What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Carly says Drew startled her, and he says, she knows he lives up in the main house, right? She asks if he’s seen Michael. He’s not at the gatehouse. He asks if it’s about Dante; he thought Dante was going to be all right. She says, it’s not about Dante, and he says, she seems upset. What’s going on? She says, it’s about Sonny. By the way, she wants to thank him for the great advice he gave her earlier. He says, about seeing Sonny at the Haunted Star? Did she go? She says she did, and she found Sonny in bed with another woman.

Nina comes out of the hospital elevator while leaving a voicemail for Britt to call her; it’s important. She sees Sonny, who tells her, Dante’s here. He needs to see his son.

Anna tells Dante, it makes sense though. Victor has helped Peter in the past. Dante says, Victor also swore he ended that partnership with Peter, but if he found something to gain, he probably would have fired it back up. Laura asks if they think Victor would risk his immunity deal with the WSB, and Anna says, it’s possible. He alluded to the fact that he had all these plans for Peter. Laura says, that actually tracks with another one of her theories. Keep her posted. She’s going to check in with Doc. She leaves, and Anna says, so many unanswered questions. Dante says, yeah, like where do they start? Anna wonders how Victor found out Bailey is Maxie’s daughter.

Austin asks Maxie where she’s going, and she says she doesn’t know. She has to do something though. If she stops to think about what’s going on, she’s going to lose her mind. He says, he’s sure, and asks, how’s her mom? She says her mom’s fine; she’s with Mac. He asks, how’s Mac? and she says, he’s going to be okay. He’s going to pull through. Austin says, that’s great. She must be so relieved. She says, she is. For the first time tonight, she has hope. He tells her, hang onto that; it’s important. He promises they’re going to find her Louise.

Laura finds Doc, and asks, what’s wrong? She thought he’d be in with Mac, given his strong prognosis, and Doc says, the news about Mac is great, but he’s been trying to call Charlotte since he left her at home alone. She’s not answering.

Victor asks what Peter has done with Charlotte, and Peter says he knew Victor would double-cross him, so he took out a little insurance policy. Doc and Laura have been putting out fires, and Valentin is MIA altogether, which left little Charlotte all alone tonight. He wonders where she could be. Victor says, all right. No more games. He wants her back now, unharmed. Peter says, that depends on Victor, doesn’t it? He knows where Charlotte is, but if something were to happen to him, he wonders if Victor would ever find her.

Maxie says she’s doing her best to lean into hope right now, and Austin says, if it were easy, everybody would do it, and the world would have zero problems. He knows it’s difficult, but in the end, hope is totally worth it. Britt and Obrecht run in, and Maxie asks what they’re doing here. Britt says, she can’t believe it about Peter, and Obrecht says, they came as soon as they heard the news. Austin says, he took the liberty of calling them. He thought Maxie might need the extra moral support. Maxie says she needs all the support she can get right now, and Obrecht promises her, Peter won’t be free for long. Britt says she hopes Obrecht is right. She hopes someone finds Peter and gives him the slow, painful death he deserves. Obrecht says, for all the misery he’s inflicted, and how his twisted plans left Maxie to worry about her daughter all these months. Britt sees Maxie’s face, and says, what? Is there some news about Louise? Maxie says she thinks there’s a lot they both don’t know, and it’s time she tells them.

Victor takes Yohan’s gun, and points it at Peter, asking, where is she? Peter says, he’s so predictable. His family is his weakness. Victor says, tell him, or he’ll make Peter beg to tell him. Peter says, he will tell Victor this. Port Charles is full of so many abandoned warehouses. If Charlotte were locked away in one of those, it would be a great hiding place, doesn’t he think? Victor tells Yohan to start a search immediately, and Peter says, even if he were to find the right one, how does he know the entrance wasn’t rigged with some kind of security measure? Victor asks what Peter wants, and Peter says, to complete their bargain. So can he get up now?

On the phone, Laura leaves a voicemail for Charlotte. She says, it’s grandma. She doesn’t know if Charlotte is doing her homework, or video chatting with her friends, but it’s very important that when she gets this, she calls them right away. She tells Doc, that’s probably exactly what it is; it’s probably just fine. He says he just feels guilty leaving her home alone, but Laura says, stop. She’s thirteen years old, and they have left her alone before. He knows how she gets when she’s watching a movie. Esme is meant to be home pretty soon too… Esme. She calls Esme, and asks how close she is to the apartment… That’s great. Do her a favor. When Esme gets home, have Charlotte call them right away please… They’re a little concerned that something may have happened.

Drew invites Carly inside where it’s warmer, and she says, she’s sorry. She’s not mad at him. He says, maybe she should be. He’s the idiot who encouraged her to go and make things right. He thought she and Sonny were on the same page about this. She says she’s the idiot. She didn’t trust her instincts, knew Nina was trouble, and knew Sonny was blind to it. Drew says it blows his mind how quickly Sonny gave up on his big, grand gesture. She says, it blows his mind? She was five minutes late, and walked in on Sonny in bed with Nina. He says he’s sorry, and she says she knew there was something more going on than Sonny’s bizarre sympathy for Nina. She was just happy to have him home. She was so, so grateful to have him home. She didn’t listen to her instincts. She just wanted her family to be together, so she went along to get along (that’s not entirely true, but okay), and for the first time in her life, she got played. The whole time, the real villain was standing right in front of her. He says, Nina or Sonny? and she says, both.

Sam goes over to Sonny, and he asks, what happened with Dante? Has she seen him? She says, Dante is going to be fine, but Peter August escaped – again. Sonny says, he got injured trying to stop Peter? and she says, Dante was trying to be his usual brave self, and by the time he realized it was an inside job, he got knocked over the head pretty hard. Sonny asks if he got a concussion, but Sam says, the doctors released him, so he could search for Peter. He says, so Peter got away. Does she think Dante is okay? Anna comes by with Dante, who hugs Sonny, and says he’s okay. Sonny asks if the doctors cleared him, and Dante unconvincingly says, yeah. He might have some headaches for a while. He’s more interested in finding Brook’s baby. Sonny says, Brook’s baby? and Anna says, Peter kidnapped her after he escaped. Sonny asks what Peter would want with Brook’s baby. Is it a hostage situation, or does he want some leverage if he gets caught? Nina asks Anna if Peter knows the truth, and Sonny says, what truth? Nina says, somehow, Peter found out that the baby Brook is caring for is really Maxie’s daughter, which means all these secrets they’ve been keeping have been for nothing.

Drew asks if Carly thinks Sonny and Nina have been having an affair the entire time he’s been back, and she says she doesn’t know. Can he believe this? Sonny asked her to come to the Haunted Star tonight, because he had this big amazing romantic night planned, and when she doesn’t show up on his timetable, he calls his backup? He calls Nina? Drew asks if Sonny reached out to Nina or did she just happen to come by? but she says she doesn’t care. It doesn’t matter. He was in bed with Nina when she got there. He says, it doesn’t make any sense. Maybe Sonny thought she’d given up on their marriage because she didn’t show up. She says, those are Sonny’s ridiculous terms. Because she doesn’t get past her pain when he wants her to, that give him the right to jump in bed with the woman who caused all of this? What the hell does that say about Sonny? What does it say about her marriage? He says he truly doesn’t know; what does it say? She says, even after Sonny defended Nina and protected her, she thought it was a hurdle they could get over. She knew it would be hard, and it would take a lot of time, but she thought they could get past it. Her marriage is over.

Sonny says, so Brook never had a daughter? and Nina says, no. Anna says, no, and she promised Maxie that she’d raise Maxie’s daughter as her own to keep her safe from Peter, and it worked for months. Anna tells Nin that she had no idea. Maxie explained she’d told Nina everything months ago, and she was one of the few people who knew Brook was never pregnant. Nina says she tried to convince Maxie to at least tell Valentin about the plan, so his heart wasn’t broken, but Maxie thought the more people who knew, the greater the chance Peter would find out. In the end, Nina agreed with her. The most important thing was keeping that baby safe. Sonny asks if Nina knew this back in Nixon Falls, and she nods. He tells Dante that he has to call Michael and Kristina, and leaves. Dante suggests he and Sam go for a walk; he needs to call his mom. Nina asks if Anna has any leads on where Peter might be, and Anna says, possibly. Maybe Nina can help with that. Nina says she’ll do anything, just name it, and Anna asks if she’s spoken to Valentin recently, or heard from him.   

Behind the Italian restaurant, a worker puts out the garbage. She hears some tires squeal, and says, geez. She’s about to go inside, and hears a groan. She looks around, and finds Valentin on the ground. She says, oh my God, and he says, please call Anna. Anna Devane.   

Nina says she hasn’t talked to Valentin in days. Does Anna think there’s a problem? Does she think Valentin knows where Peter is? Anna says, no. She’s concerned Valentin has made himself a target. Her phone rings, and Nina says she’ll let Anna take her phone call, but will Anna keep her updated? Anna says, of course (🍷), and Nina leaves. Anna answers, and the woman asks, is this Anna Devane? Anna says, who is this? and the woman says she thinks she found a friend of Anna’s. She was going to call 9-1-1, but he insisted she call Anna first. Anna should know, she thinks he’s in bad shape. Valentin says, Anna, and Anna says, Valentin?

Victor tells Yohan to get Peter up, and asks, what are Peter’s terms? Peter says, it’s simple. Do exactly as Victor originally intended; get him transported  out of Port Charles, from a boat on this dock. Once Victor does that, he’ll send a PIN with Charlotte’s location. Victor asks how he Peter can be sure he won’t betray him, and Peter says he has enough dirt on Victor that Anna, Valentin, and everyone else will know who arranged his escape. Do they have a deal?

Britt says she can’t believe this, and Maxie says, Britt was actually her Plan A. Then Britt wound up on the run with Jason, so she asked Bobbie to help her give birth in a house in Beecher’s Corners. Peter of course (🍷), had a plan of his own with fake Nurse Chloe. It’s really a miracle she was able to give Louise to Brook. Obrecht says, in all these months, Maxie didn’t think she could confide her or Britt? and Maxie says, she thought the fewer people who knew, the better. She didn’t even tell her parents. Anything to keep her daughter safe. Obrecht says, she, of all people, knows that you must do everything in your power to protect your family. Don’t worry about their feelings now. What’s important is that they find Louise. Maxie agrees, and says she doesn’t know how Peter found out about Louise, but he must have. Otherwise, why would he have taken her? It can’t be a coincidence. Do they think whoever helped Peter escape told him the truth about Louise? Britt says, Maxie told them the only other people who knew were Nina and Chase, right? and Obrecht says, Victor would be just the type of swine to help Peter again, but how could he have figured out Bailey was really Louise? Austin says, oh God, no, and Maxie asks, what is it? He says, there’s a possibility Victor does know the truth about Louise, and if that’s the case, it’s all his fault.

Sonny sits in the chapel, and sighs. Nina comes in, and says she had the feeling she’d find him here. She won’t intrude. She just wanted to make sure everything was okay. He says he can’t really worry about his marriage right now. He’s just glad Dante is okay, and hopes Maxie’s daughter comes home safely to her. Nina says she’ll give him some privacy, and he says, she really knew Bailey was Louise, didn’t she? She says, not on day one, but she knew pretty early on. He says, when she was in Nixon Falls, and Peter was blackmailing her, she was really playing Peter.

Carly tells Drew, please don’t tell her to give her marriage another shot, but he says he’s just surprised at how certain she seems. She says, every time she closes her eyes, she sees Sonny in bed with Nina. That’s pretty much the point of no return for her. He tells her, infidelities can be worked on and worked through. Sometimes they can be forgiven. She says, right. Sonny tried to throw Jason in her face. He says, he knows she and Jason were married, and understands the official story was that it was for the business, but that wasn’t the whole story, was it? She says, no. They were in love, and it never would have happened if Nina had done the right thing. She worked so hard at putting her marriage back together, and she feels like she was working by herself. Maybe walking in, and seeing Sonny in bed with Nina, was the smack in the face she needed to realize her marriage died the night that bridge collapsed. It’s like shattered crystal; you just can’t put the pieces back together. He says, it’s like the old saying, you can’t go home again. He feels the same way

Dante asks if Sam is doing okay, and she says, he just got knocked in the head, and he’s asking her if she’s doing okay? He says, it seems like whatever she and Drew were talking about, it took a lot out of her. Anna runs up to them, and says, they found Valentin. They’re bringing him in, in an ambulance. She’s going to see what she can find out. She runs off again.

On the phone, Laura asks if Esme is at the apartment. Is Charlotte there?… Oh my God. Doc says, what? and Laura tells Esme, go in the house, lock the door, and call the police. Stay on the phone with the police until somebody gets there. They’ll be there as soon as they can. Laura tells Doc, when Esme got there, there was a pizza delivery guy unconscious in the hallway. The door to the apartment was open, and Charlotte is nowhere to be seen.

Victor says he agrees to Peter’s terms, and Peter says he’s going to need Victor’s phone. Victor hands it to him, and Peter says, this isn’t the exact address, but it’s within the vicinity. Once the ship is docked here, he’ll send Victor the exact location where Charlotte is being held. Victor says, if she’s harmed in any way, Peter is a dead man. He tells Yohan, let’s go, and Victor and Yohan leave.

Maxie asks how this can be Austin’s fault? He didn’t know Bailey was Louise. He says he was having a really hard time with Brook, and so was Valentin. Somehow Valentin’s Uncle Victor got involved, and Victor came to him. He had a sonogram, and the patient information had been torn off, and he told Victor how he could track down the patient. It’s possible… She says, that he led Peter to her daughter? He tells her that he doesn’t know what to say, and she tells him that she wouldn’t say anything. She can’t right now. She walks off and he starts to follow, but Obrecht says, she wouldn’t.

Maxie sees an incoming call from an unlisted number. She answers, and Peter says, hello, Maxie. Missing something?

Anna sees Deanna outside a room, and asks if Valentin is in there. Deanna says, yes, and Anna goes in. Valentin is mumbling incoherently, and Anna asks if he’s been drinking. Deanna says she thinks Anna’s friend might have gone on a bender. He’s lucky someone found him when he passed out. Anna asks if they did a blood alcohol level test, and Deanna says she was just about to. Anna says she’s listed as Valentin’s emergency contact. Can Deanna keep her posted? Deanna nods, Anna thanks her, and she leaves. Anna tells Valentin that she’s here. What the hell happened? He says, Bailey is in danger.

Maxie asks Peter, where is Louise? and he says, so they’re calling Bailey by her original name now. He’ll have Maxie know that their daughter is safe and sound. She’s with him, and he’d never let anything happen to her. But don’t take his word for it. She can see for herself. Maxie says, where? and he says, Pier 55. Come alone. If he gets even one whiff of the police or anyone following her, he will disappear so fast, she’ll never see Louise again. And before she asks how he’ll know, she should understand he has people everywhere. He’ll vanish into thin air if he even senses for a second that she’s going to betray him. Does she understand? She says, yes, and he tells her to leave her phone behind, and drop a PIN to this number so he knows she did. Pier 55.   

Dante tells Sam that he hopes Valentin’s hunch pays off, and he knows where to find Louise. She says, her too, and he says he’s sorry he asked about her conversation with Drew. It was between them, and she doesn’t owe him any explanations whatsoever. She says she appreciates the space he’s offering, but it’s not necessary. She knows when Drew came back, things got a little wonky between the two of them, and Dante says, that’s to be expected; he’s Scout’s father. She says, as Scout’s father, she’s always going to care for him, but when Dante got injured, she was really worried about him. When she found out he was going to be okay, it hit her. Her future is with him. She loves him.

Carly asks what home Drew can’t go back to, but he says he’s there to listen tonight. She says, please. She’d give anything not think about Sonny and Nina. He says, things came to a head in his personal life tonight, that’s all. She says, and not in good way? and he tells her, let’s just say, there are a lot of really horrible things about being imprisoned obviously. You can’t live the life you want, the food is horrible, you get beat up all the time. All of it’s horrendous, but the worst thing is the monotony. Hour after hour, day after day of nothing. Whatever cell they put him in, he would scratch Scout’s name on the wall to give him something to focus on; a reason to survive. It was impossible to focus on Scout  without thinking of her mom. If he’s being completely honest, back when Jason first reappeared, he knew Sam would go back to him. When Sam told him that she broke up with Jason, it just messed with his head, that’s all. Carly bets it did, and he says, his memories of Port Charles are what kept him going in that cell. Now that he’s back, it’s like he doesn’t know what’s real or what’s fantasy, especially considering co-parenting with Sam felt so right. It took him a minute to realize Sam’s not the same person she was two years ago. She’s stronger. She got over Jason. She got over him, and her heart is with somebody else, but that’s life, right? He thinks they all tell themselves little lies so they can live to fight another day.

Nina sits with Sonny, and says, when Peter saw her in Nixon Falls, her simple life suddenly became very complicated. He says he never could quite reconcile the Nina he knew with the person Peter was blackmailing. He accepted the horrible secret she was keeping from Carly was because she was angry, but it never made sense to him why she’d let Peter blackmail her over that secret. But the reason she did it was because she knew Maxie’s daughter was safe with Brook. She let Peter blackmail her, so she could send him on a wild goose chase to the Caribbean. He smiles, and says, so she could distract Peter. She says he’s making it sound like what she did was noble; it wasn’t. She should have called the police the second she saw Peter, but she didn’t. Her actions were purely out of desperation. She’s not a saint. He tells her, he never said she was. It’s just not black and white. She says, nothing is anymore.

Carly says, so Sam made it clear, she’s with Dante now, and Drew says, she did, and she is. She says she’s sure it didn’t feel very good, and he says, the writing was on the wall. He just chose not to read it. He kept hanging on to something that wasn’t there anymore. She laughs, and says, tell her about it. He says, you keep fighting for something because at one point, it was everything to you, and you don’t think you can go on without it. She says, and you feel like it’s your responsibility to hold it together, and he says, you just keep holding on to the past. She says, instead of being in the moment, and he says, and doing what you should. He moves closer to her, and she says, instead of what we want. He moves in for a kiss.

Britt asks Maxie if they can do anything, but Maxie says she just needs a minute. Austin asks if they can just talk for one second, and she says, what is there to talk about? She trusted him because he convinced her to trust him, but he couldn’t let go of his petty revenge, and now her daughter is in the hands of her psycho-pop father. He says he didn’t mean for it to go this way, and she gets in the elevator. He asks where she’s going, and she says, she’s going to find her daughter

Peter waits at the pier, when the boat comes in. He says, right on time, and sends a text to Victor – Fair’s fair, Victor. I honor my word. 

Nina says, she realizes that all she’s ever done is add trouble to Sonny’s life, and tonight is proof of that. No matter how angry she’s been at Carly, she never intended for this to happen, especially when she sees how much pain he’s in. He says, she’s not responsible for his actions, but she says, she’s responsible for her actions, and she truly hates that she’s made it even more difficult for him to salvage his marriage. He says he’s starting to believe it can’t be saved.

Carly says, they can’t do this, and Drew says, he’s sorry. He thought… She says, he thought she wanted him to kiss her, and she does, but for all the wrong reasons. She’s so focused on Sonny, and wants to hurt him, and Drew wants to hurt Sam, and he’s focused on Sam, right? He says, he doesn’t want to hurt Sam, but maybe he wants something to help him forget her. She says, maybe if he was a stranger, and laughs, but his friendship means too much to her. They’re both vulnerable right now, and him being Jason’s brother makes it… it would be very messy. He says, right, and she says, they have too much going on to get caught up in… this.

Deanna says, there was no sign of alcohol in Mr. Cassadine’s bloodstream, and Anna says, just as she thought. Someone tried to make it look like Valentin was drunk, so anyone would dismiss what he had to say. She thanks Deanna, who leaves, and she tells Valentin that she needs him to focus. What’s the last thing he remembers? He says, Bailey. Bailey’s Maxie’s daughter. She says, so he figured it out. That’s probably why he disappeared. She’s going to need his help in finding her. Who told him about this? Was he with someone when he figured it out? Outside the door, Laura asks if Deanna’s seen Anna, and Deanna says, she’s in there. Laura and Doc come in, and Anna says, he’s going be all right. Laura says, it’s Charlotte. Something’s happened.

Peter waits on the pier with Louise in her car seat, when Maxie arrives. They stare at each other.

Dante says, Sam loves him? and she says, she knows. It was new to her too. She found herself talking to Nina, and just kind of said it. Then she thought to herself, if she can say it to a mere stranger, she should be comfortable enough to say it to him, so she did. She said she loves him. She did it. She tells him not to feel like he has to say it back just because she said it. He says, there’s no pressure in this for him to say anything, but he’s wanted to say this for a while. He loves her. She says, he does? and they kiss.

Drew says he’s glad Carly was  thinking clearly enough for both of them, and she says she should go. She thanks him for talking to her, and he says, anytime. Anytime she just wants to talk, or just hang out, or think about anything else. She says she’s going to hold him to that, and leaves.

Sonny tells Nina, he has a lot of regrets about what happened tonight. How it went down, what Carly saw, and what he said to her. But he realized she had a point. Nina says, about what? and he says, about what happened between him and Nina in Nixon Falls and the past; they can’t take it back. It’s in the here and now. No matter how much he tries to deny it. He tells her that he has to go see Dante, and leaves.

Valentin asks, what happened to Charlotte? and Doc says, she’s been staying with them, but when Esme came home, she found a pizza delivery man unconscious in the hallway, but no Charlotte. Valentin moans, no. It’s Peter, isn’t it? It has to be. Anna asks, what is the time frame? How long has she been missing? Charlotte runs into the room and over to Laura, who hugs her. Charlotte cries in Laura’s arms, and says, when she opened the door, someone grabbed her. She sees Valentin, and runs to the bed, and they hug. He asks if she’s hurt, and she says, no. They locked her in a building, and she was trying to get out, when someone saved her. Anna asks, who? and Charlotte says, Uncle Victor, and Victor walks in.

Austin tells Britt, he didn’t think it would end up like this, and she says, How could he? He didn’t know the truth about Bailey, and eventually Maxie will understand. Obrecht says, don’t come to her expecting sympathy. She’s fresh out of it. Now they must come together to clean up his mess, and make sure Maxie’s baby’s brought home safely. And when this is all over, he’ll answer to her.

Peter says, he’s so glad Maxie came, and she tells Louise, it’s all right. She starts to move toward Louise, and he stops her. He says, she’s going to see their daughter on his terms now, and she asks, what are those? He says he’s leaving the country with Louise. So she can say goodbye to Louise, here and now, knowing she’ll never see Louise again… or, she comes with them, and they’ll be a family forever. He holds out the carrier, and Maxie looks from Louise to Peter.

Tomorrow, Elizabeth has more questions than answers, Anna wonders how Victor knew where to find Charlotte, and Peter asks Maxie, what’s the catch?

The Real Housewives of Orange County

We backtracked a little to Heather saying that Noella’s gift was Inappropriate. Noella said she didn’t know, and apologized, and Heather said she appreciated it. Noella asked if they were done, and Heather threw up her hands. Jen tried to explain, when dealing with people’s kids, you had to be careful, and Noella got annoyed, asking why Emily and Gina didn’t have her back. Heather decided to make an exit, telling Noella that she couldn’t have this conversation. She wasn’t getting back on the hamster wheel when Noella wasn’t listening. Noella said she’d apologized, and Heather said, and she appreciated it, but kept walking. In Heather’s interview, she said, it was always negative with Noella. There were always fighting and problems when Noella was around. She didn’t want to be right about it, but she knew it was going to happen. Shannon trotted after Heather, and Noella said she was mad at Gina. She’d known about the problematic gift for a week. In Gina’s interview, she said she’d done everything to support Noella, and now Noella was turning on her and questioning her as a friend. It was hurtful, and friends didn’t do that. Gina said she couldn’t, and got up. She said she couldn’t drown with everybody, and left. Noella said Gina was a d*ck, and Emily told her, all they said was she should listen to where Heather was coming from. Noella suggested Emily check on Gina, and Emily said she was trying to have a conversation, but Noella wasn’t having it. Emily left, and Jen wondered WTF was going on? Noella said she didn’t want drama, and in Jen’s interview, she said, it was hard to move forward with someone when talking to them was like talking to a child.

Emily found Gina in their room all upset and crying, and told her that Noella attacked everyone. Noella attacked her after Gina left. Shannon came back to the table, and Noella wanted tequila, so Shannon played bartender. In Shannon’s interview, she said, it was their last night. They needed to shake it up and have some fun, especially Noella. She was going through a lot. Emily came back to get her purse, but sat back down. One of her chair’s legs was in the sand, sending her and the chair tumbling backward. Then Shannon fell while helping her up. In Jen’s interview, she said, she rolled around in the sand in a bikini in the early 90s; have at it. Jen left, and Shannon put all the sombreros on her head and sat on the donkey piñata. Emily tried to get on too, and as Noella took a picture, they fell over. Shannon pointed out that she didn’t lose any of the hats, and Emily said she was taking the piñata  home, and tucked it under her arm.

Back home in the OC, Jen and her daughter went for a pedicure. Her daughter suggested Jen get black since it went with her personality, which was pretty sarcastic for one so young (she’s six). In Jen’s interview, she said she’d only gone to Cabo for two days, but felt guilty. She’d missed so much when she’d been building her career, she wanted to spend any free time with her children. Her daughter had changed her name at one and a half years old. Her name was Vera, and her first words were, no, Cece. Jen asked Cece how she felt about nanny Kaitlyn, and Cece said Kaitlyn was a good mother to the boys. In her interview, Jen said she knew her children needed her, and it had been a source of contention.

Gina met Heather for lunch, and Heather said a couple of her kids had been checking out colleges. Gina said she’d gone for one semester, and ran home. Heather said the family was taking a trip to NYC, and Gina should come with them. They could swing by Long Island. In Heather’s interview, she said, it was easy to be with Gina, since she was open and authentic. There was no bullsh*t, and you didn’t have to worry about what you were saying for fear of retribution. It was like being with a normal person. She told Gina, hopefully, NYC would be less stressful than Cabo. Gina said she’d been disappointed in Noella. She took the situation and made it like Gina had betrayed her in some way. She didn’t like having her integrity questioned. In Gina’s interview, she said she had no room for crazy in her life. She guessed she wasn’t a support person. Yeah, I got you girl, and ten minutes later, where’s the exit? She told Heather that she couldn’t support someone who didn’t trust her.

In Shannon’s interview, she said she was hosting an event at John’s house; it was the greatest spot. We saw a clip of her telling Heather about a 30’ boat they’d bought, and Shannon said she could see living on the water in her future. They were having dinner set up on John’s deck, as a surprise when they got back. Heather, Terry, Emily, and Shane met them at their boat Revelry. Heather popped the champagne, and Shane wondered if they were going on a three-hour tour. In her interview, Shannon said she’d grown up on boats. Growing up, they’d always had a boat that they docked in Newport Beach, and they came on the weekends. John was also an avid boater, and it was something they shared. In Emily’s interview, she said, Shannon was taking on the whole boat lifestyle, and she liked Shannon’s confidence as Skipper Barbie. Terry toasted to their wives’ bad decision to marry them, and Heather said they were still mulling it over. When they got back, Mac Noodlez of hibachi grill fame, and his brother Willy, had dinner going. John made a sake toast, and thanked everyone for being there. John said he’d been a Junior, but his dad had disowned him. When his dad remarried, he’d named another kid John, and suggested John change his name. In her interview, Shannon said, John was in college, he’d stood up to his father, who promptly disowned him. Emily couldn’t fathom disowning a child, and Terry said he had a stepfather who was a non-supportive a-hole. But whatever level of success he’d reached, it was the adversity that gave him the drive. Emily said her dad hadn’t been around, and she wanted to prove she was better. She needed to prove she was worthy, and it came from feeling abandoned. In her interview, she said she was always looking for approval, and it took until she was middle-aged to realize the approval comes from herself. She felt like the sweat lodge had released a lot. Heather toasted to the host.

Shannon and Emily met at The Quiet Woman, or as Shannon called it, the scene of the crime. We flashed back to Shannon screeching at Kelly, and throwing her plate when they were having dinner there (not together). Shannon asked if Emily had talked to Noella, and Emily said they’d gone to the pier, and walked around. We saw a clip of them on the boardwalk. Noella said she just wanted fun, and Emily invited her to a game night at her house. Noella joined them at the restaurant, and said, the last night in Cabo was a lot. Shannon said, there was a lot of drinking; it was an emotional day. Emily thought Noella should talk to Gina, but Noella said, Gina wasn’t responding to her calls or texts. She wanted to have the conversation, and be done with it. In Noella’s interview, she said, even though the friendship was fresh, they’d gone deep, and they’d gone there fast and hard. To just end the communication, especially after an argument, was hard. Emily said Jen had told her that when Noella was first married, she gave her husband a stack of vaginas, and Shannon wondered how many vaginas it took to make a stack. Noella asked why Jen didn’t talk about her own relationship, and in her interview, she said, Jen didn’t want to talk about her personal life, so she went after the one who’s open. Noella was very happy to share her stack of vaginas with anyone who wanted to see them. Just come in peace. We saw the picture with the naughty bits blurred, and it was three girls in garter belts stacked on each other in what looked like a cheerleading move gone wrong.

Jen visited Heather, who demonstrated a kitchen tool that takes the middle out of a pineapple and slices it. I want one. I love pineapple, but I’ll be damned if I can do the magic trick it takes to get the outside off without hacking it to bits. In Jen’s interview, she said she outsourced anything she could, even if it was entertaining in her own house. She and Heather sat outside with drinks, and Jen said she thought because she built the business and Ryne took care of the kids, there was some resentment. In her interview, she said, they used to talk about everything, and now it was hard to even have a conversation about their days. She told Heather that she wanted to do something make it better, and in Heather’s interview, she said, Jen was all in with her career, and you had to approach a relationship the same way. You had to fight as hard, work at it as much, and want it as badly. Jen says she needs to be more appreciative, and Heather asked if she was willing to do that. She said she was, and Heather said, it took the pandemic for Terry to prioritize family. At some point, it was just more zeros. You needed to make sure you weren’t ignoring your relationships. Relationships were work, but worth it. Jen said, Heather and Terry were a good example.

Emily had a game night for the women, and in her interview, she explained it was an excuse to drink and be ridiculous. They were going to play games like the kind at a six-year-old’s birthday party, but instead of six, they were forty-six. In Noella’s interview, she said she had a lot of love and respect for Gina, and didn’t want bad blood between them. Gina was not quite as thrilled, and in her interview, she said, a stack of vaginas was not a thing. The object of the first game was to transfer M&Ms from one plate to another, by sucking on a straw to pick them up. The next game involved putting a role of toilet paper onto the handle of a plunger, without using your hands, and we’ll leave it at that. Every time the word vagina was said, they had to take a shot, and in Noella’s interview, she said it wasn’t the first time a bunch of vagina’s got her drunk. I’m guessing they must have had a few shots by the time they got to the next game, which was how fast they could unroll a role of toilet paper. Noella demonstrated the stack for Gina, but fully clothed, with Emily and Shannon. She told Gina it wasn’t all that weird; it had been her fantasy, and a birthday present. Jen had gotten the details wrong. For whatever reason, this prompted Gina to consent to a private conversation with Noella. Gina said she was upset that Noella thought she’d done something bad, but Heather was allowed to say she thought the gift was inappropriate. In Gina’s interview, she said she didn’t know how to handle a friendship with Noella. She didn’t want to be involved in a friendship she didn’t understand. She told Noella that her feelings needed to matter too, even though Noella was going through a bad time.

Ryne held that adorable chihuahua – Mr. Puppers! – while Jen was bombarded by her kids. In her interview, she said she was the fun parent when she was around. With Ryne, it was, no candy, no iPad, and you’ll eat fruit. She and Ryne went out on the patio to talk, and Jen said she wanted Ryne to be legit proud of her. He said he was, but Jen said she didn’t think he saw what that meant. She gave him the eye a couple of times because he was focusing on the dog, but how could you not? Mr. Puppers is unbelievably adorable, and I focused on him the entire time. If I had been part of the conversation, I’d have been the one holding him. Ryne said it sounded like she’d had a challenging day, and it was rough dealing with new staff, but she did great. She came home and saw the gang; she’d done it all. I actually thought he did pretty well, but in her interview, Jen said they were misunderstanding each other. In Ryne’s interview, he said Jen was challenging to communicate with. She was go-go-go, and needed a lot of attention. It was The Jenny Show. He asked if they could do this another time; he’d rather not right now. He said he was taking a break, and went inside. She followed him, and asked if he wanted to try again, but he said it was a hard no.

Next time, Emily asks if Shannon is jealous about Heather and Gina’s friendship, Shannon is reeling, and Emily says, all Noella talks about is her divorce.

🏝 Don’t Ryne Him In…

At first, I thought I’d be on Jen’s side about this, but I’m sliding the other way. While Ryne is a little low-key, it seemed like he was trying, and I didn’t get what she wanted out of him. He also wants some appreciation of his own. Taking care of kids is a tough job. And obviously, he’s an excellent pet parent.

https://www.realitytitbit.com/bravo/who-is-ryne-holliday-dr-jen-armstrongs-husband-on-rhoc

More on the good doctor.

https://www.bustle.com/entertainment/rhoc-star-dr-jen-armstrong-instagram-job-husband-kids-lawsuits

🏊‍♂️ Everybody Out Of the Water…

Stop in tomorrow for some soap and who knows what else. Since the Runway is over, Bravo is airing Galley Talk on Thursday, where cast members from Below Deck watch the show and do commentary. As I always say, the only thing better than watching TV, is watching other people watch TV. Until then, stay safe, stay worthy of other’s trust, and stay avoiding being imprisoned. Besides not being able to live the life you want, the horrible food, and the beatings, it’s really boring.