doesn’t think so. She doesn’t think Pauly would like it. Gladys asks, who’s Pauly? and Kip grabs the credit card, saying, vodka martini, their best top-shelf vodka and three olives, as dirty as possible. Gladys tells him to give back the card. She tells Brook, she doesn’t know why Valentin replaced Yuri, but tell her Doberman to give it back. Kip asks if this is the one Brook told him about, and Gladys says, excuse me? Brook says she told Gladys to quit while she was ahead. Now she’s going to have to deal with Pauly.

Peter tells the guard to let Drew go, and take his sister. He tells another guard to hand over his knife. Britt says, don’t, but Peter says, she’s got it all wrong. He’s not going to do anything. He gives Drew the knife, and tells him to hold it to Jason’s throat, and wait for his orders. Britt struggles, and Peter says, now would be the time for her to adjust her attitude,  unless she wants him to have Drew slash Jason’s throat. Britt says she’s sorry, and Peter asks if there’s anything else she’d like to add. She says, please don’t kill Jason, and Peter says, there, she said nicely; he appreciates it. He tells Drew, soldier, stand back. Now cut his own arm. Britt says, oh my God, no, and Drew slices his arm, and looks at Peter.

Carly asks how Brad is related to Ms. Wu, and Sonny says, he’s her brother’s son. He was given up for adoption. Michael says, and Brad is coming up for parole. Does Ms. Wu think Sonny can use his influence to get him out? Sonny says, he told her that he wouldn’t do anything to help Brad get paroled because it would hurt Michael and Wiley, but they still owe her. Even though he said he wouldn’t do anything to help Brad get paroled, he said he woudn’t fight against it if Brad did get paroled. Michael says he respects Sonny’s position, but he’s going to get notified about the hearing, and plans on speaking against Brad’s release. Sonny says, he made it clear that Michael has every right to speak, but Michael’s not going to pull any strings, or use his influence behind the scenes to block Brad’s parole. Michael says, it’s his influence. Why shouldn’t he use it to keep the man who stole the first year of his son’s life behind bars?

Willow tells Harmony that she doesn’t have to be tied to Michael’s side 24 hours a day. She likes that he’s close to his parents. Harmony says, maybe that’s something they can shoot for in the future, and Willow says she certainly doesn’t want them to be strangers. Harmony says, that’s not a ringing endorsement, but she’ll take it. And she hopes to get to know Wiley better. They already have baby whales in common… She thinks she has something for him, and takes a piece of candy out of her bag, but he says he’s not supposed to take candy from strangers.

Maxie says, maybe it’s better if she and Austin keep a respectful distance, and he says, okay. It’s not the answer he was hoping for, but he totally respects it. Can he ask why? She says, then he’ll always be the mysterious hiker in the woods who just happened to be there when she was having her baby, and she’ll always be what he said. He says, courageous and selfless, and she says, if they could just leave it like that, the way it was when they first met, they won’t disappoint each other. He says he gets it. He understands seeing him is some kind of painful reminder to her of losing Louise. He thinks he’s like a trigger. He’ll say this, there’s a lot of support out there of people who’ve been through what she’s going through. If she’d ever want to sit in a group, he’d be happy to join her. She says she would feel too guilty, and he says, why is that? She says, her daughter is still out there. He says if she shares the pain of her loss… but she says, her daughter’s not lost.

Gladys says she always knew Brook was more cash than class, but now she’s hanging around with a nasty piece of work like this guy? Brook strongly suggests Gladys cut her losses and leave while she still can. Kip says, what’s the rush? Hey blondie. From what he hears, she’s his girl’s gofer. Gladys says, somebody told him told wrong. She’s Brook’s executive assistant. He says, he hears she’s shaking down her boss for some perks. Spa treatment, raise in pay… Brook says, she told Gladys to walk away, and Gladys says, she’s out of there. Kip says, hold on, blondie, and Gladys plops back down in her seat. He says she’s been hearing things she shouldn’t have heard, and demanding things she shouldn’t be demanding. Gladys says she doesn’t know what he thinks he knows… and Kip says, she shouldn’t think. She’s a problem for his girl, and that makes her a problem for him. Gladys says, why? and Kip says, that kid of Brook’s, the one she’s asking so many questions about – he puts his arm around Brook – he’s the baby daddy.

Peter asks if Britt needs another demonstration, and she says, no. He tells Drew, return the knife, and Drew hands it back to the guard. Peter tells Drew to let the guard shackle him to the wall, and he does. Peter says, make sure the cuffs are secure. He shows Drew The Chariot tarot card, and says, stand down. Drew asks what he did, and Peter tells Britt to patch up Drew. Now. Britt takes a look at the cut, and says, it’s not too deep; she’s just going to bandage it. Peter says, Jason looks like he wants to say something, and the guard takes the tape off Jason’s mouth. Peter says, now’s his chance, and Jason says, Peter should walk away. Peter laughs, and says, those are big words coming from a man chained to the wall. He tells Britt, finish up; it’s time to go. He shoves her out, and Jason says he’s going to find Peter. The next time they meet, there’s going to be a different ending. Peter says, we’ll see, won’t we? He leaves, and Drew looks at Jason, who holds up his hands for Drew to stay quiet.

Sonny says, this isn’t about Brad; it’s about his aunt. Her warning saved Michael’s mom and Jason. Michael says he’ll honor Sonny’s agreement with Ms. Wu, and won’t pull any strings behind the scenes to deny Brad parole. Sonny says, there’s another thing to consider. He assured Ms. Wu that if Brad got out, and didn’t go near his family, there won’t be any retribution, or an eye for an eye. Carly says if Sonny already made this promise to Ms. Wu, why are they even having this conversation? and Sonny says, he told Ms. Wu that he spoke for the entire family. He just needs to know they’re in agreement. He asks Michael if they’re in agreement, and Michael says he can’t just answer as Sonny’s son. He has to answer as Wiley’s father. When he found out Nina was lying, and knew Sonny was alive the entire time, he didn’t hesitate to have her arrested. It had the collateral benefit of keeping her away from Wiley. Why should he look at Brad any different? Um… I thought Sonny just explained why he should. Carly says, she agrees with Michael. Nina hurt their entire family. Shouldn’t the same standard apply to Brad? Sonny tells her, he’s not saying forget what Brad did. Ms. Wu promised him that Brad woudn’t go near their family. He has to trust that Brad is going to respect her and answer to her. Michael says he respects that Sonny gave his word, and will honor Sonny’s agreement to Ms. Wu. But if Brad gets paroled, and comes within a city block of Wiley, Brad will have to answer to him, and he promises it will not be pretty. He walks out.

Harmony tells Wiley, that is a very important lesson, and she’s glad his mommy and daddy taught him that. Even more so that he’s smart enough to listen. Willow tells Wiley, that is the rule she and his daddy taught him, but this lady isn’t a stranger; he just doesn’t know her yet. This is Harmony, and Harmony is her mom. Harmony says, that is true, but she wasn’t always a good mommy. He’s a very lucky boy to have such terrific parents that always put him first, the way it’s supposed to be.

Austin asks if Maxie just said Louise isn’t lost, and Maxie says, it was a poor choice of words. She meant, as far as she knows, her daughter is still alive, and those support groups are for parents who had children that died. It seems wrong for her to be there because her situation is different. She knows Louise is out there somewhere in the world, and one day will be back in her arms. He says, she’s so hopeful. He doesn’t think he’s capable of doing that, even if he were in her situation, but when he hears her say it, he believes it will happen. She says, trust her; it will. He says, it’s so weird that she would mention trust; it’s something that’s been on his mind lately. When he was in Pawtuck, there was trust everywhere, and it went both ways. That’s because he’s known everybody since he was in the first grade. Then he comes to Port Charles, and he’s having a really difficult time finding anyone he can trust; her being the exception. His phone makes a signal, and he says he really hopes Louise finds her way home to Maxie soon. She doesn’t know what she’s missing.

Gladys says she doesn’t understand Brook. She could have her choice of men. She could have someone as charming and handsome as Valentin, but she chose this Jersey Shore wannabe to be the father of her child? Kip says, hey, blondie, just because you got opinions, doesn’t mean you have to open up your yap and share them. She’s talking to her boss. It’s best she remember that. Or else. He opens his jacket to show her a gun in his waistband, and she asks if he knows who he’s talking to. Does he know who her cousin is? He says, Sonny Corinthos, the don of dons, first among equals. Is she going to be the one to tell Brook’s Uncle Sonny that she’s blackmailing the apple of his eye? He’ll squash her like a bug. Kip slams his hand down on the bar, and says he hopes she understands his message, for her sake. He tries to kiss Brook, but Brook smushes his face with her hand, faking passion. He says he’ll see her fine self later, and leaves. Gladys reaches for the credit card, but Brook takes it. She tells Gladys to take out her cell phone. She’s got some deleting to do.

Peter brings Britt back to her room, and says, what happened with Drew… he regrets having to take such drastic measures, but he had to make sure she knew how foolish it would be to stand against him. She says, congratulations. He’s become the man their father never thought he could be. He’s just as powerful as Faison was. He says, because he stopped running from his legacy and embraced it. Now it’s her turn. Face it. They can never be like everyone else. They have to take what they want.

Jason asks if Drew hears anything. Drew listens, and says he hears nothing; they’re gone, and have no reason to check on them. Jason asks how his arm is, and Drew says he’s had worse. He did this to himself, cut himself, didn’t he? Jason says, Peter couldn’t resist a demonstration. He told Drew that Peter would make a mistake. Now Jason knows how he controls Drew, and knows how to turn it off.

Gladys says, deleted, and Brook says, what about the other copies? Gladys says, she never made any copies. She just said she did because that’s what they always do in the movies. Brook says, and she knows what happens to blackmailers in movies. Their scheme always blows up in their face. Gladys says, Brook won. She deleted the recording, and Brook got her card back. Poor dear Valentin is never going to know the truth. Isn’t that enough? Does Brook have to rub her nose in it? Brook says, maybe she let Gladys off too easy. Maybe she should call her Uncle Sonny. He’s such a sweetheart, and he really adores her. Gladys says she doesn’t want any trouble with Sonny, and Brook says, fine. She expects to see Gladys at work tomorrow morning. Gladys says she’ll be there at ten. Brook says, make it eight, and leaves. Gladys slides Brook’s drink over next to hers and starts drinking.

Maxie sees Kip at the hospital, and wonders what he’s doing there. How did his big performance go? He says he thinks Brook would agree he was big success. Unfortunately, he went a little too method, and ending up hurting his hand. He moves his wrist around, and his jacket opens. Maxie says, is that a gun? and he tells her, relax. It’s just a prop from Guys and Dolls, but it added to his character. She says, as long as it shut Gladys up, whatever works. She has some money for his medical bills. She takes some cash out and hands it to him, saying, that should cover it. Austin sees them. 

Michael is surprised to see Harmony, but she says she was just leaving, and says goodbye to Willow. Michael sits, and asks if everything is okay. Willow says, actually, yes. Her mother was on her best behavior. What happened with his parents? He says, they’ll talk about it later, but let it suffice to say, Wiley is going to need his parents more than ever.

Sonny says, it’s been a while since he’s seen this side of Michael, and Carly says she’s proud of him. Michael isn’t like her. He doesn’t lash out wildly, and end up hurting himself. He finds an opponent’s weakness and exploits it. He found a way to go after Nina for what she actually did, and she’s sure he’ll do the same to Brad if Brad tries anything. Sonny says he’d just be happier if Michael would focus on his family and making them happy, and she says, obviously Michael feels it’s important to focus on protecting his family. Sonny says, protecting the family is his job, and she says, when he was gone, when they thought he was dead, it changed everything… everyone. And him coming back has brought on even more change. You know that saying, once the genie’s out of the bottle, it’s really hard to put it back in. He says she’s not just talking about Michael now, is she?

Peter tells Britt, everything is finally falling into place for him. Soon he’ll have Maxie back, and they’ll find Louise together. She says, he has to be realistic. There’s no way in hell he’s going to get Maxie to come to Cassadine Island. He asks if she’s already forgotten the demonstration he just showed her. Maxie thinks she knows what she wants, but he has other ways of bringing about her happy ending. Remember that. He leaves, closing the door behind him.

Drew says, tarot cards? and Jason says he saw the first one; The Tower. Peter showed it to Drew, and said, you’re active. Drew says, it’s the same phrase Helena used, and Jason says, then Peter had one of the guards give Drew a knife, and ordered him to put it to Jason’s throat. Drew says he’s sorry, but Jason says, why? He looked Drew in the eye, and he wasn’t there. Peter put him under, and he was gone; no free will. Drew says, exactly. He can’t stop himself, that’s why Jason has to stop him. Jason says, it’s not going to come to that, but Drew says, if it does, he’d rather die at Jason’s hands than carry out another one of Peter’s orders. Are they clear? Jason says, yes, and Drew says, so Jason will do it. Jason says he will, but he’s not going to have to. Drew asks how he can be so sure of that, and Jason says, Britt saw the second card, the one that brings Drew out. And they both heard the code phrase – stand down. Drew says, it’s that simple? and Jason says, it’s that simple. Drew says, so they get him. Peter August is going down

Tomorrow, a surprise party, Portia says the show will go on, Maxie asks if Sam is more than friends with Dante, and Josslyn tells Trina that she’s losing her virginity tonight.

Vanderpump Rules

The guys played basketball at the gym; The Boys versus TomTom. Afterwards, the Toms told James and Brock what was going on with the new bar. Schwartz said they’d made a cocktail presentation, and gotten lost in the conversation, and we flashed back to the get together that went sideways. Sandoval said Lala came after people, but you couldn’t bring up anything personal about her. In Sandoval’s interview, he said he’d gotten weird DMs about Lala and Randall’s relationship. They were never allowed to know anything about Lala beyond a surface level. (This is true; she’s always been cagey.) For her to pass judgment seemed hypocritical. James wondered if he’d see all of them at the See You Next Tuesday soft opening, and Sandoval said he didn’t want it to be awkward. James said, what made it awkward was not talking about it. It created more space between them. Tom said he and Lala would need to have a conversation.  

Charli and Ariana met for coffee, and Charli told Ariana about getting a new place with boyfriend Corey. They’d been living together, but at his place, and it would be different getting one together. Her relationship with food had changed as well, after telling everyone. Ariana said when you put something out there, they share it, and they can all bear some of the weight of it. In Charli’s interview, she said, for seventeen years, she only ate pizza, PB&J, and quesadillas. When she met Corey, he told her they weren’t going to eat the same three things all the time. She told Ariana that she was excited for a new chapter. She had a new relationship with food and people. Ariana said, vulnerability is power, and in her interview, she said, everyone in the group had messed up. Here’s what’s f***ed up about me. Get into it or get out.  

Raquel went to Villa Rosa where LVP was brushing Schnookie. Lisa asked if Raquel felt different after becoming engaged. In Lisa’s interview, she said Raquel had a great starter diamond. Hers was a pinprick. Then she learned housekeeping, cooking, and the Kama Sutra, and the ring she has now followed. We saw a clip of Lisa discussing Raquel’s nose with Paul Nassif, and he said it would cost $35K for him to correct. Since Lisa had thought more like $16K, it’s kind of like going to the emergency vet here. You get great care, but it will cost you at least twice as much. Raquel told Lisa that there was more to the story, and in her interview, she said it had been eating her up, lying about James bumping her nose. Lisa helping her was making her feel extra guilty. She told Lisa that she hadn’t been telling the truth. James had gone in fast and hard for a kiss and hit her nose. Lisa asked if anyone had hit Raquel, but Raquel told Lisa to get that out of her head. In Raquel’s interview, she said she knew it didn’t look great for James. He’d created a reputation for himself. He had a history of blowing up on people. We flashed back to some of the many times James has acted insane, although I don’t think he ever got physically violent with anyone. He just yells insults. Raquel said she didn’t want people to jump to conclusions. His entire family was there. She asked James’s mother if it looked all right, and his mother said it looked like her nose was touching her cheek. James flipped out, and took his anger out on his mom because he felt guilty. In Lisa’s interview, she said it was cause for concern. James’s raging had improved so much with his sobriety, but he wasn’t there yet.

At Katie and Schwartz’s place, Lala told Katie that Sandoval was not only bullying her, but becoming like a troll. Ariana joined them, and said her house was like a light store. We saw Tom messing with an app on his phone, making lights in the house change color. Lala asked Ariana, what was that last night? and Ariana said she’d checked out because everyone was yelling. Lala said Sandoval started yelling, and using the F-word at Lisa; he was attacking women. In Ariana’s interview, she said Sandoval was an equal opportunity yeller. Lala wondered how it was going to be when she and Sandoval saw each other, and Ariana said he’d always be cordial and cool. Lala said she was going to be having a discussion with him. Schwartz brought a vision board to Sandoval’s house, and in his interview, Sandoval said, deep dives are business meetings disguised as a hang sesh. In Schwartz’s interview, he said it was time to let pent-up creative energy flow. Let out their inner child and be curious, and drink mushroom tea. Schwartz told Sandoval that they were mining for nuggets of wisdom and inspiration. There were a lot of deep thoughts, or at least what the Toms thought were deep thoughts, and a lava lamp. Schwartz said that Schwartz & Sandy was making more sense. They determined it was a dive lounge, and decided they had their mission statement.

Brock and Scheana visited Corey and Charli, mostly so Brock could hang their TV in under seven minutes. Scheana was documenting the occasion, and we watched as Brock hung the set in five minutes and thirty-nine seconds. In Charli’s interview, she said, during quarantine, she’d moved next door to Scheana and Brock. They’d spent a lot of time together. Charli said she was having a potluck party for her to try new things, and had invited everyone except Lala. Brock said they all respected each other except for one bad apple, and Scheana said Lala acted like a friend then stabbed you in the back. Charli said it was a big night for her, and wanted people there who were supportive. She didn’t want to be judged. James waited for Lisa with Raquel at Paul’s office. He hoped Lisa didn’t blame him, and Raquel said Lisa had told Paul that the doctor had messed up her nose. James said the timing was annoying, since he had the opening of See You Next Tuesday coming up. In his interview, he said he was there for Raquel’s feelings, but what about his feelings? It wasn’t his fault. When Lisa arrived, James said he appreciated Lisa making the appointment, and she asked how he almost headbutted Raquel when he went in for a kiss? He said he was a man, and Lisa said that never happened with Ken. Was he telling the truth? James insisted it was a complete accident, and Lisa said he had to learn to control his temper. An assistant took pictures of Raquel’s nose; then they had a consultation with Paul. Lisa told Paul, the nose issue wasn’t quite the truth, and Raquel told him what happened. Paul checked her nose out, and put the photos up, using a pointer to help explain what had to be fixed. He said they’d have to take cartilage from under her boob, and in James’s interview, he said, now there were going to be scars down there, and it won’t be perfect up there. If Raquel was thinking anything other than no, they had a problem. Paul said he doubted the bump caused the damage, and hearing that, James rejoiced.

James was back at SUR – See You Next Tuesday, full-fledged – and in Lisa’s interview, she said, it was good to see life coming back to the  restaurant. Lisa sat with Sandoval, Ariana, and Katie, who told her about the Toms’ deep dive. In her interview, Lisa said, taking mushrooms and rolling around on the floor wasn’t exactly what she needed. At least she didn’t think so. Scheana said this was where she danced on the bar many a Tuesday, and we were treated to a flashback of that. Randall and Lala came in, and Randall told Lisa that he was sorry he missed the cocktail tasting. Lisa invited him and Lala to come to Villa Rosa for drinks tomorrow. Lala said she wanted to talk to Sandoval before he built more rage, but if they had an audience, he’d see it as a pissing contest. Charli brought drinks over as a peace offering for Tom and Ariana letting her have the party at their house. I’m not sure why that would be peace offering, and not a thank you. We saw a clip of Charli being concerned about having enough room, and Ariana offering their place. Lala asked to talk to Sandoval in private.

Lala told Sandoval, she didn’t want to say he owed her an apology, but what had she done that he was holding onto? He said she’d established boundaries around her personal life and he respected that, but when she brought up Brock’s past, it seemed like a double standard. No one ever brought up anything about Randall. She said she’d labeled a home wrecking whore, and we flashed back to that. She said she felt like she was judged, and held to a different standard. She asked Sandoval if she didn’t deserve as much forgiveness as everyone else. Sandoval said he understood where she was coming from, and she said they were all going to do better.

Ariana told Sandoval that it would be nice to have people over, and him not put on a show, but he said he liked the lights. In Charli’s interview, she said she woke up excited and ready. Now that she was there, she was freaking out internally, wondering WTF she got herself into. She thanked everyone for coming, and I wondered how small their place was, since it was just the usual suspects, minus Lala. I had that many people for parties in my one-bedroom, back in my apartment days. Scheana contributed her famous enchiladas, and Charli said she’d never tried enchiladas; it was a moment. We flashed back to the many times Scheana had talked about her enchiladas, and Sandoval gave Charli a shot of absinthe. She said, one new thing down.

Lala and Randall went to Villa Rosa, and Lisa asked when they were getting married. Randall guessed it would be next year, and Lala said he wanted a production, while she was fine with the backyard. In her interview, she said she’d told Randall that they didn’t have to get married, but he was, no. Lisa asked about Charli’s party, and Lala said Ariana had asked her if she was coming, and she realized she hadn’t been invited. In Lala’s interview, she said, this was more her speed. It was low key, and it was nice to be around people who could just have a glass of wine. Charli moved on to the mussels, was skeptical about them, decided they were not that bad, and ended with a verdict of, wait, it’s good. In her interview, she said she never thought she’d be trying mussels or sashimi. The next time, she’s going to master champagne and being a fancy bitch. Raquel asked the Toms about the bar, and Schwartz said they had an upcoming meeting, where they had to present a mission statement and a design. Katie asked if Scheana had talked to Lala yet, and Brock said, Lala was disrespectful, but expected them to accept it because it was just the way she was. Lala told Lisa that she felt that she was a better person now, but it made her sad. She’d lost her dad, gotten sober, become a stepmother, and had a baby. She felt like everyone else had earned their place, but she still had to prove herself.

Scheana and Brock called it an early night, going home to baby Summer. Ariana suggested they play a game, and they played some kind of category thing where the loser had to play Truth or Dare. When a question about plastic surgery came up, Raquel started crying, and said it was going to cost $30K. In her interview, she calculated that she’d have to work 150 shifts to pay for it. James said it was stressful for him, since he had to look at it, and I wondered if this dude could get any more shallow. I want to like him, I really do, but he needs intensive therapy. In Ariana’s interview, she said, what the actual f***? He should probably never say that ever again. In James’s interview, he said it was annoying playing a drinking game sober, while everyone was sh*tfaced on absinthe. Raquel wasn’t getting one answer right, and he was getting wound up. He was like one of those wind-up monkeys with a tambourine [sic] (it’s cymbals). James called Raquel and Charli dumb, and Raquel got up, saying, we’re done. I wasn’t sure if she meant with the party or the relationship. Charli followed her to the kitchen, and told her they weren’t dumb. James asked if that was a bit much.

Next time, the Toms can’t sell Greg on their non-mission statement, Lala talks to Scheana, and Raquel is concerned about James being superficial. As she should be.

🍸 The Art(ie) Of Being Kip…

It was a little silly, but I thought Kip was fun. I would have liked to have seen him in Guys and Dolls.

https://general-hospital.fandom.com/wiki/Kip_Morris_(Artie_O%27Daly)

🛶 Sitting Down…

Come on over tomorrow for some soap and the accident looking for a place to happen that is Winter House. Until then, stay safe, stay seizing the day, and stay not looking to the movies for your blackmailing tips. The scheme always blows up in their faces.

November 8, 2021 – Sonny Bestows a Favor, Off the Cast List, Soapy Christmas, Obnoxious Drunks On Deck & Ain’t Workin’

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Carly and Sonny have lunch at the MetroCourt, and she says she missed nine months of lunches with him (like they do this every day). She thanks him for making the time before his meeting with Ms. Wu. He says, what he learned from his time away was prioritizing what’s important, and she’s at the top of his list. She says, they were apart for so long. She’s so grateful for every moment with him. She puts her hand on his.

At Kelly’s, Esme tells Cameron, the more she thinks about them getting away, the more excited she gets. One of the best things about boarding school was that so much was an hour away; London, Berlin, Geneva. What’s a really cool place that’s an hour away from here? She’s open to anything. He says, it’s not exactly London or Paris, but Joss has a family cabin in the mountains that’s real pretty. It might be their best bet since they’re going on a budget. She says, not for long. She thinks Spence is handling that situation as they speak. He asks if that’s why Spence took the delivery bike, and she says, he wants to make things right with his dad. Cameron says he’s all for peace in the family, but Spencer’s shift starts in five minutes, so who knows when he’ll actually be there. Outside the door, Spencer flashes back to telling Nikolas that he doesn’t want one penny of their family’s money, and from now on, he’s going to find his own way in the world. He’s no longer his father’s son and no longer a Cassadine. He says, Esme is so not going to like this news, and goes inside. Esme asks if Cameron has ever been to Cabo; it’s still warm enough to lie on the beach. He says, look who’s here on time, and Esme runs to Spencer, giving him a kiss. She says, lying on the beach sounds great, doesn’t it? But first, tell her, what happened with his dad?

Alexis says Harmony isn’t going to believe what just happened, and Harmony asks if she had a conflict with another inmate. Did she have an argument? Alexis says, no, and Sam and Diane walk in. Sam hugs Alexis, saying, she can’t believe it. Diane called her with the news. Is this really happening? Alexis asks if it’s true, and Diane says, congratulations. She’s finally going home.

Peter goes in to Britt’s room, and Britt asks, where’s her mother? He asks if that’s any way to great her host, and she says she needs to check Obrecht’s injury. He says, Liesl is resting comfortably, and she says, what about Jason? He says, Jason isn’t as comfortable, but he’s alive. At least for now. She says she wants to see her mother with her own two eyes; his word means nothing to her. He says that’s actually why he’s there. He wants them to come to an understanding. After all, they are family.

In chains in the wine cellar, Jason tells Drew to answer him. He gets no response, and yells for Drew to get on his feet. Drew, also in chains, gets up, and says, what the hell? Where are they? Jason says, Cassadine Island, and Drew asks what he did.

Alexis says, so there’s been no mistake. This is an actual pardon. Diane says, correct. She got the call, reached out to Sam, and they rushed right over. Sam asks how soon Alexis can be released, and Diane says, the paperwork is being processed. Alexis is going to sleep in her own bed tonight. Alexis says, that’s great, and Harmony says she’s truly happy for her. Sam says she knows Harmony works there, but has she become friends with Alexis? Harmony says, she’d like to think so, but she knows how Sam feels about her, and deservedly so, so she’s not going to step on this terrific moment. She tells Alexis that she hopes they get a chance to talk before Alexis goes, and leaves. Sam tells Diane, she’s so grateful, and Diane says she’d like to take all the credit, but she’s just the messenger. It wasn’t her who arranged this pardon. Sam asks, who did? when Nikolas walks in, and says, he did. Sam says, that’s amazing, and Alexis says, amazing, but not benevolent. It was Nikolas who was going to withhold that pardon if she didn’t do his bidding.

Cameron says he was just about to bet Esme that Spencer was going to show up at least an hour late for work, but Spencer says, of course (🍷) he was on time. He understands how this job works. He doesn’t know why Cameron always thinks the worst of him, and Cameron says, because Spencer always gives him reasons to. Like the time he disappeared halfway through his first shift. Esme says, the main thing is, Spence is here. Talk to her. What happened with his dad? Spencer says he’ll get to that in a minute. Why were they talking about Cabo when he walked in? Esme says, for their weekend getaway. She and Cameron were discussing possible destinations. Spencer says, her and Cam, when did that happen? and she says, that’s not what she meant, and he knows it. She still thinks it’s a great idea for them, Cam and Joss, and Trina and… somebody. She wants to get to know all his friends. What better way to do that than a mini vacay? They can rent a cabin with three bedrooms, or four if Cam and Joss want separate rooms. Spencer says, this weekend getaway, Cam and Joss are on board with this? Cameron says, as long as it’s not too pricey. That’s why he thinks that Joss’s family’s cabin is still their best bet; it’s free. Esme’s phone rings, and she says, it’s Spring Ridge. It must be about her internship. She leaves to take the call, and Spencer says, it’s just like Esme to get carried away. He and Joss don’t have to go if they don’t want to. Cameron says, it’s complicated, and Spencer says, he means because of the separate rooms? He and Joss haven’t had sex yet?

Ms. Wu goes over to Sonny, and says it’s wonderful to have him back, safe and sound. He tells her that Jason and Carly told him about her giving them inside information that saved their lives, and Wu says, it was the right move to make. She thanks Sonny for agreeing to meet with her; they have so much to discuss. He says they need to come to an understanding of how to move forward now that Novak and Buscema are gone.

Britt says, if they’re family, Peter will let her see her mother, and he says, they’re pretty much estranged siblings. If she wants to see her mother, she’ll have to earn it. She asks, how? By telling him that she understands what he’s doing? He says, if anyone does understand, it would be her. They’re Faison’s children. She says she sure as hell tries to forget that, and he tells her not to be shortsighted. There’s only one way off this island for her – by his side.

Jason asks what’s the last thing Drew remembers, and Drew says, his cell at the compound. Peter showed up, and said he had a job for him. He tried to jump Peter… then he’s got nothing. Jason tells Drew, he wasn’t there, but can tell him what the others said, and Drew says, please tell him; all information is welcome. Jason says, Peter ordered the head guard Russel to kill Valentin and Victor Cassadine. Then Drew showed up, and shot Russel. Drew kind of wishes he remembered that, and Jason says, he shot Russel in the leg, and he survived. Then Drew and Valentin took off. They were headed to a dock and had to cross a footbridge. Anna and Robert were waiting, and they saw Peter ambush them. Peter shot Valentin, Drew turned back to give cover fire, and then Peter shot Drew point-blank three times. He fell off the bridge into the sea. Drew says, all he has is a graze on his arm, and Jason says, Peter must have given him a bullet proof vest. Drew says, so Peter staged the whole thing. Why would he do that? Jason says, Peter must need him for something.

Sonny and Wu go to a private area, and Sonny says he knows trust among the families is difficult to maintain, especially since he was away, and everybody thought he was dead. It pretty much proves that if Wu hadn’t warned Carly and Jason, he would have lost the two people closest to him. He wants her to know that she’s very much a trusted ally. She says, Novak and Buscema saw his presumed death as an opportunity for them to stop working together as a group. She was tired of their greed upsetting their very delicate balance. She doesn’t revel in anyone’s death, but she’s happy they’re no longer here to cause trouble. And as she understands it, Joey Novak is in the hospital, after almost being beaten to death. He says, she had nothing to do with that beating? and she says, no, they did not. He says he went to visit Joey in the hospital, and Joey wants out of the family business, so the Corinthos organization is going to take over their family holdings. She smiles, and says she thought that might be the situation, and he laughs. He says, he thought it would only be fair if he gave her half of Novak’s assets. She says she’ll happily accept his generous offer, but she wants to be clear. That’s not why she asked to meet with him today. He says he can’t say enough how important Jason and Carly are to him. So if she ever needs help, he wants her to come to him. She says, by giving her half of the Novak holdings, she considers his debt paid. They’re even. However, the reason she asked for this meeting, she does have a favor to request.

Spencer tells Cameron, don’t be embarrassed, but Cameron says his relationship with Joss is none of Spencer’s business. Spencer says, of course (🍷), and Cameron says, they’ve both been really busy recently. They both started college, and moved into dorms, Joss’s stepdad came back from the dead. They’ve just had a lot on their plate. Spencer says he’s sorry if it sounded like he was judging Cameron, and Cameron says, Spencer was judging him. Spencer says Cameron is right; he was. But life in a boarding school is very different. There are teachers, but no parents, so sex is pretty much a constant topic. Everybody knows who’s done what with which person, but when he stops to think about Cameron and Joss, he guesses it’s not that much of a surprise. Cameron asks what that means, and Spencer says, it means he knows Joss isn’t the type of person to take something like that lightly. He’s not trying to be nosy. He’s honestly trying to be a friend. Is that a problem for the two of them? Cameron says, no, but it hasn’t happened yet. Esme comes back, and asks what they’re talking about. What hasn’t happened yet?

Britt asks if Peter is giving her the join-me-and-we’ll-rule-together speech. He has been on the run for far too long. He’s completely lost touch with reality. He says, she’s the one who refuses to see the truth. There’s nothing for her in Port Charles. She says she’s Chief of Staff at GH. People respect her. She has friends. He says, Brad was in Pentenville last time he checked, but she says, Brad’s not her only friend. Maxie’s her friend. Peter says, please. Maxie’s so kind-hearted, she’d befriend anyone. She says, even him? and he says, even him. She accepted him when no one in Port Charles would. Britt says, news flash, that was then; now she hates his guts. He says, Maxie is the mother of his child, and she asks, where is that child? Because of that psychopath he hired, Maxie’s baby was kidnapped. He says, Louise is his daughter too. Does she think he’s not in agony every day, worried sick about where his child is? Is she safe? Is she all right? She says she can tell him one thing, Peter isn’t going to find her on Cassadine Island. He says she’s right, that’s true. He needs to wrap things up here, and get on to more important things. She says, wrap things up here, how exactly?

Drew asks how Jason found him, and Jason says, Russel. He was trying to escape; he took Britt hostage. Drew says, Britt Westbourne? She’s looking for her mom. Jason says, that’s right. Peter took Drew and Obrecht, and Russel said he was headed there. Drew says, so Jason and Britt are working together, and Jason says, yes. Drew says he thought Sam would be with him, and Jason says, Sam made it as far as Crete. Then she heard Drew got shot and was missing again, so she and Dante decided to go back. Drew says, Dante? and Jason says he and Sam aren’t together anymore. Sam and Dante have gotten close, and Dante came to help find Drew. Drew says, that’s the problem. Spending years as a prisoner, you kind of miss out on everything. Jason says, he knows that feeling, and Drew says, so he and Britt tracked them to Cassadine Island. Then what happened? Jason says he got Peter at gunpoint, but by then, Drew got Britt at gunpoint. Drew says, Jason should have shot him.

Sonny and Wu sit down, Sonny pulling out her chair for her, and he says, whatever she needs, name it. If it’s within his power, he’ll make it happen. She says she knows he has pull with the parole board at Pentenville. Her nephew’s parole hearing is coming up. She was hoping Sonny could convince the board to grant him parole. Sonny asks what her nephew’s name is, and she says, Brad Cooper.

Alexis says, Nikolas is the one who had Hayden shot, and Nikolas says, that’s Shawn’s theory. Of course (🍷) there is no proof to back that up, and as a reminder, Hayden is still very much alive. Sam says, Nikolas still had to very much cover his tracks, even if he had to pressure her mom. He says, her mother refused his deal, but even after that, he made sure her pardon came through. Sam says, that’s probably because it was too late to cancel, and he says he never intended to cancel the pardon. Alexis says, he threatened he would, and he says, Shawn has no evidence, but spreading false rumors about him is damaging. So he tried to help himself as well as his aunt. Is that really so wrong? Sam and Alexis both say, yes.

Esme asks, what’s the big secret? And don’t tell her it’s nothing, because she can see it in their faces. Cameron says he was just telling Spencer that he and Joss haven’t had a chance to get away since they’ve become a couple, and she says, then they’re overdue. Since this is a getting-to-know-you trip, she thinks they should find a place that suits all of them, so they can all discover it together. Cameron says, that actually won’t be too hard for him, since he’s hardly been anywhere. They did do a trip to Niagara Falls once, but that did not end well. Esme asks, why? Did his family tag along? He says, no. It was him, Josslyn, Trina, and Oscar, and she says, Oscar, Josslyn’s first boyfriend who died of brain cancer, right? That’s so sad. Cameron says, yeah, it was rough. Niagara was their last road trip. She says, if Oscar and Josslyn were together on the trip, does that mean Trina and Cameron were a couple? Cameron says, no, but it was actually the beginning of him and Trina getting close. Esme tells him, you don’t say. Exactly how close did he and Trina get?

Drew asks if Jason had a clean shot, and Jason says, yeah. Drew asks why he didn’t take it, and Jason says, Monica, Danny, Sam. Drew says, they never had to know, but Jason says, they want him back. Drew says, not like this. Not when Peter can activate the conditioning whenever he wants, and get Drew to do whatever he wants. He knows Jason knows what it’s like to be a prisoner, but Jason has no idea what it’s like to wake up and have no idea how you got here. No idea what you’ve done, who got shot, or who got hurt. Nothing. What scares him most is the possibility of waking up the next time, and finding out he took an innocent life. Jason says, there’s a way to make sure that doesn’t happen, and Drew says he’s listening. Jason says, get rid of Peter. Take him out. If he’s dead, he can’t control Drew.

Diane asks if she can join Carly, and Carly says, please. Diane says Sonny asked her to meet him to discuss some legalities about the Novak property. Carly says she knows. He’s at a private table with Ms. Woo, discussing things Diane doesn’t want to know about, which now are above her paygrade. Diane says, sounds like Carly is missing being the one in charge, but Carly says, not really. It’s refreshing seeing Sonny in business mode. It’s like having a visit from the Sonny she used to know. Diane says, a visit? and Carly says, Nixon Falls did a number on Sonny. To be more accurate, it did a number on them. Diane knows they’ve never been the picture of domestic bliss. Diane says, that’s true, and Carly says, it didn’t matter because they knew each other so well. Now they know each other less. Nina months less, thanks to Nina Reeves.

Sonny says, he forgot Brad was related to Wu’s family, and she says, he’s her brother’s son. Then he was adopted by the Coopers. Still, he’s her family. Sonny says, Brad stole his grandson, and he watched his own son grieve for a year for his son who was alive. She says she knows that, and she’s very sorry; so is Brad. She visited him in prison and he swore it wasn’t his idea. He was grief stricken over the death of the real baby he and his husband Lucas adopted. Brad made some horrible decisions, and he’s paid a high price and deeply regrets his actions. But he’s her family. He’s been in Pentenville for 18 months, and won’t survive much longer. Can Sonny find it in his heart to help, as a personal favor to her?

Nikolas says he’s getting Alexis out of there. He did a good thing. She says she doesn’t appreciate the way he did it, and he says, bottom line, his tactics get results. She says, the ends justifies the means. That’s so very Cassadine of him. He says he’s sick of everyone saying it’s a curse to be a Cassadine. Even Spencer is saying he wants nothing to do with him. Sam laughs, and Alexis says, what about the Cassadine money? He says, Spencer claims he wants give up the trust fund, and Alexis says, good for him. He listened to her. Nikolas says she encouraged his son to turn his back on him? and she says, she encouraged him to find out what kind of man he was going to be, and if that means cutting out the bad influences in his life, then so be it.

Cameron tells Esme, he and Trina never dated; they decided they were better off as friends. Spencer asks if that means they were considering dating, and Cameron says, there was a time they were, but that was a million years ago. Before they can decide where they’re going on their weekend getaway, they have to figure how much they can afford. Cameron asks if Spencer patched things up with his dad. Did Ava give him access to his money? Spencer says, not exactly, and Esme asks, what happened? His dad didn’t accept his apology? Spencer says he didn’t apologize. He told Nikolas that he didn’t want any Cassadine money.

Sonny says, he’s sorry; he can’t grant Wu that favor. She says, can’t or won’t, and he says, if Brad had merely hurt him, he’d do it, but Brad hurt a lot of people; especially Michael and Wiley. Brad had a year to tell the truth, and he didn’t. He can’t intercede on behalf of the man who hurt his son and his grandson. She says she sees. Then they really have nothing further to discuss. He says, you know what? There’s something else he can do for her.

Diane says she has to admit, when she found out Nina knew where Sonny was all along, and lied about it, she’s been waiting for a call from the PCPD to come defend Carly from assault charges. Carly asks if Diane could get her off, and she says, she’s Diane Miller, but she’s glad she didn’t have to. Why should Carly endure with another bout with the legal system courtesy of Nina Reeves, especially after all Nina’s done to her? She congratulates Carly on her rare display of forbearance, and Carly says, don’t give her the credit. She would gladly attack Nina physically, financially, any way she could, but Sonny doesn’t want her to. Diane says, that’s too bad. She could file one hell of a lawsuit. When she was done, that spoiled little brat of an heiress, wouldn’t have a dime to her name. Carly says, Sonny doesn’t want to dwell on the past, or making Nina pay, and Diane says, she could file a lawsuit for Carly and her children, and base the damages on her pain and suffering; leave Sonny out of it entirely. Carly says, it’s not gonna happen, and Diane says, because Sonny doesn’t want it to. That’s not like him at all. Carly says, that’s what makes it so hard. Sonny wants her to leave Nina alone and she agreed. Of course (🍷) she agreed. Sonny thinks it’s the best way for them to move forward, and maybe for him it is. Diane says, but not for her, and she says, hell no. Not for her.

Drew says he hopes Jason is right, and one of them gets a chance to kill the bastard, but it doesn’t seem feasible at the moment. Jason says, Peter’s already made mistakes. He’s made another one by leaving them alone in this room together. Drew wonders how that is. They’re chained to the wall, and Peter can control him. Jason says, what if he’s wrong? and Drew says, if Jason is going to tell him to fight the conditioning, Obrecht already told him that; she told him to focus on Scout. You’d think thinking about his little girl would give him the strength to fight back, but obviously that didn’t work. Jason says, the last time Peter activated the conditioning , Drew was in his cell at the compound. The conditions worked in Peter’s favor; Drew was isolated with no way to fight back and nobody to help him. It’s different now. They’re here together in this wine cellar; the more Peter has to improvise, the more things can go wrong. They can use that to their advantage. Drew says, Peter’s not in control. Not here.

Esme says, Spencer did what exactly? and he says, he knows the last time they talked, he was going to acquiesce, and tell his father and Ava whatever they wanted to hear. Esme says, right. Not out of weakness; he was just being practical. He says, but then Trina told him exactly what he needed to do. She says, Trina helped him change his mind? and he says, she helped him get his head on straight. Cameron says, Trina gives great advice, but did she really tell him to go to his dad, and tell him to take his money and shove it? Spencer says, in a much more sophisticated way, but that was the gist of it. Cameron asks if he’s crazy. That is literally the dumbest thing he’s ever heard. Spencer says, really? Cameron is Mr. Get-a-job-and-support-yourself, and he thinks Spencer did the wrong thing? Cameron says Spencer has been working less than a week. He has no idea what it takes to survive in the real world. Spencer says, he might not be the best waiter, but he’s getting better. Cameron says, he’s living for free. The clothes he wears, and the lifestyle they lead, being a waiter isn’t going to support that. Get a grip. He’s lived a very pampered life, and Cameron thinks it’s in his best interest to go to his father and beg his forgiveness. Spencer says, Esme has been unusually quiet. What does she think? Does she agree with Cameron? Does she think he should crawl back to his father?

Nikolas says, so now Alexis is calling him a bad influence on his son? No matter how sanctimonious she is, he’s not going to call the governor back and cancel the pardon. He walks out, and Sam runs after him. Alexis tells Harmony that she’s sorry for the way Sam talked to her; it was rude. Harmony says, no one can says she didn’t earn it. She congratulates Alexis on her pardon, and asks how she’s feeling about life on the outside. Alexis says, apprehensive, grateful, relieved, terrified of making the decisions she doesn’t have to make in there, including staying sober on her own. Harmony tells her to do what she has to, to remind herself that she’s not alone. Alexis says she’ll miss their talks, and Harmony says, Alexis has her number. She doesn’t work 24/7. They can grab a coffee and talk. Alexis has her family, but she has friends too. Wow. Alexis forgot about Shawn pretty fast.

Peter says Britt has a choice to make. She can either be part of his plan, or collateral damage. It’s up to her, but he does want her to make an informed decision. He opens the door, and says, come with him.

Carly tells Diane, she wants it to be over too, but she’d have more closure if she knew Nina was going to pay. Diane says, she is facing criminal charges, and Carly says, thanks to Michael. Diane says, the face of a choirboy; the heart of an assassin. It’s a pity he didn’t go into law. He would have done very, very well. Carly says, Sonny told Michael he was wrong for what he was doing. Her head almost exploded. (I’d like to see that.) She said nothing, because she’s not going to fight with Sonny over that bitch. Why would she do that? Diane asks when Jason is coming home, but Carly doesn’t know. Diane says, the moment he does, take him somewhere, some dive bar, and cut loose. Get hammered and confess to him every vicious scheme she’s concocted for torturing Nina, and let him talk her off the ledge. Carly says, Nina took that away from her too, and Diane says, tell her. Carly says, if Sonny hadn’t come back, she and Jason were going to be together as husband and wife that night. Sonny is having a hard time with that. It doesn’t matter that they thought he was dead; it doesn’t matter that they just said their wedding vows. To Sonny, it’s his wife and best friend. It’s going to take time for Sonny. So she doesn’t have Jason the way she used to. She doesn’t have her best friend to run to, and dump all her problems on. She can’t go to him and say all the horrible things she wants to, and feel safe, because… She just can’t. So for the sake of her marriage, she has to put her friendship with Jason on hold. Diane asks if Jason knows, and Carly says they haven’t talked about it, but she’s pretty sure it’s the reason he left town. She knows he wants to help Britt. Of course (🍷), but she’s pretty sure he’s giving her and Sonny some space. Diane says, based on her considerable experience with Sonny, that seems to be the best course, and Carly says, that doesn’t make it easier.

Sonny tells Wu that he won’t help Brad, but if Brad is granted parole on his own merit, he won’t stop it. She says, what about Michael? and he says, Michael has every right to talk about what Brad did to him and Wiley. She says, but Michael can do more than speak at the hearing. He’s a Quartermaine; he has powerful connections. He could pull strings and block Brad’s parole altogether. Sonny says, he’ll make sure no strings are pulled for or against, and Wu says, if parole is granted, it won’t mean much, if Brad meets with a fatal accident after he’s freed. Sonny says he gives her his word that he will not retaliate against Brad, but he has to stay away from Michael and Wiley. Wu says, that seems more than reasonable, but he’s not the only Corinthos who might wish Brad ill. Is he speaking for himself, or as head of the entire family?

Diane tells Carly that she has another client who needs to be bailed out.. literally. Please tell Sonny, she’ll call and reschedule. She’s obviously not Jason, but any time Carly needs to vent, she’s here. Friend to friend. Carly says she might take Diane up on that.

Wu tells Sonny, please know, she means no disrespect, but there have been a lot of changes in his organization in the past year. So she just wants to be clear on what his favor entails. Will he personally leave Brad alone, and ensure that no one in his family will hurt her nephew? Sonny says he’s back in charge, and speaks for his entire family.

Esme asks if Spencer is kidding. No, she doesn’t agree with Cameron. She hugs him, and says she’s super proud of the man he’s becoming. He says, she’s proud of him? and she says, of course (🍷). He has to stay true to himself. Cameron says, he thinks this new true self is boring, and goes behind the counter. Spencer thanks Esme for standing with him, and she asks if he’s really that surprised. He says, yeah, a little. They’ve always lived a pretty extravagant life. She asks if that’s why he went to Trina instead of her. Did he think she woudn’t understand? He says, it wasn’t like that, and she says she wishes he felt like he could confide in her. He says he does. She’s the most important person in his life. She has to know that. She says she does know that; it’s just nice to hear it once in a while. Cameron says he’s sorry to interrupt, but just because he’s standing around doesn’t mean Spencer’s on time. Get to work. Spencer goes in the back, and Esme sits at the counter. She asks Cameron if she’s really that horrible of a person that her boyfriend can’t talk to her. He says, it’s not like that. Trina’s just super easy to talk to. Even though he completely disagrees with the advice Trina gave Spencer, she’s a solid friend. Esme says, it’s very clear how persuasive Trina can be. She’ll have to get to know Trina better. Asap.

Nikolas tells Sam, he’s not in the mood for any more hypocritical moralizing; he’s heard enough for today. She says she just wanted to actually say, thank you. She may not always agree with his methods, but she’s beyond grateful that he got her mother out of prison. Scout and Danny are going to be beyond thrilled that their grandmother is coming home. He says he appreciates it, and leaves.

Harmony says she’s happy for Alexis, when the warden walks in, Sam behind him. He says, her release has been fully processed. She’s free to go. I’ve never been to prison, and have the feeling it might be more complicated than that, but okay. Alexis tells Harmony, here I go, and Sam says, let’s get out of here. Alexis finally gets her life back.

Wu thanks Sonny for his generosity. She looks forward to their continued partnership. He says, so does he, and Carly joins him. Wu says, it’s good to see her again, and Carly says, her too. Wu goes to the elevator, and Carly asks what Ms. Wu was thanking Sonny for.

Britt walks into the wine cellar, and sees Jason. Peter comes in behind her, putting a gun in her back, and saying, don’t be shy. He doesn’t want her to miss the show. It looks like Drew is back to his normal self. Drew says, you bastard. He’s going to kill Peter. Peter says, that’s what’s not going to happen, but he will kill someone. Britt looks at Jason.

Tomorrow, Willow says someone is the last person she expected to see, Peter says he’ll be taking it out on Britt, Drew is reporting for duty, Carly asks why she’s having this conversation, and Jason says next time he and Peter meet, there will be a different ending.

😔 Quel Disappointment…

From what I read on Twitter, it’s not the first time. I feel sad about that.

🎄 Ho-Ho-Ho…

I’m not one to rush the season, or watch Hallmark movies, but if you’re into that sort of thing, this has quite a few soap stars in it. Erika Slezak is one of them, which makes it almost worth watching for me. Almost.

Below Deck

The crew gets up hungover from the night before. In Rayna’s interview, she says she kissed Jake. Whatever. Who cares? It was so hot. Fraser says he drank too much, and Jake says, he was drunk before dinner last night. In Heather’s interview, she says she’s irritated with her team. They have to do better. They begin cleaning the boat, and Captain Lee calls Heather, Eddie, and Rachel to the crew mess for the preference sheet meeting. The primary is Michael, a real estate broker, who appreciates fine whiskey. He’s bringing his broker friends. The captain points out that Michael’s photo is the classic real estate broker pose. He says, they’re big bourbon drinkers, and want his presence at a white party/whiskey tasting dinner. They also want a luau, but it’s a late pickup, so Rachel doesn’t have to worry about lunch. Another request is golf balls off the back of the boat. In Rachel’s interview, she says she’s playing nice with Eddie, but what he’d said last season felt like a betrayal, since he was a friend to her face. She has a tad of bitterness, but needs to get rid of it. It’s not her flavor. Fraser tells Rayna that he was a bit tipsy to put lightly, and asks if he did anything stupid. She says he went to bed, which I’m sure is a relief. He teases her about Jake, and she says she likes someone who lives in Canada. In her interview, she says, they’re just talking, and trying to figure it out. She tells Fraser that she’s still single, but doesn’t want to mess it up. He says, it was just a friendly flirt.

Rachel calls for provisions, asking for a pig for a luau and a spit. She asks to talk to Eddie in the main salon. She tells him that she wants to have a little chat. Last season, the things he said about her were a vicious attack. He went straight for her integrity and character, and it was uncalled for. It threw her for a loop, and it was hurtful. So far, it’s stayed for the duration of the season. Eddie says he’s sorry. They didn’t get along, and he’s sorry he didn’t talk directly to her. In his interview, he says, they started off good, but when Rachel started drinking, she was a different person. We flashed back to some of Rachel’s drunken antics, and Eddie says he should have talked to her personally. The only thing he can do is be better. He tells her that he gets it, and thanks her for giving him another chance be her friend. In Rachel’s interview, she says she thinks they can play in the same sandbox without stabbing each other with spades. Eddie calls the provisioner for golfclubs, biodegradable golf balls, and AstroTurf. Jessica calls her mom, who’s smoking a cigarette, and gambling on her phone in the garage. In Jessica’s interview, she says, when she wanted to go into cosmetology, her mom told her to be a mortician, so Jessica could do hair and makeup on her body. Jessica said no.

Heather tells Jessica to iron the captain’s clothes, and provisions come in. The captain calls the crew to the sky lounge, since he hadn’t had a formal meeting with them, and they have time because of the late pick-up. He says he only expects them to do their jobs. The radio is his pet peeve. If they’re looking for their radio, odds are he already has it, and he’s going to have their ass. He gives them the two rules: do not embarrass yourself and do not embarrass the boat. Whoomp! There it is! He says he has no problem getting rid of someone in the middle of a charter. He hopes he doesn’t have to use his pocketful of plane tickets, but he’s not afraid to use them. It will be swift and hard. In Rayna’s interview, she says Captain Lee reminds her of her dad. (Me too!) He’s like a chocolate chip cookie that’s hard on the outside, and soft and mushy in the middle. At least she hopes Captain Lee is like her dad. He tells them, do their jobs, or they’re fired. Afterward, he tells Eddie this could be the year; he likes what he’s seeing. Eddie says he wants to promote Jake to lead deckhand, and in Captain Lee’s interview, he says, it’s not like he doesn’t want to, but he’s seen that backfire. Give someone too much responsibility too soon, and they can crash and burn. And it’s your fault because you set them up to fail. He tells Eddie that he wants to observe first. In Heather’s interview, she says, the had a bad start, and it’s lingering. They don’t have it together. She’s done every sh*t job there is. She busted her ass, and expects it from her team. There’s no room for error. She meets with Fraser and Jessica, and tells them that she needs them to be fluid. She also needs them to step it up on the laundry and cocktails, but not drop the standard. She wants to keep the ball rolling. In Fraser’s interview, he says, it’s the same as the last load of sh*t. He’s never worked for a chief stew who wasn’t impeccable, and he feels insecure with Heather as his leader. In Jessica’s interview, she says, Heather reminds her of her grandma, micromanager Marian. They have to do everything the way Heather wants. I’m confused. Isn’t that how it is with most bosses? The captain radios for the crew to change into their whites.

The guests arrive, and Jake says, they’re definitely boozy. Eddie says the crew has no idea what’s in store. The group seems very aggressive, and are apparently already drunk. Captain Lee says Heather will give them a tour of the boat, and they’ll get the hell out of Dodge, and have some fun. Primary Michael says, sounds like a good plan. One of the guests admits they finished a bottle of Tito’s while they were waiting, and in Heather’s interview, she says, it’s a great sign. They’ll have hangovers in three hours, and probably skip dinner. Omg, I like bourbon too, but this one dude is chugging it. The boat heads out, and Heather reminds the guests they have a white party/whiskey pairing tonight. She goes over the various whiskeys, Guest Justin asks for a thermal cup, and in Heather’s interview, she tells us, nothing says classy like whiskey out of a thermos on a mega-yacht. Wes asks how Jessica’s department works, and she says she’s the third, so she does the grunt work. Anchor is dropped, and Heather checks in with the captain about dinner. He says he can join the guests for dinner, but can’t take part in the whiskey tasting. She suggests apple juice, and he tells her to put in a little lime. She predicts they’ll be a couple of guests down, and he says, the guests weren’t lying when they said they had mouths like sailors. The dudes shoot golf balls off the back of the boat, and Eddie bugs the captain about promoting Jake again. Captain Lee say,s they can use a lead deckhand, but he’s concerned it’s too soon. He wonders if Jake can step up to the plate, without his nerves getting the better of him, and coming apart like a cheap suit. In Eddie’s interview, he says, Captain Lee hired him because he trusts him. He hopes the captain respects his decision. He thinks Jake will be a good lead deckhand, and then he can move off the deck. He tells the captain that Jake is goofy, but has a good head on his shoulders. The captain tells Eddie that he hopes he doesn’t regret it, but if he does, so will Eddie. He calls Jake to the wheelhouse, and Eddie offers Jake the position. He says the other crew members don’t have Jake’s experience, but he thinks Jake can lead them.   

Rayna squeals when Jake tells her the news, and in her interview, she says, that’s perfect for her. What’s he going to do? Yell at her? That’s not going to happen. In Wes’s interview, he says he thinks Jake is solid. It’s mostly the moustache. It commands respect. Jake invites Rayna to help him cover-up the sundeck furniture. Guest Justin says he’s excited to sit next to the captain. Captain Lee joins them, and Heather calls Jessica to help with service. Justin gets super insulting to the one female guest, Terri, saying that he’s surprised she went to college, and asking how many words does she use in a day? The first pairing is served, and Justin burps loudly. Fraser says, the poor captain. Justin says, they’re a bunch of real estate buffoons, and asks for tequila. Another guest points out that they’re in the middle of a whiskey paring, and Justin says, f*** you. Colin tells him, STFU. Justin says he’s throwing himself off the boat, and storms off, sitting on the edge of the boat.  

Heather tells Rachel that they’re down a guy; he left the table. Justin tells Wes that he can’t stand a formal dinner with a bunch of kiss asses. He’s going to sit and enjoy himself. Wes keeps an eye on him, and in the captain’s interview, he says They’re  drunker than a four-peckered goat. Than a herd of four-peckered goats. Morons. Bored and alone, Eddie says, anchor watch is pure excitement. Wes asks if he can get Justin something, and in Wes’s interview, he says, never give him whiskey. He’s a goddam gremlin. He had a fight with a jeep once. Justin asks to have his dinner there, and at the table, Captain Lee looks grim. A little table is set up for Justin, and Fraser mumbles as he does the guest cabins. In Jessica’s interview, she says, Fraser is entitled to his opinions, but he needs to put his feelings in a balloon, and let it go. At the table, Michael says, he feels fat. After Michael insults Florida where the captain lives, Terri repeatedly asks the captain where he grew up – Michigan – and says they grew up in the same place. Guest Colin leans over and says he loves her, but she’s repeating herself. Jessica says, Justin is happy as a clam, and she and Wes laugh. Captain Lee thanks them for dinner, and on the way downstairs, tells Heather that he got hit with two root canals. He says, it was brutal. Justin is just flat out rude, and he doesn’t know how many times Terri asked him about Michigan. Dinner was good though.

Terri suggests Michael go to bed, and he somehow makes it down the stairs without falling headfirst. Colin calls down to Justin, telling him to go f*** himself; he’s a d*ckhead. Terri says she’s so effing pissed. She asks Eddie, what’s going on with Justin, and Eddie says, he’s just sitting there. Terri goes down, and tells Justin to go f*** himself. Rayna wonders if this is normal, and Justin says he’s comfortable. Terri says he’s being a jackass. Rayna tells Jake, white folks crazy as hell, and I die laughing. In her interview, she says, drama finally, and it’s not her drama. Justin says he’s wonderful and comfortable, and Terri goes back to the table. Eddie says, now he’s babysitting, and Rayna tells Wes about Terri and Justin fighting.

Justin goes back to the table, and Terri says she doesn’t like him. He says he doesn’t give a f***, which was to be expected. She tells him that they were all at dinner, but he didn’t show up. Fraser calls Heather to come listen, and Terri says, they came together as a family, but he wasn’t there. Guest Colin (I think – they all look the same) says she doesn’t understand STFU. In Heather’s interview, she says she thinks Terri and Justin are secretly screwing, and Justin is finally drunkenly taking the upper hand in the relationship. Justin tells Terri that he’s confident sitting there. Guests Sean and Colin have wandered upstairs, and can still hear them. Rachel joins Heather and Fraser listening in. In Fraser’s interview, he says, it’s not chic. They probably won the trip. Justin tells Terri he’s doing her a favor. He’ll walk her back to her room and she’ll STFU. Get her ass up, and get TF down the stairs. Let’s go. Rachel sees Heather watching from the sidelines, and says, crouching tiger, hidden stew. Justin says, it’s a circus, and in Heather’s interview, she says she’s nervous something will happen they can’t control. Terri  tells Justin to stop, and Justin orders Heather to come here. He points at Terri, and says, she needs to go away now. Heather asks him to elaborate, and he says, Terri needs to go to her room and STFU. Eddie says, this is out of control. It’s overly aggressive, and unacceptable behavior from a charter guest. It’s dangerous. Justin starts following Heather, and Eddie suggests he and Terri stay away from each other. Eddie stops Teri from following Justin, who says, someone is being shoved off the boat tonight. Wow…

There was no preview.

🍂  Falling Back…

See you tomorrow for some soap and a few Pumptinis. Until then, stay safe, stay being a solid friend, and stay away from whiskey if it turns you into a gremlin.

November 7, 2021 – Morgan Visits Victor, Blackout At the CRM, Pollyanna’s Return, Valuable, Now They Did It, Pup Parade & Way

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

Fear the Walking Dead

A zombie trips over a fallen warhead sticking out of the ground. Sarah opens her eyes, not sure of where she is. She goes downstairs and says, hello? She looks around at what seems to be a castle, and checks herself out in a mirror. A zombie wanders in, and she quicky grabs a rifle, but can’t get it to work. She says, hell, as the zombie gets closer, but a shot is heard and it drops. Al says, she’s awake, and Daniel, Luci, Charlie, and Wes come out. Luci says, welcome back, and Sarah asks how long she’s been out. Luci says, two days, and Wes and Charlie check the radioactivity coming from the zombie. Wes says, it’s off the charts. He wonders how it got there, and asks if Sarah brought any in with her. She says, no, and Charlie says, the zombies shouldn’t be able to go past the gate. She asks if Daniel closed it, and he says he did. She asks if he’s sure, but he says, no. Luci tells him not to worry, and Sarah asks where they are. Al says, Fort San Vincent, or it used to be before a rich guy bought it in the 60s and turned it into a bed and breakfast. Sarah wonders how she got there. She remembers the bombs going kablooey, and her engine overheated. What the hell was that? Al says, it’s better she doesn’t know, and Daniel says, she’s not only one Al isn’t telling what happened. Wes says, Sarah had a rough landing, and was knocked unconscious. Luci says, there are so many dead, and Al says, they took turns, but mostly Jacob was keeping an eye on her. He’s out working the east boundary, but he’ll be glad to see her back on her feet. Sarah asks if Wendell made it there, but Al shakes her head. Luci says they haven’t heard from him, and Charlie said when they went searching for him, the only thing they found was this. She hands Wendell’s cap to Sarah, and Sarah asks what they’re sitting there for. They have to find him. She starts to leave, but Luci stops her, and says, it’s not safe. Sarah tells her to step aside if she wants to keep her teeth, and Al says if Sarah goes past the safe zone, she’ll end up like that corpse. Luci says, if they go out, they’ll die, but Sarah says, however hard they think they looked, she’ll look harder. He’s alive, and she’ll find him.

Sarah sits on a hill with the radio, and some supplies, and asks if Wendell hears her. She’s trying every channel on this damn radio. She looks around with binoculars, and tries the radio again. She keeps repeating the pattern. She says, if you can hear me, give me a sign. If he’s out there, she wants him to know she’s still looking. She looks at a map, and says she’ll be riding the airwaves again tomorrow; over and out. She packs up. and a voice comes over the radio, asking if somebody is there. She says, Wendell? and Morgan says, is that her? She says, Momo? and he says, that’s what they call the baby. She says, whose baby? and he says, it’s a long story. She says, hearing his voice is music to her ears, and he says, it’s good to hear hers too. She says she thought he was dead, but he says he’s all right; Grace too. She asks if he’s seen Wendell, but he says, no. He’s holed up at the Pennsylvania. She says, she’s holed up with Al and the others; Al saved their keisters. She’s at a place called Fort San Vincent. Things look good in the immediate vicinity, but she thinks there’s a warhead dud somewhere near there. The radio goes dead, and she asks if he’s there. Morgan? She tries to charge the radio, but it’s not working. She says, sh*t in a sandbox, and throws it in her bag. She sees an SUV down on the road, and says, who might you be?

Sarah looks around the truck, and asks if someone is there. She looks inside, and a dog barks. She says, Rufus, and asks how he got there. Where’s MoMo? She lets Rufus out, and looks in the car. She sees the box with Emile’s head in it, and hears a gun cock. Josiah tells her, step away from my brother, and she asks, who the are hell you, and what’s your brother’s head doing in a box with my friend’s name on it? He says, his name is Emile. Her friend’s head is supposed to be in the box, not his brother. Mr. Jones killed him. She says, another psychopath who wants to try and kill Morgan. What’s his beef have to do with her? He says he wants her help finding Morgan, and she says, that’s kind of hard to do when she doesn’t know where he is. He says he heard her on the radio, and Morgan said he was in the Pennsylvania. What is that? A hotel? A restaurant? Wherever he is, she’s going to take him there. A zombie pops out, and Emile kills it. Sarah says she doesn’t rat out her friends, but he says he thinks she should reconsider. He’s the only hope she’s got of finding her brother. She asks how he knew about Wendell, and he tells her that he heard what she said on the radio. He suggests she accept his offer, unless she wants her brother to end up like this. He gestures toward the downed zombie, and holds out his hand. She gets up without taking it, and says, he can find Wendell? He says he and Emile share more than blood. When he needs to find somebody, he’ll stop at nothing, and he does mean nothing. Morgan in exchange for her brother. Tell him to meet her outside of the rest stop on 7489 at dawn. He holds out the car radio, and she says, find Wen first. He says that’s what he intends to do. He works fast. She asks, what’s going to happen to Morgan? and he tells her that she’s asking the wrong question. She should be asking, what will happen to Wendell if she doesn’t accept his terms? She takes the radio, and asks if Morgan copies.

Josiah stops by the side of the road, and he gets out of the car, along with Sarah and Rufus. He asks what makes Sarah so sure Wendell went this way, and she says, it’s the only place she hasn’t checked. He says, if he gets exposed, she has to give him the pills; the same for Rufus. She says she only swiped enough for her and her brother, and he says he agreed to help her look for her brother, not die for him. She asks what his name is, and he says, Josiah. She says, she’s Sarah Rabinowitz, and he says, well, Sarah, time to get to work. He dances through the air with a battleax, downing two zombies. He starts digging inside one, and Sarah says she doesn’t think he’s going to find Wendell in there, but he says, he will if they ate him. How long has he been missing? She says, 78 days, and he says she still thinks he’s alive? She says, he’s a fighter, and he says he’s warning her, if her brother is dead, they might not find him. Zombies can travel a mile and a half to 36 miles in a day; he’s a dead man walking. She says, he’d love that. He hasn’t taken a step in 40 years. He’s been in a wheelchair since he was a kid. Josiah asks if she has anything that belongs to him, and she gives him the cap. He whistles for Rufus, saying, Rufus is a cadaver dog; he can smell the living and the dead. Rufus sniffs the cap, and Josiah says, go find. Sarah asks if they should follow, but he says they need to give these two a proper rest first.

Josiah is tamping down the dirt over a grave, and Sarah says, things would go quicker if they didn’t have to bury every skinbag they came across. He tells her, the dead deserve respect, and she says, if he respected the dead, he wouldn’t be toting around his brother’s head like a pet rock. He says, it makes him remember what he promised his brother, but she says she doesn’t think his brother would hold him to it. He’s so full of sh*t. All he wants to do is kill, and he’s using Rufus to help him. She knows a psychopath when she sees one. He says she doesn’t know anything about him, and she’s got the nerve to call him crazy. She asks what makes him think he can do what his brother couldn’t? and he says, when you’ve been through what he’s been through, it makes you capable of doing things you never thought possible.

Rufus barks incessantly at a Stalker herding the dead toward a wagon drawn by horses. Josiah tells him, don’t move, and the Stalker says, he didn’t do nothin’, but Josiah says the guy put his dog in danger. He should kill him. The Stalker says Rufus came to him, and Josiah says he intends to find out why. He tells the Stalker to take his mask off, and the Stalker says his readings are clean, but Josiah says, that’s not what he’s asking. What’s he got in there; more like them? He looks in the back of the wagon, where there are a bunch of naked zombies. Josiah asks Sarah if any of them are Wendell, and she shakes her head. He asks the Stalker what the hell he’s doing. What happened to their clothes? He thinks the guy is hiding something, and tells him to take off his clothes. Sarah protests, but Josiah asks if she wants to find her brother or not. He tells the guy, strip now, and the Stalker takes his clothes off and stands there. Rufus smells the pile of clothes, and shows a particular interest in a red bandana. Josiah pulls it out, and asks if Sarah recognizes it. She nods, and takes it. Josiah tells the Stalker to show them where he found it.

They go to a barn where livestock were kept, and now zombies are in the stalls. Josiah says, this is what he does? Strip them and take their possessions? The Stalker says, something like that, and Sarah says, you’re a real twisted POS, know that? She says, Wendell’s not there, then looks hard at something. Josiah says, what? and she looks closer. She sees a wheelchair all mangled up and disgusting with guts, and says, that’s his chair. She asks the Stalker, where is he? The man in the chair. He asks if she means the skinbag tangled up in it? He had no use for him. He’s probably crawling around somewhere. She lunges at him, and he swings one of the gates open, letting loose a bunch of zombies. He takes off, and Josiah and Sarah run after him, but he’s way ahead. Josiah says they have to get out of there, and Sarah runs to the car and starts it up. She hears Morgan on the radio, saying he’s on the way to the rendezvous. Tell what this is about; is she okay? Does she copy? Please tell him what the hell is going on. She takes off just as Josiah gets to the car, but he jumps in. He asks if she’s lost her mind. He kept his end of the deal. She says Wendell isn’t dead, and pushes the passenger door open, tying to shove him out, but he hangs on. They crash through fence and over a cliff. Oddly enough, they land right side up.

They sit in the car for a moment. Josiah tries his door, but it’s not opening. Sarah says, sh*t, and he says, what? She says, it’s a goddam warhead. They’ve got to get out of there. Her door won’t budge, and she wonders where the hell her bat is. He asks if she’s injured, or punctured anything, but she says she didn’t puncture sh*t. She’s hyperventilating, and Josiah tells her, there’s no use having a panic attack over a warhead; her brother died. Zombies are starting to gather, and he says, they’ve got to get out. He promises, it’s what he does. He was a park ranger; search and rescue for fifteen years. It was only a matter of time. She’s got to call Morgan. She asks if he can’t call somebody, and he says he only had to be rescued once himself. He was searching for hikers trapped in a fire, and twisted his ankle. He didn’t think he’d get out alive. Emile wanted to look for him, but the other rangers said it was too dangerous; it was too late. Emile wouldn’t listen. Sarah asks how Emile found him, and he says, Emile didn’t; Rufus did. Later, his brother told him that he could feel Josiah’s heartbeat all the way across the woods. He thought it was bullsh*t until the day he felt his heart stop, and knew Emile was gone. He didn’t need to see it; he just knew. Maybe it sounds crazy, but that’s how he knows Sarah wouldn’t be looking if her brother was dead. She’d feel it; she’d know it. They can still find him. She radios Morgan, and says she’s in a little bit of trouble, a mile south from their rendezvous. Josiah tells her, be ready to honor their deal, and she says, they’re going to keep looking for Wen, and he’s not going to kill Morgan. He asks, why is that? and she says, he’s not a killer. He’s just mixed up because of his brother, like she was when she saw that chair. That wasn’t her back there, and this ain’t him. She tries the radio again, asking if Morgan heard her, but Josiah tells her, it’s safe to say the radio ain’t working no more. Zombies are starting to collect outside the truck, and he says, it’s time they take their chances. He gets out through the back, and does some slicing and dicing. Sarah jumps out, smashing heads with a shovel. They kill a dozen or so zombies. Sarah stands on truck, and puts the bandana over her nose and mouth. Josiah goes after a zombie, and realizes it’s Morgan.

Morgan and Josiah fight. Still standing on the truck, Sarah yells at them to stop. After a good headbutt, Josiah gets Morgan on the ground. Morgan punches him, but Josiah still has the upper hand. Sarah tells him that he’s not a killer, and he says, he’s not going to kill Morgan; his brother is. He takes out the head, saying, he made Emile a promise, and he’s going to keep it. He puts the head near Morgan’s face, but Morgan pushes him off, and the head goes flying. Rufus goes to investigate, and the effing head bites him. Now they did it. They touched the dog. Josiah says, what has he done? and cradles Rufus. Bastard. I hate him now. Sarah goes over to Emile’s head, and smashes it in two. Good.

Sarah and Morgan join Josiah at the campfire, and Morgan asks how Rufus is doing. Josiah says, he’s hurting pretty bad. Beans are his favorite, and Josiah thought they would bring him peace. Morgan says he’s sorry, but Josiah says Morgan didn’t do anything; he did. Morgan says he shouldn’t have to suffer, and offers to put Rufus down, but Josiah says he’s the one who has to do it. Rufus saved his life twice. He thought he was doing the right thing, keeping a promise. He thought it was about Emile the whole time, but it was about him. He didn’t want to let Emile go. Sarah says, she gets it. She and Wendell aren’t twins in conventional terms, but she was born prematurely. Her mom died, and she was in the neonatal unit. Every time they took the tubes out, she stopped sucking in air. When they put her next to a baby born on the same day, she started to breathe. She took her cue to breathe from Wendell. She knows why Josiah didn’t want to let him go. Every moment without Wendell, she can’t catch her breath.

Mercifully they don’t show us Rufus’s passing, and Josiah is tamping the dirt down on Rufus’s grave. He puts a bean can upside down on top of it. The three of them stand in front of one of the most incredible silhouettes of trees I’ve ever seen. Morgan says, sorry about Josiah’s brother, and Josiah says, he’s not like that. Morgan says, none of them were, and Sarah asks where Josiah is headed. Morgan says, Wendell needs a chair to get around; he needs help. He might know who would be helping him. Victor is collecting people because he wants to prove something to Morgan. If they leave now, they could make it by dawn. Josiah says he’d like to come. He can still hold up his end of the deal, and make sure Sarah sees her brother. Sarah asks if it’s okay with Momo, and Morgan says, yeah. Where they’re going, they’re going to need all the help they can get.

Standing on a wall outside Victor’s city, they look down to the zombie laden parking lot, then at Victor’s building. Sarah says, that it? and Morgan says, yep. On the wall, there’s a semi-enclosed guard post with a phone, and a sign that says,  history begins with a single step, will you take it? Sarah suggests Victor enjoys the smell of his own farts. Morgan says he’s got June and John’s dad, and Sarah says, let’s see if he has Wendell. She picks up the phone, and Howard comes up with a female guard. He asks why they’re here, and Sarah hangs up the phone. Morgan asks if Victor is too much of a coward to come himself. Victor comes up the stairs, and tells Howard, it’s okay. He’d rather have a face-to-face conversion to dispel any misconceptions. They were seen from miles away. He guesses Morgan came to see what Victor has that he doesn’t, but Morgan says, it’s not about him, and Sarah asks if her brother is in Victor’s town. Victor asks why she assumes he’s there, and Morgan tells him, because of what Victor said he was going to do, and Victor says, their instincts are correct; Wendell is there. Sarah asks if he’s okay, and Victor says, more than okay; he’s thriving. He has a knack for supply logistics management . He imagines it’s from his days of keeping Sarah on the road. She says she needs to see him, and Victor says, he remembers who stood by him when it mattered. She wasn’t among them. Josiah says, Sarah went through hell, and nearly died trying to find her brother, but Victor says, she’s not going in; none of them are, but Wendell can come out. However, it’s not a revolving door. If he comes out, he can’t come back in.

Victor asks if they think Wendell will make it out there, and Morgan says, they’ll manage. Victor says, like Morgan? Or didn’t he tell them? He, Grace, and the baby are barely scraping by. Howard says, it’s true. He saw it for himself. Sarah asks what he’s talking about, and Victor says, this new world is punishing. Does she really want what’s better for Wendell? He can protect Wendell from it. Sarah looks at the building for a moment, and says, don’t tell him she was there. If he knew, he’d come looking for her. Having been ignored since the beginning of the scene, Howard says, she’s in no position to be making… and Sarah says, please promise her that. Victor says, agreed, and leaves. Sarah starts to cry, and drops to her knees. Josiah tells her to breathe with him, and she says she didn’t want to let him go. Josiah says, she did the right thing. She did what he couldn’t do, and she’s still breathing. She says, yes, she is, and thanks him. He says, no, thank you; the both of them. She asks where he’s going, but he says he doesn’t completely know. There’s got to be other places. Morgan suggests Josiah come back with him; both of them can. What Victor said was right. They’re stretched thin, but they won’t always be. Josiah says he was exposed to the warhead for too long. They don’t want a sick man on their hands. Sarah says, he’s not getting sick, and gives him some medication, saying, she’d been saving it for Wendell, but she knows he’s save. Josiah says he still needs time before he’s ready, and she tells him, if he changes his mind, he knows how to reach them. He and Morgan nod to each other, and Josiah leaves. Sarah says she’d better get back to the fort, or they’ll wonder what happened to her. Morgan says, not for long. It can’t be safe there with the open warhead nearby. They need to keep everybody safe, and get ready for what happens next. Morgan goes down the stairs, and Sarah takes a last look at Victor’s building, then follows.

The Stalker with the wagon meets another Stalker on the road, who tells him, good job. The wagon Stalker says, they need to show Donald. He’s going to want to see this himself. The other Stalker says, what is it? and the wagon Stalker says, it’s the thing that’s going to get them exactly what they want. We see the warhead in the back of the wagon.

Next time, Victor says it’s a new world now, and wants to show everyone around; Teddi says, they’ve got to find Padre; and a boxing ring.

The Walking Dead: The World Beyond

Leo remembered trekking through the woods with Lyla, and other researchers, in his early CRM days. The guards with them were about to shoot a zombie, but Lyla said it was one of theirs, and it was corralled instead. Lyla told Leo, their geo-tracker was misfiring. She asked what Leo thought of research facility, and he said it was more than he imagined. In the present, Leo and the others looked at the paperwork Huck found, and Leo said it documented a large scale chemical event. They wondered if the CRM was covering up a chemical weapon, and Leo said, whatever it was, it was real, which sounds like something a genius researcher would say not at all. Felix said they had to make a decision or it would be made for them. Hope said they had to stay, and figure out what it meant. Iris said they’d told Silas not to wait for them if they didn’t show, and agreed Hope was right. They needed answers, and needed to make sure the CRM didn’t get away with it.

Huck said she was trying to find out if the research was part of something else, and admitted that her mother had overseen the Campus Colony and Omaha. Only Major General Beale could take on something that big, but her mother had to sign off on it. She explained that everything was kept in balance, and something must have jeopardized what the CRM had built. They must have thought Omaha and the Campus colony were a threat to the balance (sounds like Snowpiercer.) Leo told Huck that he needed more time, and the papers had to stay with Him. Huck told them it was smart having Indira turn them in, and they knew where to find her. Iris went off to send a message to Will.

Jadis ran into Huck, and said she was there doing a security audit. She took great satisfaction in investigating corruption and betrayal. She said Huck had been the one who trained her, and she hoped they could catch up. She saw Huck as her mentor, and the most dedicated soldier, who would slash her face and break her limbs for a cause. She asked Huck to come by for some rum later. She had weak links to find.

Percy helped Iris smuggle out a message to Elton. Lyla went to Leo’s lab, with some clothes for the Iris, Felix, and Elton aka Percy. They made plans for dinner, and when the tote bag holding the clothes fell off the table, Leo remembered Lyla dropping papers in the woods way back when. Papers just like the ones Huck swiped. The message was delivered to Elton, which he had to decode. Elton said the group wasn’t leaving the CRM, and Barca wondered what else they’d be doing. Will grabbed the note and instead of just saying their departure had been postponed, Iris said they were going to stop the CRM and burn this place to the ground. Indira said they were going to start a war.  

Leo met with Iris, Hope and Felix, and told them that he needed to know just how much Lyla knew. If she was there for dinner, she wouldn’t be in her lab, which was a broad hint that they should break in and look around. Felix went to Huck, who said it was way too dangerous, but he said she didn’t get to drop the problem in someone else’s lap, then walk away. In the middle of Huck trying to transfer Lyla’s information to her own keycard so they could get in her office, Felix wondered, what if what they were looking for wasn’t in her office? Huck looked on the computer, tracking where Lyla had been, and they determined her research was in a subbasement. Ah, the old using the subbasement that no one has access to as a hiding place trick.

Brody was not thrilled with Iris’s note, and said they had to take action. They should turn in the remaining two – i.e. Elton and Will – and warn the CRM, who had been their allies. Indira said she’d given her word to keep Elton and Will safe, but Brody said she’d given their word to keep the town safe. Indira said they’d been living with the CRM’s boots on their necks, and Brody said they needed to pick a side. He had no choice, but to vote no confidence in their chairperson. Outside, Will paced, and Elton said it was even worse than the note. Indira was sick, and needed dialysis and blood thinner to keep her alive. She got them from the research facility, and if they were planning on burning it down, they would destroy what she needed to live. Asha came out, and said they could stay for now, with zero explanation as to how that decision was made, since Brody was just saying Indira was incompetent. Will said, thanks, but no thanks. HE needed to get back inside the facility.

Felix said it seemed like Huck had done this before, and she told him about her husband making a mistake on the job training recruits because he’d been drinking. He promised to clean up his act, so she made the camera footage used to document the exercise he’d messed up couldn’t be used as evidence. Felix asked why, and she said she loved him; maybe she still did. She told Felix, once the power was cut, he’d only have two minutes inside. He wondered why he wasn’t the one cutting the power, and she said she knew where everything was, and could cover her tracks. What the CRM did wasn’t her, but there was nothing they could do to bring them back.

At dinner, Iris asked Lyla what she did before working there, and Lyla said she worked in Big Pharma. She’d worked on a variety of diseases, and Iris questioned her about animal testing, obviously being against it. Lyla asked if sacrificing a few mice wasn’t worth saving lives, and Iris asked, what if what they were doing was worse than the disease. In the end, it came down to how much of your own humanity and soul you were willing to sacrifice for the greater good. It was just life. Iris said it wasn’t just life; you always had a choice, and saying you didn’t was just an excuse, Hope suggested they go check on Felix, and Leo seconded that. Lyla wanted to jet, but Leo asked her to please stay.  

Iris walked outside, and Hope followed her, saying, Iris was supposed to stop her from doing stupid things, not the other way around. Iris said she didn’t know how Hope could stand it, but Hope said there were good people in there, helping with a breakthrough. It didn’t change what was done, but those people weren’t them. Iris told Hope that she’d killed a soldier because he was the enemy, and she’d do it again because that’s what they are. Everyone was ready on the outside. She told Hope what she’d written to Elton, that they were going to find out what the CRM was up to, stop them from doing it again, and then burn this place to the ground.

Huck radioed Felix from the roof, asking if he was ready, and told him that he had two minutes until the generator kicked in. She messed with the power supply, and it shorted out. Everything went dark, and Huck told Felix, go now. He went inside, and saw the zombie test subjects with patches of skin their missing, and the areas labeled in felt-tip pen. He went into another room, and found a cabinet with vials in it. He took one, and went into the next room. He radioed Huck, and said, whatever was used to take out Omaha, there’s more of it. He saw he had one minute and twenty-nine seconds, and heard an alarm. He ran to the door, but it had automatically locked. He frantically radioed Huck, but got no response.  

Will went over a map with Barca and Asha. He told them that when he got in, he’d let Iris know about their mom, and not to jeopardize her medicine. He owed Indira this. Asha asked him to take her and Elton, but he said if it went sideways, he needed them safe. Instead of Indira taking care of everyone else, someone was taking care of her for a change. Barca told Asha that he was sorry he broke his promise by telling their mom’s secret, but she said she was worried about her mom too. That was the thing about secrets, they didn’t stay secrets. She told Elton that she was going to pray, and he asked if he could come. The last time people left him who he cared about, they never came back, and he didn’t want be alone.

Lyla wanted to check on her lab, but Leo convinced her to stay, since the labs would be run by back-up generators. She said tonight brought up some things for her. There was something she hadn’t been honest with him about, but it was better if she showed him. He followed her out, taking the knife from the cheese board as he went past it. Just in case.

Felix kept trying to radio Huck, and said she couldn’t walk away from him, or what they did. Lyla brought Leo outside to a bench, and said he’d asked if she had a family before all this, and she should tell him what happened to them. At the start, she had a daughter, Mia, who was six. She was bitten by a zombie who’d gotten into the backyard. Her husband Kevin slept with Mia in her bed – she’d gotten so sick so fast, and he loved her so much. She went to check on them in the morning, and Kevin was on the floor, bleeding out, his neck almost chewed through. Mia… she’d changed. She wasn’t Lyla’s little girl anymore. A few hours later, Kevin wasn’t her husband. The phones had stopped working, most of the neighbors were gone, so she just kept them there. One day, she heard a crash, and found them pinned under a bookcase. That’s when she knew what she needed to do. She rigged up some extension cords and belts, so they couldn’t attack her, and found her medical kit. She did everything she could to fix them. She did things to them, horrible things; whatever she could think of to bring them back, but she couldn’t. She’d spent her life looking for cures for diseases, but couldn’t cure her family. They’re the reason she’s here doing this work. She couldn’t fix her family, but maybe someday she could fix the world.

Now freezing, Felix tried again to radio Huck, asking if she was okay. He needed her to say something. The door suddenly opened, and Huck said, let’s go. He asked, what hell happened? and she said, the back-up generator came on early. She needed to reprogram the card to open door. Now she had to wipe the access log, or she’d have a repeat of two years ago, but it would be worse. He handed her the vile, and told her, whatever it was, there was more of it. She said she’d give it to Leo, and to keep her posted. However it ended or whatever happened to her, she was with him.

Huck went to see Jadis, who said she’d been worried when Huck didn’t respond, and poured her a hefty drink. They sat down, and Jadis said she’d never talked about what she did get into the CRM. She’d been living by her wits in the wilderness, and had created a society. She told Huck, give them their own language, and give them theater, and it will bond them and separate them from everyone else. She loved her people, but lost them because she made the wrong alliances. Afterward, she had the opportunity to give the CRM something valuable, and got a new life. She felt she had safety, but her purpose was gone, then she realized it wasn’t; she’d just expanded her purpose. It was still to survive. Huck said Jadis was an ambitions survivor, and moving up. Jadis said her purpose was to create a new era. She said Huck’s mother had told her to keep an eye on Huck. She wondered if Elizabeth thought Huck had been out there too long and formed bonds. Before the world ended, she wasn’t Jadis, but the identity had helped her to live, so it’s who she is. Huck was stronger than most, and it was understandable if her mom was worried. Help her prove that her mother didn’t need to worry. Huck asked if she was under investigation, and Jadis said she could prove Huck was still herself, and Huck could talk her up to the people who mattered. She needed a promotion by the end of the year. Huck said she’d done everything to prove what she made of, and Jadis said Huck had done a lot, but there was always more.

Why anyone would slow walk through zombie laden woods at night, I don’t know, but Asha and Elton did. They fought off some zombies, and afterward, Asha explained her flower thing to Elton, saying it was to free their souls and hope their energy found its way back to creation. She had Elton place the flowers on their eyes, and they held hands to pray. Then there was an artistic shot of the moon…

Barca led Will on a path outside the Perimeter, saying, he knew the place from sneaking out. Will said he owed them everything, and Barca gave Will a gun that belonged to his dad. He told Will that his mom didn’t know the gun existed, and he’d never used it. Barca was suddenly shot from behind, and Will grabbed the gun and ran. Some guys on all terrain vehicles shot at Will.  

Next time, Silas claims he was lost, Iris asks why Hope is willing to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, and Jadis says, something valuable is missing and they need it back.

🗣 Jadis Speaks…

The comeback of the season.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-world-beyond-jadis-return-pollyanna-mcintosh-rick-grimes-movies-interview-season-2-episode-6/

💰 The Value Of Rick…

What Jadis gave the CRM.

https://screenrant.com/walking-dead-world-beyond-crm-rick-fate-jadis-valuable/

🐶 They Touched the Dog…

Farewell Rufus. We barely knew ye.

🐕 And To Recover…

Some very cute doggos.

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/photos-all-best-costumes-tompkins-square-halloween-dog-parade-2021

🎃 Turning Into a Pumpkin…

See you tomorrow for soap and the one and only Stud of the Sea. Until then, stay safe, stay wishing on stars, and stay never carrying around a zombie head. No good will ever come of it.

November 5, 2021 – Spencer Dethrones Himself, a Goodbye, Proud Papa, Allegedly, New Focus, Paid For, New Wives, Winter Louse, Lala’s Lot, Yet More Costumes, 3×3 Quotes & Blue

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Cameron switches the sign on Kelly’s door to open, and Josslyn comes in the side. He asks what she’s doing there this early, and she says she’s wishing him a good morning, and kisses him.

At the gallery, Trina says she’s dying to show Portia these new photos. She doesn’t know how the photographer does it. She doesn’t know how he has the time or the energy. Portia says she’s sure he gets some of his energy from a healthy breakfast, and holds up a bag from the MetroCourt. Trina says she forgot they were meeting for breakfast. She’s so, so sorry. Portia says, there’s no need to apologize. It’s totally worth it to see that she’s so invested, and in such a worthy cause. Trina says she means, as opposed to a boy?

Esme and Spencer come into Kelly’s, and Esme says, get a room. Spencer says, they get an A for enthusiasm, and a solid B for technique, and Esme says, they’re so cute together, stealing kisses. She says they’ll leave Cameron and Josslyn to it, and walks to the counter with Spencer. Josslyn says, a solid B. At least they didn’t get sent abroad to learn how to kiss. Cameron wonders where it’s written that every time they’re alone, they get interrupted, and she says she doesn’t know, but they’re both pretty resourceful, so they should do something about that.

Shawn gives Alexis a gift bag, and says, a gift for her; inspected and approved. She jostles the bag, and says, usually nail files to break out of prison are heavier. She asks, what’s the occasion? and he says he couldn’t get her nephew arrested, so he’ll settle for making him pay.

Nikolas and Ava come into the MetroCourt, where Carly is working on something. Sonny asks if she’s busy, and she hugs him, saying, she missed him. He says, he missed her too. The weather was bad, then it wasn’t. He was up in the air, and here he is. How does that work? She says, it works perfect. Tell her, how did things go with Cyrus? He says they’ll get into that later, and asks, what’s going on with Joey Novak? She says, not much to tell. He was a jerk, he was dealt with, so thank you. He says he hasn’t dealt with Joey yet. Ava and Nikolas approach them, and Ava says she heard about the incident with Joey Novak at The Savoy. If he’s that brazen, it can only mean one thing, right? Another mob war is heating up. So does Sonny still think Avery is safer with him?

Shawn says, the last time he saw Alexis, they had that conversation about Nikolas, and she says, regarding his involvement with Hayden’s shooting. He says he went to Spencer, and told him that his father arranged the attempt on Hayden’s life. Spencer took the bait and went straight to his father. Then he had Spinelli record the conversation. She says she finds it hard to believe Nikolas would come clean about what he did to Hayden, and he says, there was so much evasion and damage control, it was clear Spencer knew his father was guilty. She asks how Spencer took it, and he says, it was crushing. She asks, what about Nikolas? and he says, Nikolas covered all his bases; even Hayden knew what he did. He paid her off. So he’s going to use this money, and do the right thing.

Ava says, she and Nikolas feel, at least for the time being, Avery is much safer with them, and Sonny says, Avery is safe where she is at home. Ava says, she has more than one home; he knows that. Sonny suggests instead of trying to spend more time with Avery, they should find a family counselor for Spencer. That way, all three of them can have a little more peace. Sonny tells Carly, let’s get out of here, and they leave. Ava says, my God, the hypocrisy is staggering, and Nikolas says, still, Sonny could be right about Spencer.

Portia says, Trina isn’t kidding about these pictures; they are amazing. She’s so proud her daughter took the initiative to bring a National Geographic photographer of Joel Sartore’s stature to Port Charles. She looks at the tablet, and says, look at that one, and Trina says, that’s a golden snub-nosed monkey, and it’s one of the most endangered species on the planet. Sometimes, the females will deliberately have affairs with the reticent males behind the lead male’s back. Portia says, that takes some strategic skills, and Trina says, it has to for survival. Portia tells her, just be careful, and Trina says, right. You’d think she was going into the wilderness to photograph these animals herself, or is Portia talking about Spencer?

Cameron says, Spencer is there early, and asks if he’s trying to make up for going AWOL the other day. Spencer says, it hasn’t escaped his attention that today is payday, and Cameron says he’s sorry, but there’s no paycheck for Spencer. Spencer says, what? and Cameron takes an envelope out of his pocket, saying, congratulations on Spencer’s first earned money ever. (How is he getting paid when he just started, and ditched half a day? Hell, I’ll work at Kelly’s.) Spencer looks at the check, and says, wow, this is paltry, and Cameron says, he’s only worked there two days. What does he expect? Spencer shows Esme, and asks how he’s supposed to live on this, and she says, he’s not. He’s supposed to make things right with his father, play nice with Ava, and go back to being the prince he was born to be.

Shawn says, as much as he’d like to turn Nikolas in to the cops, there’s not enough evidence, and Alexis says, then he’s better off holding the threat over Nikolas’s head, and charging him a fortune to be quiet. He says he’s glad she agrees, and she says, typically, she’s not a fan of blackmail, but Nikolas deserves that in this case. So what is he going to do with his windfall? Is he going to buy a yacht? He says, no, the money isn’t coming to him personally. He wouldn’t take a dime from that corrupt bastard. Nikolas is setting up a trust for a non-profit. Shawn has some ideas for the greater good. She says, that is genius, and he laughs, thanking her. He asks if she’d care to join him as one of the administrators.

Ava asks if something else happened with Spencer, and Nikolas says, they had another confrontation. Ava says, about us? and Nikolas flashes back to Spencer questioning him about Hayden. She asks, what happened between him and Spencer?

Spencer says he can’t go back to his father, besides, Ava’s the one who controls the trust. She says, then go to Ava, but he says, he can’t give in to her. There has to be another way. He approaches Cameron, and says he needs more money than this. Cameron says he’ll get it, and Spencer says, great. When? Cameron says, a week from today, and Spencer asks if he can have an advance. Cameron says, no. Why does he need an advance? Spencer says, a decent lawyer can mean the difference between freedom and prison, and Cameron says he only passes out the checks; he doesn’t sign them. It’s not in his power to give Spencer an advance. He’s sorry. Esme tells Spencer to do what he needs to do, and after, they’ll get a hotel room and celebrate. Spencer asks if he can borrow Cameron’s car, but Cameron says, no. Borrow one of the delivery bikes. Does he know how to ride one? Spencer says he does, and Cameron tells him, wear a helmet. His mom’s a stickler about traumatic brain injuries.

Trina says she knows Portia is suspicious of Spencer. Good news, she is too. Ever since she found out he’s the one who’s been terrorizing Ava, she’s been keeping him at arm’s length. Portia says she’s glad to hear it. He’s a very troubled young man. Trina says, he’s just spoiled and angry; he’s not a psychopath. Portia tells her, she didn’t say he was a psychopath, but he needs help, and if he comes to Trina for it, she’s unqualified. Trina says, then Portia should know, he came to her the other night, but she told him she’s not a shoulder for him to cry on. Portia doesn’t have to worry about her; she’s got this. Portia says she trusts Trina to make good choices, and she’s proud of Trina, for everything; for the magnificent young woman she’s become. Trina says Portia and Taggert can take some credit for that, and Portia laughs and says, can we now? She has to get to work, and tells Trina not to forget breakfast; it’s the most important meal of the day. Trina says, some things never change, and she and Portia hug.

Carly and Sonny get out of the elevator at the hospital. Carly needs to pick up a prescription, but says she wants to hear more about Sonny’s meeting with Cyrus. He says, the only important thing Cyrus said to him was warning him about Joey Novak. He knew Joey was going to make a move, but he didn’t think it was going to be this stupid, or this quick. She says, it doesn’t make any sense. Joey approached her, and the next thing she knows, he was beaten within an inch of his life. So if Sonny’s not the one who ordered the attack, who was?

Esme sits down with Josslyn, and says, sorry if she overstepped with the get a room thing. Sometimes her mouth works faster than her brain. She thought she was being funny, and it wasn’t. Josslyn says, okay, and Esme says she was hoping they could put the tension between them in the rear view and start over. Josslyn says she’s got a lot of work to do, and Esme says she’ll let Josslyn do that. Esme goes over to Cameron, and tells him that Josslyn’s still upset with her. He says, she’ll get over it, and Esme says, he thinks so? He says, or she won’t; what does Esme care? She says, they’re Spence’s friends, and she wants to be friends with them too. She was going to pitch the cabin idea again, but Josslyn didn’t even give her a chance; she just shut Esme down. If they could all just get away for a day or two… He says, it’s a nice idea, but how are they supposed to do that, when she and Spence are having a hard time making rent? She says, they’ll figure it out, and if he and Josslyn would be more comfortable with separate bedrooms, she’s sure they can be accommodated. He asks why they’d need that, and she says she gets it. He’s a real gentleman that way.

Spencer comes into the gallery with a helmet in his hand, and Trina says, he rode a bike there? Did his chauffeur call in sick? He says he borrowed a delivery bike, and she says, and here he is – again. He says he’s not stalking her, if that’s what he’s implying, and she says, isn’t stalking kind of his thing? He says he deserved that. He’s not actually there to see Trina; he wants to talk to Ava. She asks why he needs to do that, and he says, he needs to tell Ava that he accepts her marriage to his father. She asks who he thinks he’s fooling. He wants his money.

Nikolas says, he and Spencer argued about something that happened years ago, long before Ava was in the picture. He’s afraid he’s lost Spencer for good, but she says, Spencer might think that he hates Nikolas right now, but he will cool down. He has to, right? He needs his father’s financial support. He says he doesn’t want Spencer to just come back for money, but she says, beggars can’t be choosers. She knows it’s not the most desirable or admirable way to rebuild their relationship, but it is a beginning. Spencer will come home to him.

Alexis tells Shawn, congratulations on turning her nephew’s wrongdoing into something really good. The non-profit is going to be amazing, she knows it, but she can’t administer from there. He asks if Nikolas didn’t offer to fix it for her, and she says, with that awesome gubernatorial pardon, if she keeps her mouth shut about Hayden. He says, how about it? but she says she can’t. He asks, why? It seems like she had a pretty good life out there. Doesn’t she want it back?

Portia goes in to see Joey, and introduces herself. She says he had an extremely rough night last night, but he’s going to be okay. Can he communicate to her his level of pain? He grimaces, and she says she can take care of that, and adjusts his intravenous medication. He says, why… what… and she says, someone attacked him last night outside The Savoy nightclub. The police will want to talk to him at some point. His pain meds should kick in soon, and she’ll be back to check on him in a little while. She leaves.

Carly tells Sonny, whoever went after Joey moves fast. She’d barely gotten home from The Savoy, when Dante was knocking on her door, wanting to ask her questions. He’s going to want to talk to Sonny. Sonny says he expected it, but before he does anything else, he needs to see Joey. Portia comes by, and says hi, and Sonny asks how she is. She says, Curtis told her what happened at The Savoy. Is Carly doing all right after the incident? Carly says she’s fine, and Portia asks if Sonny is there about Mr. Novak. Sonny says, first of all, that incident should have never happened, and if she could tell Curtis he apologizes? She says she’s sure Curtis would appreciate it, and would tell Sonny that it’s not necessary. It’s good to see them both. She leaves, and Carly says, what’s next? and he says he’s going to end this. He’s going to see Joey right now.

Joey’s buddy asks if he’s getting any good drugs, and Joey says, not good enough; it hurts all over. It just happened so fast. He was just talking to her at the club, he went to get his car, and then, he doesn’t know. Dude asks if Joey remembers who got him. How many of them were there? Sonny’s guy Frank opens the door, and Sonny is there. Dude says, Mr. Corinthos, how are you this fine morning? Joey just woke up. Please tell him… Sonny says, take a hike, and dude jets. Sonny tells Frank, close the blinds, and grabs the nurse call button so Joey can’t use it. He says, here’s the thing. Joey threatened his wife, and there’s no coming back from that. He tells Frank to wait outside, and Joey says, he told Sonny’s guy last night, from now on he’ll stay away; he gives Sonny his word. Sonny says, from now on doesn’t fix what he did last night. Joey says he’s sorry. It was a mistake. He was angry and grieving. Sonny says, he should be sorry, but that’s more than his uncle; he wasn’t sorry at all. As a matter-of-fact, he tried to take out Carly and Jason, right up until his car blew up. But does Joey see what he’s talking about? He leans closer, and says, if Joey threatens anybody he cares about, he’ll make Joey disappear. Joey says, all right. What does Sonny want to make this go away?

Carly goes the reception desk, and Elizabeth says she heard Nina was arrested. Carly says, arrested, extradited, and released the next day on bail. Elizabeth says, after keeping Sonny away from Carly all those months, now she’s allowed to walk around free? Carly says, it’s unbelievable, and Elizabeth says, she must be furious. Carly says she’s beyond furious, and Elizabeth says, honestly, if it happened to her, nothing would stop her from destroying the person who came between her and her family.

Cameron says, he’s a gentlemen? Thank you? Esme says he knows what she means. It’s really sweet, like a Jane Austen hero. Honestly, she wishes she and Spence would have waited before they got so close. Sex is no way to resolve disagreements. A way to put them aside, but talking them out is so much healthier. So it’s good he and Joss will have that foundation of communication before they take it to the next level. Cameron says he needs to work in the kitchen, and Esme goes back to Josslyn’s table. She asks how studying is going, and Josslyn says she’s learning a lot. Esme says, about what? and Josslyn says, manipulative conniving women who will do or say anything to get what they want no matter who they hurt. Esme says she knows they got off on the wrong foot, but that’s a little… Josslyn holds up her book, and says, Lady Macbeth. Esme says, right. Out, damned spot. Josslyn says, yet Esme thought she was talking about her. Esme might want to think about that. Esme says, even lady M had a conscience, like she does, and Josslyn tells her, saying she’s just like Lady Macbeth is not the best case she could make for herself. Esme asks if they can’t just start over, and Josslyn asks if she has a time machine. Esme says, think about it. The four of them going away together. They can get some girl time away from the boys, and understand each other better. Josslyn says she thinks they understand each other just fine, and Esme says, if she’s worried about approaching Cam… Josslyn asks why she’d be worried, and Esme says, he’s already on board with them renting a cabin for a few days, separate rooms for Joss and Cam, of course (🍷).

Alexis tells Shawn that she misses her family. She sees them all the time, but it’s not the same. She misses being at home with them around the dinner table, her girls fighting, her disapproving of Kristina’s life choices, just so Kristina can throw prison in her face. He says, it is a great house, and she says, Julian bought it for her when his mafia ties blew up her other one. They sit, and he says, she must have some happy memories of the place. She says, most of them are pleasant. She thinks like, fifty-one and a half percent. What does he like about it? He says, the kitchen, and she says, it had a kitchen? She knew it did; she almost burned it down. He says he enjoys it. He turns on the music, and whips up a couple of meals for TJ and Molly, who barely get to eat. She asks what he makes, and he says he could tell her, but it’s probably different from what she’s eating there, and would be a cruel and unusual punishment. Seriously, he loves the place. She gets up, and says she does miss it, and he says he knew it. She says, that is not a positive statement, but he says, it could be. Walk out of this place, and help him make the non-profit a force for the good. She says, it’s different for him. He bested Nikolas, and made him pay for it. He’s her nephew. She tried instill a sense of right and wrong in him, and failed miserably, and she’s not going to let him be the reason she gets out of there.  

Ava says, Nikolas knows she’s right. Soon Spencer will realize he misses the life he was born to. Nikolas says, when Spencer was younger, he had a distain for the locals; he called them the townies. He won’t want to see himself as one of them. She says, they can use his own snobbery against him, and he says, then he should take as a win if Spencer comes back for the money. She says, not if, my love, when, and he says, when he comes back for the money.

Spencer tells Trina, it’s not about the money. He really wants to make peace with Ava. Trina says, no he doesn’t. She thought they’d gotten somewhere when he apologized for using their friendship, hoping she wouldn’t hate him. She has to hand it to him; it sounded like he meant it. He says he did, but she says, it’s clear to her that he has no respect for her or Ava. What is it he really wants? Is the job too hard? Is it beneath him? Because he went from swearing he’d never speak to Ava again, to coming in here, helmet in hand, hoping to snow Ava into believing he accepts her back in his father’s life. He says, okay, yes, he needs money, and she says, good luck with that. He says, for a lawyer, so he can get a place for him and Esme. They have no time alone. They can’t even afford to go out to eat. This is no way to live. She says, oh my God, he is so pathetic. He’s nothing more than a spoiled child of privilege, and worst of all, he’s a liar. He wants to trick Ava into thinking he’s accepted her into their family, so he can get some cash, so he doesn’t have to slum it, working for a living like the rest of them. She’s done with him. Get out.

Sonny tells Joey, his terms are that he wants everything. Everything that’s left of Joey’s uncle’s organization; Novak’s holdings here and offshore. Joey says, but that’s worth… and Sonny says, he knows what it’s worth. That’s what he wants. Joey says, the family… and Sonny says, the family’s not going to take it well, but that’s not his problem. That’s between Joey and them. Joey said he’d heard Sonny changed, since he got back from where he was. Sonny says, he did, and sits on the bed, leaning on Joey’s arm in the process. Joey makes in pain sounds, and Sonny says, sorry. He didn’t mean to do that; out of habit. He did change. The old him would have handled this differently. The new him is handling it this way. He’s letting Joey walk out of here, but if he does anything like this again, if he threatens anyone Sonny loves, Sonny is going to take him out. Joey says, okay, and Sonny says, okay what? Joey says, he’ll give Sonny everything; all of it is his. Sonny says, you know what? He laughs, and tells Joey, he never thought he’d say this, but great doing business with him. He opens the blinds and looks out. He says, Joey never should have tried to fill his uncle’s shoes. Has he ever heard of a word called hubris? A friend of his told him about it while he was away. Hubris. It’s like arrogance on steroids, and you know what? It’s made way better men than Joey go down fast and hard. He leaves.

Carly says, she would have thought Elizabeth would advise her to forgive and forget, and Elizabeth says, then she would be wrong. Carly says she’ll see Elizabeth around, and Elizabeth says she really hopes Carly gets the justice she deserves. Carly leaves, and Portia comes over to Elizabeth. She says she wants to thank Elizabeth again for the sketch she did of the mystery man. Elizabeth says she’s happy to help. Did Curtis recognize him? Portia says, Curtis didn’t, but TJ did. So did the bartender at The Savoy.

Esme says she knows she and Josslyn can find some common ground. All they have to do is spend a bit more time together. With her and Spence being in such close quarters at his grandmother’s, she knows it would be good for Spence to get away too. Josslyn says, it sounds like what Esme needs is some alone time, just her and Spencer. Esme says she understands why Josslyn is nervous, but maybe if she and Cam spend some time alone together, she can get past whatever’s stopping her from being… Josslyn says, from being what? and Esme says, from being as beautiful, and as close as two people can be. She says she has to study too, for her internship. She needs to learn everything there is to know about the criminally insane. Surprisingly, Josslyn doesn’t say something like, there probably isn’t much for her to learn on that front, and Esme leaves. Josslyn goes over to Cameron, and he says he was wondering what she was doing later. She says, funny. She was just going to ask him the same thing.

Nikolas says he has to wait Spencer out, and Ava says, exactly. Let him come crawling back. Trust her; he will. Nikolas thanks her, and says she makes him feel like he might actually get his son back. He sees Shawn come in, and says, if she’ll excuse him… She says, business? and he says, business. He walks over to Shawn, and gives him a manila envelope, saying, it’s all set up the way Shawn wants it. The money’s in a trust, the non-profit has been filed, Shawn is the administrator, and has the ability to appoint other administrators as he sees fit. Shawn says he knows a good lawyer who will look at it, and Nikolas says, it’s perfectly legal. So they’re finished. Shawn says, for now. Nikolas asks what Shawn means, and Shawn says, he means if the non-profit needs additional funding, Nikolas will provide the funds. And if Nikolas ever screws him over again, he promises Nikolas will be very, very sorry. He leaves, and Ava walks over. She says, now Nikolas can tell her what that was all about – the truth. He says, okay, but he’d rather do it someplace quieter. She says, anywhere he likes, and he says, just after he makes a call.

Spencer says, Trina, please, and she asks why he’s still there. She asked him to leave. She’s working on a very important project, and doesn’t have time for him. He says he’s sorry. He doesn’t know what to do, and she says, she told him what to do. She told him, go to work, and be his own man. Not Esme’s boyfriend, and not his father’s son. Not some money grubbing little phony. Be himself. Be the guy who convinced her to go to her graduation party, not the creep who rigged the sprinklers to shower her with fake blood. He says he’s apologized for that a million times, and she says she knows. When she first met him, or rather when she met Victor, sure, he was lie, but he was a much better person than this mess she’s seeing in front of her. If he wants to do right, find him. Find the part of him that rises above the selfish idiot she sees in front of her. Be the person who learns from his mistakes, and be a better person, the bigger one. One she might be able to respect, and maybe someday call her friend. This person he is now is no one she wants to know.

Nikolas and Ava walk into the gallery, and Ava says she takes it he’s there to see Trina. He says, actually he was looking for her, and Ava says, is that so? Nikolas says, don’t tell him that he’s finally going to make peace with Ava. Spencer looks at Trina.

Josslyn says, her dorm room’s out, and Cameron says he thought Trina was busy with the art exhibit. Josslyn says, she is, except when she’s not. Trina’s schedule has become completely unpredictable. What about his house? He says, tonight’s his mom’s birthday, and she says, happy birthday to his mom. A parental birthday party is probably not the best opportunity for alone time. He says they have just a little party and cake planned, but after that, his mom is going out with friends. She says, and his brothers? and he says, they’re at sleepovers. So does she want? She says, yeah, she does. Esme watches.

Spencer says, he just wants to tell them, he’s happy Nikolas is with Ava, and Nikolas says, he’s glad to hear that. Spencer says he also wanted to let them both know that he no longer wishes to be a prince. He doesn’t want one single filthy penny of their family’s money. From now on, he intends to find his own way in the world, and he will. Nikolas says, he’s proud… and Spencer says, as of now, he’s no longer his father’s son. He’s no longer Nikolas’s son. He starts to cry, and says he’s no longer a Cassadine. Goodbye, Nikolas. Goodbye, Ava. He thanks Trina for what she said. She showed him the way, and he’ll be forever grateful. He walks out, and everyone just looks sad.

Shawn comes back to Spring Ridge, and Alexis says, just in time for her to thank him for this beautiful scarf. (It is very pretty.) She puts it on, and he says he hates to say, you’re welcome, at the same time he’s asking a favor. He holds out the envelope, and asks if she’ll have a look. She says, sure, taking the papers out, and sitting down. He says, Nikolas swears it’s legit, but he doesn’t trust Nikolas as far as he could throw him. She says she thinks he could probably throw Nikolas a fair distance, and looks through the papers. She says, it’s a first glance, but it seems to be in order. It looks like Shawn is the administrator of a well-funded nonprofit. He says, he can appoint other administrators. Consider his offer on the table permanently. The warden comes in, and says he has some good news. The governor issued Alexis a pardon. Alexis seems skeptical, and he says he’s just as surprised as she is, but it’s official. She’s going to be released.

Portia tells Elizabeth, she doesn’t know what it is, but there’s something about that man in the sketch. Or maybe she’s overreacting to a coincidence. Elizabeth says, want to know what she thinks? Trust her instincts. The elevator comes, and Portia says, good advice. She thanks Elizabeth, and gets in.

In another elevator, Sonny says he doesn’t think Joey is going to do anything stupid like that again, but Carly asks if he’s met the man; he’s pretty stupid. Sonny says, but he’s alone; he has no back up. Carly asks what Sonny did, and he says he took everything the Novaks had; their holdings, their people, everything. She says, really? and he laughs and says, yeah. She asks what he thinks the Novaks will say about that, and he says, to him, probably nothing. To Joey, probably a lot. She says, so instead of eliminating him, Sonny gave him a fate worse than death, and Sonny says, mercy is a funny thing. She says, just when she thought he couldn’t impress her more. Did Joey give him any idea who attacked him? He says, not at all, and she says, if it wasn’t Sonny, and it wasn’t her, who did it?

On Monday, Esme asks Spencer exactly how close he got to someone, Peter tells Britt there’s only one way off the island for her, Diane says it sounds like Carly misses being the one in charge, and Sonny says there’s something else he can do for someone.

😢 Ciao, Papa…

A sweet tribute from a loving son.

🎶 On a Happier Note…

The circle of life and all that.

👠 Picture Of Privilege…

I hate to say it, but it sounds like something that would come out of Ramona’s mouth.

💎 Phew…

Out of the hotseat and into the courtroom. Maybe.

💸 The Kindness Of Almost Strangers…

They were probably afraid of a lawsuit.

💰 The Wives You Didn’t Know You Needed…

Carolyn Stanbury? Maybe Lindsay Lohan? Excessive spending? Count me in.

https://autos.yahoo.com/autos/bravos-real-housewives-dubai-announcement-143820073.html

🤪 Old Frat Boy House…

These people all need to do something more meaningful with their lives. And probably get therapy.

Ciara From ‘Winter House’ Says Austen Kroll ‘Doesn’t Really Want’ Lindsay Hubbard – but Will They Sleep Together Again?

🍸 First World Problems…

Oh just cry, eat some ice cream, and move on.

🎃 Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop…

More costumes. From the soap world.

Halloween personified.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2021/10/29/heidi-klum-halloween-costume-2021-video-exclusive-pics/6175859001/

👩🏽‍💻 Quotes of the Week

Leaders who win the respect of others are the ones who deliver more than they promise, not the ones who promise more than they can deliver. – Mark A. Clement

No man can tell whether he is rich or poor by turning to his ledger. It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich according to what he is, not according to what he has. – Henry Ward Beecher

It is mental slavery to cling to things that have stopped serving their purpose in your life. – Chinonye J. Chidolue

Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then do it. – Ann Landers

There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them. – Ray Bradbury

If you don’t believe me, then google it. – Cesar Faison (Anders Hove), General Hospital

If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in 5 years there’d be a shortage of sand. – Milton Friedman

Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced. – James Baldwin

We’re at different points in our life, because we’re actually at different points in our life. – Robby Fakhouri, 90 Day Fiancé: The Single Life

🃏 Knowing When To Fold ‘Em…

Halloween is over – hello, left over fun size special dark Hershey bar – and it’s only a breath before we roll into what’s known as the holiday season. Try not to forget that little holiday called Thanksgiving. It always gets lost in the shuffle. See you in the Dead zone, but until then, stay safe, stay uninfluenced by so-called influencers, and stay remembering, just because someone is spoiled and angry, doesn’t mean they’re a psychopath. Most of the time.

November 4, 2021 – Ned Gets a Surprise, Ark Artistry, Flowers On the Runway, Flashes, Too Kind, More Costumes & Papa

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

On the phone, Ava says the artist was very pleased with their offer… If they send the payment, she’ll ship the piece to Paris… Yes. Au revoir. Nikolas walks in, and she asks to what she owes this pleasure. He says, after their separation, does he really need a reason to see his lovely wife? She says, that’s very romantic… and a little suspect. Might he be covering an ulterior motive? Shawn comes in, and Nikolas thanks him for coming, and tells Ava that he and Shawn have some business to discuss. Can they use her back room? She says, it’s all his, and asks if there’s anything she can do to facilitate. He says she already has by lending them the room. They shouldn’t be long. He kisses her, and goes in the back with Shawn, but I don’t think she’s buying what he’s selling.

Harmony asks Alexis if she can help with anything before she goes, and Alexis looks at Ryan, and says, maybe she could take the psychopath back to his room. Harmony says, sorry, but Ryan has another hour. But since Alexis is uncomfortable with him, maybe she should reconsider their earlier conversation. Alexis asks if she means Nikolas’s offer to have the governor pardon her. She thinks she should be done with making deals with the devil. Spencer comes in, along with Esme wearing a work uniform, and asks which devil they’re talking about.

Trina is looking at her tablet when Ned walks in. He says, wow. Those photos are beautiful. Where did they come from? She says, it’s called the Photo Ark Project, and he says he’s heard of it. He asks if National Geographic isn’t responsible for creating it, and she says, Joel Sartore is the photographer and a National Geographic explorer. His mission is to document every species living under human care. Ned says, that’s incredible. How many species has he already documented? She says, he just reached twelve thousand. He’s been doing it for fifteen years. He says, that’s a great idea. He imagines a lot of the species are endangered, and she says she’s afraid so, but she knows he didn’t come there to gush about the Photo Ark. How can she help him? He says he’s looking for a last minute gift for Olivia, and Trina asks if he forgot her birthday. He says, this is more of a gesture of goodwill. He hopes. (See more on The Photo Ark below.)

Olivia stumbles around behind the bar at the MetroCourt, when Robert comes in. She yells, Robert! and he asks if she’s okay. She says she’s great.

Dante walks into the hospital, and tells Epiphany that they got a call about an assault victim. Does she know anything about that? She says, a man was found beaten and brought to the hospital, and he asks if they have an ID. She says, Joseph Novak. He’s in ICU; it was a severe beating. He nearly died.

Curtis tells Portia that he doesn’t like the idea of this man going around Port Charles, and asking her and TJ questions about him, or working Nika at his club. Something’s not right if he won’t talk to Curtis himself. Portia says she was worried about Cyrus, but it could be something more commonplace. Maybe he owns a competing nightclub, and he’s checking out Curtis’s strengths and weaknesses. He says, something about him seems familiar, but definitely not from hanging out here at the club. Sam comes in, and asks if he always keeps his door unlocked when he’s closed, and he tells her, welcome back. She says she wanted to tell him what she found out about Drew.

Valentin is looking at photos of Charlotte on his phone, when Anna brings Victor in. Valentin says, hello, Victor. Or should he call him dad?

Olivia throws her arms around Robert, saying, she’s so happy to see him. He says, tell him she didn’t drive, and she says she took a car from The Savoy. She knows she left her phone back here. She was  going to find it and… who cares about her. He’s here. Did he catch Peter? And did he find Maxie’s baby? He says, found Peter, lost him again, couldn’t find Louise. She says she’s so sorry, and starts to guzzle his drink, but he takes it away. He asks, what about her? Leave nothing out, and remember she doesn’t have to drink herself sideways to feel good. She says, it’s Ned. They’ve tried. They’ve tried everything, but she’s afraid things between them are worse than ever.

Ava tells Ned, what a pleasant surprise. Is he in the market for some artwork? Trina says, he’s looking for a gift for his wife, and he says he knows you can’t buy forgiveness. Ava says, but you can sure as hell try. Has he looked around? Has he seen anything Olivia might like? She suggests Trina show him the pieces they have that aren’t displayed, and she says she was showing Ned the Photo Ark Project. He says, the collaboration with National Geographic. The photographer, Joel Sartore, is documenting every species living in captivity. Look at the photos; they’re incredible. Ava looks at the tablet, and says, they are, and Trina says, he’s been to wildlife sanctuaries and zoos all over the world. Ned says, the photographer is using it to bring awareness to conservation across the globe, and Ava says, it’s wonderful work, but what does it have to do with the gallery? Trina says, Ava has been encouraging her to put together an art exhibit of her own for extra credit in art class. What if she organizes an exhibit at the gallery hosting the Photo Ark Project?

Alexis tells Spencer, she and Harmony were just talking about ethics, and asks if it isn’t a little late for a visit. Esme says she’s volunteering at Spring Ridge; it’s part of her course work at PCU. Spencer says, Esme is thinking of being a psyche major, so she’s going to be working with some of the patients here. Alexis says, great, and Esme says, for her night shift, the best boyfriend in the world offered to drive her to work. Spencer says he did have an ulterior motive. He wanted a few minutes with his Aunt Alexis before visiting hours are over. Esme tells Harmony, the warden said Harmony would show her the ropes, and Harmony says she was just about to clock off… but, sure. She’ll show Esme around. They leave and Alexis asks, what happened to Spencer’s hand? He says, espresso shots can be hazardous, and she says, he’s pulling his own espresso shots? He says, it wasn’t for him. He’s working at Kelly’s. She laughs, and says, he has a job… at Kelly’s? He says, it’s a bit of a long story, and she says, it’s either him or Dostoyevsky. They sit, and she says, lay it on her.

Shawn tells Nikolas, no wires or microphones. Not that they’d work here; this place is like Fort Knox. Nikolas says that’s why he suggested Ava’s gallery. The security measures insure complete privacy. Has Shawn given any more thought to their conversation the other day? Shawn says, the deal for his silence? and Nikolas says, half a million dollars; it’s just an opening bid. Shawn says, Hayden may have made her peace with Nikolas trying to kill her, but she wasn’t the only victim here. He’s not talking about his years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Nikolas asks what he’s talking about, and Shawn says, Naomie Dreyfuss. Nikolas killed her to make sure he and Sam never found Hayden.

Anna tells the guard she’s got it covered, and he leaves. Valentin says he doesn’t need Anna to stay, but she says she’s not leaving him alone with a megalomaniac. He says he doesn’t need her to babysit him; he can handle it himself. She says she’s sure she can, but she’s still not leaving him alone. Victor says, my oh my, you can cut the sexual tension with a knife, and Anna tells him to get over himself. The only reason he’s there and not the Hague is that the Bureau wants to keep him close to Anna during her investigation. Victor says, in case he cracks. The Bureau’s wasting its time. Valentin suggests not wasting anyone’s time. If Victor wants to make a deal with the Bureau without his and Anna’s help, he can forget that. He needs to help them find Peter and bring him to justice.

Robert pushes a cup of coffee toward Olivia, and says it will help her feel better, but she pushes it back. She says he has to promise everything she’s told him is in the cone of silence; not even Monica knows this. He says he’s a former Bureau agent. He knows when to keep his trap shut. Sorry to hear about Leo though. She says, there’s nothing to be sorry about. Leo is just fine. He’s got his own interests, his own way of being. It’s Ned who’s convinced Leo is on the spectrum after having one conversation with this stupid doctor who isn’t even an autism specialist. Plus, he’s trying to sue the Quartermaines for stocks of ELQ. Plus, broke doctor/patient confidentiality when he went blabbing his mouth all over to Brook. Robert says, sounds like a real keeper, and she says she knew he would understand. There’s no way her son has autism. He says, she knows how he feels about her husband, but he does love Leo, and looks upon that boy like he’s his own. Is it possible his concerns are worth at least a follow-up? She says, if she thought there was any chance that her son actually had something wrong with him, does Robert not think she’d make an appointment with a specialist? He says she knows her son, and they’re very close. She asks if Robert thinks they’re too close. Is he saying she smothers him? He says, it’s called loving your child. He loves his daughter, but he doesn’t smother her. She says, maybe she’s just seeing what she wants to see, and he asks why she’s telling him this and not Ned?

Trina says, the photographer’s on tour to support his new book, Photo Art Wonders. Mr. Sartore free in two weeks, but for one day only. Then he’s not available for at least a year. Ava says she loves Trina’s enthusiasm, and that she wants to spearhead her own project, but she doesn’t think it’s going to be feasible. Trina says she checked the gallery’s calendar, and they’re not hosting any events in those two weeks, but Ava says, the event would have to be underwritten. She doesn’t think it’s possible to find someone to bankroll that kind of event on such short notice. Ned says, how about him? Geez, how about Nikolas? He has more money than God.

Dante asks if Joey has said anything, but Epiphany says he’s still unconscious. A good Samaritan found him at Van Nyes, and called 9-1-1. Dante wonders what he was doing there, and she says, it’s a shortcut to the Harbor View district. A lot of nightlife has sprung up there recently. He says, like The Savoy.

Curtis says, so there never was a plane crash, and Drew’s been alive this whole time, and Sam says, alive, and being held in a compound on the island of Crete. But by the time they got there, Anna and Robert had seen Peter shoot Drew, and Drew fell into the sea. The WSB and the investigators searched for him, but there was no sign of him. If she’d only gotten there sooner… Portia says she hears what ifs from her patients all the time. Looking back doesn’t change anything. The only thing you can do, is think about what you can do now. Sam says she has to talk to Scout, but Portia says, she doesn’t have to talk to Scout immediately. Nothing is going to change overnight. She doubts Peter is going to come back to Port Charles, knowing she, Dante, and Anna are looking for him. Why doesn’t she take this time to think about this? She’s the parent; she controls the narrative.

Victor agrees Peter needs to be brought to justice, but unfortunately, Peter’s whereabouts are the only leverage he has. Anna says, if Victor is innocent, as he claims, why does he need a deal for immunity? He says he ran the Bureau, remember? Once they have their sights on you, proving your innocence is well-nigh impossible. Valentin says Victor knows what Peter’s capable of, and Victor says he knows Peter needs to be stopped, but he also has to look out for his own interests. Valentin says, his daughters are potential targets. If Victor is telling the truth, they’re his granddaughters. Anna says, and if he’s Valentin’s father, wouldn’t he want to cooperate for the family’s sake? Victor says he didn’t lie about that; he is Valentin’s father. Valentin says, forgive him if he doesn’t jump out of this hospital bed for a celebratory embrace, and Victor says he kind of thought Valentin would. Knowing he’s a Cassadine after all, entitled to all the benefits and curses that come with that bloodline.

Nikolas tells Shawn, he had nothing to do with Naomie Dreyfuss’s death; he thought she killed herself. Shawn says, suicide was ruled out, and it was deemed a homicide, but Nikolas says he’s heard nothing about this. Shawn says, because the case is low priority for the police. It’s bad enough Violet hasn’t seen or heard from her mother in over a year, now she’s lost her grandmother too. Where is the justice in that? Nikolas says he’s not disagreeing with Shawn, but since he had nothing to do with it, he’d rather discuss the matter at hand. Shawn says Nikolas is making a charitable donation for his silence, and Nikolas says his charitable donation to the cause of Shawn’s choice, in exchange for Shawn not ruining his reputation with his baseless accusations. Shawn says he could take Nikolas’s money, but this was never about money for him. Nikolas asks what else he can give Shawn, and Shawn says, Nikolas didn’t want to get his hands dirty doing it himself, so he hired a shooter whose still out there somewhere, free as a bird. Nikolas says, this is all conjecture, and Shawn says, let him conjecture this. Give up who actually fired the gun.

Spencer tells Alexis that Doc paid his bail, but there were conditions, and one of them was that he get a job. She says she’s surprised he didn’t turn right around, and walk back into jail, and Spencer laughs. He says, working at Kelly’s has other benefits too. He needs to get back in his father’s good graces. Did Nikolas tell her that he put Ava in control of his money? She says she heard, and he says he needs to show his father that he’s responsible, and he can never speak ill of Ava again. She says, let her know how that works out, and he says, without access to his trust fund, he can’t hire a decent attorney to defend him. She says, he’s a first time offender. Maybe they can plead him out with a suspended sentence and some public service. He says she could plead him out; his public defender would have to remember his name first. Maybe if he agrees to his father’s terms, his father will pay for an A-list attorney. Alexis flashes back to Nikolas trying to barter for her dropping the investigation in exchange for him getting her a pardon, and she tells Spencer, going to his father is a terrible idea.

Harmony says she should have realized the psyche patients are locked in their cells for the night, and Esme looks at Ryan, and asks if Ryan has special privileges. Harmony says, not really. It’s because he’s immobile no one worries he’ll escape. What exactly drew Esme to working with criminals, mentally ill ones at that? Esme says she believes in the power of redemption; that despite our past sins, we can all do better. Harmony knows that better than anyone, doesn’t she?

Trina hugs Ned, thanking him, and Ava tells him, please don’t feel any pressure to underwrite the exhibition. He says, to be honest, there’s a method to his madness. Olivia is crazy about animals, and if he underwrites the exhibition in her name, it might go a long way to her seeing he’s not such a bad guy. Trina tells Ava that she’s going to reach out to the Photo Ark people right now; maybe they can get a date on the books. She leaves, and Ave says, a generous gift, something unique and timely, will also go a long way in helping his troubled marriage. He takes it she has something in mind, and she says, a small framed piece, something that will look terrific in Olivia’s office at the MetroCourt. The artist is on her way up, and one of these days, her works are going to be worth a fortune. He thanks her, saying, he trusts her judgement. A tip to the bartender, and she should be able to sneak it into Olivia’s office as a surprise

Robert says, Olivia is admitting to him that she thinks there might be some validity to Ned’s concerns, but rather than talk to Ned about it, she continues to push him away. She says, he’s right, and he says, what was that again? She tells him, stop it; he heard exactly what she said. He says, then what’s the problem? and she says, the problem is, she and Ned don’t communicate. They talk, but they don’t talk to each other; they talk at each other. He says, he’s been down that trail, but she says, not with her. She can tell him anything because unlike Ned, he actually listens.  

Valentin says he didn’t invite Victor there to discuss the Cassadine family tree, and Victor says, give him some credit. he managed to protect Valentin from Mikkos. If he’d known for a second that Valentin was Victor’s son with Helena, he would have killed Valentin without hesitation. Valentin says, he would have thought it was Helena’s doing, her sick revenge in getting Mikkos to accept her bastard son as his own. Victor says, Helena saw it as revenge. He saw it as hiding Valentin in plain sight. For what it’s worth (🍷), Valentin was sent away to boarding school in England, got a degree from Oxford, and was accepted into the WSB training program, despite his physical limitations. Valentin says, when he thought he was living his own life, Victor was pulling the strings. Victor says he made sure certain doors were open to Valentin, but if he’d failed, Victor wouldn’t be able to help him. He wasn’t worried. From an early age, Valentin proved himself to be eminently capable. Valentin says Victor is right about that. Peter’s at large. He’s got his father’s contacts and Faison’s money. He’s tried to kill Valentin, and doesn’t like Victor much either. So save himself, and help them find Peter.

Curtis raises his glass, and says, to Drew, a good man. He, Sam, and Portia clink glasses, and Dante walks in. Sam asks what he’s doing there, and Curtis says, they’re closed, but they’re always open for him. They were just raising a glass to Drew. Dante says he’d love to, but unfortunately he’s here on official business. Sam asks, what’s going on? and he says, Joey Novak was found beaten to a pulp about a block away from the club. Witnesses said they saw him here. Sam says, he doesn’t think Curtis… and Dante says, no, he doesn’t, but he has to ask. Where was Curtis tonight after the club closed? Curtis says he was here with Portia; he can show Dante the video footage. Dante says, no, that’s perfect. Did he see Novak there? Curtis says he saw Joey. He had to be escorted out. He was being a nuisance and it’s not the first time. Dante asks what Joey was doing, and Curtis says, the typical routine, being a tough guy. He didn’t have nobody fooled. Dante says, he’s probably just trying to fill his dead uncle’s shoes, and Curtis says, if he is, he’s not bringing any illegal drugs into the club. Dante says, heads up. Novak’s already made one enemy. He doesn’t want it impacting Curtis

Harmony says, Esme’s done her research, and Esme says she always like know more about the people she meets. When she learned she’d be working with Harmony, she did a deep dive. Harmony says she’s not proud of the mistakes she made while she was part of Dawn of Day, and Esme says, she made those mistakes for a cause she believed in, but Harmony says, there was no cause. It was a racket, a shell game. She went looking for answers, someone to connect the dots, someone to show her clarity. Shiloh told her everything she wanted to hear, and when he had her good and hooked, he turned her inside out. He made her his confident, his accomplice. Eventually, she betrayed her ideals and beliefs, and everyone she loved, including her own daughter. If Esme had asked her at that time, she would have said it was for a higher purpose, a greater good, but Dawn of Day was about one thing, feeding David Henry Archer’s ego. Remember that. When someone tells you they have all the answers, that they can fill you up, that they can give you life’s purpose, head for the nearest exit, and don’t look back.

Spencer asks what happened between Alexis and his father? Just a few weeks ago, she was practically begging him to make things right with him. She says, there are aspects of his father’s life he doesn’t want to be accountable for. If he refuses, she thinks Spencer should keep his distance from him. Spencer asks if she cares to be less vague, and she says, what she cares about, is that Spencer avoid becoming just like him.

Nikolas says, there’s a major flaw in Shawn’s theory; where would he even find a hitman? Never mind hiring one. Here’s where, if I was Shawn, I would stare blankly at the camera, since several mob families live in this town. Where wouldn’t you find a hitman? Shawn says Nikolas could try selling that to a jury, but he doesn’t think Nikolas will get far. Nikolas says and Shawn thinks he can sell his fairytale to the police? Shawn says, not him; Dr. Hamilton Finn. He can just go to Finn, and tell him everything he knows. He might be an ex con, but Finn is an esteemed physician, left raising a little girl whose mother suddenly disappeared. He’ll be able to open doors Shawn can’t. He’ll be able to get the authorities to listen. Not even Nikolas’s mother the mayor will be able to get him out of this. All eyes will be on Hayden’s little girl, who cries herself to sleep every night, wondering why mommy left her. Nikolas says he’s sure there are ways he can help clear Shawn’s name, and Shawn says, then they’re agreed. And that charitable donation Nikolas offered? He accepts, but with an extra zero added on the end. Nikolas says that wasn’t their deal, and Shawn says, it was an opening bid. He just raised it. Nikolas says, so it was about the money after all. Shawn says, oh no, but he’ll put it to good use. A pleasure doing business with him. Nikolas tells Shawn, he meant what he said. He had nothing to do with Naomie Dreyfuss’s death. Shawn says, know what? He almost believed Nikolas.

Victor says he’d like to know that Peter is safely locked away, or better yet, that he’s been killed while trying to escape. He’d like to know that he can no longer go after Valentin or his daughters, who are indeed his granddaughters. He’d like to know that miserable excuse for a human being has finally been stopped once and for all. Valentin asks if there’s a catch in there somewhere, and Victor says, there are certain things in this world that are greater than himself or what he wants. He can’t accomplish those things behind bars. Anna asks what the hell that’s supposed to mean.

Robert says, there’s a reason he and Olivia can talk the way they do; they’re friends. Olivia gets up, and says, they’re good friends, and he says she can tell him the depths of her fears. He’s kind of removed from that part of her life. She disagrees. They’ve been friends for a long time. They’ve had a lot of adventures together. Does he remember how Ethan was grilling him about how close they were? Robert says, he saw something that didn’t exist, and she says, what if does? What if everyone else is just seeing something they’re not? She kisses him, and Ned walks in with a painting.

Victor says, despite his personal interest, he can’t help them. He has to think of the bigger picture. Valentin says, spoken like a true Cassadine, self-preserving to the last. Anna tells the guard to get Victor out of there, and Victor says, he’s truly sorry to disappoint Valentin, but Valentin says he didn’t. Victor proved him right, and he likes being right. Victor leaves with the guard, and Valentin tells Anna, sorry to waste your time, darling. She asks if he’s all right.   

Robert tells Olivia that he thinks she’s got the wrong idea. Ned turns Robert around, and punches him in the face.

Spencer promises Alexis, he’ll be nothing like his father, and she tells him not to make promises he can’t keep. She asks him to do her a favor, and get his hand checked out at GH, but he says, it’s really not that serious. She says, unless it gets infected, and he says, if it would make her feel better. She says, it would, and he says, okay, she wins. He gets up, and says, as always, it’s great seeing her. She gets up, and says, she cares about him. Don’t be like the rest of the family. Money isn’t worth compromising over. He says he’ll think about it, but he knows he’ll disappoint Esme. He doesn’t think she signed up to be the girlfriend of a pauper. He leaves, saying goodbye to Esme on the way out.

Trina tells Ava, this is so great. Once she gets a date, she needs to book the caterers, send out invitations, decide on the food, pick out a display… Ava says, first things first. Tell her mother the good news, and do it in person. Trina thanks Ava, saying, she’s the best boss ever. She hugs Ava, and runs off. Nikolas walks back out with Shawn, who keeps walking out the door. Ava asks if Nikolas wants to tell her what that’s all about.

Curtis tells Dante, he showed Joey Novak the door. He escorted Joey out, and his bouncer, escorted his friend right behind him. He told them, do not come back, because you won’t get let in. And that was it. Is there anything else he can help Dante with? Dante says, no. They’re good, but maybe if he could offer some unsolicited advice? Curtis says, only if he doesn’t have to take it, and Dante says, of course (🍷) not. As Curtis knows, he’s running a nightclub, which is mostly a cash business. That element of shadiness is going to try to creep in. It probably won’t be Joey Novak, because he’s not going to be able to walk for a while, but where one showed up, others will follow. Sam looks at Portia, who looks at the sketch.

Olivia launches herself at Ned, and asks what the hell he thinks he’s doing. He says, what about her? and she tells him not to compare an innocent kiss with physical assault. Robert says, he really thinks there’s been… and Ned says, wasn’t it a year ago Robert warned him not to hurt Olivia? He said there was nothing going on between the two of them. Robert says, he can explain, but Olivia says he doesn’t owe Ned any explanations. She and her husband have been separated for almost a year. It doesn’t even feel very right to call him her husband. Ned says he knows he’s the one who screwed up the marriage, but he thought they were both fighting to save it. She says, maybe Ned was just kidding himself, and Ned points to the painting, saying, this is for her. To show how much he loves her. He gets in the elevator, and Olivia removes the wrap to see a painting of a dog. She starts crying, and runs off with the painting.

Anna says, she can’t help but think Victor is playing Valentin. She feels Victor’s claim to be his father is just a way to get him to cooperate. He says, it doesn’t matter what Victor’s motives are; it doesn’t matter if he’s telling the truth. All that matters is that they track down Peter. She says, they’re running out of options. If she doesn’t get another lead on Peter, she’ll have to make a recommendation to the WSB that they give Victor the immunity he wants.

Nikolas says, he told Ava; it was business. She says, he walked in upbeat and confident, and walked out anything but. What sort of business did he have to discuss with Shawn in her back room? He says, he thought Shawn could help him out with a little matter, but it turns out, he couldn’t. She asks if this little matter has anything to do with his Uncle Victor, and that he’s alive and in cahoots with Peter. He says, sometimes business is just that; it’s business. She knows as well as he does, Cassadine Industries has many tentacles that reach into many interests around the world, and sometimes he has to look outside the company for help. He can show her the spreadsheets and the Power Point presentation. She says, no, God no. She’ll take his word for it. She asks if he’s done in the back room, and he says, all done. She says she needs to prepare a painting for a client, and leaves. He takes out his phone, and leaves a message for Victor. He says, he thought Victor would have extracted himself from the WSB by now. Call when he gets this. Nikolas needs to know if he’s responsible for Naomie Dreyfuss’s murder

Trina runs into Spencer as he’s walking into the hospital, and asks if he’s okay. He says he scalded himself pulling an espresso shot, and his aunt insisted he come in to get it checked out. She’s a little bit of a hypochondriac by proxy. What about her? She says she needed to share something with her mom, but she left already. Is he sure he’s okay? He says he’s been thinking about everything that’s happened these last few months, and how it went so horribly wrong. She wishes she could help, and he says, she at least tried. When they first met, she had no idea he was crazy rich, did she? She says, no, but the last time she checked, he’s not rich; his dad is. She’ll see him around. She leaves, and he smiles.

Harmony gives Esme a folder, telling her that she needs to fill some paperwork out before she leaves tonight. It’s just promising she won’t sue Spring Ridge if an inmate attacks her, permission to look at her school files, stuff like that. Esme says, sure thing, and Harmony leaves. Esme looks at the chessboard, and moves a piece. She says, checkmate.

Seeing Alexis reading The Brothers Karamazov, Harmony says, nothing like a little light reading, and Alexis says, it kind of makes Spring Ridge seem cheerful by comparison. Isn’t it about time for Harmony to clock out? Harmony says, it looks like Alexis and her grandnephew were having quite the talk, and Alexis says, she was just trying to encourage him not to compromise his morals for money. Harmony asks if he listened, and Alexis says she doesn’t know. Seems like he has his hands full with his girlfriend.

Esme watches as Harmony leaves. Alexis tosses her book aside, and follows, and Esme goes over to Ryan. She bends down, and says she told him that she’d find a way back in. She hit a bit of a snafu, but she promises him – she takes his hand – she’ll take care of everything. He blinks twice.

Trina asks who Spencer thinks he’s fooling; Ava tells Nikolas, not if, when; and Sonny says, there’s no coming back from that.

🐘 Joel’s Ark…

There really is a Photo Ark, and the photos really are beautiful and incredible. I’ll bet this guy got a million hits today.

https://www.joelsartore.com/gallery/the-photo-ark/

Project Runway

Chastity wanted to keep her momentum going, even though she had immunity, and Bones said, it felt crazy to be on the bottom; it messed with your mind. The designers came into a room filled with flowers, and Aaron thought maybe they were making a dress out of flowers, but that wasn’t it. They were introduced to Lewis Miller aka the Flower Bandit aka the Botanical Banksy, and inventor of the flower flash (see below). Elaine said he’d done the flowers for her stoop wedding. The challenge was to create a high end fashion look that embraced floral prints. They were also to create the fabric prints as well, and each clothing designer was given a graphic designer to work with. Elaine said they were the best group of designers Project Runway had ever had. They were allowed to use supplemental fabric, with the emphasis on supplemental. The designers used the flowers that were all over the place as inspiration for the prints. Shantall was the only one who didn’t use the blooms, choosing instead to create her own drawing from a childhood memory. It was interesting to see the unique things they came up with, everyone with different designs. Darren said he was playing it safe with simple and pretty, since he’d been semi-tanking. In Boots’s interview, he said prints weren’t his forte and you needed to have an eye for them. Sabrina, who was from Afghanistan, and been refugee in Pakistan as a child, came up with the most amazing print that I thought was very Hermes. She was making a jumpsuit, and including a burka, saying, they were looked at as symbols of oppression, but could also be a statement of woman power. Darren’s print inspiration was a background on SpongeBob SquarePants, and in his interview, he said, imagine him doing fashion for SpongeBob? That’s the dream, man. I was pretty impressed overall with the designs. Christian asked if everyone was feeling amazing. I love Christian. He makes me laugh, but I’m not the target of his witticisms. As usual, he told everyone, have fun, which seems to be his catchphrase. When the models were about to come in, he told the designers it was time for a twist, then said he was just kidding. Like I said.

Gigi Hadid was the guest judge, and high and low six were Kristina, Shantall, Darren, Sabrina, Katie and Prajjé. Kristina had done a robe that the judges thought was fresh and modern, and had great fluidity. Nina thought Shantall’s look, a three-piece suit was the perfect look. She’d taken a risk, creating a print from a drawing that wasn’t heavy on the flowers, but it paid off. Shantall said her son was turning two today, and she was missing out, but this was for her family. Darren was on the bottom with a two-piece outfit that had what I’d say was a skater skirt. Nina wasn’t crazy about it. She said they were there to surprise and experiment, and she’d seen it. It was very cute, but she was right. Elaine said that whatever Darren was trying to say wasn’t translating to them. Sabrina was a shocker to me, being on the bottom, since the jumpsuit and burka was fantastic, but she’d made the mistake of sticking on a pink overskirt, and it was just no. Gigi said it was her favorite print, and she could see the burka on the cover of Vogue Arabia, but she should have lost the skirt. Sabrina said she didn’t want to offend anyone, so she’d covered her model up a little. She removed the skirt, and all of the judges were like, yes, there it is. Nina also thought flats would have been a better choice than heels. Nina asked if Prajjé thought he was in the top or bottom. I would figure if they were asking, I was on the bottom, but they fooled me by loving his look, a bodycon dress with a mermaid bottom. It was very Marilyn Monroe. Elaine thought it was a silhouette that was flattering on everyone, and I thought, yeah, if your stomach is flat. Brandon said he’d had a gay child moment – she is so pretty. Katie got one of the lowest scores, which was no surprise, since it looked like a schoolgirl outfit; cute, but not haute couture. Gigi thought the collar looked like it was made out of felt (it was leather), and I had to agree. Elaine asked Katie if this was high end, and Katie said she didn’t know what it was. She tried to blame it on Christian for making her second guess herself, but Brandon said Christian wasn’t on the runway, and she needed to take what was relevant from his suggestions, but you do you. Gigi said she didn’t hate the skirt.

The judges deliberated, and there was a lot of discussion over Shantall’s print. The challenge was floral print, and Elaine put it best, saying her floral note was a whisper. Brandon said, Darren knew how to design, but wasn’t a designer. Gigi said fashion was either editorial or to sell, and neither way worked with his piece. Nina said Katie’s outfit looked like a costume, and Brandon said she’d tried to blame Christian. This was ironic, since one of the things Christian told her to avoid was being too costume.

The six were brought back in, and Elaine said they’d been asked to create a joyful original floral print look, and they were there for it. Shantall was the winner, and Gigi told her that she’d had the most unique and modern print. Elaine said she was making her baby proud, and Shantall said that she was happy to have achieved the win, especially today. They moved on to the losing end, and Brandon said the looks had been confusing, chaotic, and tortured. He said they kept looking for something new from Darren, but it didn’t happen, and he was out. He had to pack his fabric scraps and go. In parting creative criticism, Sabrina was told the skirt took away from the look, and Brandon told Katie to find herself. The cheese Darren was left alone, and he said being in the competition had changed his life forever. He was from the Philippines, and still an out-of-place, misunderstood, weird gay Asian kid, but he wasn’t the same one as the one who’d come there. Nina said he had talent, but needed to find his voice. In his interview, he said it sucked to go early, because he knew he could do cool stuff. He was more aware as a designer and a person now. Christian said he loved getting to know Darren. He needed to figure out who he wanted to be, but they’d be seeing more of him. Darren sort of made a pass at Christian (joking, not joking), and in his interview, he said he was thankful to be part of this whole thing. It lit a fire under his ass, and he felt more smarter. He paused, and said, more smarter? Much smarter. And grateful.

Next time, figure skaters needing a look for the 2022 Olympics, Brandon says the looks reflected that the designers weren’t getting along, and Elaine says she doesn’t want to do this again.

💐 Better Than Hot…

About those flower flashes. I’ve never seen one, but I’ll have to keep an eye out when I’m in the city.

🏯 I had to ditch Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles because, for whatever idiotic reason, Bravo is only showing it at 8 pm, which is a bad time for me. I did catch some of it tonight, as well as the cast on Watch What Happens Live. Tracy had been selling her own house, and looking for another one, using Josh Flagg as a broker. He’d found her dreamhouse for her, and her kids had their hearts set on it, but they couldn’t meet on the price. Tracy said it just wasn’t meant to be, but was obviously disappointed. At the end of the show, Josh handed her the keys, saying he’d given up his commission, and the house was hers. It was $250,000. A. Half. Million. Dollars. What a kind thing to do. I’ve always suspected that they’re all more friendly than they pretend to be on the show; you can tell in co-interviews. On WWHL, they were very supportive of each other, and good sports, being the butt of one another’s jokes. Apparently, the two Joshes are now great friends, and their respective spouses even more so. I don’t usually do heartwarming, but I’ll take it this time.

🎃 Essence Of Halloween…

More costumes.

And couples costumes.

🚢 Abandoning Ship…

Be sure to stop by tomorrow for some soap, probably more costumes, no doubt some gossip, and words to ponder. Until then, stay safe, stay using your free time wisely, and stay not looking back. It doesn’t change anything. The only thing you can do, is think about what you can do now.