Category Archives: reality tv

March 13, 2024 – Drew Adds To Carly’s Already Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day, Sutton Gets Out Of the Reunion Earlier Than We Do & Truth

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

At The Savoy, Marshall says he thought he and Curtis agreed that he’d be the one top open up the club tonight. Curtis didn’t trust him to do it on his own or is Curtis afraid he’ll eat up all the bar snacks? Curtis says, that didn’t occur to him until Marshall told on himself, so now he’ll have to keep an eye out, and Marshall says, do what he has to. What’s going on? Curtis says he has some news that he should share with Marshall sooner than later, and Marshall says, sounds important. Curtis says he found that doctor that misdiagnosed Marshall all those years ago.

Drew says, Jason is the one Carly turns to when she’s afraid or she’s in trouble. He keeps her secrets. He’s the one that she counts on. Carly says, he’s never failed her, and Drew says, what about the last two and a half years when he let her think he was dead? That doesn’t count as failing her? She says she doesn’t know where Jason was or what he was doing, but she knows he came back as soon as he could. Drew asks if she hears herself right now. Because basically, she’s saying wherever he was, whatever he was doing, she’d be okay with it. He could have been lying in a hammock on a tropical island sipping rum and she wouldn’t care? She says she hopes that’s all that happened to Jason, but she has the feeling it was something worse. He says, whatever it is, they both know she’s going to be there for him by his side helping him through it, and he’s not going to be here to watch. (Good. Go. Goodbye.) Carly asks if he’s saying they’re done, and he asks why she’s so surprised. Every relationship she’s had was trashed because… She says, this hasn’t trashed them. Is he doing this because she didn’t call him the second she heard from Jason? He says, no. He’s doing this because it didn’t even occur to her. She made her choice. Jason is it for her. He was somebody nice to spend time with when she thought Jason was dead, but he can’t pretend he’s going to be okay being with her, sleeping with her, while her heart and her mind and her trust is with Jason. He refuses to ride this out to the bitter end because it’s going to hurt too much. So he’s getting out now.

Sonny meets Anna in the interrogation room and thanks her for seeing him. She says, of course (🍷). Any update on Dante? He says, no changes, and she says, he was badly injured. The body takes its own time to heal. He says, that’s why he’s here. Is there any evidence Jason shot his son?

Michael comes into the gatehouse, apologizing for being late, but Willow says, that’s okay. The kids missed him. He asks if they’re already in bed, and she says, in bed and asleep. She checked on them both. He looks awful. He says, gee, thanks, but she says, no. By awful, she means tired. She’s worried. He says he went by the hospital. There’s no change in Dante’s condition. No sign of him waking up. She asks, who was with him? and he says, Sam. She’s still trying to wrap her head around the news that Jason’s alive. There’s a knock at the door, and Michael answers. He asks Danny if everything is okay up at the house, and Danny says, it’s fine. He’s here because he needs a favor.

In the boathouse, Jason takes off his shirt and… Did he always have a tattoo sleeve? I don’t remember that. He puts a new pad on his wound and breathes heavily.

Marshall says, Curtis is telling him that after all this time he found that doctor? and Curtis says, Dr. Paul Braddock. Marshall says, it’s the same Dr. Paul Braddock, who slapped a label on him and ruined his life? and Curtis says he can’t be 100% certain, but he checks all the boxes. He was on the hospital staff working at that hospital in Baltimore when Marshall was brought in for treatment after his arrest. Marshall says, he’s still alive, and Curtis says, according to the information he was able to access. Of course (🍷) he’s retired. He’s living in some fancy retirement community in Westminster, Maryland outside of Baltimore. They can take a road trip tomorrow if that’s something Marshall might want to do. Marshall sits down, and Curtis asks if he’s okay. What is he thinking? Marshall says he’s not quite sure. He always figured the doctor would be dead by now. He never thought he’d be able to confront the man who convinced him that he was a danger to his family, the man who introduced him to the word schizophrenia and tore his world apart. Curtis says, that one word is the reason Marshall cut himself off from everyone he loved and from everyone who loved him, and Marshall says, and it turns out, after all this time, he can still look the doctor in the eye. Maybe he can get some answers about himself and maybe see what kind of man he is. It’s a lot to take in. Curtis says, it’s not too much, is it? He and Aunt Stella aren’t pushing Marshall toward a confrontation he’s not ready for, are they?

Anna looks at some paperwork and tells Sonny, two individuals were observed on the roof of the warehouse, Jason and an unidentified man. Sonny is already aware of this because Spinelli was working for him when he put in those cameras, right? Sonny nods, and she says, Detective Chase says he and Dante observed the individuals 200 yards from the warehouse and that they were moving towards the pier, and that’s when Dante went after them. Eighteen minutes after that, an alarm call came in, reporting that Dante had been shot. Voice ID confirmed Jason made that call, so they know he tried to save Dante. They don’t know that Jason shot him. Sonny says, they don’t know that he didn’t.

John tells the desk sergeant that he needs to speak with the Commissioner, but the sergeant says he’s sorry. She’s in with someone. He’ll have to wait. John sees she’s with Sonny, when Chase comes out. John asks how long the Commissioner has been in with Sonny Corinthos.

Carly says, wait, and grabs Drew’s arm. She wishes she could tell him that Jason didn’t come first. She didn’t know this was going to happen. She didn’t mean to hurt him. He says he knows. It doesn’t matter what she did or didn’t mean, the second she found out Jason was alive, they were done. She says, so everything good between them just ends? They pretend that it didn’t happen? He says, no, it happened. It just wasn’t enough. He loved every second he got to spend with her, he really did, but he’s not going to compete with what she has with Jason. He doesn’t want to. He wants to cut his losses. Speaking of that, he can’t go to work every day and see her. He knows she did an amazing job at Crimson, and he knows she was only there for him. He knows she didn’t want to be there and he’s going to let her off the hook. He’ll find somebody else to run… She says, he’s firing her? and he says, come on. Her heart wasn’t in it. (Wow. The advertisers are really going to love this.) He tells her, take care, okay? and leaves.

Jason pulls his undershirt down over the pad and swallows a bunch of Ibuprofen.

Michael asks what Danny needs, and Danny says, it’s kind of private. Sorry. Willow says, no worries. She has to take something upstairs anyway. She leaves, and Michael asks what he can do for Danny. Danny says, it’s kind of hard to explain. Can Michael come with him? Michael says, right now? and Danny says, it’s important. Michael says, okay, let’s go, and they leave.

Marshall says, Curtis and Stella haven’t been pushing him to do anything he hasn’t been thinking about himself for years. He can let that worry go. Curtis says, okay. Just know he has their support, whatever he decides or decides not to do. Marshall says he knows that, but ever since Stella told him about Dr. Braddock, he hasn’t been able to think about much else. Just the chance to be able to talk to the man himself and maybe making sense of what happened to him fills him with hope that he can know once and for all, what, if anything, was wrong with him. He thinks the professionals call that closure. Curtis says he wants that for Marshall more than anything. He doesn’t care what they call it or label it, Marshall’s suffered enough. Marshall says, he’s a good son and he thanks Curtis. He thanks Curtis for all the hard work he did getting him the answers he needs. Curtis says, if Dr. Braddock can ease Marshall’s pain, even just a little bit, why are they sitting here? He’s got a full tank of gas and just filled his playlist with new jazz music. Selina walks in with her bodyguard, and Marshall says, they’re closed. She says, too bad for their customers. Fortunately, she’s not one of them. She does, however, have some business with Curtis. Curtis says he could have saved her a trip. He’s told her many times, their business is over. She says she believes she has something that will change his mind, and Marshall asks how many times she needs to hear the man say it. She needs to go on and get the hell out of this club. If she’s forgotten the way, he’d be happy to show her. The bodyguard moves closer, but Marshall says he’s not afraid of whatever this is that she dragged in here on the bottom of her shoe. She says, that’s just foolish and he’s never been a foolish man, and Curtis tells Marshall not to get worked up. Don’t do them dirty yet. He can handle this. He tells Selina that he has nothing to say to her, and he’s quite certain he’s not interested in anything she has to say. She says, even if it’s information leading to the identity of the person who shot him?

Anna asks if Sonny has a reason to believe Jason would shoot Dante, and he says, all he knows is that they’re searching for Jason. She says, they’re searching for both men. They’ve identified Jason. They can’t pull a clear image of the other man’s face from the footage, and he’s disappeared and so has Jason. Sonny says, Jason jumped off a bridge so he wouldn’t get arrested, and she says, right. If he died in the fall, they would have recovered his body from the river by now and they haven’t. So therefore, the assumption is that he’s still alive and he’s injured. Sonny asks how she knows he’s injured, and she says, there’s a bullet hole in the sweatshirt used to bandage Dante and forensics pulled two different blood samples from it, Dante’s and Jason’s.

Chase says he doesn’t know how long the Commissioner has been in there with Corinthos, but maybe John can ask her when they’re done. John says, it’s pretty clear she’s not interrogating him, but Chase tells him that he couldn’t say. John says he commends Chase’s discretion, but doesn’t it bother him just a little that his superior is in a conversation with a known racketeer? Chase says, nope.

Drew hits the heavy bag and I wish it could hit back. Jordan comes in and says, working out or beating someone up? He says, a little of both, and she says she knows the feeling.

Carly looks in on Dante, and Sam kisses his forehead, then meets Carly in the hall. Carly takes her hand and says, how’s Dante? Sam says, he’s critical, but stable. Has she heard from Jason? Carly says she’s seen him.

Danny brings Michael to the boathouse, and Michael says, Jason? Jason says, Michael, and Michael moves to hug him, but Jason holds him off, putting his hand to his side. Danny says, he was shot, and Michael asks how long he’s been here. Jason says, since last night or early this morning. Danny found him. Danny brought him a first aid kit, but he didn’t want to ask Danny for anything else. Danny says he doesn’t mind, and Jason says he knows, but it wasn’t fair for him to bring Danny into this. He grips his side, and Michael tells him to sit down. Jason sits and asks if Michael can take Danny back to the house. Danny says he can find his own way, and Jason says he knows Danny can find his way back. He just wants to make sure Danny stays there. Danny asks why Jason doesn’t want his help anymore, and Jason says, because he’s wanted by the police and Danny shouldn’t be anywhere near it. He’s glad Danny found him. He shouldn’t be, but he missed Danny every day when he was gone. Danny asks, what’s going to happen now? and Jason says, Michael is going to help him figure it out. Danny helped him when he needed it, now help him by staying out of it. Danny says, sure. Later. He leaves, and Jason asks Michael to go after him. Michael says he’ll be back, and follows Danny.

Anna says she understands Sonny wants to do something, anything to make a difference for his son. Pray. Go sit by Dante’s side. But do not go after Jason or the other man himself, because he doesn’t have all the information and he’s going to wind up doing more harm than good.

Marshall asks if Selina is saying she has the name of the person who put his son in this wheelchair, and Curtis says, hang on a second. He knows this game and they’re not playing. Selina says, what game? and he says, the game where she gives him so-called information for access to his backroom for her poker games. It’s not going to happen. She says, he has her all wrong, and he says, that would be a first. He’s also aware she’s having trouble finding a new space. She says, there are penthouses all over town who will jump at the money she has to offer, and he asks if she’s sure about that. Because after the FBI and PCPD raid on her warehouse, it would seem her powerbase is shaky at best. She says, that’s quite an exaggeration, but it’s true her life was threatened that night. She cannot and will not abide it. She and Curtis have been deceived. That’s why she’s here. Not to bargain, but to give him a warning. Curtis says he’s listening, and she says, the man who shot him is Jason Morgan, and they both know he only acts under Sonny’s orders. Marshall asks if she’s saying Sonny Corinthos wanted Curtis dead.

Sam asks when Carly saw Jason, and Carly says she saw him last night at her house. Sam says, so before he jumped from the bridge? and Carly says, yeah. Sam says, what did he tell her? Where has he been? Carly says, they barely had a chance to say anything because Anna and Agent Cates showed up and they searched her house. Sam asks if he told her who shot Dante, but Carly says, no. Sam says she was told there was a sweatshirt wrapped around Dante. It was used as a bandage and it had Jason’s blood on it, so he was obviously there. Carly says, seems like it, and Sam says, he either was or he wasn’t, and he obviously was. What did he tell her about the shooting? Carly tells Sam that he didn’t say anything. He didn’t say a word about Dante.

Drew says, it sounds like Jordan has some frustrations of her own to work out – he steps away from the bag – so be his guest. She says she’s just having second thoughts, and he says, about? She says she was Dante Falconari’s superior for a few years. She wants to be out there searching for the man who shot him, but she’s not a cop anymore. She’s the Deputy Mayor… and she just remembered the man they’re searching for is his brother. She apologizes. He asks what she’s apologizing for. Because she hopes the police find Jason? He hopes they do too.

Carly brings Sam over the couches and says she and Jason barely had a chance to talk. When she realized she wasn’t hallucinating and he was really there, she saw he was injured. She went to get a first aid kit, and she was barely able to give him a bandage before the police showed up. Sam says, by injured, she means shot, and Carly says, yes. Sam says, and he didn’t say who shot him? and Carly says, no. Sam wonders if it ever occurred to Carly to ask, but Carly says, there wasn’t time. Why is Sam being like this? Sam says she doesn’t know. Maybe because her ex-husband, who she thought was dead, is alive and possibly shot the man she loves.

Michael brings Danny to the gatehouse, and Willow asks if everything is okay. Michael says, Jason’s in the boathouse. He was shot. Danny brought him a first Aid kit, but he needs a nurse. Can she help him? She says, of course (🍷). She’ll get her medical bag. What about the kids? He says, Danny’s going to stay back in case one of them wakes up, and Willow goes to get her bag. Michael tells Danny to just call and one of them will come right back, but Danny says he doesn’t have a phone. His mom took it because he’s grounded. Michael says, take his. The password is 123412.😐Willow says she’s ready, and Michael says, they’ll be back as soon as they can. Danny says, just make sure he’s okay, and they leave.

Michael and Willow go into the boathouse, and Willow says, Jason? Michael says he needs a nurse. Jason says, no. He doesn’t want her involved, but she says, too late, and opens her bag. Jason says he thought Michael was taking Danny back to the house, and Willow says, he’s at the gatehouse watching the kids. Jason says, kids? and Michael says, Wiley and Amelia. He and Willow have a little girl. Jason says, congratulations. He’s happy for both of them. Willow says she needs to check his wound, and he lifts his shirt. She takes off the pad, and he says, the bullet went through. She says, it will still need to be cleaned and sutured, and he says, okay.

Curtis says, Sonny wouldn’t order a hit on his own son, and Jason would never target him, so Selina’s intel is wack. She asks how well he really knows Sonny. Think about it. Sonny escapes not one, not two, but three attempts on his life, and emerges again and again unscathed. That seems statistically unlikely, does it not? He says, not for someone who’s been on top as long as Sonny. The man is surrounded by bodyguards and security. She says, the shooting at the pool, even the events at the warehouse, those could have been staged. As for Puerto Rico, how do they know what actually happened? Was he there? She certainly wasn’t. He says he’s sorry, but everything she’s saying seems… statistically unlikely. She says, not if you factor what she believes to be Sonny’s long-term plan, and Curtis says he’s waiting. She says, to annex new territory, for which he’d need a trusted enforcer who no one saw coming. Which fits in with Jason’s sudden death on Cassadine Island a little more than two years ago. He says, now she’s the one who sounds paranoid, and she says, there are worse things to be right now. Jason works for Sonny, always has and always will. And it appears Sonny’s done with any kind of compromise, and anyone who stands in his way surely won’t be there long. Just a few things to think about. She goes over to her bodyguard, addresses Marshall, and leaves. Marshall says, this changes everything.

Jordan says she’s just going to ask, and Drew says, go for it. She says, his brother’s wanted for shooting a cop and he wants him taken into custody. Drew says, absolutely. If he’s innocent, the best thing he can do is turn himself in and prove it. She tells him that he said if, and he says he did. She says, then he admits there’s a chance Jason shot Dante, and he says, she would know better than him. He’s sure Anna Devane has briefed her on the investigation. Jordan tells him that she’s just saying she would have expected him to insist Jason’s innocent, and he says, based on what? He wasn’t there. He hasn’t seen any evidence. And he doesn’t know Jason well enough anymore to know what he would or wouldn’t do. He picks up some weights and does lifts on the bench.

Carly tells Sam, Jason would not shoot Dante. And no, she doesn’t have any proof, but she knows that because she knows Jason. Sam knows Jason. He would never do something like that. Sam says she hopes that he didn’t. She prayed that he didn’t, but while Jason has been God knows where doing God knows what, Dante has been here helping her raise Jason’s son. So if Jason is the reason Dante is lying in that bed right now hooked up to those machines, she will never forgive him.

As Willow works on Jason’s wound, Michael asks if Jason can tell them what happened, and Jason says, not all of it. Dante was chasing him and another guy, Hamish. Dante told them to stop. He did; Hamish didn’t. He turned around, Dante recognized him, he lowered his gun, and then Hamish shot him. Michael says he knew it wasn’t Jason, and Jason says, when he went to help Dante and Hamish took a shot at him. Willow says, that’s a lot of shooting, and Michael asks, what happened to Hamish? Jason says, he’s dead, and Michael says, when Josslyn and Dex got to the pier, they saw Dante, he was alone. Jason says he did everything he could for Dante. He called 911 and didn’t leave until he heard the sirens coming. Michael says, he saved Dante’s life, but Jason says he’s the reason Dante got shot in the first place.

Anna says, Sonny knows she wants justice for Dante, and he says, yeah. She says, then let her get it, and he says he can’t believe they’re having this conversation. He’s telling her to go find Jason. Usually, he’s the one hiding Jason. But he doesn’t know Jason anymore, especially the last two and a half years… or more.

Drew tells Jordan that biologically, he and Jason are twins, but that’s where the connection ends. He can’t explain why Jason does what he does. And the last thing he wants is to matter to someone because he’s Jason’s brother. She says, by someone, he means… He says, there’s a long list, but Carly’s at the top. They broke up a few hours ago. He broke up with her. She says she’s sorry to hear that. Breakups are never easy. He says, holding on to something that’s never going to work, that’s worse, and she says she learned her own lesson about that. He says he’s sorry. He shouldn’t be dumping on her like this, but she says, that’s fine. Everyone needs to vent. He says, even the Deputy Mayor? Well… go ahead. He vented to her. Now it’s her turn.

Danny scrolls through the article about Dante and Jason in The Invader, when he hears the door. Michael comes in and Danny asks if Jason is going to be okay. Michael says he thinks so. Willow was able to dress his wound and she’s going to stay with him for a little bit, monitor him and make sure he doesn’t have a fever. Danny says, that’s good, and Michael says, it must have been a pretty big shock for him to find Jason in there. Danny says, it was a shock to both of them, and Michael says, not that he could tell, right? but Danny says he could. As crazy as it was finding him there, it was good to see him. He says he didn’t shoot Dante. Michael asks if Danny believes him, and Danny says he does, but the police think he’s guilty and he ran away. Doesn’t that make him look even guiltier? Michael says, Jason ran because he had no other choice, and Danny asks if Jason told him that, but Michael says he just knows. Danny’s father is a good man, the best man he’s ever known. He has a reason for everything that he did, and when he can, he’ll tell them what those reasons are. Michael’s phone rings, and Danny hands it to him. It’s Ned, and Michael says, Danny’s here. They just got caught up playing video games, but he’ll send him up. Danny says, that was a good cover, and Michael says he’s used to it. Danny had better go. He doesn’t want them sending Yuri because he might check the boathouse. Danny says, okay, and asks if Michael will come to the house in the morning. Michael says he’ll find Danny and give him a full update, and Danny thanks him. He starts to leave, and Michael says, no one can know about this. Danny says he knows and leaves.

Willow gives Jason a jar of juice and says she’ll bring more. He thanks her, and she says, try to rest. It’s very important, okay? She’ll be back with blankets and no food. He says she doesn’t have to do that, but she says, yes, she does. Like it or not, he’s her patient now. She leaves and he drinks some juice.

Curtis says, don’t tell him that Marshall is buying any of that stuff Selina Wu was selling. That woman has reasons for doing everything she does, and none of them involve helping anyone except Selina Wu. Marshall says he’s aware. She’s not exactly what he would call a subtle woman, but Curtis owes it to himself to chase down any lead on who might have shot him, even if the source of that lead is less than ideal. This is not the time for them to be running down to Maryland to make sense of his distant past. Curtis says, it’s not a distant past. Marshall’s misdiagnosis stayed in his heart, every step of every day of his life. He thinks Marshall is still dealing with it. Marshall says, then another couple of days won’t matter. Curtis says, so many people are looking for Jason Morgan, he doesn’t need to be one more, and Marshall says he knows there’s a lot going on here. Maybe it’s best if they stay home tonight. Curtis says he hears Marshall. Tell him this. Until Marshall finds out what led to his misdiagnosis, does he think he’ll ever know one moment of true peace? Because if he can look Curtis in the face and tell him that not knowing doesn’t hurt his soul every day, then they’ll stay right here. Marshall laughs, and Curtis says, that settles it. They’re going to go to the fancy retirement home in Westminster, Maryland. They’re going to talk to Dr. Braddock and get the answers Marshall needs, so he can live some semblance of a peaceful life.

Jordan tells Drew that she understands police work, but city government, it’s like a puzzle where all the pieces can change. He says, so quit, but she says she couldn’t do that to Laura. Besides, Anna’s Commissioner now. He says, she could always go back to being a detective. He’s sure they’d be happy to have her. She says she’s not a quitter. Besides, between all of the meetings, she gets glimpses of the bigger picture. Solving cases helps one person or one family at a time, but good city government helps everyone in the city. He says, for what it’s worth (🍷) he admires her for sticking it out. And he’s also grateful his headquarters are in Port Charles. When the city looks good, so does Aurora. She says, in that case, maybe they can discuss ways Aurora could promote the city of Port Charles and raise its profile. Drew suggests they set a meeting.

Willow comes back and Michael asks, how’s Jason? She says, dehydrated and exhausted. He needs to rest. Can he grab a spare blanket from the hall closet upstairs? She’s going to get all the bottled water and juice boxes they have. He thanks her for helping and she says she wants to help Jason. She just wishes she understood the kind of trouble he’s in.

Sam tells Carly that the doctors keep telling them to be patient, that Dante was gravely injured, and that it’s going to take time. But none of them can say how much time it’s going to take or if Dante is actually going to wake up. Carly says she’s sorry. She wishes there was something she could do. Sam says, there is something Carly can do. If Jason tries to contact her, call the police. She goes back in Dante’s room.

Chase tells John that Anna is his superior and he has no reason to question her actions or motives. Now if John will excuse him, he has a case to work. He walks off.

Willow comes back to the boathouse with supplies, and sees Jason sleeping on the bench, gun in hand. She sets down the bag with the water and juice, and covers him with the blanket. She says, welcome home, Jason.

John walks into the interrogation room, and Anna asks if she can help him. He says he wanted to walk through the evidence, but if she’s busy… She says she is, but Sonny says, they’re done and thanks Anna for giving him some time. She says, anytime, and Sonny leaves, saying, Jagger, as he passes John. John says he’s sorry to hear about Sonny’s son, and Sonny says, why doesn’t John prove that badge of his means something and find the bastard who shot his son? He leaves and John looks at Anna.

Willow leaves the boathouse as Jason sleeps.

Tomorrow, Anna tells Molly that it certainly fits the evidence they have so far; John needs Carly’s help; Sonny tells Lois that he’ll never forgive him and never forgive himself; and Jason tells Michael that he can’t live with that.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills – Reunion Part 3

Just a little while longer. I can smell freedom.

We backtrack a little, with Andy saying that Teddi claimed Sutton carried vodka in her purse. Was she doing Kyle’s dirty work? Kyle says, absolutely not, and Sutton says, Kyle could have told Teddi that she was wrong. Kyle tells her that there were things she could have said, but she didn’t, and Sutton says, Kyle has to understand her responsibility in the situation at some point. Kyle was relentlessly mean to her this season. Kyle asks, where? and Sutton tells her, as Denise would say, watch the show. Kyle asks where it started and says, Sutton needs to shut up sometimes and listen. It was hurtful at the dinner party to be grilled about her marriage. Sutton says she didn’t bring up Kyle’s marriage. She was just asking questions. Andy asks where they go from here, and Kyle says she loves Sutton. That’s why it hurt her, but she doesn’t see it as something that can’t be fixed. Sutton says she knows in her heart they’ll be fine, and they admit to missing each other. Andy says they should hug it out, and they do.  Andy says he’s going to leave it there and take a break before their friend is brought out. He asks if Kathy is coming, and we see Kathy come out of her trailer in a glittery dress.

Kyle says she hasn’t cried yet, and Andy says, she’s about to. Garcelle asks if Kathy was a surprise, and Andy admits that she was. Sutton tells Garcelle that she thinks it’s hot and she’s uncomfortable. Andy announces, the Grand Dame of Beverly Hills, not Lisa Vanderpump, and Kathy sits down. He welcomes her and says, it’s the last place he thought he’d see her again. She says, it’s great to see everyone, and Andy asks how it feels to be back. Kathy says, good. Things happen for a reason, and she wanted to see everyone and support Kyle. Andy asks if she saw the show, and she says she watched all the clips. Kyle says, on the interweb, and Kathy says she doesn’t watch any of the shows, except Watch What Happens Live. It goes by quick. Andy says, Kathy and Kyle’s relationship was under a microscope since day one. Kathy appeared to close the door, but some people continued to blow any way Kathy took them. We flash back to Kyle and Kathy Memory Lane, Sutton and Kim included. We end with Sutton saying, if Kyle is mad about her being friends with Kathy, she doesn’t like Kathy. I think it’s more like Kyle is jealous of their relationship. We flash back to Erika’s interview where she said, a lot of people in this town fear Kathy, because she holds access to something they want. She doesn’t care if she’s on the list. Andy asks Erika if she’s afraid Kathy will lock her out, and Kathy jokes, be careful. Andy asks how Kathy felt about that, and she laughs and says she sent the clip out to people. Andy asks Erika who she thinks is most afraid of Kathy, and Erika says, Kathy is Beverly Hills. She’s set the standard and a lot of women don’t want to run crossways with this one. Sutton suddenly starts shaking, and Einstein Andy says, you’re shaking, like she might not know. Her hands also look swollen, like with Crystal when she ended up in the hospital.

Garcelle asks if they can call someone and thinks Sutton should lie down. A medic comes out, and Garcelle says, Sutton kept saying she was hot. Dr. Kathy says, it’s a hot flash. At 49, it’s bound to happen. Um… I don’t think that’s what this is. The medic says, Sutton’s blood pressure and pulse is high. He doesn’t think it’s necessary to call 911, but thinks she should get checked out at urgent care or the hospital. In other words, we need to cover our asses at Bravo. Erika and Kathy have a side conversation about the holidays, and we find out Kathy just took her tree down. Dr. Annemarie thinks Sutton should lay down, but Sutton says she’s not steady on her feet. Erika explains to Kathy that Sutton has neuropathy in her feet, and Kyle asks for slippers. Crystal says, Suttons blood pressure is as high as hers was, and Garcelle and Annemarie help Sutton to her trailer. Erika says she thinks Sutton lost consciousness for a hot second, and Kathy says, it’s a good way to get out of being here. In her trailer, Sutton says she wants something to eat, and Garcelle gives her a banana. Sutton says she just ate one, and Garcelle says, eat another, then gives her some orange juice. I wonder if Sutton’s ever been checked for diabetes, which can cause something like that. On stage, Erika says, everybody has trauma, PTSD… Andy wants to go back to some women fearing Kathy, and Erika says, she’s the outsider looking in. That’s not her social group. Kathy says, Erika doesn’t care and was like that even when she was married to Tom, and Erika says she doesn’t know if that’s a good thing or not. Kathy can pick up the phone and make things happen. Crystal says, Kathy is a powerful person. She is Beverly Hills. Andy asks how Kathy felt leaving the Reunion. Did she think that was it for her and Kyle? Kathy says, her relationship with her sister is more important than a TV show. The press says certain things, but she’ll count how many times they had a big fight on her fingers. She hides her hand and asks Kyle, how many? Kyle says, three, and Kathy holds up three fingers. That sounds about right for what we’ve seen on the show. Kathy says, they’re sisters. It’s going to happen. Andy says, when Mauricio started his own agency, it caused tension between the family, and we flash back to that. He quotes Mauricio as saying, if they’d paid him what he deserved and shown him an inkling of professional love, he would have stayed. But Rick didn’t see it that way. Kathy says, Mauricio called on Thursday and Rick asked when he was leaving. Mauricio said, on Friday, and Rick said, opening your own business is tough, but the door is always open. Just don’t poach his staff or agents. Mauricio did poach a few, and it put her and Kyle in a bad position. Kyle says she doesn’t want to get in it. She’s been through enough. Then she explains about the poaching, but I’m not interested enough to pay attention and unwrap a mini Tootsie Pop. In Sutton’s trailer, Garcelle says she’ll be okay, and Sutton says she feels sleepy. The medic says, she’s having more symptoms than he knew. On stage, Andy says, Sutton is okay, but she’s going to the hospital because of an abundance of caution, and Garcelle is going with her. They’re all praying for Sutton. He gets their phones, and we find out some of Merce is still in Sutton’s purse.

Kyle says she thought Merce was set free in Spain, and Crystal says, Sutton still had a small amount of ashes. Kyle thinks it’s weird, because she doesn’t understand much outside of her own proclivities. Andy says he’s honored to have Merce there, and Kathy says, at least give her a seat, so they have to explain that Merce was a guy. Sutton and Garcelle leave for the hospital after someone delivers their phones and Merce. Sutton says she doesn’t want to die, but Garcelle says she’s not. She’s still got more people whose feathers she needs to ruffle. Andy asks how Kyle and Kathy came back together, and Kyle says, their niece Whitney got married and she saw them for the first time at the shower. We see a video from that, and Kathy says she’s sorry. It’s not Kyle’s fault. Kyle makes her repeat it. Kyle says, they came to Aspen, and it broke the ice. Andy says, Kyle was worried that things she said on the show would ruin their reconciliation, and Kathy says, sometimes they say things out of anger and she’s 100% more sensitive than Kyle. Kyle begs to differ, But Kathy says, Kyle’s vibe is strong. Kyle says she doesn’t think Kathy realizes how strong hers is, and Kathy says she feels Kyle loves her, but she needs to feel needed. Kyle says she does need Kathy, and Kathy has been there for her in an unbelievable way lately. It means a lot. Andy asks how they think their mom would feel, and Kyle thinks she’s happy and here with them.

Andy says, this is encouraging, but the same can’t be said of all Kyle’s relationships. She and Mauricio seemed rock solid and madly in love. Now Kyle’s marriage and future are hanging in the balance. Kyle is like, thanks a lot, and we flash back to Kyle and Mauricio on the Pont des Arts, aka the Love Lock Bridge, in Paris. Fast forward to 2022, and in her interview, Kyle says she’s not happy about their lack of time together. She doesn’t want to wake up and wonder, who are you and what do we talk about? We flash back to the tattoo argument, Dorit questioning Kyle, the ring and the weed dinner, and Morgan. We see July 3, 2023, and the headlines that Kyle and Mauricio have officially split. In Kyle’s interview, she says, the marriage she had is gone. Things happened that made her lose her trust that she can’t recover from. Kyle looks stoic while watching everything, and Andy says, it’s tough to watch. He tells Kyle that everything seemed good, so when did it change? Is there an event that stands out at the beginning of their hard year? Kyle says, any marriage has issues. You get busy and have kids. There were some issues that never went away and were never worked on, then something happened where she lost her trust. Andy asks if it’s something Mauricio did, like there was ever any question about that.

Kyle says she cares about her family first, and tears up. She says she tried, and when she couldn’t try anymore, there were things she was putting up with that became more apparent. She couldn’t do that anymore. She had a breaking point, but thought it would come back, that it was just a temporary thing, but it didn’t. Andy asks if she wants it to, and she says, of course. She wasn’t married for 28 years for nothing. Erika says, she hasn’t been faking it for 28 years. Andy says, since the beginning of the show, there were rumors of infidelity. We flash back to a bunch of that, and Andy asks if it didn’t start with the tabloids on the cast trip. We flash back to Brandi bringing the magazines along and pointing the finger at Lisa, and Kyle tells Andy that Mauricio would say, they know the truth. Erika says, but the damage was done, no matter what, and Kathy says, it casts a shadow of doubt. Erika says, it’s a campaign of whispers and becomes ugly. Andy asks if rumors caused Kyle’s trust to be chipped away at, and Kyle says, yes. It made her feel insecure. Kathy says, when you’re high profile, people make stories up, and Kyle says, they’re trying to be hurtful or make you feel bad, and it works. Andy says, Kyle and Mauricio were struggling to find time as a couple, but he didn’t have it on his Bingo card ever for Mauricio being on Dancing with the Stars. Kathy says she thought, no way in hell, and Kyle says, if they’d been in the place they used to be, she never would have said yes. She admits to being jealous, and Andy says, when Mauricio dedicated a suggestive dance to Kyle, a viewer said it was a big f*** you to her. Erika says, all the dances are suggestive, and Kyle says, it was hard for her to watch. Andy asks how she feels seeing him and DWTS partner Emma holding hands, and she says, not good. Dorit says, it was like seeing PK hold hands with someone else. Andy says, when Kyle sees him partying with women in Aspen, how does she feel? We see a photo and he should be embarrassed. Kyle says, they’re in the same house. What is he doing? A viewer asks, what’s the real reason for the split up? Why not spit it out?

Andy continues with the viewer saying that Kyle dances around the reason a lot, and Kyle says, because it’s nobody’s f***ing business. I’m not a Kyle fan, but I support that 100%. Andy asks if there have been conversations about someone moving out, and she says, there have been. He asks, who? and after we hear crickets chirping, an owl hooting, and a train whistle in the distance, Kyle says, he would. Andy asks, how are the kids? and Kyle cries as much as you can without ruining your makeup and says, the girls have been strong and supportive. It’s painful for everybody. Kathy says, Mauricio is her family; he’s her nieces’ father. Looking back at the last two or three years, they’ve been traveling. People enjoy success and go in different directions. There’s no time to think, then all of a sudden, there’s devastation. Kyle has been a little weird for the past three years. She’s careful to clarify, not with her, but Kyle says, that’s not the correct timing with her marriage. I have no idea what they’re rambling about, but I’m guessing it’s rich people code for: This has been going downhill for a while, and I don’t want to talk about it. Andy asks if there’s been talk about divorce, and Kyle says, it’s hard for any of them to say that word. Andy says, but if Mauricio is looking for a place to move out and they haven’t seen progress… Kyle says, they get along well, like friends, and Andy asks if Kathy hopes they get back together. Kathy says she wants what Kyle does. Kyle’s happiness is the most important thing.

Andy says he’s hoping for the best, whatever course it takes. The person who got everyone talking was Morgan. He asks Kyle, what was Morgan’s rection to seeing herself on the show? and Kyle says, she’s never seen the show, but there was a lot of scrutiny that Morgan wasn’t comfortable with. Every day there was some speculations about them. Andy asks if the group thought they were together, and we hear more crickets. Crystal says she did before the tabloids said it. She thought it was lowkey. People sent her Instagram pictures and she thought, they’re together. Andy asks what Dorit thinks, and she says, there were a lot of pictures on Instagram, and she thought they looked like girlfriends. Andy says, on the after-show, Annemarie said, Kyle had found someone to make her feel loved, and asks if she’d expand on that. Annemarie says she thinks it’s great when you have a friendship where you get each other. She thinks that’s important during hard times in life. Andy says, Sutton and Garcelle talked about it on the after-show, and we see a clip of Garcelle saying, Kyle went to the doctor with Morgan, and she thought that was a personal thing to do, to go with someone you’ve just met. I dunno about that. It sounds like a girl thing. Andy says, Kyle kind of made Morgan a household name, but Kyle says, all Morgan cares about is making music. Crystal asks when Kyle did the music video, and Kyle says, a month before the story about her marriage broke. She wouldn’t have done it once that came out, but it had already been done. Andy asks what the purpose was, and Kyle says, Morgan was going on tour and said she wanted to support Kyle at the Loreen event, but in return asked her to be in the video. We see a clip of them discussing the video, and Kyle says, Morgan thought it would be a good idea to poke fun at their relationship. She told the director that she’d never kissed on camera, let alone a woman, but if she’s being honest, she was obviously curious. And Morgan is hot. Andy says, and the million-dollar question. Is anything going on between them?

Kyle says, in that way?… No. He asks if they’re a couple, and she says, no. He asks if Kyle has feelings for her, and Kyle says she loves Morgan. Morgan is her friend. Andy asks what Kathy thinks of Morgan, and Kathy says, she’s funny, bright, humble, and refreshing. She saw Morgan perform and was blown away. Andy asks if Kyle could see herself with Morgan, but Kyle says she doesn’t know. Andy says, that’s not a no, and Kyle says she’s evolving and changing. Clearly, she’s going through her own evolution and doesn’t know what the future holds. Andy wonders if Morgan will be on the couch next year. He thinks it’s odd that Garcelle, Sutton, and Merce’s remaining ashes are in an ambulance, but they’re all praying and glad Sutton’s getting help. He asks what each of them is taking away from this season.

Andy says, Annemarie had a rough ride, and asks if she was able to mend fences tonight. Since no one can respond to a question with a straight answer, Annemarie says, it’s important for her to remember that the most important thing is happiness and health. He says, what Crystal is taking away, and she says, that she shouldn’t be afraid to speak out. Her voice matters. Erika says she’s proud she showed up for herself. It’s been hard, but she feels so much better. Andy asks if Kathy feels good, and she says she does. She’s happy to be here with Kyle tonight. At the end day, the women care about each other and have a sisterhood. She respects it. Dorit starts to give her takeaway, when Andy yawns. Dorit says, again? and everyone laughs. Dorit says she’s learned not to trust. It’s her nature to believe it when someone is nice and makes her feel like they’re a friend. She thinks she has to be less naïve. Andy asks if she’s talking about Garcelle, and Dorit says she is. Andy gives Kyle the last word, and she says she may have lost what she felt was her happily ever after, but she’s strong enough to have her happily ever after, no matter what. Andy says, there’s a lot of optimism. While they miss Garcelle and Sutton, he thanks everyone for a great season. We read that Sutton was back home with Avi and her dogs after making a full recovery. We read that Kyle and Mauricio are still under the same roof, but leading separate lives. Mauricio is in search of a new home, and Kyle saw Morgan in concert.

And I say, hallelujah, the season is over.

🥯 Shake, Rattle, and Bagel…

Come on by tomorrow for soap and Oscar talk. Until then, stay safe, stay holding the door open for the next person, and stay using a password more complicated than 123412.

March 12, 2024 – Drew Questions Carly About Jason, Ariana Hands Out Ultimatums, Thoughts & Go

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Sam holds Dante’s hand and says she thought if she kept it together overnight that she’d wake up and find it was just a horrible dream, but he’s here and he’s not awake. And no matter where she looks, there’s someone is telling her that Jason’s alive and Jason did this to him. Laura comes in and asks if there’s been any change, but Sam says, Dante’s the same and her world is in pieces.

On the phone, Finn tells Portia that he’d love to do a consult for her. Who’s the patient?… Oh boy.

Heather says Amy is a nurse. Isn’t she supposed to do more than stand there and watch her suffer? Amy says she’ll be taking Heather’s vitals. They’re just waiting for the doctor. Heather says, why doesn’t she write this in her notes? The next time she touches a patient, wear mittens. Her hands are freezing. Amy says she’ll do that, when Finn walks in. Heather says, it’s so nice to see a friendly face. It’s about the only warm thing in this place. He says his being here is not good news, and she asks if he means for him, but he says, for her.

In the elevator, Molly says she wishes there was something they could do for Sam. She seemed beyond exhausted and so shaky. Kristina says, seeing her big sister like that made her shaky. She’s always been a rock. Molly says, Sam’s still holding up better than she would be, and Kristina says, can she imagine. Your ex-husband comes back from the dead and could be the reason your live-in boyfriend is fighting for his life in the ICU. She’d be curled up in a ball somewhere. Kristina says, all they can do is support her. Starting with getting her some breakfast. She’s got to keep her strength up. Kristina says, Molly’s maternal instincts are already kicking in. She’s going to be such a good mom. This baby is lucky to have her. They get out of the elevator just as Blaze is coming by, and Kristina hugs her. She says she didn’t know Blaze was coming, and Blaze says, her girlfriend needs her. Where else would she be?

Carly sees the headline about Dante on her tablet, and that a manhunt is on for Jason as a suspect. There’s a knock at the door, and she opens it to Drew. She says, he didn’t have to knock. He says he wasn’t sure. He didn’t want to interrupt in case his brother was here. (I see. He’s going to start off in a-hole mode.)

Jason comes to in the boathouse and looks at his wound, touching it gingerly. He groans and sits up.

Finn tells Heather that Dr. Robinson asked him to consult because she’s presenting with a difficult case. Her test results determined she has cardiopathy, which means a weakened heart muscle. She says, no one’s ever accused her of having a weak heart before, and he says, it’s not really an accusation; it’s a fact, and probably the reason she fainted. She says, that’s the reason she was put on those pills? and he nods. He says, unfortunately, she’s not responding to the medication… She says she’s sorry. She can’t possibly concentrate on his beautiful voice when she’s in agonizing pain. She asks if Amy can possibly move her pillow, since she obviously can’t, and Amy adjusts the pillows. Heather says she’s not a doctor, but she’s learned the ins and outs of the medical profession by binge watching Grey’s Anatomy, and she’s also got quite an education over the years from being in various mental facilities. So she feels qualified to ask, why is the Infectious Disease Department’s very own Dr. Dashing checking out her ticker? He says, the two cariologists that examined her before him came back with nothing, so Dr. Robinson asked him to rule out everything else. To that end, has she ever experienced any problems breathing in the past? Heather tells Amy, could she please, higher with the pillow already? No. To the left. Amy pulls the pillow to her left, and Heather says, no, the other left. How many lefts does she have? She asks Finn if they can get Nurse Elizabeth in here. They really understand each other and she’s not vibing with this one at all. (Oh man, she cracks me up.) No offense. She’s sure there’s a few people who really like Amy in this place. Finn asks if Heather can focus for a moment. This is actually important. Her symptoms are important. Heather says she wishes she could, but she’s afraid she’s too distraught. Her complete devastation is swallowing her every thought. In fact, maybe he can help her and, in that way, she can help him. He says, with what? and she says she really needs to see her grandbaby.

Molly tells Kristina that she’s going to see if she can track down TJ and leaves. Blaze asks how Kristina is holding up. How’s her brother? Kristina says, Dante is out of surgery, but he’s still critical. They’re just hoping he wakes up soon and he’s okay. Blaze says, thank God, and Kristina says, it’s a huge relief. Her whole family is here, so Blaze shouldn’t feel like she needs to stay. Blaze says, Kristina is disappointed. She’s sorry. Kristina says, no, that’s not it. She just knows how busy Blaze is and she doesn’t want to be an inconvenience. Blaze says her girlfriend is never an inconvenience. Never. Not a minute goes by that she doesn’t wish she was with Kristina. Kristina says, girlfriend. It seems like that word is much easier for Blaze to say. Blaze says she can’t believe how lucky she is that she gets to say it, and Kristina says she’s lucky to hear it. Blaze says, believe her, if it were anything else, she’d reschedule her morning to be with Kristina, and Kristina asks, what is it about this morning that’s so special? Blaze says her mother.

Carly says, Jason’s not here, and Drew says, but he was last night. She says, yeah, and they go into the living room. Drew tells her, The Invader said that the police were called to search the Shoreline area and not coincidentally, she lives on Shoreline Road. But even without that, he knew Jason would come straight to her. Last night at the Quartermaines when she came to help with the kids, was he already here? Was he hiding out? She says, no, and he thanks her for that. He says, it was good last night. She really helped with the kids and he felt like they were in it together. He would have hated knowing that was a lie. She says she didn’t lie to him, and he says, but she didn’t call him either.

Jason slides himself across the floor and sits against a chair. Danny walks in, sees Jason, and says, dad?

Heather tells Finn, Laura brought little Ace in last night. He’s sick. Finn says, even if her grandson was admitted, he can’t just take her to see another patient, especially a minor. She says, but her baby’s baby was brought to this hospital. He didn’t come here on a tour, so obviously, something is wrong with him. She’s worried sick about what it could be. Please. There must be something he can do. She’s asking him as a grandmother. He says he’ll tell her what. How about she cooperates with him, and he’ll see what he can do for her. She says, okay. Other than the awful pain in her hip, she’s been bloated for a couple of months, which is kind of strange. She asks if Amy shouldn’t be writing this down, calling her ice paws, but Finn says he’ll take it from here. Amy says, good luck, and leaves.

Blaze tells Kristina that her mom called her this morning and asked if she was free so they could get together for breakfast. Given the way they left things, she felt like she had to say yes. Kristina says, Blaze doesn’t have to explain anything to her. It’s perfectly reasonable that she’d want to see her mom. She’s just curious though. How did she sound? Blaze says she’s not sure. Contrite maybe, but their conversation was really short, so she’s not sure. Kristina says, maybe she’s had some time to process and maybe she’s ready to hear Blaze out now. Blaze says, that’d be nice, but she’s not holding her breath. Kristina says she’d be happy to go with Blaze, and Blaze says, even after the way her mother treated Kristina?

Sam sits with Laura, who says she can only imagine how overwhelmed Sam must be with this whole situation, and Sam says, it’s got to be hard for Laura too. She was Dante’s mother-in-law. Laura says she does know what a truly wonderful human being he is. She hopes Sam knows she can talk to her, but Sam says she doesn’t know what to say exactly. It’s like she has all these thoughts roaming around in her head and she just can’t put words to them. These thoughts are swirling around in her head, and she can’t grab hold of one thought or feeling for more than a second. Laura says, that sounds about right, and Sam says she just doesn’t know what to do. Laura says, it’s going to take some time, and a little bit of rest will help a lot. Sam says, it’s like one second, she’s really hurt because Jason could be out there a fugitive, and the next second, she gets all weepy because she’s grateful that he’s alive. Then she has this voice in her head, and it keeps asking her, where has he been all this time? Why didn’t he try to contact her? She doesn’t know. Laura says, it’s very, very complicated, but Sam says, it shouldn’t be complicated, should it? She and Jason were long over before he disappeared. Laura says, yes, but that doesn’t change the fact that he was a very significant part of her life. She loved him. She had a child with him. They share all of those experiences, but she can’t expect herself to see things clearly right now while she’s still in shock. And Laura thinks she is. Sam agrees and says she feels she has to keep it together, if only for her kids. She’d asked the Quartermaines to keep Scout home from school, and she’s sure Danny has read the article in The Invader. Right now, he thinks his father’s the one who shot Dante. How is she supposed to help Danny process this if she can’t even process it herself? Laura says she wishes she had better answers for Sam, but she does know this. If she allows her love for her children to ground her and guide her, everything else just has a way of working itself out. Sam thanks her for saying that and for being here.

Danny and Jason soap look at one another for a moment, and Danny starts to run off, but Jason says, wait. He knows he has no right to ask Danny, but he’s in trouble and he needs Danny’s help. Danny asks why he should help Jason. And don’t say it’s because he’s Danny’s father. Jason says, because the police are after him and he didn’t do what they said he did. Danny says, he didn’t shoot Dante? and Jason says, no. Danny says, swear on it. Swear on something that matters to him. Jason says he swears on Danny’s life.

Blaze says she appreciates it, but right now, Kristina needs to be with her family. She can deal with her own. Kristina asks if she’s sure, and Blaze says she’ll be fine. Just knowing she has Kristina will get her through whatever her mom has to say. Kristina says, okay. She’ll be here when Blaze gets back. Blaze says she’s counting on it, kisses Kristina, and leaves.

Finn says, so for the past few months, Heather said she had ringing in the ears, some tingling in the extremities, and brittle nails. Heather says, which is strange because she always had really strong nails. She’s not saying she had a future as a hand model or anything like that, but does he think that had something to do with her heart? He says he thinks he needs to run some more tests, and she says, he can poke, prod, draw all the blood he wants, but after he finds out what’s going on with her grandson. Laura comes in and says, that won’t be necessary, and Heather says, with all due respect, your mayorship, the good doctor and I have a relationship that’s working just fine without you. Laura says hi to Finn and asks if he wouldn’t mind giving her a moment alone with Heather. They’re long overdue for a talk. Finn says, of course (🍷), and leaves. Laura closes the blinds and turns to face Heather.

Carly tells Drew that her first call last night was to Diane. That’s because Anna Devane showed up with Agent Cates and they told her that Jason was alive, and they had warrant and they wanted to search her house. He asks if that’s the first she heard about Jason, but she says, no. When she got back here when she left the Quartermaines, he was here waiting for her. She walked in her house, and he said her name and she recognized his voice. She turned around and he was standing right there and all she could do was hug him. She realized he’d been shot, so she ran upstairs to get a first aid kit and she came down. She was trying to bandage him up, and that’s when Anna started banging on the door. She starts to cry and says, he didn’t know her mom had died. Drew says, so she told him about Bobbie, and she says she was doing such a bad job at cleaning the wound, she mentioned that she wished she could call her mom and ask for help. He said not to, and that’s when she realized he didn’t know. She told him and she could see it hit his face. She wanted to tell him what happened, and that’s when Anna and John showed up. He asks if Jason told her how he got shot, but she says, no. They didn’t talk about it. He says, the police think he shot Dante, and she says, the police are wrong. He asks how she knows that if she and Jason didn’t even talk about it, and she says, because she knows Jason. He tells her, yeah, that’s what he thought she was going to say.

Jason gets up and tells Danny that he’s just a little dizzy. He’s going to sit over here. He sits on a bench near the door, and Danny asks what Jason needs him to do. Jason asks if Danny can bring him a first aid kit from the house, and Danny says, he was shot, right? Jason says, yeah, and Danny says, then wouldn’t he need more than a first aid kit? Should he go grab grandma’s medical bag? Jason asks if Monica is up at the house, but Danny says he doesn’t know. She might have gone to the hospital. Jason says, don’t get the medical bag. It’s going to draw too much attention. Get a first aid kit from the kitchen or the bathroom and bring it down here. Danny says, sure. He’ll be right back. He starts to leave, and Jason tells him, close the door. He does, and Jason takes his gun out of his waistband and sets it next to him.

Molly says, Blaze couldn’t stay? and Kristina says, no. She was a little surprised at first, but Blaze explained it and it’s not a big deal. Kristina asks if she’s sure. She went from elated to deflated in three seconds. She’s Kirstina’s sister. It’s hard to miss. Kristina says, she went to see her mother, and Molly says, and that’s bad? Kristina says, it’s not exactly bad, but Blaze’s mom’s not her biggest fan. Molly says, that’s ridiculous. Anyone who spends more than five seconds with Kristina loves her. Kristina says, not Blaze’s mother. Not since she found Kristina in her daughter’s bed.

Natalia meets Blaze at Kelly’s Bobbie’s, saying, good morning, and hugging her. She asks, what’s good here? and Blaze says, they’re known for their BLTs and their burgers. They sit at a table, and Natalia says, seems a little early for a burger (never), but a BLT may be too salty. Blaze says, that’s it? She wanted to get together to discuss the menu? Natalia says, if they’re going to end up getting something to eat, they should probably look at it, and Blaze takes the menu out of her hand. She says, this is a Port Charles institution. Everything in here is good, really good. There. They’ve covered the menu. Natalia asks why she’s acting like this, and Blaze says she’s not acting like anything. Natalia is the one acting like everything is the same as always and it’s not. They need to talk. Natalia says she knows, and she’s been doing some thinking. She knows things have changed and there’s something she wants to say to Blaze.

Heather asks Laura not to keep her in suspense. It’s not good for her weakened heart muscle. Is Ace all right? Laura says, yes. Ace has an ear infection, but other than that, he’s going to be perfectly fine. Heather says, fine for a child whose mother is dead, and Larua says, they all agreed… but Heather says, no, they didn’t all agree. Her daughter is gone, and Laura is telling her that her daughter’s child, her grandson, is fine. Just how fine can he be? Especially with Laura having Cyrus Renault and Ryan’s twin in his life. Laura is a mother. How could she not know how critical these early years are to a child’s development? Laura says she’s well-aware of that, and Heather says, and she thinks exposing him to the dregs of his gene pool is the way to a happy and healthy childhood? Good Lord. She might as well have him with her in Pentenville. Actually, a better caliber of people. Laura says, that’s actually why she came here to discuss this with Heather, and Heather says, keeping Ace with her? but Laura says, no. That will never happen. Heather says she assumes Laura came her to apologize for clocking her over the head, but she’s taking her sweet time getting to that, so it’s probably not the reason for her little drop-in. Don’t worry about it. She doesn’t need to apologize. She’s fine. Laura says she came to discuss Pentenville with Heather. She’s soon to be someone else’s problem. She had a conversation with Robert. Heather says, Scorpio? and Laura says, uh-huh. Heather says, how is their little DA? and Laura says, good. And he agrees with her that given Heather’s history of escaping and assaulting, they no longer feel Pentenville is an appropriate place for her. Heather asks if they’re sending her back to D’Archam, but Laura says, no. San Quentin Women’s Federal Penitentiary.

Michael asks Sam if everything is okay with Dante, and Sam says, he’s in critical but stable condition. Michael breathes a sigh of relief and says he saw Sam sitting out here instead of in there with Dante, and thought… It doesn’t matter. How is she? She says she’s not entirely sure, and he says, because of Jason. She says, amongst other things. It’s a lot and it’s nothing she was prepared for. He says, none of them were, and add to that worrying about Dante. She says, that’s kind of why she came out here. She needed a couple of minutes to clear her head. he says, right. He came and he took those away from her. He’ll grab a coffee and leave her to… She says, no. Don’t go. Please stay here. Welcome to her world. There’s always room for one more.

Carly says, Jason would never shoot Dante, and Drew tells her, the police said Dante was in pursuit of two suspects. What if Jason shot at the man who was chasing him without realizing it was Dante? She says, there were two suspects, like he just told her. Obviously, the other guy shot Dante. He says, it’s only obvious to her. She can’t even allow for the possibility that Jason made a mistake. Let alone the fact that maybe he shot Dante… She asks why he’s doing this. Why is he so convinced Jason’s guilty? He says he’s not convinced. He doesn’t know if Jason shot Dante and neither does she. She has no evidence. She doesn’t even have Jason’s account on what happened that night. All she has is how she feels about him and that’s enough for her. She walks to the other side of the room, and he says, it’s the two of them, Jason and Carly. They come first with each other. They always have and they always will.

Heather says, San Quentin. California? Laura says, it’s their professional opinion that it’s the best placement for her, and Heather says, please. Please do not do this to her. Laura says, Heather gave her no choice. She’s proven time and again that she’s a danger to this community. As a matter of public safety, she has to put as much space between Heather and Port Charles as possible to make it highly unlikely that she’ll ever come back again. Heather says, she’s letting Cyrus’s whispers get into her head. She knows Laura. She’s better than this. They used to be friends. Laura says she knows. She remembers. That’s what makes this so hard. Honestly, she’s been struggling to understand what happened to Heather. When they were young, she did some pretty horrible things to people, but she wasn’t this. She wasn’t a killer. Heather says, everything she’s done, she swears, was done out of love for her family. Laura’s a mom. You do things you would never think of otherwise. Laura of all people should understand. Laura says she doesn’t understand, and she never will. All she cares about is making sure Heather can never hurt her family again. Heather says, and there is it. Laura’s family. She laughs and says, this was never about a professional decision between Laura and the DA. It was always a personal one. This has nothing to do with her being a danger to their community. Laura tells Heather that her family is part of the community, and Heather says, damn her family. Ace has brought them together and she knows Laura doesn’t like it. He’s binding them together as grandmothers. It’s about Ace. That poor little boy has lost so much already. She can’t send away the only connection to his mom he’s got in the world. She’s begging Laura, please don’t separate her from the only family she has. Laura says, no. Ace is no longer Heather’s concern. She and Doc are going to adopt him. Heather says she’ll die before she lets Laura and Ryan Chamberlain’s brother raise her daughter’s son.

Kristina tells Molly that Blaze’s mother came in and saw her in Blaze’s bed. Blaze told her mother that she was gay, and her mom’s response was like, the room is messy, and she started folding. Kristina could practically see her brain short circuiting because of the cognitive distance. It was wild. Molly says, that must have been… She doesn’t even know. How does Kristina feel about it? Kristina says, they talked about it ahead of time about her family, so she guesses it wasn’t totally unexpected. Molly says, but experiencing it up close and personal is different, and Kristina says, it was tough. But her mom called her today to talk and that’s a good sign. Doesn’t Molly think? Molly nods, but Kristina says, what? What is she thinking super loud and not saying? Molly says, no, nothing. She hopes Kristina is right. Kristina says she knows what Molly is thinking. Of course (🍷). She’s thinking Kristina is being way too optimistic and this is a set-up for Ally to fall and it’s going to be bad for her, which is bad for them as a couple, which is bad for her, which is bad for the baby, which is bad for Molly because it’s her baby… Molly asks how Kristina even get there from… no. Has she said anything like that?

Natalia says she’s sorry for her behavior when she saw Blaze with Kristina and for when Blaze tried to explain. She’s sorry. Blaze asks if she means that, and Natalia says she does. Blaze has to know that she was totally caught off guard and her response was to completely shut down, but she’s not a fool. She knows what she walked in on, and she heard Blaze when she was trying to explain to her. Blaze tells her that she doesn’t know what to say. She was afraid she was going to go her whole life without Natalia ever saying anything like that. Natalia says she also feels that she should have known what was really going on. And why Blaze would feel more comfortable with a woman right now. Blaze asks what she means, and Natalia says, what happened with Linc Brown was so traumatizing. An experience like that would make almost anyone want to experiment.

Michael says he can’t believe Jason shot Dante, and Sam says, he doesn’t want to believe it. She doesn’t want to believe it either, but they won’t know who shot Dante until Dante wakes up… if he wakes up. Michael says, what Sam and Dante have is something really special. They don’t just love each other; they’re partners in every sense of the word. They work as a team. They co-parent. They have each other’s backs. They’re each other’s best friend. It’s inspiring. That sense of support and responsibility makes their love that much more powerful.

Jason dozes, gun in hand, when Danny comes back. Jason says, he came back, and Danny tells him that he said he would.

Laura says, it’s already been done, but she’ll make Heather a promise. Ace will always be safe, and he will always be loved and Heather can rest easy, knowing she will always take good care of him. But she can never see him again. Heather says, no, and looks super sad as Laura leaves.

Molly says, Kristina asked her for the benefit of the doubt. To trust she’d be responsible and healthy and do what’s right for the baby. So maybe she can ask Kristina to do the same for her. Don’t assume Molly is always judging her because she promises she’s not. Kristina says she can do that, and Molly says, they got into this whole thing because they trust each other more than anybody. Let’s not forget that. Kristina promises and says she loves Molly. Molly says she loves Kristina, and they pinky swear. Molly says, and that trust extends to Blaze. If Kristina thinks she’s worth fighting for, so does she.

Blaze tells Natalia, that’s not what this is about. At least not for her. She’s been with women before. Natalia says, if this is what Blaze needs to heal, being with Kristina, she supports Blaze. Blaze says she can’t believe her, and Natalia asks what she said. Blaze says, who she is, her entire being has nothing to do with what Linc did to her. And the fact that Natalia can’t accept that… She can’t. She gets up, and Natalia asks what she’s doing. Where is she going? Please, just sit down. Let them figure this out. Blaze says she’s lost her appetite and leaves.

Carly tells Drew that Jason’s her friend… No, that’s not true. She doesn’t know if there’s a word to explain how she feels about Jason, but that doesn’t change how she feels about Drew. He says he knows she loves him, and she says she does. She loves him so much. He says, and she loves Jax, and she loves Sonny. She loves Sonny a lot, but none of them will take Jason’s place in her life, let alone her heart. Jason is the one she turns to when she’s afraid, when she’s in trouble. He’s the one who keeps her secrets. He’s the one she counts on. She says, he’s never failed her, and Drew says, what about the last two and a half years when he let her think he was dead. That doesn’t count as him failing her?

Sam tells Dante that she’s gotten so used to him being there, she doesn’t think she ever realized how much she relies on him. She’s got this huge news and he’s the only person she wants to share it with. So she’s going to need him to do this thing that only he can do. Where he backs up her feelings and gives her a new perspective all at the same time. Can he do that now for her? Please?

Danny says he thought about calling the cops, and Jason asks, why didn’t he? Danny says, because Jason said he didn’t do it, and Jason thanks him. Danny hands him the first aid kit and sees the gun. Jason picks it up and says, the safety’s on. It’s that little switch right there. If Danny ever has to handle a gun, always make sure the safety’s on, okay? Danny nods, and Jason puts the gun down. He picks up the kit and opens it. Danny asks if Jason needs help, and Jason says, no, but he needs Danny to do something for him. He can’t tell his mother about this, that Danny saw him or where he is. Danny asks, why not? but Jason says he can’t explain that. He just needs Danny to trust him. Danny says, okay.

Tomorrow, Selina says, she and Sonny have been deceived; Curtis has some news that he should share with Marshall sooner than later; Danny needs a favor from someone; Anna tells Sonny, do not go after Jason; and Jason says, it’s not fair for him to bring Michael into this.

Vanderpump Rules

Tom comes home to poor Ann, and whispers, is Ariana here? In Ariana’s interview, she says, it’s the sound of Sandoval coming back from Tahoe. It’s like the Wicked Witch of the West. She would love to click her heels, but she’s already home. Ann asks if there were any fights, and we flash back to all those. Sandoval says, but they had resolutions, and in his interview, he says, all in all, Tahoe was pretty good. The stench of the scandal is wearing off and he’s being humanized again. He’s optimistic. He tells Ann that he’s going to unpack his clothes and his feelings. He’s going to journal.

Donut! Scheana visits Villa Rosa where Lisa is doing Donut training. Scheana says, the day after she saw Lisa in Tahoe was the most emotionally draining day. She realized she’s going through the stages of grief for her friendship with Sandoval. Lisa asks if she’s worried Ariana will be upset, and Scheana says, when she tries to tell Ariana how she’s feeling, Ariana doesn’t want to hear about it. She’s doing everything to be ride or die, but is it not enough? In Scheana’s interview, she says she’s afraid to express how she feels. It’s only about Ariana, but she’s struggling. When she tries to have a conversation with Ariana, she’s made to feel like her feelings aren’t valid. Lisa wonders if it’s because Ariana is experiencing a whirlwind of attention. Scheana says, someone else told her about Dancing with the Stars, and Lisa says she remembers Scheana saying she wanted it more than anything. Scheana says she took dance classes to prepare just in case. In her interview, Scheana says she can be happy for Ariana and sad for herself. Ariana has come a long way from being her back-up dancer. We flash back to that long-forgotten performance, and she tells Lisa, it was a punch to the gut. Lisa says, if their friendship is as great as Scheana says, she should be able to tell Ariana how she feels. Scheana says, when she does, Ariana shuts her down. She wants a relationship where she’s not the only one being supportive. It’s the story of her life. In Lisa’s interview, she says, Scheana tries to make everybody happy. It’s okay to say someone hurt your feelings. Not that she would say it… Lisa asks when Scheana is seeing Ariana, and Scheana says, they’re having a girls’ astrology night at Ally’s house. Lisa says, it’s up to her.

Lala and Ariana go for coffee, and Ariana shows Lala the photos from the shoot. In one photo, she’s smashing a TV, and she says she feels like she doesn’t let herself get angry. We flash back to a few very angry moments, and Ariana says she wants to hit things more often. She asks, what happened on the trip? Scheana called her crying. Lala says, the trip was weird. She’d never seen Scheana this upset. She thinks Scheana believes if she goes somewhere and Sandoval is around, can she enjoy herself and have fun on a surface level? Ariana says she’s not asking Scheana to fight Sandoval. The internet is ripping her apart about a f***ing photo. Lala asks if Ariana came to Scheana’s defense, and Ariana admits she hasn’t. Lala asks if she couldn’t tell her stans to knock it off, and Ariana says she guesses she could. Lala says, that would have been nice, and in Lala’s interview, she says, Ariana is constantly on social just a-scrollin’. She doesn’t want to post because she doesn’t want to be in the mix, but if she steps out of the house she’s in the mx. If she lifts her finger she’s in the mix. Lala tells Ariana that Scheana was very upset about the affair and caught a restraining order. She thinks Scheana needs closure. She needs Ariana to say they’ll always be best friends and whatever Scheana needs to do to heal, do that. Can Ariana say that? Ariana says she can tell Scheana that she loves her because she does, but her position hasn’t changed. She doesn’t want Sandoval having any access to her life, even through mutual friends. If she’s not down with him being around, she can remove herself if the situation is uncomfortable. Lala says, that’s what Scheana is nervous about, but Ariana says she’s not the person to come to for the Sandoval sympathy train. In Ariana’s interview, she says she’s trying to be compassionate, but Scheana is easily walked over. It’s Sandoval’s easiest route to go get them, and when they all come around, he can ice her out. Lala says, Scheana is nervous that she won’t have Ariana as a friend if she does what she needs to heal. Ariana says she wants Scheana to be happy, but she needs to do what works for her to be happy as well.

Kristina, Katie, Lala, and Scheana meet for dinner. Scheana says her daughter broke her arm, and Lala asks what color the cast is. Scheana says, pink. She wanted it to coordinate with Summer Moon’s wardrobe. In Scheana’s interview, she says, it’s just her luck. She’s terrified to let anyone else care for her kid, and right in front of her own eyes, her daughter broke her arm. They talk about Tahoe, and Scheana says, Sandoval was there. They had a spiritual healing meditation, and for the first time, she knows he shed genuine tears. Kristina says she thinks Scheana is sadder about losing the friendship than Ariana is about losing the relationship, and Scheana says, they’d been unhappy for a long time. Kristina wonders why Ariana would stay, and Scheana says, you don’t know when you’re in it. Look at Jax and Brittany. We flash back to their whole relationship, probably because The Valley needs viewers. Katie says, there are still stories about Jax running around town, and Lala says, it’s beyond. Katie asks where Scheana is at, and Scheana says she’s finally going through the grieving process. Ariana grieved her loss, she’s making millions, and living her best life. Scheana misses who Sandoval was before. When they were in New York, he was the only person who welcomed her into photos with the group. Katie says she’s not hanging onto twelve years ago, and in Katie’s interview, she says she wishes Scheana would wake up. Sandoval never gave a f*** about their friendship. She should cut ties, move on, and be a friend to Ariana. Scheana announces that she slept with the bartender here, and Lala says, recently? Scheana says, no, like 2013. Katie says she’s going to jump off the roof if they talk about Sandoval anymore, startling everyone. Lala says, they’re not talking about him, and Katie says, he never even offered an apology. He interfered in her marriage and made her out to be a monster to everyone. Anyone who’s having trouble getting over that trash bag of a human is a demon. Is it me, or is she the one bringing up Sandoval and proving his point by acting like a monster?

Lisa goes to TomTom, which has absorbed some of PUMP’s former staff. Sandoval meets her and she suggests they sit in the garden. She tells him that they want to make the restaurant more dining oriented, and in Sandoval’s interview, he says, it’s weird to make changes without him and Schwartz knowing. In Lisa’s interview, she says, she’d never consult a 2½% partner. Tom brings ice cream, which Lisa declines until she sees the lavender/honey matches the tablecloth. She asks how Tahoe was, and he says, everyone was kind to him. Lisa says when she saw him at Wolf, he looked like sh*t. He looks happier now. We flash back to that, and she says she doesn’t want to see any of them being that depressed. Sandoval says he’s worried about Raquel. He misses her. Lisa asks if he’s spoken to her, and he says, no. He wants to have a relationship, even if they’re just friends. Lisa says she wasn’t going to tell him, but she and Raquel spoke at length, and she didn’t seem happy with him. In his interview, Sandoval says, Raquel told him that when people are done the program, they often stay there for a while. He told her, the longer she stays, the harder it’s going to be. She seemed to be mad at him if he didn’t 100% agree with what the program said, and they were making him out to be bad for her. Nice to see that he really cares about what’s best for her. What a d-bag. Lisa says, Raquel wasn’t comfortable with lying, and he told her, life is lying. He says he didn’t. He’s worried sick and wants to know she’s okay. Lisa says, if she’s willing to talk to him… and he says, she blocked him. Lisa says, then it’s over, and in her interview, Lisa says, Raquel said she felt manipulated and didn’t love him anymore. She tells Sandoval that he’s got to go forward. She thinks it’s the past.

Lisa meets Lala, along with Jessica, aka Lala’s brain, at Lala’s office. Lisa says Lala is grown up now, and Lala says she’s rebranding. She’s got to get rid of Lala in the name. The products need to stand on their own. In Lala’s interview, she says, when she created Give Them Lala, she was shoving herself down everyone’s throat. She’s changed as a person. She’s more reserved and needs the brand to reflect that. She tells Lisa that she needs money for a sperm donor. Her child is now speaking. Lisa asks if Ocean told Lala that she needed one, and in her interview, Lala says she gets it’s not the norm, but going the donor route is the right decision. She tells Lisa that after this one, she’d like to adopt one, and if she meets a guy, they might have a baby. She’s going to have all the kids in the world. In her interview, she says she wants an absolute, and starts to cry. No matter what, it’s her baby. No one can come in and take it from her. She doesn’t want to share on Christmas. It will be just hers. She tells Lisa that she loves being a mom. Lisa asks if Tahoe was a respite, and Lala says, it was emotionally depleting, but she doesn’t have to be torn. Scheana does. She talked to Ariana about the internet dragging Scheana and told her, why not put out a message? Ariana said she didn’t want the headline, but Lala said, everything is a headline, and Ariana did it. She and Scheana need to have a conversation. Something has to give. Lisa says she sees a sh*tstorm coming.

Schwartz brings Jo to See You Next Tuesday, and they sit with Ally. In Schwartz’s interview, he says he knows some of the other girls have problems with Jo, especially Katie. James joins them on his break, and he and Ally agree that Jo and Schwartz give off BFF vibes. James asks if it’s with benefits, and Schwartz dances around that. He says he thinks Tahoe was a great success. There were mini breakthroughs. James says, part of him was stoked to see Sandoval, and in his interview, he says he and Sandoval are in a better place than they were weeks ago. Now what Sandoval does and says going forward dictates how the friendship goes. Sandoval comes into SUR, and Schwartz tells James that he’s been going down a YouTube rabbit hole with old movies. He thinks it would be cool to have a guy’s night Rat Pack style. They can go to a steakhouse. James says he’s in it, and Sandoval comes over. James invites him to sit down, and Sandoval gives James his pair of sunglasses. In Ally’s interview, she says, it feels like Sandoval is trying to buy James. She hopes this sad attempt at an apology doesn’t end up with James disappointed. Why waste time on a loser? James says, Sandoval was like an older brother, and he never lost one thing Sandoval gave him. Ally looks uncomfortable.

Jo and Schwartz go to a Skee-Ball bar, and in Schwartz’s interview, he says he and Jo never had a formal relationship. Last summer maybe he didn’t divulge how much they cared about each other. Partly because of Katie’s resentment. Jo’s not everyone’s cup of tea. He thinks she’s a great cup of tea. They talk about aliens, and he says he’s not convinced she’s not a tall grey. In his interview, a producer asks Schwartz, when was the last time he and Jo were intimate? but Schwartz says he doesn’t remember. In Jo’s interview, she thinks it was a month ago. She thinks they caught feelings for each other and they’re still there.

The guys meet at a steakhouse, while the girls go to Ally’s for their birth charts. In Ally’s interview, she says, when she heard Teardrops on My Guitar on the radio, she decided she wanted to be like Taylor Swift. We see a clip of Ally singing and playing guitar, and she says, but there can only be only one Taylor, so she decided to be an astrologer. Okay. That’s one alternative. Waitress Beatrice takes the guys’ drink orders and says the guy with the chips will be by. These aren’t nacho chips. It’s a Brazilian steakhouse where you flip the chip to green when you want meat. I went to one of these once and could barely move the next day. I was with a group and had a comedian among us who thought it was a riot to loudly say things like, is that parakeet coming next? It was kinda funny. The girls decide that, rather than one-on-one readings, they want to hear it all. This is not my thing, but here’s the gist of it. Ariana’s planet is about luck, wealth, and opportunity. It’s having a four-leaf clover in your pocket. In Ariana’s interview, she says she didn’t feel lucky when Charlotte died, and her grandma died, and her relationship died. We flash back to all that, and she says, maybe Tom was stomping on her four-leaf clover energy, but once his dumb foot was gone, she bloomed. Ally says, Scheana needs partnership to be shining, but she needs to fill her own cup before others. It allows her to shine brighter. In Scheana’s interview, she says she puts everyone first. It’s the story of her life. It’s how she was raised. But like on an airplane, she has to put her own mask on first. Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner! I love when I see one of them have a growth spurt. Ally says, this is not Katie’s first lifetime, and Katie says, before this, she was always a male. In Katie’s interview, she says, if anyone wonders why she has Big D*ck Energy, it’s because she had a big d*ck.

Ally tells Ariana that things are looking up. By March 2024, she’s going to be saying, thank God that happened. Scheana says, it must be tough to process, being separated but in the same house, and Ariana says she’s dealing with a lot of legal back and forth. The internet thinks she’s making millions of dollars, but that’s not true. She wasn’t prepared to move financially. Literally a week before it happened, she’d emailed her agent and manager and told them they have to try and do some sh*t because she’s not in a good place financially. In Ariana’s interview, she says, when she started making decent money, they decided to buy a house. After that, she was playing catch up, then put a bunch of money into the sandwich shop. In March, she was literally on her last $2000. Sandoval created a situation that sent her scrambling to get her sh*t together in a financially responsible way so she could move on to the next step.

James asks about Sandoval’s conversation with Lisa, and Sandoval says, Lisa talked to Raquel. He doesn’t like to talk about it in front of James, but James says he doesn’t need to feel weird. It’s a gentleman’s dinner. No one is going to flip over a table. Schwartz says, the night is young, and he’s only had one coconut [drink]. Sandoval says, Raquel’s not happy with him. He hasn’t heard from her in over a month. He keeps checking his phone, but he’s alone. He can’t do this. WOE IS ME!!! Schwartz says, he’s got to get out and start dating, and in Sandoval’s interview, he says he hasn’t dated in 15 years. Obviously, Raquel has made her decision. She couldn’t even give him closure. He doesn’t want to be in another relationship. He just wants female energy in his life. Schwarz folds first on the meat and is stuck paying.

Lala says, the guys are going to be besties and bond. Guys feel differently. Ariana says, James feels guilty, and Ariana says, that’s because he knows he’s betraying himself. Interesting. That’s the approach she tried with Scheana, like, it’s for her own good. Lala says, everyone is worried about losing Ariana as a friend, and Ally says, James lost both an ex-fiancé and a friend. Lala says, time passes, and the healing starts. She wonders what Ariana’s stance will be, and Ariana says she doesn’t f*** with that.  

Lala asks if James decides to kick it with Sandoval and Scheana decides to forgive him, are their friendships with Ariana at risk? Ariana tells Lala that she didn’t say anything about forgiveness, but she’s not down with people going out to dinner. In Scheana’s interview, she says this is what she was afraid of. She was going to have a conversation with Ariana, but seeing her reaction about James hanging out with Sandoval, she’s keeping her mouth shut. Lala says she gets it, but what she doesn’t want to see happen to Ariana is what happened to her. She was so invested in what everyone else was doing. Katie says, they can’t overlook Ariana’s situation, which is different from Lala’s, and Lala says, if she wants to apply her situation to reality, no one is going to like what she says. Katie asks, what kind of friend is that? Say it. Get it off your chest, bitch. Lala tells Katie not to talk to her like that, and they go back and forth for a moment, until Lala says, disengage. Ariana says, what Lala is telling her is that it was worse for her, and in Lala’s interview, she says, no one knows what it’s like. She did have to stay with a sh*tty person, and it will eat you alive. It’s like drinking poison and expecting it to kill the other person. She doesn’t want that for her friend. Lala says she rode hard for Ariana, and Ariana is putting her on defense mode. Why is Ariana bringing it out? She hasn’t done a damn thing to her. Katie says, that’s a bit much, and Lala says, Katie is a bit much all the time. Ally says, all they know is how Lala communicates, and they all communicate differently. In Ally’s interview, she says, universal love. We can all get along if we understand people’s birth charts. Lala says, her intention wasn’t to make it about her and have it get heated. At the end, everyone is laughing except Katie.  

This season, James sees babies in the future, but Ally doesn’t feel it; Schwartz and Katie are dating the same girl; Scheana doesn’t think she and Brock will be together forever; a boat ride in rough seas; Katie doesn’t want peace; a brunch hosted by Jax; Sandoval tried to talk to Ariana; and Scheana asks Sandoval what she means to him. He says, a lot, but she asks if that’s because of filming or life.

💭 Thoughts. I realize I’m just seeing the equivalent of a screenshot of people’s lives here, but I think Ariana is making some poor choices. I totally get why she hates Sandoval. I hate him too and would probably never want to speak to him or see him again either. I’m not a fan of being friends with an ex. I am friends with a couple of mine, but they’re also old friends and never cheated on me. As far as I know anyway. I also didn’t hang in a large, incestuous friend group like this. But I think she’s making a big mistake in saying she’ll just cut off anyone who relaxes enough to be friendly to Sandoval on a personal level. It’s not a good look, and it’s easy enough to put friends in categories. Gee. Just don’t tell the people who hang with him your business. Noteworthy too, is how she’s afraid of him icing her out when that’s exactly what she’s trying to do to him. I totally get her grief and anger over this situation, but she’s being rewarded in spades. Living well is the best revenge, but I have the feeling if you’re not gracious about it, you can be knocked down just as quickly. And Katie is really just along for the ride, but geez, leave that BDE in your other bag. I think Schwartz is insufferable and lazy, but it’s over. Quit proving Sandoval’s point.

🥔 Potato-ing My Couch…

Join me tomorrow for soap and at long last, the end of the RHOBH season. Until then, stay safe, stay putting the toilet seat down (you know who you are), and stay not being so invested in what everyone else is doing.

March 11, 2024 – Sonny Meets With Carly, On the Hunt, More Like Lost, Those Ones, The Wins & Just… You Know

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Maxie tells Spinelli to get in the car, and he says, dead end. Maxie says, Jason is in trouble, and he says, that much is clear from the footage. She says, so think. He knows Jason better than anyone else. She tries to start the car, but it stalls, and she asks where Spinelli thinks they should go. She tries again with the same result, and he says, Maxie? and she says, uh-oh.

TJ goes into his office where Jordan is waiting, carrying a paper bag and coffee. She says, not only does he let her hide out in here, but he brings her provisions? Best son ever. He hands her the bag, and says, the donut is from an actual bakery, from a patient that was discharged early. She tells him, so he’s saying it’s edible, and he says, the coffee is GH’s finest. She says she’ll proceed with caution, and he says, smart move. Why is she hiding out anyway? She says she wanted to give Dante’s family some space. She doesn’t suppose he’s heard any updates. He says, not in the last 20 minutes, and she says, they must be going out of their minds. He says, that’s exactly what he’s worried about.

There’s a knock at Elizabeth’s door and Jake answers. It’s Finn, and Jake says his mom’s not home yet. She texted. She’s running late. Finn says, must be some unforeseen hospital business, and Jake says, it’s cool if he wants to come in and wait. Finn thanks him and comes in. He asks, how’s school going? (I groan at the standard question) and Jake says, pretty good. Finn bends down and picks something up. He asks if it’s Jake’s.

Elizabeth is about to leave the hospital when she sees Danny come in. She says, it’s pretty late to be out. What is he doing here?

Sasha sees Cody at the hospital and hugs him. She says she was so worried about him.

Carly says, up until ten minutes ago, she thought Jason was dead. How do John and Anna have a warrant to search her house? John says, they petitioned a federal judge. Based on her long association with the fugitive in question, they had reason to believe he’d come here, and they had reason to believe she’d aid and abet him. Carly says, they can show their warrant to her lawyer when she gets here. Until then, they can wait outside. Jason peeks out from upstairs.

Jake says, oh good. Finn found his game piece. Finn says, it’s not a game piece. It’s from a vape pen, but Jake knew that already. Jake takes the rest out of his pocket and says he swears it’s not what it looks like, and Finn says, okay, handing him the piece. Jake says, it’s not his, and Finn asks, whose is it? Jake says, someone from school. Finn says, and Jake has it because… Jake says, because he was freaked out. He took it from this person. He was using it a lot and Jake knows it’s not good for him. Finn says, they’re still learning about all the long-term effects. They were originally designed to help people stop smoking. Now they’re marketed to kids and they’re highly addictive. How did his friend react when Jake took it from him? Jake says, he was not happy, and Finn says he bets. Jake asks what makes Finn think it’s a friend, and Finn says, if Jake didn’t care, he wouldn’t have taken it from him, right?

Elizabeth says, Danny must be really worried about Dante, and Danny says, him, Scout, and Rocco are staying at the Quartermaines, so their mom could be with Dante. Scout and Rocco are asleep, so he snuck out and caught a Ride Share. He just wanted to check on Dante. She says she totally gets where he’s coming from, and his mom is doing the best she can in an extremely difficult situation. So let’s go talk to her, okay? He says, she’ll be mad, but Elizabeth says, no. Trust her. They leave together.

TJ tells Jordan that Dante’s family is in agony waiting for him to wake up, and he’s worried too. He likes Dante a lot. He’s a really decent guy and he hates that this happened to him. Jordan tells him, that all goes without saying, and he says he just wishes… She asks, what is it? and he says, Dante is Kristina’s brother and brother-in-law. He’s important to her on multiple levels, so of course (🍷) she came to the hospital to see if he’s okay and be with the family. She says, he needs to stop qualifying and tell her what’s going on. Judgement free zone, remember? He tells her, what he’s about to say, she can’t repeat to Molly, and she says she won’t. He says, Kristina’s their surrogate and egg donor. On one hand, it’s awesome that Molly is going to have a biological tie to their child, another Davis boy or girl in the making. She says, and on the other hand? and he says, it’s not clean, like getting a donor egg from someone you’ll never know or never meet. This is really, really close to home. Jordan says, there’s something else. She can tell. He says, guess who else their child is going to be biologically tied to? and she says, Sonny Corinthos.

Sasha says she’s been trying to reach Cody ever since she heard about Dante. She’s been calling, texting, and she left a voicemail. He says, that’s major. He’s sorry he didn’t call her back. His phone must have been off. She says, don’t apologize. She’s just concerned. One of his oldest friends is in the hospital. Cody says, he might not make it, and she takes his hand, asking why he didn’t call her. She would have been here in a heartbeat. He says, that’s why he didn’t.

Sam tells Sonny, he’s still unconscious, and Sonny says, but stable? She says, for now, and Alexis says, stable’s good. Sam asks what Danny is doing here. Does Drew know he’s here? He says he came by himself, and Sam asks if Drew knows he left… So he snuck out again. Elizabeth says, he’s worried about Dante, and Danny says, nobody’s telling them anything. He wanted to see how he’s doing. Sam tells Elizabeth, thank you, and Elizabeth says, of course (🍷). And know that Dante is in her prayers. Alexis says, they appreciate that, and Sonny tells Elizabeth, goodnight. Elizabeth says, goodnight, and leaves. Sam says she’s sorry Danny feels out of the loop, but they don’t know anything right now. She’s touched that he came and knows Dante will be touched that he came, but if he goes home and waits and comes back tomorrow, he can sit with Dante then. Sonny says he’s going to arrange for a car, but Danny says, no. He’s not leaving. Sam says, Danny… and Danny says he’s sorry. No thank you. Alexis says, he wants to stay here? and Danny says, yes. She asks Sam if it would be all right if Danny stayed here with her, and she’ll take him home. She could use the company.

John says he doesn’t think Carly understands how a warrant works, and Anna says, it’s obvious Jason is here. It’s equally obvious that Carly would swallow ground glass in order to give him a head start. So she either gets out of their way or she gets arrested. It’s her choice at this point. Carly says, search. They’re not going to find Jason because he was never here. Anna thanks her for her cooperation, and she and John go inside. Anna tells Carly, stay here out of the way. Just keep out of their way.

Jake says he doesn’t want his friend getting in trouble, but he doesn’t know how else to make him stop, and Finn says, it’s a tough situation to be in. Jakes says, maybe taking the vape was stupid, and Finn asks, how so? Jake says, because his friend is mad at him and he’s just going to get his hands on another one. Finn says, you can’t change someone else’s behavior, right? All you can do, it seems like he’s done already. He can tell his friend that he doesn’t like this thing and he’s concerned about him when he uses it. Jake says, not that he cared, and Finn says, it may seem that way and maybe it’s true. Maybe he doesn’t care. But Finn guarantees he’s going to remember what Jake said to him. Who knows what happens in time? If Jake ever wants to talk about this some more, he’ll be around. Jake says, Finn’s going to tell his mom, isn’t he? and Finn says he thinks she needs to know, but he thinks it would probably be better coming from Jake. Elizabeth comes in and apologizes for being late. She was in a rush to get out of there and… Is everything okay?

Sasha says, Cody didn’t want her to come? and he says, of course (🍷) he wanted her to come. It’s just that they just started talking about hanging out on purpose and he kind of thought maybe it would be coffee, or a movie, or dinner if he was lucky. Not hanging out spending the night in the hospital under florescent lighting. She says she happens to love florescent lighting, and he says, sure. She says she’s really looking forward to whatever comes next, but today they’re friends and she cares about him. He says, back atcha, and she says, that means, whenever he needs her, she’s always going to be there. Got it? he says, yeah, and she says, so next time things hit the fan, who are you going to call? He says, Ghostbusters, and she rolls her eyes. He says, it was a dumb joke. He apologizes. He’ll call her. He thanks her for coming, and she says, always, putting her arm around him.

TJ tells Jordan, in one night, Sonny was the target of an ambush. Apparently, there was a hole in his coat where the bullet almost hit him, and Dante was shot twice and is fighting for his life. And a few weeks ago, Sonny was shot at in Puerto Rico. Kristina told Molly in confidence. Maybe he’s not supposed to know, so please don’t say anything. Jordan says, understood, and he says, his point is, this is exactly what he feared. She asks if he told Molly any of this, and he says, that he’s afraid of her sister being their egg donor because her family is a dysfunctional mess and frequently in danger? Jordan says, maybe not in those exact words, and he asks what he’s supposed to say. He agreed to it. She says, Molly knew he had reservations at the beginning, and he says, so did she. It took a lot of soul searching for them to get to a place where they chose Kristina, but they did choose her. And once they did, Molly was all in. She says, but he doesn’t feel the same way, and he says he tried. But he looks at Dante in the hospital bed and thinks, is this their life now? Their child is born, someone else gets shot at, and they’re just holding their breath until they pull through? He doesn’t want that. He doesn’t want that for himself. He doesn’t want that for his child. Is that so selfish? She says, no. It’s human.

Sam says she’s going to call Drew and let him know Danny’s here, but Alexis says she’ll handle that. Sam should stay close to Dante. She asks if Danny wants a snack from the vending machine, he says, sure, and they leave. Sam tells Sonny that she’s really sorry, but he says she doesn’t have to apologize. Everybody’s on edge. He knows what that’s about. They sit down, and Sonny says he keeps thinking, why did Dante have to go after that guy? Sam says, because it’s his job, and Sonny asks if Dante can’t do his job and stay safe at the same time. Sam says, and risk something happening to Sonny? No. That’s just how he is. Sonny says he wishes just for tonight that wasn’t true, and Sam says she used to make that same wish. He says, not anymore? and she says she’s come to a place of peace and acceptance where Dante’s job is concerned. But there will be no peace and acceptance for the person who did this to him, and she needs Sonny to make sure of that.

On the phone, Carly says, the Police Commissioner is here and so is the FBI. They have a warrant and they’re searching the house for Jason. They’re telling her that he’s alive and she doesn’t know how to fight them. So she needs Diane to call her back as soon as possible and find a way to stop them.

John tells Anna, no sign of him. Her? She says, nothing. (I have a vision of Jason clinging to the ceiling like Spiderman.) It doesn’t mean anything though. Jason knows this house like his own and the security system. He could easily get in and out without a trace if Carly helped him, which clearly, she did. John asks where Jason would go next, and he and Anna find Carly. Anna asks Carly, where are her cars? and Carly asks if she’s required to answer that. Is it part of the warrant? Anna says, they can take her down to the station, and she and her attorney can figure it all out, or Carly can just answer her. Carly says she has two cars and they’re both in the garage, an SUV and a convertible. And there’s a space there for Josslyn’s car, but she has it at school. She doesn’t have a gardener’s truck or anything like that she could have given Jason because he wasn’t here. Anna tells John that they can assume Jason was on foot and he’s injured, and Carly says, wait. Jason’s hurt? Anna says she thought Carly didn’t believe he was alive, and Carly says, what happened to Jason? John says, they believe he attempted to murder Carly’s ex-husband, Sonny Corinthos. He fled the scene pursued by police and shot Dante Falconari twice in the chest. Carly says, that’s insane. Murder Sonny? Jason would never try to shoot Dante. John says, the evidence suggests otherwise, and he wonders where Jason would go from here. Anna says she thinks she knows a place. She’ll tell him on the way. They leave, and Carly looks like she has a headache.

Sonny says he knows how Sam is feeling, but they just can’t jump to conclusions, and Sam says, what other conclusion is there? Dante was shot and he might not make it. Sonny tells her not to say that, but she says, it’s true. She might look all calm and collected right now, but she’s losing her mind waiting for his son to wake up. And she couldn’t say this in front of her mom or her son, but she needs to know there will be payback. That this monster won’t get away with what he did. Does he understand what she’s asking him to do? He says he understands, and she thanks him. She says she’s going to sit with Dante, and he asks if she needs company, but she says she thinks she needs a minute alone. He says he’s here if she needs him, and she goes in. Sonny’s phone dings and he sees a text from Carly: 911. Meet me on the hospital roof.

Jake holds out his hand and Finn gives him the vape pod. Jake tells Elizabeth, Finn found this, and Finn says, hear him out. Elizabeth asks if it belongs to Jake, but Jake says he took it from a friend because he was worried. She says, and he kept it? and Jake says he was going to throw it away, but then he got scared she’d see it and think it was his. She says, okay. She trusts him. She’s sorry he’s worried about his friend. Sounds like he’s lucky to have Jake. Jake says he talked to Finn about it a little. Finn gave him some good advice. She says, then she guesses they’re lucky to have Finn. She hates that they’re seeing more kids with these things. This is a much bigger conversation. Can they revisit this in the morning? Jake says, yeah, thanks Finn, and goes upstairs. Elizabeth says she’s so relieved it’s not his, and Finn says, that was some serious composure, but she says, only on the outside. Inside, she was panicking. He seemed so calm. He says, that’s because he’s not the parent, which begs the question, did he just overstep with her son?

Spinelli says, when Maxie tells him that she’s out of gas… She says, her tank is on E, and he says, right now? She says, mm-hm, and he says, at the precise moment they need the car to move? She says, yes, and he says, so in essence, the worst possible time? She asks how she was supposed to know Sonny’s safe houses are so far apart, and he says, fair enough, but did she not notice it was running low? She says, they always think there’s more gas in there than you think there is, and he says, who’s they? She says, a lot has been going on. She’s been very distracted. She should have paid more attention. He says, no, it’s okay, but she says, it’s not. She let him down. He says, she could never, and she says, maybe there’s a gas station around here somewhere, but he says, unfortunately, there’s nothing for miles. She says, maybe that’s why Jason is hiding out here, and he says, if he could just understand what the footage meant. What was Jason trying to accomplish? She says, the police are going to figure it out, and he says, but the police aren’t interested in those questions. As far as they’re concerned, he’s just a suspect on the run. And if they find him, they’ll treat him as such.

Sonny asks why Carly want to meet him up here, and she says, something happened, and she wanted them to be alone when she told him. He says, she saw Jason, didn’t she? and she says, he was at her house. Sonny asks if he’s still there, but she says, no. The police showed up. How did Sonny know he was alive? He says he saw footage of Jason on the roof at Selina Wu’s warehouse. Jason and some other guy were trying to kill him.

Jason goes to the footbridge, but John and Anna are already there. John says, federal agents. Hands where he can see them. He shines a light in Jason’s face.

Elizabeth says, no. Finn didn’t overstep. He asks if she’s sure, and she says she’s grateful it seems like Jake can talk to him. He says, to be fair, he did catch Jake red-handed. It’s not like Jake sought him out. She says, but when Finn caught him, he stayed, and actually admitted Finn gave him good advice. He says he guesses that’s high praise from a teenager, and she says, the highest. Jake is warming up to Finn in a way he didn’t before. She doesn’t know if it’s because he’s more mature or he sees how happy they are, but she likes that Jake is taking the chance to be closer to him. Finn says he likes it too, and she says, so what about her? If there was an issue with Violet, would he mind her stepping in, and not just as her aunt, as a… He says, parent? and she says, parent adjacent, we’ll call it. He says, she already has three kids of her own. Is she sure she even wants that responsibility? She says she loves Violet, for more than a million reasons. Plus, Violet brings a little girl energy into her life. He says, girl energy. Violet hates nothing if not that. She says, their families are meshing in a very fun and healthy way, and he says, Cam did add him to his family group chat. She says, see? and he says, Aiden did tell him that he was happy to offer any baking advice, as long as he returns the favor. She asks what Aiden needed advice on, and Finn says, somebody he likes. Their name is Tobias.

Jordan says, all the things TJ pointed out were true, but there are other truths too. Really wonderful, beautiful ones. Kristina is having his baby. They’re both healthy. The pregnancy’s going well, right? He says, the baby’s developing beautifully, and Jordan says, a gift Kristina is giving him out of love for her sister. Come on. Who’s more motivated than her to make sure everything keeps going okay?

Alexis hands Danny something from the vending machine and says she hates hospitals. He says, him too, and she says she hates waiting even more, but unfortunately, that’s what they’re going to have to do. He says, it beats being at home. If something happens, they’re close. That sounds dumb, doesn’t it? She asks, why? and he says, it’s not like there’s anything they can do to help him. She says, a long time ago, she was in the exact same circumstance Danny is in now. His mom was hurt, and she was desperate to do something to try and fix it and all she could do was wait for the doctors to fix it. He says, and they did, and she says, they did. And she thinks that’s what’s going to happen for Dante.

Sasha asks why Cody isn’t waiting with Dante’s family, and he says, because he’s not family. He doesn’t want to intrude. She asks if they even know he’s here, and he says he doesn’t know. She says, he’s Dante’s oldest friend. She’s sure they’d welcome his support. He says, they have each other, and she asks who he has. He says, that’s just it. Like pretty much most of his life, it’s just been him. He’s used to taking care of himself. She tells him, so that’s just the way it is, huh? and says pretty much. She says, wow. She thinks it’s about time he learns a new way.

Carly says, Sonny knows Jason wasn’t trying to shoot him, but Sonny says, no, he doesn’t know. She asks what he’s talking about. This is Jason. He’s risked his life for Sonny so many times. Why would Jason try to kill him? He says he doesn’t know. He doesn’t know where Jason’s been the last two and a half years before he showed up tonight. All he knows is, Jason was on the roof with a guy, trying to kill him. And he also knows, when Jason left the roof, Dante went after him.

John says, don’t do anything stupid, when Anna comes around the other side with another officer. She says she doesn’t know what’s going on, but he can’t keep running. Let them take him into custody and they can sort this all out. Please. Come on. Jason jumps off the bridge and into the water. Anna and John look over the railing, and John says, he’s gone. Son of a bitch.

Elizabeth says, Aiden told Finn about Tobias? and Finn says, yeah. His name came up when Aiden was helping him with one of his burnt brownie situations… Wait. Please tell him that she knew, because… She says she knew. Aiden confided in her over Christmas, but he said he wasn’t ready yet to tell anyone else. Finn says he guesses Aiden is now. Or ready to tell him at least. Brownie bonding’s a real thing. She says, apparently, and he says, anyway, no big deal, right? She says, that Aiden’s gay? No. That he felt comfortable enough to tell Finn? She thinks her heart just exploded. He says, they can’t have that. Her heart’s very important to him. They kiss.

Jordan says she thinks what it all boils down to is, does TJ trust Kristina to do what’s in the baby’s best interest? He says, yes, and she says, then in her opinion, the good outweighs the bad. He can’t control everything. He says, why not? and she says, wouldn’t it be nice if we could? (Yes!) All he can do is hope and believe the outcome will be positive. Otherwise, he’ll be paralyzed. He says, that’s exactly how he feels when the anxiety creeps in. He’s frozen. She says she doesn’t blame him one bit. He’s still dealing with the trauma of the last surrogate’s miscarriage. This is scary, and things don’t always go as planned. He says he really needs this to go as planned, and she says she knows. In a perfect world, every pregnant woman would be sitting in a garden with her feet up, surrounded by beauty and calm, ingesting the perfect combination of nutrients. He says, exactly, and she says, but that’s not reality for most people. It certainly wasn’t for her, but guess what? She survived and so did he. He says, they did, didn’t they? and she says, all her way of saying, the odds are actually in his favor.

Maxie asks if Spinelli is having second thoughts, and he says, about what? She says, letting Jason go to jail instead of her, and he says, no. She says, it’s okay if he is, but he says he’d do anything for her. She knows that. And being here with her right now was the only place he wanted to be. She says, stranded in the middle of nowhere, with an empty gas tank, and he says, yes, so he’s not having second thoughts. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t feel guilty. The FBI now knows who they’re looking for and that’s on him, as they say. She says, he was backed into a corner. She loves Jason, but he’s the one who decided to let his face be seen. So whatever happens next is on him, not Spinelli. Spinelli says, whatever happens next… Any guesses what that’s going to be? She says she does know Jason won’t give up without a fight. So neither will they.

Alexis says, would it horrify Danny if she said she thought they were a little bit alike? and he asks why that would horrify him. She says, because she’s comparing a teenage boy to his grandma, and he says, she’s the coolest grandma he knows. She gives him a side hug and says she thinks when they see an injustice, they want to do what they can to make it right. That’s why she thinks he should go back to the Quartermaines, because Scout is a night owl and she’s going to need him when she wakes up. And that’s a good thing he can do tonight. It may not make it right, but it can make it better. He agrees and says, let’s go.

Carly says, Jason didn’t shoot Dante, and Sonny asks if Jason told her that. She says, no. They didn’t talk about Dante. They didn’t have time to talk about much at all. Sonny asks what Jason said, and she tells him, he said her name. She walked in the house, and she was going up the stairs, and he said her name. She turned around and he was standing there. She thought she was hallucinating, but she wasn’t. He was right there. Sonny asks, what happened next? and she says she hugged him. She realized he was shot, and she went to get the first aid kit. He asks if Jason told her who shot him, but she says, no. He says, it could have been Dante shot Jason by mistake, not knowing it was Jason, and Jason shot back at him, shooting to kill. She says, he doesn’t know any of that’s true, and he says, what he does know is that his son is in a hospital bed with two bullets in his chest. And Jason is an expert shot who never misses. (Yeah, exactly. So why would he miss Sonny three times?)

Anna says she wants a search team on both sides of the river from here to the lake. Find him and you bring him back. Go. Thank you. John asks, why come here? and Anna says, Jason built his bridge. Doesn’t he remember? This used to be an ornamental bridge, like the Pont Neuf in Paris. He says, oh yeah. Kids used to dare each other to come out here. She says, after Stone died, Jason and Robin became close, and they used to meet out here. Robin told her that. The bridge was unsafe and eventually the city tore it down, she guesses about ten, fifteen years ago. Jason donated money and they built it in the same spot. John says, seems like an odd time to check out his public works project, and she says, having spent a lot of time out here, she’s assuming there’s a structure somewhere he could hide and regroup, nearby. That’s why he headed here. John says, now he’s in the river and probably dead.

Finn says he should get going, but Elizabeth says, no, stay. He says, early morning surgery, and she says, right. She thanks him for coming over and says she’s sorry for being late, but he says he’s not. She says, thank you, and he says, not because he didn’t get to spend more time with her, but because he got to spend some time with Jake. He’s a really good kid. She says she knows he is, and Finn says, she has a lot to do with that. She says, this parenting thing is not for the faint of heart, and he says, they’re doing okay, aren’t they? She says, it’s a lot easier now that she has him, and they kiss. Finn says, goodnight, and leaves, giving her a last smile before he closes the door.

Spinelli says, if he hasn’t told her, he appreciates Maxie’s willingness to work with him, despite his subterfuge. She says he doesn’t have to keep bringing that up. Yes, she was hurt and angry he lied, but his heart was in the right place. He says, with her. His heart is and always has been with her. He takes her hand, and she asks why he’s the sweetest. He says he doesn’t know, and she laughs. They kiss, and he says, so all’s well that ends well? She says, yeah. So when can he move out?

Sasha says she doesn’t care how uncomfortable it makes Cody. A lot of people in this town care about him. She’s one of them. He says, noted, and she says, so no toughing it out alone, okay? He says, if she insists, and she says she does. He asks if he should get them some coffee. It’s probably going to be a long night. She says, cream, and they say together, no sugar. She says, he knows her coffee order? and he says he pays attention.

Jordan says, TJ is kind, compassionate, incredibly gifted. She tells anyone who will listen about her son the doctor. She loves him. He says he loves her too, and they hug. She says, and she cannot wait to meet her grandchild and see what kind of dad he’s going to be. He says, let’s hope a good one, and she says she has no doubt. He leaves.

Sonny gestures to Sam and she comes out of Dante’s room. He says he didn’t mean to pull her away from Dante, but there’s something she should know. She says, what’s up? and he says, they were able to get an ID of the guy on the roof. She asks if he means someone who was involved in Dante’s shooting. Who? He says, it’s Jason. He’s alive.

Still on the roof, Carly says, Jason, wherever you are, please be okay.

Anna asks John, isn’t that one of the first rules of police work? Never assume anything? He asks if she thinks Jason survived the fall, and she says she thinks that’s why he jumped; he thought he could survive the fall. He’d rather take his chances with the river than be taken into custody. John says, it makes sense… if he put two bullets into Dante Falconari. Better to jump than be charged with killing a cop.

Clutching his side, Jason walks into the Quartermaine boathouse, shuts the door, and keels over.

Tomorrow, Kristina asks Blaze, what about this morning is so special; Sam tells Michael, there’s always room for one more; Laura says, Heather is soon to be someone else’s problem; Carly asks why Drew is so convinced Jason is guilty; and Jason says he needs someone’s help.

Below Deck

Kerry calls Jared to the flybridge, then shows him a drain on deck that guests shouldn’t see. Fraser names the French toast with no eggs Tina toast, and the other guests say they haven’t seen primary Tina since 9 last night. In Anthony’s interview, he says, tomorrow is the anniversary of his dad’s death. His daddy was his world, and he feels like his dad is watching him. We flash back to Jared saying, the guests want a friendly game of volleyball, and the deckhands get the volleyball equipment together. Guest Eileen joins the others, and we flash back to her head boinking off the jacuzzi. She apologizes for her bad behavior, and Jared tells Captain Kerry that Eileen is a liability. The captain tells him to keep an eye on her. She’s not getting on the ski. In Captain Kerry’s interview, he says, if something happens, they’re a-holes, but if they stop something from happening, they’re a-holes. He once duct taped a guest to the bed. The captain tells Fraser about Eileen’s drunken fall, and Fraser says he wants to talk to Barbie when she’s free. The guests sit for breakfast, and Fraser presents Tina toast, but Tina looks underwhelmed. Maybe she’s just hung over. Fraser says, their energy is soul sucking. Captain Kerry asks Barbie to see him for an update when she gets the chance. Eileen pretends she was a champion volleyball player, but the guests and I are skeptical. Maybe a champion at beer pong. Captain Kerry suggests Sunny learn more about the tender, and in his interview, he says he likes to give the crew an opportunity to learn and grow. If he can encourage Sunny to move forward, he’s going to do that. That’s one thing I like across the board with the captains in this franchise. They all seem to help the crew advance in the field as much as possible.

The crew finishes packing up the volleyball stuff, and in Cat’s interview, she wonders if Barbie has ever done her own laundry. In Barbie’s interview, she says she took a laundry course, but she doesn’t think she learned much. Captain Kerry tells Jared that when he comes back, he’s going to teach Cat the longboard, and in the captain’s interview, he says he can see Cat’s not fitting in. We flash back to Fraser saying that Cat was going through things, and the captain says, the board is his meditation, and he wants to give Cat the opportunity to get away from the boat, center on herself, and get back to full capacity. Barbie says she can’t do water sports. It ruins her hair and makeup. In her interview, Barbie says, Cat’s therapy is salt water. She has to be the bigger person and just be here. I’m so excited for you.

Grand Mal, Grenada, second day of charter. The crew and guests head out for volleyball, and the crew talks strategy on the way. The teams are Chicago for the guests, all of them wearing matching T-shirts, and the Crop Top team for the crew. Fraser says he remembers some cheerleading songs, but Xandi says, maybe he doesn’t need to sing. Captain Kerry asks Barbie about Eileen, and Barbie says, she doesn’t seem injured, but she needs to cut Eileen off and doesn’t know how. The captain suggests giving her just a little alcohol in her drink. He should specify after a couple of drinks when she’s less likely to notice. Old bartender trick. He tells Barbie that if she gets in a place where she’s uncomfortable, get him. Guest Barbara says, the game is being taken way too serious, and Eileen says, this is ace and I’m drunk AF already. Back at the boat, Cat has her boarding lesson, while on the boat, Barbie bitches and says, f***ing Cat. She tells Kyle that she wants to jump off the boat and go home. Bye, girl. The guests win 21 to 19, while Jared tells Cat that she did it, just before she falls. Cat gets back on the boat and tells Barbie that she should go on a break, but Barbie says she can’t take a break. In Cat’s interview, she says she doesn’t think Barbie wanted her to go out and have fun. Fraser asks if the guests are ready to rumble, and they head back to the boat. In Jared’s interview, he says, the last time he spoke to his daughter was two weeks ago, between the lack of service and his hours. He wants to be a great father. He knew people with no father, and they were hurt and vulnerable. He wants his daughter to be strong and have support, someone to rely on. He tries texting ex Veronica again, but it’s a fail. In Barbie’s interview, she says she looks up to Fraser, but they butt heads. They’re both honest and forward, but he has a filter, and she doesn’t. They have a toxic relationship right now. The guests come back, and Eileen says, here comes the winning team. Barbie says she wants to die.

Anthony says he’s making a five course Italian/Mediterranean fusion dinner. He loves Italian. He’s like a French Guido. Barbie tells Jared, this is the longest day ever, and in her interview, she says, the potential with Jared is dead. In Jared’s interview, he says he wants to see what the potential is going to be going down Barbie Lane. In her interview, Barbie says, no. Just no. Barbie tells Fraser that she’s unsure about the silverware. She’s used to having a chief stew who tells her what to do. Fraser asks if she wants him to tell her what to do, but she says, no. In Fraser’s interview, he says, Barbie has no respect for authority. He’s not going down the same route as last year with the lack of respect from Camille. We flash back to that, and he says, respect me or walk off. There’s no room for wavering. Fraser tells Anthony that Barbie is being passive/aggressive. If he hears she’s being insubordinate behind his back, it’s going to be a quick departure.

Eileen tells Tina that she loves that glass. Put it in her purse. I think she’s joking, but I’m not totally sure. Sunny tells Barbie that the captain asked her to practice with the tender, and Barbie says, she’s a badass chick. She’s thinking they should have a girls’ night when the guests leave. They can go to dinner early and grab a drink. The guests dress for dinner, and Fraser says, welcome to Italy. Guest Rob wonders what kind of insurance the boat has, because he’s taking that MF’er home. Having been hypnotized by the pizza porn for a moment, I’m not sure what MF’er he’s talking about. The dishes? The bar? Anthony? The boat itself? Fraser asks the guests if the captain can join them for dessert. Of course, they say yes, and when he gets out of earshot, Fraser says, these people are insufferable. Xandi says, Fraser is her type, but she doesn’t think she’s his, and in her interview, she says she was married and divorced at 22. They met in high school, and her dad and his mom had an affair. It lasted six months, but the damage lasted way longer. Captain Kerry joins the guests for dessert, and usually I say, if it’s not chocolate, it’s not worth it, but I’d definitely eat this beautiful confection. Surprisingly, the guests go to bed. Jared keeps trying to text Veronica, but has no luck.

Final day of charter, 6:05 am. Barbie texts the rest of the crew about girls’ night and says, they’ll all meet up later. Fraser tells Anthony that it’s a big day. How’s he feeling? In Fraser’s interview, he says, Anthony lost his dad 2 years ago and he came close to losing his. His father was diagnosed with cancer. He had a tumor the size of a baby’s fist in his esophagus. They were lucky; he kept his dad. Anthony wasn’t, so he’s here for him. Captain Kerry wants the anchor up, and my favorite porn, breakfast porn, is served. On their way to Port Louis Marina, Anthony is concerned that his mom is alone, and in his interview, he says his dad is probably proud of him. The last time his dad saw him, he was a waiter. His dad never saw him as a chef. They had a dream to open a Miami restaurant. Don’t worry, daddy. I will make it happen. Captain Kerry radios the interior to change channels for docking. Once again, Jared fumbles around, not quite understanding meters, distance, or what side of the boat he’s on. In the captain’s interview, he says, it’s stressful. He needs information. He needs to know what Jared sees, but Jared still has trouble. Ben says, Jared makes him anxious, and Kyle asks, what is he doing?   

Jared continues to flounder, but somehow the lines get tied. In Captain Kerry’s interview, he says he’s f***ing pissed. Fraser tells Cat that he’s proud of her this trip, and the crew gets ready to say goodbye to the guests. Tina says, the food and the service were amazing, and they’ll be back. The tip envelope is given to the captain, and the guests leave. In Jared’s interview, he says, bye, Felicia. The captain calls Jared to the bridge and tells him that if he’s on the starboard wing, he doesn’t need the distance for starboard. In his interview, the captain says, Jared has a lack of self-awareness. It can be learned, but he doesn’t think Jared has what it takes. He tells Jared that it’s a big boat and he has no idea what’s going on. Jared has to talk to him, or he’ll lose concentration. What if something goes to sh*t? There’s a lot going on. Jared says, the captain is crystal clear. Xandi tells Kyle that she thinks between 29 and 32 is when you go through the most changes (that’s random), but she’s tired of learning lessons.

It’s time for the tip meeting, and Captain Kerry says, everyone did a great job. The tip is $26K, or $2000 each, and he says, go have a good one, but don’t tie one on too hard. They have work tomorrow. Ben tells Sunny to get ready for her tender lesson, and in Sunny’s interview, she says she’s nervous, but excited. Canada is so cold. That’s why she enjoys yachting; she can escape that. She loves the Caribbean sun. Being the only girl on deck, she has to prove herself. Her goal is to be a bosun, and she’s ready for the challenge. Girl power. Fraser tells Anthony about the plan for a girls’/guys’ night before dinner, and Kyle sings, I’m in the mood for nine Coronas, then chugs a beer. That’s a lot of Coronas. The girls leave in one taxi and the guys in another. Barbie tells the bartender that they have four thirsty girls. We find out that she was also married at 22. Covid hit and they had to be around one another. The sex was minimal, and the love was minimal. In her interview, she says, they’d been in a relationship for a year, and she thought he was the one. She got used to him and settled. She says, he’s her best friend and they hang out. They’re still legally married, but neither one of them feels like doing the paperwork. At guys night, Fraser says, the chef doesn’t sleep, and on the next charter, they should all help him. Jared whines, what does Fraser think he’s doing now? and in Fraser’s interview, he says he knows they’re all going through sh*t, but Jared seemed to take an aggressive turn so quickly so after a few drinks. It’s a red flag.

Fraser explains that he’s suggested all of them make a go and do sh*t for Anthony, but Jared says he doesn’t know what more he can do. Maxi says, they need to stay together. They’re a family. They leave to meet the girls, and when Barbie sees Kyle, she says, hot vibes. There’s a band and the crew dances. Jared drinks more, and Cat calls her best friend, who asks if she’s okay. Cat says she’s trying to be herself, but she’s not vibing. Her friend says she’s sorry. It sounds lonely. Cat says, it feels lonely, and her friend says, a lot of people love her and are waiting for her to get back. On the way back, Fraser and Cat hug, and Barbie points out to Max that she shaved her legs, which compels him to feel them. Back at the boat, Fraser says, PJs or hot tub? And Barbie says, hot tub. Anthony goes to bed, and Captain Kerry gets up and wanders around. He sees Barbie and asks her to have everyone tone it down. She tells the others that the captain woke up and they have to stop yelling. Ben kisses Sunny and Kyle smokes a pipe. Ben and Sunny get busy in a cabin bathroom. Fraser says, mummy’s a tired girl, and heads to bed. Jared gets bent out of shape when he sees that Kyle has spilled some tobacco. He says, there’s no I in team, but who gets the blame? Me. Kyle cleans it up as Jared continues to bitch that his tobacco pouch is still open. Kyle and Barbie go to her cabin, while Jared curses and says, Kyle is pissing him off.

Barbie starts cleaning up her cabin, like you do when you’re drunk and bring home a good-looking guy, and says, it’s a mess. She can’t live like this. Jared comes to the door and says, Kyle’s f***ing tobacco pouch is still open, and tobacco is flying all over, which is more than a slight exaggeration. Kyle apologizes, and Jared stumbles around. Barbie goes back to straightening up, and Jared boomerangs back, saying, this is no joke. Make sure his tobacco isn’t all over the boat before Kyle goes to bed. He’s not here to clean sh*t up. Kyle says he’s up at four, and he’ll get it then. In Kyle’s interview, he says, simmer down. Kyle doesn’t need to talk to him like that. In Jared’s interview, he says he’s the boss, and Barbie tells Kyle that not everybody can handle drink. It’s a d*ck move. Kyle says he has thick skin. He’s been talked to worse than that. Jared cleans various things up around the boat while he mumbles, bitches, whines, and growls. He says he’s starting to get pissed off, and beats a path back to Kyle. He says, they need have chat now, and Kyle says he’s brushing his teeth. Kyle says he doesn’t care, and Barbie says, he’s on a roll tonight. Kyle follows Jared to the crew mess, still brushing his teeth. Jared makes him take his toothbrush out and put it on a napkin. Kyle says he was literally going to bed, but Jared says, at the end of the day, they have a job to maintain, and Kyle isn’t done. He’s cleaned a lot, but it’s not enough because it’s all wet. He wants Kyle to vacuum up his tobacco before he goes to bed. At the end of the day (drunk repeating), this is his house. He keeps on going until finally Captain Kerry appears and asks, what’s going on? He can hear Jared two decks up and he’s trying to sleep.

Next time, Cat says she’s over this sh*t; Captain Kerry asks Max and Barbie what happened with Jared; and the captain tells Jared that it’s the second time he’s had to discuss Jared’s bad behavior.

🪤 So Bad It’s Good…

However, NeNe looks fabulous, and Denise doesn’t have her clothes on upside down. This already premiered, but no doubt will be on constant rotation for a while.

https://extratv.com/2024/03/08/denise-richards-jokingly-compares-hunting-housewives-to-surviving-an-rhobh-reunion-exclusive

📲 Bring In Google STAT…

Since I’m a glutton for punishment, I keep trying to watch Love in Translation, one of the most stupid reality shows I’ve seen yet. The men speak English, but the women don’t, which might be interesting if everyone didn’t act like they were in middle school. The women talk rapidly in their native tongue, expecting these less than Einstein level lads to understand them, while the guys talk like you might to a child or someone from another planet, slow and loud. There are various challenges (for lack of a better word), like a more adult version of Spin the Bottle that just seemed juvenile and mean. MILF Manor was kinder.

https://www.tlc.com/shows/love-and-translation

⚰️ This Week In Ones…

A 500 year plan to make the world better than it was; Jadis has a secret file to be released in the event of her untimely demise: I confuse the CRM with PADRE for a moment; old world twisty weed pullers are now called kill sticks for zombies; maps hidden in a couch cushion; Rick tells Jadis that she’s a hero with a bad haircut; and when in doubt, kick that zombie. Read on…

https://www.cbr.com/the-walking-dead-the-ones-who-live-season1-episode3-recap-spoilers

🏆 An Honor Just To Be Nominated…

More later in the week, but here’s the winners. Hint to the Academy: Just because it’s boring doesn’t mean it has to win.

https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2024

And controversy!

https://people.com/oscars-2024-al-pacino-best-picture-winner-announcement-controversy-8607755

🎸 Rock ‘n’ Roll Part 645…

Join me tomorrow for soap and VanderBabble. Until then, stay safe, stay not adding your boss on social media, and stay making something better if you can’t make it right.

Yeah, I know it’s not the song that won, but I hate for him to be left out yet again. And what about Allan?

March 8, 2024 – Old Friends Meet Again, Reunion, Secret Side Gig, Diagnosis, New Soap, Bumping Along, No Shock, Salty Talk, No You, Those Ones, The Last, Uncle Oscar, Social Pets (!), A Handful Of Quotes & Survive

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Kristina comes into the hospital with Alexis and runs over to Sam, asking if she’s okay. She’s been worried about Sam ever since she heard about Dante. Alexis says, Molly’s still at the office. Otherwise, she’d be here. How’s Dante? Sam says she has good news.

On the phone, Anna tells Chase, great, and thanks him. She asks him to let her know when forensics has any information on that hoodie… Good. Call her back. John comes in and tells Anna that he heard about Dante. How’s he doing? She says, he’s out of surgery, and John says, good. There’s been a new development. He shows her the footage of Jason on his phone, and she says, is that… Jason Morgan? He says, that footage was taken tonight from the roof of Selina Wu’s warehouse. Now they know who was shooting at Sonny.

At the gatehouse, Michael paces and says he should be at the hospital, and Willow says she’s sure pacing here will help Dante as much as pacing there would. He says, like he doesn’t already feel useless enough, and she says she meant Michael’s good thoughts are reaching Dante no matter where he is. Also, she would have said anything to get him to stop. He says he’s sorry. He doesn’t mean to make her as crazy as this is making him. She says, he has every right to be worried about his brother. In the meantime, her fellow nurses are sending her regular updates. See? She shows him her phone, and he reads, no change… no change… no change. That’s good, right? That means that he’s stable? She says, and you didn’t even go to medical school. If Dante’s condition changes – for better, or God forbid, for worse – they’ll get someone to watch the kids and head right over to GH. He says he knows she’s right, but he feels so helpless, and she takes his hand.

In the chapel, Sonny and Ava come close to kissing, but hug instead. She says, sorry, but he says, she doesn’t have to apologize. He smiles at her.

Carly comes home and starts to head upstairs, when she hears Jason say, Carly? He steps out of the shadows, and they stare at each other.

Olivia runs into the chapel and says, there he is, and Sonny asks if there’s any news on Dante. She says, yes, and it’s the best. Their son made it through surgery. Sonny hugs her and she happy cries.

Sam says, they’re getting Dante set up in ICU. She’s glad they’re here. Alexis says, anytime, and Molly says, always, hugging Sam.

There’s a knock at the gatehouse door, and Michael says, it’s Dex and Joss. Willow answers and asks them to come in. She asks if they’ve been to the hospital to see Dante, and Josslyn says, yes. They had to give Commissioner Devane a statement and then she took Dex home to change. Dex says, lucky him. No one had cleaned out his apartment yet. Michael says he can’t thank them enough for what they did at the scene, and Willow says, one of the nurses said that Dante might not have made it if they hadn’t intervened. Thank you. Michael asks if they’re here with an update, and Josslyn says, not about Dante. He was still in surgery when they left the hospital. Dex says, but they do know something about the person who shot him.

Anna takes John’s phone and says, it’s impossible… Oh my God. If this is Jason, he would never work for anyone who would hurt Sonny. John says, they know he was on the roof. They know the shots came from the roof. They know Dante Falconari left the roof to pursue two people. Assuming one of them is Morgan, where would he go? She says, to Sonny, obviously, but he’s here. Or Sam. She looks over to see Sam sitting with Kristina and Alexis, and John says, anyone else? She says, yeah. There is one other person he would run to.

Carly says, Jason, and he says, it’s me. She says, it’s really you? and he says, it’s really me. She runs to him and hugs him, crying. She says, you came back. He says he’s sorry it took so long, and she asks where he’s been. What is he wearing?… He’s bleeding. Was he shot? He says, yeah, and she asks, how bad is it? He lifts his shirt and tells her that he’d say, it’s not bad. She tells him that he always says that, and he says, the bullet passed through. He could use a bandage. He’s going to be okay. She says she has a first aid kit, but she doesn’t want to leave him, and he says he’ll be here when he gets back. She says, promise her that he’ll be standing right there when she comes back downstairs, and he says he promises. She leaves, and he walks to the couch, slowly lowering himself onto it and breathing heavily.

Olivia’s phone dings and she says, Sam just texted her Dante’s room number. Sonny says, let’s go, and tells Ava that he’ll see her later. Ava says she’s so happy about Dante, and Olivia thanks her. She and Sonny run into Nina at the door, and Nina says she heard what happened. Is Dante okay? Olivia says, he made it through surgery. They’re just going to see him in ICU. Nina says, thank God. She’s sure he’s going to be fine. Olivia says, they’re going to see him now, and Nina says, of course (🍷). Sonny brushes past her, and she tells Olivia to please give Dante her best. Olivia says she will, and follows Sonny. Nina goes into the chapel and asks Ava, what’s going on? What the hell happened tonight?

Diane goes to the reception desk, and says, maybe the nurse can help her. Alexis tells Kristina and Sam that she’ll meet them upstairs, and hands Sam a bag, saying, change of clothes, toiletries, snacks. Sam thanks her and says, it completely slipped her mind. The elevator comes, and Alexis says, call her the minute they need her. As the doors close, Kristina says, what snacks? and Sam says, they’re not for her, but Kristina says she’s eating for two. Alexis goes over to Diane, who asks if by any chance she’s seen Sonny around. She knows he’s waiting on word. Alexis says she hasn’t seen Sonny, but she did hear that Dante made it through surgery and he’s in the ICU. Diane says, excellent, and Alexis says she guesses Diane is representing Sonny’s associates who are in custody. Diane says, yeah, and she’s got to update him on the situation, so she has to find him. Excuse her. Alexis says, not so fast. Where does she think she’s going?

Dex says, when they found Dante, someone had already given him first aid. They’d elevated his legs and wrapped a sweatshirt around him as a pressure bandage. Josslyn says, there was also a phone lying next to him with a line to 911. Michael says, so the person who shot Dante also tried to help him, and Josslyn says, yes and they were also risking being recognized because Dante could have seen their face. Dex says, it looks that way, and Michael says, none of this makes any sense. Willow says, why would they shoot Dante and then call 911? and Dex says, maybe they didn’t want to go down for killing a cop? Michael says, there’s another possibility here. What if the shooter helped Dante because he knows him?

Outside the ICU, Sam hugs Olivia and Kristina hugs Sonny and asks how he is. He says he’s fine. The only damage was to his coat. She says, he’s lucky. He’s not bulletproof. He asks how she’s doing and she says, frantic at first when mom first called to tell her about Dante. He wonders if it’s too much stress for the baby, but she says, the way she sees it, with this family, the sooner the baby learns to handle stress, the better. He asks how she’s really doing, and she says, it’s interesting how your body reacts to stress when you know it’s bad for the baby. And also, pushing the stress down could make it worse. She’s just doing a lot of breathing. He smiles and says he bets she is. She says, but Dante is doing better and seeing Sonny helps, and he says, right back at her. Take care of herself, okay? She says, of course (🍷), when a nurse comes out. Olivia asks, how’s her son? and the nurse says, Mr. Falconari is in critical condition, but his vitals are stable. Sam asks if they know when he’s going to wake up, but she tells them, it’s too soon to say. She leaves, and Sam says, Sonny and Olivia are his parents; they go in first. They go in and Sam hugs Kristina.

In the ICU, Sonny says, hey, son, and Olivia says, they’re here.

Diane says she’s got to go find Sonny, but Alexis says, not until Diane tells her why she’s been avoiding her. Diane says she hasn’t really been avoiding Alexis, she just had the feeling perhaps Alexis wasn’t too thrilled with her right now. Alexis wonders if there was some sort of a knockdown, drag out fight that she blacked out, because she’s been sober for a while now and thinks she would have known. Diane says, no. She just knows Alexis wanted her to represent Finn in the malpractice case, and not only was she not able to do that, she was the plaintiff’s attorney, and she got the feeling Alexis was a little unhappy with her. Alexis says, it’s her that Diane is talking to. She hasn’t been disbarred for that long. She knows how lawyers work. She knows what they do. Diane was doing her job. It’s not personal. Diane says she’s glad to hear it, and Alexis says, if Diane was worried about this, why didn’t Diane talk to her? Diane says, normally, she wouldn’t have thought twice about that, but this is Finn they’re talking about, and she knows he’s important to Alexis. Alexis says, and Diane is important to her as well. What she was really disappointed in was that she couldn’t represent him, and she does miss mopping the floor with Diane in court. Diane laughs and says, mopping. She doesn’t think that word means what Alexis thinks it means. Anyway, if Alexis did mop the floor with her, it certainly wasn’t as often as she seems to think. Alexis says she knows exactly how often it was, which is why she misses it, and Diane says she misses going toe to toe with Alexis as well, but jurisprudence loss is journalism’s gain. Alexis says, well, journalism is about to experience another devastating loss.

Ava tells Nina, Sonny and Selina were having a perfectly harmless, perfectly legal conversation, when Anna burst in with the FBI, guns blazing like some kind of raid. Nina says, how terrible, and Ava says, tell her about it. Nina says, it must have been frightening, and Ava says she guesses it was a little. Nina asks what Ava was doing there, and Ava says she thought she could be of some use. Nina asks what she was thinking, and Ava says she had to be there. She was tired of sitting on the sidelines, worrying if Avery was going to end up as collateral damage and that Sonny might… that Avery might lose her father. Nina asks what the active role was that Ava was playing, and Ava says, they had to sell the idea that Selina and Sonny were meeting with a mediator to settle their business conflicts, and Nina asks, how is Ava, the mother of one of Sonny’s children, an impartial mediator? Ava says she used to be in that world, so who better? Nina says she guesses, and Ava says, there’s no way to know if it would have worked anyway because the cops showed up, and that was that. Nina says she can sort of see why Ava did it, but what if something had gone wrong, which it kinda did, Ava could have gotten shot too or killed. Ava says she guesses she could have been. Anybody could have been. They all had to duck for cover. Nina says she’s glad Ava wasn’t. She doesn’t know what she’d do if she lost Ava.

Michael says he appreciates Dex coming back. It’s a good thing he did because he might have saved Dante’s life. Dex says, not alone. Joss did just as much as he did. Josslyn says, honestly, she thinks the only reason Dante was still alive when they got there was because of the pressure bandage. And the only reason Dante was even able to get to the hospital was because that person called 911. Willow asks if it isn’t possible that whoever helped Dante had nothing to do with the shooting, and they were a good Samaritan who had their own reason for not wanting anybody to know they were there. Dex says, they left the pier as soon as the paramedics took Dante away, but Chase and the cops were there collecting evidence, so they have the cellphone and the sweatshirt that was used as a bandage. Maybe it’s enough to track this guy down.

Carly comes back and sits on the sofa with Jason. She says she’s sorry, but she’s going to have to clean it. She puts an antiseptic cloth on the wound and Jason stifles a groan. She says she doesn’t want it to get infected. She just wants to get it clean. He says he thinks it’s clean, and presses a pad to it. She asks how he’s here. She wishes she could call her mom and ask how to help him. He says, no. Do not call Bobbie. She says she can’t. She died. He says, Bobbie’s dead? and looks like he wants to cry. Carly says, yes, already crying. There’s a knock at the door, and Anna says, police. Open the door.

Michael asks if they saw Sonny at the hospital, and Josslyn says, they saw him, he saw them, but they didn’t speak. Dex says, he was with Olivia and Sam. They were all waiting outside the trauma room while Dante was in surgery. Willow says, it was good of them to come to the house and tell Sam and Olivia what happened. She’s glad they got to see him. Josslyn says, one last time? She can’t even think about it. She cannot think about Rocco losing his father. She can’t think about Avery and Donna losing their big brother. But they all know that this could happen. Yes, Dante’s the cop and he takes risks, but they have to be honest here. This would not be happening if it wasn’t for Sonny. (Not necessarily, since he’s not the only target.)

Olivia and Sonny watch Dante, one on either side of the bed. Sonny strokes Dante’s hair and Olivia kisses Dante’s forehead.

Diane tells Alexis that she’s obviously appalled. She can’t say she’s surprised. Alexis tells her, thanks. She always knows just what to say. Diane says, yes, she does. And while a publisher does have the right to overrule an editor, but when it comes to hiring an individual journalist, it seems like a breach of trust. (I dunno. It seems kind of petty IMO. Certainly nothing to quit over.) Alexis says, Nina is all about trust, and Diane laughs. She says, an Editor-in-Chief has the right to determine who does and does not work for the paper, and Alexis says, right. If Nina had recommended a columnist, she could decide whether or not to hire said columnist. That would have been one thing. Diane says, but that’s not what happened, and Alexis says, no. She made a unilateral decision. There was no collaboration. Diane says, so what is she going to do? and Alexis says she’s going to not think about this right now. She’s going to concentrate on her daughter and helping her through this crisis. Diane says, of course (🍷). Of course (🍷) her family always takes first priority. But just so Alexis knows, she has a right to bitch about the b… boss.

In Dante’s room with Sam, Kristina says, so, bro, opening day is right around the corner. She knows he’s not going to miss that, especially since it’s the Yankees’ year. She was at the pub the other day and the game was on. This one bartender is a huge Sox fan, and they were joking around back and forth for a while. By the end of the game, she found herself rooting for them, and she thought, man, her brother is going to kill her. Since he’s been in here, it’s like the whole world’s upside down.

Nina tells Ava that she’s so worried about Sonny. Her marriage is not in the best shape right now, but she loves him. She doesn’t want anything to happen to him, and she’s terrified that whoever’s out to kill Sonny might succeed, and she doesn’t want to have to worry about Ava too. Ava says, she doesn’t have to. Rest assured, after this little misadventure, she’s laying off any derring-do in the future. Nina says, good. This is insane, right? She knows Sonny has enemies, but this? Ava says, for what it’s worth (🍷), they’re getting closer to the truth, and Nina says, wait. Does Sonny know who’s behind this? Does Ava? Ava says, no, she swears, and holds up her hand. Nina says, Ava has no idea? Come on. She needs to know who’s trying to kill her husband.

On the porch with John, Anna tells Carly to open the door, and John says, big house, other entrances. Let’s try one. They start to leave, when Carly opens the door and asks, what’s going on? Anna asks if they can come inside, but Carly says, not until they tell her what’s going on. Anna says, she’s aware Dante was shot earlier this evening, and Carly says, yes. Anna says, they’re pursuing a suspect, and Carly says, okay, but what does that have to do with her? Anna says she’ll explain. May they come inside? Carly says, yeah, and leads them into the living room. Anna says she believes Carly has met her colleague Federal Agent Cates, and Carly says, yes, hello Agent Cates. John says, Miss Spencer, and Carly says, okay. What’s this about a suspect? Anna says, she might want to sit down, and Carly says, why? What’s going on? Did something happen to one of her kids? Anna says, no. Not as far as she knows. It has nothing to do with her children. Carly says, then why does Anna want her to down? and Anna says, Jason Morgan is alive. Jason listens from upstairs.

Sam sits by Dante’s bed and kisses his hand.

Nina says, it’s obvious Ava knows more about this than she’s saying, but Ava says, if she had anything concrete to tell Nina, she would. Nina says, but she’s open to hearing theories, and Ava says, theories are just as good as random guesses right now. Just when we think we have a picture, new pieces appear, and the pieces don’t fit. Nina says, we? Sonny and her? Ava says, and Selina Wu, and Nina says she can sort of understand why Sonny isn’t telling her any of this, but she’d think Ava would realize how important this is to her. Ava says, even when things were good between Nina and Sonny, he kept Nina out of his business dealing, didn’t he? Nina says, yes, he did, but Ava isn’t in the business anymore, and Ava says she was. She knows how it works. She knows the players. She knows that it wouldn’t make sense for Sonny to confide in her about anything else, but in this particular circumstance, she’s a resource. She knows this has got to be frustrating. It has to be frustrating being on the outside looking in, but believe her, Nina doesn’t want to be on the inside… Nina says, this isn’t just about her feeling excluded. Does Ava understand, Sonny is her husband? He needs her, whether he wants to admit that or not. She can’t even support him through this. Ava says, she’s right. Sonny needs as many people in his corner as possible. Nina says, then tell her what’s going on and stop playing Switzerland and Ava says, the last thing she is right now is neutral. Nina says, then why won’t Ava help her with her husband?

Diane says, Sonny’s guards are not under arrest, either federal or local, for now. Sonny thanks her for doing that, and she says, he’s still going to have to answer some questions, make a statement. She can’t imagine Agent Cates is going to be giving him a reprieve earlier than tomorrow morning. He says, Agent Cates can wait until hell freezes over. His priority is his son. She asks, how is Dante? and Sonny says, he’s frail and defenseless, but he’s a fighter. It’s just, sometimes it’s not enough. She says, come on. After everything he’s been through, Dante’s not going to give up on this life. He thanks her and she asks, how is he? He says, she knows him. He just wants to find out who did this and take care of the situation.

Michael says he’s not saying they’re wrong… Josslyn says, but he wants her to let go of her anger for the sake of the family and because it’s not doing her any good, right? He tells her, what he was going to say is that Sonny knows he played a part in what happened to Dante. It’s got to be killing him. She says she knows it’s his son, okay? But she has trouble feeling sorry for Sonny when they have to constantly see people they love get hurt. Willow says, something she’s really started to learn since becoming a nurse, for a lot of people it’s more bearable to be angry than it is to be afraid. So while Josslyn has every right to be angry at Sonny, maybe it’s also a way to feel less afraid for Dante. Josslyn considers that and says, yeah. There was a moment on the pier with Dante where his heart stopped beating and they couldn’t get a pulse. Dex was doing chest compressions, and she was doing the rescue breathing. But he was shot in the chest and there was this voice in her head saying, what if you’re doing it wrong? What if we’re the people who kill Dante? She starts to cry, and Michael dashes over to her, hugging her.

Jason continues to listen, and Carly asks if this is some kind of a joke. Jason died in Greece. Anna says, that’s what they thought… but Carly says, stop. She doesn’t get to do that. Anna doesn’t get to show up at her house in the middle of the night and tell her Jason’s alive. She’s been grieving him every day for the past two years. Do they have proof? If they do, she wants to see it. If not, nighty-night. John says, they have proof. Does she want them to show her? He takes out his phone and hands it to her. She looks at the shot of Jason, and John says, that was taken earlier this evening, on the roof of a warehouse at 257 Water Street. They confiscated it from somebody they believe she knows – Jason makes a face – Damien Spinelli. Carly asks if they’re 100% sure Spinelli took this tonight, and Anna says, in the past four hours, yes. Carly says, and it’s real? Jason’s alive? Anna says, yes, and with her permission, they’d like to search the house for him. The look on Jason’s face says, oh, great.

Nina says, she and Ava have been through a lot. They’re friends, right? Ava says, no friend – and there haven’t been many – has been as loyal and generous to her as Nina has. Nina says, then help her with Sonny, and Ava asks if Nina has signed the divorce papers. Nina says she can’t bring herself to even look at them, let alone sign them, and Ava says, good. Then don’t. Nina says, no problem on her end, but sooner or later, Sonny is going to insist, and Ava says, don’t worry about that. They’re going to come up with a plan. Nina says, what plan would that be? and Ava says she’s going to help Nina save her marriage. Nina says, that would be amazing. She just hopes it’s not too late. Ava asks why she would think it’s too late, and Nina says she’s afraid the longer she and Sonny are apart, his feelings for her are going to fade. That he’s going to force himself to forget what they have together. Or worse, he’s going to decide to move on with someone else. Ava flashes back to almost kissing Sonny, and says, well, they just can’t let that happen. They laugh and hug each other.

Sonny finds Sam outside the ICU and says, any changes? She says she wishes. She felt like she needed to stretch her legs a little. She’s feeling pretty useless. He says, it helps Dante to know she’s here, and she says she knows. He says, she looks beat, and she says, thanks. (What every woman wants to hear.) He says he’ll stay here, and she can go home to rest, but she says she’s not leaving Dante. Sonny’s been here all night. Why doesn’t he go home and get some rest? He says he thinks he’s going to stick around for a while, and they hug. Sam goes back into the ICU, and Sonny watches through the window.

Amelia is heard crying on the baby monitor and Willow says she’d better go handle that before Amelia wakes up Wiley. Josslyn asks if she can come with Willow. She could use a hug. Willow says, of course (🍷) she can, and they go upstairs. Michael tells Dex that his sister is crazy about him, and Dex says, the feeling’s mutual. Michael says, but he’s not sure he’s going to stay? and Dex says, it’s not about what he wants; it’s about what’s best. Michael says, for who? and Dex says, for Joss. Michael tried to tell him once to go and he was right. Their lives are just too different. The best thing he can do for Joss is to just leave and stay gone.

Carly gives John his phone back, and says, they want to search her house for Jason? Anna says, they do, and Carly says she just found out he’s alive. She doesn’t know if she believes them. She doesn’t know if Spinelli gave them that footage. She doesn’t even know if it’s real. Anna says, Jason is familiar with this house, right? The layout, the security system. Carly says, yeah, but… and Anna says, could it be, he slipped inside without her knowledge? Carly says, they’re not searching her house. They don’t have her consent. They don’t have her permission. And if they don’t get the hell out of her house, she’s going to call her lawyer. John says, they asked as a courtesy. They don’t need her permission. They have a warrant. Upstairs, Jason grips his side.

On Monday, Anna says, Carly gets out of their way, or she gets arrested; Jake swears it’s not what it looks like; on the phone, Carly says, call her back as soon as possible and find a way to stop them; and Sam asks if Sonny understands what she’s asking him to do.

👟 Like An Old Shoe…

Let the good times roll.

🤫 She’s Got a Secret…

It’s a movie and she’s in it.

💉 Art and Life Combine…

Talk about ironic.

💃🏾 It’s About Time…

This sounds just like what daytime needs, a fresh resurgence. Hopefully, it won’t be opposite GH.

🤰🏼 Giving You Lala…

It’s all about that bump.

https://people.com/lala-kent-happy-pregnant-baby-bump-jumpsuit-8604953

https://www.eonline.com/news/1396532/pregnant-lala-kent-says-shes-raising-baby-no-2-with-this-person

https://www.bravotv.com/the-daily-dish/lala-kent-reveals-her-mcdonalds-pregnancy-craving

⌛️ Comes As a Surprise To No One…

Love bubble bursting as we speak.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1396587/teresa-giudice-and-luis-ruelas-marriage-is-under-fire-in-explosive-rhonjs-season-14-trailer

🧂 Contains Less Salt…

Isn’t it ironic that for her to feel seen, there had to be less of her? I don’t know how she can possibly help her daughters feel empowered when she’s given her power away.

https://people.com/rhoslc-heather-gay-felt-pressure-before-taking-ozempic-showed-her-body-positivity-big-lie-8603562

🤼 Shot For Shot… 

Let the lawsuits commence.

⚰️ News Of the Ones…

A peek at episode 3.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-the-ones-who-live-episode-3-clip-rick-grimes-jadis-bye

And already asking about Season 2.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/will-there-be-the-walking-dead-the-ones-who-live-season-2-rick-grimes-michonne

🌁 What’s Up With Us…

Details emerge. Some people take this way too seriously.

https://www.cbr.com/new-the-last-of-us-tv-location

Mostly old news, but in case you want a refresh.

https://www.polygon.com/23634196/last-us-season-2-release-date-cast-news

The parallel world of the game.

https://screenrant.com/the-last-of-us-season-2-casting-faithful-game

🏆 Here Comes the Big One…

The nominations.

https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2024

About the show. March 10, 2024, at 7:00 PM EDT.

https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/oscars-2024-watch-96th-academy-awards/story?id=107851439

My dream. Forget the award. I want one of these gift bags.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/oscars-gift-bags-2024

You, too, can have an Oscar party.

https://www.thegoldknight.com/2024/03/your-2024-oscar-party-essentials.html

🐕 Sharing the Cuteness…

Pets doin’ it for the ‘Gram.

https://www.eonline.com/photos/19657/celebrity-pets-on-instagram

Some might be dated, but it doesn’t make them any less cute.

https://www.etonline.com/gallery/paws-up-celebs-show-off-their-precious-pets-117103

🦧 Quotes of the Week

Sometimes bad clothes happen to good people. – Carson Kressley, Watch What Happens Live

We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.Martin Luther King, Jr.

Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect. – Chief Seattle (Once again, don’t step on any butterflies.)

Life is problems. Living is solving problems. – Raymond E. Feist

We must respect the past, and mistrust the present, if we wish to provide for the safety of the future. – Joseph Joubert

We do not remember days, we remember moments. The richness of life lies in memories we have forgotten. – Cesare Pavese

A study of economics usually reveals that the best time to buy anything is last year. – Marty Allen

🥇 A Winner In My Own Mind…

Make your mark on the weekend, then join me on Monday really Tuesday for soap and awful guests and/or crew on Deck. Until then, stay safe, stay giving from the heart and receiving graciously, and stay not turning your fear into anger. It doesn’t do you any good.

March 7, 2024 – John Gets What He Wants, Stoned, The Gossip, Opening Up, Love Song, That House, Final Bow, Petting Zoo & Super

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Jordan comes into the hospital and asks Laura how Dante is. Has she heard anything? Laura says, not yet. He’s still in the OR. Jordan says she knows how hard this is, but Dante is in the best possible hands here. They couldn’t ask for a better surgical team. She just spoke to Anna. The search for Dante’s shooter is ongoing. They found a few key pieces of evidence and they’re following up. The FBI is also involved. Olivia says she hopes they find the monster that did this to her son, and he’s locked up for the rest of his life, and Sam says, the doctors are doing everything they can for Dante, and they both know how stubborn he is. He’s going to fight this. Olivia says she knows. She’s just got to keep the faith. She thanks Sam for being there for her. She’d be falling apart if it wasn’t for her. But what about Sam? Who’s holding her up? Laura says, they all are, and takes Sam’s hand.

Brook finds Chase, and he asks what she’s doing here. It’s late. He told her that she didn’t have to come. She says, Dante’s her stepbrother. She’s known him for her entire life. She’d be here even if she wasn’t engaged to Chase, but she is. She can see he’s really worried about his partner, and when he hurts, she hurts. They hug.

Drew lets Carly into the Quartermaine mansion and thanks her for coming so quickly. She says, of course (🍷). She came right over. He says, Dante is still in the OR. Everyone’s gathered at GH and he’s watching the boys. Has she heard from Sonny? She says, no. She reached out, but she doesn’t want to push him and Olivia. Is there anything she can do here? How are Rocco and… Danny says, Rocco, what the hell? and the boys come out of the living room, Danny with a handheld game. Danny says, Rocco threw it so hard, he cracked the screen, and Rocco says, bill me, and keeps walking. Drew tells Danny not to worry about the game. They’ll fix it. Danny says, it’s just a stupid game. Rocco’s really hurting. He doesn’t want to deal with this. He just wants his dad.

Spinelli sits down and tells Maxie, it’s impossible. He’s alive and working against Sonny? She asks, who exactly did he see on that screen? He says he saw a dead man walking, and she asks what he’s talking about. He opens the laptop, and she says, oh… my… God. We see the shot of Jason, and she says, it can’t be, can it? He says, pixels don’t lie.

Ava says, it’s him, isn’t it? It’s Jason. Sonny says, it looks like Jason, but it’s a picture. Any digital footage can be manipulated. Why would he believe this is Jason?

Carly says she’s sure Olivia is relieved that Leo’s away with Ned right now, and Drew says, Ned had a business trip in Australia and Leo was out of school, so he took Leo to see the Great Barrier Reef. They’re on their way back after hearing the news about Dante. She says, so it’s just Rocco and Danny here with him and he says, yeah. He’s really worried about them. Rocco is an emotional kid. He wears his heart right on his sleeve. She says, what about Danny? and he says, Danny just pretends he doesn’t have any feelings at all. His phone rings and he asks Sam, how’s Dante? Sam says, he’s the same. She was just checking in to see how the boys are doing. How’s Danny? Drew says, he’s doing his best. He’s trying to hang in there for Rocco’s sake, but it’s not easy. She asks how Rocco is doing, and Drew says, he needs a hug. Sam thanks him for staying there. Help is on the way.

Sam asks if she can talk to Laura for a second and Laura says, of course (🍷). They step aside, and Sam wonders if she can ask Laura for a favor. Laura says, anything, and Sam asks if Laura can leave.

Brook asks if she can get Chase anything. When was the last time he ate? He says he doesn’t need food. He needs to feel like he’s doing something. He should be out there looking for whoever shot Dante. Jordan joins them and says, Anna thinks he’s too close to the situation and she’s right. Let her handle this. He’s right where he needs to be. Chase says he just feels so helpless, pacing around, not doing anything. He needs to feel like he’s helpful. He’s going to donate some blood. If Dante doesn’t need it, maybe somebody else will. He asks Brook to call him immediately if she finds anything out, and she says she will. He leaves, and Brook says, Jordan’s been in law enforcement a while. Jordan says she was, and Brook asks if she was ever in a similar situation; a partner or someone she’s close to got shot in the line of duty? Jordan says, more than once and it was a nightmare every time.

Maxie says, Jason’s alive. He didn’t die on Cassadine Island. Spinelli says, clearly, he survived the tunnel collapse, and she says, how? And if he’s alive, why didn’t he come home? He says, it makes no sense. Jason would never willingly stay away from… Someone knocks at the door and John says, FBI. They have a search warrant. Spinelli hits a key on the laptop, then unlocks the door. John comes in with another agent.

Ava says, that was her first thought too, this has got to be some kind of deepfake, and Sonny says, that’s the only thing that makes sense. She says, Spinelli verified it. It’s live footage, directly from the drone camera. It hasn’t been doctored. It’s real. He says, if that’s true, not only is Jason alive, he was at the warehouse tonight working with the shooter. She says, and Sonny was the target, which means his best friend is now his enemy.

Oliva wonders why they don’t have an update yet. What the hell is taking so long? Sam says, it’s a complicated surgery. Not having an update isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Olivia says she knows, but she’s going out of her mind. She just wants to know what’s going on in there. Sam says she was thinking about what they were talking about earlier, how Olivia said how strong Dante was and how much it took for him to come out of that PTSD. He did that for Olivia. He came back to her. Olivia says, Sam had a lot to do with that, and Sam says she’s still here and Dante is still here. And he’s a fighter. He’s not going to give up now.

Brook tells Jordan, Chase is a cop. She’s always known that, and she’s always known intellectually that what he does is dangerous, that he’s taking a risk every time he goes to work. Somehow, she convinced herself that he’ll be safe. That nothing will ever happen to him. Chase has always said Dante is the best cop he’s ever known; he’s smart and prepared. So if something like this could happen to Dante, then… Forget it. This is about Dante. This isn’t about her paranoia. Jordan says, she was right when she said Chase’s job carries risks, but if she has questions about that, then she really needs to talk to him. Brook says, Chase is in no condition to deal with that right now. He’s focused on Dante, and she doesn’t want him to misconstrue what she’s asking. He might think she doesn’t support him being a cop. Jordan says she gets that, and Brook says, Jordan was in the line of fire, putting her life on the line while her family was home, waiting to see when or even if she’d return. How did she make that work? Jordan tells Brook that she just said it. It’s work. And to be completely honest with Brook, her relationship to Curtis failed in part because she tried to compartmentalize her job from him, and it only drove them apart. Brook says, it sounds like she has some regrets about that, and Jordan says, it’s water under the bridge now, but her advice to Brook is, learn from her mistakes. Let Chase know that he doesn’t have to shield her from the risks of his job, but at the same time, Brook has to be honest with him. Don’t withhold her feelings or lie about her fears by denying what she’s feeling.

Drew says, it’s good to see Laura, although it would be nice if it were under different circumstances, and Carly asks if there’s any word on how Dante’s doing. Laura says she wishes she had some news for them, but when she left the hospital, he was still in surgery. Drew says, hopefully, they’ll be getting some news soon, and thanks Laura for coming. He assumes Sam filled her in. Laura says she’s aware of the situation, and Drew says he made it a little bit easier. Carly says, Drew has been with both the boys since they found out what happened to Dante. He’s been doing great, but they’re two different boys, so they have two different needs. Laura says she’s happy to help them, so may she suggest they divide and conquer? She’ll talk to her grandson and the two of them can focus on Danny? Carly thanks her and the boys come back. Rocco says he heard her voice. Is his dad okay? Laura says, he was still in surgery when she left the hospital, but he has the very best team of doctors and they’re doing absolutely everything they can. She knows he’s old enough to know the truth. She guesses the truth is, his dad’s got quite a fight on his hands.

Spinelli says, it’s an honor to finally make John’s acquaintance. His reputation precedes him. John says he’s heard about Spinelli. Damien Spinelli, computer genius and known associate of Sonny Corinthos. Spinelli tells him, he wouldn’t say genius. He dabbles. John says, and she is? and Spinelli says, a friend who has no idea what’s happening. In fact, she was just leaving. John says, she’s here, so she stays. They found Spinelli’s cameras all over the warehouse at 257 Water Street. They were run through a lot of proxy servers, so they couldn’t get a trace, but fortunately, they were able to identify his DNA on the hardware. Spinelli mumbles that he should have used gloves, and John says, he seems like a decent guy and someone who’s smart enough not to ruin the rest of their life on this. He has no desire to fold Spinelli into Sonny’s problems, but he’s tracking a team of gunmen, and Spinelli is the best lead he has. So if Spinelli would kindly show him what’s on that footage… Spinelli says, as much as he would enjoy cooperating with the FBI, he regretfully cannot help him. He shows John a black screen that says the data is missing.

Sonny tells Ava, if the footage is real, that doesn’t make any sense. They’ve always had each other’s back. If they had a problem with each other, Jason would come face to face and tell him, not shoot him from a safe distance. Ava says she knows how he feels about Jason. He was like a member of Sonny’s family. That was no secret. A lot of people knew that, right? Maybe somebody is trying to use that to their advantage. Sonny says, Jason would never let himself be used against him. They’ve been through a lot. Jason wouldn’t do that to him. She says, then she guesses he’s got to ask himself something. Why hasn’t Jason come to him to warn him when he knows those people want Sonny dead?

John says, put it back, and Spinelli says, put what back? John says, whatever he deleted from the surveillance footage, but Spinelli says, he couldn’t if he’d wanted to. There was no time. Maxie’s been here the whole time. Has she seen him do anything? She says she doesn’t understand how any of this works.

Brook asks, how’d it go? and Chase says, good. He was able to donate some blood and clear his head a little. She says she’s glad, and they hug. He asks what he missed, when Portia comes out. Sam asks, how’s Dante? and Portia says, she’s being told that the surgery is going well, but there’s a lot of damage. Sam asks, how much damage? and Portia says, he has trauma to his heart and to his lungs. He also has broken ribs and sternum, but Dr. Erikson and his team are making progress and Dante’s vitals are good. Olivia says, so he still has a chance?

Carly asks Danny to hold up a minute, and he asks, what’s up? She says she just wanted to check on him. See how he’s doing. Danny says, he’s Rocco’s dad, and Carly says she knows, but he’s a big part of Danny’s life. It’s okay to admit he’s upset, and he cares. He says he’s fine, but he’s got a lot of homework, so… He starts to go upstairs, and she asks if anyone ever told him that he’s just like his dad.

Laura says she understands there was a little incident with a video game tonight, and Rocco says, Danny’s a jerk to whine to them about it. He didn’t mean to break the stupid game. She says, Danny didn’t whine about it at all. Danny’s worried about him and so is she. He says he’s fine, and she asks what video game they were playing. He says, she wouldn’t know it, but she says, he might be surprised. She knows more than he thinks. She’s actually somewhat of a Super Mario Brothers expert. The kids played it all the time when they were growing up, so one day she decided to have a go at it because she wanted to know why they liked it so much and she has to say, she ended up getting a little bit addicted. He says, how addicted? and she says, it’s not like anybody had to do an intervention for her, but she did play a lot. In the beginning, she didn’t know what she was doing at all of course (🍷), but she picked it up pretty quickly and has actually been known to do a few speedruns. He says he wants to see that, and she says, maybe they should play together someday. He says his dad is really good at video games too. Maybe he can play with them when he gets better. She says, they can talk about what’s going on with his dad if he likes. She’s here to listen. He says he doesn’t think he wants to, and she says, okay. She just wants him to know it’s okay to be scared right now, because it’s a scary situation. He says, Danny isn’t scared, but she tells him that she doesn’t think she would say that. He may not know how to show it, but she knows he’s scared. She is too.

Maxie shows Spinelli her handcuffs and says, anymore bright ideas? Also in handcuffs, he says, it worked, didn’t it? and she shows him her cuffs again. He says, John didn’t see him do anything untoward, so she’s in the clear. Just follow his lead and everything will be fine. John joins them and says, let him guess. Spinelli rigged his equipment with a kill switch just in case he got caught. Spinelli gives a blank look, and Maxie says, wait a minute. He’s John Cates, the one who used to live in Port Charles. John says, he is. Why? Maxie says she remembers how much her stepdad talked about him. He really likes John. John asks, who’s her stepdad? and she says, Mac Scorpio. He says, she’s Maxie Jones? Wow. It has been a long time. She says she’s sorry it took her so long to recognize him. Mac is out of the country, otherwise she’s sure Mac would love to see him. He respects John so much. John says, the feeling’s mutual, and Maxie says, so she’s sure he can understand, growing up with Mac as a stepdad, she’d never do anything to impede an ongoing investigation. So if he could just take these off, they can forget this ever happened. John says, how about this? She gives Mac his best and tell Mac that he’s sorry he had to arrest his daughter for obstruction of justice.

Sonny hands the tablet back to Ava and says, if it is Jason, he probably has a motive, has a good reason for doing what he’s doing. Ava says, maybe he’s counting on Sonny believing that. If Jason is involved in some plot to kill him, then Sonny giving him the benefit of the doubt would give him time to set another plan in motion. Until they have more information, they’re just guessing. He tells her that he has to go see how Dante is, and starts to leave, but she says, they were lying in wait for him tonight. Not so very different from what happened in Puerto Rico. And he said it has to be somebody on the inside. Somebody with an intimate knowledge of his property, his business, and who knows his operation better than Jason? He says, she’s not judge and jury, and she says she knows. Believe her. She doesn’t want Jason to be guilty. She’s just trying to figure out what’s going on. He says, that’s what he’s trying to do. It doesn’t add up. She says she knows. This mystery man behind the attacks, didn’t he go by the name Stone? And didn’t Spinelli often refer to Jason as Stone Cold? Jason never hesitated to pull the trigger when it meant protecting Sonny. What if he’s come back and he’s ready to use those same deadly skills and knowledge to take Sonny out?

Laura says, Rocco’s dad dedicated his life to helping other people. So many people’s lives are better because of what his dad does every day. Never forget that. Rocco should always be really proud of him. Rocco says he is. His dad’s the best. But what if… She says, we don’t know what life has in store for us. Sometimes bad things happen, as he knows, and when they do, the only thing they can control is how they react to them. He hasn’t given up hope of his mom waking up from her coma, has he? He says, of course (🍷) not, and she says, then how can they give up on his dad? He’s getting the best possible care at General Hospital. So what they need to do, the best they can do, is stay as positive as they can while they wait for the news. And she’ll be here for him as long as he needs her to be. He says he loves her, and they hug. She says she loves him too, so much.

Danny says, sometimes his mom says he reminds her of his dad, and Carly says, he’s more like his dad all the time, especially tonight. He asks what she means, and she asks if they can sit. They sit on the steps, and she says, it’s not that he doesn’t feel things. He just doesn’t want to show his feelings. And Jason was like that. If he let himself react, he was afraid he might lose control and might hurt himself or someone else, and he didn’t want to do that, so he would just shut down and he would be okay. He’d be the one to handle everything. Danny says, there’s nothing to handle. All they’re doing is waiting. She asks if he’s good at waiting patiently, but he says, not really, and she says, neither was his father. He says, that’s not true. Everyone said he could wait for something, no matter how long it took. She says, that was discipline. Jason wasn’t naturally patient. If anything, it was just the opposite. Jason’s first impulse was to run right at something. She guesses that’s why they got along so well, because that’s her first impulse too. He says, it does kind of sound like him, and she says she knows what it’s costing him to sit around and wait, but it’s where he should be. Because whether he’ll admit it or not, Rocco needs him.

Sam thanks Portia, who says, of course (🍷), and leaves. Sam says, Olivia heard Portia. He has a chance. Olivia says she’s sorry. She’s just out of her mind right now. It’s surreal. A couple hours ago, they were eating cake and laughing at Scout’s birthday party. Now, in the blink of an eye, her son is in there fighting for his life. Sam hugs Olivia.

Chase and Brook step away, and Chase says he appreciates Brook insisting on waiting with him, but it could be hours still. Go home. Get some sleep. She says she doesn’t want to leave, and he says he knows. It’s just… She says, it’s just what? Talk to her. He says, this isn’t what she signed up for. He chose this life. He knew the risks of becoming a cop. She didn’t choose this. He needs her to know that it’s not too late for her to say that this isn’t the life she wants. (He’s very sweet, but once again, a dude is telling a woman that she has no decision-making skills and can’t speak up for herself.)

Jordan tells Portia, Dante is a good police officer and an even better man. Being like this, waiting for word on a cop who’s been shot, she just can’t help being reminded of another late night when another great cop was shot, in the prime of his life, and he didn’t survive. Portia says, she’s talking about Nathan West. She never got a chance to meet him, but from everything she’s heard, he sounds like a remarkable man. Jordan says, he was, and she hates that he never got to live his life with Maxie, be a dad. Another hero cop gone too soon. Then again, everyone who puts on the badge and lives up to the motto is a hero in her eyes.

Spinelli tells John, Maxie had nothing to do with this. Do whatever John wants to him, but please, leave her out of it. Maxie says she appreciates Spinelli trying to save her, but if he’s going down, he’s not going down alone. She tells John that she and Damien Spinelli are a team, and Spinelli says, they are? She says, yeah, and Spinelli says, they are. And since John has no evidence against them… John says, because Spinelli deleted the file? and Spinelli says, no. John says, that’s only a temporary setback. They have experts too. (I have to laugh at how Spinelli and Maxie look like little kids being lectured by the principal.) Although it will take them a while, they will recover the footage he deleted. Then they will follow it to wherever or whoever it leads.

Ava says she knows it might be incredibly painful to even think that Jason might betray Sonny, but there’s an awful lot of evidence here. Sonny says, circumstantial evidence. There’s no way the man he trusted more than anybody in the world would stab him in the back. She says, try not to be emotional about it. Just look at the facts, okay? Before Jason left for Cassadine Island, there was a distance between them. Things had changed. They were tense even. Sonny says, they had disagreements before, and Ava says, maybe so, but all the evidence here leads to one conclusion. Somehow, Jason survived that tunnel collapse, he’s come back to Port Charles to settle a score, and Sonny is playing right into his hands.

📑 Okay, let’s look at other facts. Sonny hasn’t been hit despite three attempts. True, Curtis was mistakenly shot, but he wandered into the scene at the last minute, and it looks like Jason is more the supervisor. Would Jason have screwed up a shot three times?

Brook says, Chase is right about one thing. She had no idea what she was getting herself into when she fell in love with a cop. She’s scared to death every, single day that the next call that comes in about an injured officer could be him fighting for his life. Chase says he understands. It’s a lot to ask of someone and it’s not an easy life, so if she wants out… She asks him, who says she wants out? and he tells her that she just said that. She says she told him that she’s scared, and she is. But she also loves him too much to try and hide this fear from him. Or start their marriage by being anything other than completely honest with him, so she’s sharing this fear with him. If they’re going to be husband and wife, she wants to share everything with him, including her fear of losing him. So don’t tell her to go. Promise her that he’ll never tell her that. He says he promises, and hugs her.

Sam says, sometimes she wishes that Dante would have become an executive and worked for Drew at Aurora – Olivia laughs – or for Ned at ELQ. Olivia says, he would have hated every minute of that, and Sam says, then he could have learned a different trade. He could have been a mechanic or a plumber or something. Olivia says, all of his uncles were mechanics. All of them. He never had the feel for it. If you can’t figure out how to fix a car, you’re probably not going to have a lot of luck fixing plumbing. Sam says, what about baseball coach? That’s perfect for him. Olivia says, he would love that, and Sam says, see? Olivia says, but not as much as he loves being a cop. It means everything to him. It’s everything he believes in. She swears, when he told her that’s what he wanted to be, she burst into tears. She begged him, anything else. A paramedic… anything, but he was so sure, and he was so excited. He was so proud. What could she do? He’s her baby, so she gave him a hug. Sam says, there is no Dante the executive, or Dante the plumber, or Dante the baseball coach. She only said those things because the other thing makes her scared sometimes, but it’s Dante the cop, and she doesn’t think they’d have it any other way, would they? Olivia shakes her head and takes Sam’s hand.

Drew comes into the living room and asks how it’s going in here. Messing with her phone, Laura says, great. They’re just making a gaming date for when Dante is better so he can play with them. Rocco says, they’re going to let dad pick the game, so he has the best chance to win, and they laugh. Drew says, sounds like a plan, and Laura says, but it is getting late, isn’t it? How about if she brings Rocco home and he spends the night with her and Doc? Rocco says, does he have to? and she says, of course (🍷) not. Not if he doesn’t want to. He says he’d rather stay here, just in case Scout has a bad dream and wakes up scared. His dad would want him to take care of her.

John says, the two of them have given him no choice, and tells the agent to take Maxie and Spinelli into custody. Spinelli says, no, he can’t. Maxie has some young children at home. They need her. John says, this is out of his hands now (and I wonder if he’s having a hard time not laughing). He could call Felicia and let her know. Maxie says, no, no, no. Please do not call her mom. She doesn’t want her to worry. She tells Spinelli, although she does think her mom would be proud that they took a stand for one of their best friends. That guy in the footage saved their lives on more than one occasion. They should really repay the favor. John says, one of their best friends, huh? That sounds like somebody who has a lot of friends, someone who’s made a name for himself. That should narrow it down quite a bit. Thank you so much. He hopes their good deed gives them solace when they’re pacing around inside their cell. Spinelli says he made a copy, and John says, no kidding. Maxie tells Spinelli not to say another word. She looks at John and says she can handle whatever happens to her. Spinelli tells her that he has no doubt, but he won’t let the mother of his child be incarcerated for something he did. He tells John, there was a drone recording as it was circling the roof. The footage is in the back-up drive. John says, that wasn’t so hard, was it? and picks up the drive. He says he’s assuming this has got a password, and Spinelli says, does John think he’s an amateur? John says, just give it to him, and Spinelli says, fine. M-A-X-I-M-I-S-T-A. Maxie says, aww!

Sonny says, Ava makes a good argument, but it just… He can’t believe that Jason would be out to kill him. Ava says, well, okay. That settles it. He says, that’s it? She’s not going to keep giving him reasons why he’s cutting his own throat? She says, nope, and gets up. She laid out the facts as she sees them, and he believes in Jason’s innocence. Sonny knows him better than she does, and she trusts Sonny’s judgement. Sonny gets up, thanks her, and says he needed to hear that. It’s very hard for him to trust anybody right now, especially after what happened with Michael and Dex. He can’t even trust his own instincts right now. She says, he made it very clear that he trusts Jason, and he tells her that he didn’t say he trusted him 100%. She says, he just has to promise her something. He has to promise her that he’s going to be careful. Look both ways and all that. He says, if he didn’t know any better, he’d think that she actually cared for him.

Maxie says, Spinelli just gave up their friend to the Feds, but Spinelli says, he has full faith that their friend can take care of himself. She says, obviously, but she’s never seen Spinelli be anything but loyal to him. He says he had good reason for his actions tonight. Doing this keeps her out of jail. She’ll be able to live her life and be with the kids. They need her. And no matter what happens to him, he’ll be happy knowing that. Because she’s not just the mother of his child, she’s the woman he loves. They kiss.

Drew helps Laura on with her coat and thanks her for coming. Rocco seems to be a little bit better after talking to her. She says she feels better after talking to Rocco. She actually thinks it’s a really good sign that he wants to stay here and look after Scout. Sometimes the best way to help yourself is by helping somebody else. They say goodnight and Laura leaves. Carly comes downstairs and says she just looked in on Scout. She’s sound asleep. Drew says, she’s probably worn out from her birthday party. It was only a few hours ago. Carly says, it’s crazy, and gets her coat. Drew helps her on with it, and she says, they’re going to have a huge celebration when Dante gets out of the hospital, but until then, she needs to get home and just relax. He thanks her for coming. It really helped with Danny a lot. She says, just remember, no matter how he acts, Danny feels things just as deeply as the other boys. Maybe even more. He kisses her and she leaves.

In the living room, Rocco looks at a photo of Dante on his phone. Danny sits next to him, and Rocco scoots over so their shoulders are touching.

Portia says, Dante’s out of surgery. They’re moving him to the ICU. Sam says, that’s great news, and Olivia says she wants to hug everyone who was in the room with him right now. Brook says, their prayers worked, and Chase says, they sure did. Portia says, Dante is still in critical condition, but the doctors believe they’ve repaired all the damage. Jordan says, then there’s a good chance Dante will recover, and Portia says, let’s get him through the night, but this is a huge step in the right direction. Chase says, Brook has been holding him up. What can he do for her? Just name it. She says, take her home, and he says, she’s got it. Olivia says she told Sam that he was a fighter. He’s hanging in there just like they knew he would. They hug.

John looks at the footage, and the other agent asks what he’s going to do with Damien Spinelli. John says, time will tell. They got what they wanted. And now they’re going after Jason Morgan.

Ava says, of course (🍷) she cares about Sonny. He’s Avery’s father. Her little girl would be lost without him. He says he’d be lost without her too… Avery, and Ava says, of course (🍷). He moves closer to her and says, remember when he told her that it felt like she was the only person he can trust? She says she remembers, and he says, wouldn’t it be funny if that were true? It looks like they might kiss, but we have to wait.

Tomorrow, Sam has good news; Nina says, Ava knows more about this than she’s telling; Dex tells Michael and Willow that they do know something about the person who shot him (presumably Dante); and Sonny tells Diane that they’re going to find out who did this and take care of the situation.

🪨 A Rolling Stone At Rest…

All about Jason’s return.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/inside-steve-burtons-return-to-general-hospital

✒️ He Prefers Social Observer…

The new guy invading The Invader.

🩺 Hospital Return…

Was she in Australia too?

❤️‍🔥 Kraze-y For You…

It better be love. They have more chemistry than nearly every other couple on the show.

Listen to Blaze and Kristina’s GH Love Song “It Might Be Love”

🤽‍♀️ Hold Your Nose and Close Your Eyes…

The latest in Summer House. Rather concise, but it’s already more than enough.

👠 An Icon Remembered…

She was the personification of awesome.

https://people.com/iris-apfel-friend-bruce-sutka-memories-health-details-exclusive-8603482

https://people.com/celebrities-mourn-death-of-fashion-icon-iris-apfel-8603445

🐨 Menagerie Down Under…

Red pandas! Koalas! Capybaras! I don’t think he has much to worry about with that rhino. It couldn’t look less interested.

https://people.com/travis-kelce-opens-up-about-zoo-visit-with-taylor-swift-8605096

🐈‍⬛ On the Catwalk…

Join me tomorrow for soap and Friday’s freefall into the weekend. Until then, stay safe, stay not having loud conversations in public (especially – please, oh, please – on public transport), and stay remembering sometimes the best way to help yourself is by helping somebody else.

March 6, 2024 – Spinelli Finds Something That Simply Cannot Be, Beverly Hills Reunion Horror Part 2 & Out

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Anna and Sonny run into the hospital where Chase is waiting, and Sonny asks, where’s Dante? Chase says, they’re working on him now, and Sonny asks, how bad was he hurt? Chase says, he took two bullets to the chest, but Sonny says, he was wearing a bullet proof vest. They were all wearing one, weren’t they? Chase says, they think the bullets were armor piercing rounds.

On the phone as she writes, Alexis says, gunfire exchanged on waterfront… increased police presence. Okay, got it. They have this under control?… Okay. Thanks. She starts to leave the office when she runs into Nina, who’s with an unknown man. Nina says she’s glad they caught Alexis before she left, and Alexis says she’s on her way to meet a reporter… Nina says, that can wait. She has someone she wants Alexis to meet. Alexis says she’d be happy to meet him when she has the time, and Nina says, make time.

Maxie leads Sasha and Cody into her office and says she knows it’s late, so she’ll keep it brief. Cody says he appreciates both of them working around his schedule. The Qs really rely on him to keep a steady presence at their stables. Sasha says she wasn’t busy tonight anyway, and Cody says, Maxie might have had plans tonight. Sasha says, true. She and Cody would be happy to reschedule. Cody says, if she has somewhere else she needs to… Maxie says, oh my God. Stop. She knows what both of them have been up to.

Spinelli is working on the footage, when there’s a frantic knock at the door and Ava says, Spinelli, open up. Sonny sent her.

Anna asks what Chase can tell her about the shooting, but he says, nothing. He was at the station taking a statement from Miss Wu, when the sergeant notified him that someone called 911 and a man had been shot on Pier 55. That was the direction of the suspects in the warehouse shooting when Dante pursued them. So he went to the pier and found Dante. Bystanders were giving him first aid. Anna asks, what bystanders? There’s witnesses? Chase says, there were no witnesses that they know of. Dex Heller and Josslyn Jax found him, and they were keeping him alive.

In the trauma room, a doctor says, blah-blah-blah medical stuff about Dante, and Portia says, he has a severe cardio something-or-other. The other doctor says he needs medical things, and she says, got it.

Alexis goes back to her desk, and Nina says she wants Alexis to meet Adrian DeWitt. (A nod to All About Eve, whose gossip columnist was Addison DeWitt.) Adrian says he apologizes for the unexpected drop-in, and Nina says she and Adrian were having dinner and it occurred to her that the two brightest minds working in journalism should meet. Alexis says, flattering. He’s also a member of the Fourth Estate? Adrian says he is a columnist, and Nina says, a very popular column, and Adrian is looking for a new opportunity now. Alexis says, he wouldn’t by any chance be a gossip columnist, would he? and he says he prefers the term social observer. (My new dream job!) Nina says, what they decided The Invader needs, and Alexis says, Nina means, what she decided.

Cody tells Maxie not to keep them in suspense. What have they been up to, besides lots of work? Between stable handling and spokes modeling, they barely have time to… Maxie says, devise ways to put her and Spinelli together? Because they always seem to have time for that. Cody stammers and tells her that he doesn’t know what to say, and Maxie says, that would be a first. Cody says he likes to relax like anyone else. Toss back a couple of cold ones, throw some sharp objects, croon some karaoke, and if he invites Sasha and Maxie… Maxie asks Sasha to make him stop, and Sasha says she’s sorry. She was waiting for him to come up for air, but clearly, that’s not going to happen. Cody says he was just telling her… but Sasha says, the jig’s up, and Cody says, Maxie is right. They totally meddled in her love life, trying to push her and Spinelli together. Sasha says, but they swear they had the best of intentions. It’s just so obvious Maxie and Spinelli still have feelings for each other. Cody says, and it’s obvious neither one of them are going to do a damn thing about it. So they figured they’d nudge them together. Maxie says, well, it worked. She and Spinelli finally broke down and said they loved each other. Sasha says, that’s awesome, and Cody says, it’s about damn time. Maxie says, and now they’ve never been further apart.

Spinelli pushes Ava inside, looks around, and slams the door. He asks, is Sonny okay? Did the gunmen get apprehended? Does he need to delete footage? Ava says, Sonny is fine, she thinks the gunman got away, and absolutely not. Spinelli says he doesn’t understand. Why did Sonny send her? She says, he wants Spinelli to secure the footage and get it to Brick before the cops know it exists, and Spinelli says he’s already on it. But uploading and rendering twelve cameras worth of footage onto a separate server takes some time. She says, which they don’t have. How can she help?

Portia says, Dante’s trachea is deviated as long as his lung is completely collapsed, and the other doctor says more medical stuff. Portia says, his pressure’s dropping, and Dante’s lung is manually worked.

Chase tells Anna, the paramedics were already en route. They picked up Dante and he waited for units to secure the scene and came straight here. He hasn’t spoken to any doctors and doesn’t even know Dante’s current status. Anna says, so he doesn’t think it was Josslyn or Dex who called 911? when Olivia runs in with Sam, Josslyn, and Dex behind her. She asks, where’s Dante? and Sonny says, in the trauma room. She asks if Sonny has seen him, but he says he was with Anna, and she told him that Dante took a shot. Olivia asks, how was he shot? Did Sonny have anything to do with this?

Sasha says she’s so sorry. If Maxie doesn’t mind her asking, what went wrong with her and Spinelli? Maxie says, turns out, Spinelli hasn’t been totally honest with her, and Sasha asks what not totally honest means. Maxie says, he used her circumstances to orchestrate a rescue, and Cody says, and that’s bad? Maxie says, Spinelli pretended to have burst pipes so he could move into her house and pay her rent and supplement her income during a personal financial crisis. Cody says, hold on. So Spinelli conned her into letting him give her money? That bastard. Maxie says, he’s missing the point, and Cody says he guesses he did, because it sounds like he just did a Spinelli thing, which is super nice and overly complicated. Sasha tells Maxie, of course (🍷) he doesn’t get it. He’s a man. Nobody ever treats him like a damsel in distress or assumes he’s helpless when he’s not. Maxie says, she gets it, and Cody says he really doesn’t. Spinelli did a good thing. Why is she mad at him? Maxie says, if Spinelli’s pipes had actually burst, that would be one thing. But he manipulated the situation so he could give her help that she didn’t want. He was disrespecting her boundaries. Cody says, kind of like what he and Sasha did, and Maxie says, yes and no. She knows both of them meant well. Sasha says, didn’t Spinelli mean well too? and Maxie says she and her mom already had this conversation. Cody asks what Felicia had to say, and Maxie says, a lot. It’s not that she doesn’t appreciate when someone wants to help her, but she doesn’t like feeling handled, no matter how good the intentions are.

Alexis says, when they discussed having a gossip column in The Invader, she was under the impression that the idea was up for further discussion. Nina says, as she recalls, they weren’t debating the column, just who would write it, and Alexis says, life can really be so subjective sometimes. Nina says, however differently they remember that conversation, it took place before she knew Adrian was available. To have a column with Adrian’s name on the byline is going to bring a lot more eyes to the newspaper, which means more money for the groundbreaking, envelope pushing, future award-winning news, which is Alexis’s expertise. Alexis says she’ll be sure to keep that under advisement. In the meantime, she has a reporter that’s waiting for her at a crime scene… Nina says, Alexis needs to tell her why an Editor-in-Chief has to go to a crime scene herself, but in the meantime, she’ll show Adrian around, but Adrian says he’s afraid he, too, must depart. It was a pleasure meeting Alexis. Alexis nods and says, mm-hm, and he tells her that he must say, her reluctance doesn’t surprise him. High culture has long been disdainful of what it considers idle chatter. Alexis says she’s very well-aware of that, and he says, and society reportage used to be diminished disdainfully as women’s talk, if not mere escapism. It can also be an impactful and subversive tool to expose the vapidity and corruption of the upper class. Alexis says she’d love to hear more about this… and he says, so she sees, an effective society column shines the light on people of all social strata and interrogates modern behavior. And it takes a brave publication – and editor – to recognize that.

Maxie gets up, and Sasha asks if she’ll be able to forgive them. Maxie says, actually, she kind of already has, and Cody says, what about Spinelli? Does she forgive him? Maxie asks, since when are Cody and Spinelli on the same team? They hate each other. Cody says, that’s not true. Spinelli doesn’t like him… at least, he didn’t. But since their initial difficulties, which he totally admits are his fault, he’s gotten to know the guy and he’s a good dude. Kind of blindsides you. You think he’s this nerdy tech guy, and all of a sudden, there’s more. He’s a cool guy. Maxie tells him that she’s not sure anybody has said that about Spinelli before, and Cody says, he’s smart, he’s protective, he’s loyal, and honestly, he thinks the world of Maxie. How bad can he be? Sasha says, at the risk of meddling again, why don’t Maxie and Spinelli try and see if they can work things out? They both said they love each other. Maxie says, yeah, but they’ve said that before and it didn’t work out. Maybe it won’t work out again. Sasha says, maybe it will. They already love each other. Why not just see where it goes? Cody agrees, and Maxie says, okay. In that case, she has a question for the two of them. When are they going to follow their own advice?

Anna tells Olivia, Dante was shot in the line of duty, pursuing case suspect, and Olivia says, but Sonny was there too. Sonny says, not when he was shot, and Olivia says, would their son have been there at all if Sonny wasn’t there first? and Sonny looks down. She says, that’s what she thought.

More medical stuff happens with Dante, and Portia says, he needs more blood. She can’t be sure if Dante is even strong enough for surgery.

Sam says, it’s going to take a while. Why don’t they have a seat? Olivia says she’s not done yet. This right here, this is all too familiar. Sonny flashes back to Olivia telling him that he just shot his own son. He tells Olivia that he knows, and Olivia suggests she and Sam find someone who can give them an update. They leave, and Sonny tells Anna that Olivia blames him, and he blames himself. Anna says, Dante was pursuing a suspect, two suspects, he says, suspects that were shooting at him. The last time he saw Dante was at the gym and he told Dante to get out of his way. She says, Dante knows he didn’t mean that, and he says, can she imagine his son was still trying to protect him? He made Dante think that he didn’t want him to. Josslyn and Dex watch, and everyone looks like they’re going to cry.

Alexis tells Adrian that she’s very well-aware of gossip’s historical relevance to journalism, and she’s genuinely impressed that he’d frame his work in those terms. Adrian says, to him, those are the only acceptable terms. He has no interest in penning a scandal sheet. It is his job to help readers better understand the values of their contemporary world. And he believes that’s something that interests her as well. Is it not? She says, call her Alexis, and shakes his hand. He says he’d be honored to, and she says she’ll be in touch. He says he looks forward to it and leaves. Nina says, Alexis can say it now; Nina, you were right. Alexis says she was thinking more along the lines of, Nina, you told me I’d have final approval, and Nina asks if Alexis is telling her that she doesn’t approve of Adrian. Alexis says she doesn’t think the problem is Adrian. She rather likes him. He acquitted himself nicely. His values seem to line up with The Invader. Nina says, great… right? and Alexis says, that depends if he was just giving her a line because he wants a job. As far as the column, even Gregory thinks that it may have merit. Nina says, what about her? and Alexis says she doesn’t not think so. Nina says, so she doesn’t entirely hate the idea and she likes the columnist, or the social observer. Alexis says, true and true, and Nina says, fantastic. Then it’s settled. Alexis says, no, it’s not. What she’s not sold on is Nina.

Sasha says, take their own advice? and Cody says he thinks he already is. Sasha says, in what way? and Cody says he’s working things out with Spinelli. What advice are they supposed to take? Maxie sighs and says, tonight’s meeting is hereby postponed. She picks up her bag and heads for the door. Cody asks if she’s going to find Spinelli. He’s sorry. He shouldn’t have asked. Maxie says she appreciates their efforts as matchmakers. She really does. Cody says, no, she doesn’t, and Maxie says, no, she doesn’t. They’re fired. Cody and Sasha are like, what? and Maxie says, not from Deception, obviously, but she’s opting out of this pro bono love connection. And since they both no longer have her love life to interfere with, they can direct their collective energy elsewhere. Look inward. She leaves, closing the door behind her, and Sasha and Cody look at each other.

Spinelli and Ava stare at computer screens, and Ava says, wow. He asks if she found something, but she says, no. She just got to the part where the cavalry showed up. It’s such a shame. Sonny’s plan almost worked. He says, this is distressing, and she asks if he sees something. He says, no, absolutely the opposite. One of his feeds cut out early. She says, a malfunction? but he says, unlikely. The camera equipment is new. The most likely scenario is the camera was discovered. Thankfully, whoever found the camera won’t have access to the footage, but whoever did abscond with his equipment will likely be trying to trace it to yours truly. She says she’s sure he covered those tracks thoroughly, right? and he says he cherishes the compliment. She says, the shot came through the skylight. He had cameras on the roof, right? He says, they’d be too easy to spot, but he did have a silent camera drone circling. She says, of course (🍷) he did, and he brings it up on the screen. She says, getting closer on his face there, and they both freeze. She says, oh my God.

The phone in trauma rings, and Portia says, they’re moving him now. She tells the other doctor, they’re ready for him in the OR.

Anna goes over to Josslyn and Dex, and says, Detective Chase told her that they’re the ones who found Dante. Josslyn says, that’s right, and Anna says, they’ll have to give an official statement at some point, but right now she’d just like them to tell her everything they remember about when they first saw him. Josslyn says, Dante was alone. There was nobody else there. He was lying down and had a sweatshirt tied around him, almost like a pressure bandage. Anna says, so someone administered first aid before they got there? and Dex says, yeah, and they elevated his legs, bandaged him up, and called 911.

Chase sits with Olivia and Sam, and says he’s so sorry about this. Sam says, they still don’t know what actually happened. How was Sonny involved? He says, there was a raid on one of Selina Wu’s warehouses. He and Dante were with Commissioner Devane, Agent Cates, and some agents. They got inside. While the Commissioner and Agent Cates were questioning Miss Wu and Sonny, someone fired a high-powered rifle through the skylight. Olivia says, and Dante was hit, but Chase says, no. No one was. They believe Sonny was the intended target, but the shot missed him. He and Dante were closest to the door, so they went up to the roof to investigate. They found a sniper rifle abandoned by the skylight and they observed two suspects about 200 yards off that were running rapidly toward the waterfront. Dante told him to secure the scene and wait for back-up. Then Dante went for the suspects. Sam says, so it was him against two suspects? and Chase says, yeah, but Dante told him to secure the scene and wait for back-up. He’s sorry. Sam says, that’s okay. Chase was just doing his job and Dante was doing his. It’s not his fault.

Portia runs to the front desk, and Sam, Olivia, and Chase run there too. Sam asks Portia, how’s Dante? and Portia says, Dante is in critical condition. He’s been shot twice in the chest and they’re prepping him for surgery as they speak. Olivia asks if he’s going to live, and Portia says, they’re doing everything they possibly can to make sure that he does. Dante is wheeled out, and Olivia strokes his hair. The elevator comes, and Dante is wheeled into it.

Ava asks Spinelli if it’s possible someone tampered with the footage between the shooting and now, and he asks if she means, could someone have altered the image? She says, yeah, and he says, it’s possible, but there’s no time and no access. She says, so this is real, and he says, but how? She asks if the drone footage has been loaded on the tablet. They have to show Sonny. He says, it has, but… There’s a knock at the door and he looks at his camera and says, Maxie? Outside the door, Maxie says, let her in. She needs to talk to him. Spinelli closes his laptop, and Ava puts the tablet in her bag. He opens the door and tells Maxie, this is not a good time, as Ava dashes past Maxie. He asks her to wait, but she keeps going, and Maxie asks what Ava was doing here. What’s going on?

Nina says, Alexis is still not convinced she has the experience or vision to take The Invader to the next level? and Alexis says she’s worried the paper will turn into something she’s not comfortable with. Nina says, different doesn’t necessarily mean bad. Like she did with Crimson, she sees opportunity at The Invader. If Alexis believes she’s going to take the paper in the wrong direction, she wants Alexis to compare her first edition at Crimson with her last one. Alexis says she’s not comparing this with Crimson in terms of Nina’s success rate. She’s done very well. Alexis isn’t questioning her intuition. She’s not questioning Nina’s creativity. She knows why Julian hired her. Nina says, Julian hired her to run Crimson into the ground, and Alexis says, and Nina made it soar. She’s not disputing the figures of Nina’s circulation. Nina says, then what’s the problem? and Alexis says, the problem is, Nina has a history with people she knows well, Drew and Sonny being two of them. And that history is not so good. So what she needs to know is, how can she be sure of Nina’s motivation here? Nina says, she can’t. She’s afraid Alexis will just have to trust her. Does she think she can do that?

Sonny kneels down in the chapel and says, bless me, Father, for I have sinned. You know my sins. You know what I’ve done. I will pay for it all, but please don’t take my son. Please, Lord, let him live. Olivia walks in, kneels next to Sonny, and blesses herself.

Sasha says, since their meeting has been postponed, she’s going to go home and finish her book, and Cody asks what she’s reading. She says, Pride and Prejudice, and he says, didn’t they make that into a movie? She says, yeah, a few, and he says, cool. He guesses he’ll head home too. She says, to the stables? and he says, no. He’s probably going to head to the manse first, heat up some of Mama Q’s cooking. Maybe watch a movie. She asks, what movie? and he says he doesn’t know. Maybe Pride and Prejudice. She asks, which version? and he says, whatever’s shortest. Isn’t there a zombie one? They both start talking at the same time, and she says she really hopes Maxie and Spinelli will work through this. He says, it would be a shame if they didn’t. They’re obviously meant for each other. She says, well, goodnight, and he says he really did want to help Maxie and Spinelli. She says she knows, and he says, but this was also an opportunity to spend time with her. She says, and it was an opportunity for her to spend time with him.

Nina says, without trust, this working relationship is a non-starter, and Alexis says, if that’s the case, which one of them goes first? Alexis’s phone rings, and she says, she was just on her way… Is that confirmed?… Thanks. Nina asks, what is it?

Sam thanks Portia and the other doctor for everything, and the doctor says, they’re glad they could help him as much as they did. Portia says, Dante’s strong. He’s really fighting in there. Sam says, that’s Dante. She just wishes there was more she could do to help. She guesses they all wish that though. Portia says, it’s the waiting. It’s the worst part of it all. Time stops. Sam says she’s spent a lot of time in this hospital, mostly waiting on people that she loves, and it never gets any easier. Portia says, the surgery is going to take a while, but she’ll keep checking in with the team and make sure to update Sam and Olivia. (That’s doctor code for, go wait somewhere else.) Sam says, they’d appreciate that, thanks them again, and leaves. The other doctor says, it really doesn’t get any easier, does it? and she says, no, it doesn’t.

Anna and Chase sit with Josslyn and Dex, and Anna says she’d like them to tell her and Chase everything that happened exactly as it happened. Everything they remember. Dex says he and Josslyn were driving back to Port Charles, and Josslyn says, and she has an app on her phone that said police scanners were reporting gunfire out on the waterfront. They assumed that meant Sonny, so they went straight to the pier. (I love how they assumed that meant Sonny. Gunshots? Yep, must be Sonny.) Anna says, Dex works for Sonny, correct? but he says, not anymore. Sonny fired him two weeks ago. Anna says, yet Dex still felt compelled to check on him, and Dex says he did. She says, okay, so what did they see when they found Dante? Josslyn says, they already told them, and Anna says she knows, but she’d like them to tell it again. Because sometimes you remember things you didn’t the first time. Josslyn says, okay. Of course (🍷). They got there and Dante was lying there. The second they got to him, it became clear that somebody had given him first aid, because he had that sweatshirt wrapped around him and his legs were elevated. Anna asks how his legs were elevated exactly, and Dex says, someone folded up a bulletproof vest and stuck it underneath his legs. Anna says, anything else? and Josslyn says, yes. There was a phone next to Dante on a call with 911. She picked it up and spoke to the operator. Anna says, she handled the phone? and Josslyn says, yes. Was she not supposed to? He was lying there bleeding and gasping for air. Anna says she’s just trying to figure out what happened. It’s clear the two of them demonstrated extraordinary presence of mind. They’re doing great. So Josslyn picked up the phone, the line is open to 911. Josslyn says, yeah, and the operator said she’d spoken to somebody else and that they’d left and that the paramedics were almost there. Then they started hearing the sirens and Chase showed up. Chase says he found Dex and Josslyn giving first aid. Shortly after he arrived, Dante’s heart stopped. Dex says, while he performed chest compressions, Joss did rescue breathing, and they got his heart started just before the paramedics got there. Then they took over. Anna thanks them and says, not only is Dante one of their finest officers, he’s also a friend. It’s clear they saved his life, and the PCPD and her personally owe them a great debt.

Olivia prays, eyes closed, holding her rosary. She sees Sonny isn’t beside her, blesses herself, and goes over to him. She says she apologizes. She was afraid. She was so afraid they were really going to lose Dante for good. She shouldn’t have called him out like that. He says, she’s not wrong. Someone was gunning for him, and their son Dante got caught in the crossfire. Again. She says, Dante was doing his duty. As a cop, he knows what that means, even if she forgets it sometimes. Sonny says, Dante was protecting him, and Olivia says, because he’s a damn good cop… and an even better son. She takes Sonny’s hand, and he says, Dante’s one of the people he can count on right now. Olivia’s phone rings and she says, it must be Ned. He’s getting all her messages at once. He tells her, go, and she heads for the door, telling Ned that she’s in the chapel right now. She opens the door and Ava is there. She walks past Ava, and Ava goes inside.

Sonny says, she’s here, and Ava says she is. He asks if she and Spinelli found something in the footage, and she says, they haven’t looked through everything yet… He says, they’ve got to find something. He’s sorry. He didn’t mean that. She says, that’s okay. She’s so sorry about Dante. Sonny must be going out of his mind. He asks why she’s here, and she says she and Spinelli found something important. It’s something he needs to see right away.

Maxie wonders why Ava was here, and Spinelli says he was just following up on a job he was doing for Sonny, and they saw something that was completely confounding. She says, something he doesn’t want to talk about? and he says, not until they can understand it, but Maxie is here now. To what does he owe the pleasure? She says she’s been thinking about things, and she thinks they should talk about how they left everything. He says he couldn’t agree more… She says, okay, she’ll go first, but he says he doesn’t think he’s up to the task just yet. She says, what is really going on? He looks like he’s seen a ghost. He says he has.

Sasha says, Cody knows better than anyone what she’s been dealing with for the past few years, and he says he knows. She says she hasn’t felt ready to move on and be involved with anybody. And she’s not sure she’s ready yet. He tells her that he’s going to say this as many times as she needs to hear it. He just likes spending time with her. So if this happens, it happens. And if it doesn’t, hell, he really wasn’t much of a catch anyway and she probably dodged a bullet. She says she hopes they can finally agree on one thing, and he says, what’s that? She says, they don’t need to find more excuses to spend time together.

Portia calls Curtis and says, no, nothing’s wrong. She just needed to hear his voice again.

Anna asks Chase, who’s running the crime scene? and he says, the PCPD. No sign of FBI yet. She says, interesting. She thought Agent Cates would be all over it. Chase says, maybe he’s busy with something else, and she says, just as well. She wants to keep it in-house for as long as they can. He says he checked with the units on the scene. Forensics is checking for evidence. They have the phone and Dante’s vest. She says her guess is, the phone’s a burner and Josslyn handled it, so it’s doubtful they’ll get anything useful off of that. However, 911 will have a recording of that call, so she’ll have tech coordinate with them. They need a copy of that. She wants to know who placed that call, who was trying to help Dante, and why.

Olivia tells Sam that she spoke to Dr. Park. It’s a little too early for an update on the surgery, but he said even though Dante is unconscious, he’s still showing a really strong will to live. He’s in there fighting for every breath. Sam says, Olivia knows Dante, stubborn to a fault, and Olivia says, he’s the worst, but Sam says, actually, the best. She and Olivia hug.

Alexis tells Nina that the reporter she was supposed to meet on the waterfront just informed her that an officer is down. Nina says, that’s terrible. That definitely qualifies for breaking news. She’ll leave Alexis to her job. She starts to leave, and Alexis says, the officer who was shot was Dante.

Ava holds the tablet and tells Sonny, right here there’s a clear angle of one of the gunmen. Sonny says, they’ll get that to Brick, and he’ll get a name real fast, but she says, actually, that won’t be necessary. She and Spinelli were able to identify him. He says, they identified him? Who is it?

Maxie says, Spinelli saw a ghost? Where did he see it? Spinelli says, he was right there… He was sentient. He was breathing. Maxie says, he’s going to have to give her a little more to work with here, and he says, it’s impossible. It simply cannot be. She says, just tell her. What is impossible?

Sonny says, if Ava knows who it is, spit it out, but she says, some things need to be seen to be believed. She shows him the tablet.

Spinelli sits in front of the screen and says, it’s impossible, both that he’s alive and working against Sonny. Maxie asks, who exactly did he see on the screen? and Spinelli turns around.

Ava says, it’s him, isn’t it? We see the tablet screen with Jason in a freeze frame, and she says, it’s Jason.

Tomorrow, Chase tells Brook that it’s not too late to say this isn’t he life she wants; Laura suggests to Drew and Carly that they divide and conquer; John wants to see what’s on the footage; and Ava says, what if he’s come back to take Sonny out?

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills – Reunion Part 2

Holding my nose and jumping in.

Andy says, at Kyle’s Celebration of Life, she welcomed the support of the ladies (his word, not mine), but there were other points where there was a marked distance between Kyle and her friends, especially Dorit. Kyle said she was disappointed about the way Dorit handled the Kathy situation at the Reunion. We flash back, and Kyle says she felt Dorit cared more about the audience. Dorit says, that’s the most hysterical thing she ever heard. All she wanted was for Kyle to leave the Reunion being okay with Kathy, and Kathy wanted Kyle to hear her. Garcelle suggests Dorit should just admit she shouldn’t have done it, but Dorit says she’s allowed to speak on her own behalf. Andy says, Kyle is a year and a half sober, and asks how she feels. Kyle says she feels amazing, and even if alcohol isn’t a problem, when you stop drinking, something about it changes you. He wonders if Morgan’s not drinking influenced her, and Dorit thinks that’s a no, but when you hang out with people who don’t drink, you don’t drink. Andy says, some viewers thought the other women were insensitive to Kyle’s sobriety, and Garcelle says, it was in jest. Erika says, if they’d thought she had a problem, it would have been different. Dorit says, it seemed like Kyle changed a lot, but Kyle says she’s worked out since she was a teen because she had to. She was being reckless, drinking and taking drugs. She doesn’t really clarify the latter, but I assume she means too much weed. Sutton says, Kyle insinuated she had a drinking problem and an eating disorder, and we flash back to that. They circle this drain for what feels like eternity, with Kyle saying she doesn’t know if Sutton has a problem or not, but she would never say she did. Then she tries to turn the tables, asking what she ever did to Sutton to warrant what Sutton did to her at the weed dinner. Instead of asking if she was okay, Sutton acted like she did something wrong. We flash back to that, and then somehow get stuck in the Kyle/Sutton/drinking whirlpool again. Crystal says, Kyle had told them she’d had a hard year, but she wasn’t specific, and Kyle says she’d just started figuring things out for herself. Why do they feel entitled to an explanation? Sutton says, they all share what’s going on, but Kyle says, that’s not true. She’s been on the show for 13 years and has never held back. She lists all the life events she’s experienced while on the show, her resumé as it were, and says, all Sutton’s got going on is her horse and a dating coach. Give her a break. I didn’t like Kyle much to begin with, but she’s become insufferable since LVP left.  

Kyle says, they’re not allowed to talk about Christian, but Sutton says, that’s a lie. And I’m wondering, if that’s the case, why did we hear all about him, Sutton’s alimony, and their marriage? Was Kyle not paying attention? Was she too stoned to notice? Kyle says, Sutton wanted her to spill what happened in her marriage, and Sutton says, they had questions. Kyle says, Sutton came on this season just to come after her, and Sutton is like, what? Kyle mimics her, and says, maybe Sutton getting a horse and having a cashmere line isn’t enough, so Sutton talks about her. Making a valiant effort, Andy says, back to the actual point, and we’re back at Kyle insinuating Sutton has a drinking problem. Someone let me off this hamster wheel. Crystal says, it was more Dorit, and Dorit says she doesn’t think Sutton has a problem. She doesn’t have evidence of it. Sutton says she doesn’t know if Dorit has a drinking problem either. She doesn’t know how many carcasses are on the floor at night. Ha-ha-ha! Andy says, the group loves a party, and Kyle’s weed dinner took things to new high. We flash back to Denise being nearly incoherent, and Andy asks what was going through their minds. Garcelle says she kept telling Denise, you can’t say that, and Andy says, a viewer suggested Denise was less mad about Erika’s threesome comment than the rumor about her hookup with Brandi. Since LisaR, Teddi, and Brandi weren’t around, she took it out on Erika. Andy moves on to Dorit, saying, at BravoCon 2022, Erika predicted Dorit and PK would be splitsville. He wonders if she was onto something, and as we watch that clip, Erika and Dorit both laugh about it. We flash back to Dorit and PK being at odds throughout the season, and Andy says, Dorit’s style transformation – dark colors, darker hair, and an usually logo-free wardrobe – led a viewer to think PK put her on a budget. As Dorit gives a ten-hour explanation why she changed her look, Andy yawns behind his cue cards. Dorit says, don’t you dare, and we flash back to the first and second time he did that. I’m guessing she’s an energy vampire. Andy says, this season, Dorit was recovering from another horrific robbery, $10K for bonuses that she left in a shopping cart. Dorit says she was on the way to give out bonuses and didn’t think she had enough cards, so she stopped at Marshall’s. This causes an uproar about her shopping in a thrift store, and she admits to loving Marshall’s and Home Goods. I’m with her here. Just because you have the money doesn’t mean you should spend it all and those stores are amazing. She says she realized she didn’t have her bag when she was at the store, and later, camera footage showed she’d been targeted and followed. Andy says, Garcelle questioned the house robbery, and Dorit says, it was a mother’s worst nightmare and Garcelle intimated it wasn’t real. Garcelle says she believes Dorit was robbed, but there were a few things that were off. Dorit says, like what?

Garcelle wonders why Dorit still had her rings, and Dorit says, they’d just gotten back from London and the things she traveled with weren’t in their normal place. Garcelle says, it was strangely kind for the robber to leave Dorit’s phone by the gate because she asked, and we flash back to that. Dorit says, she’d just had a gun held to her head with someone saying, kill her, and Garcelle says she knows the story, but Dorit says, allow her finish, because Dorit is one of those people for whom the tape must run out. Dorit wonders. what’s so unfathomable? and Garcelle says, it’s rare, but Erika says, it’s not impossible. Dorit says, it’s not that crazy, but what is crazy is the narrative Garcelle is peddling. Garcelle says, it’s her opinion. That doesn’t change Dorit’s reality. Dorit tells her, it’s a strong thing to say. It shows that Garcelle couldn’t care less. Garcelle says she’s sorry she hurt Dorit, and Andy moves on to Sutton bringing up the rumor that PK had a woman in the car when he was picked up for a DUI. Sutton says, the streets told her, and Erika asks, what streets is she running? Sutton says she got a spanking for it from PK, and Dorit says, it was mean spirited. Sutton says, insinuating she puts vodka in her coffee is mean spirited. The streets must have told Dorit. Erika says, the mean streets of Beverly Hills, and I think, that’s a great book title.

Andy mentions that Kyle said she never reads the paperwork Mauricio gives her before signing it and asks if she’s met his friend Teresa Giudice. Kyle says, her mom told her to never trust a man, but there’s so much small print and so much paper. Erika says, it’s okay to trust your partner, and Andy says, she’s not a poster child for trusting your partner. Erika says, she’s not a poster child for any of this sh*t. Andy tells Dorit that Julia Roberts was on Watch What Happens Live and said PK should have given her the necklace. We see the clip from WWHL, and Andy says, Dorit struggled with PK not being present. How are they doing? Dorit says, after filming, things got progressively worse until they were at an all-time low, but now things are better than ever. PK had been drinking a lot and it was difficult to have a clear-headed conversation with him, but he’s been sober for 49 days. It was a pivotal moment. Andy asks how Dorit felt when Kyle didn’t trust her enough to share what was going on, and Dorit shared her own life with Kyle. Dorit says she could see that there were no pictures of Mauricio on Kyle’s Instagram. Kyle says she thought Dorit would call, instead of waiting until they were on camera, but Dorit says, it was like Kyle was trying to avoid her. Kyle says, when she’s struggling, she retreats, and Dorit says, their husbands are close. Kyle wasn’t alone. Kyle says she’s been married her whole adult life and it’s painful.  They were keeping a front for the kids. She and Dorit agree that after the Reunion, they’ll take a beat, then talk.

Andy says, Erika gave up fighting for Lent, but there were a few old grudges she couldn’t give up on. We flash back to the new same old Erika, and he says, everyone loves a comeback. He congratulates her on her Vegas residency and her special, Bet It All on Blonde, and we see a clip from the latter. He brings up Sutton saying tickets were $7, and Sutton says she was joking, but they might be in the balcony. Clearly, she hasn’t paid to see any kind of show in decades. Andy asks if she was being a showman, and she says, yes. He asks why Erika let Denise get a rise out of her when she’d given up fighting for Lent, and Erika says, she was looking for it. Sutton asks if she feels bad in retrospect, but Erika says, absolutely not. Andy says, Erika was spotted in Vegas with an old friend of Tom’s, and the headlines said he was her sugar daddy, but Erika says, he’s her private lawyer. Andy says, she didn’t want to show empathy for the victims of Tom’s scamming because it might make her seem guilty or complicit, and Erika says, when you’re in a legal process, and told not to comment either way, when you can’t respond the way others think you should, it looks like you have no empathy. Andy says she met with a group of people who were victims, and Erika says she was advised to do it by her counsel. She thought it was important that they saw her as a person, not through the lens of a reality show. She found out a lot, like how one of her paychecks in a client’s trust fund. Andy says, Tom has dementia, but was considered competent to stand trial. Erika says, competent under the law and a medical diagnosis are two different things, and Crystal says, the standard length of survival after diagnosis is 9 years. According to what Erika told them, the disease would have been too progressed for him to be able to stand trial. It seems strange. Erika says, if Crystal means she thinks he’s faking it, just say it, but Crystal says she doesn’t know if he’s faking it, but it was surprising to her. They talked about it 4 years ago. Andy lets it slip, no doubt on purpose, that Kathy is joining them. We see her get out of the limo in her PJs and slippers.

While getting made up backstage, Kathy says Mauricio is doing Dancing with the Stars (Scheana! Scheana!) and she thinks it will be good for Kyle’s healing. Kyle isn’t impulsive and she didn’t decide in a few months. She thinks Kyle’s been deciding for the last three or four years. She shouldn’t say that, but she did.

Andy says, when Sutton was left out of Magic Mike in Vegas, she and her pants had a magic meltdown. We flash back over Sutton’s name ‘em season, and Sutton says she didn’t know the show was like that. He asks what she was reacting to, and she delicately says, the simulation of cunnilingus. Erika asks if she likes it IRL, and then says she’s joking, but we all know she’s inappropriate on purpose. Andy says, Sutton was convinced the elevator was timed, and Sutton says, it seemed suspect in the moment, an opportunity to humiliate her. We flash back, and it does seem like Erika reacted pretty quickly, telling Sutton it was an opportunity for her to apologize. Erika says, Sutton threw a fit at Magic Mike, embarrassing her, and Andy says, later, Sutton said she was upset because her ex was moving to another country. Sutton says, Christian said she and James were moving as well and he gets what he wants. Garcelle says she realized how much hold Christian still has on Sutton, and Sutton says, had. She told him that she and James were staying here. It took courage, but he agreed. Andy says, that’s huge for her, and Sutton says she’s changed over the course of the show. Andy says, many women tell him that the show gave them a voice, and Sutton says, Kyle claims all she has is cashmere and a horse. Kyle makes a face.

Kyle says, it’s a joke, but Sutton says, it’s not true and Kyle hurt her feelings. She has her store, and her new business is a big deal. Kyle says, Sutton doesn’t talk about her personal life. She didn’t talk about the Uber driver. Sutton surprisingly doesn’t correct Kyle, since it was her personal driver, but she says she’s not revealing his name when she hasn’t told her children. Andy says, Sutton revealed that her monthly alimony is $300K on WWHL, and while some applauded, some said she was gloating. He asks what Annemarie, who’s been looking bored AF, thinks, and she says, in her world, they don’t talk about money. She has wealthy and famous friends, but they don’t talk about it. Everyone can do what they want, but in her world, they don’t do that. Andy asks about Kyle and Sutton’s friendship because we haven’t beat that dead horse enough, and Sutton says, any chance Kyle got, she said their friendship was a farce. They had a great private conversation before the weed dinner, privately, but when the camera is on, Kyle’s not a good friend. Kyle says, her kids were asking if her rings were from Mauricio because he cheated, but Sutton says she didn’t say that. Kyle says, Garcelle did from a conversation that she and Sutton had, and Sutton says, they were both hot that night. We flash back and Andy says, Kyle’s visit to Sutton did not go well. Kyle says, it started fine until Sutton started to tell her, name ‘em. She seemed off. Andy says, when Teddi was on WWHL, she said she thought Sutton kept vodka in her purse, and a viewer said Teddi is doing Kyle’s dirty work now. Sutton says, Kyle didn’t have her back, and has been relentlessly mean to her this season. Kyle asks, where? and Sutton tells her, as Denise would say, watch the show.

Next week – the Reunion concludes (thank you, God) – Kathy makes an appearance; more on Kyle’s relationships with Mauricio and Morgan; Andy asks Erika who’s most afraid of Kathy; and Sutton has a medical emergency where Andy says, you’re really shaking, and waves a cue card at her, as Garcelle suggests they call someone. Remind me never to be around these people if I need medical help.

🍵 A Watched Pot Does Too Boil…

Join me tomorrow for soap and a mixture of entertainment. Until then, stay safe, stay wiping down equipment at the gym after you use it, and stay remembering that different doesn’t necessarily mean bad.

March 5, 2024 – Heather Corners Cyrus In the Chapel, Sandoval Is Even a Bad Sociopath & World

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

On the phone, Curtis says he can’t wait to show Portia the progress he’s been making at physical therapy… He’s getting some of his moves back… Him too. See her soon. Marshall comes in and asks if Trina is here, but Curtis says, she went out. Marshall says he knows Curtis is worried about her, but give her some time. She’s been through a lot, but it’s true what they say, time does heal all wounds. (I disagree, but I think it makes them easier to live with.) Stella tells him, says the man who ought to know. Did he tell Curtis? Curtis says, tell him what?

Cyrus sits in the chapel, when Laura comes in and clears her throat. He looks up and she says she’s sorry. Was he praying? He says, just thinking. How’s his little nephew? She says, they’re waiting for the test results, but Doc was here with a patient, so he’s with Ace now. Ace has been so brave. Cyrus says, he takes after his grandma, and she says, Cyrus can actually be sweet when he wants to be. Cyrus laughs and says he knows her surprise is justified by his behavior, but it still stings just a little. There is nothing he wouldn’t do for the people he loves. And there’s no limit to what he won’t do to anyone who tries to hurt them.

Heather continues to work at the lock, when she hears the guard say, copy that, on the phone. He says he’ll return the prisoner to Pentenville immediately. She works faster.

In the car, Josslyn says, they’re not going to get there any faster if Dex gets pulled over for speeding, and he says he’ll keep it at 10 over. She says she wants to get there just as badly as he does. From what Michael said, all hell is about to break loose, and he does not exaggerate. Dex says, it has to be connected to whoever tried to take Sonny out in Puerto Rico, and she says, that means whoever’s around him is in danger.

Anna tells Sonny, let’s try this again. Why was he here tonight? Please don’t say it was to set up a card game with Selina Wu. Sonny asks if he’s under arrest. Is Ava under arrest? She says, not at this time, and Ava says, then they’re under no obligation to stay. John says, it’s a federal investigation, which means he can hold the two of them for up to 48 hours without charging them. In fact, he doesn’t have to hold them at the PCPD. He can have them transported to an FBI facility. He knows Sonny’s had experience, but what about Ava? She might benefit from the experience. Sonny asks if Anna is okay with this. He’s threatening to take Ava into federal custody. On what grounds? Because she’s standing next to him? Anna says, Agent Cates has the authority to investigate this case any way he sees fit, but Sonny says, this doesn’t have to do with any case. Tell them what it has to do with, Jagger? It has to do with Karen Wexler.

Blood trickles from Dante’s mouth, and he says, Jason. Jason tells him, don’t talk. He’s going to help him. On the phone, he says he’s on Pier 55 (where everything happens). A man’s been shot twice in the chest. He says, Dante, but Dante doesn’t respond. He tells the operator, he just passed out. Get the paramedics here now.

As Olivia puts dishes away, Sam says, Drew put Scout to bed, and she fell asleep right away. She was exhausted. She kept saying how she was so excited that she had this birthday party. Olivia says, you can always tell the success of a party by how much cake you find around the house hours later. (For adults, it’s how much liquor is gone.) Sam says, she loved the cake, the gifts, and she loved most of all that her dad threw her the party. Olivia says, after all the time he spent away from her, she bets Drew enjoyed the party more than Scout did. Sam says, he fell asleep to him reading her The Ugly Duckling for the millionth time. She didn’t have the heart to wake him. Olivia says, that was Dante’s favorite book too. She read that book to him so many times, she thinks she could recite it by heart. She was always trying to skip over the pages to get to the end quicker, but he always caught her, every single time. Sam says she loves it. He’s so brave and solid, she can’t picture it in her head. She thinks she always forgets he was a little boy too once. Olivia says, he’s been through a lot, but he’s still that same sweet little kid who used to bring her flowers home from school. It turns out, they were Mr. Coletti’s prize roses, but she digresses. She loves seeing him so happy. She’s so glad he found Sam. Sam says she’s so glad they found each other, and she and Olivia hug.

Jason takes off his jacket to make a makeshift dressing for Dante’s wounds.

Josslyn says she’s going to call Brick and see if he knows where Sonny is, and Dex asks if she really thinks Brick is going to give her any information about Sonny. She says she’ll try. She’ll explain and hopefully, he’ll understand. On the phone, she says, it’s Joss. Does he know where Sonny is? She’s… Wait. Is he sure?… Okay. Dex says, what is it? and she says she’s looking right now. A police scanner in Port Charles is reporting gunfire on the waterfront. Authorities are looking to shut down the whole area. It’s got to be Sonny. What is he doing? He says, getting off at the next exit. Call a Ride Share and go home. He’ll call her when he knows more. She says, forget it. She’s not leaving him. He says he’d feel a lot better if he knew she was safe. He doesn’t have time to argue about this. She says, good. Then they’ll stick to the plan, and they’ll go into Port Charles together.

John says, they’re investigating attempts on Sonny’s life and a possible connection to another conspiracy. Sonny says, maybe that’s why the FBI sent you, but that’s not why you’re here… Jagger. Ava asks why Sonny’s calling him that, and Sonny says, back in the day, his name was John, but that was too ordinary. He needed a cooler name, so he named himself Jagger. And he had a girlfriend named Karen Wexler… John says, he told Sonny to keep her name out of his mouth, and Sonny thanks John for proving his point. John hates him for what he thinks Sonny did… John says he doesn’t think; he knows. He had a front row seat. So why doesn’t Sonny tell them? Tell them what he did. Sonny says, no, Jagger, you tell them.

Cyrus says he never claimed to be a saint. Far from it. Laura knows that better than anyone. But he does hope she knows his attempts to change are genuine. She says he does seem to be trying, and he says, being a part of a family, her family, filled a void in his life that he didn’t even know existed. He knows he hasn’t been trustworthy in the past, but he hopes she believes him when he says, spending time with her has made him a better man. She says she knows there’s goodness in him – she’s always known it – no matter how deeply he tried to bury it. But words are not enough, even words quoted from the Good Book. He says, then tell him how he can prove himself to her, and she says she can’t do the work for him. He needs to figure that out for himself. He says, okay, and she tells him that she will say this. She’s very grateful to him for tonight, for helping her get Ace to the hospital quickly. He says he’s so glad he was there, and she says, her too. He says he just hopes she can keep him away from his other grandmother, and she says, Heather Webber will be going back to Pentenville, so she will not be able to get close to Ace ever again.

The guard tells Heather that he has to get her home. Her cell’s waiting for her. She says she’s still in so much pain. Doesn’t the doctor have to okay her release? He says, that’s above his paygrade. He’s just following orders. She says, the pain in her hip is really unbearable. He doesn’t like to see an old woman suffer, does he? She’s so parched and the nurse left her water just out of reach. Could he please? She points to the pitcher and glass, and he says, okay, fine. Then we’re out of here. He starts to pour a glass for her, when she gets up on the bed behind him and wraps something around his neck, pulling him back onto the bed.

The guard is passed out on the floor, and Heather tosses his keys onto him. She says, he’ll be fine. She groans and says she’s seriously out of shape. She needs more ER time. She peeks out and sees Amy walking down the hall with another nurse. The nurse says she doesn’t know why everyone is so nervous around Cyrus all the time. She thinks his radio show is very inspiring. Amy says, that’s because she doesn’t know his history in Port Charles. That man is bad news. She just hopes lightning doesn’t strike the chapel while he’s in there praying for that adorable little nephew of his. They continue on, and Heather says, start praying for yourself, Cyrus. She slips out, closing the door behind her.

Curtis asks if Marshall is saying Portia was on the right track when she said he was misdiagnosed all those years ago, and Marshall says, Curtis’s wife is an excellent physician and a very perceptive woman. Stella says, Curtis’s father has been off his meds for an entire year without any symptoms. It seems obvious that he never suffered from schizophrenia at all. Curtis says, that’s great news. Marshall has had this information for a while now. How come Marshall didn’t tell him when he first found out? Marshall says, Curtis had a few other things going on in his life, and truthfully, he felt like a fool. He ran out on his wife and family, left Curtis and Tommy with no father, and all for nothing. He should have handled it all so differently. Curtis says, the past is the past, and Marshall did what he thought was right at the time, but he’s here now. He knows it doesn’t make up for all those lost years, but at least he doesn’t have the schizophrenia diagnosis hanging over his head. Marshall says, it’s like he’s traded one sword for another, since he still doesn’t actually know what was wrong with him. (My guess is an anxiety attack.) Stella says she knows how much he wanted to get to the bottom of this, so she’s been requesting old records and putting together a list of the revolving door of doctors who treated him for schizophrenia. Curtis asks if she found anything, and she says, actually, she did. She was able to find the signature of the so-called specialist that signed off on his father’s diagnosis. Curtis says, after all these years. This is great. So now they track down that doctor and get the answers they need. He knows there’s something Marshall wants to tell Aunt Stella. Marshall says, thanks… but no thanks.

On the phone, Jason says, yes, he’s still breathing. What’s the ETA on the paramedics?… Okay, well, he can live if they get here in time. He tells Dante, just hold on. He can make it. He hears the sirens in the distance, and tells Dante, they’re coming. He can make it. Jason jets.

John says, Karen was his high school girlfriend. She was smart and she was ambitious, and she was beautiful. She was a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. She repressed the memories, but it messed with her emotionally. Enter Sonny. He owned a strip club called The Paradise Lounge and he convinced Karen that she could empower herself, that she could take charge of her life by stripping. Did he mention she was underage? Ava asks Sonny if he knew that, and Sonny says he did. John says he’ll admit Sonny didn’t force her; he persuaded her. And when she got nervous about getting out there on that stage, he gave her drugs. Then in the end – John’s voice breaks – he slept with her. That’s the man Ava is standing next to, and that’s the man Anna is defending.

Sonny says, thirty years ago, he did own a nightclub called The Paradise Lounge, and it’s true he befriended Karen. She was curious about dancing, and he encouraged her, and he regrets it 150%. And if he had to do it all over again, he would do it totally different. Karen was abused and she was hurt, and she was acting out. That’s how she made her way to him, because she needed somewhere to go. He doesn’t care if John believes him or not, but he was there to help her. John says, by sleeping with her? By giving her drugs? Sonny says, by listening to her, by understanding what it’s like to be a young kid, powerless. You can’t stop somebody from hurting you. There’s a lot John doesn’t know about Karen, and that’s the real reason John hates him. John says, Sonny is like the Pied Piper from hell. He finds these damaged kids and pretends to save them, when really, he’s just exploiting them. That’s what he did to Karen, and he did it to Stone.

Josslyn and Dex arrive at the pier, and Josslyn says, Dante? They both run to Dante, and she says, it’s Joss. They’re going to help him. Dex says, someone did a field dressing, but she says, they have to do something else. Dex says, he’s got a chest wound. From the way he’s breathing, a lung’s collapsed. They have to plug these holes, so it doesn’t collapse more. He presses on Dante’s chest, and Josslyn gets on her phone. She says she’s on Pier 55 and a man’s been shot… No, there’s nobody else here. He’s alone… Yeah, she can hear the sirens. How long until the paramedics get here?… They need to hurry.

Olivia thanks Sam for sticking around and helping her clean up, and Sam says, of course (🍷). It was the least she could do. After all, Olivia helped with Scout’s party. Olivia says, the smile on her little face was thanks enough, along with the chunk of cake she has stashed in the fridge for later. Sam says she’s going to go. If Scout wakes up, have Drew handle her. She doesn’t want to impose on their time together. Olivia asks if that’s been a thing. Aren’t they getting along? She tells herself to shut her mouth and mind her own business, but Sam says, it’s okay. No one ever said co-parenting was going to be easy. She and Drew had their first disagreement about what’s best for Scout. Olivia says, that’s very normal. That’s going to happen. The stories she could tell Sam about her and Ned. Two big personalities, they butt heads all the time about what’s best for Leo, but at the end of the day, they talk it out, kiss, and make up. She’s not telling Sam to kiss Drew… Sam says she totally understands what Olivia is saying. She doesn’t want Olivia to think there’s friction between her and Drew. It’s not like that. The truth is, ever since Drew came back from Pentenville, something happened in there that changed everything about him. Olivia says she wishes she could tell Sam that she doesn’t have experience with that, but she does. When Dante came back with the PTSD, it was like he was a different person. After the torture and the brainwashing, it was like the boy she’d raised was out of reach. Sam says, they’re really lucky that Dante was strong and brave enough to come back to them, but Olivia says, luck had nothing to do with it. Her boy went through hell, and she didn’t think there was any way he was ever coming back. And then Sam came along.

Laura’s phone chimes, and she tells Cyrus, it’s Elizabeth. He says, good news he hopes, and she says, as a matter of fact, it is. Ace has a really nasty ear infection. He’s going to need a really strong antibiotic, but after that he’s fine. He says, then his prayers have been answered. Does this mean she gets to take him home tonight? She says, yeah. She just wants to fill this prescription while they’re getting him ready to be discharged. Cyrus wonders if Ace is old enough for lollypops (no), because he probably deserves a couple for being so brave. Doesn’t she think? She says, if not a lollypop, he probably does deserve some kind of a treat. She really likes how Cyrus is when he’s thinking about what’s best for Ace. It’s like he’s really learning how to be part of a family. He says, that really means a lot coming from her. Please keep him informed on how the little guy is doing. She says she will, thanks him, and leaves. He sits down, closes his eyes, and says, thank you, God. He hears the door open and says, forget something? He looks over and sees Heather, who says, never.

Cyrus asks what she’s doing here, and Heather says, what does anybody come to a place like this for? He’s a man of God now. He should know. She’s here to pray. He asks what she prays for, and she says, an answer. He says, the Lord is always willing to enlighten us. What’s her question? She says she wants to know why an old, lying, bankrupt weasel like himself gets to go on living, while her sweet Esme is dead. Does that seem fair to him? He reaches for his phone, but she says, don’t even try it, and takes out a huge surgical saw. She says, isn’t she a beauty? It’s amazing what you can find in a hospital, the tools they have to fix people. And then the other things you can do with them. She waves it around and says, I want you to suffer, old man, the way my Esme suffered.

Sonny says, Stone was his brother, but John says, no. Stone was his brother. He was a street kid that Sonny took in to run his errands, and when everything blew up with Karen, when Sonny was busted for underage talent, Stone became his ticket to respectability. Sonny says, he couldn’t be more wrong, and John says, Sonny was lower than dirt in Port Charles before Stone redeemed him. And suddenly he was Sonny Corinthos, mobster with a heart of gold, philanthropist. Who cares about his criminal record? All anybody could talk about was how good Sonny was to his brother. Sonny says he loved John’s brother, and he knows that, and John says, maybe he did. Maybe every moment he spent with Stone was sincere, but it still worked to Sonny’s benefit. Sonny is a shrewd investor, and this paid off for him in spades. Especially with Stone’s girlfriend. Robin treated him like a benefactor. She practically canonized him to the city of Port Charles. And to her mother. That’s the real reason Anna defends Sonny. Because Robin loves him; because he was there when Stone died, and she wasn’t. Anna asks if he’s quite finished.

Curtis says, let him get this straight. Marshall doesn’t want to find the doctor that misdiagnosed him? That mistake cost him his family, his future. Marshall says, it won’t change anything. It won’t give him back the years, the time he lost with Irene and Curtis and Tommy. There’s no getting that back. His focus needs to be on the life he has now. He thought he made that clear. Stella says, he did, and she heard every word, but that was his pain talking, the regret he feels, and she doesn’t want to add to that. It’s just the opposite actually. He’s been suffering as a prisoner for someone else’s mistake for 40 years. This is his chance to set himself free. Curtis says, Aunt Stella’s right. He knows Marshall is scared, but he’ll tell Marshall words Marshall told him when he found himself in this chair – you’re not alone. He misses mom and misses Tommy, but Marshall has him. This is right up his alley. Use his skills. They can pick up the thread Aunt Stella started. They can follow it wherever it takes them and finally put the past where it belongs, in the past. Stella says, Curtis is a smart man. Listen to him. Curtis says, let him do this with Marshall, okay? Let him help Marshall get these answers.

Josslyn tells Dante, the paramedics are on their way. She can hear the sirens. Just hang on. Dex wonders who fixed him up then left him, but Josslyn says she doesn’t know. Chase comes on the scene, and says, Dante. He runs over and asks, how bad is he? Dex says, from the amount of blood, it looks like multiple gun wounds to the chest, but they didn’t remove the pressure bandage, so they can’t be sure. He can’t find any other injuries. Chase says, the paramedics are on their way. He feels Dante’s neck and says he’s not getting a pulse.

Chase says he’s still not getting a pulse, and Dex says, the paramedics have to be close. Josslyn tells Chase to take over for Dex, who’s putting pressure on the wound. She’ll do rescue breathing while Dex does compression. Chase tells Dante to stay with them. They need him.

Sam says she can’t take credit for Dante’s recovery, and Olivia says, not all of it, no. He had to do the hard part himself, but Sam was a big part of that. After everything he went through with the WSB, seeing him talk about her – and they weren’t even a couple then, by the way – it was the first time she ever saw that spark back in his eye, the old Dante. It was the first time she allowed herself to hope that everything might be okay. Sam says, Olivia never told her that, and Olivia says she’s telling Sam now. Because she knows how happy Sam makes her son. She’s so grateful for Sam. She’s so grateful for her place in Dante’s life. Sam says she actually feels like the lucky one, because Dante was a bigger man, and he was brave, and he was able to fight those demons. Olivia says, he got that straight from Sam. Her son was at the lowest point in his life, and he needed someone to live for. And falling in love with Sam was a big part of that. So long overdue – thank you. She takes Sam’s hands and says, thank you for giving me my son back.

As they continue to work on Dante, Chase tells him, hang on. The paramedics are almost here. (They might have mentioned it was an officer down, not just, a man is shot.) Chase wonders where the hell they are, and Dex yells, we’re back here! He’s got a pulse. The paramedics arrive, and Chase says, hurry. His partner’s been shot. He’s got multiple bullet wounds to the chest that they know of. The paramedics go over to Dante, and Dex says, a pulse was detected. They did compression and rescue breathing. The paramedics do their thing, and Chase says, Dex and Josslyn may have saved Dante’s life. Josslyn says she hopes so, and Chase asks if they were the ones who bandaged him. Dex says, they found him like that. His legs were elevated and the sweatshirt was tied around him for a pressure bandage. Josslyn says, and somebody called 9-1-1. The operator was still on the phone when they got here.

John tells Anna that he’s here for a job, but the job isn’t to take Sonny down. That’s her job, and he looks forward to seeing her do it. She says, if she finds Sonny, or anyone else, doing criminal enterprise, then she’ll use every legal means at her disposal to bring them to justice. Ava says, wonderful. Now that they’ve both declared their mission statements, they can get back to their investigation, and she and Sonny will get out of their way. John’s phone beeps, and he says, one second. He has to go see one of the CSI personnel. He’s going to have to ask Ava and Sonny to stick around a while longer. He leaves, and Sonny asks Anna how long she’s going to let John drag this out, but she says she’s not letting him do anything. He has a case to work and the authority to work it. Ava says, after the show he just put on? He can’t be objective. He shouldn’t be anywhere near this case. (Agreed. And 30 years ago? Come on.) Anna’s phone beeps, and she says she has to take this. She leaves, and Ava says, for what it’s worth (🍷), she believes Sonny. About Karen. She believes Sonny was trying to help her. He thanks her, and she says, but Cates never will. And an FBI agent with a grudge is a bad enemy to have.

Cyrus tells Heather that they’re in a place of God. Please put the saw down. She says she doesn’t think so. She gestures with the saw as she talks, and says she wants him to listen to her. And she wants him to admit what he’s done. This little baby is going to help her make sure that happens. Her Esme came to him desperate and alone. All she wanted was for Cyrus to help her. It would have been so easy for him to do that, but he didn’t. Instead, he betrayed her. He says he knows that’s how it looks to Heather, but he was only trying to prevent… She says, to prevent something bad from happening. Yeah, so he’s said. But he didn’t and her little girl died, all alone, fighting for her last breath. Just imagine the terror she felt. Sheer panic as she fought to keep afloat until the current pulled her under. He says he didn’t want that. Nobody did. She tells him, how convenient that he says that now that her little girl is dead. But she will avenge Esme and become the mother to the son that Esme never got the chance to be. She moves closer while she talks and says, unfortunately, he won’t be alive to see it. Laura comes up behind her and clonks her in the head with something. Heather goes down, and Cyrus takes the saw. He and Laura look at each other, beathing heavily, and looking shocked.

Sonny says, they have another problem, and Ava says, just one? He says, Spinelli planted surveillance cameras all over the warehouse, and if the FBI finds them, they’re going to trace it to Spinelli. And they’re going to confiscate all the footage that happened tonight. She says, including the shooters on the roof, and he says, they can’t let Jagger see that footage before he does. They’re going to detain him here for probably 48 hours. They’re not going to detain her. She needs to get ahold of Dean. Have him take her to Spinelli’s and get that footage. Shed says, he’s trusting her, when Anna comes back. Anna tells Sonny that she has a squad car waiting to take them to the hospital. Dante’s on route to the ER. He’s been shot. He’s in critical condition.

Marshall says, Curtis would do that for him? and Curtis says he’d do anything to help Marshall. But he has to admit, he’d be doing that for all of them. The whole family was affected by Marshall’s diagnosis for decades. And now, thanks to Aunt Stella, they have a signature and a starting point. Stella says, and with his son’s expertise, they should be able to find that doctor and find out the truth. Marshall says he sees. It’s two against one. Talk about stacking the deck. Curtis asks if that’s a yes, and Marshall takes Curtis and Stella’s hands. He says, with his son by his side, he couldn’t lose.

A new guard has Heather, and she says, Laura hitting her in the head was a little extreme. Laura could have killed her. Cyrus says, Heather means, before she killed him, and Heather says, minor detail. Laura says, Heather left her no choice, but she’s glad Heather is okay, and Heather says, now there’s the Laura Webber she remembers. She was so sweet back in the day. Laura says, it’s Laura Collins now. He can take Heather away. Just make sure she gets checked for a concussion. Heather limps away with the guard, and Laura says, she doesn’t look well. She did hit Heather pretty hard. Does Cyrus think there’s anything wrong with her? He says he doubts it. She’s probably trying to escape again. He wouldn’t believe anything that woman says or does. In the hallway, Heather says she can’t breathe and falls on the floor. Laura and Cyrus come out of the chapel.

Olivia asks Sam if she can be a little bit nosy. Tell her to mind her own business and butt out if it’s too much, but since Sam and Dante spend so much time together, any chance of them making it official? Sam says, things are great between her and Dante right now, but she thinks they like things the way they are right now. Olivia says, fair enough. She can’t blame a mother for trying though. There’s a knock at the door, and Josslyn and Dex come in. Olivia says, they’re a little late for the party, and Sam asks, what’s going on? Josslyn says, they just came from the pier. Dante’s been shot.

An agent hands John a camera in an evidence bag, and John says, tell CSI to tear this place apart. They need to know if there’s any more of these here. These cameras are state of the art. The surveillance was obviously part of Sonny and Selina’s plan. He needs to know what network these cameras are running on, what’s on that footage, and most importantly, who’s got it?

Jason leans against a dumpster and feels underneath his coat. He looks at his hand and sees blood on it.

Tomorrow, Cody says, it was an opportunity to spend time with Sasha; Nina says, someone will just have to trust her; Ava finds Spinelli; and Olivia asks if Sonny had anything to do with this.

Vanderpump Rules

They play that sunrise music where I feel compelled to tweet like a bird. In Tahoe, everyone is doing their thing. Sandoval writes in his journal. Lala gets in bed with Scheana, who says, Brock got up at 5 for golfing. She was texting with Ariana last night. They’re not welcoming the Toms with open arms. Sandoval wouldn’t be here if it was their trip. She doesn’t think she can be friends with him again, but during the pandemic she had nothing coming in and he floated her. In Scheana’s interview, she says she woke up to several thousand dollars in her PayPal. Her podcast had been canceled, she was pregnant, and had no income. He was there for her when no one else was. She doesn’t want be best friends, but she’s struggling with not forgiving him. He’s a human and he’s been there for her. Lala asks if she’s feeling torn, but Schena says, no. She’s Team Ariana until she dies.

Ariana does a photoshoot for her new cocktail book, and Katie brings over lunch. In Ariana’s interview, she says, the cocktail book she did before was with Sandoval. He thought she couldn’t do anything on her ow. We flash back to Sandoval naming a cocktail and ignoring Ariana’s input. She says, this is essentially her breakup album. She’s trying to make lemonade out of lemons, but with vodka. She tells Katie that the book is the story of her relationship, and Katie asks if it’s dark. Ariana shows her the chapters: Honeymoon, Betrayal, Devastation, Resilience, and Ad Astra. It sounds like the five stages of grief. They laugh over the cocktail names, and Ariana does some shots outside. The photo kind, not drinks.

Sandoval greets Shannon, the yoga wellness instructor, and they lay out mats for the group. Shannon asks if there’s anything he wants her to touch on, and he gives her the Readers Digest version of Scandoval. He says, it didn’t tear the group up so much, but everyone hated him. This trip is the first time anyone’s let their guard down. Shannon says she’ll do a seated meditation where they work together. Lala, James, Ally, Schwartz, and Scheana show up and everyone remarks on the clarity of the day. Scheana wonders where Brock is. Shannon says the meditation is about awareness to self as well as everyone around you. Brock finally shows up, and Shannon says, they’ll sit by themselves first to center themselves, then they’ll do partner meditation, and end with bringing it to the full group. Allow themselves to be vulnerable and open to the full experience. They sit on their mats, and Shannon tells them to listen to their bodies and give themselves a few moments to be in the moment. Hear the lapping of the lake and feel the air on their skin. It almost feels like they’re playing a movie of their life. We flash back over Scandoval, and Shannon tells them to let go of their labels to help put themselves back together to feel whole. She asks them to sit back-to-back with the person next to them, and poor Scheana is sitting next to Sandoval. Since there are seven people, there has to be a triangle, and Scheana looks panicked when Brock sits with James and Ally. In Scheana’s interview, she says, this is the longest she’s gone in their 15 years of friendship, not speaking to or seeing Sandoval. She’s holding on to anger, resentment, and hatred, and she’s not ready for this. Shannon tells them to talk to the person and ask what they need. She doesn’t want anyone to hold back. Don’t say they’re okay just because it’s what they’re used to saying or walk eggshells. Scheana says she’s not okay and needs a break. She gets up and on her way inside, she says she still f***ing hates him.

Brock finds Scheana inside, and she tells him that she’d rather have done this with him, but he says, there’s other stuff here too. In Brock’s interview, he says he thought Scheana owed it to herself to have this moment and figure out the next step. He tells her that they’re here to figure this out. Outside, Schwartz says he saw this blue jay and it was massive. That’s his story. They’re supposed to symbolize communication and strength, and he thought it was a good omen. Brock tells Scheana that she’s got to be open minded. It doesn’t mean being best friends. It’s about talking through that. Scheana refuses to hug Brock, and he asks if she’s mad at him too. She says she just asked him to be back in time, and goes back outside. She tells the group that she doesn’t feel well and she’s uncomfortable. Shannon asks if everyone feels they’re okay, and Sandoval asks if Scheana is okay. Scheana says, yeah, and Shannon tells them to come back to where they feel whole. The moments in life that felt difficult made them who they are. We flash back over Sandoval and Scheana throughout the years. Shannon says she wants them to feel the beat of the heart and the rhythm of the breath of the person behind them. Then slowly and mindfully back away until their sitting on their own. Turn and face the person and imagine it’s the last time you’ll see them. Scheana looks like she wants to ugly cry, and Shannon asks how it feels to know they’ll never see them again or have them in their life. No matter what has transpired, remember there is much love before the loss. Scheana finally cracks and starts bawling. She says she needs to let go of the hate. It’s not good for her, but she’s still mad at Sandoval. She doesn’t know him. Sandoval says she does, and she says she knows who he is to her and what he did to her. He says, she doesn’t understand, and she says she doesn’t know if she needs to. Sandoval says he was thinking if it was the last day he’d ever see her and got very sad. Then he thought about the beautiful, amazing times they had together, took it in, and sort of celebrated it. Scheana says she thought about the last day many times during this because she was worried that he was going to do something to himself. She needs to let go of hating him, but he did this. Brock cries watching her, and she gets up. In Sandoval’s interview, he say she knows this is especially difficult for Scheana, and he appreciates that she’s willing to do it and be vulnerable with him. Shannon says, the last part is making a big circle, including Hippie (nee Graham). In his interview, Sandoval says he was hoping Scheana would be reminded that he’s not a ruthless, heartless villain. He’s a friend and misses her. He heaves a big sigh. Shannon thanks them and they thank her. In Scheana’s interview, she says, the mask fell and she saw there was still a soul inside. Her friend Tom misses her and their friendship and knows how bad he f***ed up. Schwartz says, they’ll chill, then go to the gondola. Lala finds Scheana and hugs her. Scheana says she saw genuine tears and cries some more. She tells Lala that she texted Ariana this morning, and it’s hard. She loves Ariana and has her back no matter what. Lala says, Sandoval can’t continue to be crucified day in and day out. He made a mistake, and it changed the dynamic of the group. There’s nothing they can do to change it.

Ariana tells Katie about Scheana texting her, and how she ended up with Sandoval as a meditation partner. She was sobbing and it was so uncomfortable. Ariana didn’t have time to ask the follow-up questions, so she just said, it sounds awful. Katie says, if someone wanted to be friends with Sandoval, Ariana’s not their friend? and Ariana says, yep. In Ariana’s interview, she says she’s made it clear. It doesn’t work for her to have mutual friends. She doesn’t want Sandoval to have access to her life in any way. She’s not making ultimatums or telling anyone what to do, but she’s only putting time and energy into friendships where she feels safe. We find out Katie’s date didn’t know what penne is, and she says she feels like in terms of life experience, they’re not in the same place. In Katie’s interview, she says, she already had to introduce Schwartz to the world. She doesn’t know if she wants another project boyfriend.

They get to the gondola, and Schwartz says, they’re one big f****ed up family. In James’s interview, he says, Ally wasn’t going because she’s afraid of heights, but he convinced her. He gets up during the ride, and dances, trying to rock the car, which does not amuse Ally. I identify because I had a boyfriend who did that on the aerial tramway to Roosevelt Island. I wasn’t amused either. James rides with the girls, while the rest of the guys ride in another car. Sandoval asks if the others got something out of the morning, and Schwartz says his relationship with Lala was strained. It was nice to reconnect. We see a clip of him telling her that she’s a good mom and has great eyebrows. Brock says, it was good, but Scheana was upset. She didn’t know how to handle the different relationship dynamic. Lala wonders what the boys are talking about, and Scheana says, her. She’s not wrong. Sandoval says, neither of them did any of this with the intention of hurting anyone. But the way they all reacted was with the intent to hurt them. Brock says, Scheana got slammed with a restraining order, and Sandoval says, because she punched Rachel Raquel in the face. In Brock’s interview, he says, Sandoval is taking 10% accountability, and 90% blaming others for his issues. Sandoval says, it was a hate crusade, and Brock says, Sandoval’s team spread rumors about him and Raquel Rachel. In his interview, Brock says, at the height of everything, Sandoval’s team said that Sandoval wasn’t the only one having an affair. When their team asked where it came from, they were told, off the record, Sandoval’s team. Guess it’s on the record now and I wonder if I need a team. Brock says, for the record, he and Raquel Rachel never looked at each other that way. She was like his little sister. Sandoval’s team was trying to save Sandoval’s ass and threw him under the bus. Sandoval says he’ll literally take a polygraph.

They get off the gondola, and the view is breathtaking. There’s a discussion about whether or not they’d go down a water slide from there. I think, maybe… Brock says, Sandoval is going to die on his own sword for a woman who’s not even here. He needs to stop it and move on. Brock says he needs a beer and tells Scheana that he lost it on Sandoval, although I don’t think that qualified as losing it. He doesn’t get it. brock tells Sandoval that he’s sorry he got emotional. They say what’s on the top of their minds and it’s not conducive to the conversation. Sandoval says he’s not discounting Brock’s feelings, but they it’s the constant kicking while he’s down from them. They saw him touring and they’re thinking he’s partying his balls off, but he had to. He had no money. He could have if he sold that house, but okay. Brock says, Sandoval’s choices of platform were incorrect, but he’s sorry for snapping. He saw Scheana was upset. Sandoval says he understands. In Scheana’s interview, she says, she was by herself last night, and hopped into a photo for someone’s birthday. They posted it and her arm is around Sandoval, technically. He just put himself in there, and now people are dissecting the photo. She’s reading, Scheana this and Scheana that, and it frustrates her. They don’t know she’s personally struggling and assume she’s betraying Ariana. Lala tells Scheana that she doesn’t think she should be reading that. They go in a small yacht to a gorgeous spot and some of them go into the in water. It looks like a blast.

Ariana, Katie and chief consultant Penny meet interview potential employees for the sandwich shop. In Ariana’s interview, she says, despite everything that’s happened, she and Katie’s vision is the same for the restaurant. Penny is working on the nuts and bolts, and she and Katie are focused on the front of the house. She’s never hired anyone and it’s weird to be on the other side of the table. She doesn’t want people to feel like they’re big, bad, boss ladies. First candidate Brent comes in wearing pickle tie because he’s a big dill. Penny seems to ask all the questions, and in Ariana’s interview, she says she appreciates Penny’s expertise, but she feels that she and Katie should be asking the questions. Brock and Schwartz swim out to a log, while Scheana finds a spot by herself on the boat and takes out her phone. No matter what she’s going to do, it’s a bad idea.

Scheana calls Ariana, who tells her that they’re interviewing. She asks if Scheana still feels sick, and Scheana says she’s depleted. They did the meditation whatever thing. Ariana says, Scheana wants healing, but doesn’t want to be put in the position to be friends. He did this to her and he’s not someone she wants to be friends with. She’s saying this for Scheana’s sake. Scheana says, it’s not like it used to be. The instructor had them imagine it was the last time they’d see this person and imagine this and that. Ariana knows how close they were, and it was a heavy loss. She’s struggling. She misses him, but they never be what they were because of what he did. Ariana says, he put everybody in that position, and Scheana says she felt like she got a genuine apology and genuine tears. She needs to let go of the hatred. She can’t keep hating him for Ariana. In Katie’s interview, she says, Scheana is getting close to crossing the line. She’s got the wrong audience. Scheana says she’s mad because she misses her friend. In her interview, Katie says, if Scheana wants to be Sandoval’s friend, Ariana will cut her off. She needs to think about her next move carefully.

In Ally’s interview, she says she’s nervous about James posting a photo with Hippie. Once you put it out there, it’s news. The cat’s out of the bag. Schwartz invites stew Arielle back to the house, and Sandoval passes around oxygen like it’s a bong. Lala asks if everyone had a good with him and he says, pretty much. She wonders if she can ask him a question. When he looks in her eyes says she needs to be real and honest with her life, knowing what he’s doing, how could he look at her and say that? He did an article the day before he got caught. Sandoval corrects her and says, the day of, and Lala says, it was such a mind f***. In Lala’s interview, she says, Sandoval said she has douchey energy and needs to be real. We see the headline and she says, how poetic it should come out on this day, and rich coming from him. Sandoval says, Lala’s life was a mystery for years, and in his interview, he says he lied for 7 months, when Lala lied for a few years about her 6-year relationship. They’re both liars. He calls this a wash. Wow. He just doesn’t get it. He’s even a bad sociopath. He could at least pretend. Lala says, he doesn’t get to talk about her past when he was doing what he was doing to them. She thought he’d say he f***d up and he’s sorry, but he’s not. He says he’s taking accountability.  

Sandoval says, they’re putting their lives out there and Lala isn’t, and she asks Scheana if she’s losing her mind. Sandoval wants to say she’s not real. In Lala’s interview, she says she thinks she overestimated the self-work Sandoval’s been doing. She tells him that she felt sorry for him for five seconds, and then he revealed that he’s terrifying. She’s happy with who she is and doesn’t care if he approves. She wanted to have a conversation where he’d be a human being. He says, she came at him, but she says she didn’t. He’s rehashed her past every year because it’s all he has on her. He won’t allow her to evolve, and even though it’s only been 4 months, she let him evolve. She tells him that he isolates and grooms. She doesn’t know him and doesn’t want to. He’s scary. Not being able to think of his own material, he says, she’s scary. Lala walks off, and Brock says, all they wanted was for him to say he’s sorry. No one wants bullsh*t. Sandoval continues to dig in his heels, and Lala says, all she wanted was for him to say he’s sorry. He f***ed up, but he brought up her past. Scheana says, Lala is asking for an apology and feels it’s hypocritical to tell her to be real. In Sandoval’s interview, he says his biggest issue with Lala is that she pulls out skeletons for motivation, yet he’s hypocritical for hiding 7 months of an affair. Lala says, all she wanted was for him to say he f***ed up, and Sandoval says he didn’t understand. Lala insists she’s not coming for him. She’s tired. Sandoval awkwardly hugs Lala and says he’s sorry. The last couple days meant a lot. He’s still processing and it’s a lot for everybody. Schwartz tells Arielle that they’re not usually like this.

Brock comes back drunk on tequila shots, and he and Schwartz talk about past relationships. Schwartz finally says, they’re too drunk to have this conversation. James calls his mom and says he spoke to Sandoval. He’s here. His mom says, no bueno, and James says he’s taking it day by day. Sandoval thanks Schwartz for inviting him. It was a huge breakthrough. In Sandoval’s interview, he says, in the beginning, he felt like a dog. Now at least they’re leaving him food on the porch. He can’t come inside, but maybe he can sleep in the backyard, not on the street.

Scheana tells Lala that she has to defend herself for how she’s standing in the photo. Lala tells her not to be searching for it, but Scheana says, it’s everywhere. It’s in all her mentions. Lala says, she’s searching for it and asks if Ariana came to her defense. Scheana says, of course not. When she tries to talk to Ariana, Ariana dismisses her feelings or says she shouldn’t feel that way. It’s like she’s a bad person for just telling Ariana that she’s struggling. Lala says, her feelings are valid, and Ariana is doing fine. She’s having her moment and deserves it. Scheana says she’s happy for Ariana. Even when she got Dancing with the Stars. Ariana knew how badly she’d wanted to be on it, but she was genuinely happy for Ariana and said she’d be there whenever Ariana wanted. She deserves what she’s getting, and Scheana is happy she didn’t go down a dark spiral, but she’s hurting still. Lala says she understands. Scheana can have Ariana’s back, but she has to acknowledge what Scheana’s been through. In Lala’s interview, she suggests Ariana pull her head out of her ass and remember who her friends are and what they’ve done for her. Scheana is ride or die and it’s time for Ariana to return the favor. Scheana asks why she can’t have a moment about her. She lost a very dear friend and she’s struggling with that. But she’s not allowed to feel that way because it’s about Ariana. She cries.

Next time, Lala tells Lisa that she’s trying to rebrand and get a sperm donor; Lala tells Katie that she’s a bit much; Sandoval is worried about Raquel Rachel; and Lisa says Rachel Raquel isn’t happy with Sandoval.

☔️ Jumping Puddles…

Slide into my blog tomorrow for soap and Part 2 of the horror that is Beverly Hills reuniting. Until then, stay safe, stay keeping your dog on a leash outside the dog park, and stay allowing people to evolve.

March 4, 2023 – Another Shot Is Taken At Sonny, Obnoxious Drunks On Deck, About Those Ones & Confident

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Laura opens her apartment door and thanks Cyrus for coming. He says, how could he not? It’s the first time she’s invited him to her home. She says, he usually takes it upon himself to just show up, and he asks if he can come inside. Or is the invitation only good for the doorway? She tells him, please come in, and he does, asking, what precipitated this step forward in their relationship? She says, Doc is with a patient at the hospital and Ace is sick with a cold, so she couldn’t leave him alone.

At the hospital, Portia asks Elizabeth, any problems? and Elizabeth says, none so far. Portia says, all right. Let’s get this over with. They walk into a patient’s room, and Heather says, daughter-in-law, so good to see you again. And so soon.

Brook walks into the nook with two pieces of cake and says, so this is where Tracy has been hiding. Tracy says she’s not hiding. She just didn’t want to get coerced into pinning a tail on a donkey. Brook says, coerced by a ten-year-old. She’s losing her edge. She pushes a piece of cake toward Tracy and says she didn’t want her to miss out. Tracy thanks her and asks what else she wants. Brook certainly didn’t seek her out because of their shared love of buttercream. Brook says, something happened with Lucy, and Tracy asks what she did now. Brook says, Lucy asked her to work against Tracy so she could regain control of Deception. Tracy asks why Lucy would think Brook would go along with that, and Brook says, because Lucy knows something Tracy doesn’t.

Selina says, her and Sonny’s arrangement can continue as before. She conducts her operation discreetly, abiding by their agreed upon boundaries under his protection. In return, he receives a 10% cut of all profits. He says, The Savoy is off-limits, but she says, if she can get a separate accommodation from Curtis Ashford… He says, The Savoy is off-limits, and Ava says she hadn’t realized this negotiation would be so realistic. Sonny says, since they’re here, let’s get down to business, when John busts in with Anna, Chase, Dante, and a few other guys. He says, federal agents. Don’t move. Hands where they can see them.

Two men walk out onto the roof, and one says, it looks like they’re late to the party. They missed their window. He can still get the shot. He unpacks his weapon, and we see the other man is Jason. I’d actually considered him as Stone early on because, Stone Cold, but I couldn’t get it to make sense in my head.

Brook says she hasn’t been completely honest with Tracy, and Tracy says she’s not liking the sound of this, but go on. Brook says she went to Maxie and proposed a way to get Tracy out of Deception, and Tracy says, do tell. Brook says, the idea was to convince Tracy that she loved Deception so much, Tracy would eventually take a step back and give her control of Deception, including Tracy’s voting shares, and she would turn around and give those shares to Maxie. Tracy says, brava. That is a scheme worthy of a Quartermaine. Treachery, deceit, betrayal. Brook has surpassed her expectations. She might live up to her potential yet. Brook says she learned from the best. Tracy only got control of Deception because she blackmailed Brook into bringing her the development notes for The Deceptor. Tracy says, Lucy stole Blair Cramer’s idea. She committed intellectual property theft. She brought this on herself. Brook says, who cares what Lucy did? Tracy, her own grandmother, forced her to betray her friends, and she hates the fact that she did what Tracy wanted, especially to Maxie. Tracy says, so Brook was just gritting her teeth. She was just enduring the time she spent with Tracy. Brook was pretending to learn from her.

Heather says she must really rate if she gets the Co-Chief of Staff to do her examination. She’s honored. Portia says, there are some things she’d rather do herself than impose on her staff, and Heather says she’s sorry if she’s imposing with her injuries. Elizabeth says she’ll be outside if Portia needs her, and Heather says, oh no, don’t go. She could really use a friendly face right now. Please stay. Elizabeth says, only if it will help, and Portia says she sees Heather is here for an MRI. She’s experiencing some hip pain. Heather says, that is correct. She’s in absolute agony and has been ever since she was attacked and brutalized by those Pentenville guards. The guard in the room says, is she kidding him? They were trying to calm her down. If anything, it was her resistance that caused her injury. Heather says she was confronting the man who was responsible for her daughter’s death… Portia tells the guard that she has to examine this patient and asks if he’d mind waiting outside. He says, sure. He’ll be right outside. Heather says she really appreciates that. It’s nice to be treated like a human being for a change. Elizabeth says, tell them what’s going on. She said she’s having some hip pain? Heather says, every time she puts weight on her right hip, there’s terrible pain, and Portia says she went over Heather’s scans from the infirmary, and it shows nothing. But she sees Heather had a hip replacement, twenty years ago? Heather says, a skiing accident. She was young, fit, wild, and free. She had a little run-in with a mobile. Portia says, Heather was also complaining about a rash on her lower back. How long has she had that? Heather says, it actually comes and goes. The sheets in Pentenville are so rough, and she has really delicate skin. These cuffs are chafing her wrists right now and putting her in a very strange position with her hip. Does Portia think they could maybe take the cuffs off for now?

Laura asks Cyrus, come, sit down, please. She wanted to talk to him about what happened at Pentenville a few days ago. Anna has briefed her already on the conversation he had with the gun dealer, O’Neill. First, she wants him to know that she’s very grateful to him, that he was willing to go through with their plan. He says he did it for her, but as she no doubt heard, they were interrupted before he was able to get any significant information. He can tell her that the guy is terrified by some figure he knows only as Stone. She asks, why? Did he say? Cyrus says, this guy has managed to convince the world he’s dead, and she says she understands his microphone malfunctioned during the conversation with O’Neill. He says, yes. He was attacked by Heather Webber. She’s got it in her head that he’s somehow responsible for her daughter Esme’s death. She says, so that’s how the microphone got damaged, in the struggle? and he says, how else? She says she doesn’t know, but they’re very frustrated that they weren’t able to get his complete conversation with O’Neill on record. So would he mind terribly just taking her through it, step by step? He asks if she thinks he left something out, and she says, you tell me.

Sonny says, what’s the problem, Agent Cates? and John says, they’re investigating allegations of racketeering and RICO violations. Selina says, this is her warehouse. They’ll find nothing amiss. John says he’ll take that as permission to conduct a search. While they’re waiting for a team to arrive, do they want to tell him the nature of their meeting tonight? Selina says she and Mr. Corinthos are avid gamblers. They’re planning a poker game, strictly legal of course (🍷). Anna asks if Ava is a poker fan, and Ava says, Texas Hold ‘Em. She plays whenever she can. Anna says, it seems a little unusual to bring a cadre of bodyguards to a warehouse for a card game (which just made her sound stupid under the circumstances).

On the roof, Jason watches as other dude props open a skylight and gets in position. Selina says, in fact, to storm her private residence without provocation… Jason peers inside.

Brook says she enjoys working with Tracy. It’s surprisingly fun. Tracy says, she’s too kind, but Brook says she’s being completely sincere. Tracy is incredibly smart and freakishly shrewd. Tracy says, don’t stop now, and Brook says she couldn’t have asked for a better mentor. She’s learning so much. And while she doesn’t believe Lucy has committed intellectual property theft, she does agree Lucy’s professional whims have hurt the company. Deception deserves better. Tracy asks what that would look like. Would it be Brook, her, them? Brook says she’s not going to lie. Music is her passion. Why can’t Tracy accept that? Tracy says, Brook clings to music like it’s some tatty security blanket. Why would she not allow herself to do other things? Brook says, like running a cosmetics company? Tracy says, Brook just told her that she enjoyed, that she’s having fun at Deception, and she happens to have the Quartermaine head for business. Brook says, Tracy isn’t listening to her. This isn’t her dream job. She just can’t picture herself running Deception in the long term. Things need to change. Tracy says, all right. She has a proposition for Brook.

Cyrus says, Laura is still suspicious of him after he went against his better judgement and did what she asked, and she says she appreciates the effort the made. Truly, she does. But the fact that his microphone was compromised at the crucial point gave everyone pause. He asks if she thinks he planned for that lunatic Heather Webber to attack him. He swears on his mother’s life that he accurately and completely relayed everything the gun dealer said. Laura said she wanted to believe him. That meant everything to him. Why won’t she let herself? They hear Ace wail on the baby monitor, and Laura gets up to check on him.

Portia says she’s going to check Heather’s vitals, and Heather says, but her cuffs. Portia says, it’s standard procedure for prisoner’s to be in handcuffs at all times when they’re at the hospital, and Heather says her hip is in so much pain, she couldn’t even walk, much less escape. Elizabeth says, Heather’s MRI is scheduled soon. When she gets back, they’ll ask the guard if he can help her get into a more comfortable position. Portia says, she does have a low-grade fever, 99.5, and Heather says, see? She’s sick, and she’s still in major pain. Portia says she’s going to call radiology right now and get her in right away, and she and Elizabeth leave. In the hallway, the guard tells them, that woman was not mistreated by the guards. If her hip is bad, she did it to herself. Elizabeth says, they’re aware of Heather’s duplicity. They weren’t taken by her. He says, this whole trip was a waste of time, but Portia says, everyone is entitled to proper medical care. Now that Miss Webber is a patient of this hospital, that’s exactly what she’s going to get. She goes to the desk and picks up the phone. She says she’s sending over a patient. She’s a transfer from Pentenville. Can Portia get an MRI of the pelvic region please?… Heather Webber. Portia needs her seen and evaluated ASAP… Thank you. Elizabeth comes over, and Portia says, as soon as they get Heather back to Pentenville, the better for everyone.

Anna says, Sonny has a casino in Puerto Rico, doesn’t he? He can fly down there any time he wants. Why waste his time in this grubby warehouse? Selina says she objects to Anna’s characterization of her property (and TBH, it’s pretty bare and clean), and Sonny says he’s sure the Commissioner isn’t trying to be rude. She’s just embarrassed. Anna says, is she? On the roof, Jason and dude wait, and Sonny says, they come in, guns blazing, and what did they find? Absolutely nothing. Jason looks in with binoculars and bumps dude’s arm as he takes a shot.

Everybody in the warehouse takes cover. Dude says, Jason ruined his shot, and Jason says, let’s go. Dude says he can still get him, but Jason says, they know the shot came from the roof. Their cover’s blown. Dude starts to pack up, but Jason says, just leave it. Let’s go. They jet.

John asks if anybody is hit, but one of them men says, no casualties here. Anna says she’s unharmed. Sonny? Sonny says he’s good, and Anna says, the shooter could still be out there. Dante asks if he and Chase should check it out, but she says, no. Everybody shelter in place. They could still be at the skylight and waiting for one of them to break cover. Dante says, they can make it. The shooter can’t see them. He and Chase take off.

Brook asks what Tracy has in mind, and Tracy says, she and Brook continue at Deception. They build it into a cosmetics empire. Brook says, wow, shocker, but Tracy says she’s not done. Brook’s creative, right? CEOs are creative. They create a vision for their company, and they organize all the moving parts to see that vision come to life. It’s a different kind of art. Brook says, sorry, grandmother. It’s not the kind of art that inspires her. Tracy asks how she knows that unless she tries. She wants Brook to experience the thrill of seeing her vision succeed. And when she does, if she still wants out, Brook may leave with her blessing, and she’ll sell her stock back to Maxie and Sasha. Lucy gets nothing. Brook says she agrees with Tracy there. After the way Lucy treated Tracy, she does not deserve control of Deception. Tracy says, just another example of how she and Brook see eye to eye. She’ll sweeten the deal. Brook can still produce artists on the side, although she thinks Brook is going to be too busy and too invested and having fun. Do they have a deal? Brook says she doesn’t get it. Why is it so important to her that Brook run Deception? Tracy says, because it’s something they can do together. Brook is a very smart woman. She can do anything she puts her mind to. Brook reminds her of herself. And believe it or not, she likes to have fun. And Brook is exasperatingly fun. And she’s the future of this family.

Elizabeth tells Portia that they’re ready for Heather in radiology, when Laura comes out of the elevator with Cyrus, wheeling Ace in a carriage. She says, thank God Elizabeth is here, and Elizabeth asks if everything is okay. Laura says she’s not sure. Ace is running a temperature of 104. He’s had a cold for the past few days, and he was just coughing and sneezing, but tonight all of the symptoms got a lot worse, and he got fretful and he’s just burning up. Portia asks what Cyrus is doing here, and he says he was just visiting his sister. He came out of concern for his great-nephew. Laura says she knows babies can spike a very high temperature, but she thought it best to bring him in anyway. Is there any way Elizabeth could take a look at him, or she could just take him to the ER… Elizabeth says, no. She can see him. Will Portia be okay with the other patient? Portia says, absolutely, when an orderly wheels Heather down the hall, accompanied by the guard. Heather sees Cyrus and says, you. You get away from my grandson.

Anna says, the shot came from a high-powered rifle. She wants them to cordon off a six-block area around the warehouse… On the phone, John says, law enforcement’s on the scene… No. There’s no casualties. He needs a CSI team here to collect evidence. Behind some crates, Ava says she guesses it’s safe now, but Sonny says, they have to wait for the all-clear. She asks when he became so cautious, and he says he’s not worried about himself. Chase comes in and says, all clear, and everyone comes out. Sonny asks, where’s Dante? and Chase says, while on the roof, they observed two suspects, approximately two hundred yards away, headed toward the waterfront. Detective Falconari told him to secure the scene and call for back-up. He’s in pursuit of the suspects.

Dante sees Jason and dude, and says, police! Freeze! Do not move. Jason stops, but dude keeps going. Dante says, slowly put your hands behind your head. Put your hands behind your head. Do it now. Jason puts his hands behind his head, and Dante says, turn around. Slowly. Jason turns around.

Dante lowers his gun and Jason lowers his hands. Dante says, what the hell? Dude comes out from behind Jason and shoots Dante. Jason runs over to Dante, but dude says, leave him.

Heather says, Cyrus killed her daughter. She doesn’t want him anywhere near her child. She starts to get up, but sits back down in pain. Laura tells her, calm down please. You’re scaring the baby. He’s sick. He needs to be examined. Heather says, Ace is sick? Laura better take care of him. Laura says, that’s why she’s here. Heather says, wait. Is that what Laura wanted all along? To have Ace to herself? Portia tell Heather to calm down. She will sedate her. Laura tells Heather, that is ridiculous, and Heather says, is it? Then why didn’t she take care of his mother like she begged Laura to. She trusted Laura. She told Laura Esme’s plan, so she’d keep Esme safe, but she didn’t, and now Heather’s baby is dead. Laura says she tried to find Esme, but she couldn’t do it. Does Heather think she wanted this to happen? She lost her grandson too. Heather says, at least there’s some justice, and Laura walks away with Ace and Elizabeth. Heather says, and keep that man away from her grandson, and Portia asks the orderly to take Heather straight to radiology. No stops, no matter what she says. The guard says, let’s go, and they get in the elevator. Portia tells Cyrus, the waiting room is over there. He can wait for Laura and Ace there. He says he’s sorry. He just wanted to inquire about her husband. How is Curtis doing?

Tracy asks why Brook is staring at her, and Brook says, Tracy wants to keep working with her. She just said it herself. Tracy says she meant absolutely everything she said about Brook, and yes, she does like working with Brook mostly. Brook says, they don’t have to keep working at Deception to hang out, and Tracy says, please. Every time they’re together, they talk about work. Brook says, that can’t be true. They also talk about planning her wedding. Tracy says, yes, they do. And guess what? Brook’s getting married, and once she is, they’re back to having only Deception in common. Brook says she won’t let that happen, and Tracy asks, how? Is Brook going to take her up on her proposal? Because she’s being really generous. She doesn’t think Brook could refuse. Brook says, all right. She’ll stay… for now. But her terms are, they make an effort to get to know each other better. She holds out her hand, and Tracy says, she drives a hard bargain. She takes Brook’s hand, and they pull together for a hug. Brook says, in an effort to get to know each other better, what is going on between Tracy and her future father-in-law? Did she ask Gregory to the wedding?

Chase says, he found an abandoned rifle near the skylight. He could only do a quick search, but he couldn’t find any shell casings. John tells an agent, go up to the roof and wait for CSI. Let them be the ones to retrieve the rifle. Those guys took off from here in a hurry. Maybe they left something traceable behind. The agent leaves, and Anna says, care to lay odds that the rifle is from the cache that was taken from the WSB? and John says, it fits the pattern. It also means the intended target is almost certainly… Ava looks at the sleeve of Sonny’s coat and says, that’s a bullet hole. John tells them, as he was saying, it’s almost certain the intended target was Sonny. Looks like his trap worked. Just not the way Sonny thought. (Well, yeah, because John got in the middle of it.)

Portia tells Cyrus that she’s had a very, very long day and she’s tired. She doesn’t wish to have small talk with him about anything, much less her husband. Cyrus says he merely wondered… and she asks, what part of stay away from her or she’ll get a restraining order does he not understand? She’s trying to figure this out. He says, it was five months ago, and since that time he’s been living his life as a respectable citizen. He guesses he was hoping her feelings had changed. She says she’s really trying here. She’s trying to be professional. But does he really think she’s going to forget that he terrorized her and her daughter in their home? The gunfire, the stand-off, and it certainly wasn’t five months ago when he went to Ava’s gallery, and approached Trina. He says, that was an accident. He didn’t know she’d be there. He was looking for artwork. She asks what he did when he saw Trina. Did he leave? No, he didn’t. He stayed and actually tried to talk to her. She never thought she’d say this, but she agrees with Heather Webber. Stay away from her child. Don’t ever go near Trina again. Does he understand her. She will call the cops so fast; his head is going to spin. He says he’s truly sorry he’s caused her this much grief and anger. He hopes she can find some way to let go of it. She says, he can drop the charade. Laura’s not here to see this act and she’s not buying it. He says, okay. Maybe she’s right. Maybe what he did was unforgiveable, but he can’t go back and change it. He just hopes maybe one day she can see he’s sincere. He’s no longer the wretch who terrorized her family. God has changed him. His life today is about trying to help others. Portia asks if he really wants to help, and he says he does. She says, stay the hell away from her family, and walks away.

Tracy says she thinks it’s safe to go back. They must have pinned the tail on that damn donkey by now. Brook says, no she doesn’t. They have a deal in place. She wants the tea. Not just the one in Tracy’s cup, so spill. What is up with her and Gregory? Tracy says, Gregory is taking Alexis Davis to Brook’s wedding, and Brook says, huh. They do work together. Did Tracy even ask him? Tracy says she was planning to. She went to The Invader to extend the invitation, which is when she found out he was taking Alexis. Brook says, they are colleagues; they’re not a couple. Tracy tells her, Gregory said they’re friends, good friends, and Brook says, then there’s still a chance. Tracy says she’s not throwing herself at Gregory, and Brook says, according to Chase, she doesn’t have to. Tracy asks what Chase said, and Brook says, just that she joined him, Finn, and Gregory at dinner, and he noticed Gregory was more relaxed with her than he is with most people, especially now that his ALS is more noticeable. He also said he was impressed with the way she helped Gregory without making a big deal out of it. That really means a lot. Tracy says, it’s not a big deal. People’s bodies change. Sometimes you can’t do things you used to be able to do, so you adapt. Brook says, and she and Gregory obviously have chemistry, and Tracy wonders if Chase said that, but Brook says, oh please. Men are oblivious to that sort of thing. Which is why Tracy needs to be direct with him. Tracy says, Chase? but Brook says, Gregory. She needs to tell him that she’s interested in seeing him. Put it out there. Plain and simple.

Chase says, units are in route, and Anna tells him to see that Miss Wu, her bodyguard, and Sonny are taken to the station. Hold them as persons of interest. He says, got it, and asks Selina to come with him. She tells John that it’s her policy to always cooperate with law enforcement, calls to her bodyguard in Mandarin, and leaves with Chase. Sonny asks John what he’s got against a friendly poker game, and Anna says, Sonny’s not helping anyone by stonewalling. Least of all himself. There have been multiple attempts on his life and at least one on Miss Wu’s. So they agreed to meet here tonight to lure their enemy into another attempt for what? So he could identify them? Presumably stop them? That’s not his job. That is the job of law enforcement. Ava says, so far, their record has been less than stellar, and John asks what she’s doing here. She says she’s looking for a card game, like she told them. He says, at one point, she was head of the Jerome crime family, but that was almost a decade ago. She hasn’t been involved with organized crime since. Anna says, that they know of, and John says, the FBI knows quite a bit. It’s not likely Miss Jerome has been targeted. But she has a daughter with Mr. Corinthos, doesn’t she? And she’s currently living with him? Ava asks if she should call her lawyer, and he says she can if she wants, but her presence here when the shots were fired puts it completely withing their purview to bring her in for an interview. Sonny says, back off. Ava has nothing to do with this. John says, she does now, thanks to him, and Ava tells him that he said himself, Sonny was the intended target here tonight. Which makes him the victim. He should not be harassing Sonny; John should be protecting him.

Jason tells dude to go to the pick-up spot and find another way out, but dude decides he’s going to shoot Dante instead. Bad choice because then Jason shoots dude.

Portia thanks the guard for changing Miss Webber’s position. She seems a lot more comfortable now. How was everything in radiology? Did she give him any trouble? He says, no. Just back to her charming self. Portia tells him to let her know if anything changes. She’s still got that sedative.

Laura finds Cyrus and he asks if they’re keeping Ace, but she says, no, they’re not. The pediatrician on call wants to take an X-ray of his lungs, so they can rule out pneumonia, but Elizabeth told her to sit out here for a while because her emotional state was upsetting Ace. He tells her to sit, and Laura says, anyway, Elizabeth was holding Ace, and he’s falling asleep in her arms. Probably reminds him of Esme, right? He says, yeah, and she asks how he is. She’s really sorry Heather lashed out like that. He says he’s certainly survived worse slings and arrows. He can brush off anything Heather Webber has to say about him. Laura says, she’s a mother who lost her child, so she’s entitled to her grief, and he says, she might want to work on how she expresses it. Laura says, yes, of course (🍷), but she does sympathize with Heather’s loss. He clutches a little and she asks if he’s all right. He says, it’s just a twinge, and she asks if that’s because of what Sonny did. He says, that certainly didn’t help, but the years have left their mark. When he was a kid, he didn’t really care about risking his life or how much damage he sustained. He had this idea that he was going to get rich and powerful on his own terms or die trying. Because really, what kid of that age can conceive of their own death, except maybe as an ultimate act of rebellion or the final scene in their own movie? She says, maybe that’s what happened to Esme. Maybe she was so desperate to get her son back, she convinced herself that she was willing to do anything, that she was willing to die trying. And then she did. She starts to cry and says, and then Esme took her Spencer with her. Cyrus puts his hand on hers.

Heather looks to see that the guard isn’t facing the door and takes out a paperclip she’s hidden. She works on the lock that’s keeping her cuffed to the bed.

Tracy says she’ll take that as a compliment and Brook’s faith in her abilities. And she’ll take it under consideration. Brook asks if she still reminds Tracy of someone, and Tracy says, maybe, but Brook wears her heart on her sleeve much more than she does. That’s dangerous. Brook says, Detective Harrison Chase has her heart now, so it’s perfectly safe.

John says, Ava surprises him. She’s a change from Sonny’s usual defenders. She says she’s simply pointing out that a crime was committed here tonight. An unknown person took a shot at Sonny. And instead of trying to apprehend that shooter, he and Commissioner Devane are questioning Sonny like he’s done something wrong. John says he could make the argument that Sonny’s obstructing justice by refusing to cooperate in a criminal investigation. Sonny says, all he’s done is cooperate. John is the one who broke in here. He didn’t resist. He didn’t try to run away. All he did was listen to John’s stupid questions and guess what? He got shot at. Anna says she understands he has a history with Agent Cates… Sonny says, that’s an understatement, and she says, fine. There’s no love lost, but she hopes he knows her well enough to know she bears him no ill will. He nods, and she says, unless she were to find out he committed something criminal. Then she’d investigate him to the full extent of the law, but she’s not out to get him. In fact, far from it. She doesn’t want him to die. He says, they agree on one thing, and she says, somebody out there is trying to kill him. And he has to have an angel on his shoulder, because she has no idea how that sniper missed him from this range, but don’t bet they’ll miss him the next time. So why doesn’t he let them help him and tell them what he knows? Chase comes back and says, Miss Wu, her bodyguard, and the two Corinthos guards are on their way to the station. Sonny asks, what are the charges? and Anna says she’s detaining them. Persons of interest. John says, what about his detective? Does Chase have an update on his pursuit of the suspect? Chase says, nothing yet. Dante hasn’t called.

Jason goes over to dude, holding a gun on him, and checks his pulse. He’s either dead or out cold, and Jason goes over to Dante. He tells Dante, keep breathing, and Dante says, Jason. Jason says he’s got him.

Tomorrow, Stella says, this is Marshall’s chance to set himself free; Josslyn tells Dex that they’ll stick to the plan and go into Port Charles together; Sonny asks if he’s under arrest; and Heather gets the better of the guard.

Below Deck

The party continues, as Kyle tells Barbie, go against him and there’s going be sh*t. If he tells her, this is the way it is, that’s the way it is. It’s not personal. She says she gets it. She’s a spoiled bitch who gets what she wants and needs to get over it. In Fraser’s interview, he says, Barbie’s has a spoiled brat attitude with everything. She loves to say she’s being honest and says it how it is, but that’s not how life works. You need a filter. They all dance and drink… and drink. Jared says he appreciates what Anthony does when he cooks, and Anthony says he cooks with his feelings. In Anthony’s interview, he says, the anniversary of his dad’s death is coming up soon. He wants to use his emotions as a force to show his dad that he can do his best. The taxi comes and there’s more drinking on the way to the restaurant. In Barbie’s interview, she says she thought she was into Jared, but he’s turned her off. She’s got the ick. Whether these people ate or not is questionable, but they go back to the boat for more drinking and hot tubbing. Cat tells Xandi that she’s on a boat with people she doesn’t fully relate to, and Xandi says, everyone loves her. Cat watches Sunny be all over Ben in the hot tub, kissing him. In Sunny’s interview, she says she doesn’t want to be mad at Ben, and she loves a little shaved fuzz. It shows that you’re hairy, and for some reason she likes that. Alrighty then. In Jared’s interview, he says he only gets to talk to his daughter two times a week. He’s afraid he’s going to jeopardize that and lose all communication if he doesn’t stick to the schedule. He’s trying to build trust again, and it’s super important to maintain consistency. In the crew mess, Barbie talks about Judaism, and Kyle asks if she’s Jewish. She says, in her heart she is, and in her interview, she says she was never drawn to religion until she got into Judaism. She bawled in front of the Western Wall and connected to something bigger than herself. She found her soul and wants to be part of it. She’s not ready to make that change, but she wants it. She feels it. She tells Kyle, a Jewish man has to give his wife three things; a house, clothes, and sex.

In the morning, Jared still can’t get through to his daughter, and Captain Kerry radios, asking him to come to the bridge. Jared tells the captain that they’re prepping for the next charter. Last night, he went through different emotions. He’s supposed to speak to his daughter on Tuesdays and Fridays, but there’s been no phone service, so he wasn’t able to. The captain says, he’s learned that you need to get your emotions out. You’re stronger showing emotion than holding it. In his interview, he says he cares about where Jared is at. When he was going through his divorce, he couldn’t do his job. He tried drink, exercise, and self-help books. He can relate. He says, if Jared has issues, come see him. They all have stuff going on. He’s got to work through it. He has to hold himself to a higher level being the bosun. In Captain Kerry’s interview, he says, Jared is going through a tough spot, but he’s head of a department and can’t have his head in the clouds. It affects his safety and the safety of the guests. He’s got to be focused on the job. The crew gets the boat ready, while Captain Kerry works on his Turkish. Fraser goes to the bridge to talk to the captain and tells him that he thinks Cat is going through some things outside work. She’s been fragile and there have been tears most days. The captain suggests Fraser let her take a half hour when things are looking like that, and Fraser says he had a fantastic response from Barbie. She’s changed her perspective. In Fraser’s interview, he says, Barbie is brilliant with guests, but doesn’t always have the best attitude with people. It’s unclear if people and guests are two separate entities. He tells the captain that Barbie said she’s going to turn things around and be better. He’s hoping she will. He’s also going to give Xandi some stripes. He hopes it doesn’t rattle the others. Captain Kerry says, when Fraser is away from the boat, he someone who can manage it. Xandi tries to show Cat how to do stuff, and in Xandi’s interview, she says she’s more than happy to teach Cat, but whether it’s going in or not is a different story. In the galley, Kyle and Anthony agree that Captain Kerry is an amazing captain. Anthony says he’s like their daddy, but Fraser reminds him that he’s Anthony’s mummy. Jared tells Barbie that he could be sad or mad, but when he sees her, he’s glad. She tells him that he’s getting cheesy. He tries to get towels from the provider, but is having no luck. When he gets frustrated, she tells him that his tone should be more professional, and he apologizes. The captain calls Jared, Anthony, and Fraser for the preference sheet meeting.  

Tina, a luxury property manager, is the co-primary along with husband Rich. Coming along are Tina’s business partner Mike and his wife Eileen, and friends Beth and Rob. Tina prefers to drink out of plastic cup, and in Fraser’s interview, he says, it’s stupid and psychotic. Tina also seems to dislike most forms of protein – no meat, no eggs, no tofu. In his interview, Fraser says, she’s got a lot of problems. Enjoy life. Have an egg. Jared reads that they want to snorkel, and in Captain Kerry’s interview, he says, the snorkeling is epic here. It’s going to be an amazing trip. The guests also want a Roaring 20s Monte Carlo themed dinner and want to compete in a friendly game of beach volleyball and drinking games. Afterward, the captain meets with Jared who says he heard what Captain Kerry said and he’s leaving behind what he needs to in order to be present in the moment. Kerry says he cares about Jared’s physical and mental health. This morning, he was either still drunk or hungover. (Or both. It’s possible… or so I’ve heard.) He doesn’t want someone in a leadership role who does that. He understands what it’s like. He’s been where Jared is as a captain and left his job. In Jared’s interview, he says he wants to be here. He hates not to finish what he starts.

Fraser has an interior meeting, puts Barbie on service, and tells Cat that she’s to go between departments. He says he trusts Xandi and would be honored to have her as his second stew moving forward. He gives her the stripes, and in Xandi’s interview, she says she doesn’t need stripes to prove her worth and now this is going to cause more attention to her. In Barbie’s interview, she says, of course he picked Xandi. Xandi is so far up Fraser’s ass, she’s not going to go there. In her mind, she’s second stew. This is all bullsh*t.  Provisions come, and Cat says she’s never wanted to sleep more in her life. In her interview, Xandi says, this is a big f***ing boat, and she can’t do it by herself. She’s going to snap. In the captain’s interview, he says, things are coming together. He’s finding less and less things to point out. He’s a happy guy. The guests arrive, and Captain Kerry welcomes them to Grenada. Fraser gives the tour, and primary Tina tells him that she prefers plastic cups. She’s not picky about her food, as long as there’s no meat. In Fraser’s interview, he says, it doesn’t look like Tina likes anything at all, but he’ll do his best to deal with it. The boat heads out, and Xandi asks Fraser, at what point is it not training camp? She’s had to redo everything. Fraser tells her to just make sure Cat is doing it correctly. Stick with that for now.

In Kyle’s interview, he says, exotic women and guests, good money, good tips. He’s winning. The guests sit down for lunch, and Tina tells them, no faucet water, like they’d be given faucet water on a superyacht. In Anthony’s interview, he says, Tina’s restrictions are challenging, but he’ll let her pick from different options. Don’t worry, princess. I got you. Food porn in the form of sushi and tuna ceviche is served, but guest Eileen – who arrived on the boat drunk – is chopstick challenged. In Fraser’s interview, he says, primary Tina is in real estate and her business partner Mike’s wife Eileen loves to drink. Good for her. Ben takes the guests out on the tender for the snorkeling excursion and asks how they met. Primary Rich says his wife and Mike work together, and Eileen is the local drunk they picked up. Fraser tells Anthony that he’s keeping it tame. They’re just a bit weird. We see some underwater scenes when the guests snorkel and it’s absolutely beautiful, but it’s doubtful Eileen will remember any of it. In Ben’s interview, he says, it’s good getting off the boat. He wants to do stuff for the guests. That’s what it’s all about, not cleaning sh*t. In Barbie’s interview, she says she’s trying to be nice to Jared, but he’s turning her off. She cringes when she sees him. It’s backpedal time. Fraser and Anthony look at Tina’s preference sheet and see that the lobster needs to be cold, only for her. WTF? As everyone gets ready for 1920s Monte Carlo Night, there’s a crash from Eileen and Mike’s cabin. Eileen runs out and tells Cat that they have a problem and she’s got to see it.

Somehow Mike got locked in the shower and broke out the glass panels one the door, but the door still won’t open. In Kyle’s interview, he says he’s broken lots of doors while drunk. And roofs, his leg, and a guitar. There’s nothing better than breaking a guitar, drunk or not. He tells them, engineering is on the way. Captain Kerry checks out the décor and thinks it’s fantastic. Eileen asks, who doesn’t love giant cards? Um… Fraser tells them, welcome to the French Riviera, 1920 Monte Carlo theme. There’s a French menu, starting with French onion soup, and I wonder if I have any in the freezer. Stop laughing. Trader Joe has a great frozen French onion soup. Tina says she likes slot machines, and Mike says, she likes pushing buttons. He asks if Barbie can set down his plate more quietly, and in Barbie’s interview, she says, can you feed your wife more water? Eileen tells Jared, who is graciously helping with service, that he’s lucky he’s good looking because it’s all he’s got going on. Mike breaks a glass, and Barbie tries to get the pieces up before he can do any more damage. In the pantry, she says, it’s such a nightmare, and she’s not wrong. Tina says her profiterole tastes like egg, and causes a sudden uproar about her not waiting for everyone else to be served. She whines that the ice cream was going to melt if she waited. She tells everyone that she’s done, and gets up. She says, they can do whatever they want, and toddles off, crying at the bottom of the stairs. Guest Rob asks her, what’s wrong? while still at the table, Mike says, it’s better than getting locked in the bathroom. In his interview, Fraser says, there’s a lot of animosity. He’s glad he’s not the only one who thinks Tina is a bit of a raging… Tina.

Barbie says, the sh*t is hitting the fan, and Cat asks if Tina is okay. Mike says, she’s drunk and he told her to settle down. Eileen announces that they’re going in the hot tub, and Cat tells Barbie, let’s just power through. Jared tells Barbie, these people are straight up rude, and repeats what Eileen said to him. In Jared’s interview, he says, it brings back when he was a child and f***ed something up. His not being good enough. He puts himself down a lot, and it affects the way he feels about his self-worth. While the guests sit in the hot tub, Barbie suggests getting them some water, and Mike tells her, don’t make the trip unless she brings drinks and water. In Barbie’s interview, she says, it’s lucky she can’t say what she wants to, and imitates Eileen for Cat at the bar. When they bring the drinks, Mike tells them to watch out for the mess they’re going to bring tomorrow. Anthony says, welcome to hell. Eileen slips on a step and her head boinks off the hot tub. God forgive me, I laugh like a hyena. Karma’s a bitch and she works fast on occasion. Barbie says she’ll help Eileen, and Eileen says she wiped out. Barbie says, it happens to the best of us, and helps Eileen down the stairs, even though she keeps saying it’s all good and she’s okay. In her interview, Barbie says, it can’t be that she’s going to wake up tomorrow and do this over. If she sees them starting too early, she’s going to water down their drinks. Jared says, they’ve pissed him off, seriously, and remembers Eileen’s remark, Barbie telling him that he’s cheesy, and Captain Kerry’s mini lecture. He sniffles and says, godammit.

Next time, Fraser says, here we go again; Eileen wonders where she is; Jared tells Captain Kerry about Eileen falling out of the jacuzzi; and Jared gets into it with Kyle.

⚰️ This Week’s Ones…

Tense moments for Michonne; zombies parting like the Red Sea; Michonne makes friends; Michonne loses friends; the bloodthirsty side of Michonne; a lighter named Danger; and another familiar face. Read on.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-the-ones-who-live-recap-season-1-episode-2-gone-michonne

🚛 Off the Road Again…

Stop in tomorrow for soap and VanderMess. Until then, stay safe; stay never assuming gender, sexuality, or relationship status; and stay letting your emotions out. You’re stronger showing emotion than holding it.

March 1, 2023 – Sonny Sets a Trap, Well Done, CYA Time, For the Ratings, VanderSuits, Winning Ones, More Last, SAGging, Priceless, Octonary Quotes & Rhythm

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Scout’s birthday is being celebrated at the Quartermaines, and Drew tells Carly that he has the balloons set up in the foyer. Carly says, when he throws a party, he really goes all out, doesn’t he? and he asks if she thinks it’s too much, but she says, Scout’s going to love it. He says, not just the balloons, but all of it, and she says, it’s not like he has a 100-foot bouncy house outside and ponies walking around. He says, they do have two horses and an alpaca, and she says, because they live here in the stable where they belong. He wants Scout to feel at home on her birthday, and this is their home. He says he guesses he just missed out on so much time with her. Any chance he has, holidays, birthdays, he just wants to hold on and never let go. She says, he should hang onto that. He should stay present with his daughter. You can’t do that if you’re focused on revenge. He says he didn’t even mention Nina’s name, but she says, he didn’t have to. She could hear him thinking about it. He thanks her for snapping him out of it, so he can focus on what’s important. He kisses her, when Scout comes in with Sam, Jake, and Danny. Scout says, he won’t believe it. There’s so many balloons by the front door. Drew says, they’re all for her. Happy birthday. He hugs her.

Maxie lets Felicia into the apartment, and thanks her for coming by with zero notice. She has a ton of work to do for Deception tonight. Felicia says she’d move heaven and earth to spend time with her grandchildren, but as thrilled as she is to be here, she has to ask. Why isn’t Spinelli available? Maxie says, because she sent him packing.

Dante finds Chase at the hospital and asks, what’s he got? Chase says he just talked to the officer on duty. Assault and battery. The victim was brought here for treatment. He tried to question him just to see what was going on, but the guy’s not talking. He didn’t even give them his name. Dante looks through the door window of victim’s room and says he knows who that is. That’s Selina Wu’s bodyguard.

On the phone at the penthouse, Sonny says, everything ready… Okay. Keep him posted. Thanks. Ava walks in, and he says, is there something she wants to ask him? Go ahead. She says, really? He hasn’t exactly been forthcoming of late. He didn’t say anything to her yesterday after his talk with Nina. He says he’s sure Nina is going to tell her all about it, but if she wants to ask him directly…

John walks into Anna’s office, and she says, please come in. What can she do for him? He says he wants Sonny Corinthos out of his life – for good, and she’s going to help him.

Alexis walks into the Quartermaines’ with a stack of gifts and asks, where’s the guest of honor? Scout says, right here, and Alexis tells her, happy birthday. Scout asks if all those presents are for her, and Alexis says, there’s more in the car. Scout thanks her, and Alexis says, she’s welcome. She can’t take all the credit though, because some of them are from TJ and Molly. Scout asks where they are, and Alexis says, they both have very mean bosses who wouldn’t let them have time off. Drew asks Jake to get the rest of the presents from the car and takes the stack from Alexis, saying, he’ll put them with the other presents. Carly asks Sam where Dante is, but Sam says, he couldn’t get off of work, but she thinks he’s going to make it by later. She looks around and sees the others have gone, and tells Carly, it’s just the two of them now. She wanted to say that she thinks Drew is a little bit more… relaxed. Carly says, she thinks so? and Sam says, yeah. Carly says, they talked before, and he was having a really hard time coming out of Pentenville with everything that happened there. She really thinks he’s slowly, but definitely, moving past it.

Chase comes back from the reception desk and reads to Dante from his notes. Someone called 9-1-1 to report a disturbance on the pier. When officers arrived at the scene, they interrupted a fight between two guys. One, Mr. Li, had been badly beaten, and the attacker appeared to be going in for the kill, when the officers identified themselves as the police. The attacker then fled on foot. Luckily, they apprehended him and he’s in lock-up now. Dante says, so Li must have ID’d the attacker, but Chase says, that’s where things get interesting. Li’s assailant is another one of Selina Wu’s guys. He goes by Morse. Dante says, so this wasn’t random, and Chase says, infighting in Selina Wu’s organization. What does that mean? Dante says he thinks it means everything’s about to get even more dangerous.

Anna closes the door and asks if John would like to take a look around. He might notice, this is the office of the Port Charles Commissioner of Police. Then he might come to the conclusion that the individual occupying said office is, in fact, the Port Charles Police Commissioner, and he’d be right. And who doesn’t love to be right? He says, obviously the Port Charles Commissioner of Police likes it a lot, and Anna says, she likes it a lot. In fact, it’s one of her favorite pastimes. So do they need to have a discussion about the meaning of jurisdiction over a nice cup of tea or something, or is there some other way she might assist him? He says he apologizes, and she says she accepts. She gestures for him to sit down, and he does, saying, he had a bear of a day, and he shouldn’t have taken it out on her. She says, but he did, and it does seem to be a bit of a pattern. He says, it is? and she says, yeah. He barged in on her operation at Pentenville and tried to shut it down. He says he had a legitimate reason to request she leave his witness alone, but she says, that wasn’t a request; it was a demand. He says, and she accused him of obstructing his own investigation, and she says she shouldn’t have questioned his integrity. She’s sorry. He says he was not expecting her to apologize, like ever, and she says she wasn’t expecting him to apologize. So it’s a banner day for both of them. He’s always been good friends with Robin, and she respects that friendship. So there’s really no reason for them to be at odds with each other. He says he can think of one reason, but their difference over Sonny aside, he does respect her, and he wants to say thank you. She says, for what? and he says, for talking him down when he barged in here, acting like he owned the place, and for at least trying to diffuse the tension between them. He wants them to be able to work together. She says she wants that too. Why don’t they make that happen? (Hmm… Is this a couple in the making?)

Ava says, what goes on between Sonny and Nina is his business. She just wants to let him know that her friendship with Nina doesn’t mean she’s choosing sides. She’s staying out of it. He says, wise decision – there’s a knock at the door – because nothing’s more important right now than Dante, not Nina. He goes to the door and says, come on in, Spinelli. Spinelli says sees Ava and says he assumes Sonny must be taking him up on his offer to learn the ways of Dungeons and Dragons, but Sonny says, he can talk in front of Ava. Spinelli says, as you wish. All systems are go for tonight. Ava says, all systems, huh? What’s happening tonight? Sonny says, tonight, he’s bringing his enemy down to his knees.

Maxie says, can Felicia believe Spinelli? He knows everything that happened with Austin and Peter, yet he still lied to her so easily. Felicia says, it sounds like his heart was in the right place, but Maxie says, his heart had nothing to do with it. This was his savior complex. Can she imagine anything more insulting? Felicia says, uh… yeah, and Maxie says, for sure, but he still lied. She knows she’s told her fair share of fibs in the past, but she can’t believe Spinelli would manipulate her this way. Felicia says, that’s not what happened, and Maxie says, what’s not what happened? Felicia says, it wasn’t Spinelli’s idea to move in with Maxie and help her with her finances. It was hers.

Willow and Michael come in with Danny, and Sam wonders if there weren’t more children at the party. Willow says, Scout wanted to visit the horses and the alpaca, so Wiley and Leo are – in Leo’s words – hosting a tour of the stables. Sam says, but Cody’s there, right? and Michael says, yeah. Sam says, perfect. And Danny and Jake brought in the rest of  their grandmother’s presents? Danny says, turns out it was a one-man job. Is there anything else he can do? Sam says, everything is under control. Just go have fun. Danny says, cool. He left his coat down at the stables. He’ll be back. Sam says, he leaves that coat everywhere, when Kristina comes in with Blaze. Danny hugs Kristina, and tells Blaze, hi, obviously starstruck. Blaze says, hi, Danny, and he says, she remembered his name. Blaze says, of course (🍷) she did, and he leaves. Kristina hugs everyone and says she thinks most of them know Blaze, her girlfriend. Sam says, of course (🍷). It’s good to see her again. Blaze says, it’s great to see Sam, and Willow says she thinks they met at Rice Plaza. Blaze says she remembers. It’s nice to meet her again.

 Alexis is getting some party stuff from plastic tubs, when Drew joins her. She says she’s glad they have some time alone. She wants to talk to him about something. He says, great. What’s up? She says she understands this is a touchy subject, but she’s sure he’s heard Nina is now the publisher of The Invader. He says he did hear that. How’s that going? She says she has reservations. Many. She said she was fired from Crimson for personal reasons. Is that true? He says, if she’s asking if this has anything to do with Nina turning him and Carly in to the SEC… She says, that’s exactly what she’s asking, and he says, then the answer’s yes. She was not acting as a concerned citizen trying to right a wrong. Her motivation was strictly vindictive, and if she can exploit federal law to her own ends, should she really be running a major magazine? And as the owner of Aurora, he felt like he couldn’t trust her judgement anymore. She says, that sounds like something he’d say in a press release or a court of law. Tell her what he really thinks, and he says, between the two of them? Someone as reckless and self-absorbed as Nina is capable of anything. If he were Alexis, he’d watch his back.

Maxie says, so it was Felicia’s idea. All right. Explain. Felicia says she knew Maxie was in financial trouble and wouldn’t take her help, even though she clearly needed it and Felicia had the means. Maxie says, except she doesn’t. She kept dipping into her savings. Felicia says, those were the means, and Maxie says, but she couldn’t pay Felicia back because she’s a bad investment. Felicia says, that’s why she called Spinelli. She knew Maxie wouldn’t accept charity from anybody, so she had to get creative. Spinelli was helping her help Maxie. Maxie says, Felicia should have respected her boundaries. It was important to her that she be the one to fix her finances. Felicia says she understands that, but she’s Maxie’s mother and couldn’t just sit back and watch while she was struggling. Maxie says, okay, she gets that. She absolutely does not approve of Felicia’s methods, but if she could see her kids needed help, she’s capable of doing much crazier things, whether they wanted her to or not. She wouldn’t care. She’d just do it. Felicia says, then Maxie forgives her? and Maxie says, absolutely. Felicia says, and she forgives Spinelli, but Maxie says, no way. Felicia says, why? Not that she’s complaining, but why is Maxie so much angrier with Spinelli than with her, especially since it was her idea? Maxie says, because Spinelli is not her parent, and he doesn’t have the right to conspire with her mother to fix her finances. Felicia says, maybe not, but… Maxie says, there’s no maybe about it, but Felicia says, Spinelli is family. He’s the father of Maxie’s oldest daughter and her oldest grandchild, and Maxie knows he’d do anything for her. Maxie says, except respect her autonomy, and Felicia says, because she told him to. Maxie knows she would do the same thing if the positions were reversed. Maxie says, that is precisely the problem, and Felicia says, that they both care enough about each other that they’d do anything for each other? but Maxie says, that is not the problem. It’s because… It’s because she… Felicia says, what? and Maxie says, because she fell in love with him again. Spending all this time with him, having him live in her house. It was all under false pretenses. Felicia and Spinelli didn’t just meddle with her finances; they meddled with her heart.

Spinelli says, so whoever is targeting Sonny is expecting him to be holding a summit, building bridges, as it were, giving them an opportunity to take out both parties at once. Meanwhile, he’ll be monitoring the situation with cameras set up around the warehouse. Ava asks if Sonny is sure Selina’s guy did as he asked, because Li has betrayed her before, and Sonny says, he made sure Li carried out the orders. She says, good. Question. Sonny says, go ahead, and Ava says, isn’t it highly unlikely this enemy is going to show up there himself? Won’t he, too, be monitoring from a safe distance, letting his hired guns do the job for him? Sonny says he’s counting on it.

Dante tells Chase, this assault on Li sounds like a botched execution attempt, which means it relates to the FBI’s investigation that Cates is running. Chase says, but only Li can confirm that, and Dante says, then let’s hope he’s able… and willing.

Jake comes in and is startled to see Blaze. He says, oh… hi, and she says, hi. He says, she’s… Everyone laughs, and Kristina says, this is Blaze, her girlfriend. She tells Blaze, this is Danny’s brother, and Blaze says, nice meeting him. He says, nice meeting her too. He’s a… Willow asks if Jake can track down Danny and let him know it’s time for cake. He left his coat outside. Jake is obviously at a loss for words, seeing Blaze, and says, uh… yeah. He leaves, and Michael says, three… two… one. Jake comes back in, gets his own coat, then leaves again. Blaze laughs and shrugs.

Sam finds Drew and says she was going to send out a search party for him. He says he was just making sure everything was… yeah… She asks if he’s okay, and he says, yeah. He thought he misplaced this Pin the Tail on the Donkey – he shows her a stack of tails – but… She says, crisis averted. She was going to ask if he could do a favor for her. He says, she can ask him anything, always. He wants her to know that. She says she’s not sure about that. He’s been having a pretty rough time ever since… He says, it hasn’t exactly been sunshine and rainbows, and she says, is it ever? (Not here, I can assure you.) He says, but he’s trying to focus more on the silver lining than the clouds, and she says she’s glad to hear that. He wonders what she wanted to ask him, and she says, Danny. He’s been having a really tough time lately, and she knows it’s more than teenage boy stuff. She guesses what she wanted to say is, is there any way Drew can talk to him? He trusts Drew and she thinks he would confide in Drew. She doesn’t think he’d talk to her about anything like that. He says he’d be happy to. He’ll spend some time with Danny. Maybe he’ll take him to a game or something. She says, okay. That sounds good. But is he sure he’s up for it? She doesn’t want to put too much on his plate. He says he’s learning that it really helps focusing on somebody that means more to him than himself. She can count on him. She thanks him and gives him a hug.

Jake goes down the footbridge near the boathouse calling for Danny. He says, they’re going to cut the cake. Danny jumps up by the benches, and Jake asks if he found his jacket. Danny says, yeah. He put it in the car. It’s fine. Jake asks if he’s okay, and Danny says, yeah. It’s a kids’ party. Jake says, well, it’s time for cake, so… He sniffs the air and asks if Danny smells something, but Danny says, no, and starts walking. Jake says, it’s really… sweet. He notices something under one of the benches and picks it up. He examines it, then looks at Danny.

Anna says, despite their differences of opinion, she does understand how John feels about Sonny, and he says, with all due respect, he doesn’t think she does. Sonny Corinthos is now the head of one of the most powerful organized crime syndicates on the east coast. So forgive him if he doesn’t buy into the narrative that underneath it all, Sonny’s a really good guy. She tells him that she wouldn’t say he’s one of the good guys, but she also doesn’t think John has taken his full measure. John says, meaning, and she says, meaning that he’s not a saint, but he’s not a sadist who wants to destroy and torment people for sport. John says he just had a conversation with Sonny that would suggest otherwise, and she asks if that’s why John came barging in here, demanding she get Sonny out of his life. He says, she’s good. Anybody ever tell her that she should be a cop? She says, too often. All she’s saying is, maybe he has issue with the man Sonny used to be, rather than the man he is now.

Dante introduces himself and Chase to Li and asks if Li can tell them what happened to him today. Li says, someone tried to kill him, and Chase says, not just someone, one of his colleagues from Selina Wu’s organization. Dante says, so he’s guessing this isn’t the result of an argument gone bad, right? They have Mr. Morse in custody. He was following orders. Li says he doesn’t talk to cops, and Chase says, his boss wants him dead. Dante says, he walks out of here, he’s probably got days, hell, even hours to live, and Li says, death comes to us all. Dantes says, it does, but judging from the way Li looks, he’s guessing Li fought like hell to stay alive, so he’s not really buying Li’s zen on dying thing he’s trying to sell them. Chase says, how about this? They put in a call to the DA and make sure he’s protected, and Li says, how comforting. Dante says, he’s right. Talking to them is probably just going to buy him some time. A day, maybe another after that. He doesn’t know. But keeping his mouth shut? He’s willing to bet Li ends up in an unmarked grave by the morning. So you tell me, what’s it going to be?

Sonny says he wishes whoever’s targeting him would get in his face, but he knows they’re too scared, and Ava says, so what’s the endgame here? Sonny says, somebody will be sent to eliminate him and Selina, and they’re going to grab them, and let them take them to whoever’s behind the shooting, and this thing is going to end. Ava asks when they leave, but Sonny says, they’re not going anywhere. She says, yes, they are, and walks over to her coat. Sonny asks Spinelli to do him a favor. He thinks they’re done. He’ll keep Spinelli posted. Spinelli says he eagerly awaits Sonny’s communication, and leaves. Ava puts on her coat, and Sonny says he appreciates what she’s doing, but she’s not part of this. She says, on the contrary. If this plan of his is going to work, he needs her.

Felicia tells Maxie that she’s so sorry. It never occurred to her that this would happen this way. Maxie says she never thought Spinelli would lie to her like this, but Felicia says, it isn’t really like that. It’s not like they set out to deceive her. Maxie says, were Spinelli’s pipes actually broken? and Felicia says, so they did set out to deceive her, but if they’d offered Maxie the money, she would have just said no, again. Maxie says, at least it would have been her decision, and Felicia says, yes, and it would have been a bad one. The point is, she and Spinelli were in a lose-lose situation and since there was no good decision to make, they made the least bad decision to help her. Deceiving Maxie like that, helping her with her finances while providing free babysitting, was all an act of love on both their parts. Maxie says she knows that, and she knows that Spinelli would never lie to her out of malice. That is not her main problem. Felicia says, then what is? and Maxie says, the thing that’s bugging her the most is, she couldn’t tell Spinelli was keeping something from her. Felicia says she could understand why that might be troubling for Maxie, but it’s not like what happened with Peter. Maxie says, way to sugarcoat it, and Felicia tells Maxie that she’s just saying, Spinelli never lied to her about his mafia connections. Maxie says she’s always known about this (what?), and Felicia says, he never tried to steal her baby or isolate her in a forest cabin… Maxie says, okay. She gets where Felicia is going with this, but that is a very low bar to clear. It’s just that, aside from Felicia and Mac, Spinelli was always the person she could trust the most. Felicia says, doesn’t this prove that he still is? and Maxie says, maybe it proves that her acting on her feelings for Spinelli was a huge mistake.

Jake asks if this is Danny’s, holding up a vape pod, and Danny says, no, it isn’t, but reaches for it. Jake says, it’s garbage now, and Danny says he can’t just throw that out, but Jake says he can’t leave it lying around. Danny says, okay, fine, it’s his, reaching for it again, and Jake says, he’s vaping? Danny says, who is he to even care? and Jake says, maybe he doesn’t want his brother to get popcorn lungs. Danny says, calm down. It’s not like really smoking. Jake says, they’re not having this conversation here. Right now, they’re going back to the house to celebrate their sister’s birthday, with their whole family there. Is Danny trying to get caught? Danny asks, why? Is Jake going to rat him out?

Anna tells John that recently, she’s gotten to know Sonny as a person, and he’s always been a very good friend to her daughter Robin. John says, come on, and Anna says, just in the very same way he was a good friend to John’s brother Stone. John says, a lot of good people see the best in bad people (agreed), and she says, he’s done a lot of positive things for this community. John asks if she’s talking about the hospital wing Sonny bought in his brother’s memory. She does know crime lords use philanthropy as a way of laundering money. She says, her point is, while she wouldn’t hesitate to arrest him if she had evidence of a crime, she still doesn’t believe he should be reduced to just that. Because if John hopes to take him down one day, he can’t just focus on Sonny’s crimes and flaws, which admittedly are many. He has to take into account the good things as well. If he just lets himself be blinded by prejudice, he’ll miss the opportunity to apprehend Sonny when it presents itself. John and I both ponder this.

Ava says, if Sonny is going to sell this mediation, he’s going to need a third party to arbitrate. That’s the play, isn’t it? Which means he needs a rep from a third family. What’s he going to do, call what’s left of the Novaks? The Buscemas? Does he trust them? She happens to be a former member of the Jerome family. Her presence could help sell this thing. He says, she’s not wrong, and she says, he and Selina are the bait, but she could be what convinces his enemy that this meeting is legit and draws them out. Plus, if she’s being honest – he says he can’t wait to hear this one – his circle of trust has gotten pretty small. It’s so small, she’s in the center of it. He doesn’t have to do this alone. Don’t do this alone. Let her help him.

Maxie says, she and Spinelli have been down this road before and it did not work out, and Felicia says, a long time ago. Maxie says, doesn’t she think that proves that maybe it never will? and Felicia says, how? Maxie says she and Spinelli literally admitted to each other how they felt, and then instantly, everything fell apart. Felicia says she wants Maxie to listen to her and really take this to heart, and Maxie says she’ll try. Felicia says, Maxie may think that when Spinelli moved in, that’s what caused her to fall in love with him, but the truth is, they’ve always had a connection. Not just as friends, not just as co-parents. They’ve always been a little bit in love with each other, even when they were with other people. Maxie asks how Felicia knows that for sure, and Felicia says she’s seen the bond between Maxie and Spinelli. Everybody’s seen it. Nathan saw it. Ellie saw it. Mac is still annoyed by it. And Spinelli, now he sees it. The only person who says they haven’t seen it is Maxie. She thinks it’s time for Maxie to get honest about what she’s afraid of. Maxie says she doesn’t know what she would do if she and Spinelli tried to be together and she lost him for good, and Felicia says she can understand why Maxie would be afraid of that, given all the loss she’s had to endure. Putting our hearts on the line is really scary. Maxie says, it’s not just her heart though. Georgie would be devastated if she and Spinelli didn’t work out. And Bailey Lou and James, they’re both crazy about Spinelli. Felicia says, Maxie is right. There is a lot at stake here. She can’t tell Maxie what decision to make. Maxie says, since when? and Felicia says she can tell Maxie that she’s a survivor. She’s endured so much and come out of it stronger each time. Maxie says she’s just tired. How many growth experiences should one person have? Felicia says, what she has to know is, if things don’t work out with Spinelli, then she’ll survive that too. Or the two of them could get back together again, older and wiser than they ever have been, and stumble into some happiness they never dreamed is possible. It’s up to her to decide if it’s worth the risk.

Jake tells Danny, don’t worry. He’s not going to tell anyone. This is his business. He holds the pod out, but pulls it back when Danny tries to take it. Danny says, what the hell? Give it back. Jake says, not going to happen. He might not be a snitch, but he’s not going to let Danny do this. Danny says he’s not messing around. Give it back. Jake says, or what? and Danny says, or he’ll take it from Jake. Jake says, oh really? This is that important to Danny that he’d try to forcibly take it from him? Danny says he wouldn’t just try, and he grabs Jake, saying, give it back. Willow calls to them, and Jake slips the pod in his back pocket. She says she thought she heard shouting. What’s going on? Jake says, they were just messing around, and Danny says, pretty much. She says, they’re taking a family photo. Come on.

Michael says he wanted to tell Carly this sooner, but he didn’t have a chance, and she says, something wrong? He says he talked to Dante, and Dante told him that he thinks there’s a link between whoever’s targeting Sonny and Olivia Jerome’s death. She says she knows, and he says, she knows how? She says she had a conversation with Special Agent John Cates of the FBI. Does Michael know him? Michael says, they just met, and she says, okay. Is there more to that story? He says, just that he’s worried about dad, and she says, her too. She doesn’t know what to do about it. Does he have any ideas? He says he told Josslyn to bring Dex back to town, and she says, what? Why would he do that? Why would he do that to Dex? Michael says, he’s a grown man. He can decide whether or not he wants to come back. She says, if something happens to Dex, his sister is going to be devastated, but he says he’ll cross that bridge when he comes to it. She asks how he thinks Sonny is going to react. He was furious when he found out Michael hired Dex to spy on him. Now he went behind Sonny’s back again. Michael says, if he’s angry, he’s angry. He’s going to help his father whether he likes it or not. Kristina comes in and says, what’s going on with dad? Why does he need help?

John tells Anna, so O’Neill says they’re looking for a dead man. At least someone who’s dead on paper. Anna says, according to Cyrus. His trustworthiness is questionable at best. Plus, the mic dropped out just as he was acquiring that piece of intel. John says, maybe there’s a way to corroborate his story. Any ideas? There’s a knock at the door and Anna says, yeah? Dante comes in with Chase and says, sorry to interrupt. It’s important. John asks if it’s about his case, and Dante says, he means their case. Yeah, it is. Anna asks what he’s got, and Dante says, Sonny and Selina Wu are making moves. (Well, that’s one way to put it, but I got a mental picture of them dancing.)

Selina waits at the warehouse, and her man comes in. She asks if everything is in place on their end for tonight, and he says, yes. And Mr. Corinthos assured him it’s all taken care of, but… She says, but what? and he says, the associate seems odd. She says, Mr. Spinelli is certainly unique, but very good at what he does. Sonny comes in with Ava and a bodyguard, and Selina says, Miss Jerome, what a surprise. She wasn’t expecting her. Ava says, Miss Wu. She hopes Selina doesn’t mind her joining them at the last minute. Selina says, actually she does. This wasn’t part of their plan. Sonny says, plans change. She can trust Ava.

Maxie calls Spinelli and gets voicemail, saying he’ll return the call posthaste. She says, hey, it’s me. Call me.

Michael tells Kristina, it’s just that he hasn’t talked to dad in a while. Has she? She says, not a whole lot. She’s been busy. Why? What’s going on? Is there something she should know about? Carly says, they were just wondering how things are going with her and Blaze, and Kristina says, things are good. It’s still new, so… Anyway, she’s been asked to summon them for cake and photos. Carly says she’s got to get in there, and leaves. Kristina asks Michael if he’s sure everything’s okay with dad, and Michael says, yeah. He’ll be fine. She says, okay, and leaves. Michael says he’ll make sure of it.

Dante says, Sonny and Selina coerced her bodyguard Li to leak to his source that they’re meeting up tonight, and Chase says, presenting a prime opportunity for Li’s boss to take Wu and Corinthos out. Anna says, so they’re setting up a trap to smoke out their assassin, and John says, which is exactly what he didn’t want to happen. He knew if they let Corinthos in on what was going on, he’d go vigilante and take their suspect out. Anna says, they can’t let him take the law into his own hands, and John says, whatever Corinthos and Wu are planning, they have to stop them. Anna says, let’s go, and they all leave.

Selina says, let her congratulate Sonny on the trust he’s established in Miss Jerome, who is – let’s not forget – the mother of one of his children. Sonny asks what that means, and Selina says, he has incentive to trust her. She doesn’t. He says, Ava acting as a mediator makes the meeting look more legit, but Selina says, her presence further destabilizes an already volatile situation. That’s not a risk she wants to take. She starts to leave, but Sonny says, it’s already in motion. Let it play out. Selina says, at the risk of all of their lives? and he says, they’re all targets at this point. Here’s what they’re going to do. They‘re going to let their enemies come get them.

On Monday, Tracy tells Brook, that is a scheme worthy of a Quartermaine; Cyrus asks Laura, what precipitated this step forward in their relationship; in the hospital, Heather screeches to someone to get away from her grandson; and Sonny tells Selina, let’s get down to business.

👏 Kudos. The vape storyline isn’t just timely, it’s important. I’ve never been interested in vaping, but had a friend who literally died from an addiction to it. He was in the hospital, being treated for an unrelated (but who really knows?) illness. He was told to knock it off, but couldn’t even stop vaping while in the hospital. Even though the prognosis had been good, he went downhill and passed away. IMO, it makes sense that vaping is worse than cigarettes since you’re also inhaling moisture, which cannot be good for your lungs. I mean, inhale too much moisture, you drown, right? Okay, off the soapbox, but applause to GH for including it.

👠 Calling In ReinforceWives…

Being a part of the Housewives universe doesn’t look like a fun experience to me. And I still wouldn’t bet the farm that what Leah says isn’t true. It’s been said all along that alcohol flows freely from Bravo and they tend to egg on problematic situation.

https://pagesix.com/2024/02/29/entertainment/margaret-josephs-kyle-richards-more-housewives-hit-back-at-leah-mcsweeneys-andy-cohen-claims

🎭 Because They’re a Fake, Baby…

I hadn’t considered this, but it sounds like something Jax would drum up.

Not buying this romance at all.

Still on the fence about this. The only thing is, it’s doubtful they would have involved their kids in a ruse like that.

🍸 It’s Spreading…

Another one who seems to be lawsuit happy. Has she gotten to Andy yet? Although there seems to be a line…

https://ew.com/rachel-leviss-sues-tom-sandoval-ariana-madix-scandoval-fallout-8602594

No surprise this was dropped. It doesn’t even make any sense as a lawsuit. It’s just a bunch of complaints about being in a situation she could have easily walked away from

⚰️ Dead At the Top…

Good for them. It’s not a huge shock though. Personally, I didn’t miss Rick, but I think there were a whole lot of fans awaiting his return.

🌁 The Latest In Last…

More characters coming out of the woodwork.

https://ew.com/the-last-of-us-season-2-owen-nora-mel-manny-8602951

🏆 It’s In the SAG…

A little late, but the winners.

https://ew.com/2024-sag-awards-winners-full-list-8598439

All the 2024 fashion.

https://www.eonline.com/photos/36899/sag-awards-2024-red-carpet-fashion

All the fashion from forever.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1395589/give-it-up-for-the-best-sag-award-red-carpet-fashion-moments-of-all-time

🦄 This Week In Pet…

Omg. Jiffpom.

So what’s the problem?

🎙 Quotes of the Week

We love a spiral. – Gabby Prescod, Summer House

One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn’t do.Henry Ford

When deeds speak, words are nothing. – Pierre-Joseph Proudhon

You are here for a purpose. There is no duplicate of you in the whole wide world. There never has been, there never will be. You were brought here now to fill a certain need. Take time to think that over. – Lou Austin (And let’s hope it’s not to create stupid names for lipstick.)

Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.Archimedes

Life is a succession of lessons, which must be lived to be understood. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Aim for the moon. If you miss, you may hit a star.W. Clement Stone

I wasn’t flirting. I’m naturally adorable. If you have a problem with that, take it up with God. – Genevieve Delatour (Susan Lucci), Devious Maids

🐜 Marching Into Spring…

Flip your script this weekend and do something you’ve never done before. Or binge watch something you’ve never watched before. It’s your call. Then join me on Monday really Tuesday for soap, mischief on Deck, and a nod to the Ones. Until then, stay safe, stay not saying yes or maybe when you mean no, and stay trying to focus more on the silver lining than the clouds.

February 29, 2023 – Tracy Gives Brook Something Meaningful, Karen, Beyond Soap, Hail Mary Pass, Awful Summer, Splitting, Two Ones, Leap Year, New Puppy (!) & Go Ahead

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

At the boxing gym, Michael says, so this is how it has to be? and Sonny says, he can go ahead and leave. Anybody who’s done what he’s done would have already been gone. Michael says he knows Sonny is angry… but Sonny says, Michael has no idea how he feels, his own son setting him up. Michael says, then he tried to protect Sonny, and Sonny says, from who? Him? Dante suggests Michael take a walk, and Michael makes himself scarce. Sonny says, today sad and remorseful, tomorrow he’s calling the Feds, and Dante says, that’s not how he really is, but Sonny says, no? Michael came very close to handing him over to the Feds with a bow on. He didn’t see that coming. Dante says he didn’t either, but it’s good he didn’t go through with it, right? but Sonny says, the damage is done. He can’t trust Michael now. His own son. So where do they go from there? Dante says, Michael loves him. He just wants to know that Sonny is okay. Sonny says, Judas doesn’t have the right to know anything about him or his life, and Dante says, this is not God’s way. Sonny asks who’s side he’s on.

Dex says he’s sorry. He wishes he could go back to Port Charles with Josslyn, but he has to keep moving and find a way to disappear. Josslyn says, don’t ask her to pretend to be okay with that, and he asks what she wants him to say. Sonny gave him one option that left him breathing. He hates this, but he needs to accept the things he cannot change. She says, really? It still feels like he’s taking Sonny’s orders. He says, if it weren’t for her mom, he’d be dead. Sonny was going to have him killed, just like he always knew Sonny would if he found out the truth. She says, and Dex has been protecting him? but Dex says he started out spying on him. Sonny only gave him the option to leave because her mom wouldn’t back down. The least he owes her is to go. She says, just tell her the truth. Would he rather she hadn’t found him?

Chase asks, what is this? and Brook says she was just coming to find him to explain. He says, the part about a termination event, not exactly a confidence builder. She says, it’s not like that, and Lois says, anyone who isn’t Brook Lynn or Chase needs to get out of here. Let’s give them their privacy. Let them make their own decisions – she looks at Tracy – for a change. Everyone clears out.

Elizabeth says, the Quartermaine lawyers sent Chase a prenup as an email attachment without any warning? That is so wrong. Finn says his dad’s convinced it was a mix-up, and she says, his dad is a very kind and forgiving person who probably doesn’t know the Quartermaines well enough yet. He says, with that family, anything’s possible, and she says, they should have expected a few curveballs. However, to be fair, planning a wedding is unpredictable no matter who the bride and groom are. He says, there’s unpredictable and there’s the Quartermaines, and she says, odds were it was never going to be dull. Speaking of never going to be dull, did he get himself one of these? She takes a card out of her bag, and he says, no. What is it? She says, an invitation… to Violet’s wedding. There are hearts drawn across the top and it says, You are invited to Violet’s wedding. Underneath is a drawing of a groom holding out a bouquet.

Brook tells Chase that she swears on her life, she had no idea the lawyers were drawing up a prenup. She certainly didn’t ask for it. He says, and it’s perfectly understandable if she did. It just would have been nice to have a little heads up. She says, for all of them. They all know who’s behind the prenup email. Her grandmother’s not one for advanced warnings. He says, she already raised the subject. When they told her they were getting engaged, the first thing she said is they should sign a prenup. She says she expected the family lawyers to bring it up eventually, but she thought they would have the decency to talk to her about it first before attaching it to an email and pressing send. He says, all right. Forget about the lawyers, forget about the emails, and the attachments, and her grandmother. She says, if only, and he asks if she, Brook Lynn, wants him to sign the agreement.

Lois says, how could Tracy sic her squad of lawyers on poor Chase? but Tracy says she didn’t. There was a miscommunication between their attorneys, but any thinking person would know there would be a prenuptial agreement in the offing. Lois says, it didn’t seem like Brook or Chase were waiting for it, but this isn’t even about the prenup. This is about how Tracy is insinuating herself into everything. When is she going to stop interfering in Brook’s life?

Brook says she hates how the simple fact that she loves Chase and that she wants to spend the rest of her life with him has turned into something so complicated. He asks if it has to be, and she says, they’re about to make a huge commitment to each other and he’s the only person she cares about, but he’s not exactly her grandmother’s number one priority. He says, that’s fair. Tracy’s not his number one priority either. Brook says, Tracy is just trying to protect the Quartermaines, but it makes her furious, because Tracy should see he’s about to become one of them. She should be welcoming him to the family with open arms. He says, maybe Tracy has a point. As much as he wants to marry Brook, and he does, there are parts of her world he does not understand. She says, those are the parts that are in the fine print, and she doesn’t understand them either, and he says, that’s why they have all the lawyers. When he got that prenup, he flipped out a little, but then he calmed down. He thought about it rationally and he had to admit, there’s a chance they may not make it.

Tracy says, when Lois left Ned and settled back into the outer boroughs, clearly, she forgot what it is to be a Quartermaine, and Lois says, it means paying for a bunch of lawyers, some houses, and referring to Bensonhurst as the Hinterlands. But she’s not referring to Tracy’s precious company or her trust funds. She’s talking about her baby girl, Tracy’s granddaughter, and how all she wants to do is marry the love of her life. Tracy says she’s not stopping them, but Lois says, no. Tracy’s just running in front of her, setting up all these hurdles. It’s supposed to be the happiest day of her life, but instead of Tracy supporting and encouraging that happiness, so far Tracy’s managed to extort Brook into betraying Maxie, browbeat her into taking a job she doesn’t want to do, and running her ragged at that job. And now, she’s trying to control Brook’s wedding and write the fine print of her marriage? Tracy says she’s a grandmother trying to protect her grandchild, and Lois says, Lila was Ned’s grandmother, and Lila couldn’t have been kinder or more loving to her. Instead of ambushing her with a prenup, Lila made her wedding possible. She almost called the whole thing off, if Lila hadn’t offered her wedding dress. On top of that, she gave them a beautiful cruise around Manhattan. Granted, that went a little sideways when they almost drowned in Dead Horse Bay, but her point is, Lila wanted her to have the most beautiful wedding possible and did everything in her power to make that happen. Tracy says she’s not her mother, and she’s well aware that she’ll never measure up. But what she can offer, this family needs, and so does Lois’s daughter. Whether Lois likes it or not, marriage is a contract – Maxie and Gregory walk in – and one interloper can to a hell of a lot of damage. Gregory clears his throat, and Tracy turns around. He says, interloper. What an interesting way to refer to his son.

Dex says, seeing Josslyn again is a gift. It killed him to leave Port Charles without saying goodbye to her. Josslyn says, he didn’t have a choice. Sonny forced him to leave. But nobody is stopping him from coming back to Port Charles. He’s free. He doesn’t work for Sonny anymore. He says he knows better, and she asks if he thinks Sonny would still have him killed. He says he knows so much about Sonny’s organization, he’s a liability, and she says, Sonny can’t touch him, for the same reason he couldn’t kill Dex in the Pine Barrens. Her mom won’t let him. Michael won’t let him. Dante. Too many people know about him. If anything happens to Dex, Sonny knows it will just come right back and bite him, and he’s not going to take that chance. They can beat him. They just have to call his bluff. He says, if he comes back and Sonny does nothing, it makes him look weak, and that puts her whole family at risk. He’s not going to do that to the people she loves, and he sure as hell won’t do it to her.

Dante says he’s on Sonny’s side, but so is Michael. Yeah, he wanted to get evidence to use to incriminate Sonny and he probably got it, but he didn’t do anything with it. So Sonny could say he’s standing here a free man because of Michael. Sonny asks if Dante is saying he should be grateful, but Dante says, no, he’s not at all. Sonny should be hurt and pissed off, and he doesn’t blame Sonny for any of it. But Michael is family, so like it or not, he’ll have to be civil one day. Sonny says he has to be civil? and Dante asks, what’s the alternative? Is Sonny going to walk out of every room Michael walks into? Sonny says, it wasn’t his doing, when Michael comes over to them. He says he’s headed out. Just please be careful. Sonny says, Michael doesn’t get to say that to him, and Michael says, whether Sonny believes it or not, that doesn’t change the fact that he cares about him. And he doesn’t want Sonny to do something he regrets just because of him. John walks in and stares daggers at Sonny.

Gregory says, it looks like this particular conversation is a private family matter, and he should be on his way. He heads for the door, and Lois gestures to Tracy, who follows him. She asks him to wait, and says she’s so sorry for her choice of words. She should have said… He says, outsider? Infiltrator? She says, newcomer, and he says, better. He’s hoping after the wedding that family is the term she chooses to go with. She says she’s seen too much to be anything but a realist. She sincerely hopes her granddaughter and his son have a long and happy marriage, but not all marriages last. And it’s not something you want to think about when you’re ordering flowers and French champagne, but somebody has to. He asks if it would surprise her to hear he agrees.

Lois tells Maxie that she knows Tracy is just trying to do something nice for her granddaughter, and Maxie says, that is a generous interpretation of this prenup. And she applauds the mental gymnastics that got her to stick that landing. Lois thanks her, and Maxie says, but she thinks there’s something Brook wants from Tracy that’s not an uninvited prenup or love based bullying. Lois says she believes Brook is really good at asking for what she wants, but Maxie says she doesn’t know if Brook knows how to ask for this. Lois says, spill it, and Maxie says she thinks Brook wants to wear Lila’s dress.

Brook tells Chase, don’t say we won’t work out. Don’t even think it. He says he’s just being practical. Sometimes, things don’t work out and they should be prepared. He wasn’t when he married Willow, and it nearly crushed him. He thought he worked through the failure of his first marriage, but then he got this prenup and it got him thinking. She says, thank you, Tracy. This is nothing like his wedding to Willow. He has to see that. He says, the rational side of him does, but in that moment, he thought he saw the whole picture when he married Willow. She says, how could he? Him and Sasha, Michael and Willow, they were good people just pretending to be in relationships so they could help each other. He had no idea Willow had stopped pretending and actually fallen in love with Michael. He says, if her feelings changed for him, she wouldn’t spare him, right? She’d tell him the truth even if it hurt him. She says she’ll always tell him the truth and she trusts he’ll forgive her for it. He thanks her, and she says, the point is, by the time Willow was ready to tell him that she actually loved Michael, he was on his deathbed. She thought that marrying him was the right thing to do, and at that point, he was so sick, whatever vows they said to each other, what they were really saying was goodbye. He says he has to admit, he doesn’t remember a lot from that moment in his life, and she says, if he did, he would know there’s no comparison between them now and him and Willow then. Willow felt obligated to him. What they have is real. It is messy and imperfect and real. She has never loved a man the way that she loves him. She can’t wait to marry him. She’s so excited for every single day of their future. But if he’s anxious or having second thoughts… He says, no, not with her, and she says, but if the wedding is too much… He says he cannot wait to celebrate. He cannot wait to see this brilliant, beautiful, amazing girl walk down the aisle and stand with him at the altar. He can’t wait to say their vows in front of their friends and family. He can’t wait to dance with her at the reception. She says she wants that too, and he says, maybe he is a little nervous because he can’t see into the future, but he does know this. He loves her so much. And even through all of their ups and downs, they’ve always wanted the best for each other. She says, that will never change, and he says he just wants to make her happy. He takes the prenup, and starts to sign it, but she says, wait. He finishes signing.

Finn takes the card from Elizabeth and says, Violet’s getting married? She’s seven. They live in the same house. How come he doesn’t know about any of this? She asks if he wants a paper bag to breath into, and he says, it’s not funny. (Yes, it is.) She says, it’s a little funny. It’s early. She’s not even registered yet. He says he doesn’t think she’s helping, and she says she’s sorry. She’s sure it must be a little bit of a shock at first. He says, what does she mean, at first? and she says, this is a totally normal phase. Cameron had like a thousand crushes before he hit first grade. He asks if Cameron ever made wedding invitations for any of them, and she says, no, but he wasn’t as industrious as Violet is. He says, lucky her, and she says, he did have a crush on a cartoon character once. That was weird. (Me too! Pepe Le Pew.) Anyway, kids Violet’s age like to look at the lives around them and model adult behavior. He says, they have been talking a lot about Brook and Chase’s wedding, and she says, yes, so she wanted to have one of her own to better understand it. She doesn’t think he has to worry about meeting the in-laws any time soon. He says, good. He knows he has a few years before Violet dating is a reality, but he’s pretty sure he’s never going to be ready. She says he has time to prepare himself, and he says, thank God. He’s having enough trouble helping Chase with his wedding. She takes Finn’s hand and says, just be there for him. Listen to his questions. It’s pretty much what he already does. It’s not that complicated. He says, it’s the first time in history a wedding has been described as uncomplicated, and she asks if he wants to talk about that. He says, why, if it’s so uncomplicated? and she says, maybe weddings are uncomplicated, but what about their future?

Sonny approaches John, who says he’s just here to work out. That’s it. Sonny says, he calls this keeping his distance? and John says, Sonny’s the one who walked over here. Sonny says, John calls hanging out with his ex-wife and his children keeping his distance? and John says, call it lunch. He likes the burgers at Bobbie’s. Sonny says he knows why John walked into Bobbie’s. He was trying to get information out of Carly. John says he’s stopping Sonny right there. As much as they both hate this, he’s trying to keep Sonny alive. So yeah, he talked to Carly, and he’ll talk to Sonny’s children. And he’ll talk to Sonny’s bodyguards and his housekeepers and his barista and his doorman and his priest. He’ll talk to whomever he wants, whenever he wants, and until Sonny gets jurisdiction over the FBI or dies of shame, there’s nothing Sonny can do to stop him.

Chase says he told Brook, he doesn’t care about the money, and she says she never thought he did, but did he even read this agreement? He says, not every word, but he skimmed it, and she tears it up. She says she loves him, but if he’s going to be her husband, he has to swear to never sign an agreement he hasn’t read. And never take the first offer, okay? He asks what he’d do without her, and kisses her. She says she really does think they should discuss a prenup, but not now, not like this with all of these stressful circumstances and their families in the next room and they have this rack of dresses bearing down on them. He says he hopes she didn’t fall in love with the one she’s wearing. Not that she doesn’t look gorgeous in it, but he doesn’t want to risk the bad luck and he’s already seen it. She says, this is definitely not her dress. She doesn’t even think any of them are. Did he ever see her mother’s wedding gown? He says, no. He’s heard about it though. She says, it was regal and classic and a true one of a kind, but the most important thing about the dress, was that it was her great-grandmother Lila’s. She let Brook’s mother borrow it and the women in her family imbued it with their love and strength. He asks if her mother wouldn’t let her wear the dress, and she says, in a heartbeat, but it’s not hers to offer. It’s Tracy’s and she’s not holding her breath.

Lois tells Maxie, of course (🍷) Brook wants to wear Lila’s dress. It’s so beautiful, she wants to wear that dress again. Maxie says, it really is occasion specific though, and Lois says she wants to make this happen for Brook. So tell her honestly, does Maxie think it will help or hurt if she talks to Tracy? Maxie says, that’s a tough one because Tracy was very sensitive when the topic of the dress came up, but she doesn’t know if Brook would want her to get involved. Lois says, Tracy might just say no because she’s the one asking, and Maxie says, on the other hand, Tracy does love Brook. Lois says, now that she knows, she can’t just sit back. She’s got to make it happen.

Gregory tells Tracy that he’s grown to appreciate the time saving benefits of direct conversation over the past couple of years, which is not to say he’s on board with her approach in this particular case. Tracy says, once again to be clear, the lawyers made the error, and he says, noted. But he does think they should acknowledge the difficulties and uncertainties of marriage. A wedding is a joyous event. There’s no need to pretend that the road ahead will be unbridled bliss. If marriage was easy, it wouldn’t be cause for celebration, would it? Lois comes out and says she’s glad Gregory is still here. They’d like for him to stay, and they promise to behave themselves. Gregory says, don’t stop whatever they’re doing on his account, and Tracy takes his coat. Lois says, shall we? and they go back into the living room. Lois asks who Gregory is going to have on his arm at the wedding, and he says, Alexis Davis. It’s always nice to have a friend at these events. Tracy says, a friend? And he says, yes, a good friend. Which reminds him. He keeps meaning to ask her, who’s lucky enough to be her escort? Tracy says, as a matter of fact, she… Lois says, Tracy hasn’t decided yet. She’s still fighting them off. Gregory says he has no doubt.

Elizabeth says, things between her and Finn have been going so well. It’s not like they’ve had much of a state of the union. He says he’s been thinking the same thing, but he didn’t want to bring it up because she might think something is wrong. She says, understandable, but right now might be a good time. They’re both happy. She’s assuming they’re both happy… she hopes. He says he’s never been happier, and she says, he had her worried there for a second. He says, she has nothing to worry about, and she says, neither does he. But watching Brook and Chase get ready for their wedding, as happy as she is for them… He says, it’s hard not to think about your own relationship. She says, right, and he says he’ll be the one to ask. Is marriage something she thinks about? Is that something she wants?

Dex says, think about it. If Josslyn can find him, so can someone else. She says she found him with Spinelli’s help. That’s like getting help from the CIA. Not just anybody is going to be able to find him. He says he can’t take that chance. He needs her to promise that she won’t come looking for him again. She says she just doesn’t get it, because the last time they were together, they were working together to find a solution, and they still could. He says, there is a solution. They just don’t like it. He’s sorry he dragged her into this mess. She says she’s not some helpless victim here. She knew who he was pretty early on, and she chose to be with him over and over again. He says, she’s the best thing that ever happened to him. That’s why he’s not going to drag her down with him. She says, don’t do that. Don’t talk like this is over. He may want to give up, but she never will.

Sonny asks if it isn’t Karrie’s birthday around now, and John says, Karen. He doesn’t get to call her cute little pet names. Not in front of him anyway. Sonny says, today is her birthday. He remembers because Stone bought her this beautiful cake and she was really… John says, save that for someone who can stand the sound of his voice, and Sonny says, relax, Agent Cates. Just seeing him brings back so many memories, especially of his brother Stone, who was a great kid. Funny, generous, incredibly brave, but John wouldn’t know nothin’ about that, because John took off when Stone needed him most. Michael asks Dante, what’s dad doing? and Sonny says he takes that back. Because John did visit him once. Stone was dying of AIDS and John managed to take some time out of his busy schedule and visited him for like, one hour. John says, Sonny knows nothing about him and his brother, and Sonny says, what he does know is, John didn’t take care of him. He didn’t take care of his brother and he hates the air Sonny breathes. And it didn’t matter to him that Sonny sat by Stone, holding his hand, listening to his fears, while John took off with Karen, living his best life. Then he cheated on her. She divorced him. He’s not only a bad husband, he’s a bad brother. John throws a punch, but misses Sonny, who says, whoa. Back up. Does he want to do that again? Sonny takes a fighter’s stance and says, John wants to hit him? but Michael and Dante pull them apart.

Dante asks what Sonny is thinking, and Sonny asks what he means. He didn’t raise his hand. John is the one who lost his cool. Dante says, because Sonny was baiting the guy. John is trying to help Sonny. Sonny asks what he means, and Dante says, don’t worry about it. John’s trying to help Sonny and so is he. Sonny says he thinks Dante is just getting in the way right now. Michael tells John, stand down, Agent Cates, and John says, he’s Michael Corinthos. In case he didn’t know, his dad is losing it. He’s sloppy and out of control. Michael says, the only punches he saw came from John, and John says, if that’s all he saw, he needs to open his eyes. Sonny always brings out the best in people, doesn’t he? Michael asks if federal agents aren’t required to follow a code of behavior regardless of who they’re dealing with, and John says, tell his dad to be careful. His luck is running out.

Chase tells Brook that he’s lucky he’s a guy. Nobody cares what he’s wearing. She gives him a look, and he says, almost no one. If he has his dad and his brother there, and she’s standing there with him at the altar, it will be the greatest moment of his life. She says, he’s right. There are so many more important things about this wedding than whatever dress she decides to wear. He says he didn’t mean it like that. Let’s be honest. It’s going to be her day and she should be happy with every single part of it. She says, that’s another reason she adores him. Her grandma loved her mother, Lila. Everyone did. But let’s be honest, her grandmother can be prickly. He says, a little bit, and she says, but Lila loved her. Unconditionally. She was never afraid to tell Tracy when she behaved badly and always believed in the best in her. She thinks her grandmother really misses her, still grieves her. She’s afraid that bringing up the dress will just bring up pain for her, and it’s the last thing she wants to do. He says, Tracy’s lucky to have a granddaughter who understands her as well as Brook does, and Brook says she and her grandmother speak the same language. They deserve each other… most of the time, as much as it pains her to admit it. He says, if she doesn’t run the risk of asking Tracy for the wedding dress, she definitely won’t get it. And who knows? Maybe she’ll be open to the opportunity to give it to Brook. Brook says, maybe, but that’s a dream she’s willing to let go of because a much bigger dream of hers is coming true. He asks if she’s sure, and she nods and says, should they tell them the wedding is still on? He says, no. He thinks they should make them sweat a little while longer. They kiss.

Lois holds out her hand and says, come on, Tracy, let’s make peace. Tracy ignores Lois’s hand and says, peace is not synonymous with unconditional surrender. She will make her terms very clear. Maxie says, they’ll come back to her terms. Look. Brook and Chase are independent people, but she knows from experience everyone needs help planning a wedding. People who didn’t RSVP will show up with guests and those guests will most likely be exhausted children under the age of five. Family members will think an open bar is a challenge, and people who weren’t asked will give speeches. Lois says, it’s true (yep). They’ve got to be prepared for things to go sideways. That’s why they’ve got to put their differences aside and be on the same page, so they can plan the perfect wedding for the perfect couple. Just like Lila did for her. Gregory says he couldn’t agree more, and Tracy says, that’s what she was trying to do. Lois says, they know she was trying to do right by Brook, and while legal advice is helpful, it’s neither borrowed nor blue. Tracy says, she’s borrowing the company plane, and Lois says, and that is extremely generous, but she was talking about maybe something extremely meaningful. Something that maybe isn’t as easy for Tracy to give. Brook and Chase come in, and Brook says, they can all exhale. She and Chase have sorted everything out. And they are going to discuss the agreement with their lawyers. Chase says he wants to thank Tracy. He knows that all she wants to do is protect her family, and that’s what he wants too. He hugs Tracy, and she says, they’ll be so excited to welcome him to the family. He thanks her and asks if Gregory is ready. Gregory says, indeed he is. He is so looking forward to this wedding. Chase gives Brook a quick kiss, and Gregory tells Tracy, be sure to save a dance for him. He and Chase leave, and the girls are all like, oooh. Lois tells Brook, all right. Let’s go find you a dress.

Dante says, he’s getting in the way. Of what? Sonny getting beat up? Sonny says, Jagger should not be working this case. They go way back. Things Dante doesn’t understand. Bad blood. He was trying to get John to hit him so they would send him back to Washington, and John would be away from him and this case. Dante says, bad blood or not, this guy’s trying to protect Sonny, and the FBI have better resources… Sonny says, the FBI doesn’t want to protect him, but Dante says, yes, they do. Sonny says, no, they don’t. And Jagger sure as hell doesn’t either. He’s trying to pay Sonny back for things that were settled years ago. He’s telling Dante right now, John’s either going to get him shot or he’s going to stand there and watch. Or John’s going to set him up for something worse. Sonny doesn’t trust him at all and neither should Dante. Sonny leaves, as Michael watches everything.

Dex says, Josslyn doesn’t think he hates this? She doesn’t think this is tearing him up too? Nothing in his life prepared him for her. He doesn’t feel like he made a choice to love her. He just does. And he knows he always will. It’s because he loves her that he’s doing this. She says, maybe he’s right and maybe it’s too early for him to come back to Port Charles, but what if he came back in six months, a year? He says he’s not going to ask her to wait around for a time that will never come. She has her whole life ahead of her. She’s going to finish school, become an amazing doctor, and save lives, just like she did his. She says, none of that matters if he’s not there, and he says, she knows he’s right. She can have a good life, but she has to let him go.

Elizabeth says, marriage? and Finn says, you know, weddings, dancing, cake, a lifetime commitment, all that stuff. She says she does like cake, and kisses him. He says he likes cake. Anything else? She says she likes their relationship just the way it is. And they have the luxury of time, and she’d like to enjoy what they have right now. Why rush it? He says he feels the same way, and kisses her again. What a relief. He’s sorry. Please don’t take that the wrong way. He’s pretty sure he has bad luck with weddings. Chase asked him to be his best man and his response was less than enthusiastic. He thinks he let Chase down. Chase and Gregory come in, and Gregory says, all’s well that ends well. It seems there was a slight miscommunication. Chase says he and Brook are good, and Finn says, that’s good news, right? There’s something he’d like to say to Chase… Chase says, hold on. He’d like to go first. He’s sorry he pressured Finn to be his best man. He can ask someone else. It’s not a big deal.

Lois raises her champagne glass and says, to new beginnings. Fussing with the dresses, Maxie says, and to bows and ruffles, in moderation. Brook, Lois, and Tracy clink glasses, and Brook says, all right. Let’s do this. She goes over to the dress rack, and Lois nods at Tracy. Brook says, this one might be more exciting off the hanger, and Tracy says, Brook Lynn, and sets down her glass. Tracy tells Brook that she was evasive with her earlier, talking about her mother’s dress… She tears up and says she misses her mother every single day and she so regrets not wearing that dress when her mother offered it to her. So. She’s come to understand that dress was never meant for her to wear. It was meant for her to share. (Unreal. They nearly have me crying over a stupid dress, but you can really feel what Tracy’s feeling.)

Tracy brings in a large white box, and places it on the coffee table. Brook says, is that…? Brook sits down, opens the box, and unfolds the tissue paper. Tracy says, make any alterations she wants. The dress is hers. Brook lifts the top half of the dress out of the box, then puts it back. She gets up and, her voice breaking, tells Tracy, you have no idea what this means to me. She hugs Tracy, and says, thank you so much for the dress. Thank you for this incredible moment. Lois and Maxie smile.

Chase sees Violet’s invitation and looks at it. He says, for Violet’s wedding, does his suit have to be as colorful as the invitation, or can he squeak by with a black one? Finn says, what he meant to say earlier, what he should have said earlier is, he’d be honored to be Chase’s best man. And he appreciates Chase letting him off the hook, but there’s no way he’s letting anyone take his place. Chase hugs Finn, and Finn tells him, don’t get emotional. Gregory is loving it.

Josslyn’s phone rings, and she tells Michael, this is not a good time. She can’t talk. He says, this can’t wait. He needs her to do something for him. If she finds Dex, he needs her to bring him back to Port Charles. He looks at Dante and Sonny sparring, and says, and don’t take no for an answer. Josslyn looks at Dex, who’s messing around with his suitcase. He looks back at her.

As they spar, Dante says, history or no history, Sonny is playing with fire, messing around with a federal agent like that. Sonny says, that’s all right. He can handle himself. Dante says he’s glad Sonny walked away, and Sonny says, good to know. They stop for a moment, and Dante says he’s not going to apologize to Sonny for stopping the fight. Sonny says, what’s gonna happen is gonna happen. Sooner or later, Dante is going to know the truth about Jagger Cates. They go back to sparring.

Josslyn says, that was Michael and he said she needed to bring Dex back to Port Charles and not to take no for an answer. Dex asks, why? and she says she thinks Sonny’s in trouble. And he needs you.

Tomorrow, Carly says, Drew can’t do that if he’s focused on revenge; Felicia asks why Maxie is so much angrier at Spinelli than her; John tells Anna that he wants Sonny Corinthos out of his life for good; and Sonny tells Ava and Spinelli, tonight he’s bringing his enemy down to his knees.

🎂 They Said It’s Her Birthday…

Because I had to know. I didn’t see how Sonny was as horrible as John is making him out to be. Not to mention, it was a brief time a million years ago.

🍟 On the Side…

This book sounds like a good beach read.

Rock on.

I love K-drama.

💎 And They Should Know…

Like none of them has ever been desperate to hang on before.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-13139295/Teddi-Mellencamp-claims-Dorit-Kemsley-released-text-Kyle-Richards-stay-RHOBH.html

🏊🏽‍♀️ She’s the Worst…

More proof of how awful some of these people are. I was drawn back into the trainwreck and seeing it was even more awful.

https://people.com/summer-house-recap-lindsay-hubbard-makes-hurtful-accusation-sober-carl-radke-on-cocaine-8602650

📉 Not All Marriages Last…

Apparently, Tracy was right. Not too much of a shock with this one.

https://people.com/welcome-to-plathville-ethan-and-olivia-plath-file-for-divorce-8602028

I have to admit, I’m surprised. What happens to their new show now?

https://people.com/jax-taylor-and-brittany-cartwright-announce-separation-8598833

⚰️ About Those Ones…

The principles share their perspectives.

https://ew.com/danai-gurira-michonne-walking-dead-ones-who-live-entrance-8599395

https://ew.com/andrew-lincoln-explains-walking-dead-ones-who-live-premiere-shocker-8599329

🏃🏽‍♂️ Whys and Hows…

All about Leap Year.

https://www.livescience.com/human-behavior/why-do-we-have-leap-years-and-how-did-they-come-about

🐕 Sudsy Pup…

She was also on the much missed The Haves and the Have Nots.

💃🏽 Leaping Into March…

See you tomorrow for the usual soap and the unpredictable Friday free-for-all. Until then, stay safe, stay making voicemails brief, and stay never signing an agreement you haven’t read. And never taking the first offer.