(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
No GH today. All it said on their FB page was that it was due to ongoing news coverage, but no indication as to coverage of what. It was a network decision, since there was nothing new online either. I was pretty surprised when I turned it on, and there was Cyrus playing Chairman of the hospital, and Todd Franco was walking around. Instead, a little soap news…
Crystal was preparing for a Chinese New Year party – the Year of the Ox – she was throwing at an Asian restaurant she’d rented for the occasion. She took Erika there for a looksee, and Erika said something about it being in Kill Bill. LisaR said the same thing later, but while it looked similar to restaurant where O-Ren (Lucy Lui) hangs with her crew, I’m pretty sure that place is in Tokyo. In her interview, Crystal told us that whatever happens on New Year’s Day (or maybe Eve; it was unclear) would represent the next year. Since Erika was still mad at Sutton, Crystal was concerned. Kathy met with architect Jesse and builder Aiden at a ginormous 18,000 square foot house she was having built. She and husband Richard were originally going to move in, but Richard reminded her of all the good times they’d had in the house they were already in, and she changed her mind. My guess is, he probably just didn’t want the hassle of having to move in his 70s or whatever. Not to mention they’d be putting the new one on the market in the $52 million range. Maybe the guys from Million Dollar Listing can broker that. In Sutton’s interview, she said she could fit three of her houses into Kathy’s new one. She and Kathy discussed the trip to Del Mar, and Sutton admitted she thought things with Erika had been a little strange. In her interview, she said, it would be nice to think things were back to normal, but wondered how that was possible when it had been so volatile. Garcelle wasn’t sure if she wanted to continue with her dating coach. She’d gone on a tailgate date with her match – who’d brought sushi and champagne – but he wasn’t her type. He wasn’t as spectacular as his photos. She wondered where his abs were. She’d expected him to show up shirtless.
Because she’s dense, in LisaR’s interview, she thought she and Garcelle had progressed. I thought it was more like Garcelle was proceeding with caution. We flashed back to when the women poked at Garcelle at dinner until she finally cried, which LisaR called being vulnerable and said was beautiful. It would be if they were all decent people. Garcelle wanted LisaR to reach out to Denise, but in her interview, LisaR said her relationship with Denise was her business. She’d do what she wanted when she felt like doing it. It would be when it felt organic and natural, which was ironic, since nothing about LisaR is organic or natural. She told Garcelle, when it was time, she’d do it, which probably meant, never. In Garcelle’s interview, she said, if LisaR reached out, it would show her growth. She wanted to see more action and less talk with LisaR. Good luck with that.
Everyone trickled in to the party, which began with cocktails outside. In Sutton’s interview, she said she was willing to let go of Erika threatening her, but not so much what she’d read and heard about the situation. She didn’t need to worry though, since Erika had turned the tap back to cold, and ignored Sutton. In Garcelle’s interview, she said she’d thought Sutton and Erika were doing better, but that was a hi/bye for sure. Mauricio, who was most likely stoned, banged on the Chinese gongs at the front of the restaurant. The coolest thing was a dude making candy zodiac animals, and putting them on sticks. I want to know where to get those. Kathy brought her friend Elliot (who we’ve seen before) as her escort, and for a moment, I thought she’d sprung Tom. They look an awful lot alike.
The décor was absolutely beautiful, and Crystal said she wanted to transport everyone to Asia. Everyone sat down, and Rob raised his glass, and said, true friends didn’t make problems disappear, but they didn’t disappear when problems came. Crystal said the women had little red envelopes with money in them, and they would get it back a hundredfold after feeding the animal. Or something to that effect. Kyle looked like she was starting to panic, asking, what animal? over and over. Then she nearly hit the ceiling when a Chinese percussion band began to play in the balcony. Chinese dragons came out, and the women put the envelopes in their mouths. I would have loved to be at this party, except not with this group. No surprise, the food was fabulous, and dumplings are one of my all-time favorite foods. For whatever crazy reason – i. e. screen time – Kyle said Sutton swept things under the rug. Sutton didn’t think so, but said she didn’t want any ill will between her and Erika. And then there were crickets. Lots and lots of crickets. In Erika’s interview, she said she didn’t need an apology from someone who was willing to condemn her. Sutton said she thought she could speak for everyone in that they all wanted Erika to come out of this shining bright. Erika told them that she had nothing to say.
They went back outside where there was a dessert bar, where there were many impressive confections. In Sutton’s interview, she wondered why she was trying so hard with Erika. Then she wondered what these women even saw in Erika. I told her, thank you. I wanted to like Erika. I tried to like Erika. But even before this, she ran hot and cold, and got irrationally angry at times. Sutton told Kyle that Erika made people afraid to say anything. While everyone had a last cocktail, Erika told Sutton that she’d thought they were friends, and she’d needed Sutton to have more faith in who she was. Sutton wanted a one-on-one, but Erika said she needed time to trust Sutton. Sutton said she also wanted to be able to trust Erika, and know she could speak freely and not get the lion’s claws. Erika said that’s why she was waiting. Erika said, this life is not for wimps, but I wasn’t sure if she meant that collectively, or was just talking about her so-far-above-our life.
Since it was the finale, everyone had their final say, and there was text on what they’d been doing, none of which was all that interesting. Sutton was still waiting on that talk with Erika, but had moved out of Kyle’s house. Six months after her six week deadline. Kyle put the house on the market after Sutton’s departure. She was still tight with Kathy, and had finally gotten Kim’s new phone number. Knowing Kim, it’s possible she might have just forgotten it. Dorit had added some ready-to-wear gowns to her collection, and designed a special reunion gown for herself. PK named it, The Reunion, because he’s so original.
Due to Harry’s influence, LisaR was adding acrylic nails to her beauty line. I don’t want to know. She also now approved of Scott and Amelia’s relationship, since they’d called it quits. Garcelle was back in the studio to film The Real, and was taking a break from dating. Unless Brad Pitt called. Freshman Housewife Crystal said it had been fascinating to see how the friendships among the women morphed. Which I guess was her way of saying, wow, these women are close, then stab each other in the back, then forget what just happened. She was still color-coding her life, and hoped to visit her pop-star brother Jeff in China. Erika claimed she’d faced down everyone’s questions to the best of her ability, and was never going to apologize. Her way of saying, she managed to avoid answering any questions too directly, and back off, bitch. The text said she appreciated the support of her ass kissers true friends, although her friend circle had gotten smaller.
I would have liked a little less crap, and more of Crystal’s party.
Next, the Reunion. I believe it’s in four parts, so it should be a doozy.
🍾 After-party note. On Watch What Happens Live, people voted online about the level of Erika’s honesty from one to ten. She got a four.
Hopefully, soap tomorrow, and perhaps even some high-priced property. But for now, stay safe, stay going big or going home, and stay the hell out of Erika’s business, lest you get the lion’s claws.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Curtis is getting ready to lock up at The Savoy, when Portia comes in. She says it looks like she’s too late for a drink, but he says, for you, this place is always open. He asks what she’ll have, and she says, surprise me.
Dante asks if Dallas spends much time in Monte Carlo, and she says, as much time as she spends anywhere. He says, so she travels a lot? and she says he asks a lot of questions; why is that? Outside, Sam takes a key out of the wallet she lifted.
Victor asks if Peter is all settled in, and Peter says he is. The accommodations are fine. Victor says, certainly better than the cell Peter would be in if he hadn’t managed to extract him from Nixon Falls. Peter asks if Victor wants a thank you, but Victor says he wants Peter to honor the terms of their agreement.
Anna goes to Chloe’s room, and asks the guard if there have been any changes. He says there’s a nurse with her now, and Anna asks if any visitors have come to see Chloe, but he says, no. She calls Valentin and gets voicemail. She says she’s sorry she had to leave, but she’s at the US Consulate. Call her when he gets this. Robert says, bloody hell. How did she beat him there?
Valentin wakes up handcuffed in Drew’s cell. Drew asks if he’s awake, and tells him, welcome to hell.
Anna asks what Robert is doing there, and he says, her first. She says she’s waiting to speak to Chloe Jennings, the woman who was hired to be Maxie’s baby nurse before Peter replaced her with a psycho. He says, what a coincidence. So is he. She says, he’s not. She’s actually an active WSB agent. He’s the DA in Port Charles. She thinks it’s a little far from his jurisdiction. He says, Maxie’s family. Someone’s stolen her child. Whatever contacts he has within the Bureau, he’s going to use them to get that kid back. They would be better off working together than alone. She says she’s not working alone.
Valentin says, he’s Drew Cain, and Drew says, yep. Valentin thinks he’s been drugged, and Drew says, that would be a safe bet. He was pretty out of it when the guards brought him in. Valentin asks where they are, and Drew says Valentin would know better than he would. What’s the last place he remembers? Valentin says he was drinking in a tavern in a small village on the island of Crete. Drew says, Crete. Of course (🍷). He figured he was somewhere in Greece. A lot of the guards speak Greek, and you can hear the ocean if you really listen. He thanks Valentin, and says, if nothing else, he finally knows his location. Valentin asks if he’s been locked up there this whole time, and Drew says, for two years, and Valentin doesn’t look that surprised to see him. Valentin says, he’s working with Anna Devane, and Drew asks how she is. He says they were drinking together. He doesn’t know. She was as drunk as he was. Drew says, maybe they only drugged Valentin, and Valentin says he hopes so. Drew says, sorry he interrupted. Valentin was about to tell him how he knew he was alive. Valentin says Drew managed to phone Sam, who told Anna, and said there was a possibility Drew survived the plane crash. Drew says, there was no plane crash. It was all staged to cover up his abduction. Valentin says, by Peter August? and Drew says, he was involved, but the guy who’s been keeping him prisoner all this time is actually a relative of Valentin’s – Victor Cassadine.
Victor says he’s provided Peter with a lot of help, and Peter says, it seems events have escalated recently. Victor says, not only recently; for years now. Peter needed a place to warehouse Drew, and he obliged. Peter says, not out of the goodness of his heart. Victor wanted Drew for his own ends. Victor says, to be of any use to him, Drew has to follow his orders. That’s why Peter agreed to give him the means to access the conditioning installed by Peter’s father. He’s still waiting.
Dante says, he and Dallas only just met, and he’s in her hotel room. He’s just trying to get to know her better. She says she’s a proud graduate of Texas A&M – go Aggies. She wanted to get an MBA, but didn’t want student loan debt, so she took a job with a defense contractor who sent her overseas. One job led to another, and she never made it back to business school, but she did manage to start her own consulting firm. He asks what she consults about, and she says, anything anybody pays her for. Now it’s her turn to ask questions. What does he want? Sam comes into the room, acting flustered, and says she’s so sorry. She guesses this isn’t their room. Dallas asks if this is a robbery. There’s 10,000 euros in her bag, and her bracelet is real. Take them, and she’ll give them a five minute head start before she calls security. Sam says they’re not here to rob her; they just want some information. Dante says, they’ll save her 10,000 euros and her bracelet, and would be grateful for her help. She says the two of them tried to scam her. Why should she tell them a damn thing?
Curtis says he hopes Portia isn’t disappointed in wine, as he pours her a glass. She says, not at all. He read her mind. She’s not really up for a signature cocktail with fifteen ingredients. Not that the drinks they make aren’t amazing,. He says, sometimes a little wine is all you need. The distributor sent this over for him to try. Tell him what she thinks. She takes a sip, and says she likes it very much. He says, he’ll order more, and she asks if he’s heard from Jordan. He says he called her yesterday, and she sounded good, so he checked with TJ, and he’s monitoring her case. It’s slow and go, but the numbers are headed in the right direction. She says she’s glad, and he says, him too. That was crazy at Roger Barstow’s house. If Portia hadn’t been there, he might not have gotten Jordan out in time.
Robert asks why Anna would continue to trust this snake, and she says, because Valentin is as motivated as she is to find Peter and stop him. Robert was right about Peter, and all his dire predictions came true because she and Valentin ignored the dangers. So now they’re trying to mitigate the damage. Doesn’t he see? He says she doesn’t think there’s a snowball’s chance in hell Valentin is playing her?
Valentin says, Victor Cassadine is dead, and Drew says, there’s a lot of that going around. Valentin asks why Victor would be keeping Drew prisoner, and Drew says he hasn’t seen Victor face-to-face, but Obrecht thinks it’s part of a bigger deal he has going with Peter. Valentin says, Liesl Obrecht? and Drew asks if she’s supposed to be dead too. Valentin says, just missing, and Drew says, she was here a few hours ago. They allowed her to give him medical attention. Valentin asks if he’s okay, and Drew says, a little banged up, but nothing serious. She gave him some antibiotics. Valentin says, so she’s working for Victor, but Drew says, she claims she’s Victor’s prisoner too. Valentin asks if he believes her, and Drew says, Victor and Peter are allies, and her hatred for Peter is very convincing. Valentin says he’s seen it first hand, and Drew says, Obrecht thinks that Victor is supposed to help Peter find his missing daughter, but she has no idea what’s in it for him. There’s got to be something. Valentin says he doesn’t know Victor, but knows his reputation. He doesn’t work for free; he always has an agenda. Drew says, Peter is racking up quite a debt. He wonders how Peter is going to pay it off.
Peter tells Victor, his father was an expert on mental conditioning, but he always installed at least two levels. Drew’s first level, which allowed Helena to control him, has already been disabled. Victor says, the second should be accessible through a simple key. Where’s the key? Peter says he hasn’t found it yet, and Victor says, after two years? He’s not looking hard enough. Peter says, it’s not like he can just open an instruction manual. It could be anything; a simple phrase, an image. Something his father would find easy to remember, but something no one else would think of as important. Victor says, if Peter’s father is the only one who knew the key, and he’s dead, why is he putting up with Peter?
Dante says Dallas told him about herself, so now he’ll tell her about himself. His name is Dante Falconari, and he’s a cop originally from Brooklyn. He roots for Notre Dame – go Irish. He introduces Sam and says he’s never asked her what college football team she roots for. She says she’s not really into college football. She’s more of a Giants fan. He says, wow. That means she has the strength of character to stay true in good times and in bad. Dallas asks if there’s a point here somewhere, and he says they have a close connection to the WSB, and he’s guessing she wouldn’t want them sniffing around her consulting business. It’s probably in her best interest to tell them what they want to know. Dallas says, which is what? and he asks if she’s ever done a job for David Henry Archer, aka Shiloh. She says, that bastard? Is he the reason for all this? Early on, they worked for the same defense contractor, but Arch was a field guy, basically a soldier; she did logistics. He always had a racket, some way to make money. She helped him out a couple times and took a cut of the profits, but she got a better gig, and they lost touch. Dante asks when she last heard from him, and she says, a couple years ago. He called her out of the blue. He had a job and was willing to pay generously. Dante asks, what was the job? and she says he hired her to fake a plane crash in the Gulf of Adan. He wanted it to look like a charter jet went down with no survivors.
Portia asks if Curtis has made any progress in the link between Jordan’s investigation and his. They sit at a table, and Curtis says, yes. Jordan wanted to interview Roger Barstow because he traveled to the US with Naomie Dreyfuss. Naomie Dreyfuss turned up dead in a hotel room a couple months back. She’s Hayden Barnes’s mother, so the theory is that whoever tried to kill Hayden succeeded in killing Naomie. She says, but Curtis wanted to talk to Barstow about his time in Creighton-Clark; more specifically, Drew Cain’s time at Creighton-Clark. Curtis says he knows it’s a long shot, but he was hoping Barstow had some records that could lead them to where Drew is now. She says, so the million dollar question is, was Roger Barstow killed because of Naomie Dreyfuss or Drew Cain? He says, what if it’s both?
Sam asks if Dallas is saying there was no plane crash. It never happened. Dallas says, not as far as she knows, and Dante asks, how you fake a plane crash? Dallas says, it only works over deep waters. You get the make and model of the jet in question, and file a flight plan. The real jet follows the flight plan to a designated point, makes a distress call, turns off their beacons, and flies away. Meanwhile, a team dumps the wreckage of the same make and model of the jet in the ocean. Rescuers search the area, no bodies are recovered, and no one is looking for the real plane. Dante asks if she knows where the real flight landed, but she says, no idea. He asks if she knows who was on the plane, and she says, never asked; never wanted to know. He asks how much she was paid, and she says, two million, plus the cost of jet parts. He says, did she ever ask herself how Archer managed to pay it? and she says, he was just the go-between. Arch arranged the deal for a third party who could afford to pay.
Peter tells Victor, his father kept records, but not all in one place. His work took him all over the world; it’s a lot of ground to cover. Victor says he’s heard this before. It always sounded like an excuse; now it sounds like a stall. He opens the door, and Peter says he’d have more time to focus on the search if he knew his baby girl and her mother were safe and sound – with him. Victor says, so he’s expected to recover Peter’s baby with her mother, and return them to Peter. In exchange, Peter will keep looking for the key to Drew? It doesn’t sound like fair exchange to him. He’s not convinced Drew’s worth it. Peter says Victor has more than two years invested in the guy, not to mention all the personnel Drew took out trying to escape. Why give up when he’s so close to the payoff? Victor says, because Peter managed to lose his baby, and it’s going to cost him a lot of effort and influence to find her. Peter says, but Victor can find her.
Drew says, instead of focusing on what Victor is after, let’s stick to what we actually know. He asks what Valentin and Anna are doing in Crete, and Valentin wonders where he starts. The mother of Peter August’s daughter is Maxie Jones. Drew says, Obrecht told him all this. Peter hired a baby nurse, and replaced her with someone who works for him. That woman kidnapped the baby and handed her off to a third person, then died. Valentin says, that’s right; Peter’s nurse is dead. But amazingly, the nurse Maxie originally intended to hire is alive and in Crete. Drew says, Chloe Jennings? and Valentin asks how he knows that name. Drew says, because she was here too. They tried to break out together. They got as far as the parking lot, and he held off the guards so Chloe could make it to a car, and escape, but Russel, the guy Victor hired to run this place, was sure they’d track her, find her, and bring her back. Valentin says, Chloe was in a single car accident, and Drew asks if she was hurt. Valentin says, she was able to walk away, and got to a small village with a tavern – the same one where he was drinking. Then she passed out, but not before telling them her name, and that she was an American citizen. The locals contacted the authorities, and they took her to the American Consulate where she’s at the hospital. Drew asks, how is she? but Valentin doesn’t know. The last time he saw her, she was unconscious. Drew says he told her to go, and Valentin says, maybe she’s awake. The doctors said her condition wasn’t serious. Drew hopes so. Nothing in her life prepared Chloe for this place, but she handled it like a pro, and now she’s somewhere safe. Valentin asks how much Chloe knows, and Drew says, she only dealt with Russel. She doesn’t know anything about Victor and Peter. Valentin says, but she knows about Drew, doesn’t she?
Anna says she knows Robert doesn’t trust Valentin; she’s not asking him to. So if he would prefer their investigations to be separate, that’s fine by her. However, it does mean that when Chloe is able to answer their questions, she’ll take the lead. He asks if this means Valentin is going to sit in on these meetings. Neither of them are agents at the moment, and it occurs to him, if Valentin and Anna are working together, shouldn’t Valentin be there? Anna says, yeah. When Chloe turned up, she was in a little village… He says he read the report, and she says, she and Valentin went there to interview some of the locals. They had couple of drinks just to… smooth things over, and he stayed. He’s there still. Robert says, to interview potential witnesses. Or maybe he’s face down in an ashtray. That would be Robert’s choice. The guard says, Miss Jennings is awake.
Anna shows Chloe her badge and says she’s a special agent with the WSB, and introduces Robert as agent emeritus. First, she wants to tell Chloe that she’s at the US Consulate medical facility. Chloe says, the nurse explained, and Anna says she’s notified the consul, and she’s on her way. She should be there shortly, so if Chloe wants to wait for her, that’s absolutely all right. Chloe asks if she’s in trouble, and Anna says, God no. They have reason to believe Chloe was abducted and transported there by an individual they’re currently investigating. She’s asking for Chloe’s help. Robert says they don’t expect Chloe to take them on faith; she can call the consul and have them checked out. Chloe says she’s from Port Charles, and they’re famous there. She’ll tell them everything she can.
Valentin says he knows Drew wants to talk facts, but he needs to speculate for a second. Drew says they’ve got nothing else to do, and Valentin says, hypothetically, Anna hasn’t been drugged. She circles back to Chloe and Chloe’s awake. She tells Anna that she was held captive there, but escaped thanks to Drew Cain. Now Anna knows Drew is alive and being held captive. If she hasn’t noticed that Valentin has disappeared already, she will soon. Drew says, and Valentin was in the same place Chloe showed up. Valentin says, that’s where she’ll start the search. The WSB will get involved, and get security camera footage, and satellite imagery. He doesn’t care how well-hidden Victor has this place, Anna will find them sooner rather than later. Drew asks if they sit and wait, but Valentin says, no. Peter’s not an idiot. He now knows the security of this place has been compromised. Drew says, so he’s got to move, and Valentin says, or cut his losses. Drew says, that’s just beautiful. He’s been held up there for two years, and now Victor or Peter are going to have to kill him to cover their ass. Valentin says, wait a minute. They’ve kept him alive this long; it’s possible Drew still has something one or both of them want. He may be the liability. Drew says, then one or both of them is about to die, and Valentin says, hypothetically. Drew says, then he needs something from Valentin.
Dante and Sam go back to their room, and Sam makes a call. Dante asks who she’s calling, and she says, Anna, but you know what? She can’t call. She doesn’t even know what to say to Anna. They have no evidence. All they did was listen to a story. He asks if she doesn’t believe Dallas, and she says she wants to, but that’s the start of a good con; you tell the mark what they want to hear. He asks if she thinks Dallas made it up, and she says, it’s possible. He says, but why? There’s the beginning of a good police investigation – two things; who benefits and what’s the motive? Not Shiloh; he’s dead. Not Dallas; she’s already been paid. Sam says, maybe she was paid to distract them, and point them in a different direction, but he says, she didn’t point them in any direction. She didn’t know who was on the plane, she doesn’t know where the plane landed. All she said was that she dumped some plane parts in the Gulf of Adan. Which fits perfectly with the WSB’s thin file on the incident. Sam says, there was nothing to investigate because the crash never happened. It was Drew on that call. He’s been alive this whole time.
Victor says he did a deep dive into the woman Peter hired to replace Chloe Jennings. Another loose end he had to warehouse for Peter. Peter says, Victor let Chloe escape, and Victor says, Drew Cain made that possible, who he can’t fully control because Peter failed to provide him with the key. Peter says, it seems they’re going in circles with all of this, and Victor says, agreed. One thing they can do is decide if they just call it quits and go their separate ways, or do they make one final effort at a mutually beneficial arrangement? Peter says he wants his daughter back, and her mother with her. Make it happen, and he’ll get Victor the key. Victor says he’d better, and Peter says he’ll get back to work immediately.
Drew asks if Valentin is still living in Port Charles, and Valentin says he and his daughter are staying at the Quartermaines. Drew asks how that happened, but Valentin says, it’s a long story he’s not certain they have time for. What does Drew need from him? Drew says he was wondering if Valentin had seen his daughter, and Valentin says, Scout? Yes, quite a lot. She and Danny are inseparable, and have rooms at the Quartermaines. Drew asks what Scout is like, and Valentin says, she’s lovely. She’s bright, articulate, and inquisitive. She’s a tomboy who likes to climb trees, and loves to go exploring with Annabelle II. Drew loves that she has access to a dog, and Valentin says, his daughter Charlotte is taking ballet, so now Scout wants to take ballet too. A guard comes in, and tells Valentin, let’s go. Valentin is taken away by another two guards, and he tells Drew, get out of this alive. Find Peter and kill him. Drew says he’s way ahead of Valentin.
Curtis says, Creighton-Clark, where Roger Barstow worked, was a sketchy organization; basically a front for dirty ops in the WSB. Portia says, sounds ominous, and he says, the official story is that the place blew up, and everyone with ties to it is either dead or in prison. But the official story could be wrong. She says, that would mean the dirty ops are still running, and maybe Barstow was a part of it. Maybe Naomie was too, and they killed her to keep quiet, and killed Barstow for the same reason. He says, maybe, but there’s no way to prove it.
Sam tells Dante, finally they’re making progress. They know the plane crash was staged, and Peter caused it. He says, Dallas didn’t say anything about Peter, but Sam says, she did say there was a third party involved who was able to pay, and Peter already admitted causing Drew’s crash. He says, there’s something they’re missing; an element they haven’t seen. Peter couldn’t have done this on his own. He had help. She says, they don’t know who that person is, so can they not worry about that now, and focus on Peter? He says, Peter’s a fugitive. They have no idea where he sent Drew. He doesn’t know what their next step is. Sam says Drew can help them. He’s obviously fighting to come home. Dante asks if Sam has thought about what happens when he does.
Valentin is brought to Victor, who tells the guards to wait outside. They uncuff Valentin, and leave. Valentin says, Uncle Victor, alive and well, I see, and Victor says, he must admit he was anticipating a bigger reaction. Valentin says Victor can thank his cellmate for that, and Victor says he wasn’t sure how much Drew understood of his circumstances. Valentin says, Liesl Obrecht filled him in on the high points, including Victor’s involvement. Where is she, by the way? Victor says, she’s safe, and Valentin says, is she? His friend Peter hates her, and is the antithesis of self-restraint. Victor says, that’s why he brought Valentin there. He needs Valentin’s help.
Anna asks Chloe to start with the circumstances that led to her disappearance, and Chloe says she was on a job interview. An expectant mother needed a nurse for the final few weeks of her pregnancy, and to help out when the baby was born. Robert asks if she remembers the mother’s name, and Chloe says, Maxie Jones. She was supposed to go to Maxie’s apartment, but the baby’s father asked to meet her ahead of time. She’s used to anxious partners, so she agreed. Anna asks the father’s name, and Chloe says, Peter August. They met at the MetroCourt. He seemed nice enough; a little type A, but that’s not unusual for first time fathers. She answered his questions and left the interview. She remembers walking out of the hotel, turning on Van Nuys, and that’s it. The next thing she knew, she was in a cell. They didn’t tell her where or why. Anna asks, who’s they? and Chloe says, the guards, and Russell. Robert asks who Russell is, and she says, the man who runs the place. He knew she was a nurse, and said she might as well be useful. He had her give basic first aid to the guards, and eventually to the other prisoner. Anna says, there was another prisoner? and Chloe says, he helped her escape. He said he was a Navy SEAL and could hold off the guards. Anna asks his name, and she says, Drew Cain.
Drew traces Scout’s name that he’s written on the wall. The door opens, and he says, you spineless bastard. Finally you show your face. It’s Peter.
Curtis asks if Portia would like another glass of wine, and she says, she’d like one, but she’d better not. She was getting carried away with all the espionage lingo and dirty ops. He says she had a good theory going; it made a lot of sense. She says, maybe she missed her calling. She puts her glass on the bar, and he says he thinks she’s great at her calling. She’s a gifted doctor, and helps people. It’s got to make her proud. Not to mention she raised a wonderful young woman. She says, no argument there. To be perfectly honest, part of the reason why she came there tonight is, she was avoiding going home. He imagines it’s probably lonely with Trina living in the dorms, and she says she spent eighteen years parenting Trina. Guiding her, shielding her, lecturing her at times. Now her job is to step back and let Trina find her own way, which she’s totally committed to doing, but it’s harder than she thought. He says, maybe he can help, and she asks if he has another case. He says, no more cases. He was thinking dinner, maybe at a club. He can check out the competition. She says she’d like that very much, and he says, let’s go.
Robert asks Chloe to tell him again how she escaped, and she says, it was Drew’s idea. He said she had to earn the guards’ trust. He’d stolen a pen from Russell. He was going to use it to pick the lock on his handcuffs. But instead, he told her to turn him in. So she did.
Sam tells Dante, if he’s asking about Scout, she’s going to have to get to know her father all over again. If he’s asking about her, she realized she didn’t have a child with Drew. She had a child with a man she thought was Jason. Drew is a man who grew up in a state home, and after high school, went into the Navy and became a SEAL. She doesn’t know him. When they were together, he didn’t know himself. We see Anna is calling Dante, but he doesn’t notice or is just ignoring the phone. He says, three years ago, he wouldn’t have known what Sam was talking about, but after going through what he went through, he gets it. The way Dr. Kirk messed with his head… you get the feeling you have no sense of self. You don’t trust yourself for who you are anymore. That’s what’s terrifying. Sam stopping him from killing Peter was a turning point for him. Ever since, he’s been getting help from Doc, his mother, and her. She helped him find his way. There’s no going back, but he can find a way forward. Sam says, that’s what Drew is going to have to do. He’s going to have to figure out who he is now, and what he wants now. Dante says, he’s going to need help, and she says she’ll be there to help him, because he’s Scout’s dad. The Drew she thought she loved doesn’t exist. In fact, he never did.
Robert asks if the ruse worked, and Chloe says, they trusted her enough, so that the next time they brought her to Drew’s cell, she tricked one into coming in. Drew knocked him out, and took his keys. They made it outside the door. That’s when Drew sent her on alone, and went back to hold off the guards. He was so brave; they have to help him. Robert says they have to find him first, and Anna says, anything Chloe could tell them about the location of the compound would help.
Valentin says, the last time he saw Victor would have been on Cassadine Island before he was sent off to school. He must have been six. Victor says, but Valentin remembers him? and Valentin says, not really. Photographs, stories… He was the same one, the surviving brother, but not for long, not if he’s working with Peter. He’s not going to survive that. Peter will double-cross him. Victor says that’s why he needs Valentin’s help. Peter will kill them both unless they work together.
Chloe tells Robert and Anna, it’s by the ocean; that’s all she knows. Anna says Chloe may know more than she realizes. Take them through what she did, everything she remembers. Chloe says she got in the guard’s car, and floored it. She was sliding all over the road, but kept going fast as she could; she knew they’d be after her. She saw lights in the distance, and drove toward them. She missed a turn, and drove into a ditch. She must have hit her head and blacked out. When she came to, she walked toward the lights. There was a little town with a little bar. Some people were out front, and she told them her name. She said she was an American and needed help. Then she woke up there. Anna asks if Chloe has any idea how far the compound was from where she crashed, but Chloe says, it’s hard to say. Twenty miles? It was dark, and she was just trying to stay on the road. Robert says she’s been incredibly helpful, and very brave, and Chloe says she still doesn’t understand why this happened to her. Drew didn’t know either. Who’s their suspect? Anna says, he’s the last man she met in Port Charles – Peter August.
Peter says he’d hate to have to shoot Drew, but he will. Drew says, shooting an unarmed man in handcuffs is definitely Peter’s style. Peter says he’s offended. Drew doesn’t want to thank Peter for keeping him alive all this time? Drew says, like Peter did with his brother? This is the same crap he pulled on Jason. Peter made the world think Jason was dead, but kept him on ice until he could use him. Peter says, there were some complications with Jason, but there won’t be with Drew. Drew says, screw him. He’s a Navy SEAL. Peter can’t force him to do anything. Peter says, wrong, and holds up The Tower tarot card. He says, you’re active… Soldier. Drew says, reporting for duty, and Peter puts the card in his pocket. Peter says, you have a new mission.
Tomorrow, Maxie tells Austin that she’s not the only one who could use protection; Victor says, Peter is the guilty party, not him; Valentin wants to know how Anna is being protected; and someone shoots at Robert and Anna.
Vanderpump Rules
Schwartz did some kind of Soul Cycle rip-off class with Brock, and In Brock’s interview, he said if there was a physical training thing you’ve heard of, he’s tried it. In Schwartz’s interview, he said Brock looked like something out of Greek mythology. Schwartz felt that he got screwed, and theorized on the perfect thigh-to-junk ratio, since it had been on his mind for a long time. He came up with 1 to 1.618 being the perfect ratio, and said it was difficult to grasp, but luckily he went to Florida State. Apparently, he also has too much time on his hands. Tom Sandoval whined to Brock that Katie had been out of line, arguing with him over the new restaurant name. In Brock’s interview, he said Schwartz and Sandy’s was trash. Personally, work on it. I like it. He’s a man who gets to the point. He said Tom had to respect Katie as his business partner’s wife, and Tom got super emotional, saying it was really about what he and Schwartz had done together. He had the feels because LVP had been inspired by that, and made them partners in TomTom. Sandoval said he wasn’t having somebody who did nothing but build Legos during quarantine tell him that he was uninspired. I dunno. Building stuff with Legos can definitely be inspired. In Schwartz’s interview, he said it was really him who said the name was uninspired, and we saw a clip backing that up. God forbid he should actually communicate this to Tom. And please feel free to drink when you hear the word inspired.
LVP met Ariana for lunch, not at one of her restaurants. In Ariana’s interview, she said when she was working at SUR, she never knew she and Lisa would have a relationship where they were Having lunch together. Lisa understood Ariana’s struggles with mental health, depression, and anxiety because she’d been there. Lisa asked about the new business, and Ariana said Tom was excited about Lisa being supportive. They discussed Katie wanting to be involved, and Ariana said she thought Katie having a strong opinion stressed the Toms out. And by that, she meant Tom Sandoval. She told Lisa that she and Sandoval had taken out a home equity loan, but it was only against Tom’s half of the equity. 😯 In Ariana’s interview, she said if anything happened, Tom would be financially responsible, and her financial responsibilities would remain intact. Um… In Lisa’s interview, she said it didn’t work like that. If the loan is in default, the bank doesn’t take half a house. Thank you, Lisa. Ariana told Lisa about Scheana and Lala falling out, and how Lala ripped Ariana to shreds in her podcast (slight exaggeration). She didn’t know who Lala was sometimes. Ariana wondered where this was coming from. Lisa asked if they weren’t going on a trip, but Ariana said, it’ll be fine. I doubt it will be anything even close to fine. Even on a good day, these trips are never fine.
James paid a visit to Sandoval, and spilled that he was going to ask Raquel to marry him. In James’s interview, he said Tom was amazing, helping him plan the proposal. The way Tom described the proposal scene, it sounded like he was bringing in a circus – literally. In his interview, James said that Raquel cherished her memories of Coachella. It hadn’t happened in the last two years, so he asked himself, what was the most romantic place in the world? The rave tent at Coachella. James told Tom that he did a manly hike with Raquel’s dad, and had asked for his blessing. Her father said he could throw James in a ditch right there, and then told him, welcome to the family, but it wasn’t a yes. In his interview, James said his family loved Raquel, but for him, it was like Mission Impossible. Call him Tom-effing-Cruise. Tom (not Cruise) said Raquel was going to lose it.
Everyone packed for Palm Springs, and in Lala’s interview, she said, before she had Ocean, her suitcase was filled with booty shorts and crop tops. Now, it was half mom jeans, and half Ocean’s stuff and her breast pump. She was freaked, waiting to see if she’d be on the New York Times Best Seller List. She’d been aggressive about it, even signing books when no one asked her to. She got all weepy, and I thought, geez, I’d be glad to just get something published. Randall said if she let the list take away her accomplishment, she was cheating herself. She told Randall that she looked at things mostly in black and white; she wasn’t good with grey. She and Ariana were in the grey, and having a kid at home was the only thing that had stopped her from drowning Ariana in her own pond. Randall said he was scared, and I didn’t blame him.
The Toms went to Villa Rosa – Puffy! – and while Schwartz filled a watering jug for Lisa, Tom said he was going to violate James’s trust. He told her that James was proposing, and in Lisa’s interview, she said she was happy for them, but also worried. Raquel deserved the best, and she hoped James could be the person he wanted to be. Schwartz returned with the water, and said, if reincarnation was a thing, he wanted to come back as a turtle at Villa Rosa. Tom said he wanted to come back as a pony, and Schwartz asked if that was because Lisa could ride him. She told Schwartz that was too easy, and I had to agree. She asked about the Toms’ wives involvement in the new restaurant, and Tom wailed about Katie saying the name was uninspired. In Lisa’s interview, she said she was passionate about names –Villa Blanca, PUMP, TomTom – Schwartz and Sandy’s, eh, not so much. Schwartz asked if Lisa didn’t like it, and finally admitted the uninspired comment came from him. The words had rubbed him the wrong way, and he’d asked Katie to plant a seed of doubt. In Tom’s interview, he said he wasn’t stoked that Schwartz had been sneaky and shady about wanting him to change the name, but instead of Katie, he should have had Lisa come to him. Someone he respected. Lisa asked why Schwartz was such a p*ssy.
Schwarz told Katie that he was glad she wanted to be involved, but her conversation with Tom hadn’t gone well. In Katie’s interview, she said, Schwartz wanted her to put doubt in Tom’s mind, and now he wants her to apologize. She was pretty sure Schwartz said, til death do us part to her, not Sandoval. Everyone headed to Palm Springs, including Charli, but Scheana and Brock were going to be late. I wasn’t paying attention, so I don’t know if they rented a house, or it was an Airbnb, or what, but it was big and impressive. They gathered in the kitchen, and Ariana said Scheana and Brock were coming with Lala and Randall, who had a house down the road. Lala found out she didn’t make the NYT list, and in her interview, she said she’d put her heart and soul into the book. She didn’t know why she was so emotional. She was proud of the book, and it had been a dream come true for her to be a published author, but not making the list made her feel extremely rejected. Randall told her he’d gotten a cake that was going to say congratulations, but had second thoughts, and told them to change it. I was surprised she didn’t say it was his fault.
Charli brough along a synthetic head she’d used during her time at esthetician school. She’d named it Buffy, and I thought it was creepy AF. James announced that there would be a pickleball tournament tomorrow, and in Ariana’s interview, she informed us that pickleball combined the elements of badminton, table tennis and tennis. She said it sounded like it was for old people, which seemed judgy and probably not true, since it involves running around after a ball. Tom added that the following day they were having a mini Coachella. Lala and Ariana’s altercation was brought up, and in Charli’s interview, she said she’d known gangsters, and Lala wasn’t one of them. Sandoval told everyone that tonight, they were having an off-the-runway show, and they all dressed up in decidedly weird ways. Brock and Scheana arrived with Lala and Randall. Lala was super bummed that she wasn’t on the list, but still proud. In Scheana’s interview, she said Brock was a Jack-of-all-trades. He cooked, cleaned, baked, and sewed. Where can I get one of these? She said she didn’t know if he could hang a TV in under seven minutes, but he would try. They put on the fashion show, which culminated with Schwartz jumping in the pool. In Katie’s interview, she said only Sandoval would think up a contest focused on what he excelled at, be the host, the only judge, and also a contestant. When he won, she said, shocker.
Katie asked Lala what was up with her and Ariana. She thought they were coming from two different places, and in Katie’s interview, she said they were both right, because they both felt a certain way, but they were also both wrong, to be angry because of how the other one felt. Randall said Schwartz did the Schwartz Shuffle whenever he asked about the new bar. Schwartz said it was complicated, and in his interview, when a producer asked what the concept of the bar was, all Schwartz did was laugh. I’m not sure what that means, but Randall said he’d never bring Schwartz to a meeting. In her interview, Katie said she wished Schwartz would be more assertive, and have more confidence when talking about something he’s passionate about. Ariana asked if James was ever going to DJ at SUR again, but he said he’d had a slip-up, and his anger got the best of him. He’d disrespected Lisa’s son. We flashed back to that, and James said, it was a test, and he failed. He had to learn from it. In a dual interview, James said, he never wanted to be that guy in the couple who drags the other down, and Raquel said what he did reflected on her. Schwartz said James had made leaps and bounds, and Sandoval said they’d all done something like that. Lala said everyone was telling James, it’s okay, this happens, but she didn’t get the same treatment. She came for Raquel two years ago, and even her friends told her to muzzle herself, and get back in her cage. The way Ariana acted at Scheana’s birthday was horrible, then Charli said, she was just hurt. Charli told Lala that she was allowed to say what she wanted to. Lala was like, stay out of it, bitch, and Charli said, don’t call her a bitch.
Lala and Charli got into it, and Charli said she’d been nothing but nice. Lala said she’d never been mean to Charli, but Charli begged to differ. She’d picked on Charli about what she ate. In Charli’s interview, she said she’d had issues with food since she was a girl. For someone who just said they knew gangsters, she got all emotional and weepy, and said she hadn’t come there to tell them that childhood trauma was the reason she didn’t eat things. In her interview, she said she was forced to eat certain things, and if she didn’t, punishment was involved. Other kids might get no desert, but her punishment was more intense, and not easy to deal with as a little girl. Lala had made comments that weren’t nice; everyone did. She told them that they were all a-holes, and in Charli’s interview, she said, when people bothered her about her food choices, she went back to being a four-year-old, anxious and defeated, who couldn’t control the circumstances.
Scheana took Charli inside, and Brock told Lala that he thought they should talk about it. Lala went in, and told Charli that she wasn’t a mind reader, and Charli said, instead, Lala made assumptions. Understand where it’s coming from, instead of just saying she’s a dumb bitch. Lala said the word bitch just flew out of her mouth like she was ordering Perrier, and in her interview, she said it was like an addiction. We saw 5000 different clips of her saying bitch, and she said it was all in how you delivered it. Lala told Charli, if Charli had an opinion she didn’t like, she might come at her. Charli said that wasn’t fair, and she thought they could relate more than disrelated [sic], which I don’t think is a real word. Charli said she was giving Lala a hug, even though she wasn’t a hugger, and Lala said she was a huge hugger. How was this friendship ever going to work?
Next time, pickleball, Brock talks about his ex-wife and kids, Ourchella happens, and Raquel wonders how James isn’t embarrassed by her. Yes, you read that right.
🔐 Escaping My Cell…
I have an early day, but join me tomorrow for a little soap, topped off with the latest in Erika Jayne news. Or as Bravo likes to call it, RHOBH. Until then, stay safe, stay stopping to smell the roses, and stay having confidence in what your passionate about. Don’t be a Schwartz.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Sonny and Jason walk into the hospital, and Sonny thanks Jason for talking about his bipolar disorder. He knows it’s a difficult subject to start. Jason says, they’ve been through worse, and Sonny says, no kidding. Jason is right. He has to get his bloodwork and the scripts; whatever he has to do. He says, Jason doesn’t have to stay, and Jason says he has to call Diane. They have to figure out what they need to do for Sonny to be declared legally alive. He has the feeling that he, Sonny, and Carly are going to be filling out a lot of paperwork. Sonny says, paperwork can wait. He needs to see Carly and tell her that Nina knew he was alive the whole time.
Carly tells Nina, you stole Sonny’s life, and bitch, you’re gonna pay. Nina says she sees Sonny told Carly. She has every right to be angry… Carly says, don’t tell her what she has a right to feel. Tell her why. Then give her one good reason not to kill her. Ugh. I hate Carly more all the time.
Josslyn leaves Carly a voicemail, saying, she knows Carly is mad at Nina. So is she, but Nina is still Wiley’s grandmother, and the last thing anybody wants is for him to get stuck in the middle. So if she hasn’t found Nina yet, and she gets this message, just count to ten. She joins Cameron and Trina outside Kelly’s, and Cameron asks if they’re really doing this. Josslyn says, hell yeah, and Trina says, okay then, handing Josslyn (I assume) something caffeinated, get amped. Today’s the day Spencer and Esme get what’s coming to them.
Esme says, it’s been hours, and Spencer’s father isn’t back yet. He says, it isn’t unusual or alarming, and she asks if he doesn’t find it alarming that his father went after Ava. He should have tried harder to stop it. He puts his arm around her, and says, it’s moot now. Ava is probably halfway across the Atlantic. Esme says, here’s hoping the plane crashes and she’s the only casualty, and he laughs. He says, in more great news, he can’t believe his Uncle Sonny is alive. She says, yes, Josslyn mentioned it. How wonderful. He asks if Josslyn told her how it all went down, and she says, Josslyn was in a hurry. She wasn’t too informative. Spencer says, Sonny can tell him himself. He can’t wait to see him. She says she’s sure Sonny would appreciate a visit once he’s settled, and he says, his feelings for Ava aside, he is happy for Avery. He knows that little girl and her daddy adore each other. Oh, okay. It’s all right for Avery to have her mother torn from her though.
At Kelly’s, Scotty picks up the envelope with the divorce papers, and tells Ava, they’re going to get her unhitched. She takes the envelope, putting it back on the table, and he says, what’s the big deal? It gets easier every time, divorce. She asks how many times he’s been divorced, and he says, too many. He says he’s getting his fee, but does she want him to file this with the court, or does she want to stay married? It’s her call. Temporary Nikolas walks in.
Carly says she knew she would find Nina there. One last visit with Wiley before Michael and Willow found out? She’s a stellar human being. Says the person who… oh, never mind. Nina says all her lies are blowing up in her face, while Carly got her husband back. Can’t that be enough? Carly says Nina played God with Sonny’s life for the past nine months, and now she’s caught and wants it to be enough? Hell no. She did it, and now she’s going to pay the consequences.
Epiphany comes out, and Sonny smiles at her. She says she heard, but she needed to see it with her own eyes. He says, hello, and she says, this is a miracle, and hugs him. Britt goes to the reception desk, and Sonny says it’s good to see Epiphany. He’s there to see Dr. Sullivan. She says, very sensible, but first, they need to get him into a room. She needs to take his vitals so she can declare him officially back from the dead. They leave, and Britt tells Jason, twice in one day. He asks if it’s a problem, and she says, not for her.
Nikolas says he’s been looking everywhere for Ava, and she asks how he got past Bubba. He says, just hear him out before Bubba comes to, and Ava asks if Nikolas is saying he knocked Bubba out. Scotty says he’s going to give Mr. Bubba his card. When he comes to, he might want to sue Nikolas. Ava says, always a charmer, and Scotty leaves. Nikolas sits down, and says he’s glad he caught Ava. She says he didn’t; he’s too late. Aside from a few practical matters, she’s ready to leave Port Charles. Next stop, London, her new base of operations. He puts his hand on the envelope, and asks if this is one of those practical matters. She says, the most practical of all; the divorce papers, signed, sealed, and all Scotty has to do is deliver them. He says, then he got there just in time, because there’s no need for Scotty, no need for divorce papers, no need for her to head anywhere but home to Windymere with him. She says, they’ve gone over and over and over this… and he says he has news. Something that will change everything. Sonny is alive. She says she knows, and he says, she does? She says, she stopped by his house this morning to say goodbye to Avery, and he says, why did she say goodbye? Doesn’t she see this changes everything? She says, it doesn’t. It changes nothing.
Josslyn says, they need to move fast. It’s go time. Cameron tells them, hold on. Are they really sure about this? Josslyn says, he’s backing out now? and he says, nobody’s backing out of anything. He’s just asking them to hear him out. Yes, Esme and Spencer’s behavior could warrant suspicion in their involvement of the stalking of Ava and Nikolas… Trina says, that’s why they’re doing this, and he says, without any evidence? Josslyn says, why? They’re not a court of law. Trina tells him, like she said, where there’s smoke, there’s fire, but he says, what if it’s just smoke? Trina says, if they’re wrong, great – Josslyn says, we’re not wrong – it will exonerated Spencer and Esme once and for all. Josslyn says, no one is getting exonerated. Trina says she’ll buy Spencer a new designer belt, and she and Esme will braid friendship bracelets together. Josslyn says, that’s not even in the realm of possibility, and Trina says, no, but she gets what Cameron is saying. They need to keep an open mind. Cameron says, okay, but if Spencer and Esme find out what they’re doing, even if it proves them innocent, do Trina and Josslyn think they’re just going let it go; no hard feelings? Spencer can hold a grudge longer than anyone he knows. Josslyn says, which would explain his motive for stalking Ava, which is why she still thinks it’s a risk worth taking. Trina says, it is for her. She barely knows Spencer, and doesn’t like Esme anyway. Josslyn can’t imagine who does, and Trina says, her point is, if they’re right, Ava can stay in Port Charles with her husband and daughter. Josslyn says, and those two will be exposed for the schemers they are. It’s a win-win. Trina says, for the last time, is Cameron in? He says, let’s spring this trap.
Nina says she knows what she’s done, and Carly says, does she? Because she wants to hear it from Nina’s own mouth. Nina says, okay. She kept Sonny from his family for months, and her lies put a lot of people in danger in Nixon Falls and Port Charles. Carly says, it wasn’t enough for Nina to make a scene at Sonny’s funeral, she had to make sure he stayed dead to the rest of them? Nina says, she’ll forever regret the unintended consequences of her actions, and Carly says, unintended consequences? Her husband almost burned to death because of Nina. Nina says, is that what he told Carly? and Carly says, he told her that he was trapped in a fire, so she’s guessing Nina had something to do with it. Nina says she’s so sorry for all the pain she’s caused, but Carly says she doesn’t think so. Nina says maybe she’s not as contrite as Carly wants her to be, because Carly hasn’t owned up to her part in all this. Carly asks how any of this is her fault.
Sonny tells Epiphany, he was trapped. There was fire everywhere, and it came to him. She says, just in time to remind him about everything he had to live for. He says, it’s good to be alive; to be himself, and know who he is. She says she’s sure his family is over the moon, but he says, they’re not as happy as he is. Michael, Dante, Josslyn, and Kristina all came over. She says she’s sure they were happy to see him, and he says, Donna is too little, but Avery held on to him so tight, and wouldn’t let go. Epiphany says, of course (🍷) she did, and he says, even though he was gone so long, it didn’t matter; he was home. She says, believe her, it mattered. Everyone was devastated when he died, especially Carly and Jason. He says, Jason had a lot to deal with. He heard Jason got arrested. Epiphany says, did he now? Even in death, Sonny doesn’t miss a trick. Sonny says he’d love to hear the details, and she says she wasn’t there for all of it, so some is secondhand, but he says he won’t ask her to swear to anything. Epiphany sits down, and says, Jason was framed by Peter for killing Franco. He was sent to Pentenville, where he was conveniently stabbed, and brought there. Someone – she doesn’t know who – arranged for his escape. He says, someone knew it was easier to break him out of the hospital than prison, and she says, rumor has it that he was free and clear, but he ran back to save Britt, when Cyrus’s thugs tried to kill her. At the time, the police thought Britt was a hostage. Sonny says, Jason would never do that, and she says, not everybody knows that. Jason was shot, Britt fixed him up, and they ended up on the run for a while. The rest, as they say, is hospital gossip.
Britt asks Jason why Sonny is there, and Jason says, to check in with his psychiatrist. Any word about her mom? She says, no, not yet. Finding Liesl Obrecht isn’t exactly a high priority for the WSB. Britt knows Obrecht is who she is, but she’s still her mother. She’s all Britt has. He says his offer still stands if she wants him to look into it. She says she meant what she said the first time, Marriage or no marriage, she doesn’t need his help anymore.
Nikolas says, he knows he and Ava aren’t Sonny’s favorite people, but Sonny has resources they don’t. She asks, what resources don’t they have? He’s a Cassadine. He says, we are Cassadines, but she says, not for long. He asks if she told Sonny why she was leaving. What did he say? She says, he wasn’t happy about Avery having been approached, but he wasn’t too broken up about her leaving. He asks if she’s suggesting Sonny is no longer the type of man who would find the person who threatened his daughter, and make them suffer. Avery is safe. Ava says, she’s not, and she’ll be in danger as long as Ava stays. That psychopath set fire to her car; who knows what else they’ll do? What about that doesn’t he understand? He says she’s right. He’s sorry. He thought Sonny would be the solution they needed. She says, the only solution is the one she’s already arrived at. She has to walk away. Scotty sits down with them, and tells them, he can’t believe he’s going to say this, especially to them, but it would be a shame for them to give up on each other.
Cameron goes to Windymere, and Spencer says, well, if it isn’t the townie. Cameron says, live and in person, and Spencer asks, to what does he owe this unexpected pleasure? Cameron says, the pursuit of higher education. Did Spencer take the Roman Civ notes today? He doesn’t know what’s up with him, but he couldn’t make heads or tails of it. Spencer says, that’s because Cameron is intellectually ungifted, and Esme says, be nice. Not everyone gets to grow up in boarding schools and haunted castles. Spencer says, Windymere isn’t haunted, but Esme says, it is so haunted. Cameron says, he knows. He asks if Esme can back him up. Isn’t it Spencer’s duty as his intellectual superior to help him out? Esme says, it is, but Spencer says he didn’t take notes. Cameron says that’s because he remembers everything he hears, but Spencer says, it’s because he’s not taking the test. He’s just auditing the class to keep his father off his back. Cameron asks how that’s working out, and Spencer says, so far, so good. Cameron asks if that means there’s going be another rager? and Spencer asks why he’d do that. Cameron says, when the cat’s away… His dad is leaving right?
Epiphany says she takes it Carly and Jason brought Sonny up to speed, and he says he wishes he’d gotten out before Jason and Carly got married, and blew so much money on deposits. They laugh, and Sonny says he guesses his timing is off. Epiphany says, for a man just barely made it out of a raging inferno, he has remarkably good vitals. Sonny says he’s going to head upstairs for another appointment, and Epiphany says, it’s good to have him back. She missed him. They hug.
Nina tells Carly, at the heart of it, it’s about her grandson. Carly says, who happens to be her grandson too, and Sonny’s. Nina says she realized that. That’s why she called Carly immediately to tell her. Does she remember that phone call? Before Nina could get a word out, Carly threatened her with court about visitation with Wiley. Carly says, so she deserved months of loss, grief, and pain for one rude phone call? Nina says, if Carly doesn’t believe her, ask Jax. He figured out what was going on, and encouraged her to tell Sonny the truth. Carly says, encouraged? and Nina says, insisted. She agreed, and Jax said he’d trust her to do the right thing. Carly wonders, why the hell would Jax do that?
Spencer asks what Cameron means about his father leaving, and Cameron says, sorry; wrong word choice. Spencer says his father can’t leave; they just moved in. Cameron says, Nikolas is taking a trip to Bora Bora, and Spencer asks, what makes him think that? Cameron says Spencer’s dad talked to Trina about getting two first-class tickets. He and Ava are celebrating calling off their divorce. He asks if he can use the bathroom, and Spencer tells him, help himself. He leaves, and Esme says, when will Spencer learn that she’s always right.
Trina’s phone dings, and she tells Josslyn, it’s done. Thanks to Cameron, phase one is in motion. It’s too late to turn back now.
Ava asks if Scotty is saying she and Nikolas shouldn’t get divorced, and Scotty says, yeah. He’s still charging a fee though. She asks where this is coming from, and Scotty says he’s been doing a lot of thinking lately about love and life, and how sketchy it can be. The uncertainty of a separation is a kind of death in its own way. Getting bounced out of an airplane like a guy who had too many martinis got him thinking. Nikolas asks if there’s any word on Obrecht, but Scotty says, no. He’s going to find her. He’s going to turn over every rock if he has to. He has to say this; true love is worth fighting for. Nikolas says he never pegged Scotty for a romantic, and Scotty says he’s been hopeless at times. He can’t control this whole thing with Obrecht, but what he can control is them. He’s not letting them throw in the towel. There must be something they can do to keep them together. Ava says, they’ve been through all that, but Nikolas says, Scotty is a clever guy. Maybe he can come up with an unconventional solution. Scotty thanks him and says, so they’ve got a little stalker problem… Ava says she doesn’t think it’s so little, and he says, what he’s thinking is, so this weirdo goes crazy when they make eyes at each other. There’s only one solution. Nikolas says, do tell, and Scotty says, date other people.
Jason tells Britt that he’ll always care what happens to her, whether he helps her or not. She says, she doesn’t give a damn about him. She walks away, and sees Sonny. She tells him, welcome back, and he says, it seems they have a lot of catching up to do. She says, he’s been gone a long time. On thing she’s learned about Port Charles; you miss a day, you miss a lot. She leaves, and Sonny says, Renault tried to have her killed, right? Jason says, yeah, and Sonny says, and Jason got shot going to get her. Jason says, that’s right, and Sonny says, Epiphany filled him in. He guesses Jason wasn’t going to. Jason tells him, there’s not much to say. It happened; it’s over. Sonny asks, did Jason leave Britt for Carly?
Carly says Nina had nine months to do the right thing. While Sonny’s kids grieved, Donna forgot her father, and Jason went to prison, Sonny was tending bar in some dive and Nina did nothing but lie to their faces. Why would Jax expect her to tell the truth? Nina says, and Carly feels qualified to judge since she knows so much about the truth. Carly says, screw you. Nina stole nine months of Sonny’s life because Carly hurt her feelings? Nina says, at least she got Sonny back. She’ll never see her daughter again. Carly says, now the truth comes out. This was payback for Nelle.
Sonny says, he’ll never forget that Jason and Carly made that sacrifice to marry and protect what’s his. Maybe now he can go pick up the pieces with Britt. Jason says he doesn’t think Britt agrees with that, but Sonny says Jason can change her mind. Jason says he’s not sure that’s possible, and Sonny says, do him a favor. Ask himself if Britt makes him happy. Jason’s phone dings, and he says he should handle this. How long is Sonny’s psych evaluation? Sonny tells him, don’t worry; he’ll have Tony pick him up. Sonny gets in the elevator, and Jason calls Josslyn. He asks, what’s up? and she says she’s kind of meddling here, but she feels like if she doesn’t, things could escalate. He asks, what happened? and she says, mom found out something about Nina, and now she’s on the warpath. She’s not responding to any calls or texts. He says, don’t worry; he’ll find her. He calls Spinelli, and says he needs Spinelli to find Carly; put a track on her phone for him.
Nikolas says, Scotty is advising his wife to date another man? and Scotty tells him, don’t be thick, Nik. Nikolas, of all people, should understand subterfuge, and Nikolas says, so she should date another man for show? Scotty says, put on a show for this crackpot, but Ava says she tried it. She flirted with Austin at the bar. Nikolas says, and her car was still set on fire. Scotty says, Austin is a good choice, but did she give it the old college try? What about Nikolas? Has he stepped out with anybody? Nikolas says, of course (🍷) not. He would if he thought it would help. Ava looks at him, and he says, subterfuge. Scotty says, look who’s jealous. She wants Nikolas to be jealous, but not her. Nikolas says, there would be nothing to be jealous of, and she says, woudn’t there? Scotty says, okay, fake dating’s not going to work. How about skipping town? Nikolas says he was all for it, but they can’t leave their children behind. Scotty says, take the little turds with them, but Ava says, any plan that uproots the kids is out of the question. Scotty says he has another idea. Nikolas is very resourceful with resources and everything. Why doesn’t he get Mr. Bubba to take the guy out? Get a real assassin to get the job done. Ava says, they were just talking about the Cassadine resources, and Nikolas says they’ve exhausted those options, and no new intel to show for it. Scotty says he guesses they’ll have to put their thinking caps on. Nikolas says he appreciates Scotty trying to help. It’s helped him finally realize something. Ava’s solution is the right one. Until they figure out who the stalker is, and how to handle them, they have to cut ties with each other.
Esme says, Spencer was so sure they’d scared Ava into leaving, but she told him that Nikolas would win her back. He says he can’t believe his father is choosing Ava over him again. Just when they’ve started rebuilding their relationship. What the hell did he do all this for, if Nikolas can leave him at the drop of a hat? Esme is sure Ava is dropping more than a hat. That’s why Nikolas can’t think straight, but don’t worry; she’s got this. His father just needs to be brought back to reality. He says, they’ve called off the divorce. They’re probably already on the Cassadine jet. It’s too late. She asks if he trusts her. She saved him before, and she’ll do it again. He says, of course (🍷) he trusts her, but he wonders if this has all gone far enough. She says, let her decide how far is too far. She’ll be back, and so will his dad. She goes out the door, seeing Cameron in the entryway. She says, sorry, she’s got to run, but please come again soon. Ciao. Cameron asks Spencer if he’s okay, and Spencer says, never better. Cameron says he thought they were past hiding how they really feel, because they’re worried one will make fun of the other. Spencer says, okay, cards on the table. Total honesty. Cameron says, absolutely, and Spencer asks, what’s the real reason Cameron came over?
Cameron sends Josslyn a devil emoji, and she tells Trina, she-devil is on the move. Trina says, Cam might have needed a little nudge, but he definitely delivered. Josslyn says, the launch will be here any second. Is Trina still tailing Esme like they discussed? Trina says she doesn’t know. Spencer’s the slippery one, right? Anyone who managed to avoid everyone they knew in Port Charles for weeks needs two sets of eyes on them. Josslyn says, she’ll follow Esme and report back, and Trina tells her, be careful. If they’re right, Esme set Ava’s car on fire. Who knows what that chick is capable of? Josslyn says she survived Nelle. She can handle what Esme’s got.
Carly says Nina acts like Nelle was a martyr. She was a murderer, and the world is better off without her, and so is Wiley. Nina says, how dare Carly say that to her? Nelle was her child. Carly says she didn’t know that until after Nelle died, and Nina says, Carly means after she watched Nelle plummet to her death. Carly laughs, and Nina says, how dare she laugh? Carly stayed silent, didn’t tell the police anything, and let Nelle rot, not allowing Nina any closure. Carly says, so Nina decided to balance the scales with nine months of grieving a man who wasn’t dead? If Nina wanted to hate her and make her suffer, fine, but how does she justify making Sonny’s kids suffer, or Sonny? Nina says, she’ll gladly apologize to Sonny, his children, his family, his friends, even his seventh grade math teacher while she’s at it, but she’ll be damned if she ever apologizes to Carly. Ugh. I know Nina did wrong, but I hate Carly. She’s got nothing for anybody who’s not so-called family.
Trina looks at her phone, and says, Cameron, you should be out of there by now.
Esme walks into the hospital, and Josslyn follows at a distance. She says, Esme, what the hell are you doing?
Spencer says, obviously Cameron isn’t there to get his notes, and Cameron says, of course (🍷) not. Spencer’s auditing the class. Spencer asks, then why? and Cameron says, it’s obvious. He practically told Spencer. Cameron came to check up on him. The last time they all hung out, he felt tension. Spencer asks if Cameron means when he, Josslyn, and Trina all huddled and gossiped about him and his girlfriend, and Cameron says, sorry. It wasn’t cool. Spencer asks what they talked about. What did they say about him and Esme, or can’t Cameron tell him? Cameron says, they just all think Esme… He doesn’t know how to say this without it sounding weird. Spencer says Cameron always sounds weird; spit it out. Cameron says they think Esme has some kind of hold over him; like an influence. Spencer says, Esme loves him, and Cameron tells him, he didn’t say she didn’t. Spencer says Esme looks out for him more than his own father, and Cameron says Spencer’s father loves him. Spencer says, the way Augustus loved Tiberius; exiled, and choosing him last every time. Cameron says, it looks like Spencer did take notes, and Spencer says, if he’s not enough for his father, why is he still fighting for him? Cameron asks how Spencer is fighting for Nikolas, but Spencer says, it doesn’t matter anymore. Cameron says his relationship with Franco was rough when Franco started seeing his mom, but they worked at it. They developed a relationship, but with time and effort, they became like a real father and on. Things worked out, and it’s not too late for Spencer and Nikolas to put everything behind them, and move forward together. Spencer says, that’s just it. He’s not Cameron, and never will be.
Ava thanks Scotty for trying. She knows he’s going through a difficult time, and appreciates him meeting her. He says he’s still going to bill her, and she says she knows. He says, Nikolas too. He’s got to meet a client. Should he take the papers with him? Ava doesn’t say anything, and he takes the envelope. Nikolas tells Scotty that his resources are at Scotty’s disposal to find Obrecht, and Scotty says he might take Nikolas up on it. Scotty leaves, and Ava says that was kind of Nikolas. Nikolas says, true love is always a worthy cause.
Epiphany asks Britt if everything is all right, and Britt says, yes. Why is she asking? Epiphany says she gets that Britt has to be the untouchable Chief of Staff. Just so Britt knows, Epiphany sees through her.
Nina says, Carly let her daughter die, lied to her for weeks, and did everything in her power to rob Nina of her grandson. Carly says, and she’d do it over all again. If Nina wants to hate her for it, come and get her, but don’t use someone like she used Sonny. Nina says, look at the bright side. At least Sonny’s back; she should be overjoyed. Carly asks if that’s supposed to make it okay. All’s well that end’s well? Nina says, none of this is okay, it’s just better. Everybody is happy Sonny is back, but really the question is, will Sonny stay happy? Carly asks what the hell that’s supposed to mean.
Britt says, Epiphany sees through her? and Epiphany says, always have, always will. Britt asks, what is it she sees? By all means, enlighten her. Epiphany says, she bets Britt is going through a lot, and it might even become overwhelming. So if Britt ever needs to talk it through, use her as a safe space… within reason.
Ava says she needs to get going, and Nikolas says, fine. He’ll let her go, but he’s not giving up. He’ll move heaven and earth to find out who’s doing this, and when he does, they’ll be together again. She thanks him for not standing in her way, and he says, anymore? She says, anymore. He just has one request – wait for him. She fixes his lapel, looks at him for a moment, and leaves. Outside, she leans against the door for a moment.
Spencer says, Cameron is like the poster child for upstanding sons, and Cameron laughs, and says, clearly Spencer has been away far too long. How does he figure this? Spencer says, even for a short time, Cameron and Franco were like father and son. They had a bond. Maybe he doesn’t deserve that kind of bond with his own father… Not after everything he’s done. Cameron asks what Spencer means. What has he done?
Sonny asks Epiphany if he’s good to go, and she says, not bad for a member of the recently deceased. She’ll get his after-visit summary. She leaves, and Esme comes up to Sonny. She asks if he’s Sonny Corinthos, and he says, who’s asking? She says, thank goodness she found him. Josslyn watches.
Nina tells Carly, things were simpler in Nixon Falls. Mike was actually happy. Carly says, stop calling him Mike, but Nina says, that’s who he was there. Jason comes in while Nina is talking, and Nina says, it’s who he wanted to be; not consumed with ambition, and riddled with guilt and regret. He wasn’t mourning the death of a child to violence. Carly launches herself at Nina, saying, don’t use the name of her child (which technically, Nina didn’t), but Jason runs in and intercepts her. Carly struggles with Jason, and tells Nina, get out. Nina says, tell Wiley that she’ll come back, but Carly says, Nina is never seeing Wiley again. Nina says Carly can’t change the fact that she’ll always be Wiley’s grandmother, and Carly says, Nina is nothing to him. Nina leaves, and Carly jerks away from Jason, whining that Nina threw Morgan in her face. He says, that’s because she knows she lost. Carly got Sonny back, and Nina’s got nothing. Let it go. Carly says, she’s going to burn Nina’s life down, and spit on her ashes. For an emotionless dude, Jason looks pretty horrified.
Tomorrow, Jason says someone’s feelings will be the least of their problems, Ava has unfinished business, Alexis asks what Shawn is trying not to tell her, and Sonny says Esme was right in coming to him.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills
Still in San Diego at the Del Mar, the women, minus Erika, took limo busses to Lorimar Vineyard, where they did a wine tasting, driving to various areas of the winery in a Rice-A-Roni cable car with tour guide Jared. I loved the cable car. It was like it had gone rogue off the tracks. Kathy brought her scooter along, and in her interview, told us it was see, sniff, swirl, and sip – then swallow. In Garcelle’s interview, she said, if dating was like wine tasting, she would love it so much more. She could line them up, and decide which one she wanted to take home. While they sat at a long table, swirling, sniffing, and guzzling sipping, Kyle announced that Tom’s brother was wanting to put him in a home, and told everyone about the burglary. LisaR jumped in, confirming everything, and lowering the times Erika’s son’s car rolled, making it four. In Sutton’s interview, she suggested someone put this man somewhere he could be taken care of. In Crystal’s interview, she said, this can’t be real. She’s never seen snow in L.A. In Dorit’s interview, she brought the car roll back to the original five, and said, this was stuff you only saw in movies. In Garcelle’s interview, she said, Erika’s stories were unbelievable, because they were hard to believe. Sutton added that she was not playing Nancy Drew. Let Scooby and his friends figure it out. Crystal said she knew what it was like to love someone with dementia. Husband Rob had stepped up, and was all in, getting her father everything he needed. Not everyone had that. Kathy excused herself to go back for a massage. She had a migraine and a neckache. In her interview, she explained that she’d been hit with a golf ball when she was a kid while doing a Barbie commercial, and had suffered ever since. By the end of the excursion, they’d had a lot of wine, and after enjoying a beautiful sunset, Kyle dared to do an impression of Erika. Even more daring was Sutton following with another one. I’ll have what they’re having.
Kyle, Sutton, and Dorit gathered in Kyle’s room for a kiki before dinner. Dorit felt badly for Erika. She felt Erika had cleared up a lot at the picnic, which Sutton hadn’t gone to. That was the first time Erika used the word alleged in regard to Tom being unconscious for twelve hours. Sutton asked, how can you be allegedly unconscious? and in her interview, she wondered why Erika’s story changing all the time, adding, I think y’all allegedly drank the Kool-Aid. In Dorit’s interview, she said she didn’t want to push it with Erika, but then they were left looking like idiots for asking, The women met in the lobby, and walked to dinner together, Kathy using her scooter. Dorit remarked that Erika was wearing latex, so it must be a good day. In Kyle’s interview, she said, Erika was not going to give Sutton any chances. The ice queen was not cracking on this one. Erika was back to getting a hot toddy, and said she was so overwhelmed; she’d needed a minute. What she was going through sucked, but there were people who could step up for Tom. He’d done a lot for a lot of people. Why was her kid there? We also got the official Erika approval stamp on her son having rolled his car five times. In Sutton’s interview, she said, something was weird. It was like the women wanted to prove they were Erika’s friends, She compared it to Denise last year, and we flashed back to that bitch LisaR, and all the she said that you said that they said garbage. In her interview, Garcelle said they were all kissing Erika’s ass, and it all seemed phony. Suddenly, Kyle asked Sutton if a kitty cat had her tongue. WTF?
In Sutton’s interview, she said, Kyle watched Erika threaten her. Who’s this helping? In Kyle’s interview, she said, Erika had been so down, she just knew she was going home and crying. It made her happy to see that Erika was in good spirits, and she hoped no one ruined it. If I’d had something in my mouth, I would have done a spit-take, after what she’d just asked Sutton. If anyone was going to ruin it, Kyle made a good start. Surprising everyone, especially Sutton, Erika brought Sutton into the conversation, and in her interview, a producer asked if Erika was trying to smooth things over. She said she wasn’t smoothing anything, but why ruin anyone else’s time? She added that she was the best person in the group, and the most adult, then laughed, but I’m not quite sure she didn’t mean it. The next morning, Garcelle had coffee with Sutton on Sutton’s balcony, and Sutton said she was surprised that Erika spoke to her, and Garcelle said, it was like nothing happened. Did she trust it? Sutton said she’d see what the day brought. LisaR called to video chat, and was so loud, Erika heard her from the room upstairs, and came out on her balcony. Luckily, they weren’t talking smack, and Garcelle said it seemed like Erika had a rebirth. LisaR said it had been a long time since they’re seen the real Erika. It was joyous. Sutton said they’d never seen that side, and Erika finally called down that she could hear everything.
Yoga instructor Kory came to teach a class of yoga on paddleboards in the pool. Crystal and LisaR were the only takers, and oddly enough, I didn’t see Kory’s ass on a paddleboard. In LisaR’s interview, she said, finally, there was somebody adventurous in the group, and not afraid to get her hair wet. In Crystal’s interview, she said she was self-conscious in a bathing suit, especially next to LisaR. But LisaR convinced her to wear one, swearing she was wearing a teeny bikini, and showed up in yoga pants. Garcelle and Sutton joined them, but plopped into chaise lounges. LisaR said she didn’t know they’d have an audience, and Garcelle said it was more like hecklers. Kyle and Erika played (I guess) paddle-ball? It was on a tennis court, and like ping pong, but with a bigger ball and paddles. They didn’t keep score, and just hit the ball around, then had champagne. It reminded me of the semester I had tennis in phys-ed in high school, minus the champagne. My best friend was in my class, and we mostly goofed around. LisaR and Crystal both ended up falling in the water, trying to balance on one leg, Garcelle said if tried that on a paddleboard, she’d be using a scooter like Sutton. LisaR marveled that Erika had talked to Sutton, and Sutton said she was surprised, but didn’t know if the door was still closed, and if not, what the angle was. At least now she thought they could get through it. Erika told Kyle that she was feeling better. She couldn’t wallow because life goes on. She had zero dollars, and told her lawyers that she expected nothing. She said they told her that was the most courageous thing they’d ever heard, but it only makes sense that you can’t squeeze blood from a turnip, and there was a long line for any assets. In Kyle’s interview, she said, no one wanted to see themselves with nothing, but the victims needed to be paid. Erika said, every day was a new disaster, and full of bullsh*t .
In Kathy’s interview, she said that she’d rested up, and was psyched for the boat trip she’d planned. She’d hired celebrity chef Brian full of Malarkey to cook, and I actually remembered him from Top Chef. They went to Shelter Island Marina, where a massive sailboat awaited them. Erika confused us all by talking to Sutton as they walked up the dock, telling her it had been rough. Sutton started to apologize, and Erika said – wait for it – it’s okay. At the boat, LisaR said, oh my God, they’re talking, like no one had eyes. Erika said she had to lash out, and apologized. Sutton said Erika was too pretty to be mad at her, which was funny, although I’m not sure if Sutton meant to be funny. In Sutton’s interview, she said she’d gotten a mild apology. She didn’t trust it. She wanted to, but she didn’t. In Erika’s interview, she said, no, she didn’t want to work it out, but she wasn’t ruining everyone’s trip because she hated Sutton, Alrighty then. They met Captain Troy, not of any Deck. Sutton had a huge struggle getting up the stairs wearing her boot, and I wondered why they couldn’t have gotten a ramp for her. The women took tons of pictures, and had the captain move the boat for better lighting. In LisaR’s interview, she said she’d move a mountain for the right light, She’d find the right light in a coffin, Dorit asked what happened with Sutton and Erika, and Sutton said she’d let Erika tell the story. Erika said her life was in shambles, and she was angry and hurt. It wasn’t kumbaya, but it was an opening. She’s in a good mood, the moment was right, and Sutton was receptive. In Kyle’s interview, she said you just didn’t know what you were going to get with Erika. She could snap, then it would be fine. Erika said they were adults. It wasn’t going to be fixed overnight, but it didn’t have to be. In her interview, Kyle suggested Sutton just not talk, which was pretty much what Sutton had been doing. Erika said as far as the press went, if she looked like she was having too much fun, she wasn’t remorseful. If she hung her head, she was guilty. She was damned if she did, and damned if she didn’t. In her interview, LisaR said she thought Erika’s lawyers told her not to talk about anything. I’ll bet they also told her to play nice with everyone, and that was why she apologized to Sutton. Crystal said, despite their rocky start, she was enjoying the time with Sutton. Everyone agreed they were all having a good time, and Crystal ran across the boat to give Sutton a hug. Garcelle said she wanted to play Never Have I Ever, and Kathy said she’d done a background check on everyone, and there was nothing she didn’t know. I never know when Kathy is being serious, so… Garcelle said, never have I ever stolen anything.
In LisaR’s interview, she just made a horrified face. In Erika’s interview, she told us, say it or don’t say it, but she doesn’t like this sh*t. In Dorit’s interview, she said she may have stolen a few hearts as a teenager. Aww. The rest of the questions were all about sex, the women ignoring the captain was about a foot from them, and hearing everything. I’m not a prude by any stretch of the imagination, but no. Just no. In her interview, Sutton said, some of Erika’s comments had an underlying scariness to them (which I’d have to agree with), but she’d have rage too, if she lost all her money. They were wowed by the pink sky, and Sutton talked to Kathy, while the others went to the bow of the boat, playing Titanic. Sutton told Kathy, she wondered how friends could become foes so quickly. In her interview, Sutton said she didn’t want a friendship where she was scared all the time. She told Kathy that she couldn’t not ask questions, but it wasn’t to hurt anybody.
Next time, Garcelle goes on a tailgate date, Crystal has a party for Chinese New Year, Garcelle wants to see LisaR reach out to Denise, and Sutton says she and Erika need to talk.
No doubt houses to cry over, otherwise known as Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles, will be on Friday, but join me tomorrow for a little soap and a little tea. Until then, stay safe, stay pursuing your dreams, and stay believing that true love is a cause worth fighting for.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Crete, Greece. Anna and Valentin walk into a bar (not the start of a joke), and Anna says, that was totally unsatisfying. He says, just what every man wants to hear, and she laughs, saying, she meant retracing Chloe’s steps. They sit at a table, and Anna says she was hoping to find something more other than the site of the accident. He says they did find something more; they found a road to this quaint little town. He asks if they shouldn’t take a night off from sleuthing. Just one, and have themselves a little drinkie. She says she’s in, and he goes to the bar.
Drew is drowsing in his cell, when Russ comes in, and says he’s got company. Drew says Russ brought him a roommate; how thoughtful. Russ says, enjoy, and tosses Obrecht into the room, slamming the door behind her. She says, my God. Drew Cain? He’s alive? He says, Dr. Obrecht, right? She says he vanished; it’s been years. He says he’s guessing she’s not the reason he’s in there, which begs the question, who managed to capture her?
Michael and Willow sit with Wiley while he colors. Michael says his boy is the next Picasso, and she says, that’s his boy all right. He asks if she’s suggesting he’s not artistic, and she says she’s not saying he’s not not artistic. He says he’s wounded, but she says he’ll get over it. Yuri comes in, and tells them that Brook took Bailey upstairs for naptime, but he has a treat from Charlie’s for Wiley. He holds out a bag, and Willow says, how sweet. She thinks they’ll save it for dessert. Yuri lingers, and Michael asks if there’s something else. Yuri says, Wiley has a visitor, and Nina comes in.
Josslyn leads Maxie into the former home of the moss bowl🎍, and Carly asks, what’s up? Josslyn says, Maxie has something she wants to tell Carly, and Carly says, sounds serious. Josslyn says, it is, and Maxie says, she’s of two minds. A big part of her thinks, it’s not her business, just stay out of it (which gets my vote), but another part of her, also big, says she has information Carly has a right to because she’s Sonny’s wife. And if she were Carly, she’d want to know.
Jason tells Sonny, it was his idea to have the funeral. Carly wasn’t ready, nobody was ready, but he said they should do it. Sonny says he did right. Jason had to send a message that Sonny was gone, and he was in charge of the business. Jason says he hated every minute of it. He felt like he couldn’t actually grieve. Sonny says, the good news is, Jason doesn’t have to grieve anymore.
Valentin says, life is so strange, isn’t it? and Anna says, in what way? He says, it’s cyclical. It teaches us the most interesting lessons in the most unexpected ways. She says he’s in a mood, and he says he’s in an unburdening mood; is that a turn-off? She says, no. She likes it. Keep going. How is life unexpected and interesting? He says, being back in Greece for one. It helped him to see how after, in his mind, she rejected him because of the way he looked. She says, it had nothing to do with the way he looked, and he says, he told her, in his mind. He became obsessed with recreating himself, and getting his hands on the Cassadine inheritance. She says, and taking his place as that Cassadine, and he says, and all the evil crap. It was to pay for his expenses, his final surgeries, and also to fund his quest for the Cassadine fortune. It was also about circling back to her. He wanted to stand tall in front of her, and say, look at me, Anna Devane, I’m strong. And I’m rich. I’m a Cassadine. He doesn’t think he ever appreciated how much of a burden he was to himself.
Obrecht says, of course (🍷) she’s not the reason Drew is there. Does he think if she wanted to hold someone captive, she couldn’t come up with a better facility than this? He says he sees she’s not into the accommodations, but they grow on you. She says, that’s quite the professional beating he received, and digs in her bag, bringing out a syringe. He asks, what’s that? and she says, antibiotics. She’s been told to treat him for possible infection. He says he doesn’t think that’s a good idea, and she says, why not? He says, if memory serves – and he could be wrong about this – she was some kind of evil villainess, wasn’t she? She laughs, and says he has much bigger problems than her. He says, is that so? and she says, he really doesn’t know who’s holding him there, does he? He guesses she’s not about to tell him, but she says, on the contrary. She’d be delighted. She gives him the shot.
Michael tells Yuri, it’s okay; Nina is family. Yuri leaves, and Willow tells Wiley, look who’s here. Nina says she doesn’t know what kind of grow pill Wiley is taking, but it needs to stop right now. He’s grown a foot since she last saw him. She’s missed him so much. Willow says Wiley has missed her too, and Nina asks if she can have a hug. Wiley hugs her, and she says, it’s the best hug ever. She says she got him something, and hands him a box which probably contains toy trucks. He goes to the table with it, and Willow says, he loves it, although how she can tell, I’m not sure, because Wiley is not talking today. Nina says she heard Willow and Michael got back together; she’s so happy for them. Michael says they’re happy for them too, and Willow says, it seems like the whole family has been given a second chance now that Sonny’s home. Michael asks, what about Nina? Is this a quick visit, or is she back for good?
Sonny asks Jason for details of what happened when he was gone, and Jason says, ask him anything. Sonny says he knows Jason wouldn’t have had a funeral first of all, and he definitely woudn’t have gotten married to Carly if the situation didn’t require it. Jason says, they had no choice, and Sonny says, then Dante showed up when he came home. Was that as a policemen? Jason says, there was an explosion in a limo outside their wedding, and Sonny asks, who was in it? Jason says, Novak and Buscema, and Sonny says, what are the odds? He can’t see Jason inviting two guys to a wedding who he was going to blow up, but he could see them coming to a wedding to blow Jason and Carly up. He was one step ahead, right? Jason says, they owe it all to Ms. Woo, and Sonny says he always liked her. Jason says, him too.
Carly asks Maxie what it is they’re talking about. What does she know? Maxie says she’s going to tell Carly, and Carly says, then tell her. Maxie asks if she can do it her way, and in order. And please, try to reserve any judgement, which she knows will be difficult. It would be for her too. They’re kind of alike in that way. Josslyn says she gets that Maxie is trying to help, but the way she’s building this up is making it sound really bad. Maxie says, well, it is, and Carly says, what is it? Maxie says, fine. Nina has known for months Sonny was alive.
Valentin tells Anna, does he hate that Helena Cassadine is his mother? Of course (🍷) he does, but he’s free of it. She says, yes, he is, and he says he has two beautiful daughters that he loves and adores. He has money of his own; he’s his own man. Of course (🍷) they still have a messy history, and Anna says, so messy, but he says he’s not tethered by it. He doesn’t drag it around like a ball and… She says, chain? and he says, he’s free to pursue her because he wants to, because she’s gorgeous, and she captivates him, and he could make her dizzy with a dozen fancy words for why he just likes to be around her. She thinks that’s enough ouzo for him, but he says, maybe it’s not enough ouzo for her. She asks if he’s trying to get her drunk, and he says, hell yes. If she thinks he’s handsome now, wait until she gets a buzz going. She laughs, and he calls for two more. He says, this is the perfect atmosphere for this conversation. If they’d had this conversation back in Port Charles, she’d be so guarded. She says she’s not guarded. She needs to keep up a professional demeanor. He says she’s guarded. She never lets her defenses down. Here, it’s just the two of them in the field. When the sun comes up, she can pretend this never happened. She can just dismiss his words as those of a drunken fool, but tonight, he’s saying everything.
Obrecht asks what was the last thing Drew did as a free man? and he says, he sent Andre Maddox back to Port Charles. He got on a charter plane to Afghanistan – at least he thought it was headed to Afghanistan. He was going to return the money his good buddy Archer stole, but somewhere along the line, they veered off course, and landed on some island. She says, then what? and he says, two guys with guns boarded the flight. He tried to resist them, then, lights out. For him, not them. He woke up in this place, and he’s been here ever since. She asks what that tells him, and he says she must really like the game Twenty Questions. It tells him that somebody wanted him abducted. He didn’t know who then, and still doesn’t. She says, it was two people, working in tandem, and he says, and those people would be…? She says, the first, the one who originally arranged for his abduction, is none other than Peter August.
Sonny tells Jason, he assumes with Buscema and Novak out of the picture, nothing ties them to their deaths. Jason says he and Diane will have to go down to the station for a while, but there’s nothing to find. Sonny says, good, that means they’re in a decent position, but Jason doesn’t know, because Buscema and Novak wouldn’t have acted on their own. Even from prison, he’s still connected. Cyrus is definitely not gone. Sonny says, they’d better work on a strategy, and Jason says, what? Sonny says he can just picture that bastard sipping coffee, learning about the two guys that died, and he’s alive. He laughs, and says he’s standing in front of his grave, and he’s not in it. He feels like a winner. He cannot be touched. Jason says, then they need to have this conversation.
Nina tells Michael, it’s a little early to say if she’s back for good. TBD, how about that? Willow says, but no more… Nina says, Pennsylvania. She said goodbye to her time there. Michael says, when one chapter closes, another begins, and Nina tells him, that’s what they say. Wiley looks so happy. Willow says, they’re trying, and Nina says, they’re succeeding. She says there’s something she needs to tell them.
Josslyn asks if Maxie just said Nina knew, and Maxie says, yes. Josslyn says, so when she went to pick up her dad in Nixon Falls, Nina knew Sonny was there? Maxie says, yes, and Josslyn says, she was hiding him away, letting all of them grieve, and putting her mother through hell? Carly says she wants to know what Nina knew, and when, and when Maxie found out. Maxie swears she didn’t know when she planned the wedding. She didn’t find out until this morning when Nina came to her. She was really upset and very remorseful. She said she made a terrible mistake. Carly says, mistake? Is that what we’re calling it?
Valentin says, Anna’s turn, and she says, to drink or talk? He says, both. They don’t have to talk about him all night; they can talk about her. What does she think of him? She says since he’s not even going to remember his name in the morning, she’ll tell him. She missed him. She missed what they were to each other; their friendship. She knows it was her who messed it up, but then when everything happened, and he came back into her life, there was a problem. He asks, what was the problem? and she says she likes him. She doesn’t want to, and it keeps getting worse. She thinks, in a way, he understands her better than anyone else. Robert is the closest obviously, but he’s a good soldier. That’s the difference; he never sold out. Robert never compromised himself like she did. He says, they both did, and she says she’s not saying Robert looks down on her. She’s saying, she looks down on herself when she’s with him. Valentin asks if she’s with him because he’s so much worse, and she says he is, but that’s not what she meant. He says, the first thing that changed his life completely was the birth of his daughter Charlotte. And she knows the second thing. It was her.
Drew says, oh my God. Of course (🍷). Peter was in Afghanistan. Peter paid David Archer to hand him over to Helena. Obrecht says, something he didn’t remember at first, but when it started to come back years later… He says, that son of a bitch didn’t want him to rat him out. She says, Peter was anxious to keep hidden what a demented human being he is. Someone who stole Drew from his life, and scrambled his memory. He says, Peter saw him as a threat, and she says, specifically Drew’s standing with the people Peter holds most dear – Maxie and his unborn child. So Peter went extreme, as they say. Not that she hasn’t been there herself, but there’s a difference between doing nefarious things because you’re blindly in love with the person you’re doing them for, and doing them just because it’s expedient. He asks what Peter did to Maxie.
Jason tells Sonny, Carly wanted to be there to talk about it, but since the moment came up, he will. How’s Sonny doing with his bipolar disorder? Has he been on his meds? How’s he dealing with it, because he seems like he’s doing okay right now. Sonny says he was lucky, because one of the people who took him in, Phyllis, is a nurse. She noticed his erratic behavior from the beginning. Jason asks if it was bad, but Sonny says, it didn’t get really bad. He didn’t sleep a couple nights, and Jason knows how he gets when he’s having a manic episode. Anybody else would have thrown him out or call the cops, but they were fantastic. They just told him to go to the doctor and get treatment. Jason says, it sounds like a real blessing, but that doctor was treating a bartender named Mike, so Sonny should see his psychiatrist.
Nina says she can’t tell Michael and Willow how much it means to her that they gave her a second chance. To be able to be with Wiley is such a gift. Michael says, what it boils down to is, Wiley loves her, and she loves him, and Nina says, so much. Willow asks how they could take that away from him, and Nina says she’s so grateful. Not only for that, but also, that they’re Wiley’s parents. They’re really great parents. They put Wiley first, and you can tell. He’s such a happy, all-around awesome kid. She gives them all the credit. Michael says he doesn’t know about that, but Nina says she does. They’re decent, kind, good people. They didn’t have to let her be part of Wiley’s life, but they did it anyway. She knows there was a little coercion with Jax, but she believes if they thought she was bad for Wiley, there’s no way they would let her in his life. They gave her a chance. Willow says Nina is very kind to say all that, but Nina says she means it; she’s grateful. Michael says, so are they.
Maxie tells Carly, the situation with Wiley had gone bad, as she knows, and Nina wanted to get out of town to clear her head. She stopped by Nixon Falls to say hello to a friend, and she was floored when she saw Sonny. Carly says, so floored, she couldn’t tell them? and Maxie says, Nina told her that she did call to tell Carly that she saw Sonny, but they got in some kind of argument? Josslyn says, so now this is her mom’s fault? and Maxie tells her, she didn’t say that. Josslyn says her mom wasn’t nice to Nina, so that gave her the right to lie, and keep Sonny a secret for months? That is crap. Really? We can’t do better than that line?
Anna says she changed Valentin’s life? This should be good. He says it was miraculous seeing her again. She’d completely changed her life around. She’d gone from a sad, flawed, compromised sellout… She says, don’t hold back, and he says she’s become so much better. He admires her. He could never reach the level she’s reached, but she’s showed him that he can make better choices. She says she can see that; she sees him. He says he knows she does, and she says, she knows he sees her better than anyone does. He shakes his finger at her, and she tells him not to get all juvenile about this. He says, where has he heard this before? Not the juvenile part, but the other part. He knows – from himself. He’s been saying that all along. He gets her, right down to her socks. She says she’s not wearing any socks, and he says, that’s a good start. They kiss, and I’m so in.
Obrecht says, Peter and Maxie conceived a child together, and Drew says he thought Maxie had better instincts then that. She says, he won her over, and he was convincing. He completely sold Maxie on the fact that he was reformed. She fell for it too for a while. Maxie was her daughter-in-law, and Obrecht wanted to be on good terms with her. Drew asks how that worked out for her, and she snorts. She says, when Peter’s past was on the brink of haunting him, he framed her for his own crimes, and had her shipped off to Steinmaur. He says, so she was at Steinmaur, and they sent her here, but she says, there was this whole interstitial with Maxie realizing how despicable Peter was, rejecting him, and him arranging to induce her labor, so he could kidnap her and his child. Drew asks, what happened? and Obrecht says, it backfired. The woman he hired to preside over the birth, ended up stealing the baby, handing her over to someone else, and meeting an untimely end. So now that precious baby is out there, and Maxie doesn’t know where to find her. He says, so she thinks this was a set-up by Peter? and she says she’s positive. The only thing Peter cares about is finding his daughter. Which is clearly why he’s working with Victor. Drew asks, who the hell is Victor?
Nina sits down, and Michael says, they’d forgotten how much Nina came through in the original custody hearing. She told the truth about Nelle, and he knows it made a huge difference. Nina says, at the time, she didn’t know Wiley was her grandson, and Michael says, he thought about that; if knowing what they know now would have changed what Nina said, but Willow says, it doesn’t matter. Nina came through for Wiley when he needed her, and they’ll always be grateful. Michael says, it was definitely a turning point in the custody fight, and Nina says, what she remembers about that day is, she just generally wanted to do the right thing. Even though in her heart she wishes things could have been different for Nelle, and for her, the fact that things turned out the way they did for Wiley, she’s thankful for. That part, she’ll never question or regret, because Wiley has them.
Josslyn says she’s sorry. She’s not mad at Maxie; it’s Nina she’s mad at. But she’s got to say, it kind of seems like Maxie is defending her. Maxie says she’s not defending Nina. What she did is indefensible, but does she feel empathy for Nina? Yes, because she’s been at a place in her life where she convinced herself – out of fear, anger, or pain – that doing something wrong was okay. She’s been there, and isn’t in a position to judge Nina. Is Carly? Right now I want to knock Josslyn and Carly’s heads together, so I vote no.
Sonny tells Jason, he really hadn’t thought about it, since he was on his medication. He was doing well. Jason says he’s glad, and Sonny says, but Jason’s right. He’s got to check it out, take care of himself. Did Jason and Carly talk about this, about him? Jason says, of course (🍷). It’s a big deal that he’s back; it’s a lot to figure out. Sonny says, sorry Jason got stuck with this. All the hell Jason has been through, and he wasn’t there. Jason says it’s not Sonny’s fault, and Sonny says, no, it’s not. It’s Nina’s.
Valentin tells Anna that she’s a good kisser, and she says, they need to sober up. He says she told him that she wasn’t drunk, and she says, he needs to sober up. He asks where the fun is in that? and she says she’s going to get them a gallon of water and a gallon of coffee. Then they’re going to sober up, and go back to the hospital. He asks, what about her socks? and she says, oh boy. She goes to the bar and asks for water and coffee, but when she turns around, Valentin is passed out, his head on the table.
Drew says, Victor Cassadine didn’t die in that explosion at Creighton-Clark? and Obrecht says, no, he survived, and he’s been pulling strings ever since. To what extent she’s not certain. All she knows is, on her way to St. Lucia… He says, St. Lucia? and she says, to take care of Peter, as he so richly deserved. She was abducted and wound up there, with a pit stop at Victor’s lavish compound. He says he bets she’s missing that place right about now, but she says, the company is better here. He says, let him get this straight. Victor and Peter are working together because Peter wants to find his daughter. She says, yes, and he says, but Peter is an incredible lowlife; Victor’s got to know that. She says, please. Anyone who’s met Peter for five minutes knows that, and he asks, what’s in it for Victor?Obviously, he’s not doing this out of the goodness of his heart, so what’s he getting out of this arrangement?
Michael says Nina probably wants some alone time with Wiley, and suggests he and Willow take a walk. Willow says she’d like nothing more, and they leave. In the foyer, Willow asks if Michael got the feeling something is going on with Nina. She seems upset, or lost, or… Willow doesn’t know. He says, that’s probably part of the reason she’s here; seeing Wiley will be good for her. Willow says, it always does wonders for her. In the living room, Nina asks if she can help Wiley with his coloring and sits on the floor. She says she’s sorry she was gone for so long. They have to make up for lost time, right? Wiley says, yeah, and she says, lost time might be all we have left.
Jason asks what Sonny is talking about. Nina who? Sonny says, Nina Reeves, and Jason says he doesn’t understand. Sonny says, remember the Phyllis he told Jason about? She hired him to work at the bar. She was friends with Nina, and Nina left Port Charles to come and see Phyllis. She saw him, and knew that he was dead, but she saw him alive. Jason asks, for how long? and Sonny says, pretty much most of the time. Jason says, she knew and didn’t say anything to anybody? but Sonny says, it’s complicated. Jason says, it doesn’t sound that complicated to him, and Sonny says, what happened was, Nina was upset with Carly over the whole Nelle thing and Wiley… Jason says, he knows, but they went through hell. Carly and the kids were devastated. Now Sonny is telling him that they didn’t have to be devastated? That Nina held the key to all this pain, and didn’t use it? Sonny says he gets that Jason is angry, and he is also. Jason says Sonny isn’t angry enough.
Carly tells Maxie that she’s done terrible, questionable things, but that doesn’t justify what Nina did. She stole Sonny’s life for months, and for what? Out of spite? She literally took Sonny’s free will, and sat back and watched his family grieve, so no, Nina doesn’t get an excuse. Maxie says she doesn’t disagree with Carly, and Carly says, what Maxie did today was the opposite of what Nina did to Sonny. She kept him a secret because it suited her. Maxie told the truth because she believed Carly deserved to know. Maxie says she’s going to feel bad if she doesn’t say this, but she still loves Nina, even though Nina did something very wrong. Carly says, that’s the painful part of loving someone who messes up, but this was Nina’s choice, and she’s going to have to live with the consequences.
Anna tucks Valentin in. She smooths back his hair, and turns out the light. She leaves, and we see the tattoo of the Cassadine crest on his forearm.
Obrecht says Drew is a very shrewd man; he cuts right to the heart of it. Victor never does anything without an ulterior motive. There’s always a goal he’s working towards. He says, Peter is helping him achieve that goal, and she says, Peter has something Victor wants or needs, or plans to acquire. She hopes he gets it. When Peter is no longer of use to Victor, that will be the end of Peter August. He says, none of which helps them. He doesn’t know about her, but he can’t wait until it plays out between those two psychos. How are they going to get the hell out of here? She says, music to her ears, and they hear the door. Drew gets back on the cot, and Russ comes in, saying, time’s up. Obrecht says, this man is very ill. His kidney may be bruised, and she needs to see him again soon. Russ says he’ll tell the boss. Let’s go. Before she leaves, Obrecht turns and gives Drew a slight nod.
Anna asks the bar musician if he speaks English, and he says, yes. She says she’s headed to the U.S. Consul hospital to check on a patient there. Her friend is asleep upstairs, and she may not be back until morning. He says, not to worry. He’ll make sure her friend gets the message. She thanks him, and says she loved his playing. She leaves, and as he closes his guitar case, we see a tattoo matching Valentin’s on his forearm.
Jason says, Nina took nine months from Sonny. Nine months where he wasn’t living his life with his wife and kids. Why isn’t he furious? Sonny says he was furious, but what’s the point? Nina is a sad woman. Her mother screwed her over, she went through a bad period in her life. Then she finds out she had a child, and it’s Nelle. That would mess anyone up. He’s not making excuses; she absolutely should have told the truth. She made a bad decision. Jason says, it’s more than one bad decision. She took so much from Sonny. Sonny says he’s not happy about that, but he doesn’t see the point in wasting his energy on hating her. Maybe he doesn’t want to let himself get angry. He’ll have to talk to his psychiatrist about that one. Jason says, sounds like a plan, and Sonny says, let’s get out of here. He points at his gravestone, and says, get rid of it. It should have been gone yesterday.
Nina tells Wiley to say cheese as she takes selfies with him. Yuri comes in, and says, Wiley has another visitor. Nina says, of course (🍷) he does, because he’s irresistible. Carly walks in, and Nina suggests Yuri take Wiley. She thinks she and Carly will need time alone. She gives Wiley a fist bump as Yuri takes him. Carly closes the door and says, you stole Sonny’s life, and bitch, you’re going to pay.
Tomorrow, Trina says, today Esme and Spencer are going to get what’s coming to them; Scotty tells Ava that it’s her call if she wants to stay married; Sonny asks if Jason left Britt for Carly; and Carly says Nina is going to pay (again).
Vanderpump Rules
LVP and Ken discussed reopening after lockdown, and met with Nick Alain. James practiced his DJ skills in the living room, using the applause button on his keyboard for response. We saw Lala’s daughter Ocean, and Lala putting breast milk in her coffee. Scheana was also a new mother to Summer Moon Honey. Wow. Pick a lane. In LVP’s interview, she said they’d been locked up for a year, and everyone wanted to come out and party. We’re back baby. Schwartz and Katie were trying for a baby, but so far, had no luck. Luckier on the business end, Schwartz was opening a new place with Tom. We saw clips of them in the unfinished space, and talking about the features they wanted to install. Since the two of them are d*cks, LVP had to be the one to ask about what she’d heard through the grapevine, and they were too scared to tell her. Puffy! They admitted they were going to open a new bar/restaurant, and Tom said they were thinking of calling it Schwartz & Sandy’s. In Katie’s interview, she said she thought the name didn’t convey the funky and fresh vibe the Toms were going for. She told Ariana that she wanted to get involved with the new bar, and in Ariana’s interview, she said, she and Katie had gotten close, but Katie and Tom had always clashed. She wasn’t too sure how he was going to feel about that. LVP told the Toms that she and Ken were supportive, and it was all good.
At SUR, LVP asked Raquel about James, and in Raquel’s interview, she said James was two years sober, and had made progress. He’d been sober since she’d given him the ultimatum. We flashed back to that, and she said, but he still smoked weed. He was California sober. James met with LVP, and told her that he’d been self-reflecting. In his interview, he said he was actually doing better without the alcohol; his DJ’ing was on another level now. He wanted to get back into SUR, and LVP asked if he understood the boundaries. He said he never saw everything as clear as he did now, but she had some receipts showing the opposite. He’d sent Max a series of rage texts, calling Max a pr*ck, and saying Max was fat and nobody liked him, using the word fat in nearly every text. James has zero body fat, which isn’t necessarily complimentary, but I don’t know if he just knows it’s an extremely hurtful thing to say, or he actually has some huge aversion to essentially a normal body type. Regardless, I guess he’s not seeing things as clearly as he thinks. He told LVP that he and Max had a big blow-out. The sad part was, he’d known Max for a decade, and this had to do with splitting a plate of food in a restaurant. James said it was one of those little bumps in a friendship, and Max had blocked him all over the place. LVP said she’d block him too. He acted like an a-hole.
In Scheana’s interview, she told us that she and Brock were seeing each other, the pandemic hit, they moved in together, and nine months later, they had a baby. She was sure he was the one, and knew she’d said that before, but she’d never felt this secure and in love. He is really cute with the baby, and just plain cute, so I think this is a win for her. In Lala’s interview, she talked about being pregnant, and how her kid just flipped out of the cookie. Yes, we saw pictures. She’d written a book, Give Them Lala, and said she’d been writing it for a year. We saw a headline where she talked about shoving Randall’s toothbrush up her butt when they’d had a fight, and she said Randall’s reaction had been, WTF? but now when she was pissed, he thought twice about brushing his teeth. She told Katie she’d had two babies this week, Ocean and the book. While visiting Lala, Katie got a text invite to Scheana’s hibachi birthday dinner, hosted by Tom and Ariana.
Brock asked Scheana if she was going to invite Lala, and Scheana said that it was upsetting that Lala hadn’t been there for her during her miscarriage. Instead, she’d gone out to dinner with celebrities. We saw a clip of Scheana’s vlog, where she wept while talking about her miscarriage, and she told Brock, it had been devastating. She’d needed Lala, but Lala was having dinner with Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly. At Lala’s place, Lala asked Katie, and where was Brock? Golfing. Scheana had gone on a podcast, and talked about Lala not being there for her, and Lala had gotten some intense messages. In Lala’s interview, she said she got DM’s saying she deserved to miscarry. She was having intense hormonal depression, and it sent her into a full-on spiral. Scheana told Brock, from day one, she had Lala’s back, while Lala told Katie that Scheana was not getting an apology. You could only smack the bee’s nest for so long before getting stung.
In Tom’s interview, he said it was going to be their first get-together in the new house. When they first moved in, people were judgy about them having no furniture, but now they could shut up. You get a chair! You get a chair! Everybody gets a chair! Scheana called Tom and Ariana to thank them, but really to tell Ariana that Lala had been talking smack about her on a podcast. Ready with the evidence, Scheana played a clip for Ariana, where Lala said, with Ariana, it is what it is. Ariana didn’t give a f*** about her, and vice versa. In Ariana’s interview, she said she didn’t give a f*** about 99% of people, but she’d gone out of her way to give a f*** about Lala. She’d opened up about her anxiety and body issues, and had let Lala eat her cookie. Tom wondered if Lala just wanted to be controversial, but Ariana said, if that was the case, don’t use her to get attention. She was over being chill and reasonable. F*** her.
LVP wanted Max to work it out with James, because Max was in the restaurant five days a week. She’d invited James over, and in James’s interview, he said it was like being called to the principal’s office when he was five. If that really happened, he must have been pretty mature at five. Most of us weren’t even in regular school yet. Is he Benjamin Button emotionally? In LVP’s interview, she said out of all the people on the planet, her son was the only person on James’s side. She thought it was a relationship worth saving. Discussing it in the kitchen, Max asked why James had been so aggressive, and James said Max complained about them charging $10 to split a plate. He went off because they’d taken a pre-workout supplement. Um… steroids? I don’t know many supplements that would jazz you that much. James said it brought out the Alpha male in him, and Max said he took the same thing, so why had he been chill? James said, Max hadn’t been chill. Max bummed him out over a ten dollar charge. Max said James was playing the victim. When James used to drink, it was an escapade of belligerence every time they went out, and now this. James said he didn’t mean any of it, but Max said he didn’t want James at SUR. Because James still can’t take any pushback, he told Max that he was just the boring little boy he’d always been – which was really smart to do in front of his mom – and Max walked out. LVP said, that didn’t go well, and James started crying, one of his go-to moves. LVP said he was responsible for the situation, and James wondered why he treated his friend like that. Seriously. It was one of those times where anything other than an apology is a bad idea.
Katie wanted be involved in the new restaurant, and told Schwartz, since they didn’t have a baby, that could be their baby. She wanted to be Hot Bitch in Charge. In Schwartz’s interview, he said, Katie didn’t like people, and the industry revolved around people. The theme for Scheana’s birthday was Mom’s Night Out, and she’d asked everyone to wear pink or black, because the only cute thing that fit her was a pink dress. Ariana was wearing pink, but said her soul was black. Tom made a special cocktail called Summer’s Eve, not knowing that was the name of a douche. Ariana asked if Scheana and Lala were going to duke it out. Magician Ben was introduced, and in Lala’s interview, she said, really? A magician for a grown-ass birthday party? She loved magicians, and thought they were super cool – when Randall got them for his child’s party. Ben’s finale was making Scheana’s ring disappear on a balloon that rose to the sky, then reappear in a wrapped box. In her interview, Lala added, okay. That was pretty dope. The chef and server, both Jonathans, appeared, and dinner was hibachied and served.
Katie told Tom that she wanted to be the maître d of the new place, and Tom said, okay, but it was one of those okays that doesn’t really mean okay. Schwartz said, Schwartz and Sandy sounded like they should be serving matzo ball soup. Agreed. It sounds like a Jewish deli. Katie said it was uninspired, and in Tom’s interview, he said he’d like to see the receipts of what she’s done, and her achievements of amazingness. Then there was this huge deal about the name, and Tom told Schwartz that he was done arguing with Katie; no more. James stood up like he was going to give a toast, and invited everyone to Palm Springs. There wasn’t going to be a Coachella this year, so he thought they could recreate it. Tom said they’d make their own Coachella. Scheana told Brock that she still needed to have a conversation with Lala, and grabbed Lala as she was going inside. She asked if Lala would sit down with her, and Lala was like, now? but Scheana was insistent. She said she’d needed Lala in Palm Springs. Lala didn’t understand how hard it had been for her. Lala said she’d answered every phone call, and offered to come. Scheana said she wanted to be by herself. When Scheana said she was ready to see Lala, she was on her way to dinner. She wasn’t there for Scheana the way Scheana wanted her to be, but she was there. She wasn’t apologizing. Scheana asked if Lala ever considered she wasn’t thinking clearly; she’d just lost a baby. Lala said she got that, but what Scheana had done wasn’t cool. The day she found out she was having a baby girl was the moment Scheana chose to publicly say Lala wasn’t there for her when she miscarried. She was already fighting depression, and got messages saying people hoped she miscarried Ocean. From the stands table, Ariana relayed to the others that Lala was crying. Something is happening. Lala says she gets what Scheana went through, but Scheana should have called and told Lala that she’d hurt her. Scheana said, that’s how she reacted, but she understood; from Lala’s perspective, she felt she was there. She was sorry she’d expected Lala to be a mind reader. Lala said they needed to get on the same page. She hated that they didn’t share their pregnancy experiences. Those were moments they couldn’t get back. She wanted their kids to be friends.
Raquel asked Lala if they were all right, and in Raquel’s interview, she said, time and again, she’d experienced the wrath of Lala. But she’d rather lead with compassion and empathy, than worry if Lala was going to lash out. Lala told Raquel that she hated how she and Scheana couldn’t get their pregnancies back, and weren’t communicating. She thought they’d had a breakthrough with their friendship, and wanted to stop with the pattern. Raquel said she didn’t know what to expect from Lala. She didn’t know where she stood. Lala said she liked Raquel her right now, and Raquel said she no longer felt she needed Lala’s approval, although she did for a long time. She was over it. instead of realizing Raquel was telling Lala that she’d grown as a person, Lala took it as an insult, and asked if Raquel was trying to battle her. Raquel said she wasn’t. She wanted them to be on the same page, but had felt attacked. Lala said she thought they’d moved on from that. Raquel needed to be babied more, so she’d baby her. Raquel said, just a little bit, making a joke out of it, and Lala said she’d baby the f*** out of her. The next time she wanted to rage, she’d redirect it to Charli. She seemed like a bitch who could take it. Ariana said Lala had raged about her out of nowhere on a podcast. Lala said she talked sh*t a lot because she wore her emotions on her sleeve. She and Ariana had been surface for a while, and she didn’t even hear from Ariana ever. Ariana said that wasn’t true, and Lala asked if It wasn’t true that Ariana didn’t give a f*** about her. Ariana said Lala wanted it to be, and it wasn’t true before, but it was now. Lala said she didn’t need this, and left. Ariana said Lala consistently gaslighted her, and never apologized.
Next time, Schwartz tells Katie that he and Tom have to present a united front; Katie could have sworn Schwartz said til death do us part to her, not Tom; the group goes to Palm Springs; Raquel does the bend-and-snap; and Lala and Charli go at it. And not in a good way.
🕺🕺 Here’s my take on the Toms. They were on Watch What Happens Live afterward, and Tom Sandoval is sooo full of himself. He says Tom Schwartz has a voice and can be aggressive, but I don’t believe that for a second. I think Sandoval steamrolls right over him, as evidenced during the name argument. Which, BTW, Sandoval won. The restaurant is going to be called Schwartz and Sandy’s. When there was a vote as to who was top guy now that Jax – still the worst human being in the world – is gone, Sandoval won that too. Schwartz said he was happy being number two, and I believe that.
🤵🏽 Nikolas For Now…
GH is temporarily recasting Nikolas. There’s no explanation, but I’m guessing positive covid test, or family emergency and his scenes were already written.
Join me tomorrow for some soap and a look into the life of Erika Jayne Girardi, otherwise known as RHOBH. Until then, stay safe, stay environmentally conscious, and stay knowing that when it’s your choice, you have to live with the consequences.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Portia comes into The Savoy, and tells Curtis that she was glad to get his text. He says he’s sorry, and she asks, why? He says because he asked her to come down there, now he’s all caught up with this. She says, no big deal. Is there a problem with the club? He says, it’s not the club; he’s on a case. She says she thought he left all that P.I. stuff behind him, and he says, he did, but this one’s personal. Did he ever tell her about his good friend Drew Cain? She says, he was Oscar’s dad, right? Sam’s ex? He says, he disappeared in a plane crash a few years ago. Sam has reason to believe he’s still alive. So going with that theory could set them up for some really good news, or something really disappointing. Sam comes in.
Josslyn comes into the living room with Trina, and says, good morning, bride-to-be, and Carly says she only slept a little. Josslyn says her too; she’s so excited. Trina wanted to say hi before Carly’s big day. Trina says, happy wedding, and Carly thanks her. Trina says she knows Carly and Jason are going to be really happy together, and Carly says, that’s the plan.
Jason sits in the interrogation room at the station, when Dante comes in. He says, sorry. Jason wasn’t the one who wanted to fight, but he’s the one they got ahold of. Previous charges were dropped two months ago, but the DA wants to go over the entire incident report. It’s bureaucratic BS. Jason tell him, don’t worry about it. He doesn’t want special treatment. Dante says he’s not giving any to Jason. Here they are again. On opposite sides, when there’s so much that connects them. It’s too bad Jason doesn’t just ditch the career criminal thing. They could break bread one of these days.
On the terrace, Trina tells Josslyn that her dad was asking all kinds of questions about the sauce. It must have been a big hit. Josslyn says, yeah… and Trina asks if it went bad or something, but Josslyn says, no. The sauce was delicious. She knows it’s going to sound insane, but that sauce tasted exactly like Sonny’s.
Nina gets to the Tan-O, but before she goes inside, she flashes back to Sonny telling her that he’s in love with her. She goes inside, and says, oh my God. What happened? There’s lumber and boxes everywhere, and Sonny says, Lenny left them a surprise.
Jordan and Shawn go through papers, and Jordan says, none of these names are ringing any bells. She’s sorry, but they might have to brace themselves for the possibility that the manifest from Naomie’s flight is another dead end. He says, there has to be something in there to lead them to Hayden’s shooter, because whoever it was, wanted her dead so badly, when he started asking questions six years later, they offed her mother. To go through that much trouble, this person has something major to hide, and he wants to find out what it is.
Nikolas and Spencer sit at a table by the pool (🍷), and Spencer takes a selfie. He says, Esme wanted them to have a fun day, and Nikolas says he is. Spencer says he looks like he’d like to be literally anywhere else. Nikolas says he’s sorry. The six weeks are up, and as soon as Ava gets Scotty back to work, their divorce is going to be finalized. Forgive him if he’s not in a festive mood, but he’d understand if Spencer is.
On he phone at the gallery, Ava says she knows the paperwork is ready, but she’s just not ready to go through with it yet… Does it sound like she cares what they think? She hangs up, and someone startles her.
Sam says Curtis told her that he has an update on a lead, and he says he talked to the nurse who took care of Nina at Creighton-Clark. She gave him the contact information of a guy she worked with in the records department. Apparently, he dealt with both patients and the record company. Sam says, that’s amazing, and Curtis says, there’s just one catch.
On the phone, Dante says, there is no charge… He would, but the system’s down. He can’t have access and needs authorization, so can they put it through?… There’s nothing to resolve. He’s not going to prison. It was a drunk and disorderly, so make it happen. He hangs up, and says he hopes this doesn’t ruin Jason’s wedding day. Jason says, it is what it is. As for him, he just has to put a suit on. Dante sits down, and asks if Carly is going to make Jason wear a tie, but Jason doesn’t know. He guesses he’ll find out when he opens the garment bag. He says, it must be strange to Dante; him marrying Carly after all the years she was married to Sonny. Dante says, not really. He thinks Sonny would approve. It was always the three of them, since Dante was working undercover. They were a unit – Jason, Sonny, and Carly. He remembers being amazed at how devoted Jason and Carly were to Sonny. Jason says, it’s because of everything Sonny did for them. He was a great friend, a great mentor, just a stand-up guy. Dante says, he didn’t see it that way. When he first got there, all he could think was about sending Sonny to prison. So he put that case together against him, but… Even then, there were days he didn’t want to do it. He shot at Sonny many times, even though Sonny was his father. Jason says, Dante didn’t think of him that way yet, and Dante says, no. Finally, all these years later, he’s glad he didn’t put Sonny away.
Carly flashes back to Jason saying they’ll be each other’s safety net; that he needs her to stand by him, no matter what. She says, always, and he says, they’ll figure the rest out later. The doorbell rings, and Carly opens the door to Monica, who says she knows it’s a busy day, but she wonders if Carly has the time to talk.
Sonny tells Nina that Lenny always complained about the ceiling. She says, he mentioned there was a bad leak a couple of years ago; the plywood is rotten and beams have to come down. Sonny says, Lenny assigned him to it. Lenny was going to take down the wallpaper and paint the whole place. He ordered the supplies before he got his diagnosis, and the lumberyard order came this morning. The rest is coming later. She asks if it can be returned, but he says, a lot of it is custom, but Lenny wanted it, so he feels like he owes Lenny to give it to him. She says, in the meantime, there’s not a lot of room for customers, but he says he doesn’t think that’s going to be a problem for Phyllis. She says, Phyllis isn’t in a rush to open it without Lenny. It’s just another argument for renovation. If the Tan-O opens with a different look, there won’t be so many memories attached. I’m thinking, maybe he should ask Phyllis about it first, but he says, now Nina knows what he’s planning to do for the next two or three months. If she wants, she can pitch in. She runs a magazine and has great taste as a designer consultant. That is, if he didn’t scare her off.
Josslyn asks Trina, what’s up with her? Something is obviously wrong. Trina says, it’s nothing. She guesses she’s feeling guilty. Josslyn says, about what? and Trina says, not liking Spencer’s girlfriend. Josslyn says, don’t.
Ava says Esme scared her half to death, and Esme apologizes. She says she’s been told she has a knack for sneaking up on people. She swears it’s not intentional. She introduces herself, and Ava says she’s Spencer’s friend. Esme says Spencer is her boyfriend. Spencer’s told her so much about Ava; it’s nice to meet her face to face. Ava says, it’s her pleasure, and asks what she can do for Esme. Esme says she’s thinking of purchasing a piece. Her parents strongly advised her to invest in artwork as she got older. Ava says she sounds like she was born into money, and Esme says, yes and no. Her parents couldn’t have children of their own, so she and her siblings were adopted. Ava says, adopted and rich; lucky her. Esme says she’s quite fortunate, and Ava says, it sounds like she had a happy home. Esme says, she supposes everyone was happy enough. Her parents were cool with each other. There was love there, but nothing like Ava and Spencer’s father.
Trina tells Josslyn, Esme’s been nothing but nice to her. She doesn’t know why she doesn’t like Esme. Maybe it’s because she’s into Spencer. Josslyn says, Trina doesn’t like Esme because there’s nothing to like, and Trina asks Josslyn to tell her how she really feels. Josslyn says, she’s a bitch with a capital B. Trina’s seen the way she treats Spencer, like he’s her property. She’s clearly threatened by Trina. Trina asks if she thinks so, and Josslyn says, it’s so obvious. So don’t trick herself into looking for something that isn’t there. Sweet innocent Esme doesn’t exist.
Esme says, Spencer told her all about Ava and his dad, and she has to admit it’s romantic. Nikolas doesn’t want to let Ava go, and it would have to be something uber extreme to get him to stay away. Ava says she just wasn’t sure how far she wanted to take it… Unfortunately, all of her pieces are spoken for. Esme says, too bad. Let her know if anything changes. Ava says she certainly will, and Esme says, safe travels. Ava thanks her, and Esme leaves. Ava makes a call, and says, that thing they talked about? She’s convinced. Do it.
Nikolas says, before he disappeared, he doesn’t think Spencer is aware of how far he’d fallen. He crossed some serious lines, and did some unforgivable things. Spencer says, like what? and Nikolas says he doesn’t want to go into details, but he was a bad person. Ava motivated him to change his ways. Spencer can think what he wants about her, but Ava is the reason he’s more the man and father Spencer remembers, and not the man he became during those dark times.
TJ comes into Jordan’s office, and she says, what a surprise. He says, even though he’s about to cancel their dinner? and she says, never mind; get out. They hug, and Shawn comes over. TJ asks, what’s going on? and Shawn says he’s helping Jordan with an investigation. TJ asks if that isn’t a little out of his wheelhouse, but Shawn says, it could lead to finding out who shot Hayden Barnes. TJ says he thought Shawn decided to move on with his life, and Shawn says, he did, but some things need closure, and this is one of those things. His guilt became a shield that prevented a real investigation, and from him being a father. TJ says Shawn taught him to drive. He taught TJ to shave and put on a tie, and TJ asked Shawn about his first girlfriend. He’s not saying Shawn shouldn’t pursue this – he thinks Shawn should – but don’t forget he was TJ’s father in all the right ways, even before they knew it.
Dante tells Jason, that’s a helluva thing for a cop to say, huh? He believes in the law, but didn’t apply it in that instance. Jason says he thinks it’s Dante’s call. Who was he hurting? He’s the one who got shot. If Dante didn’t want to turn Sonny in, or wanted to cover for Sonny because Sonny was his friend, that’s his decision. Dante says he doesn’t regret protecting Sonny, and Jason says, that’s good, because all of their lives would have taken a completely different path if he hadn’t. Dante says he doesn’t think he’s had a chance to wrap his mind around the fact that Sonny is gone.
Monica says she realized she’d never given Jason and Carly her blessing. Not that Carly needs or wants it. Carly says Monica doesn’t have to pretend to like her. She gets it; Monica is AJ’s mom. She doesn’t expect Monica to see the issues they had from her side. Monica says, that’s just the thing. With the truth coming out about Austin, it occurred to her that the Quartermaines can be very cruel to each other, and causes a lot of pain; the cheating, the backstabbing, the blackmailing. But they manage to get past it because they’re family. Whether she likes it or not, that’s what Carly is about to become.
Sonny says he knows he put Nina on the spot when he told her that he loved her. She says, there he goes again, and he says, sorry; he can’t help it. She says she was wrestling with all this last night, and he says he didn’t mean to make her wrestle. She says she knows he didn’t, and he says he just had to tell her how he felt. He doesn’t want her to feel pressure to feel the same, but she says, how could she not feel the same way? Geez. I feel the same way. Sonny looks hot all scruffy.
Shawn says they’re low on coffee, and leaves to get refills. TJ looks at Jordan, and she says, what? He says, come on. Since when does she add civilians to police investigations? She says she enlists outside investigators all the time, and he says, which Shawn is not. She asks, what’s his point? and he says she’s bending a lot of rules, and he knows in a large part that’s because of him. He thanks her, and she says, she does love him little bit, so… He says they’ve been talking a lot about Shawn’s role in his life, but he doesn’t want her to forget how important she is to him; what a spectacular mom she is. She’s his hero. She says, she is? Does he have any idea how proud she is of him? He’s her son, the doctor. He’s the smartest, most compassionate, loyal, and loving person she knows. There is very little credit to be had here. He is who he is because he’s an extraordinary person. To whatever extent she was able to guide, love, and support him, it’s the best thing she’s ever done. He’s the best thing she’s ever done. They hug, and she says she loves him so much. He says he loves her too.
Sam asks Curtis, what’s the problem? Is this guy far away or something? Curtis says, somewhere near the Finger Lakes (upstate NY), and Portia says, that’s lucky. Curtis says, they’re asking for access corporate and patient files. This guy was hesitant about releasing them unless they meet in person. Sam says, great. Finger Lakes, here we come. Portia asks if these are medical files he’s talking about, and Curtis says, some of them. She says, then he’s going to need to fill out a HIPPA form, unless he has a doctor with him. Sam says, how convenient. They have a great doctor right here.
Dante tells Jason, he was barely home when Sonny disappeared, and he was so messed up before he went away. Not that there was anything wrong between him and Sonny, but all the good stuff had dwindled before they had a chance to rebuild it. Go to a Yankees game, have a meal, be with Rocco together… Jason says, all the things that make them see what they have in common, and Dante says he never knew Sonny the way most kids know their dad, but he grew to admire Sonny, and look up to him more like a father/friend. Jason says, they called each other brothers, but it was also father and son. (Ha-ha! I typed don by accident.) Aside from Carly, Sonny was the first person to treat him with respect. Dante says, after his accident? and Jason says, yeah. Sonny taught him so much. Not a lot of people approve of it, but he was always grateful, and it was always his choice. Sonny didn’t force a gun in his hand, but Sonny made sure he knew how to pick one up. Dante guesses his line work isn’t what Sonny would have chosen for him, and Jason says, did Sonny wish Dante wasn’t a cop? Yeah. Dante was his son. He didn’t want to be in opposition of Dante. He didn’t want Dante to lie or look the other way; it’s not a comfortable place to be. Dante says, it’s not, and Jason says, Sonny admired Dante; his courage, honor, and commitment to his job. Most of all, he respected Dante, and that means a lot. Dante says, that’s how he knows Sonny would be okay with Jason marrying Carly. He respected Jason more than anyone. Dante’s phone rings, and he says, here we are. Jason is finally free to go. They shake hands, and Dante says, good luck. Jason thanks him and leaves.
Carly hesitates to remind Monica, but it’s not the first time she’s marrying into the Quartermaines. Monica says, they remember, and Carly says, they weren’t exactly welcoming. Monica says she thinks she was girding herself for the pain she knew Carly’s marriage to AJ would cause. Not just because of AJ’s troubles, or the fact they were so good at exploiting each other’s weaknesses. Carly says, they were experts, and Monica says, it was crystal clear to everyone back then, including AJ – maybe especially AJ – that her heart belonged to Jason. And Jason, for all he loved Robin, it was clear their bond was unbreakable.
Nina tells Sonny was the last thing she was expecting when she walked in; to find him. She saw him as a sign that she… He taught her that we don’t have to be stuck in the circumstances of our lives. If we just let go of the baggage of the past, we find out who we are inside. He taught her that. This place has really become her home, and he’s an enormous part of that. There are a million reasons why they shouldn’t be together. All those reasons, and the fear that what they have will collapse when he finds out who he is; with all of that, she still can’t stay away from him. There’s a lot of risk and vulnerability when you open your heart to someone, and she’s willing to do that with him. If that’s not love, she doesn’t know what is. He asks what she’s saying, and she takes his hand. She tells him, what she’s saying is, she loves him too.
Trina tells Josslyn, Esme said something she can’t get out of her head. She called Kiki Loren. No one ever called Kiki that. Not the staff at GH, not her mom, no one. How did she know that was Kiki’s name? Josslyn says, maybe she read it in the article about Ava’s car being lit on fire, but Trina says, the article referred to her as Kiki. Josslyn says, maybe some other legal document? She looks at her phone, and says, it doesn’t seem to be bothering Spencer. He’s busy taking selfies at the MetroCourt pool (🍷). Trina says, of course (🍷) he is. Enough about Esme. Josslyn needs to get ready for her mom’s wedding. See her there? Josslyn says she can’t wait. They hug, and Trina leaves.
Spencer asks if Nikolas thinks absolution is possible without atonement, and Nikolas guesses not. Spencer says he thinks they better talk about something… Esme interrupts, saying, she’s sorry she’s late. Nikolas looks fabulous. Nikolas thanks her, and asks if they need anything from the bar, but they’re both good. He leaves, and Esme says she knows that look. Spencer is second guessing breaking up Ava and his father, isn’t he?
A woman sees Nikolas, and says she knows him. She’s seen his face in The Invader. He’s Nikolas Cassadine. Nikolas confirms he is, and she asks him to hold a paper. He takes it from her, and she thanks him, saying, he’s just been served.
Shawn comes back, and TJ says he has to run. He needs to get to the hospital, but a raincheck on dinner. Jordan says, absolutely. Shawn says he’s not sure how Jordan takes her coffee, so he brought a little of everything, which is impossible since he only has two cups with him. TJ says he has to run, but good luck. Shawn thanks him, and TJ leaves. Jordan says, she did one thing right, that’s for sure. Her phone rings, and she answers. She writes something down, and says, great intel; thanks. Shawn says, good news? and she says, the passenger next to Hayden’s mother wasn’t a stranger. They booked their seats together. Shawn says, so they’re close enough to travel together, but he’s nowhere to be found after Naomie dies. She says she’s got his address, and Shawn asks if she feels like a road trip.
Sam tells Curtis, Portia coming with them might be their best shot. He’s more inclined to trust them if they have a doctor with them. If it’s okay with Portia. Portia says she doesn’t want them to break the law. If she can help, she’s in. Curtis asks if she’s sure, and she says, yeah. Sam says, let’s go, but Curtis says, hold on. He was thinking Sam should stay. Sam asks, why? and he says he knows it’s important to her, but think about it. A bunch of people showing up could scare him away. If it’s just him and Portia, he can hide under the radar as the doctor’s boyfriend, and he’ll never know Curtis is a P.I. Sam says, it makes sense, and he says he’ll keep her posted. She thanks him, and tells him, good luck. Portia asks if Curtis wants to drive, or should she, and he says, he’ll drive. She says, of course (🍷).
Sonny asks if this is really happening, and Nina says, it is. Him without a past, and her, trying desperately to forget hers. He says, they shouldn’t fit, but somehow they do, and she says, she was broken, and he put her back together. It’s a huge gamble, and she doesn’t know how they’ll last, but she wants, she needs to see this through. Sonny tells her to say it again; she knows what part he wants to hear again. She says she loves him. She doesn’t know what to do with that. They kiss.
Carly says Monica is right. Her heart belonged to Jason fully and completely, and she screwed it up big time. She could have lost him forever, but instead they landed in this beautiful place. He’s the best friend she’s ever had. Monica tells her that she’s sure Jason would say the same about her, and Carly says she appreciates Monica coming to see her. Monica says she’s really glad, because it could have totally gone the other way. They’re never going to be best friends, but for Jason and Michael’s sake, Monica would like to try and be civil in-laws. Carly says she’d really like that, and Monica says, then she’ll see Carly at the wedding. Carly says, of course (🍷), and Monica says, it’s interesting, all Carly went through to secure Jason’s love back then, and she finally gets it now. Monica leaves, and Carly ponders this.
Jordan tells Shawn, sorry, but she’s going solo. He says didn’t they agree to work together, and she says, to the extent that they could, but he’s not a cop and he’s not a P.I. He has no legal standing. On top of that, he and Sam were the last people to see Naomie Dreyfuss. And they both discovered her body. If she includes him to go interview a person of interest… He says, it starts to feel like a cover up, and she says, at the very least. Or it could taint the investigation, or even be grounds to have potential evidence or testimony thrown out. He says he definitely doesn’t want that, and Jordan says, if it leads to anything, he’ll be the first to know. She promises. He says, so she’s going alone, and she tells him that she already said that. He says, now? and she says, no time like the present. He tells her, be careful, and she says she’s got this. It’s not her first investigation. She’s a professional. He says, be careful anyway, and she says she will, and heads out.
Spencer tells Esme, his dad was on some guilt trip that went way over his head, but he realized they’ll never be able to have a true, honest relationship with this secret between them. She asks if he could have a relationship with Nikolas if he stays with Ava. He has to pick his poison. There’s no way he can live with his father if his father is still with Ava. If she had to guess, she’d say he’d probably get used to keeping a secret from him. And if he’s having a tough time, he’s got her. She’s always looking out for him. She said that earlier when she went to see Ava. Trina comes in, and says, what about Ava?
Nikolas asks what the hell the woman is talking about. She starts to walk away, and he looks at the paper, and says, wait. This is a restraining order. His wife got the court to say he has to stay 100 feet away from her, and he’s just hearing about it now? She must have filed the paperwork days ago. The woman says, the state of New York allows for the filer to choose the method of delivery and notification. Have a nice day. He says, you’ve got to be kidding me.
Sam finds Dante at the station, and asks if he has any leads. Curtis is following up Drew’s case, but he doesn’t want her there. She can’t go with him because he doesn’t want her to scare the guy off. Dante says she is pretty scary, and she says she thought maybe the two of them could figure out another path to go down. She really thinks there’s a connection between Drew’s flight and Leethy Unlimited. He asks if she wants to wait and see what Curtis comes back with, but she says she can’t just do nothing. He says, in general or today?
Josslyn walks into the living room looking at her phone. She says she just heard from Olivia. She’s running late because of Leo. She looks up, and there’s no Carly. She says, mom?
Trina asks Esme, why bother Ava when she’s trying to pack up her life? and Esme says she wasn’t trying to bother Ava. She was just wishing her well before she left. Overprotective, aren’t we? Spencer says, Trina and Ava got close when Trina worked for Ava.She’s Trina’s mentor. Esme says she’s sure Trina is like a daughter to Ava, especially after Kiki passed away. Trina asks if she means Loren. That’s what she called Kiki the other day. Esme says, her given name, and Trina says, and the name on her hospital ID badge. The one they found near Ava’s car where it was burnt to a crisp.
Ava puts her keys in her bag, when Nikolas comes into the gallery. She says he cannot be there, and he says, because of this? He holds up the paper, and says, a restraining order? Why? Because she’s worried he won’t stay away, or she knows she can’t?
Standing on a porch, Jordan checks the address on her phone. She tries the door, but it’s locked. She goes to a window, and tries that, but it doesn’t budge. Curtis says, Jordan, startling her. She turns around, and Curtis is there with Portia. He asks what she’s doing there, and she says, working on a case. He says, so are they.
Sam asks, what’s special about today? and Dante says, really? She says, oh. He means Carly and Jason’s wedding. He says, yeah, that, and she says, would she like to escape the buzz? Yes. Would she like to focus on something else? Also yes. He says, you know what? He thinks he’s got a solution for that.
Jason walks in, and tells Josslyn, don’t worry. He’s just there to pick up his suit. He’s not going to mess with tradition, and try to see her mom. She says, that’s not going to be a problem. Her mom is gone.
Sonny and Nina are still kissing, and she says, so what now? He says he’s thinking this occasion calls for going to Philadelphia. She laughs, and says, why? He says he thinks they should find a restaurant, listen to some music afterwards, and just do it up. She says, okay. She loves that idea. He says, he has to get some stuff organized and sorted out, but he’ll be at her place in a couple of hours. She says she can’t wait, and he leans in for a kiss, but she pulls back. She says she’ll see him later. She leaves, and walks out, smiling. Until she sees Jax.
Tomorrow, Esme suggests she and Trina talk about the big fat elephant, Ava asks who’s going to keep her safe from Nikolas, Jax says his business is Nina and what she’s been up to, and Sonny asks if someone has a problem with his name.
👠 The Two Toms did a Vanderpump Rules watch party, watching themselves in drag, while in drag. Host Tom S. was a fail, since he was sporting a mustache, but Schwartz looked quite cute. The VPR episode also including LVP first discussing the partnership for TomTom with Ken. And the best thing of all? Giggy! Oh, how he’s missed.
Since I had a meeting tonight for MupoEntertainment.com, it will be bi-coastal Wives tomorrow, with RHONY and RHOBH. Until then, stay safe, stay expressing your emotions in a healthy way, and stay letting go of past baggage to find out who you are inside. But don’t hide in Nixon Falls to do it.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Sonny and Phyllis walk through a 4th of July celebration, and Phyllis hands Sonny a flag. She tells him that Lenny is going to join them at the parade. He loves the high school band, and the majorettes in the unforms that are always a little too snug. He says he misses Lenny, but he’s glad Phyllis talked him into taking it easy tonight. She says, what about him? He seems to be working like crazy. Why doesn’t he take it easy, and enjoy some rare time off?
Dante asks if Sam and Elizabeth really started the fire, and Elizabeth says, it was just some harmless fun. Finn says they might not want to say anymore, and Sam says, please. Everything was under control… until she had a little bit of tequila. Maybe a lot. Dante says, that’s funny. All these buildings are full of flammable materials. One spark, the whole thing goes up. Sam says, boom, and Elizabeth says, but it didn’t. He says that’s not the point, and Sam says, seriously, take off the badge; it’s a holiday. Elizabeth gets up and says she’s taking Sam home, but Dante says, no one’s going anywhere. Not until he gets some answers. Sam says, or what? and he says, or he takes them down to the station.
Cameron says, if Dev hadn’t made him think Josslyn wasn’t into him, what would have happened? Would they have gotten together after they kissed at the dance? Would they be together now? She says she doesn’t know. They never got the chance to find out.
Maxie rocks Louise/Bailey, and says she’s so happy to see her. She’s missed her so much. With all her heart and soul. Monica comes in, and Maxie says, isn’t she beautiful? Monica says, yes, she is. She’s gorgeous. Can she hold Bailey? Maxie seems hesitant.
Anna and Valentin kiss, and Anna asks what he’s doing. None of that. He says he kissed her, and if you ask him, it’s long overdue. Ditto if you ask me.
Obrecht meets Nina at Charlie’s and they hug. Obrecht says their paths have barely crossed since Nina has been back in town. Nina says she knows, but now they have time to catch up. Tell her everything. How is she? Obrecht says, so much has happened, she wouldn’t know where to start, and Nina says, all good, I hope. Obrecht says, some wonderful, some heart-wrenching, but they can talk about her later. Nina is the one who’s been off on an adventure. Nina says, that’s one way of putting it, and Obrecht asks, what exactly is out there that’s kept her away from Port Charles for so long?
Sonny says, if the heat continues, he may take Phyllis up on her offer, and she asks what the weather has to do with it. She takes out her keys, and says, take her car. Go visit Nina in Port Charles. She holds the keys out to him.
Carly says sorry Jason has to stick around for Vincent Novak’s sake. She knows he’d rather be at the bridge. He says, wouldn’t she? and she says, hell yeah. The view of the fireworks is much better from there. He says he’ll survive, and she tells him, she used to resent that bridge. She hated it because it was a Jason and Robin thing. It felt very off-limits to her. (Have I mentioned that I hate Carly?) He says he took her there himself, and she says, it’s a girl thing. They should go back to the bridge one day. He says, whenever she wants. Deal? She says, deal. Britt and Jax come out of the elevator, laughing, and walk over to the bar. Carly asks if they’re together, and Britt says, sure are. Small world, isn’t it?
Elizabeth says, the station? and Dante says, yeah. Sam gets up, and says so he wants to detain them? Arrest them? She holds out her wrists, and he says he wasn’t going to take it that far, but he could have them for drunk and disorderly, public disturbance… She pushes him, and asks why he doesn’t add assaulting a cop while he’s at it. He says, right here, pointing to his cheek, and she takes a swing at him, but fails miserably, nearly falling. He tries to grab her, but they both fall in the water.
Josslyn asks if Cameron and Dev ever talked about… He says, they talked around it, kind of. The more he thinks about that last night, the more he thinks Dev wanted to come clean about that journal. She says, he just ran out of time. It’s so stupid. He says, what? and she says, why didn’t they all just talk to each other, and say how they were really feeling? He says, that would have made things a little easier, but she says, it would have made them real. Instead, they were just pretending. He says she has no idea. Does she remember when he helped her make Oscar jealous? She says, yeah. He brought it up a couple months ago, and let it drop. He says, if he’d had the courage to finish what he was saying, it was that when he was pretending to be into her, he wasn’t pretending at all.
Monica suggests they put Bailey back in the carriage, but Maxie says, it’s okay. Monica says Maxie’s arms must be getting tired, but Maxie says she could hold this little peanut all day long. Monica asks if she doesn’t want to spend some time with James and Georgie, and Maxie says, they’re with her mom and Mac, which allowed her to spend some time with this little one. Brook walks in, and Monica says she’s sure Bailey wants to see her mommy.
Anna backs away from Valentin, and says, this is inappropriate. He moves forward until her back is to the railing, and says, is it? She says, it’s not their relationship; it’s never been their relationship. He says maybe he’s crazy, but it felt like she kissed him back. She says, okay, fine. She kissed him back, but it can’t happen again.
Sonny thanks Phyllis for the offer, but says, it’s no time to take a vacation. She asks what he’s afraid of. That Nina’s happy where she is without him, or if he goes and tells her how he feels, she might just say she feels the same way?
Obrecht says, what’s waiting for Nina back in that Pennsylvania town? Or is it a who? Nina says, Obrecht just assumes there’s a man? and Obrecht says, is there?… There is. Nina says, yes, there is. She met someone and it’s really good for her. She believes it’s really good for him. Obrecht says, that’s wonderful. Does this mystery man have a name, and does she have any pictures? Nina says, Mike, and Obrecht says, Mike, how industrial. Mike…? Nina says, Mike, and Obrecht says, no last name, no photos… Ach nein. Tell her he’s not married.
Britt says it’s not really a surprise they’d all run into each other. Carly owns the hotel, Britt’s room is downstairs. It’s so nice, by the way. Doesn’t Jax think her room is nice? I laugh, and Jax says, very. Britt says, speaking of surprises, Carly and Jason. Wow. Carly says, kind of like Britt and Jax, and Jax says he and Britt actually discovered they have a lot in common. Vincent Novak watches, and Jason suggests he and Carly get a table. Carly tells Britt and Jax to enjoy their evening, and Britt says, them too. Carly and Jason go to sit down, and Jax asks if Britt is okay. She says she could use some air, and they go out on the terrace. Carly tells Jason, Britt and Jax came there because they knew Jason would be there. And they’re sleeping together. Does he realize they’re sleeping together? Jason says, thanks, Captain Obvious. Not really, but he should.
Sam and Dante are out of the water, and Sam says, it was just an accident. She’s thankful for it, because it’s like, 90 degrees out there, and now she’s cooled off. Dante tells her that she’s skating on really, really thin ice right now, and Sam yells, melted ice! Cuz it’s hot! Elizabeth says, obviously, they acted impulsively, arguably stupidly… Dante says, arguably? and Elizabeth says, there were mitigating circumstances. He says he’s listening. What was it? Sam was declaring her independence. From what? Sam says, not what; who. Elizabeth says, obviously they haven’t heard about the big engagement, and Sam says, Carly and Jason are getting married.
Cameron says he’s liked Josslyn for as long as he can remember. That doesn’t take away from their friendship; he thinks it actually strengthens it. She says, because the trust is already there, and he says, right. She’s someone he can talk about anything with. She says they should try that sometime, and he says, she’s someone who’s been there with him since he was a kid. Someone who’ll give him a kick in the butt if he needs one. She says, and then some, and he says, it’s really special. She says she knows, because that’s exactly how she feels about him.
Brook thanks Maxie for watching the baby, and Maxie says, any time. Monica says they were just going to put her down for a nap. Maxie says, good idea, and Brook moves to take her, and Maxie says, watch her head. Brook asks Maxie if she’d go to the nursery and grab the fuzzy blanket with the ducks; it’s Bailey’s favorite. Maxie says they can’t have Bailey getting cold, and Brook thanks her. Maxie says, no problem, and goes upstairs. Monica tells Brook that she’s got to disagree with Maxie. They have a big problem.
Anna tells Valentin, things have been stressful for her lately, and obviously, she’s not thinking clearly. He says, obviously, and she says she doesn’t know what happened. He says, it’s called a kiss, and she says, it’s called proximity. He says, so if the mailman had been there, she would have kissed him instead? and she tells him, don’t try to be cute. He says he doesn’t have to try, and she says they’re all entitled to errors in judgement, and this is not irrevocable by any means. He says he thought it was a good kiss. She says, it was, but that’s not the point. The point is, the two of them, and everything they’ve been to each other over the years. That’s why this is wrong on so many levels. He says, it won’t happen again, and she says, no. He says, why not? and she asks if he’s not listening to everything she’s saying. He says she’s so beautiful and enchanting – he pulls her to him – and he’s wanted her for years. She says, that’s the other problem. He just doesn’t see her clearly; he never did. That’s why none of this is real. He says it felt pretty real to him.
Nina asks if she and Obrecht can talk about something else. Her phone rings, and she sees it’s Mike/Sonny. She decides to ignore it. Sonny gets voicemail. He says he was wondering how her 4th of July was going, and hopes she’s having fun. Obrecht asks if it was him, and why didn’t Nina answer? Nina asks if she’s always been this nosey, and Obrecht says, yah. Nina says she has actual news she needs to tell Obrecht, but the only reason she’s telling her is because it directly affects Britt. Obrecht asks, what is it? and Nina says, Britt and Jason have gotten really close. Obrecht says, finally, the man who’s a match for her Britta, and vice versa. Nina says she’s sorry. She hates to be the one to tell Obrecht, but Jason and Carly are getting married. Obrecht looks crestfallen.
Carly tells says she’s so sorry. She knows this must be hard for Jason. He says, Britt can do whatever she wants, and Carly says, she’s rebounding so hard, she might as well be on a trampoline. And so is Jax. He’s supposed to be so in love with Nina, why the hell is he jumping into bed with Britt? Jason says it’s none of their business, and Carly looks miffed. Good. I hope he starts telling her to shut up. Vincent approaches their table, and says he tried to pay his tab, but was told it’s on the house. He thanks them for their hospitality. Carly says, of course (🍷), and he says, congratulations again. Expect a wedding gift from the Novak family. Carly says they love gifts, and Vincent leaves with his crew. She tells Jason, that went well, and he says, as well as it could. She says, now that Novak is gone, she’s going to talk to Jax. Jason tells her, don’t, but she says she didn’t listen to him before, and she’s not listening now that they’re getting married. She walks out to the terrace.
Dante says, if he’s shocked, he can only imagine how Sam is feeling right now. She says she’s fine, but he says she doesn’t seem fine. No offense. Finn goes over to Elizabeth, and asks if she’s okay. She says she and Jason were over a long time ago. It’s Sam she’s worried about. She just didn’t want Sam to be by herself. He says, that’s nice to hear, and when Sam suggested pyrotechnics, Elizabeth couldn’t talk her out of it? She says, well… and he says, it was her idea? She says it may have been her idea, but it was for a good cause, and nobody got hurt. He looks at Dante, and says, almost no one. Dante tells Sam, come on, and she asks where they’re going. He says she’ll see, and she asks if he’s taking her to the station. He says, no. Does she trust him? She says she doesn’t know. Does she? He takes her hand, and tells Finn that he’ll make sure Sam gets home. Finn says he’ll do the same there, indicating Elizabeth. Dante leaves with Sam.
Josslyn says, for the longest time, she thought she was betraying Oscar by having feelings for Cameron, so she never acted on it. He says he felt that too. Like somehow he’d be taking advantage of the fact Oscar was gone. She says, imagine if they’d just talked about this like normal people, and he suggests they talk about it now.
Brook puts Bailey in her carriage, and Monica says, if Brook heard what she heard, and she did, she’d know the situation is very serious. Brook says she doesn’t know if she’d call it a situation, and Monica says, if Maxie is using Bailey as a substitute for her pain, that’s very unhealthy.
Anna says she knows Valentin has a dark past, and all these demons and things, and she’s always been unattainable to him or whatever, but go see a shrink. He can’t go around kissing her to work it out. He asks what her therapist would say about her kissing him, and Anna tells him, she would say that he’s the avatar for all her mistakes, and she feels he has empathy for those mistakes. That’s the reason she’s drawn to him, and blah-blah-blah psychobabble. He says she gets him like nobody gets him, and she says, don’t do that. Don’t do the whole shorthand thing. He says so she admits there’s a shorthand with them, and she says, yes, but… He says, but nothing. They understand one another. He’s fascinated by her, and he’s intensely attracted to her. He doesn’t want to apologize for that.
Sonny tells Phyllis that he tried calling Nina, but she didn’t pick up. He guesses she’s busy with her grandson. She says, probably, but she bets Nina is wondering what he’s up to. She’d be jealous as all hell to find out they’re feasting on barbecues and beers before watching the fireworks. He says, it’s pretty nice, huh? and she says, like heaven. Just missing one sweet blonde angel. He laughs.
Britt tells Jax, she’s sorry he had to see that. It was childish and snarky. She’d say it’s way beneath her, but thinks they both know that would be a lie. He says he doesn’t mind that she’s picking a fight with Carly, but he wants to warn her that it’s an unpleasant experience. She says, please. She grew up with Liesl Obrecht. Carly doesn’t scare her. The devil herself walks out, and asks if she can have a moment with Jax. Britt asks Jax if he’d like to have a moment with Carly, and he says, sure. Britt says she’ll be at the bar, and leaves. Carly whacks Jax with her hand, and tells him, stop being fake. She gets that they’re consenting adults, but what’s wrong with him? He knows Britt fell hard for Jason. Don’t take advantage of that. He says he’s tempted to say, if she knew about Britt’s feelings, why didn’t she restrain herself? and she says, but he’s not going to say that at all. He says he thinks it’s kinder this way, saving Britt from what Carly put the others through. She says, what others? and he says, Robin, Courtney, Elizabeth, Sam. They all thought they had something special with Jason, right? But the truth is, they didn’t, because she has this stranglehold on Jason, and refuses to let go.
Jason sits by Britt at the bar, and heaves a sigh. I want to smack him. He says, Carly doesn’t know about the Huntington’s, and she says, okay, refusing to look at him. He says, nobody does. He hasn’t told anyone, and he’s not going to. He knows they’ve been over this, but he wants to make something absolutely clear. Just because he’s marrying Carly, doesn’t mean he’s bailing on her. He’s there for her, whatever she needs. She guesses it’s her turn to be clear, since it obviously didn’t sink in the first time. Go to hell.
Finn tells Elizabeth, it’s just him there; she doesn’t have to worry about Sam’s feelings. It’s okay if she’s feeling upset about Carly and Jason. She says Sam was feeling upset about Carly and Jason. She’s not upset, and she’s not surprised. Carly and Jason always came first with each other, everyone else be damned. He says he’s heard that before about a certain person and the WSB. No matter who you are, you always come in second. She says, look at them. Misery loves company. He tells her, that’s what they say, but he’s not miserable. Is she? She says, no. Not right now anyway.
Josslyn asks where they start, and Cameron says, the dance might be a good place, where they kissed. She says, for the record, it was an awesome kiss; she really loved it. He says he thought so, the way she kissed back. Then the Dev stuff happened. She says she kept hoping he’d bring it up, but he never did, so she assumed the kiss didn’t mean anything. He says, she thought it didn’t mean anything? and she asks how she was supposed to know. He says, it meant everything, but she says, it was so long ago. So much life has passed. They can’t go back. He says, maybe not, but maybe they can move forward.
Valentin says, if Anna is telling him it’s more than she can do right now, that’s fine; no harm, no foul. She says don’t make it about her being weak and not being able to handle it. It’s that she can’t be interested in him that way, and she never will. He asks if she’s sure, and she tells him, don’t stand there thinking he’s all irresistible. He says he is irresistible, and she laughs, saying, oh my God.
Dante and Sam go into Charlie’s, and Sam says she’ll buy the coffee. It’s the least she can do. He says he’s buying; she had a rough night. She says, that’s no excuse. Obrecht approaches them, and says, so it’s true. Jason and Carly are getting married. Sam says, word does get around. It’s true. Jason and Carly are getting married. Obrecht sits back down, and Nina says she’s so sorry. The news seems to be hitting Obrecht hard. Is she going to be okay? Obrecht says she just thought her Britta had a chance at happiness. What if it’s the last one she gets?
Britt says, Jason made his choice – Carly. Let’s move on. Jason doesn’t get to marry Carly, then make himself feel better by swooping in and protecting her. She doesn’t need help. She’s strong enough to deal with her diagnosis on her own. He says he knows, but he gave her his word, and his word means something. She says, really?Then something more important came up? She gets it. They’ve known each other three months, and he and Carly have been friends for decades. Of course (🍷) Carly is the one he’s committing to, and she gets kicked to the curb. He says, that’s not… She says, what happened? and he says, that’s not how he felt. Britt meant something to him; she still does. She says, there is no choice where everyone gets everything. It’s impossible. Even Superman had to pick a lane. (Ha-ha! Nerd joke.) Does he want to do something for her? He says, anything, and she says, be honest, and admit he’s been in love with Carly all along.
Jax says, it was inevitable, and Carly asks, what was? He says she just had to come first in Jason’s life. As soon as Sonny died, it was inevitable that she and Jason… She says, watch it, and he tells her, he’s not saying she didn’t love Sonny; he knows she did. But it was convenient that Jason was Sonny’s best friend. She could be Sonny’s wife, but keep a grip on her fallback. She says, Jason’s not a fallback, and Jax says, he’s much more than that, isn’t he? He was an idiot to think this might be a way out of this life for her. The irony is, Jason would have let her go. Sonny, probably not, but Jason would have. But it’s not what she wanted. She wanted Jason, and he comes with the mob. So here she is, as cemented in this life as ever.
Finn says, it’s nice sometimes, just letting everything go, and Elizabeth says, for a little while. She might be hungover in the morning. He says, that might be a distinct possibility. She tells him, it’s worth it. The fireworks start, and she says, they’re starting. She watches the fireworks, and Finn watches her.
Josslyn says, Cameron asked what would have happened if Dev hadn’t forged her journal, but she said she didn’t know. She says she knows what she wanted to happen, and he says, him too. He kisses her, and fireworks go off. Literally.
Monica tells Brook that Maxie is talking as if Bailey is her own baby. She thinks Maxie needs counseling. She’s going to talk to Mac and Felicia. Brook says, Maxie is a grown woman. Monica doesn’t need to go to her parents. Monica says, then who else? and Brook says she’ll talk to Maxie. She’ll voice Monica’s concerns, gently of course (🍷), and try to make her understand. Monica says, and if she can’t? Brook says, then they’ll revisit the parent option. She promises she’ll be careful. Maxie walks in, and says, careful about what?
Anna says, Valentin is endlessly resistible to her, and he says, but he’s charming. She says, charming, yes. He’s somewhat amoral, but he’s a good father; she’ll give him that. But then he solves his problems with blackmail and murder. He’ll just encourage her to give in to her worst impulses. That’s just it. He’s a terrible influence on her. He says, her worst impulses are the sexiest he’s ever seen, and he couldn’t influence her if he wanted to. She says she’s going to keep it that way.
Sam and Dante look at the fireworks, and Dante says, for what it’s worth (🍷), he thinks Jason messed up. He had the chance of a lifetime, and didn’t take it. If it had been him, he’d have chosen her. Sam moves toward him, and they kiss.
Jason says, he’ll always love Carly. She always took him as she found him. Britt says, so did she, and he says, he and Carly have been to hell and back; name it, and it happened to them. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t love the other women he’s been with, because he did. With Carly, it’s not more or less; she’s just a part of him. Britt says, who wouldn’t want to be loved like that? She’ll give Carly this much; she knows it, and knows the good thing she has in him. She loves him as much as he loves her, so congratulations. She hopes they’ll be happy together. She walks away from the bar.
Carly says, nothing Jax is laying out is as simple as he makes it. She’ll tell him this, and he can believe it or not. Marrying Jason is the best choice she could make for her family. He says he knows she believes that. That’s what makes it so damn sad. Britt comes out, and says Carly’s fiancé is waiting, and Carly goes back inside.
Elizabeth says Finn isn’t the only one who needs a break from everything. He doesn’t want to start a fire, but he thinks he knows where she’s coming from. Elizabeth puts her head on his shoulder, and he says, the last few weeks, spending time with her, he doesn’t think she realizes how much it meant to him. How important she is to him. He looks at her, but she’s asleep, and he smiles.
Josslyn tells Cameron, that was awful. She laughs, and says she’s kidding. He says she’s the worst, and she says she knows. He says she’s his best friend, and she says she knows. She tells him that she has to get going. She has to get Donna and Avery. He says he should probably get Jake and Aiden at the pool, and they say goodnight. Josslyn starts to walk away, but he calls her back. He asks if she wants to hang out some time, and she says, when? He says, tomorrow? but she says she can’t tomorrow; she’s already made plans… But she thinks she can cancel them. He says, cool, and she says, cool. She leaves, and he looks up at the fireworks.
Brook tells Maxie that she was talking about being careful with the temperature. The AC can get aggressive, and they don’t want Bailey to freeze. Maxie picks up a blanket, and Brook says, got it, taking it out of her hand. Brook puts it on the baby, and Maxie says she was checking out the nursery. Monica says, it’s so sweet, and Maxie says, the sweetest nursery for the sweetest girl in the whole world.
Valentin says he can’t force Anna to see things the way he did, and she says, he can’t. He says, if it’s just a kiss, he’ll take it, but if she wants more, she knows where to find him. She asks why he keeps doing that. Act like he’s backing off, then do the opposite. He says because she denies it, when she knows there’s more pulling them together than pushing them apart. She says she’s not going to stand there, dissecting kiss didn’t mean anything. He knows who she has to find. If he hears anything from his contacts, let her know. He says, absolutely, darling, and she leaves.
Dante says, sorry, and Sam says she can’t do this. She walks away, and he sits outside Charlie’s.
Nina says she knows Obrecht is worried about her daughter. She’s sorry Obrecht has to go through this heartache, but she thinks the situation is something Britt will figure out on her own. Obrecht asks how that’s working out for Nina. Any idea what comes next?
Phyllis tells Mike/Sonny that she’s sure Nina will call back after her time with her family. He says, God knows he’s enjoying spending time with his family. Everyone watches the fireworks.
Carly tells Jason, Jax knows how to stick the knife in and twist it. Not like Sonny, where it was just cheap shots. The problem is, a big part of her is afraid Jax might be right. Jason says, come on, and she asks, where? He says, if they go to the bridge, they’ll miss the fireworks, and they walk outside. He says, they’re doing what they have to do. Whatever happens, he’s glad he’s there with her. She says, her too; happy 4th. She hugs him, and Britt watches.
Tomorrow, Nikolas talks to Martin about the divorce, Curtis asks if Jordan is going to fight their divorce, and Stella tells TJ, it ain’t over til it’s over.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills
The show started at a party, with Sutton asking Crystal why she’s so defensive, and Crystal saying Sutton is upset because she’s jealous. Sutton says, jealous of what? Crystal’s ugly leather pants? Sutton left the party, trailed by LisaR asking, what happened?
3 days earlier. In LisaR’s interview, she explained that Harry’s three specialties were Harry’s meat, which was Kobe beef, blueberry pie, and bolognaise. He was the domestic one, and no one wanted her cooking. She was a great cheerleader though, and could make you feel fabulous while you’re doing all the work. Sounds like a position I’d like. Erika, Crystal, and a couple of Crystal’s friends went to Kathy’s place to use her tennis court. In Erika’s interview, she said, Kathy told them, just let yourself in, and that’s what was great about friends like Kathy. Erika was trying to motivate herself to go out and do things, and not wallow. So she was there… and she was terrible. Erika spoke the truth. I probably play better, and I stink. In Crystal’s interview, she said she was a total tomboy, and seriously into sports. A lot of people said she was competitive, but whoever said that was probably a loser. I think Crystal’s problem is, she wants to be a cool girl, and ends up just sounding mean. More like a cool girl who rules by fear, and ends up on the losing end, like Regina George. I will give her this, she’s a good tennis player, and she and Erika ended up winning the match even though Erika was the worst. In her interview, Crystal said that Erika’s willingness was a 10, but her skill level was a 2. They had lunch with Kathy, and Erika said her new place was in shambles, Kathy said, but it was hers, and Erika agreed. She said she was trying to be social, and Kathy asked if she’d been social when she was married, Erika said, all the time, but it was all business. It was all of what Tom wanted. In her interview, Erika said, it was all set up already; she just inserted herself. Just because you have a lot of money doesn’t mean you’re independent. She had no housekeeper or gardener now, but she valued her privacy. Plus, she could throw her sh*t all over because it was her place. Kathy said Erika’s smile seemed genuine and not forced. I have to note, Kathy has several dogs, but one is either a Pekingese or a Peke mix. Information you need to know…
Kyle and family took their Christmas card photo, all wearing matching red PJs. Kathy came by, and pulled an amazing amount of items out of her bag. In her interview, she said you could find everything in her bag; socks, extra shoes, a sweater, a pair of sandals for a pedicure… In Kyle’s interview, she added carpet samples, drapery samples, and wallpaper samples. I carry a lot of stuff too, but never home goods samples. Kathy said she’d talked to Kim for three hours, and Kyle said she was worried about Kim being in quarantine. Kathy said she’d asked if Kim wanted to come along, but Kim said she was too nervous. She also gave Kyle the news that Kim had changed her phone number. We saw a clip of Kyle telling Mauricio that she and Kim weren’t talking, and the relationship was strained. At times, they were okay, but it seemed hard to get all three of them on the same page at the same time. Kyle said she had a husband, children, and dogs, but Kim was by herself. Kathy said Kim claimed all this was supposed to have happened, so they could have quiet time, and figure out where they wanted to be in life.
LisaR visited Erika in her new home, which we found out costs $9500 a month to rent. LisaR said it had a good vibe, and in her interview, she said it gave her a hopeful feeling seeing Erika in her own space that she created. It wasn’t easy to go from a life where you had help and everything was done for you, to doing everything yourself. In Erika’s interview, a producer asked if she had money concerns, and she said she did, but she’d also had a bunch of lucrative projects in a row, like her book, being on Broadway, and several collaborations. She had enough for her little house. Sutton joined them, and brought Erika a housewarming gift of Dolce & Gabbana’s book, Queens. In Sutton’s interview, she said, what better housewarming present? When Erika was sad and lonely, she could see Sutton’s picture – twice. She told Erika that she hated to say it, but she seemed happier, and Erika said there was only so much time you could have with someone before you wanted to talk about real things. In her interview, Erika said she’d mentioned to Tom that she was seeing a shrink, and all he said was, okay. Because what does she have to be depressed about? Sutton said Crystal wasn’t willing to back up, and say maybe she used the wrong word. LisaR asked if Crystal was still talking about it, and Sutton said the peeping Tom thing needed to be dropped. In her interview, she said she didn’t think peeping Toms knocked on the door. They peeped.
Garcelle’s son Jax was learning Japanese, and got frustrated when Garcelle made to much noise in the background while he was taking his online class. In Garcelle’s interview, she said, being trapped inside with two teenage boys was maddening. They were home schooling, and everyone was on top of each other. She found herself going to the pantry for a quick shot of tequila. She was on the teenage hormone train, and didn’t know what was coming next. Last week, Jaid wanted her all to himself, but this week, he wanted nothing to do with her. When she was growing up, she wasn’t allowed to have those emotions.
LisaR had Harry prepare an Italian meal for the women, and in her interview, she said that Harry had lived in Italy for three years; it was in his blood. He had LisaR taste-test sauces, and LisaR discovered she liked the one with the tomatoes from their garden the best, which made sense, since they’d be freshest. In LisaR’s interview, she said Garcelle had wanted a birthday party, but couldn’t have one due to covid. They were still in the process of repairing their relationship, but knew she couldn’t force it. At the end of the day, they might not end up being great friends. Kyle visited Dorit, who had a fabulous Christmas village set up. Kyle said Dorit made her feel like an underachiever, and Dorit said Kyle had three trees. Kyle said, but she didn’t have a Santa village. In Dorit’s interview, she said she’d mostly designed swimwear and leisurewear, but was moving into bridal. Designer Nektoria had reached out to her to collaborate on a wedding dress line, and she couldn’t wait to see the first bride walk down the aisle in her design. She’d wanted something comfortable, but special, for her own wedding, and wished she’d designed her own dress.
Harry welcomed the women to Napolitano, where they sat at an amazing outside table under an arbor. In Dorit’s interview, she said Harry was a gourmet chef, while PK specialized in, babe, can you get me a sandwich? Harry pointed out that their pool wasn’t for them. It was so their kids would come back with their kids. Kyle said she’d been Amelia’s age when she had her first child, nearly giving Harry apoplexy. When Sutton arrived, someone – I think Kathy – said, hi, Thomasina, which did not go over well. Sutton said she was ready for that to end. Garcelle reminisced about being there for a party where she and LisaR had been on the dance floor all night. In her interview, she said her assistant had been her date, and she hadn’t remembered stumbling out. Harry joined them for the meal, and LisaR said that the girls were going to Cabo for Thanksgiving. They’d originally planned on meeting them, but were concerned about the borders closing because of covid. It was the first time she wouldn’t be spending Thanksgiving with the girls or Lois. She wasn’t asking a lot of questions about Amelia and Scott, and Crystal chimed in that Rob was older, but they were the exception. Of course they are. Crystal is also a can-you-top-this person. LisaR said she was trying to be easy with it, but the tabloids had them engaged. In her interview, she said her mom saw one at the market, and called her asking if it was true. That’s what she was dealing with. Harry said the age difference between him and Ursula Andress was 14 years. He’d been 29 and she was 44 when they had their son. In her interview, LisaR said, you never think it will come back to haunt you when you have kids. Harry ate, then dashed to the kitchen, bringing out a cake. Garcelle’s birthday wish was, she wanted him hung like a horse, and Harry told her to be careful what she wished for. Garcelle said she probably wouldn’t know where to put it. She said she appreciated the party, especially LisaR throwing it. In Garcelle’s interview, she said last year, it was a rocky road with her and LisaR. They needed to figure out if they had a friendship and what it looked like. That LisaR was making an effort, definitely meant something.
It was present time, and Crystal, Kathy, and Kyle kicked in to get Garcelle a duplicate of a ring she’d admired on Crystal. Erika gave Garcelle a fluffy jacket that was no doubt cashmere, and Dorit gave her a designer cap. Kyle asked Sutton what was wrong, and Sutton said she didn’t like being where she didn’t like people. Kyle asked who she didn’t like, and Sutton shifted her eyes to Crystal. Kyle told Sutton to come with her, and they went to a bar out in the yard. Sutton said she wanted to go home, and Kyle asked what she’d missed. Nothing had happened. Sutton said to tell the truth, she had a difficult time being fake, and in her interview, she said it was hard to sit across the table from someone who obviously didn’t like her. She told Kyle that Crystal had been talking bad behind her back, and was looking smug at her. I have to agree here. Crystal smirks a lot. Sutton said it was wearing at her, and she still felt weird. Crystal had talked behind Sutton’s back, Sutton had tried to say her piece, and Crystal never apologized. In Kyle’s interview, she said this wasn’t the Sutton she knew. Sutton was being extremely emotional and irrational. Yeah, let’s not even get into what a very poor judge of character Kyle is. If someone was smirking like that at me all the time, I’d be hard pressed not to wipe it off their face, but Sutton doesn’t know what to do because she’s polite. She told Kyle that she wasn’t over being told she violated someone. Kyle said Crystal had told them she didn’t mean sexually, and we flashed back to that.
At the table, LisaR screeched that they should do shots, and everyone chanted, shots, shots, shots! Sutton told Kyle, she was so not okay, and she couldn’t get it together. Garcelle turned into that person, and came over, asking, are you crying? very loudly. Sutton gave the standard reply that she had bad allergies. In Garcelle’s interview, she said she thought Sutton was more hormonal than her kids. Sutton said she was upset about the insinuations. It was hard to pretend things were great, and hunky dory when they weren’t. In Kathy’s interview, she wondered if Hunky Dory was someone’s nickname. Sutton told them that she just had moment. By this time, the whole miserable gang was there, and Sutton said Crystal had said a lot of things about her, and she couldn’t sit across the table from her . Garcelle asked what Sutton needed from Crystal; tell Crystal what she needed, so they could move on. Sutton said she thought it was sh*tty that Crystal had used so many words about her. No surprise, Crystal kept interrupting, and Sutton finally told Crystal to let her say her piece. The word violated was crazy to her. She asked what planet Crystal lived on, and Crystal said, not Sutton’s, as she once again looked smug. Garcelle said they weren’t going to get anywhere, and Crystal said she wasn’t changing the word, since she’d used it correctly. Garcelle again asked what Sutton needed, and Kyle said she thought Sutton wanted an apology. Crystal said she was sorry Sutton was upset, and Sutton said that wasn’t an apology, which we all know. It’s like a murderer saying they’re sorry the victim died, leaving out the fact they killed them. Crystal told Sutton to look up the word. It meant abuse of privacy. Is this woman loopy? First of all, I don’t know what dictionary she’s using, but the standard ones don’t exactly put it that way. Secondly, there are plenty of words that have several definitions, but are known by a certain one, gay being a prime example. Garcelle said that Sutton hadn’t known Crystal was naked, and Sutton asked why Crystal was so defensive. Crystal said Sutton was upset because she was jealous – period – and Sutton said, of what? Crystal’s ugly leather pants? I wondered jealous of what too. Sutton said she was out, and Kathy told LisaR, it was her house, so she should get a handle on this. Sutton headed out, asking again what she was jealous of. The rest of the women followed her, except for Crystal, who stood there with her hands in her ugly leather pockets, and smiled.
To be continued…
Next time, Crystal says she won’t apologize, and calls Sutton an inappropriate, awkward person; Erika deals with the headlines saying her divorce was a sham to hide assets; and Erika says she could have never predicted this effing sh*t.
The Real Housewives of New York City
Leah video chatted with everyone, and said the election was driving everyone nuts. To keep their sanity, she thought they should get out of town. With covid restrictions, they couldn’t really travel, but a place she’d always been fascinated by was Salem, Massachusetts. In Leah’s interview, she said she could be kind of witchy, and was into manifesting. And these women were a bunch of witches. It would be like visiting the motherland. She wanted to do a latex and leather themed dinner party the first night, and told Ramona that she wanted to invite Bershan. In her interview, she said she pretty much wanted to do anything the women wouldn’t normally do.
Ramona met Bershan for lunch, and Bershan wondered if Ramona really had vertigo, or just didn’t like Eboni’s Night in Harlem event. Ramona asked what Bershan thought of it, and Bershan diplomatically said, it was educational. Ramona said, it was a hard sell. In Bershan’s interview, she said she thought it was long winded, but appreciated that Eboni wanted to teach the girls. Bershan told Ramona that she liked the women, and Ramona warned her about them fighting on the trip. She added that they made up, and these women were her core. Bershan said she was in.
In Sonja’s interview, she said she was glad Eboni was trying to set her up with someone. If it had been Ramona or LuAnn… She just shook her head. Sonja told Eboni that she had a hard time getting her words out around the other women because they cut her off, and they didn’t listen. Eboni said, they shut down conversations, and we flashed back to Eboni refusing to let Ramona do that. In her interview, Eboni said she was going to be patient with Ramona, because she’d actually pushed through the panic and was talking to her. She and Ramona were going to be an experiment. She was looking at the trip, not as a do-over, but a do-more.
Sonja and Eboni flew privately to Philadelphia to meet Devyn, Eboni’s matchmaker. In Eboni’s interview, she said Sonja needed to give love a chance again, so she was excited about this introduction. Sonja was afraid her reputation preceded her, but trusted Eboni. Devyn asked what causes Sonja was passionate about, and Sonja said, the vulnerable. No broke-ass men either. In her interview, Eboni said, Sonja married the bank. Where do you go from there? She told Devyn that she thought Sonja was ready for a new chapter. Sonja said she trusted that Eboni had described the real her, not the straw that stirs the drink.
Everyone packed for the trip. LuAnn said since they were going to a haunted house, she needed a good chapeau, and freaked when her assistant put her hats on the bed, which is bad luck. Leah FaceTimed with Sonja and Eboni, telling them to get their asses home and pack. In her interview, Leah said, let’s get out of our comfort zone. Let’s get spooky, bitches. She told them, no sh*t in Salem. They got on the most gigantic bus ever, and Leah said it was rock star style. Sonja thought it was so LuAnn, and they were the groupies. She thought it was getting weird because she’d packed grey and black, and Ramona was wearing those colors. Along with pink, so that was a stretch. LuAnn asked about Sonja’s matchmaking trip, and Sonja said she was ready for commitment. Ramona and Leah took naps, while the others talked about marriage and divorce. Bershan said she found out she had stage 4 breast cancer two weeks before getting married to a British banker. In her interview, she said, she was told she had three months to live, and prayed, telling God she’d be a warrior for everyone on the planet if she survived. When someone tells you, you’re going to die, you wake up. She’d been cancer free for 14 years. Leah said there would be fortune tellers at the leather and latex dinner, as well as tattoo artists, and she’d be getting one. Dinner was going to be at the tattoo shop. In Ramona’s interview, she said she didn’t want to deface her body.
They arrived at the Hawthorne Hotel, named after Nathaniel, which Leah described as spooky, but beautiful. On the way to dinner, Eboni considered the tattoo thing. This was some tattoo parlor. It looked like an upscale antique store, with a restaurant in the back. It was really gorgeous. In her interview, Leah said the women were impressed, and although they had a few days, she felt like she’d already gotten an A+ on the trip. There were a pair of spooky twins that Sonja found cute, and the fortune teller passed out fortunes. The women sat down in a large booth, and Sonja babbled on about how Eboni was new to the group, and had wanted them to understand her life’s work. In LuAnn’s interview, she said Sonja was stirring the cauldron. Eboni said, they couldn’t get to the kiki if she had an outstanding question on whether they’re aligned with white supremacy. Everyone was a little startled, and in Eboni’s interview, she said white supremacy wasn’t the Jim Crow south. In today’s United States, you were either anti-racist or a racist. In Ramona’s interview, she said she didn’t know where Eboni was coming from, since none of them had given any indication of being racist. LuAnn said all of them heard her, but Eboni said LuAnn could only speak for herself. Ramona hadn’t wanted to hear her.
Leah said she thought it was more about Eboni’s personality. When the new woman came in, they got sh*t on. She got sh*t on by Ramona. We flashed back to that. She said, Eboni wasn’t allowing that, and in 14 years, they’d never had a Black woman in their group. Could they imagine the pressure? Every news outlet was talking about it. Ramona said, ignore the press, and Leah told her, STFU. Leah said Ramona lived in a tiny bubble, and Ramona said Leah didn’t know who she was. Leah said Ramona was what’s wrong with the world. Ramona tried to jet, saying, she wasn’t enjoying the conversation. Everyone urged her to stay, and Eboni said she’d come a long way. Ramona sat back down, and Bershan told Eboni her delivery could be harsh. Eboni said she received and heard Bershan, and knew it might feel exhausting. Every MF’ing day, it was something else. Ramona got all animated, and said Eboni had a great life. Eboni told everyone that Ramona was saying something a lot of people say when they see her. In Leah’s interview, she said, no one saw Ramona struggling, but she probably had to deal with some stuff. Triple that, and that’s Eboni. Eboni said that some people aligned with Trump were white supremacists, and in her interview, said, if you support him for economic reasons, say so. You’d get pushback, but she could have a dialog. Ramona woudn’t even go there. Everyone started saying, not me, and Ramona tried to make herself really small, hoping to blend into her seat. Eboni said her mother voted for Trump in 2016, and had her reasons, but she was vocal about it. Ramona slid out, and in her interview, she said she just came for some fun. She didn’t need this. Leah asked if Eboni thought anyone who voted for Trump was a supremist, and Eboni said, no. She just wanted to know where Ramona stood on the issue. That was it. Eboni said she could respect supporting him for tax cut reasons or economics. Leah said Ramona couldn’t have this conversation; she barely knew the English language.
Surprisingly, Ramona came back, but she acted all weird, saying she wanted to play a game, and then making a cheer out of, I want a game. She was also wearing a black latex catsuit, by the way. In Leah’s interview, she said she was cringing. Ramona should have stayed wherever she was. She would probably never live down coming back and doing the I’m white dance. Leah told Ramona that they had to go through this, and Eboni said she was still Black. Ramona said she was sorry she was white. Did Eboni want an apology? Her mother came there with nothing. Leah said, it didn’t matter; this was different. Several of the women scattered, leaving Leah, Eboni, and Bershan. Leah said, and then there were three.
To be continued…
Next time, Ramona does a table dance, the women reenact pioneer days, Eboni gets a tattoo, Bershan says they’re being grandmas, and – big surprise – Sonja overdoes it.
🐶 Bravo had a Vanderpump Dogs marathon, and I love this show so much. They also train service dogs, and match them with owners, so we saw some of that. The dogs are adorable, and the stories, both pup and human, are both heart-wrenching and heartwarming. Some people have negative things to say about LVP, but I have great admiration for her work ethic and her love for dogs, which is more than apparent in this show. I’m also still wondering if she’d consider adopting an older child. My dogs and I wouldn’t take up much space. She’d barely know we were there.
📋 Past Quitting Time…
Wives as promised, and now to bed. Until we meet on the morrow, stay safe, stay engaged, and stay not rebounding so hard, you might as well be on a trampoline.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
There was no new GH anywhere today. Those who had it, got a rerun from when Josslyn and Trina went back in time, and saw their foremothers as Suffragettes. That was a great episode, and I would have watching it again, but it was not on in my area. So I watched People’s Court, which I only see, like, once a year anymore.
Speaking of which, People’s Court won a Daytime Emmy, and as a preempt consolation prize, so did GH, Sonny, and Mike. Read on for the scoop.
I can’t say I’m surprised. It’s very obvious that LisaR wants screen time, and is the mean girl ring leader, even though Kyle – who bores the pants off me – thinks she’s queen. Now we have Crystal, who’s chosen to sit at their lunch table, stirring the pot.
Most of our obstacles would melt away if, instead of cowering before them, we should make up our minds to walk boldly through them. – Orison Swett Marden (Or smack them out of the way.)
The commonality of who we are is not what we believe, but how we love. – Jackie Griffin
The courage to admit when you’re wrong doesn’t show weakness. It shows your strength. Your integrity speaks volumes about you as a person. – Blaque Diamond
You have the need and the right to spend part of your life caring for your soul. It is not easy…To be a soulful person means to go against all the pervasive, prove-yourself values of our culture and instead treasure what is unique and internal and valuable in yourself and your own personal evolution. – Jean Shinoda Bolen (Getting off social media once in a while won’t hurt either.)
Never go to bed mad. Stay up and fight. – Phyllis Diller
We can throw stones, complain about them, stumble on them, climb over them, or build with them. – William Arthur Ward
I did not attend his funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it. – Mark Twain
When life gives you lemons, squirt someone in the eye. – Cathy Guisewite
Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring. – Marilyn Monroe (I was going to say, she’s a genius, but I’m not sure if I should…)
Nothing is more sad than the death of an illusion. – Arthur Koestler
Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world. – Albert Einstein
If you’re going to die in your sleep and get all growly and sh*t, you got to let a brother know. – Braithwaite (BechirSylvain), Black Summer
🤸🏽♀️ Got No Strings To Tie Me Down…
It’s here, that thing more people are calling the weekend again. Except some of them want to call it that from home now. There’s no Dead on tap, so see you next week with I don’t even know what. And whatever your weekend vantage point, stay safe, stay grounded, and stay walking boldly through your obstacles, or giving them a good swift kick out of the way.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Stella thinks it’s ridiculous. The hospital is discharging Curtis two days after he was shot, when he saved the entire town from that horrible man. Curtis says he thinks Jordan had something to do with that, and she says he already told her. Cyrus threatened Laura, and got Curtis to drop his gun. Then he shot Curtis, and Jordan shot him… in the leg. Too bad she didn’t aim higher. He says that’s not very Christian of her to say, and she says, the Lord may forgive Cyrus, but she doesn’t. He wanted to kill Curtis, and almost succeeded, which is why Curtis should stay there and work on getting himself better. He says the doctors gave him another option. Go back to the MetroCourt, and don’t leave for a few days, so it was really a no brainer. She says he can say that again, and he says if there was any danger in him leaving, he’s sure Portia would have spoken up. It’s funny. He hasn’t seen Portia around all day. In fact, Stella has been his only visitor. Nina comes in, and says maybe she can help with that.
Jordan walks into Cyrus’s hospital room, and he says it’s about time she showed up. She says, for the first time ever, she couldn’t agree more.
Jason walks into the hallowed halls of the moss bowl, otherwise known as Sonny’s kitchen. Carly says, perfect timing, and hands him a cup of coffee. She says after him being in prison and on the run, it’s nice having him just down the hall, and he says he thinks it’s a good idea for him to stay close while they deal with this transition of power. She agrees, and says, it’s much appreciated, but she knows he has other people to see, like Sam and the kids. He says he already set it up, and she says, what about Britt?
Britt asks Elizabeth, who signed off on Curtis Ashford’s release? but Elizabeth is lost in a flashback of finding Peter on the stair landing, and Finn subsequently being attracted to her. She says she’s sorry; what? and Britt says she seems distracted. Is she okay?
Gregory sits with Jackie in the hospital cafeteria, and she says she’s there for the long haul, lifting her coffee cup, and he says him too. She says she realized she needed a moment to just let loose and cry. She couldn’t do that in front of Chase. Make sense? He says it does; he had the same idea. She says, the sobbing or the caffeine? and he says, a little of both.
Chase tells Sasha, he’s sorry it’s not much of a greeting, but she says she’s the one who should be apologizing… to both of them. She should have visited sooner. He says he doesn’t know about that, with her pregnancy and that Cyrus Renault insanity, and she says she sees Willow’s been keeping him up to date. Willow says she’s been trying to keep his spirits up, and he wanted to know how Sasha was doing. Sorry. She should have asked first. Sasha says, don’t be silly; it’s fine. Chase says he should warn Sasha, he and Willow won’t have any more secrets once they’re married.
Anna says she heard Chase isn’t doing so great, and Finn says he thought he had a breakthrough, but the cure he formulated didn’t work. She says she’s sorry, and he says, so is he. She wants him to know she’s going to find Peter, and force him to give up his source of the antidote. Finn says she’s never going to find him.
Nina hugs Curtis, and says it looks like she made it back just in time. He says he assumes she means for the opening of his nightclub, and she says, yeah. No. She mostly wanted to make sure he was okay. She hasn’t been a good friend to him in these past few months. He says, that’s okay; she’s been going through her own stuff. She says he’s always been there for her, and when his marriage with Jordan was ending, where was she? He shouldn’t have had to go through that alone. He says, as it turns out, he wasn’t alone.
Laura asks Portia how she and Trina are doing after that whole ordeal with Cyrus, and she says they’re okay. Laura asks how Curtis is doing, and Portia says, they’re discharging him today. Laura says that’s great news. How are she and Curtis doing? She apologizes if she’s overstepping. She knew Portia had left something unsaid with him right before everything went to hell with Cyrus.
Cyrus says he assumes Portia is there to gloat about his fall from grace, and she says she is. He says, so much for the high road, and she says she can always get back to the high road. He, on the other hand, isn’t going anywhere except prison. He asks if she isn’t putting the cart before the horse. There’s still the small matter of his trial. The Corinthos family and Gladys are hardly the most reliable witnesses. Why should any juror believe any part of their testimony? She says, maybe they will; maybe they won’t. But the jury will sure as hell listen to her testimony.
Jason wonders why Carly is asking about Britt, and she says she saw the way he held Britt’s hand at the MetroCourt. What’s that about? Brando comes in, and asks if it’s a bad time, but Carly says, no, come in. How’s Gladys? Brando says, they’re going to discharge her in a few days, and Carly says, great. So she’ll be going right to Bridgeport. Brando says she’s going to be staying with him for a while. At least until she gets better. Carly says, at least Brando will be able to keep an eye on her, and he says, wish him luck. He tells Jason that he can’t apologize enough for all the trouble his mother caused, but Jason says, it’s on her, not him. Brando says, even so… and Carly says she hates that Gladys lied to the cops and framed Jason, but Gladys did step up and tell the truth. She had to be threatened of course (🍷), but she still did it. Brando thanks her, and says he appreciates that, but it’s not the reason he came by to see her. Jason asks what’s on his mind, and Brando says, now that Cyrus’s organization is falling apart, he thinks it’s time they had a conversation about his future. Hey. I just thought. Who’s been fixing the cars in the garage?
Elizabeth tells Britt, she’s not okay. She’s mourning her husband, and trying to help save Chase’s life. That’s what’s on her mind. Any more questions? Britt says, no, but she is curious as to why Finn requested Elizabeth be put back on his rotation permanently. She leaves.
Anna asks if there’s a particular reason Finn thinks she won’t find Peter, and he says they know Peter is good at covering his tracks. If he doesn’t want to be found, he won’t be found. She promises she won’t stop until she finds out what’s happened with Peter, and he says he knows. Good luck with that. If she’ll excuse him… He leaves.
Chase tells Sasha, he wants to spend what’s left of his life with Willow. Willow says she’s going to get Chase some water. She’ll be right back.
Jackie tells Gregory that she really thought Chase would be okay. Now she’s discussing hospice care for her son. He says, it’s not supposed to be this way. They’re arranging for Chase’s wedding, when he’s on his… No parent should outlive their child. She says she’s sorry. She’s sure she’s the last person he wants sharing his grief, but he says, no matter what happened between them, they raised Chase together. She says, they did a remarkable job, didn’t they? and he says he hates that she lied, but he’s also grateful for it. If she had told the truth, he wouldn’t have spent all those years being Chase’s father. He wouldn’t trade a second of that. Whatever happens next, he wants her to know that they’ll always be a family.
Elizabeth and Finn literally run into each other, and they both apologize. He says, about last night. He’s an idiot and he’s sorry. She says, nothing happened. It’s fine. He thanks her, and she says, besides, they have more important things to deal with. He says he still can’t believe he killed Peter. She pulls him aside, and says, she’s speaking as Franco’s widow; he had it coming. He says, Peter was the only one who could keep Chase alive, but she says, that’s not true. He can save Chase. He says he tried; he only made Chase worse. She says, did he cure Blackwood’s on the first try? No. So keep trying. I say, good point. He says, it should have worked. His DNA combined with Jackie’s should have made Chase’s body accept the cure. He was so sure this was the answer, and now everything seems so hopeless. She says, it’s not. He’s Chase’s father and a good doctor. As long as there’s a breath left in Chase’s body, there’s still hope.
Anna asks if Britt has a minute, and Britt asks if there’s any news about Peter. Anna says, no, but she could use Britt’s help. She requested security footage from the night Maxie was brought in, but security is refusing to hand it over. Britt says she thinks she knows what’s going on. Rumor has it, when Cyrus was appointed Chairman of the Board, he arranged to have the cameras in the stairwells turned off. The security team is probably covering their butts now that Cyrus is out. Anna says, since this happened before Cyrus was arrested, the cameras were still off. It would explain why there’s no record of Peter leaving that night.
Nina says she’s super glad that someone was there to give Curtis support. Who was this person, so she can thank them? He says his Aunt Stella for one, and Stella says, she was all the way in Europe. He says, there was Laura, and his nephew TJ. He’s not short on people who care about him. Stella says he isn’t, and since she can’t convince him to stay in the hospital like a sensible person, she might as well get his paperwork started. She says it’s good to see Nina, and leaves. Nina says, still a tough customer, and Curtis says, the toughest. Nina says she’s sure he wasn’t talking about Stella when he said he didn’t have to go through his divorce alone. He says he and Portia have gotten a lot closer, and she says, how close? He says Portia kissed him, and he pushed her away. Nina says, there’s no shame in not being ready to move on, and he says he thought he was. Now he thinks he missed his chance.
Laura apologizes, telling Portia that it’s none of her business, but Portia says, she and Curtis had a really good talk. Laura says she’s glad they had a chance to clear things up, and Portia flashes back to Stella telling her, the last thing Curtis needs is a rebound relationship, and if she wants what’s best for Curtis, she’ll back off. Portia tells Laura, they did, and she and Curtis agreed that their friendship is too important to risk.
Jordan tells Cyrus that she and Taggert have already been in touch with the DA’s office, and he says, she’s going to perjure herself a second time? She says, not only are they going to drop all the charges against Taggert, they granted her full immunity. All they have to do is testify about everything Cyrus did to them in the last year. She hates to break it to him, but he’s done.
Sasha follows Willow, and Willow asks if Chase needs her. Sasha says, Chase is resting. She’s there about Willow. Why is she getting married? Willow says, if Chase is dying, she wants to make sure he’s happy when he leaves this world. There’s nothing wrong with that. Sasha says, except for one thing. Willow is in love with Michael.
Britt tells Anna, she doesn’t think Peter could have made it out of the building. Once he exited the stairwell, he would have been caught on camera. Anna asks, what about the roof? and Britt says, they do have two stairwells with roof access. Anna says, which ones? and Britt says, C and G. Anna says, so if Cyrus was moving drugs out of here, he could have easily transported them in a Medivac, and no one would have been the wiser. Britt asks if she thinks Peter made it to the roof, and left by helicopter. Anna says she doesn’t know, but it’s worth finding out.
Cyrus says if Jordan were to testify about everything that’s gone down between them this year, she’d have to include her own cover-ups. She says she knows; that’s what the immunity deal is for. He says, immunity or not, all of it will be a matter of public record. Her reputation would be a shambles. She says, so be it. Her secrets may have cost her marriage, but they will never come at the expense of justice. Never again. He just played his last hand against her, and he lost.
Brando says he’s been inside Cyrus’s organization for nearly a year. He knows the ins and outs. Then the moss bowl swallows him whole. Not really. Carly says, now that Jason’s back, she doesn’t plan on having an active role in the business. Brando says he thought that might be the case, but he didn’t want to assume. So what does Jason say? Jason tells him, he would say Brando has a baby on the way, and he’s all set up at the garage. If Brando thinks that’s going away because Sonny’s gone, it won’t. Carly says, he is family, and Brando says he hears what they’re saying, but the last few days, as dangerous as they’ve been, are the first time he felt he’s been making a difference since his last tour. He wants to keep making a difference… with his family. Jason says he gets it, but Brando’s family isn’t just them. If he were Brando, he’d take a long, hard look at what’s not only best for him, but for Sasha and the baby.
Curtis tells Nina that Portia explained she wasn’t thinking clearly, and she wasn’t interested in anything more than friendship. Nina asks if he bought that, and he says, that’s what she told him, and he has to respect that. She says he has to respect that, but did he talk to her? He says their 30 seconds was up about 30 seconds ago, so besides her touching concern for yours truly, why doesn’t she – he sits on the bed and pats the spot next to him – tell him what brought her back? She sits, and says, as it turns out, Michael and Willow reconsidered letting her have a relationship with Wiley. She had a visit with him and it was wonderful. He says he’s happy for her. Does this mean she’s going to stay? She guesses for a little while, but she’s been away from Nixon Falls for just a day, and she misses it. He says he thinks getting away was good for her; a chance to clear her head. She remembers kissing Sonny, and says she’s not so sure about that.
Willow tells Sasha that she loves Chase, and Sasha says she knows Willow does, but she’s in love with Michael. Willow tells her, Brook said the same thing, but they’re both wrong. Sasha says, okay, but tell her, if Chase hadn’t gotten sick, would they be getting married? Would they even still be together? Willow says, Chase is sick, so none of that really matters. She can put what she wants on hold, so Chase can have some semblance of happiness when he dies. All she truly needs from Sasha right now, is her support. Sasha says Willow has it, and hugs her.
Finn goes to Chase’s room, where he sees Jackie and Gregory. Chase says, just in time. The whole family is here. Finn asks how he’s feeling, and Chase says, trying to stay strong. He begins to cough, and Jackie grabs some tissues so he isn’t coughing all over the place. Sasha and Willow show up, and Finn puts an oxygen mask on Chase, telling him, breathe. Just breathe.
Cyrus says, Jordan, of all people, should know better than to underestimate him. He has ways of influencing things, even when he’s not a free man. She says she’s sure his attorneys have informed him that he won’t be going back to Pentenville, and he asks if she really thinks that’s going to keep her safe, sending him to another prison. She says, after speaking with the FBI, they agreed the best place for him was a Federal penitentiary in the Midwest. Far away from his contacts in the Pacific Northeast, and in Port Charles. Two uniformed men come in, and Cyrus says, what’s this? Jordan says, it’s for his own safety. These agents are going to be transferring him to the infirmary in his new home. He has a long recovery ahead of him, but think of it this way, these days, he has nothing but time on his hands.
Carly tells Jason, she needed a show of force to send a message to the Five Families polenta, so they would honor their agreement with Sonny’s organization, and not try anything against them. Was she wrong? He says, no. It’s exactly the move he would have made. She says, great. This whole year has been turned upside down. It’s been crazy. She’s doing things she never thought she’d do, and making decisions she never thought she’d make. He says that makes two of them, and she says, sometimes, it feels like Sonny’s been gone a lifetime, and other times, it’s like he’s right here.
Nina says Portia kissed Curtis, and he didn’t respond the way she wanted him to respond. Does he think Portia is reacting because of the way he reacted when she kissed him? He says, what if she is? What is he supposed to do? She says, tell her how he feels. There’s nothing disrespectful for expressing himself. Stella comes to the door, and listens through the opening. He says, Portia was right there by his side when he woke up. He doesn’t know if it was the anesthesia or the blood loss, but there was something there. Then just like that, the vibe was gone.
Portia wants to start Chase on dialysis, and increase his dopamine, along with some <insert big medical word> hydrations. Elizabeth says she’ll get his chart, and Portia tells Chase, it will make him more comfortable. She asks to speak with Finn outside, but Chase wants to know, how bad? Finn nods to Portia, who says she’d have to do more testing to confirm, but it looks like they’re quickly approaching Stage 3 something-or-other. Gregory asks what that means, and I say, thank you. Finn says, complete organ failure, and Chase asks, how much time? Portia says, there are statistics, but no definitive answer, and Chase tells Finn, ballpark. How long? Finn says Chase needs to fight, or he may not make it through the night. I’m just going to say it. Maybe Finn isn’t his father after all, and that’s why the cure didn’t work. I’ve been thinking that through the whole episode.
While being wheeled through the hall, Cyrus sees Laura. He says, if they don’t mind, this is his sister. Could they have a moment? Laura says, it’s fine, and Cyrus says, in private? Jordan says they’re not going anywhere, and he says, it didn’t hurt to ask. He says he’s glad he and Laura ran into each other. He was afraid they wouldn’t cross paths before he left. She says, it probably goes without saying, but the hospital Board is in the process of stripping him of his position at the hospital. He says he’s sure it fills her with great joy, but she says, no. It doesn’t actually. She thinks it’s incredibly sad. He could have used this place to help so many people. To undo some of the damage he caused, but no. He squandered it, just like he’s squandered so many other opportunities to change his life, even with his own family. He says he sees she and his brother are talking again. How nice to have family. She says, the one good thing to come out of this was finding Martin. They’ll have their hurdles, but they’ll get over them. But the two of them, they’ll never be family. He says, it’s too late. He’s already gotten in her head. The darkness that already exists inside her has been reignited. He, for one, can’t wait to see what kind of changes are in store for her. The next time their paths cross, perhaps she’ll finally embrace some of the many fine qualities they have in common. Let’s go. As he’s wheeled away, Laura worries over his words.
Stella goes into Curtis’s room, and says his discharge papers are there. If he still wants to put his health and safety at risk to order room service. Nina says she’s going to let them get to this, and she’s penciled Curtis in. She’s going to be his room service tomorrow, and she’s going to bring him dinner. No excuses. He asks if it’s a metaphorical pencil, or has she full embraced the homespun, folksy lifestyle of rural Pennsylvania? She says, to think she missed all this, and they laugh. She tells Stella that it was nice to see her, and Stella says, her too. She tells Curtis that she’ll see him tomorrow night, and leaves. Stella says she had hoped he moved out of the MetroCourt by now. For a hotel, there’s nothing better, but a hotel is not a home. He says he’d planned on finding his own place soon, but he was so busy with the launch of the club, he didn’t have time. She says, allow her to save him that time.
Portia says, Dr. Finn is correct. That’s the accurate timetable, but she can’t stress this enough. He’s not a statistic. This isn’t over till it’s over. Finn says he’s sorry, and Chase says, for what? Finn says, for not being able to save him. Chase says Finn did what he could, and he’ll always be grateful that Finn tried. Finn says, don’t ever give up. Hear me? Don’t ever give up. Finn jets, and Sasha stands in the hallway looking worried.
Britt goes to the reception desk, and says she wants to apologize to Elizabeth for earlier. Elizabeth is surprised, and Britt laughs, saying, and she wants to make things right. Now that Cyrus is gone, she’s bringing Elizabeth back full time. Elizabeth thanks her, and Britt says, it’s long overdue. For what it’s worth (🍷), she’s going to make sure the hospital cooperates fully in Anna’s search for Peter. Elizabeth asks if Anna thinks he’s still in the hospital, and Britt says, Anna thinks if she can figure out how he got out of the hospital, she can find him. In fact, she’s on the roof right now.
Anna goes out onto the roof, and looks around. She notices a garbage can up against a wall.
Jason says Carly took Sonny’s seat at the meeting, and Carly says, it went really well. She did great. He says he doesn’t doubt that, but he’s back, and it’s not clear who’s in charge. They don’t know; is it her, or is it him? She says, maybe they’re both in charge, and he says the other families are going to be watching how this plays out. If they play it wrong, they look weak. She asks how they handle it right, when his phone rings. It’s Britt, who tells him, at this very moment, Cyrus is being transferred out of the hospital by the Feds. His reign of terror there, and apparently everywhere, is finally over. Jason says, that’s good, and she says, from anyone else, that reaction would be disappointing. From him, she knows that’s his version of a shout of triumph. She guesses her time as his mole is over, and he says he guesses so. She says, so if they’re going to see each other, it will have to be because they want to. He guesses it is. He hangs up, and Carly says, Britt again? What’s going on?
Stella tells Curtis, as luck would have it, her place on Charles Street has been empty for over a year. Stay there; she insists. He says he would love that, and she says she has to fly back to London tomorrow morning. He says, already? and she says just to make some arrangements before she moves back to Port Charles. He says she doesn’t have to do all that; he can take care of himself. She tells him, who says it’s all about him? Did it ever occur to him that she might have business in Port Charles of her own?
Jordan says Laura can’t listen to Cyrus. Believe her, she learned it the hard way. Blood or no blood, Laura is not like that man. Laura thanks her, and says she knows Jordan’s right. Jordan says she knows how hard it is to shake it off, and Laura says she’ll find a way, but she’s so grateful this nightmare is behind them. Jordan says, actually, there is one more thing that needs to be done before she, Laura, and the city can put Cyrus behind them. Laura says, what’s that? and Jordan says she needs to tender her resignation.
Jackie goes into the hallway, closing Chase’s door, and goes over to Finn by the elevator. He says he can’t talk right now, but she tells him not to spend another moment blaming himself. Finn says he should have saved Chase. The elevator doors open, and no surprise, Cyrus is there. He says, Ms. Templeton. Dr. Finn? He’s so sorry to hear about Finn’s son. It must be a great relief though, that the truth about his paternity came out in time for Finn to bond with him before he passes. (How would Cyrus know Chase was dying? Just asking.) Jackie says hell is too good a place for him. Enjoy it anyway. He waves as the doors close, and Jackie says, when you think that man couldn’t sink any lower. Finn is staring into space, thinking, why didn’t it work? Where did I go wrong? Jackie gets his attention, and asks, what is it? and he dashes off.
Gregory tells Chase, they’re not giving up hope, no matter what. Chase asks to see Willow, and Gregory says, of course (🍷). He’ll be right outside. He leaves, and Willow sits on the bed. Chase says he’s glad they got their marriage license yesterday. He wants her to marry him, right here, right now.
Elizabeth flashes back to sitting with Finn after finding Peter’s body. Finn says Peter told him it would be Anna’s fault if Chase dies. It turns out it’s going to be his. She tells him, it’s Peter’s fault. This is on him. Finn was always Chase’s best chance at survival, but can’t cure him from behind bars. Elizabeth asks if Finn sees the camera, and he says he hadn’t until now, but she says, it’s turned off. Rumor has it, Renault had the cameras turned off so he could get drugs out of the hospital. You know what this means? They can move Peter without anyone finding out. He says, to where? Even if they could get him down the stairs, they’d be caught on camera trying to get him out of the hospital. She says, that’s why they’re not taking him out of the hospital. Does Finn remember years ago, when Ava and Julian’s crazy sister abducted Griffin Monroe? He says, she kept him in some abandoned section of the hospital, and she says, the subbasement lab. He asks if that wasn’t sealed off, and she says the only access is an elevator on the roof, and that’s been out of commission for years. We see them packing up Peter’s body into a large cooler, and she says they can keep him in the lab until everyone believes he’s out of the country. When the eyes are off the hospital, they can move him. Finn says, that could be a long time from now, and she says, no one has even thought about the subbasement elevator for years. They close the cooler.
Anna goes over to the garbage can, and moves it. She slides a piece of accordion metal over, and sees the service elevator door, with a sign that says, danger. She tries the door handle, but it’s locked.
Tomorrow, Jordan tenders her resignation, Finn says he thinks he knows why his treatment didn’t work, Obrecht asks what Jason’s intentions are in regard to Britt, and Carly says something is going to be a problem for Britt.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills
In a voiceover, Erika said there were so many layers to the divorce. It was very complicated. She was sure everyone was shocked, and would have a lot of questions. Everyone said they didn’t see it coming, and we flashed forward to Erika saying she’d intended to hold that man’s hand until he died.
We moved to three days earlier. Kyle and Mauricio got ready for their election party, and in Kyle’s interview, she said she made it a rule not to discuss politics, but was the most important election ever. This time, a woman was on the ticket for VP, and Kyle had four daughters. She told Mauricio that Garcelle wasn’t coming, since she was with her boys, and Erika also wasn’t coming. Both Kyle and Dorit whined to their respective husbands about how Dorit had been talking with Crystal on the plane back from Tahoe, and Kyle butted into the conversation. Dorit, who had been mid-sentence, firmly told Kyle to let her finish, and Kyle started crying like a big baby. Kyle thought if it had been anyone else who chimed in, Dorit wouldn’t have said anything. She might be right, since Dorit has taken issue with Kyle about this in the past, but the answer is, don’t do it then.
Rob asked how Crystal was feeling about her issues with Sutton, and Crystal said she hadn’t spent a bunch of time analyzing it, but she’d never experienced someone being so rude to her. Apparently, she’s been very lucky in life. There was so much stress about the election, it was hard for her to believe people were being so petty. Is it me? Sutton hadn’t been aware it was a big deal in the first place, and then apologized. Who’s being petty here? When they got to the party, Rob seemed anxious to start drinking, and I didn’t blame him. In honor of the occasion, Dorit wore her rhinestone VOTE barrettes, as well as a plaid suit that could have been out of Clueless. In Kyle’s interview, she said Dorit had missed the memo on red, white, and blue attire. Sutton wore another crazy dress that looked like something from Danceteria in the 80s. In her interview, she said she was being polite, since she was walking on crystal thin ice. LisaR looked great, in a wig named Barbie, but I can’t stand her, so that was a wash.
Of course it was an amazing spread. One hors d’oeuvres tray had little succulents mixed in for decoration, which I thought was a very cool idea. Erika’s pending divorce was discussed, and in LisaR’s interview, she talked about how much fun they had the night they went to dinner at Erika and Tom’s place. We flashed back to that, and LisaR said there had been no sign of anything leading to divorce. Everyone seemed equally surprised, and in Kyle’s interview, she said she wasn’t judging <choke>, but she thought she and Erika were closer than that. The husbands wisely gathered together, having a separate party on the back deck. As usual, they seemed to be having a lot more fun. Kyle asked if Sutton and Crystal were okay after Tahoe, and they both said they were fine, but then Crystal mentioned that she’d lost five pounds during the trip. Kathy was like, upside! but Crystal said she had an eating disorder. She told the women it was under control, and I wasn’t sure if she was attributing her backslide or whatever to Sutton, but she said it was Indicative of how she felt about the trip. In her interview, she said it wasn’t a relapse, but happened because she was stressed. She said she’d been bulimic at 11 years old, but she wasn’t suffering on the daily about it. LisaR yapped in her interview about how brave Crystal was.
Kyle asked to speak with Dorit, or maybe it was the other way around. It really doesn’t matter. In Kyle’s interview, she said it wasn’t the first time they’d had this conversation. On top of it, it had been in the exact same room, and we flashed back to that. She said she couldn’t keep doing it every couple of months. I have a suggestion then. Quit interrupting Dorit. Kyle told Dorit that she just wanted to say one thing. Dorit had screamed at her, and she thought Dorit wouldn’t have the same reaction if it had been someone else. Dorit said Kyle interrupted her a lot, and it was as if Kyle didn’t feel that what Dorit had to say had as much value. She’d been mid-sentence. Kyle asked if Dorit wanted a friendship with her, and if she did, don’t talk to her like that again. Dorit said Kyle had told her, f*** you, last year when she’d asked her not to interrupt. Kyle made the excuse that it was a heated moment and didn’t count. They’d been on the plane, and Kyle had been waiting for an in to the conversation, trying to be respectful, since she’d heard Dorit the last time. Dorit said then they were good, and got up. Kyle said if they were good, why was Dorit leaving, and Dorit said because she was done.
Dorit told PK that she wanted to leave immediately, if not sooner, saying she wanted to see her parents who were in town. In her interview, she said she’d come because Kyle was her friend, but she’d wanted to see her parents. If she was going to be treated like this, she was ready to go. On way back, PK said he thought they’d be considered rude, but Dorit said friends didn’t treat each other like Kyle was treating her. Back at Kyle’s house, they all agreed the election was too early to call, and LisaR said it had been an anticlimactic evening. Probably because there was no real drama.
Sutton took Garcelle to go Bentley shopping, and had the dealership closed for them. Garcelle asked what the vibe was, and Sutton said she was looking for a convertible. Garcelle inquired as to the price, which was $380K. Since Garcelle hadn’t been at Kyle’s party, Sutton told her that Erika hadn’t come either. In Garcelle’s interview, she said when her life unraveled, she didn’t want talk about, so she understood why Erika didn’t show up. They went on a test drive, and Garcelle said Sutton was making a lot of changes. Sutton wondered if she was having a mid-life crisis. In her interview, Sutton said it was the first car she’d ever bought without asking permission. At Crystal’s house, Rob said he’d talked to Sutton, and she’d been nothing but nice. We saw a clip when they found out they had Jennifer Tilly in common as a friend. In Crystal’s interview, she said Rob was nicer than she was. I have no doubt about that. The kids wanted to play mahjong, and in her interview, Crystal said she and Rob had totally different styles of parenting. She was the hard ass, and he was the coddler. Again, no surprise. Every week Rob also showed the kids a movie from the 40s, and it was something special for them. She wasn’t invited, but made the popcorn. Sure, she’s probably a wet blanket. Rob said LisaR had called Crystal brave for discussing her eating disorder, and Crystal said she’d always felt chubby growing up. She’d wanted to be blonde, blue-eyed, and skinny.
Kathy and Kyle visited Sutton’s store, aptly, but unoriginally named Sutton. In her interview, Kyle said they’d gotten made fun of for wearing mom jeans, and now they were cool. She couldn’t keep up. She thought they were ugly, but had to wear them since they were in fashion. In Sutton’s interview, she said she was desperate to give a party in her house. In Kyle’s interview, she said, it was technically her house, but Sutton was leasing it. Sutton told them she’d decided on a Parisian theme, and Erika’s pending divorce was discussed. Sutton wondered if she should find out if Erika was coming, and Kyle suggested she send a text. Erika replied that she’d be there, and in her interview, Sutton said when she was going through her divorce, she took every invitation as an opportunity to get out of the house and into the world.
#WhatDidHarryDo. This time, it was gardening. In LisaR’s interview, she said they’d decided they needed a garden, since it could be pandemonium at any moment with lockdown going on. Harry googled, how to make a garden, and their house had become sustainable. Harry tried to explain to LisaR that the composter made fertilizer, but no, he didn’t put poop in it. In her interview, she said anything Harry did turned to gold. Harry decided it was time for a fire drill, and made LisaR run around with a gigantic hose that would be hooked to the pool had there been a real fire. In her interview, LisaR said there was a fine line between quirky and paranoid, but let him have his garden and tacky-ass pool. If it meant saving the house, he was usually right. She told Harry that she’d talked to Erika, who seemed to be doing all right. Harry said, the first time, his divorce was acrimonious, but the next time, he said, take whatever you want. In LisaR’s interview, she said they’d met at the tail end of Harry’s second divorce, and she did get emotional baggage from it.
In Sutton’s interview, she said she was missing Paris Fashion Week, so she wanted to take everyone on a trip to Paris in her house. Kyle visited Crystal for a tea kiki beforehand, and couldn’t stop focusing on Crystal’s $95K Hermes bag. She suggested sending it in a separate car, and in her interview, Kyle said all she could see was the bag. When they got to Sutton’s house, Kyle said she was used to opening the door from the other side herself, and we flashed back to a party where LVP brought a llama. Kyle said she’d never gone to a party there where she wasn’t he hostess, and I wondered if she’s going to carp on this until Sutton moves out. Kyle told Sutton that it was beautiful and cozy, and it was making her want to move back in. As expected, in Kyle’s interview she said it was interesting seeing someone else’s take. Sutton had her own unique style and flavor, and Kyle loved it, but hers was lovelier. I thought this was a whole bunch of words to say Kyle thinks Sutton has sh*t taste compared to her own.
In the most amusing moment, LisaR showed up in the same dress Kyle was wearing. At least she didn’t screech like that time with Garcelle and Erika, when they were all wearing the same pink blazer/dress. In Kyle’s interview, she said LisaR had done that too many times with too many people, and we flashed back to a few times when LisaR was a twinsey. In Garcelle’s interview, she was excited about the election, saying the country had been divided, and needed some sanity. Little girls would see themselves in a candidate that was half-Black/half-Asian. Erika’s pending divorce was discussed, and Garcelle said she didn’t see that coming. She’d felt the love. In her interview, she said she felt Erika admired and was proud of Tom, and they had a good life. She thought Erika was in it for the long haul. Dorit said Erika would share when she was comfortable, and Garcelle said she was shocked no one knew. The last time she and Erika had spoken, she and Tom seemed on solid ground, and she wondered if Erika shouldn’t just wait. LisaR said, for what? and Garcelle said, well, they’d been married this long… In Sutton’s interview, she said that could backfire, since people were living to 100 now.
The episode ended with Erika coming to the door, and walking in.
To be continued…
🐕 Vanderpump Dogs is just precious. LVP told us, if loving a dog makes you crazy, she guessed there was no hope for her. We learned about the rescue, which was created in 2016. She said there was no other like it, with its velvet couches, pink chandeliers, and living rooms for dogs. The goal was to get them healthy and trained, and teach them to play well with others. She wanted to make them feel like VIPs – LVP’s VIPs. The groomer explained that his job consisted of high-priced shampoo, marshmallow fluff, and going places no one else goes. Main vet on-call, Dr. Andrew, also had experience as a reptile physician. After introducing us to all things Vanderpump Dogs, it was time for matchmaking dogs with owners, which included potential owners spending some play time with potential adoptees. LVP said it was like the dating process. You had to have foreplay before going all the way. There was a dog trainer who took a senior pup with Cushing’s Disease, and also couple Matt and Shannon, who were looking for another pup for their cuddle puddle. They were introduced to Mary, three-legged Hermie, and Larry, who once again proved that dogs are the great leveler. They don’t care who you are, and will always embarrass you. Mary made poopie during playtime, and Hermie refused to go up the stairs, after LVP had bragged about this accomplishment. The couple chose Larry (not because of the other’s faux pas, or paws as it were), and Matt told LVP that he wanted to throw in a proposal to Shannon when Larry was brought to his forever home. After a home check and approval, LVP accompanied Larry, who had an engagement ring attached to his collar.
Shannon said yes, and LVP said it was a storybook ending. Vanderpump Dogs was Giggy’s legacy, and they’d found homes for over 2000 dogs so far. If they could accomplish something like that, it was why they were here. We saw the adoptees in their forever homes, where they were both adored and happy. Not a big shock that I loved this show.
💰 Hot Topic…
Erika’s pending divorce is discussed. Surprisingly, by Erika.
I’m sure Heather thinks she’s sincere, but it wasn’t a good look. She did say on Watch What Happens Live that, as far as the race baiter issue goes, she’d liked the wrong comment.
It’s that time again, so see you tomorrow for soap and some really high-priced real estate. Until Ryan renovates, stay safe, stay good-hearted, and stay never believing you’re a statistic.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
County Kerry Ireland. We hear bagpipes play. Annie tells Felicia and Mac that she can’t believe how many of them came, all the way from America. Felicia says, that’s how much they loved her dad, and how much they wanted to be there to support her and her mom. Annie says, it means a lot that they came to honor him, and Felicia says her dad loved her. She was his pride and joy. Annie thanks Felicia and hugs her. She says, the inn is just over the hill; she hopes they can stop by. Felicia says, of course (🍷). Annie leaves, and Anna asks Felicia if they can talk, but Felicia says, now is not the time, and she and Mac leave. Anna looks at Sean’s gravestone.
Robin sets out pictures of Sean, alone and with the family, and tells Robert, when she heard the news, she wondered why she hadn’t made more time to see Sean and Tiffany in Ireland. The kids would have loved it. She wonders if they should have left Anna and Felicia at Sean’s grave. At least Mac is there. She doesn’t think she’s ever seen Felicia so angry before.
Maxie tells the baby, they’re almost there. They just have to make sure her father is removed from the equation. Trust her; it’s for the best. There’s a knock at the door, and Peter says it’s him, because his antennae go up every time Maxie moves. He says he wants to say goodbye before she goes to the spa. She says, speak of the devil.
Monica and Laura look at the programs from the memorial, and Monica says, it was a beautiful service, wasn’t it? Laura says, the priest was really eloquent. And Tiffany. That was so brave. She doesn’t know how Tiffany held it together like that. She was really proud of her. Monica says, her too. While she was watching Tiffany, she thought of herself standing there at Alan’s funeral. It’s all so surreal. You’ve lost your life’s partner, you try to get through the loss, and just be grateful for the good times. Laura says, and Sean Donely was definitely a man who appreciated a good time. They laugh, and she says, now that all the religious stuff is over, she thinks Sean would want them to celebrate his life. Monica says, hear, hear.
Maxie tells Peter that she’s just packing for her spa trip, and he asks, where’s Chloe? He thought she understood she was to be with Maxie at all times until the baby is born.
Felicia comes back with Mac to find her umbrella, and Anna asks if she can please stay so they can talk. Felicia says, trust her. Anna doesn’t want to hear what she has to say. Anna says, she does. They can’t get past this until they go through it. Mac says, they just said goodbye to Sean, and they were two of his favorite people. He would hate to see them at odds, so if it’s possible for them to talk it out, think of it as a last wish of Sean’s. Felicia says she’ll stay… for Sean. Mac says he loves them both, and leaves.
Annie comes in, and Laura asks if Annie’s mom is there. They barely got to speak at the memorial. Annie says, she and Connor took some of her father’s ashes to spread them at his local village. Robert says, Sean told him stories about that place. He said it reminded him of Annie’s namesake. Robin says, if Annie doesn’t mind her asking, how bad was the dementia? Did Sean know who she was? Annie says, yes and no. Her last good memory of him was last Christmas when he gave her this ring. She shows them, and Laura says, it’s beautiful. Annie says, his last year was pretty muddled, but there were some days he was sharp as a tack.He knew that the Christmas star was going to be visible in Ireland for the first time in 800 years. He said it was a miracle, just like her. Laura asks if the ring has any significance, and Annie says, cubanite is known to attract magnets. Robert says, that’s how Sean saw her. Laura says she heard the reception was better outside, so she’s stepping out to call Tiffany. Annie says she knows her mother would be thrilled to hear from Laura.
Outside, Laura calls Tiffany, who asks if she’s supposed to call Laura Madam Mayor now. Laura says, just Laura, and laughs. She says it’s good to hear Tiffany’s voice, and Tiffany says she feels the same way. Laura says she wants to hear about Tiffany’s life; the good, the bad, and everything in between. She doesn’t have to edit. She can say what she’s feeling. Laura says she’s there for Tiffany, and Tiffany says, as you always are, darling.
Robert tells Annie, Tiffany told him that she applied to the Bureau. How’s that going? She says she was hellbent on following in her father’s footsteps, and Robert says, was; meaning past tense? She says she completed her training, but then, nothing. They were supposed to contact her for her final test, but they never did. She assumes she didn’t make the cut. He tells her not to be too disappointed. It’s not easy to get into the Bureau. She says, the WSB contacted her after her father died, but not to offer condolences. Her dad still had sensitive WSB documents, and they’re sending a courier for them tomorrow. Robert says he knows it’s a lot to ask, but he and Anna were close to her dad, and still have clearance. Is it possible for them to have access to the files?
Tiffany tells Laura, from the moment Sean walked into her life until the second he left it, he was heartbreakingly handsome, exasperating, terribly funny, and fun. We see flashbacks as she talks. She says, he had the driest sense of humor, and a twinkle in his eye. Even that time he broke her heart. In the 35 years they were with each other, they had the most magical life together. It was the best life she could ever have dreamed of. He gave her a wonderful stepson, Connor, and an amazing, fantastic daughter. She can’t wait to see Laura tomorrow. Laura says she loves Tiffany, and Tiffany says she loves Laura too. Her dear, dear friend. Laura says, tomorrow. She looks at her room key, as someone approaches. She drops the key.
Maxie says Chloe has to pack for their spa getaway, but he says, it doesn’t take all afternoon to pack. He’ll stay until Chloe gets back; he doesn’t want her to be alone. Bobbie arrives, and says, Maxie won’t be alone. She’ll be with Maxie. She’ll take care of Maxie, so Peter can go.
Robin asks if anyone has seen Laura. She went outside to call Patrick, and found this. She shows them Laura’s room key.
Annie tells Robert that her dad was very protective of his files, He designed the safe himself, and it requires a retinal scan to open it. Robert says, so now that Sean is gone, no one can access it? She says she can, and Robert says, it’s an old case, and they’re dealing with something similar now. Sean’s case files may hold the key. She says she’s sorry, but she can’t give him access.
Anna thanks Felicia for talking with her. She knows she deserves Felicia’s anger. Felicia says, it’s not anger; it’s rage for what Anna did to her daughter. Maxie’s life is in tatters thanks to Anna. Anna is Maxie’s godmother, and Maxie believed in Anna because Felicia put her in a position of trust in Maxie’s life. Peter was Faison’s son, and admitted to working with him. They should have been more suspicious. She takes it back; she was suspicious. Anna convinced them to give Peter a chance, and because of her, Maxie believed in him. Maxie loved him, but the second Anna had doubts, she should have let her and Mac know. If she was uncomfortable with that, at the very least she should have told Maxie. Anna didn’t protect her goddaughter. And worse, her closest friend gave her no chance to protect her own child. She walks away.
Robert asks if anyone has seen Laura. Robin found Laura’s key outside, Mac went to look for Laura, and now he’s gone. Monica says she hasn’t seen him, and Annie says neither has she. Mac walks in, and Robert says, one down. Now they just have to find Laura. Mac says he hates to admit it, but he can’t find Laura’s room. The rooms aren’t ordered with any rhyme or reason. Robert says, Annie rented the place for them. Can she take him to Laura’s room? Annie says, no problem, and she and Robert go upstairs. Robin says she’s worried, and asks if Anna talked to Felicia. Anna says, Felicia talked; unloaded would be more accurate. She supposes she had it coming, and Robin says, Felicia has the right to her anger, but Anna also has the right to explain her side too. Try again. Be brave like she taught Robin. Anna says she loves Robin, and Robin says, back at her. Felicia comes in, and Robin makes herself scarce. Anna says, everything Felicia said is true, but she doesn’t know how to begin to apologize. Felicia says, then don’t. She doesn’t think she can forgive Anna.
Peter tells Bobbie, there’s no harm in him sticking around too. He is the baby’s father. Bobbie says she’s a licensed nurse, with decades of experience. She knows about Maxie’s high blood pressure issues, and knows that Peter’s presence exacerbates them. He can leave or be escorted out. Peter says, since Maxie is in good hands, he’ll go. He says he’ll miss her, and Maxie says she’ll see him after the babymoon. He leaves, and Maxie says, thank God Bobbie came. Bobbie says, two questions. What the heck is a babymoon, and why was it so urgent that she come over? Maxie says she needs Bobbie to deliver her baby.
Upstairs at the inn, Annie says, the door to Laura’s room is open. Robert looks in, and calls to Laura. He says, the room is a wreck, and Annie says, it looks ransacked. Robert says he’ll try calling Laura, when Robin joins them. She asks, what’s going on? and Annie says, the locks on Laura’s room look jimmied, and she’s gone. Robert says he’s getting no answer. Annie picks up a Mexican flag wrapped around a toy gun, and says, her dad worked in Mexico, under the alias El Patron. Robert says, he was an arms dealer; not one of his finest hours. Annie says, Laura is missing. Someone broke in and left this for them to find. Could all of this have something to do with her dad?
Mac tells Monica, they’re low on ice, but there’s none in the icemaker in the kitchen. She says Annie told her the caretaker keeps an extra refrigerator in the garage. He says, he’ll check it out, and leaves. Monica sits down with her drink, and someone approaches. She drops the glass, and it shatters on the floor.
Anna tells Felicia, she made terrible mistakes where Peter was concerned. She let the whole thing go on for too long. Felicia says, Maxie was literally at the altar when the horrible truth finally came out. If Anna had just warned her, she could have made arrangements to come home and be by Maxie’s side. Now her daughter is broken. Anna says, no. Her daughter is down, but certainly not out. Felicia asks if that’s what Anna is telling herself; Maxie is strong enough to overcome the disaster Anna made for her. Anna says she wanted to believe the best about Peter. She ignored the warning signs, and kept seeing what she wanted to see. By the time she realized how wrong she was, the wedding was upon them. She regrets her actions every single day. Maxie has started to forgive her – she thinks – and she’s doing everything she can to put Peter away. Please tell her that counts for something. Felicia says she hardly remembers a time when they weren’t friends. They’ve been through so much; her and Frisco, and Anna and Robert. No one was better suited as Maxie’s godparents than Anna and Sean. Anna was there for Maxie, long after Sean and Tiffany left town, and for her. We flash back to when Anna and Felicia were practically babies, and Anna asks how she can make amends. What can she do for Felicia to forgive her?
Robert says he’ll call the local police, and Annie says, they’re not close by, but he should be able to get them on the phone. She suggests Robert go to the window in the hallway; she’s gotten better reception there. Annie tells Robin, it’s no secret her dad had enemies. This could be one targeting her dad’s friends.
Maxie says she trusts Bobbie as much as her mom, and Bobbie says, Maxie is obviously in trouble. Maxie says she had a plan to deliver her baby, and keep her safe from Peter, but those plans fell through. Bobbie says, so what’s the new plan? and Maxie says she’s made arrangements to go to a spa that caters to pregnant women; that’s the babymoon part. She’s going to ditch the private nurse Peter insisted she hire; then make it look like her water broke, and she went to the hospital. Instead, she’s really going to a house in Beecher’s Corners to have the baby. Her doctor said it’s safe for her to be induced. Bobbie says, so that’s where she comes in. She’s assisted with enough births to know what to do, and her contact at GH can get supplies. She can meet Maxie at Beecher’s Corners. Maxie says, thank you so much, and Bobbie says, one question. Who will be taking care of the baby until Peter is no longer a threat?
Robert comes back, and tells Annie that the police said they’d be there in twenty minutes. She asks what he thinks is going on, and he says, for all the good work Sean did for the WSB, he also spent time on the opposite side of the law. Sean was absolutely ruthless when he needed to be, and if the payoff was enough. He even tried to kill Robert once. We flash back to Sean and Robert fighting in an aerial tram, and Robert falling from it. Annie says she’s well aware of her dad’s past mistakes. She hates thinking his past mistakes are coming back to haunt his friends. Robin says her parents have had a lot of experience in situations like this. Whatever is going on, they’ll get her through it.
Felicia tells Anna, she didn’t want to come there. Partly because, it was so close to Maxie’s due date, but also because she knew Anna would be there. She wasn’t ready to have this conversation. In the end, she knew she owed it to Sean to be there, and to herself. Sean was always special to her; he was like a father to her, and watched over always. Anna says, her too. Maybe he still is. Felicia says she knows what he’d say if he was there. He’d tell her to forgive Anna, and he’d be right. They have too many years invested in their friendship to throw them away. They’ve always overcome the odds, and they need to do that again. They need to overcome their differences, and work through them for Maxie. They hug, and Mac sees. He says, thank God. Annie comes back, and says they have a situation on their hands. Laura is missing, and there are signs of forced entry to her room. And she found something that leads her to believe whoever did this is aware of her dad’s days as El Patron. Anna asks if anyone knows where Monica is.
They find Monica’s chair empty, and the broken glass next to it on the floor.
Anna says, Monica isn’t in the kitchen, and Robin says, she’s not in her room either. Annie says, oh my God, and picks something up from the floor. It’s a tiny replica of Mt. Rushmore. She hands it to Anna, and Anna asks Robert if he remembers when they fought the terrorist group. Annie wonders if it’s the terrorist group targeting her father’s friends, and Felicia asks, what happened to Mac? They look in an adjoining room, and see the ice bucket and ice on the floor. Anna says, what is happening?
Felicia says she’s going to look for Mac, but Robert says she’s not going by herself; he’s going with her. They leave, and Robin tells Anna and Annie, let’s be logical.This place is old, but there are a lot of valuables, so there have to be security cameras, right? Annie says there are, and Robin asks where the footage is stored. Annie says, there’s a computer in the caretaker’s office. Robin says, lead the way, but Anna says, before they go, she’s convinced there’s some information they need in Sean’s files. Is there any way Annie could open the safe for them? Annie says, as she already explained to Robert, even though she’s not a WSB agent, the oath she took means something to her. She suggests they at least look at the security footage, and see what that tells him.
Maxie says she has a plan, but the less Bobbie knows, the better. She’s certain the baby will be loved and cared for. Bobbie says, she won’t press Maxie, but she knows the pain of giving up a child, so no judgment. She’s going to support Maxie through all of it. Maxie said she didn’t want to make Bobbie think about losing BJ (I was thinking she meant Carly, but okay), and Bobbie says she’ll always miss BJ, but she’s deeply grateful for her legacy, the heart beating in Maxie’s chest. Maxie says, BJ’s heart made her life possible, and her children lives. She’s forever grateful for that.
Felicia tells Robert, it’s kind of ironic. If Sean was here, he would know exactly what was going on. Robert says, without a doubt, and Felicia says she always had faith in Sean, from the moment they first met. Robert asks if Sean didn’t give her the nickname Princess, and she says that’s always how Sean treated her. We flash back to Felicia’s wedding to Frisco, and Sean acting as father of the bride.
Anna asks if Annie knows the password, and Annie says, it’s 791ElsieMay. Anna says she loves it; Tiffany’s real name. She enters the password, and asks if Annie is sure that’s it. Look at what’s happening to the screen. The screen goes black, and Robin says, it looks like the hard drive was wiped clean. Annie says, sometimes magnets do that, and Robin says, didn’t Annie tell them that there’s a magnetic component in her ring? Annie says she hasn’t been close enough to the computer for it to have done any damage. They hear a scream, and run to find Robert on the floor. Anna asks, what happened? and Robin asks if he’s all right. He says he’s not sure. He was walking toward Felicia, and someone hit him on the head. Robin asks, where’s Felicia? and Anna says they heard her scream. Annie says, she’s with the others, and shows Anna some pieces of jewelry. Anna says she thinks they’re meant to represent Felicia’s Aztec jewels. Annie’s father and Robert fought to the finish over them. She thought Sean had killed Robert. Robert says it was dicey for a while, but their friendship survived. Annie says, whoever took Felicia, obviously knows the story. Much like the incident at Mt. Rushmore, and her father’s days as El Patron. It’s all about her dad. They’re picking us off, one by one, and any one of us could be next.
Robin says she’ll get some ice for Robert’s head, and Anna says she’ll go with Robin. Annie should come. She shouldn’t be alone. Annie promises she’ll catch up, and when they’re gone, Annie sees a phone on the floor. She takes a look at something on it, and says, no.
Robin asks Robert and Anna, what happens next? when Annie walks in, and asks if she can talk to Anna alone; it’s important. Anna asks Robin if it’s okay, and Robin says she’ll be fine. She can take care of her dad. Anna says, stay there, be careful, and she’ll be in the hallway. She leaves with Annie, and Robin tells Robert that she feels bad for Annie. He promises it will be over soon, and she says she hopes so. She asks if Robert thinks there’s anything in Sean’s files that could bring Peter down.
Anna asks Annie what she couldn’t say in front of Robert, and Annie says, when Laura went missing, Robert said he called the local police station, and they told him it would take 20 minutes to get there. He dropped his phone, so she checked to see what time he made the call, and there’s no record. Robert never made the call. He lied. Anna says they can’t jump to conclusions, and Annie asks, what else there is to conclude? Robert has to be in on this. He has to know where the others are. Anna says, what about the bump on his head? He didn’t do that himself. Perhaps the people who took their friends tampered with his phone. Annie asks why they would do that, and Anna says, to make them mad at each other, like Annie is now. Annie has to trust them. They all loved her father very much. They will get to the bottom of this, but they have to stick together. Annie says she needs a second to gather her thoughts, and Anna says, don’t stay too long. Be careful. She leaves, and Annie picks up Anna’s bag from a chair. She looks in it, and takes out a magnet. She says, oh my God.
Anna asks how the patient is, and Robert says, in these trying times, it’s nice to be sitting there with his ex-wife and daughter fussing over him. Annie comes back in and says, it’s both of them. Robert and Anna are involved in whoever is taking her dad’s friends. She found Robert’s phone, and he never called the police. Now she found a magnet in Anna’s bag; the one that wiped the hard drive clean. Where are the others, and what have they done with them?
Robin says Annie is talking about her parents. How can she possibly suspect them? Annie says, Robin’s mom had a magnet in her purse that she managed to place close enough to the computer to wipe out its hard drive. Anna says she didn’t put that in her purse. She can only assume whoever’s kidnapping their friends, planted it there when she was out of the room. Robert says, whoever’s behind it wins if they all turn on each other. Anna says she’s convinced that they can find everyone if they can just access Sean’s file. Can Annie please open the safe? Annie says she can’t, but Anna says Annie has to. She can’t think of another way to find them.
Maxie tells Bobbie, she’s not allowed to fly, but she wishes she could have gone to Ireland for the memorial. Bobbie says she thought about going, but got the feeling she should stay close to home. Now that she understands Maxie’s situation, and knows where the feeling came from. It’s what Sean would want for his goddaughter. Maxie says, maybe Sean aligned the stars so Bobbie would be there; that’s what godfathers do, isn’t it? Bobbie says, that’s what Sean does.
Annie says, it’s clear they haven’t been honest with her since they got there. She believes they made the others disappear to manipulate her, so they could do whatever they want. She cannot and she will not open the safe. Robin says, what if she’s wrong? Would she consider it to save her dad’s friends? Annie says she swore an oath to the WSB. Even if she didn’t become an agent, the oath is a lifetime commitment. If she broke it, she would dishonor her father’s memory, and she’s not going to do that. Anna says, spoken like true agent, and Annie asks, what’s going on? Why are they smiling? The rest of them come into the room, and Annie says, they’re okay. Laura says, all of them, and Annie says she doesn’t understand. Anna says, congratulations. She passed the final test. Robert says, the Bureau reached out, and asked them to help. Felicia says, it was a set-up, and Anna says she asked the caretaker to usher the others to a secret location, so she and Robert could test Annie’s loyalty to the Bureau. Mac says he left the calling cards so she’d think her father’s enemies were upon them, and Robert says, he left his phone lying around for her to find. Annie says, but Robert got hurt, and Felicia says, so sorry about that. She conked him harder than she was supposed to, but she had to make it look real. Mac is sure his brother deserved it for something or other, and Annie says, Anna’s purse. Anna says she left it for Annie to discover. Now she’s an official agent with the WSB. Annie says she doesn’t know whether to be furious or shout with joy, and Robert says, she should be as proud of herself as they know her father would be. He gives her an ID, and she says, it’s her dad’s badge number. Anna says, now it’s hers. Congratulations. They toast, and Annie hugs Robert.
Maxie says she hopes Sean is watching out for her and Louise. They need it. Bobbie says she believes he is.
Laura tells Annie, congratulations; job well done, and Monica says, agreed. Holding the phone, Annie asks if her mom heard that. She’s officially an agent. Tiffany says, congratulations, my darling Annie. Now she knows why Tiffany had to keep her distance. She could have never gone through with this charade. All of them know she’d definitely would have had to jump right in, and then they’d have to kidnap her. Besides, she was absolutely confident Annie could handle it on her own. Always remember, she’s her daddy’s daughter, and every bit as brave and resourceful as Sean was. Annie says she’d like to think she has a little mom in her too, and Tiffany says she’s so proud of Annie. Her daddy is forever watching over her, protecting her, and loving her. If she needs to feel his love, just look up and remember that night they watched the most beautiful Christmas star together, and always cherish that memory.
Robert says, Sean made them laugh. We flashback to Sean and Tiffany getting married, and Sean discovering that Tiffany’s real name is Elsie May Crumbholts during the vows, and barely making it through them because he’s laughing so hard. Robert says, well, it’s goodbye, old friend. He’s so going to miss Sean. Until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand. We hear bagpipes, and everyone drinks.
We see Sean’s picture, and it says – In loving memory of John Reilly.
One of the best memorial episodes ever. They made it more fun than sad, but they also went through it with us for real. You could see it in their faces at the end.
On Monday, Spinelli thinks he knows what’s going on, Brando thinks he has the chance at something amazing, Sonny asks Nina why she wants to take a risk, Cyrus would like a small favor, and Jason tells Britt that the tests are in.
🙌 Farewell, Old Friend…
They really put a lot of thought into this. No doubt, John Reilly was looking down and smiling.
Teresa thinks he may be the one. I actually hope it works out for her. She’s often a dumbass, but no one deserves Juicy Joe, especially going to jail for him.
I haven’t really been following RHOD this season, but there seems to be some nasty stuff going on. I’m disappointed in Kameron, although I was disappointed in Tiffany first, for making a big deal over the chicken foot. No one is insulting your culture by not wanting to eat its delicacies. The culture on my maternal side of the family eats feet too. Pickled pigs feet. And I am not going anywhere near them. I also couldn’t seem to find out what Kameron’s original sex worker comment was. Inquiring minds want to know. Frankly, I think all these women should stay off of social media.
As Erika pointed out, bigger life, bigger problems. As I’m pointing out, bigger life, bigger resources. I doubt her bankruptcy was half as nerve-wracking as mine was. (Which, luckily, is far in the past now.)
You’re never drinking alone with Jesus. – Kate Chastain (Below Deck) claims her grandmother said this.
What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies. – Aristotle
The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud. – Coco Chanel
Things just tend to accumulate after Labor Day. What can I tell you? – Little Edie Beale (Drew Barrymore), HBO’s Grey Gardens
If my answers frighten you, Vincent, then you should cease asking scary questions. – Jules Winnfield (Samuel L.Jackson), Pulp Fiction
When you choose the behavior, you choose the consequences. – Dr. Phil
When you’re too deep in anything, you lost your perspective. – Crime Story: Cecil Hotel, Netflix
That man is richest whose pleasures are the cheapest. – Henry David Thoreau
Don’t try to lessen yourself for the world; let the world catch up to you. – Beyoncé Knowles
If you are not willing to risk the usual, you will have to settle for the ordinary. – Jim Rohn
One of the advantages of being disorganized is that one is always having surprising discoveries. – A.A. Milne
🕺 Doing the Curly Shuffle…
Here we are again at the weekend, or seven days after we were here the last time, if you no longer care. Until we see what John Glover is doing on Dead, stay safe, stay being appropriate, and stay appreciating a good time, like Sean did.
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Sonny gets into Eli’s office, and a security alarm goes off. He starts tossing things around, pulling things out of drawers, and throwing them on the floor.
Eli tells Nina that he’s glad they got that straightened out. That means he can do something he’s wanted to for a while. He moves in for a kiss, and Nina says, how about them Mets?It’s a lovely night. Why rush things? Now that she’s decided to stay in Nixon Falls, they have all the time in the world.
Sonny continues to mess up Eli’s office.
Carly thanks Diane for coming on such short notice. Can she offer Diane a glass of Sonny’s scotch? That’s how they discussed legal matters, right? Over a glass of single malt? Diane thinks her, but says she’ll take a raincheck for now. The main matter is Jason. She finds it a little disappointing and disconcerting that two clients wouldn’t trust her enough to fight groundless charges, and instead, chose to resort to a dangerous, albeit daring, criminal escape. While she’s certain she can still argue that Jason didn’t kill Franco, he now faces additional charges. Carly says she’s sure Jason did what he felt he had to do. Now she has to do the same. She has some legal work she needs to go over with Diane. Diane asks, what kind of legal work? and Carly says she needs her will revised. She needs Diane to bring it up to date.
Michael sees Willow coming into the Quartermaine mansion. She says she knows it’s Wiley’s bedtime, and wanted to say goodnight before he fell asleep. He says she’s about 15 minutes too late. The little guy was out like a light. She says she’s just going to tiptoe into his room and give him a kiss; he won’t even know. Michael says, he will. A kiss from her is pretty hard to forget.
Lucy approaches Brando at the MetroCourt, and says she owes him a big, fat apology. He says, for what? and she says he probably knows Sasha is such an asset to Deception, an asset that’s expanding every day now. She never properly thanked him for saving Sasha’s life.
In the restroom, Sasha is on the phone. She says she’s a patient of Dr. Navarro’s and wondered if she can prescribe something for morning sickness… Great. She’ll be expecting their email. She puts some water on her face, and leaves. Gladys comes out of one of the stalls, and says, so. The super model went and got herself knocked up. Damn.
Brook reads about water births from her laptop. Labor pains will still happen, but the water provides a relaxing, soothing environment. She listens to a narrator talk about water birth, while hearing a women groaning with labor pains in the background. Her phone rings, and she says they’re not going to believe the video she just watched. She’s completely on board with getting Bobbie involved. In fact, she thinks it was a stroke of genius. Maxie says she doesn’t have long to talk. Her live-in nurse brought her to GH to meet her new OB/GYN. She needs Brook to meet her there. She needs to Brook the keys to the house in Beecher’s Corners, so Brook can meet her when the baby is born. She needs Brook to go there, stock it with supplies, so everything is ready… Is Brook still there? Maxie and her baby need her. Brook says, don’t worry; she’s all in. Brook opens the door to leave, and Valentin is there. He says, going somewhere?
Maxie turns around and sees Peter. She asks how long he’s been there. What is he doing there? He says, as the father, he was informed of her appointment with her new OB/GYN. He’s just there to offer moral support. She says, that’s so considerate. Fortunately her live-in nurse came with her. She introduces Chloe to Peter, and Peter says so she’s the woman Maxie chose to care for their child. It’s nice to meet her at last. Chloe says it’s nice to meet him too, and Maxie rolls her eyes.
Valentin says he and Brook had an agreement; they’re in this together. She says she wasn’t aware their agreement meant she had to clear her comings and goings with him, and he says they agreed to do what’s best for the baby. She says it might have helped if he hadn’t hired Boris Badanov to, quote unquote, shadow her. He’s about as inconspicuous as a two-legged fridge. He says, Yuri is a good man. He trusts Yuri with her. She says she knows what’s good for her baby, and he says, their baby. She says, their baby. But Valentin is the one with the long list of enemies. If anyone’s putting them in harm’s way, it’s him.
Sasha comes back, and sees Lucy talking to Brando. Lucy says, if he hadn’t acted so quickly, they wouldn’t have just lost a spokesmodel, but a very dear friend. It could have been a million times worse if he hadn’t just jumped in. He says he’s sure anyone would have done the same thing, but she says he’s being way too modest. Deception owes him an extreme debt of gratitude, and Sasha owes him her life. Gladys joins them, and says, really? Tell her more. Brando says it doesn’t concern her, but she says, her son concerns her. Lucy was saying he saved Sasha’s life. Lucy says she wasn’t there, but Sasha told her all about it, and Brando managed to step in in the nick of time.
Sasha looks at her phone, and says, thank God; a prescription for nausea. Cyrus comes by, and says, good evening, Ms. Gilmore. Small world.
Diane tells Carly, in her dealings with Sonny, she knew what she wanted to know, and made very sure she didn’t know what she didn’t want to know. And she doesn’t want to know about Carly’s new responsibilities. Carly says, okay. Then let’s leave it at this. She wants Diane to update her will in the event that something should happen to her. The house phone rings, and Carly says, of course (🍷). Thank you. She asks Diane to excuse her, and goes to the door. Ava is there with Avery, and says, Avery has been wanting to have a sleepover with her sisters, so she took the chance of dropping by. Or is this a bad time? Avery says, please?
Eli tells Nina, time has a habit of slipping away, and he doesn’t want to lose a moment with her. He starts to move in again, but his phone dings. He looks at it grimly, and she asks, what’s the matter? He says, it’s a message from his security company. There’s been a break-in at his office. She says, what? How horrible. He says, the police have already been contacted, and he’s sorry, but he has to get over there. He’ll drop her off. She says, no! She’s coming with him. He says, that’s really sweet, and she looks at her watch.
As the alarm continues, Sonny is copying information from Eli’s computer. He says, come on, speed it up. He hears sirens, and sees flashing lights through the window.
Michael asks Willow if Chase’s condition improved after he left, and she says, whatever Finn gave him, helped with the symptoms, but unfortunately, it still isn’t a cure. Chase thinks Finn isn’t telling him the whole story. He asks why Finn would withhold information, and she says, it doesn’t seem like something he’d do, but Chase brings it up every time they talk. He says, maybe Chase is just bored and frustrated. He would be in Chase’s place. The doorbell rings, and Michael lets Ned in. Michael says he can’t get used to Ned ringing the bell; it’s still his place. Ned says, not at the moment. He came back because he forgot something. Michael asks if that’s really it, and Ned laughs, and says, busted. Today was really a breakthrough. Things weren’t quite as tense between him and Olivia. They actually enjoyed themselves singing songs. It was only for a few hours, but it was really nice to be part of the family again.
Valentin says he and Brook may have gotten into this situation accidentally, but she’s carrying their baby; that means something. She says she knows she’s been hard on him, and she’s not backing down from their agreement about the stock, but that being said, she finds it reassuring knowing the baby has him. She has faith that he’ll do everything he can to protect this baby, and she finds that really comforting. Ned comes in, and asks if everything is okay. Brook says they’re just resetting some ground rules. She asks if she can go to the bathroom, or is Yuri going to follow her in there too? She leaves, and Valentin says, it’s the hormones talking, but Ned says, it’s the DNA talking Get used to it. Brook dashes out the front door.
Peter says he thinks Maxie is overtaxing herself by coming there, considering she’s still on bedrest. She says, if it makes him feel better, she had Chloe check her blood pressure before they left, and it was stable, so there’s no risk to the baby. Chloe confirms that, and Maxie says, besides it’s really important she has this meeting. She was so comfortable with Britt, and she needs to get to know Dr. Navarro. He says it’s such a shame his sister is no longer in charge there, and tells Chloe that he’s counting on her to do whatever is necessary for the baby. Understood? Chloe says, that’s the plan.
Avery says, hi, Aunt Diane, and Ava says, sorry. She didn’t know she’d be interrupting anything. Carly says, Avery is always welcome, and tells Diane, Ava thought Avery would like a sleepover with her sisters. Avery says she made a picture in school of Donna, and Diane suggests the go up and show it to her. They go upstairs, and Ava says, look at that. One smile from Avery, and it can melt even Diane Miller’s cold heart. Diane says she heard that, and Carly says she’s thrilled to have Avery there, but they both know the surprise sleepover is just an excuse. What does Ava want? Ava says, the truth.
At Eli’s office, Nina arrives with Eli, and they go inside with an officer. Eli says, they really trashed the place, and the cop says, just like all the other robberies. He’ll dust for prints, but doesn’t expect to find anything. Just another smash and grab. Nina says, this is becoming way too common in Nixon Falls, and Eli says he doesn’t understand why anyone would break in his office. He doesn’t keep anything of value there. Petty cash… He looks in the box, and says, which they seem to have found. It makes him wonder. Is this just another robbery, or is someone trying to send him a message?
Sonny puts the cash in the register at the Tan-O, when Phyllis comes in. She says he’s not fooling her. She knows what he’s been up to. She saw him put money into the register. He should be saving up for his future. That’s the trouble with him; he’s too darn generous for his own good. Not only with Lenny and her. He says he doesn’t know what she means, and she says she’s talking about Nina. How come she’s out with Eli tonight instead of him?
Eli tells Nina, he can’t figure out why anyone would break in his office. He doesn’t keep anything there worth the risk of breaking in. Nina takes off her earrings, and quietly drops them to the floor. The officer says he’ll have to get a statement from Eli, and Eli tells Nina that he has to go to the station. He’ll drop her off. She tells him not to think about that. He has to move quickly to find out who did this. She can walk; she needs to get in her 10,000 steps. He says he’s sorry their night had to come to an abrupt end, and she says, her too, but if he can help the police find out who’s behind this, then it’s worth it. He says he’ll take a raincheck, and they can finish what they started, and she nods enthusiastically, and walks out with him.
Carly asks if Ava wants to explain what truth she’s after, and Ava says, she’s sure Carly remembers that recently she asked Ava to host a dinner party; the guest of honor being Nikolas’s new Uncle Cyrus. Carly says she remembers it ended sooner than it was supposed to, and Ava says if Carly had told her the reason she wanted Cyrus to stay, she could have been better equipped to detain him. Carly says, the real reason, and Ava says she wants to play it like that? She’ll play, and she’ll state the obvious. While she was entertaining Cyrus, Jason was escaping from General Hospital. That can’t possibly be a coincidence.
Cyrus says, not to be unkind, but Sasha doesn’t look well. Is she feeling all right? She says there’s something going around, but fortunately, her doctor has something to remedy the situation. If he’ll excuse her… He says he’s heading to GH shortly. He’ll tell Brando to bring the car around. She says, no thank you, and he says he’s disappointed she’s so standoffish. He was hoping they could put past mistakes behind them. She says, like she told him, as part of her recovery, she has to be careful who she associates with. He says, what could be more beneficial to her recovery than being with the Chairman of the Board of the very hospital that saved her life? She says, the way she remembers it, the night she collapsed, he didn’t care if she lived or died.
Lucy tells Gladys, there was actually a time when Sasha was on a date with Cyrus Renault.Apparently, they ended up back at his penthouse. Power does make a man very attractive to an ambitious young woman. Gladys asks how her Brando fits in, and Lucy says, unfortunately, Sasha had a sudden heart attack, and Brando stepped in at just the right time, and got her to GH. Gladys says her son is a hero… Now it looks like Sasha and Cyrus are closer than ever.
Valentin says he wants to know what’s going on with Brook, and texts Yuri, but Michael says, in case he didn’t notice, Brook values her independence. Valentin says he noticed. He would never dream of stifling her independence, but he needs to know that she and the baby are protected. Willow thinks Valentin’s concern for the baby is touching, and Ned says it bodes well for their future as co-parents. Valentin says, it bodes well for the whole family, because once he returns the shares he acquired from Brook, the Quartermaines will be in control of ELQ once again. Ned says, this isn’t about ELQ, and Michael says they’re doing well. Let’s just take a breath. Yuri comes in, and says he got Valentin’s text. Valentin asks where Brook is, and Yuri says he thought she was with Valentin.
Deanna tells Maxie that Dr. Navarro will be with her soon; come with her. Maxie says Peter doesn’t need to stick around. She’s just having a casual meeting with Dr. Navarro. Brook gets out of the elevator, but stops when she sees Peter. Maxie suggests Peter and Chloe take this time to get acquainted. After all, hiring a nurse was his idea. Brook scoots around the corner, and Peter says it makes him happy that Maxie sees them as one big team. (Ugh.) He’s sure he and Chloe will find plenty to talk about. Maxie heads for where she saw Brook go, but Deanna comes out of the examining room, and says, all set? Maxie goes in with her, and asks if Deanna every does private nursing. Chloe is nice and all, but she’d rather it be Deanna. Deanna says she’s flattered, but her schedule at GH is full at the moment. Brook sneaks around some more.
Valentin tells Yuri, Brook’s car is gone. Is this what Yuri calls keeping an eye on her? Yuri apologizes, but Valentin says Yuri better hope she turns back up, or he’ll be looking for another job… in the Ukraine.
Ned tells Michael and Willow, there’s a part of him that’s very proud of Brook for refusing to let Valentin boss her around. However, as a father… Michael says, we have rights, and Ned says, exactly. He knows Valentin is worried about the baby, as he should be, given his history with making enemies. Valentin listens outside the door, and Willow says she can only speak to her experience of Valentin with Charlotte, but he’s a loving, devoted father. She imagines he’ll be the same with this baby. Michael says, leave it to her to find a way to bring this family together, especially when there’s a child involved.
Deanna leaves the examining room, and Brook jets in. She says, that was a close call. She looked like a deer in headlights. If Peter would have turned around and seen her… Maxie says they don’t have much time. She gives Brook the keys to the house in Beecher’s Corners, and says they need to go over the plan one more time, just so she knows they’re on the same page. Brook says, they leave town separately, and Maxie says, so Peter and Valentin can’t track that they’re together. Whoever gets there first will set up the house, and make sure they have supplies. Brook says, and Bobbie will come to deliver the baby. She’ll wait in another room… Maxie says, no. Brook will need to help. Brook says she’s been watching a lot of videos, and doesn’t think she’s cut out to be so up close and personal with a delivery. Maxie says she knows the situation is anything but ideal, but without Britt, they have to make it work. Louise’s life depends on it. Brook says she’s right. Keeping Maxie’s baby safe is the only thing that matters, and if she has to be part of the delivery, she’ll manage. But Maxie has to manage stringing Peter along, and make him not suspicious. Maxie says Brook has to do the same with Valentin, but Brook says, Valentin’s not so bad. He hovers, but he means well, and actually respects her as a person. He’s not some creepy stalker like Peter. Sorry. Maxie says, don’t ever apologize for speaking the truth. Peter is dangerous and deluded, and he can never go anywhere near this baby. Brook says, he won’t. She promises to meet Maxie at Beecher’s Corners. She slips out, and goes to the elevator, and Maxie tells the baby, it won’t be long now, sweetie. Maxie knows her birth is going to be a little unorthodox, but as soon as she knows Louise is safe from her father, they can be together forever.
Carly tells Ava, sometimes a family dinner is just a family dinner, and Ava says, and other times, it’s a diversion. Carly needed to free Jason, and she needed to do it that night because he had to be at a very important meeting. Carly says she doesn’t know what Ava is talking about, and Ava says, she may be out of the game, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t still hear things. The Five Families stuffed shells met for the first time since Sonny’s death. From what she heard, Cyrus was late, but he did show up, and things could have gone very differently for the Corinthos family, but apparently, they did not. Carly says, enough. If Ava has something to say, say it. Ava says she wants to tell Carly something. After everything she heard – unofficially, of course (🍷) – she has a new appreciation for Carly. She knows they have a rocky past, but they have a common enemy in Cyrus, so she’ll tell Carly again. If there’s anything she can do to help bring that man down, count her in.
Sonny tells Phyllis, Nina’s a big girl. If she wants to spend time with Elijah, so be it. He thought she was Eli’s biggest fan. She says, she’s quite fond of Eli, but the truth is, she expected Sonny to make a move on Nina by now. He laughs, and she says she recognizes sparks between to people when she sees them. Or maybe he doesn’t care as much about Nina as she thought. He says he definitely cares about Nina, and walks over to the phone.
In Eli’s office, Nina sits at his desk. She turns on the computer and puts in a flashdrive. The screen says, initializing keystroke history, and it signs her in. She says, okay, she’s in. Let’s see what she can find.
Valentin says, Brook has not checked in to General Hospital, and Ned says he’s not going to call the jail? Valentin says he was hoping Brook could resist provoking local law enforcement, since she’s pregnant. Brook walks in, and says, don’t stop. He was saying? Valentin asks to speak to Brook alone, but Ned’s not so sure that’s a good idea. Brook says she’s got this, and Ned says he never doubted it. He, Michael, and Willow leave, and Brook says, now that they’re alone, is this where Valentin tells her the deal is off?
Peter tells Chloe that he’s happy to see this is working out so well. Maxie seems to already trust her. She says, a crucial part of her job is gaining clients’ trust. He knows that, or he wouldn’t have hired her. He says, shhh… Maxie is the one who hired her. Don’t ever let her think otherwise. It’s important Chloe cultivate trust with Maxie, so when the time comes for the baby to be delivered… She says she knows the plan. She makes sure Maxie and the baby leave Port Charles, and arrive at the place in Podunk. He says, Pautuck. He likes to think of it as an idyllic getaway for him and his family, before they vanish to begin their new life, far from the reaches of everyone there who wants to keep them apart.
Dr. Navarro tells Maxie that she and the baby are right on schedule. Maxie says she can’t believe it. It won’t be long before she’s holding little Louise in her arms, even if it’s just… The doctor asks if everything is all right, and Maxie says, everything is great. Dr. Navarro says she’ll see Maxie soon, and leaves. Peter asks how it went, and Maxie says, couldn’t be better. He says, good. That’s just what he wanted to hear.
Cyrus calls Brando over, and says, the lady would like a drink. He can handle that, can’t he? Brando asks what she’d like; a martini, vodka and soda? She says she’ll be fine with just sparkling water, and Brando goes to the bar. Cyrus says she’s really taking her recovery seriously, isn’t she? and she says, more than he knows.
Gladys says, they certainly seem to have some chemistry, don’t they? and Lucy says she never noticed before, but something is going on. They’re practically giving off sparks. Gladys says she could imagine if they had kids, with her good looks and his determination, and Lucy says, that would be a devastating combination. Lucy asks Gladys to excuse her, and intercepts Sasha on her way to the bar. She asks if she can steal the face of Deception for a teeny, tiny moment, and steers Sasha to the other side of the bar. She says, oh my gosh, it’s him, isn’t it? Sasha says she doesn’t know what Lucy is talking about, and Lucy says she doesn’t know why she didn’t think of it sooner. The two of them were splashed all over Page Five. Cyrus Renault is her baby daddy, isn’t he?
Carly says she doesn’t know what Ava heard, or who she heard it from, but her main concern is keeping her family safe until Jason is exonerated, and assumes control of Sonny’s business. Ava says, Jason does have a talent for beating charges, but in the meantime, know that if there’s anything she can do to keep Avery safe, she’ll do it. All Carly has to do is ask. Diane comes downstairs and says she doesn’t see any blood on the floor. She’ll take that as a good sign. Ava says she and Carly have reached a new understanding. Please give Avery a goodnight kiss for her. She leaves and Diane asks if Carly wants to tell her what that was actually about. Carly says, Ava just paid her a compliment, and Diane says, proceed with caution. When Ava Jerome becomes a member of your fan club, it’s time to reassess. Carly says, don’t worry. She doesn’t need Ava’s approval, or her help.
Sonny says he’s starting to get worried about Lenny. Maybe Phyllis should check on him at the clinic. He’ll hold down the fort. The phone rings, and he says he’ll take care of it. Phyllis says, if she were a more suspicious person, she would think he’s trying to get rid of her. She leaves, and Sonny says, Tan-O. Mike speaking. Nina says, their plan worked like a charm. Eli and the police think it was just an ordinary Nixon Falls break-in. She came in through the back door that he left open, and thanks to the software he installed, she has access to Eli’s computer. He says, tell him about her victory later when she’s out of there. Has she found anything incriminating? She says she found something interesting that could lead her to more. He says they don’t need more; they need her out of there. She says she has to print a hard copy of the things she found, and has to make sure there’s no trace of her being on Eli’s computer. The documents start printing.
Ned tells Michael, when he sees Olivia, just tell her how much he enjoyed seeing her today. Michael says, he’s got it. he’s pretty sure Olivia enjoyed it too. Ned hopes Michael is right. He really needed this. He leaves, and Willow says she should be getting back to the gatehouse. Michael says, before she goes, he wanted to thank her. When it looked like Ned and Valentin were going to DEFCON 1, she stepped in and helped keep the peace. She tells him, what can she say? Someone has to be the voice of reason. He says he hopes she provides that voice for a very long time to come. He walks her to the door, and they say goodbye.
Valentin tells Brook, their deal is very much still on. He’s not sure why she would think otherwise. He realizes he can’t ask her to give up her life just because he’s made some enemies. She says, welcome to the 21st Century, and he says he thinks he’s come up with the perfect solution. He, Charlotte, and Yuri will be moving in. That way, they can all be together.
Peter says Chloe is outside, waiting to take Maxie home. He likes Chloe, and thinks Maxie made the right choice in picking her. Maxie says, her too, when Dr. Navarro walks in. Maxie says she remembers the baby’s father, Peter, and the doctor says, of course (🍷). It’s good to see him again. Peter says if the doctor wants to see Maxie alone, he can step out, but Maxie says, it’s okay; he can stay. She’s a little confused though. She thought Dr. Navarro said everything was okay with the baby. Is there a problem? The doctor says, the baby is fine, but she was going over Maxie’s birth plans. Dr. Westbourne said she’s open to inducing? If that’s the case, there’s really no reason to wait. She recommends they induce right now. I don’t know much about birthin’ babies, but I find it difficult to believe the doctor would suggest that if there’s nothing wrong. On the day she and the patient are supposed to be getting acquainted, no less.
Sasha tells Lucy, Cyrus is definitely not the father of her baby, and stop trying to figure out who is. She already told Lucy, the father doesn’t even know she’s pregnant. Lucy says, then Sasha needs to tell him, and let her know as soon as she does. She’ll call Sasha later; feel better.
Brando brings Sasha’s water over to her, and says, the last time he saw her at GH in the elevator, she said they should talk another time. How about right now? That night at the garage, she seemed happy, and he knows he was, so if he said or did something wrong, he doesn’t want to lose their friendship because of it. She says he didn’t do anything wrong, and he says, then what is it? What’s wrong?
Gladys tells Cyrus, she heard congratulations are in order, and he says, excuse me? She says she heard he’s becoming a father. He looks pretty puzzled, and I laugh.
Diane says she and Carly have known each other a long, long time, and while she’d never presume to speak for Sonny, she can advocate for those two little adorable girls upstairs. It’s very apparent, in the brief time she’s known Avery and Donna, even to this cold heart, how much they love and rely on Carly. Carly says she loves them just as much, and will do whatever it takes to protect them. Diane says she knows Carly is more than capable of doing that, but it comes at a price. So she’s going to talk to Carly, not just as her lawyer, but as her friend. Of course (🍷) she can change some things about Carly’s will, but please, don’t do anything to change her life, because it’s their life too. And they need her in it. Diane picks up her bag, and leaves.
Sonny says, Nina, dammit! Get out of there. She says, it just finished printing. She’s on her way. She takes some papers out of the machine, folds them up, and shoves them in her bag. Eli walks in, and asks her what she’s doing there. Sonny listens, still on the other end of the phone.
On Monday, Brando asks Sasha what’s going on, Peter asks if there’s something the doctor isn’t telling them, Cyrus says some messes are unavoidable, Nina says she can explain everything, and Brook says, over her dead body.
I didn’t see the RHOA Reunion, but I did notice on the commercial that they were all wearing black and the most giant earrings ever seen on this earth.
Perhaps one did not want to be loved so much as to be understood. – George Orwell
We know how gravity works. – Leah McSweeney,The Real Housewives of New York City, when answering if she thought Ramona had a facelift
Gardens, scholars say, are the first sign of commitment to a community. When people plant corn they are saying, let’s stay here. And by their connection to the land, they are connected to one another. – Anne Raver
The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept. – George Carlin
The difference between genius and stupidity is: genius has its limits. – Alexandre Dumas-fils
Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving. – Albert Einstein
There’s a fine line between genius and insanity. I have erased this line. – Oscar Levant
Do you want to drink about it? – Somebody on Summer House; it doesn’t matter who
What I did or said should never be more important than why I did it or said it. – Andrea Kelly
Pizza and vodka’s her favorite. – Jennifer Love Hewitt on Drew, regarding Betty White
If you get too many men alone and leave us alone for a while, we kind of become morons. – Andrew Yang
Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is. – Vince Lombardi
The great Western disease is, ‘I’ll be happy when… When I get the money. When I get a BMW. When I get this job.’ Well, the reality is, you never get to when. The only way to find happiness is to understand that happiness is not out there. It’s in here. And happiness is not next week. It’s now. – Marshall Goldsmith, American Author (Adding my favorite, when I lose weight.)
🙃 Wherever You Go, There You Are…
Another week is done, or you’ve tallied another five days on your wall, depending on how you look at it. Hopefully, if you’re not at the former yet, you’re getting closer. Or you don’t care. No matter your viewpoint, stay safe, stay fearless (withing reason; don’t be an idiot), and stay never apologizing for speaking the truth.
What I Watched - TV With Theresa 