Category Archives: reality tv

December 4, 2023 – Two Romantic Resolutions In Port Charles, Captain Sandy Isn’t Happy On Deck & Nights

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Lois looks over Ned’s shoulder while he’s on the computer and says, three million, four hundred and fifty-nine thousand. He says he didn’t hear her come in, and she says, that’s because he was focused on the numbers. He says, these are figures on a deal Michael closed with an Australian company, RCD. Michael and Drew insist it’s a good deal, but he’s not so sure. She says, that’s because his numbers are off by eight hundred and twelve thousand.

In the nook, Chase asks Brook what she’d say are three most important moments in her life, and she says, when she scored Jonas Brothers tickets in 2010, but he says he’s being serious. She says, heavy question. Okay. The last time she ever saw her great-grandfather Edward, the first time she wrote a song, and… when she gained a little brother in Leo. He says he wants this moment right now to be on that list, and she asks what he’s talking about. He gets down on one knee and says, Brook Lynn Quartermaine, will you marry me? She says, he really doesn’t have to do this.

Going into Molly’s apartment, Kristina tells her to sit down and let her get Molly a drink. What would she like? Another glass of wine? A pot of coffee? Molly says, Kristina doesn’t have to baby her like this, and there’s silence for a moment. Kristina says, it just got really awkward, and Molly asks if she’s sure she wants to be the surrogate for her and TJ.

Kelly’s is closed, but Josslyn walks in, and Carly asks what she’s doing here. Is everything okay? Josslyn says she got Carly’s text that she was covering for Amber, and she knows Amber usually closes, so she came to see if she could help with anything. Carly says, she’s thoughtful, and her timing is great, and Josslyn asks what she can help with. Carly says, a lot, but clean-up can wait. She has an update on Josslyn’s grandmother.

Nina asks Sonny if Ava was right. Is Cyrus after him? Is his life in danger? Sonny says, they’ve gone over this how many times? Threats exist in his business, and he’s going to take care of it like he always does. He just doesn’t want her to worry. She says, if his life is in danger, of course (🍷) she’s going to worry. They’re married. They’re in this together. And yes, she realizes there’s a certain amount of danger in his business, but this ruthless man just got released from prison, and he still might be after Sonny? And Sonny doesn’t want to discuss it with her?

Carly gives Josslyn a bowl of ice cream, and Josslyn asks if she’s softening bad news with it or are they celebrating good news with dessert? Carly says, they’re burying frustrations with a treat, and Josslyn asks, what’s going on with grandma? Carly says, she called from Amsterdam. Josslyn knows how her grandmother is always happy and upbeat. She is drowning in red tape. Surprise, surprise, Luke didn’t have his papers in order. Josslyn says, shocking, and Carly says, that man never met a form he wanted to fill out or a tax document he wanted to file. (To be fair, have any of us?) Josslyn says, so he left her with this mess? and Carly says, oh yeah. She said she’ll probably have to stay away longer. Josslyn asks if Tracy didn’t go over there to help her, and Carly says, Tracy’s there full of opinions and insisting that she knew what Luke would have wanted. She’s basically driving Carly’s mother crazy. Josslyn says, Tracy can be tough, but her money’s on grandma, and Carly says, hers too.

Sonny says, he’s been very clear from the beginning. There are things in his business that he can’t tell Nina. She says, he can’t discuss it with her because he doesn’t want her to be implicated if whatever he’s involved in gets investigated by the police, and he says, it’s for her own protection. Look what happened to Carly even after they were divorced. Nina asks what he’s talking about, and he says, the SEC investigation? It wasn’t about insider trading. They were trying to squeeze Carly to get her to give up information on him. Nina flashes back to telling Martin to go out all and expose Drew and Carly for insider trading, and to make sure to keep her name out of it. She tells Sonny that she wants to make one thing clear. Her situation is nothing like Carly’s.

Molly says, Dr. Navarro reminded her that there’s always a chance of miscarriage. What if it happens to Kristina? Kristina says, then they’ll survive it, and Molly says, there are possibilities of other complications too. Kristina will be taking a chance with her own health. Kristina tells her, take a breath. There are no guarantees of course (🍷) with an easy, successful pregnancy or a delivery, but the odds are in her favor. It’s the right timing and she’s in good healthy mostly, and she really wants to do this. TJ comes in and says he didn’t expect to see Kristina here, but welcome. Kristina says she’s heading out, but she’ll see them later. She leaves, and in the hallway, she gets a text from Blaze: R u around? Kristina texts back: Just leaving my sister’s, and Blaze asks: Can I see u? Kristina texts: Meet me at my place. 27 S. Patton, apt 3B.

TJ says he’s been thinking a lot about their last conversation, and Molly says, her too. She wants him to hear her out first.

Ned tells Lois that he was hoping to find some discrepancy in the numbers, but he’ll have to find another way to blow up this deal. She asks why he’d want to do that, and he says he was right in the middle of his own negotiations with RCD when he took that damn fall at the MetroCourt pool. She says, and woke up as Eddie Maine, a dedicated musician whose only interest was in performing and didn’t want anything to do with ELQ. He says, which gave Michael the exact opening to swoop in and renegotiate the deal for completely different terms than he’d been working on. And to top it all off, Michael closed the deal without even checking with him. She asks how Michael could check with him. He was Eddie Maine. What does he think Eddie would have said if Michael tried to talk to him about a business deal? He says, it doesn’t matter. Michael wasn’t even working for ELQ. He’s a shareholder, nothing more. He had no right to go behind Ned’s back and close that deal. Lois says, that makes no sense.

Chase tells Brook, he doesn’t have to do this? That’s so not the answer he was hoping for. She asks him to stand up, and says, he’s the sweetest man she’s ever known, and she loves him like crazy, but he doesn’t have to ask her to get married just because her mom and grandma are stuck on the subject. He says, that’s not why he asked her to marry him.

Molly tells TJ that she ran into Dr. Navarro leaving the hospital. She’d heard about Andrea’s miscarriage, and her reaction was that miscarriages aren’t uncommon, and she reminded Molly of all the people who’ve had children through surrogacy that wouldn’t have otherwise. It really resonated with her. So she ended up taking that meeting with Claire Brown, the matching professional, and Claire presented her with new potential surrogate candidates for them. But then she ran into her mom, and her advice was, whatever they choose to do, it has to be a mutual decision. And she knows her mom was right, so she only wants to explore new surrogates – if he’s totally open to it too.

Kristina says, sorry to keep Blaze waiting, but Blaze says she just got here. Kristina opens the apartment door and says, welcome to her humble home. Blaze says, nice and cozy, and Kristina says she’s glad Blaze likes it. She likes it too. Beautiful building and view, but the thing she likes best about it is, she pays her rent all by herself. Blaze says she can tell that really means something to Kristina, and Kristina says, it does. Both of her parents are super successful, and she spent plenty of time running around as a trust fund kid, which was fun in the short term, but she didn’t like the person she’d become. She knows managing Charlie’s isn’t very glamorous, but it’s where she got her head screwed on straight. It’s good, honest work, and she’s really proud of herself for standing on her own two feet. She really likes this version of herself better. Blaze says she can’t speak to who Kristina was in the past, but she likes this version of Kristina now a lot. So what does Kristina think? She takes a bottle of champagne out of her bag and says, time to celebrate?

Brook tells Chase that she knows her mom and grandma can be a lot. They have the subtlety of a freight train. He says he thought they were great, but she says, come on. Can he honestly say that the idea of marrying her ever came into his mind before her grandma’s lecture on marriage? Then her mom has to pile on top of it with her Chase-you-make-my-kid-happy speech. He says, so what her mom said wasn’t true? He doesn’t make her happy? She says, he makes her incredibly happy. Happy with their life together in his apartment. Happy that he accepts her for exactly who she is. Happy that he has a really great sense of humor about her family, both sides. But don’t let them pressure him into asking her to marry him. They can just take that topic off the table and forget it was even brought up. Okay? He says, nope, it’s not okay. It’s too late to take marriage off the table. He takes out a ring box and shows her a gorgeous round diamond ring that no doubt someone helped him pick out. Maybe his ring guy. She asks what he’s doing.

Josslyn asks if she told Carly about Adam, the kid that lives down the hall from her, but Carly says, nope. Josslyn says, he’s in her Organic Chem class, so they study together sometimes. Like ten minutes into this test, he starts freaking out. He starts hyperventilating and looking like he’s going to faint, so the TA had to stop the exam. Carly asks if he had a panic attack, and Josslyn says, that’s what it looked like, so she volunteered to take him to GH. Carly says, poor guy, and Josslyn says, he told her that he took some sort of medication to help him focus and he took an extra dose before this test. That’s why he thinks he had a panic attack. Carly asks what Josslyn thinks.

Nina tells Sonny, Carly did commit insider trading. When she bought that Aurora stock, she did so because she had privileged information that ELQ and Aurora were going to merge. That is why Carly and Drew got into trouble. It’s just unfortunate that the FBI and SEC were trying to use that as leverage to get Carly to flip on Sonny. He says, she’s missing the point. The FBI knew Carly had information because when he was in Nixon Falls, Carly was running his business. Nina says, and she kept him from his life in Port Charles. Is that what he’s saying?

Blaze says she thinks Kristina is going to like this champagne; definitely worthy of a special occasion. She pours them both a glass, and Kristina asks what they’re celebrating. Blaze says, the remix of her latest single just went number on the dance charts, and Kristina says, congratulations. Blaze thanks her and they clink glasses. Blaze says, let’s toast, and Kristina says, Blaze is her stage name. What’s her real name? (This is so weird, because I was just wondering about that.) Blaze says, Allison Rogers Ramerez, and Kristina says, to Allison. They clink glasses again.

TJ says he wants a family with Molly. They love each other. They’re committed to each other, and part of that commitment is listening and respecting each other’s needs and feelings, and that’s something he neglected to do this morning. She says, it’s okay, but he says, it’s not. He was so wrapped up in his own feelings and in his fears, he didn’t make enough room for her and what she’s going through. For that, he’s so sorry. She says, he was being honest, and she needs him to be honest. She wants him to know that she has every intention of being honest with him too. She never would have gone further than an initial meeting with Claire without talking to him. He says he believes her. So she was meeting to look at other potential surrogates. Did she find anybody she liked or thinks they might connect to? She says, yes… and no.

Brook says, it’s beyond beautiful, and Chase says he bought this ring weeks ago, way before her mom and grandmother came to town. His original plan was to propose on Christmas. All Lois and her grandmother did was just speed up the timetable a little bit. She asks, why? and he says, why did he buy the ring or why did he move up the proposal? Because he loves her and he wants to spend the rest of their lives, short or long, together. His dad’s diagnosis made him realize all over again that life can be random, and nothing is entirely promised. He doesn’t want to waste today waiting for a tomorrow that might never come. They need to do what matters now, while they still can. And what matters most to him is her. It’s her. Well? She says, well what? and he says he didn’t technically get an answer. She tells him that she said what she said before because she thought he was just following her grandma’s instructions. Ask her again. He says, Brook Lynn Quartermaine – he gets down on one knee again – the love of his life, would she do him the greatest honor in marrying him?

Lois says, the deal hadn’t closed when Ned hit his head and woke up as Eddie Maine. Correct? Ned says, yeah. So? She says, standard business practice would be to put the deal on hold if one of the parties, mainly him, was not in his right mind. And if ELQ hadn’t sent someone to close the deal, then the Australian company would have had to assume that there was no deal to be had, right? He tells her that he couldn’t really say, but she says, be honest with her. If Michael hadn’t gone and negotiated the deal, there would be no deal, right? He says, that’s not the point, but she says, the point is, Michael closed the deal and he didn’t. Isn’t that what this is really all about?

Josslyn tells Carly that she’s sure the meds contributed to Adam’s panic attack, but she thinks it would have happened regardless. Carly asks, why? and Josslyn says, because he has this relentless pressure put on him by his parents. Then he puts more pressure on himself. He thinks 92% is failing. Carly says, that’s not good, and Josslyn agrees. She says, he spends all of his time studying. He has no friends. When she and Trina got back from Thanksgiving, he had been in the dorm the whole time. Carly says, he wasn’t with his family for Thanksgiving? and Josslyn says, no. His parents were in St. Bart’s. He literally stayed on campus and studied. Carly says she wishes she would have known that. Josslyn could have brought him home for Thanksgiving. Drew comes in and says, they’re closed, huh? but Carly says, not for him. What would he like, ice cream or chili? He says he was hoping to take her out for dinner. One last night out before he heads to Australia. Carly says, what?

Sonny says, whether anybody believes it or not, he and Nina know the most important thing that happened in Nixon Falls was that they fell in love. Nina says, he’s right, and he says, the only reason he brought up Carly was to make an example of it. What if the FBI thinks Nina has information to implicate him? Then they’ll come after her. That’s why he can’t tell her everything. She says she knows that. She’s made peace with what he does, with his life choice, and she does understand why sometimes he can’t tell her everything. It’s not like she wants to be involved in allegedly illicit activities. He says, good. That means they’re on the same page. She asks if they really are. Because if her husband is in danger, she’ll do whatever she can to make sure he comes home. And if there’s a chance her husband she loves won’t come home, doesn’t he think she has the right to know that?

Brook says, yes. With all her heart, she’ll marry Chase. He takes her hand and puts the ring on it. She says, look at that. It’s a perfect fit. Just like her and him. He says he knows that diamond might be a little small by Quartermaine standards… She says, stop it. She loves it. She loves that she chose it. She loves that she gets to wear it for the rest of her life, and she promises she’ll love him for as long as they both shall live. They kiss.

Ned tells Lois that he turned ELQ over to Michael, a decision he’s come to bitterly regret. He was too young to be named CEO… even if he did turn out to be surprisingly effective at the job. Lois asks, so what’s the problem? and Ned says, the problem is, once Michael got a taste of that power, he was never willing to let it go. When Michael was pushed out by him and Valentin, he went to work for Drew at Aurora. But he knew Michael was just lying in wait. When he had that fall at the pool, it was just the chance Michael needed. Michael jumping in and finishing that Australian deal was just the beginning. If Ned doesn’t find a way to stop him, Michael will push him out. Lois says, all these years after Edward’s death, all the Qs are still fighting with each other. Ned’s grandfather – may he rest – he would be so proud of that. That makes her so sad.

TJ says, Molly did find a surrogate possibility, or she didn’t? and Molly says, after her conversation with her mom, she had a million thoughts turning through her brain. She went for a walk in the park to get some air, and she ran into Willow and Baby Amelia. He asks if it felt like torture, and she says, in a way, but torture of the sweetest kind. She got to hold the baby and it almost knocked her over with longing to have a baby of their own. She got so overwhelmed with the fear that it might never happen, she went to an isolated park bench and broke down into a million pieces. It’s okay. She just had this flood of emotions that needed to come out. She just sat there and sobbed. He says he was so wrong. He’s so sorry. She says, it’s okay. While she was crying, Kristina found her.

Kristina says, Allison Rogers Ramerez. She’s so curious how that morphed into Blaze. Blaze says she just though her name was to generic to win over a big audience, and Kristina asks if she just woke up one day and said, call me Blaze? Blaze laughs and says, no. She was in high school at this open mic night, and even though this is everything she ever wanted, she was so shy back then. Kristina says she finds that hard to believe, but Blaze says, it’s true. She knew she could sing, so she signed up, but then she got hit with this massive wave of stage fright. She went up to the DJ who was announcing the singers and begged him to withdraw her name. All she wanted to do is run away and hide. Kristina asks, what happened? and Blaze says, the DJ challenged her. He said, do you really want to scurry away like some scared little mouse, or would you rather go out in a blaze of glory? So she went out on that stage and sang her heart out. She got a standing ovation and from that night on, she was Blaze. Kristina says, that is amazing. She loves that story. Blaze says, Kristina’s turn. What was she like in high school?

Drew says he’s flying to Australia for business, and Carly asks, for how long? He says, for a week, and Josslyn tells Carly that she can clean up if they want to head out, but Carly says, Drew’s going to help her clean up. Then they can talk. Josslyn says, then she’s going to go. Have a great night. She’s going to text Drew a list of her favorite places to go when she’s in Australia with her dad. Drew thanks her and says he’d love to check out a couple. Josslyn says, goodnight, and leaves. Carly asks when Drew’s going, and he says, tomorrow. She says, that’s not a lot of notice, and he says he realizes that. He’s sorry, but it just came together so quickly. He just got back and now he’s leaving again, right before Christmas. She asks why he’s going.

Sonny tells Nina that he has to be extremely careful. That’s why he has bodyguards and Brick screens everything. She says, he hasn’t given her a straightforward answer about Cyrus. Is he still after Sonny? Sonny says, he was. Ava was right about that part. When Cyrus was in Pentenville, he used Austin and Mason to set him up to get busted by the Feds. She says, so Cyrus Renault is responsible for him getting arrested, but he says, it didn’t work because there was no proof. The charges didn’t stick. He’s a free man. She says, but so is Cyrus. He just got released from Pentenville. What if he decides to go after Sonny again?

Blaze asks if she just asked the wrong question, but Kristina says, no. She was in an abusive relationship in high school. Blaze says she’s so sorry. Please don’t feel obligated to tell her about it, but Kristina says, it’s okay. She wants to tell Blaze about it because it’s a big part of her and a big part of who she is. She genuinely thought her boyfriend Kiefer had a really sweet side to him. And she did love him, but he was also wildly insecure, and he had a bad temper. Once when they were arguing, he slapped her. She remembers it like it was yesterday because her reaction to it was so messed up. Blaze asks what she means, and Kristina says she was embarrassed. She blamed herself. She was sure she’d said or done something to trigger that reaction from him. The one thing she didn’t do was blame him. She certainly didn’t break up with him. The slapping eventually turned to hitting, and it took her a really long time to ask for help. Blaze says she’s so sorry Kristina went through that, and Kristina thanks her. She says, her next boyfriend Trey was not much better. Not that he was abusive, but her parents didn’t like him and she was in her rebellious phase, so she married him for what felt like five minutes. Then when that failed, she thought she’d try college, and when she was in college, she had an affair with her professor. Blaze asks, how old was he? and Kristina says, she was in her mid-thirties.

TJ asks what it was like when Kristina found Molly crying, and Molly says, she was actually really wonderful. Kristina calmed her down and got her out of the park. Kristina took her back to her place and listened while she opened up a vein. And then, Kristina offered to be their surrogate again.

Lois says, Ned knows she loved his grandfather, and in many ways, Edward was a wonderful man, and she cherishes his memory. He says he feels the same way, and she says, and he loved keeping them all in an endless competition; everyone always jockeying for power. He loved playing them all against each other. Ned versus his mother; Ned versus AJ. All the while, belittling poor Alan, who only wanted nothing to do with the family business. She remembers when Edward exiled Tracy. Then he let her come home and exiled her all over again. Ned says, his mother is hardly an innocent, and Lois agrees. She says, maybe that made for a very successful business, but it made them all miserable. Edward is gone. Does Ned really want to carry on his legacy? Ned at Michael’s throat; Michael at his. He says, that’s just how the Quartermaines are, and she says, really? She looks at a photo of Edward and Lila, and says, what about Lila?

Drew asks Carly if she remembers him telling her that when Ned was out of commission, Michael closed a deal between ELQ and an Australian firm. He’s going to finalize the paperwork and probably oversee a few other acquisitions while he’s there. She says, that’s ELQ, not Aurora. She still doesn’t get why he has to go. He says, Michael was going to go, but he was reluctant to leave Willow and the kids so soon after her leukemia. She says she thinks it’s really wonderful of him to offer to go so Michael could stay home. She just wishes he would have told her, so she could have planned and processed it. He says, it really did come together last night, and she says she’s going to miss him. He says he’s going to miss her too, and kisses her.

Brook says, Chase started this by asking about the most important moments of her life. This is definitely one of them. She’s so surprised she’s not even nervous at all. He says, it just feels right, and she agrees. She says, even if they can’t predict the future, at least they know they have each other. He asks if she remembers when they first met. She clocked him over the head with a bottle. When he tells people about that day, he’ll say it was one of the most important days of his life because it was the day he met his wife. They kiss.

Lois tells Ned, Lila was sweet, angelic, loving, but she was nobody’s pushover. She saw through every one of them, including her husband, and she loved them all anyway. He says, grandmother was one of a kind, and Lois says she asked Lila one time what her secret was. Lila told her, I always look for the good in everyone, and I almost always find it. She was a Quartermaine. Ned could try her way for a change. Look for the good, right? He was incapacitated. He wasn’t able to finish the deal, so Michael stepped in, and he made the deal for Ned. If it was good for ELQ, it was good for everyone in the company, including Ned. So instead of trying to blow up the deal, why doesn’t he thank Michael for making the deal, and next time a deal comes around, Ned can ask Michael to collaborate with him. They can work together instead of against each other. Maybe the results will surprise him. He says, she really channeled his grandmother right there. He hopes she knows how proud of her Lila would be.

Outside Kelly’s, Carly asks where they’re going, and Drew says he was thinking Café Cheri, a bottle of wine, maybe two. She says, sounds like a perfect farewell dinner, and he laughs. He says he realizes he’s letting her down, but it’s only a week. She says she knows, and she knows it’s important to him. If it weren’t, she’d tell him to send Ned. He says he wouldn’t trust Ned to close this deal. The man can’t see past his own ego for the good of the company. She says, Drew sounds like Michael, and he says, Michael is right. She should have seen Ned when he found out Michael closed the deal. He turned into a little four-year-old. He told Michael that he wasn’t authorized when he should have been thanking him. She says she gets it. That sounds like Ned, but Drew is usually the one to let things go and move forward. He says, one trip to Pentenville is enough for him. Ned isn’t going to stab him in the back again. She says she understands that, but please don’t let Ned change who he is. He says he can’t undo what he’s been through, and she says she knows, but we can choose to fill our minds with better things to dwell on, like our dinner and our wine and us. He says, and us, and they kiss.

Sonny tells Nina, Cyrus is mopping floors at the PC Grill. He has his guys on Cyrus 24/7. Yes, Cyrus was a threat, but those days are over. Mason Gatlin is on his way to Pentenville, Austin’s dead and Cyrus’s allies and connections don’t want to work with a broken old man. She laughs and thanks him for sharing that with her. He says he didn’t tell her about Cyrus because he didn’t want her to be worried, but she says, he doesn’t have to shield her like that. She’s tougher than she looks. He says he has no doubt, and kisses her.

TJ says he doesn’t understand. The last time Kristina offered to be their surrogate, Molly wanted nothing to do with it. She says, they talked about that, and Kristina admitted that when she initially offered, she hadn’t really thought it through. It was just an impulsive idea. And Molly admitted she overreacted. She was just hurt because her sister can carry a child and she can’t, but Kristina’s being really sincere about doing it. She’s in perfect health and she’s kind of a perfect candidate, but only if it’s something TJ wants too. He says, if this is something Molly wants, he thinks they should accept Kristina’s offer, and she asks if he’s sure. He says, as sure as he is of his love for her, and they kiss. He says, let’s have a baby.

Kristina tells Blaze that her name was Parker. It started off as a crush, but it developed into something much deeper. And that was her first and only relationship with a woman. Blaze asks how it ended, and Kristina says, Parker dumped her for her ex, and Blaze says, ouch. Kristina says, honestly, she doesn’t fault Parker for that, because if not for Parker, she would have kept on denying that part of herself for God knows how long. Blaze says she certainly knows what that’s like, sets down her glass, and kisses Kristina.

Tomorrow, Cyrus tells Ava that he has an alibi, and asks if she does; Anna tells Felicia that she could really use a friend; and Sonny asks what Curtis wants from him.

Below Deck Mediterranean

I grit my teeth and hold my nose and dive into this floating pile of garbage. I’m not quite getting it with the online backlash against Kyle. He’s a gossip and drama queen for sure, but I honestly think he doesn’t compare to Natalya, who just seems like a straight-up bad person.

Genoa, Italy. In Jack’s interview, he says, when he sees Kyle, he sees drama. He was supportive of Natalya, but now he wishes he’d been more supportive of her, based on what he’s seen. At the restaurant, Kyle leaves the table to take a wee, and in Tumi’s interview, she says, Kyle is a stick of dynamite that doesn’t need a match. Can they just behave? On the boat, Captain Sandy wanders around, looking disgruntled. Max hits on Jessika, and outside the restaurant, they race each other to nowhere. Everyone gets in the taxis. The captain continues to wander around, and seeing the mess in the mess, she says, this place is disgusting. It’s like babysitting. In her interview, she says, when she goes downstairs, she doesn’t want to see a disaster. It’s not a frat house. The crew goes to a bar/club, and Max orders one shot for everyone to add fuel to the fire. In Max’s interview, he says, Lily is a new adventure. He and Peter Pan will never be serious, and he likes her vibe. In Jessika’s interview, she says, Luka is cute and you’re stupid if you don’t think so. I guess I’m good then. Kyle broods, and Lily asks Jack, what happened? Jack tells her about being friends with Natalya and that Kyle caused trouble, but Kyle suggests she reserve her opinion. Jack’s been against the interior since the beginning. He’ll separate her from the rest of them. She should have her own opinion. Lily says she doesn’t care about any of it, and Jack tells her not to respond. Kyle says, some people have growing up to do, and some people need to level up. In Lily’s interview, she says, Kyle is making her feel like if she’s not on his side, she’s out to sea, and she tells them, we’re ending the conversation. Lily tells Tumi that she doesn’t want to get involved in the gossip. She’s ignoring Kyle and Jack, and it’s feeling uncomfortable. In Tumi’s interview, she says she feels like a preschool teacher getting the kids together. Natalya is gone, so she thought the drama was gone. She has no time to babysit. We flash back to the tornado that was Natalya, and Tumi says she and Kyle need to have a conversation – without alcohol involved. In the taxi, Kyle says he thinks Lily is being influenced by Jack, but Tumi says she doesn’t think so. In taxi #2, Max flirts with Lily, while in taxi #1, Luka kisses Jessika. Lily wants Max to carry her, and in Max’s interview, he says, oui, oui, oui a thousand times. Jessika gets in Luka’s bunk, and Max gets in Lily’s bunk. Lily hits her head on the bunk above them and I laugh. In the Jessika/Luka bunk, there’s a lot of movement under that blankie and I don’t want to know. Max and Lily both slide off the bunk and onto the floor.

In the morning, Lily says she’s hungover as sh*t, while Tumi tries cleaning up. Lily says she’s dying, and Max and Luke fist bump. In Max’s interview, he says, Lily is pretty with emerald eyes. It feels like Christmas in July. Tumi asks Jack, what happened? and Jack says, Lily wanted to know what went on. Kyle butted in and told her to have her own opinion. In Tumi’s interview, she says, Kyle is paranoid, and we flash back to Kyle thinking Jessika was against him, then telling Jack that Natalya will throw him under the bus. Tumi says, it’s her job to keep Kyle under control. Lily is horrible at laundry, and she needs him. In Luka’s interview, he says, in the past, he didn’t have to do paperwork. He’s glad he can rely on Lara. She’ll just push through.

Captain Sandy calls Luka to the bridge, and tells him, the way the crew mess was left was not okay. There was food and booze, the garbage was overflowing, and plates were stacked up in the sink. In Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, Luka knows her expectations. The job’s not just about throwing lines. It’s about making sure the schedule is working and the crew mess is clean. She doesn’t want him to get complacent. She tells him to kick some ass, as Lily repeatedly throws up in the cabin bathroom. In Jessika’s interview, she says she’s in a scary place, knowing her feelings for Luka are showing. He’s a Scorpio, and Scorpio men are known to be promiscuous. She tells Tumi that Lily is throwing up, and Tumi checks on her. Lily says she’s dying, and Tumi tells her to take an hour. Clearly more in practice with drinking, Jessika says she wants a burger. Tumi tells Kyle that the chef and his new friend felt Kyle was overstepping yesterday. Kyle revises history, and Tumi says, what happened was clearly triggering. Kyle says he didn’t tell anything to anyone. Jack wants to cause atomic bombs. Tumi says she’d rather Kyle and Lily communicate with her, and in her interview, she says she doesn’t know how to handle these people. She can’t be handling men in their 30s. Sorry. The captain calls Luka, Jack, and Tumi for the preference sheet meeting.

The primary is Michael, the CEO of a dental implant company. He’s bringing his wife and several friends. Luka reads that they want to go diving at Christ of the Abyss, and Tumi reads that they want a 007 Casino Royale party. Jack reads, late night snacks are welcome, and there’s something about singing Happy Birthday as an aria. Kyle tells Jessika, the laundry is a sh*tshow, and Jessika says, Lily can’t be sleeping all day. Kyle tells her that anything he says is taken to the next level, so he’s not saying anything anymore. Max brings Lily some water, and Tumi tells Captain Sandy that Lily is hung over. The captain says she’ll wake Lily up, and tells Lily, it’s your captain. She needs Lily on deck. This is a real job. Lily says she needs 20 minutes, and the captain says, holy cannoli, as she walks away. In the captain’s interview, she says, if it happens again, they’ll need to have a serious conversation. Maybe don’t drink as much next time. Tumi calls to find some entertainment for the 007 party, and the provider says they have a mentalist. In Tumi’s interview, she says, what the f*** is a mentalist? That has nothing to do with the theme, but her options are limited. It sounds like a bougie way of saying psychic . Jessika relegates Lily to scrubbing toilets, which is not just poetic justice, but a good idea since she’s not done throwing up. She looks absolutely miserable. In Lily’s interview, she say she thinks she drank a bit too much. In Tumi’s interview, she says, it’s a lot to manage Lily. She’s not retaining information. Tumi knows she can do it, but she’s trying to figure out how. In the crew mess, Lara is encouraged to be the singer for the guests, and in her interview, she says, her love of opera started young. She listened to Phantom of the Opera all the time, and that love is still with her. She sings in the crew mess, and I give it a 6 out of 10. Luka says, the guests will love her, and in Lara’s interview, she says she believes she’s destined to be an opera singer. Then she laughs. Lily hits her head on the top bunk again. Man, she is not bright at all. In Lily’s interview, she says, the Brit is back.

True story. My first day at my very first job in NYC, I was hung over since I’d gone out with a group from school the night before. Adding to my misery, it was Donut Day or something and the donuts that particular day had green and orange frosting on them. To my credit, I made it through the day without going all Lily.

Luka tells Haleigh that she’s going on the dive with the guests, and Tumi meets with the interior in the crew mess. She tells Lily, the biggest thing is having initiative, and tells Jessika to guide her. Captain Sandy radios the interior and asks that her clothes be brought up. She has no clean shirts. Jessika goes to the laundry room, and Tumi says, they need to speed things up with the laundry. Jessika sees the captain’s shirts aren’t ironed, so she finishes the job on one and delivers it to Captain Sandy. Tumi calls Lily to the laundry and points out what hasn’t been done. She says, it’s her pet peeve. When someone says something is done, she assumes it’s done. Lily makes excuses in her interview, and says, it feels like the interior is breaking down and she’s the one breaking it. She has little experience in laundry. There’s no winning here, only failure. No positivity.

The guests arrive, and primary Michael says he’s so excited, he’s jacked. Let’s get this party rolling. The group seems pretty boisterous and pay little to no attention to the tour. In Kyle’s interview, he says, these dentists are having the best time of their life. Where were they when he was getting his teeth extracted. We flash back to Kyle’s dental woe last season, and the boat heads out. Guest Amish noses around the galley. Kyle and Jack are still silent with each other, and Amish lies down for a nap. Lunch is served, and in his interview, Kyle says he doesn’t owe Jack anything. He’s going to focus work on his work. It’s not the place to become chums. In Luka’s interview, he says, if he’s not in a relationship, he’s doing a fling. He’s not usually in trouble, but if he is, it has something to do with the ladies. The guests are happy with lunch, and Captain Sandy radios for someone to take out the garbage. Max goes to help, the water toys are put out, and the guests use the slide. In Lara’s interview, she says she’s lead deckhand and is there to help where needed, but Luka has to adjust the schedule for sleeping. Haliegh and Max leave with Michael and his wife for the dive, Lara driving the tender. Lily sits on deck for a smoke with Jack, and Jack tells her that Kyle is overthinking things. He wants to speak to Kyle, but thinks Kyle should instigate it. A sign of real maturity.

They go to Christ of the Abyss, and in Haleigh’s interview, she says, diving started her out on her ocean career. She’s not super familiar with yachting, but she’s super familiar with diving. She doesn’t have to talk underwater. They dive, and on the boat, Luka texts Natalya. Jessika and Lily do cabins, and Jessika shows Lily the ropes. In Jessika’s interview, she says she doesn’t like to train. Tumi is the chief stew though, and she has to do what she’s told. She doesn’t like teaching people things. She’s a sponge; Lily can be a sponge too. Lara radios Luka and says, Max is having more fun than the guests. Tumi instructs Lily in napkin folding, and in Tumi’s interview, she says, it’s important for her to show Lily how to do stuff. She wants to cover her tracks. If Lily can’t do it, she can say she showed her already. But if she comes out on top, she can say she trained Lily and it was a pleasure. Michael tells Lara that he can tell Haleigh knows her stuff, and they head back to the boat. Even though Lara wants a break, she tells Max to go, and in her interview, she says, a higher up should never a take break before their teammates. She should have been given a break earlier, but she’s not throwing a tantrum like Max. We flash back to Max being a baby, and she says she’ll just deal with it. The mentalist shows up at the dock, and Tumi tells Luka that he needs to be picked up. Luka is annoyed that he’s already put the tender away, and in her interview, Lara says, there should have been better communication on both their parts, but Luka could have asked if interior needed to launch the tender later. The chief bosun should communicate with the chief stew. What did they do the whole day on the boat, have a tea party?

Luka picks up the mentalist, and Tumi says she hears he has magic powers. In her interview, she says, if the guests are happy, she’s happy. She didn’t f*** up. The guests are dressed like characters in a James Bond film, and Tumi directs them to some entertainment before dinner. The man (who’s either nameless or I didn’t catch it) asks who knows what a mentalist is, and Amish says he has no idea what the f*** is going on. The mentalist asks one of the guests to think of a famous place they’ve never been before and would want to visit in the future. He writes something down and asks her to tell him what it is. She says, Australia, and he reveals he’s written Australia on the board. He does some more mind reading tricks, and he’s pretty impressive. Lily says she feels like Tumi and Kyle don’t like her, but Jessika says, if they see she’s working hard and always doing something, they’ll respect her. Kyle radios for someone in the deck crew to help with service, but gets no response. Captain Sandy wonders where the deck crew is, and gets on the radio herself. Luka is in the tender, but she radios him, asking where the deckhands are. Luka says, Lara and Max are sleeping, and the captain says, he’s the only one on deck? That’s not okay. They always need at least two. Captain Sandy pokes her head in Lara’s cabin, and says, they need someone on deck. Lara says she’s on from 10:30 to 3, and in Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, it’s important to have at least two of the deck crew on deck in case of an emergency. It’s not just about safety; it’s about service. The deck team supports the interior, and there are no water sports at night. She needs two. She tells Luka that she’s not happy. The priority right now is food, and this is the kind of stuff that makes her mad. He has to figure out the schedule, and when she radios, someone needs to answer.

Next time, Jessika complains about Lily; Tumi says her patience is gone; Captain Sandy says she’ll give Lily one more chance: Lily says she can’t win; Haleigh needs to see a doctor; drunk guest Amish looks for the hot tub and wakes the crew; and Captain Sandy tells primary Michael to get Amish off the boat.

🍦 Whipping It Good…

Join me tomorrow for soap and tidbits of tea and such from the interwebs. Until then, stay safe, stay being realistic about how much you can do during the holiday season – let yourself say no; and stay not wasting today waiting for a tomorrow that might never come. Do what matters now while you still can. Life can be random, and it’s not entirely promised.

December 1, 2023 – Ava Spills To Nina, Posing, Side Gig, Shade On, VanderUpdate, Parade Pics, Windows, Finale Of Fear, More Turkey, Holiday Pets (!), Just Over 8 Quotes & Philly

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Brook walks into the nook where Lois is chopping vegetables. Lois says, there’s her girl, and Brook says, okay, but Lios says she can do better than that. Where’s her main squeeze? Brook asks if she means Chase, and Lois says, no, her other main squeeze. Yes, Chase. Brook says, he’s probably halfway to Canada by now after grandma’s tirade on marriage.

Kristina shows Molly into her apartment and tells her to stay there while she secures the necessary provisions. She leaves and comes back with two glasses and a bottle of wine. Molly is still standing by the door, and Kristina says she didn’t expect her to still be in the same position. She leads Molly to the sofa and says, talk to her. What happened? Molly says she realized she’s never been here before.

Elizabeth and Finn are having dinner at the PC Grill (the restaurant of the moment), and Elizabeth wonders if they’re celebrating a special occasion. He says, that depends, and she says, on? He says, whether you deem the calm before the storm special.

A tall, impeccably groomed, well-dressed man walks up to the counter at Kelly’s and Carly welcomes him. She asks if she can get him something, and speaking with a British accent, he says he certainly hopes so.

Sonny and Dex walk into Pozzulo’s, and Dex says, Hume would have been waiting for Sonny if they’d have let him. Sonny asks if he was alone, and Dex says, just him and his briefcase, which he can only assume was full of cash like last time. Sonny says, okay, let’s hear what Pikeman has to say, and takes out his phone.

At Windymere, va opens the door to Nina, who says she’s completely freaked out. Ava sounded frantic. What’s going on? Ava says, this arrived in the mail today, handing her the note with the picture of dead Austin.

Elizabeth says she takes it that it didn’t go well with the hospital lawyer. What’s her name again? Finn says, Dede Clark. It went fine on the surface. She talked a lot about cooperation and implied they’re all in this together on the malpractice suit, and that he could do his part just by answering some questions. She says, but underneath? and he says, the more questions she asked, the more clear it became that GH’s plan is to sacrifice him and save themselves.

Kristina says, that can’t be true, but Molly says, it is. Think about it. Whenever they hang out, Kristina comes to her place, or they meet up at mom’s or Sam’s or a restaurant somewhere. Never here. Kristina says, Molly’s never been to her apartment (neither have we), and Molly says, no. Kristina says, that is weird. Well, welcome. Molly thanks her, and Kristina says, for the record, it’s not like she’s throwing parties or entertaining. Her kitchen is essentially a barren desert. It’s easier to go out. She pours the wine, and Molly says, Kristina doesn’t have to defend herself, but Kristina says, doesn’t she? Molly is her sister and hasn’t even seen her apartment. She hopes Molly knows it’s not intentional. She now has an open invitation, any time she wants to come here, day or night. Molly says, be careful. She just might take her up on that. Kristina says, she better, and they clink glasses.

Lois tells Brook, tirade is a bit of a stretch, and Canada is not that far away. Doesn’t she think she’s being a little overdramatic? Brook says, no. After some of the things grandma said to Chase, she can’t even go there. It was mortifying. Lois says, it’s a good thing to know, nobody ever died from embarrassment, and it didn’t seem to bother Chase all that much. Brook says, he was being polite, but Brook says, or maybe he was seeing Gloria for who she is, a meddling Italian grandmother whose views on modern relationships are stuck in the 1800s. Lois says, exactly, and Brook says, she and Chase have never even discussed marriage. They just moved in together. Lois says, indicating that marriage is probably the next step, but Brook says, they’re nowhere near that step and that’s okay by her. Lois says, good to know, and Brook says, it is good. Lois tells Brook that she just said that, and Brook says, she and Chase are perfectly happy the way things are. Chase walks in with a bottle of wine, and Lois says, he made it.  

The man tells Carly that he’s in Port Charles on business, and he has a craving for a burger. The concierge at his hotel recommended this place. Carly says, he must be staying at the MetroCourt, and he says, she knows it. She says she knows it well, and he says, if he were staying somewhere else, would they also recommend Kelly’s? She says, absolutely. Kelly’s is a Port Charles institution, and they have the best burgers in town, if she does say so herself. He says, wild guess. She works here. She says she owns the place, third generation. So how does he like his burger?

Nina looks at the photo and says, is this real? Ava says, as real as it gets. Austin is dead. Nina asks, how? and Ava says, he was shot to death in Pautuck. Look. She shows Nina the envelope and says, a Port Charles postmark. It could have been sent by anyone. Nina asks if it was just the picture, but Ava says, no. It came with this sweet little note. She gives Nina the paper that says, you’re welcome, and Nina says she doesn’t understand. Ava says, join the club, and Nina says, clearly, the killer wrote this. Oh my God. Would they just assume Ava would be grateful Austin’s dead? Ava says, that’s her guess, and Nina says, she has to take this to the police. Ava snatches them back and says, no. That’s the last thing she’s going to do.

Sonny says, before Hume gets here, how long did Dex tail Austin? Dex says, only when that nanny was working for Sonny. Betty? Sonny asks if anyone called Dex on it, and Dex says, a couple of times at the hospital, he was asked what he was doing there, but he always had a cover. Sonny asks if he roughed Austin up, and Dex says, when Ava disappeared, he questioned Austin. He stonewalled, Dex put him in a headlock and told him if Ava wasn’t back, he’d be back for him. Sonny says, that could be a problem. Austin was murdered and if anyone saw Dex threaten him, they could assume he did it.

Ava says, Dante has already been out here to question her, and Nina asks, why? Because of Austin? Ava pours drinks and says, there’s so much Nina doesn’t know. Nina says, then fill her in, and Ava asks if Nina remembers walking in on her and Sonny having an intense conversation a few months ago, and Nina says, yeah. She asked what was going on, and neither of them would tell her. Ava says she was being blackmailed, and Nina asks, for what? Ava says, when Nikolas went missing, she had every reason to believe he was dead, and Nina asks her to define every reason. Ava says she thought she’d killed him, and Nina says, oh my God. Ava says, he came here, and he was in a rage. He was threatening to disappear and take Avery with him. She had to do what she had to do to stop him, and she grabbed a statue and she hit him. She just wanted to stop him, that’s all, but he fell. He stopped moving and she panicked. She thought he was dead. Nina says, thank God she was wrong, and Ava says she was trying to hide his body when Austin found her. He told her that he’d help her cover it up. Then the body disappeared, and Austin’s cousin Mason claimed he had it. He said he would bring it to the police if she didn’t do everything he told her to do. Nina says, so Austin’s cousin Mason was blackmailing Ava because she killed Nikolas, but he wasn’t actually dead? and Ava says, but Mason wasn’t acting alone. It turned out, Austin was working with him.

Dex says, after questioning Austin about Ava, he never went near him again, and Sonny says, if the cops decide Dex is a suspect – and that’s a big if – tell them that he’s not talking to anybody without his attorney present, and that includes his son Dante. Dex says, understood, and Sonny says he takes care of his people. If Dex gets picked up, he has the best representation. Dex says he appreciates that, and Sonny says, let’s hope that doesn’t happen. The less attention the cops pay to Dex, the more valuable Dex is to him.

Carly presents the man with his burger and says, tell her what he thinks. Don’t spare her feelings. He takes a bite, and she says she wants to know the real deal. He makes happy food noises and says, talk about the real deal. She says, really? and he says, it’s delicious. It’s full of flavor, perfectly cooked. She tells him to enjoy his dinner. She looks at the door and says, not again, and they turn to see a homeless man hanging around the doorway. She goes outside.

Carly tells the man that he can’t be out here, and he asks her not to call the cops, but she says, that’s not what she means. It’s too cold. He needs to come inside.

Kristina asks if Molly wants to tell her what happened, and Molly says, shoot. She had a folder at the park. It’s filled with really personal information… Kristina says she’s got it. She picked it up from the ground when they were leaving. Molly thanks her and says, she’s a life saver. Kristina says, of course (🍷), and takes the folder out of her bag, giving it to Molly. What’s in it? She doesn’t have to share that. It’s 100% her right. Molly says, no, it’s fine. Open it. Kristina looks inside and says, surrogacy candidates. She doesn’t understand. Is there something wrong with them? Molly says, there’s something wrong with her, and Kristina says, watch it. That’s my sister you’re talking about. Molly says she has this whole folder of potential new surrogates and TJ has no clue she’s even looking at them.

Lois brings out glasses and thanks Chase for the wine. She says, it’s very thoughtful of him, and he asks if she wants him to open it. She says, is the Pope Catholic? and tells him to pour while she works. She goes back to the cutting board, and Chase asks if they have a corkscrew. Brook gets it for him, and he asks what they were talking about. Lois says, you, and Brook says, you and Blaze. And how you used to sing together and now she sings alone. Speaking of which, what does he think of her new song?… Hello? Chase says he’s sorry. He got distracted. It’s amazing how Lois can do all that with those nails. Lois says, there’s nothing she can’t do with these nails.

Elizabeth says, Finn has to separate the hospital from the hospital’s lawyers. Sure, it may be a good legal strategy to use him as a scapegoat, but Portia and Terry would never, and she’s sure the Board would follow suit. He says he doesn’t know anymore. If the Muldoons can prove that the hospital somehow knew he was negligent and turned a blind eye, it’s possible they’d be liable for damages. Martin thinks GH’s best plan is to say that he was negligent, but he acted without the knowledge of the hospital. She says, but he wasn’t negligent and he’s going to explain that to a jury when he testifies. They’ll have to be sympathetic to him. He says, really? Has she met him?

Finn says, his testimony alone could tank the case, and Elizabeth tells him, says who? He tells her, says his lawyer; he said it a bunch of times. She says, that’s ridiculous, and he says, really? She says, if Martin Grey doesn’t believe in Finn, fire him, and Finn says, Martin does believe in him, but he’s also a lawyer. Good lawyers point out the landmines. This case at the core is about a grieving family who are looking for answers, and really, can you blame them? She says, of course (🍷) not, and he says, then it’s possible a jury might feel that way too. She says, and it’s possible to have empathy for the family, and realize their loss wasn’t his fault. He says he doesn’t know. He just feels that when he gets on the stand, the jury’s sympathies are going to be with the Muldoons, and the only way he can win them over is to get them to… like him. She says, he did it with her and she’s a way tougher sell. A bunch of strangers? Cakewalk. He says he doesn’t know whether to take that as a pep talk, but all he heard was, she likes him. She says, very much so.

Chase asks if Lois is sure she doesn’t need any help, but she tells him, just sit back and relax and enjoy the wine, which is very good by the way. Brook says, it’s delicious, and Chase says he’s got a guy. Lois says, he’s got a wine guy? and Brook says, it’s true. His recommendations are always on point. Lois says, good to know, and she’s very glad the two of them can join her for dinner. Chase thanks her for the invite, and she says, it gives her a chance to get to know him better. And to apologize for all things Gloria. He says, get out of here, and she says, not really apologize, because God knows she loves her mother, but she does know she could be a bit much. Brook says, a bit? and Lois says, but she means well. Her mother is a romantic. She’s in love with love, and for a woman from her generation, if you’re in love, you put a ring on it. Brook chokes on her wine.

Molly tells Kristina that she was contacted by the matching professional about looking for a new surrogate, and she was excited about getting things going again. Kristina asks if TJ felt differently, and Molly says, when she told him, he said it was too soon. Kristina says, too soon for whom? and Molly says, for him. For them, she guesses. He’s not ready to get back on that roller coaster again. Kristina asks how Molly feels about that, and Molly says, deflated… frustrated. This whole thing is bad enough, but to not be on the same page as your partner. Anyway, she ran into Dr. Navarro when she was leaving the hospital, and she says so kind and steady, and she really put things in perspective. Kristina asks what the doctor said, and Molly tells her, basically, the risk of miscarriage is the chance that you take, no matter who’s carrying the child. But when you weigh that against the chance of actually having a baby, so many people have had success through surrogacy. She wants to be one of those people. Kristina takes her hand, and Molly says, she took the meeting alone. Kristina asks if it was productive, and Molly says, it was, until mom showed up.

The homeless man tells Carly that he’d rather stay outside. He doesn’t like being around too many people. She says, at least let her bring him something to eat, and he says, really? Carly says, of course (🍷), and he says, that’d be great. Thanks. She says she’ll be right back, and if he changes his mind, the door’s open. She runs inside and goes directly to the kitchen, as the man at the counter watches.

Nina says, she didn’t know Austin well, obviously, but he seemed to really care about Ava. Ava says she thought so too. She thought Austin was someone she could trust. When he tried to convince her that he was being coerced, that he didn’t want to help his cousin, that he was trying to get her out from under the blackmail, she believed him. But Nikolas wasn’t dead, and she’s convinced Austin knew all along. Nina says she just doesn’t get it. What was his endgame? Ava says, per usual, in this underworld at least, all roads lead back to Sonny.

Dex shows Hume into Sonny’s office, and Sonny says, well? Hume says, Pikeman needs him to facilitate another shipment, and Sonny says he thought he made himself clear. He doesn’t do anything for Pikeman unless they tell him who the shooter was at the MetroCourt. Hume says, they’re not the police or the WSB. Pikeman is a manufacturer. Sonny says, that exports merchandise through his channels, and Hume says, and they’re willing – he puts his briefcase on the table and opens it – to pay double this time. We see the briefcase is crammed with stacks of bills.

Kristina asks if Alexis is trying to discourage Kristina from trying again, but Molly says, no. It was just typical mom. She wants what Molly wants. But when Molly told her about taking the meeting without tell TJ… Kristina says, technically, she did consult TJ, but Molly says, Kristina knows what she means. Mom said whatever she and TJ choose to do, they have to make the decision together, but she just has this sinking feeling that TJ might never be ready. So she went to the park to clear her head and ran into Willow and Amelia. It was nice. Willow was really sweet, and she got to hold the baby. Kristina asks if it wasn’t hard for her, and Molly says, at first, but it was so amazing to hold this tiny little human in her arms. Once she left them, she couldn’t stop thinking about how she might never have the child of her own. She wants to be a mom so badly. She starts to cry, and Kristina says she knows Molly does.

Chase asks if Brook is okay, and Brook says she will be once her mom changes the subject. Lois says, in a sec. The biggest thing Chase can take away from all of this is that Gloria obviously likes him. That’s not an easy feat because that’s not a woman you can win over very easily. And for what it’s worth (🍷), Lois likes and approves of him too. Chase says, it’s worth more than she knows, and Lois says, he makes her daughter happy. She can see it in her face. She can hear it in her voice and in the way she moves. As a mother, that’s all she could ask for. Chase says, for the record, her daughter makes him very happy too, when Lois’s phone rings. She says she has to take this and asks Brook to finish up for her. She leaves and Brook asks if Chase brought his shovel for the hole he’s going to dig, where she’s going to hide for the remainder of her days. He asks if she doesn’t think she’s being a little dramatic, and she asks why everyone keeps saying that to her… Do not answer that. She’s so, so sorry. He says, why? He’s not.

Finn says, it’s too bad they can’t clone her and have a whole jury box full of Elizabeths. She says, that’s a terrifying thought, and I laugh at the mental picture. He says, not to him, and she says, truth? He says, sure, and she says, sometimes he can be a little… He says, abrasive… guarded… socially awkward, and she tells him that she was going to say standoffish. But once people get to know him, they see what she sees. He says, and what’s that? and she says, a man of the utmost integrity; a brilliant researcher; a dedicated physician; a loving, sometimes neurotic, father. He says, sometimes? and she says, a person who really cares and a doctor who never quits on his patients… and someone who needs a little work on their maple tapping skills. He says, a lot of work, and she says, he’s saved hundreds of lives, and he has the potential to save so many more. He says, not if he loses this malpractice suit.

Carly takes a to-go bag out the homeless man and says she hopes he likes goat cheese. There are fries in there, she threw in a piece of pie, and here’s a coffee. She hands him a cup, and he thanks her. He asks if it’s okay if he sits out here and eats, and she tells him, of course (🍷), and stay as long as he likes.

She goes back inside to the counter and asks the not-homeless man if he’d like anything else. He says he thought she was going to run that guy off. Instead, she fed him. How come?

Nina asks what Sonny has to do with any of this, and Ava says, Austin and Mason were working for Cyrus Renault. Nina asks if Sonny knows, and Ava says, he’s the one who told her. Nina wonders why he didn’t say something, and Ava says, he doesn’t want Nina involved. God knows she wishes she wasn’t involved. Nina says, so Cyrus is the one who had her kidnapped? and Ava says, yes. He wanted Austin to testify for him at that hearing in Pentenville. Nina says, his hardship release. So he had Mason take Ava hostage to guarantee Austin’s testimony. Ava says, helluva guy, huh? and Nina says, Austin did what Cyrus wanted and testified to save Ava. That means Ava did mean something to him. Ava says, something maybe, but not enough.

Sonny closes the briefcase and tells Hume to take it back to his superiors along with this message – he’s out. He’s not moving anything else for Pikeman for any price. Find another harbor. Hume says he’ll relay the message, and Sonny says, you do that. Hume leaves and Dex closes the office door. Sonny says, Dex is going to have an opinion on what he just did. So what does he think? Dex says he thinks Sonny made a mistake.

Finn tells Elizabeth that he thinks the biggest question is going to be why he didn’t screen Muldoon for more tests that would have indicated the presence of cancer. She says, Finn told her that he wanted to, and Muldoon didn’t want to have any more tests. Finn says, he knows, but they might say something like he didn’t explain it to him fully, or maybe he was open to the tests and Finn just didn’t bother. She says, and what? Finn told him he was fine and pushed him out of his office? Finn tells her that they might say he got busy with his research or other patients. She says, he would never do that, and he says he knows that, and she knows that, but what if the jury doesn’t know that?

Brook says, all this marriage talk has got to be wigging Chase out, and he says he’s not wigged out. And he’s pretty certain no one says that anymore. She says her family just really loves weddings, in an unhealthy co-dependent kind of way, and he asks if she’s been to a lot of them. She says, weddings? Oh yeah. Between the Cerullos and the Falconaris, there are too many to count. He asks what they’re like, and she says, big, loud, enough food to feed an army… and the people there fighting. And the dancing. Nobody dances the tarantella like her grandma. He says he’d love to see that someday, and she says, he will. Not at their wedding… She didn’t mean that. She meant at a wedding, probably one of her gajillion family members. Is it hot in here? She fans herself and he says, she needs to relax, but she says she feels terrible. Everyone’s all up in his grill. He says, nobody’s up in his anything, and she says her grandma has probably already reserved a church for them, but they can’t blame her. It’s all she knows. The moment you turn 18, every nona keeps asking when it’s going to be your turn. So she understands it from her grandma. Or at least she’s trying to. But from her mother? That’s a completely different story.

Counter man says, not to sound callous, but he can’t imagine it’s good for business to have a homeless man hanging around outside, and Carly says, probably not. She did tell him to come inside, but he didn’t want to, so she just brought him some food. He says, that was kind of her, and she says, they wrap up all the unused food and send it to the homeless shelters, so she would have been feeding him anyway. At least this time he’s getting a hot meal. The man says he’ll pay the check when she gets a chance, and can she give this to her friend outside. He hands her some cash, and she says, thanks.

Ava tells Nina that Austin came to see her at the gallery the night he died. When she found out he’d known she was held hostage… He could have gone to Sonny. He could have gone to the cops, but he did nothing. He was silent. She was furious. They fought about it. She told him to leave and he left. Nina says, and that was the last time she saw him? and Ava says, yeah. She just doesn’t have any way to prove it. Nina asks if there aren’t cameras at the gallery. Can’t they prove Ava was there at the time Austin was shot? Ava says, the cameras in the back aren’t working, and that’s where she was most of the night, and Nina says, well, that is going to be an issue. Ava says, even if the cameras were working, she doesn’t think it would help her. That’s why she can’t bring the note and picture to the cops. They’re just going to think she hired somebody to get rid of Austin. Even dead, that man is still making trouble for her.

Sonny says, Dex thinks he should have taken the deal? and Dex says he thinks it’s better to play along than make himself an obstacle that needs to be removed. When he was in Afghanistan, there were a lot of these private security groups there. Sonny says, including Pikeman, and Dex says, these are powerful people. They have connections to all the major security ops, the CIA, the WSB. If they come at Sonny, it may be at a level he hasn’t seen before. Sonny says he appreciates Dex’s insight. He’s already considered all that, and he realizes his best move right now is to get out. He doesn’t want Pikeman investing any more in him. He’s betting that they think he’s more trouble than he’s worth and move on.

Molly says, it’s like she’s lost all self-control, but Kristina says she thinks that’s a good thing. Molly says, that she’s a human walking waterworks? and Kristina says, yes actually. For the first time, Molly’s allowing herself to feel what she feels, without trying to edit it or control it. Being a mom is hugely important to her. Molly says, it’s like she won’t be her if she doesn’t, and Kristina says, that’s really beautiful. Molly says, not if TJ won’t consider these surrogates. And she won’t have a child without him. She won’t do that to him. Kristina takes her hands, and they sit down. She says, TJ will come around. She knows he will, and when he does, let Kristina help her. Let her carry a baby for them.

Chase says he doesn’t want Brook to be mad at her on his account. He thinks she’s awesome. She says, he does? and he says, Brook obviously comes by her beauty and her spark naturally. Brook thanks him for the compliment and for just being overall amazing. How’d she get so lucky? He says he asks himself that every day… about how he got lucky, not her. (Ha-ha!) She suggests they agree they’re both lucky, and he asks what she say were the three most important moments of her life. She says, when she scored Jonas Brothers tickets in 2010, and he says he’s being serious. Humor him. She says, all right. The last time she ever saw her great-grandfather Edward; that’s a big one. The first time she ever wrote a song, and when she gained a little brother in Leo. He says he wants this moment right now to be on that list, and she asks what he’s talking about. He says, Brook Lynn Quartermaine – he gets down on one knee, taking her hands – will you marry me?

Finn pulls his chair closer to Elizabeth and says, she called him caring. She says, because he is, and he says he thinks he knows that somewhere deep down. He also doesn’t like being questioned or doubted, and when he gets defensive, he gets awkward. These jurors aren’t medical professionals, and this medical jargon thing will go right over their heads, and the only thing that’s going to resonate with them is that this man is dead, and his family is grieving. And there’s this doctor on the stand saying he did everything right. She tries to interrupt, but he says, no. What if he would have pushed harder for Muldoon to get those tests? Made him. Demanded he get that colonoscopy. Would Muldoon still be alive? She says, no one can answer that question. But what she can tell him is, all they can do as medical professionals is their best, and he did that. She knows that. So they need to teach him how to project that inward kindness outward, so the jury will believe him and maybe even like him. He asks if that’s even possible and she says she thinks… Yeah. They’ve got their work cut out for him. They kiss.

Kristina takes Molly’s hand and says she knows Molly was originally against it when she offered to be their surrogate. And admittedly, she hadn’t really thought it through, not fully. Maybe there was a part of her that wanted to swoop in and be the hero. Molly tells her, when she said that before, that was her pain talking. She was disappointed and bitter that Kristina could carry a child and she couldn’t. But that was unfair and she’s sorry. Kristina says she’s sorry Molly is going through this at all, and she’s sorry Molly lost her first baby. Molly says, it’s not Kristina’s job to fix it for them, and Kristina says she doesn’t think it is. Not at all. That’s not the way she sees it. Bringing Molly’s child into this world is something she can and truly wants to give her. Not just for Molly, but for this baby who’s going to be in this family with the most incredible parents. Molly says, she’s absolutely positive? and Kristina says, 100%, no backsies. Molly says, now she knows Kristina means business, and Kristina says she does. Molly says she has to talk to TJ about it; they have to be together on this. Kristina says, of course (🍷), and Molly says, no matter what they decide it means everything that Kristina has offered. Molly thanks her, and Kristina says she loves Molly. They hug, and Molly says she loves Kristina too.

Ava looks at the photo of dead Austin, then picks up the note and puts them both in the fireplace. She watches them burn.

Dex says, so Sonny will end his association with Pikeman and hope they cut their losses, when there’s a knock at the door. Nina comes in and says, Frank told her that she could come in. Sonny asks, what’s wrong? and Nina says she just came from Ava’s. She knows about Austin and Ava said he was working with Cyrus. More importantly, she said Cyrus still may be after Sonny. Sonny says, damn. Ava has no business telling her that. Nina says, no, she doesn’t really. The person she should hear it from is him.

Carly thanks the man for coming by, calling him Mr. Brennan (I guess he used a credit card). She hopes they see him again at Kelly’s soon, and he says he can practically guarantee it. He gathers up his things and heads for the door, when Hume comes in. He tells Brennan, we have a problem. Corinthos refuses to move any more of our shipments.

On Monday, Brook says, let’s take the topic off the table and forget it ever came up; Ned says, if he doesn’t figure out how to stop him, Michael will push him out; Molly wants TJ to hear her out first; Blaze asks if Kristina wants to celebrate; and Nina tells Sonny that she’ll do whatever she can to make sure someone comes home.

📸 Meant For More…

I never knew this. That photo doesn’t even look like him.

💣 Happier Villainy…

I still haven’t seen this, but it looks like a fun show.

💎 Shades Of Mess…

While I don’t normally side with Erika, I thought this was weird too. Denise seemed drunk. Maybe she was. Maybe there’s something we don’t know. First world problems.

🍸 Take Two…

If anyone still cares.

🍂 Goodbye Autumn…

In case you didn’t see the parade.

🎁 Switching Gears…

Another thing better seen online. You would not believe how crowded this stuff gets. The tree lighting looked insane.

⚰️ Rehashing the Dead…

All about the Fear finale. The best part – if you haven’t seen it, major spoiler – Skidmark made it! Even better, when he showed up, secretly thanks to Alicia, Daniel just asked, where have you been? No, how the hell did you appear out of thin air after disappearing for years? Or even, what are the odds? It was a great moment. It was a great finale. Nothing left unsaid.

https://ew.com/fear-the-walking-dead-series-finale-kim-dickens-interview-8402455

https://ew.com/fear-the-walking-dead-colman-domingo-reacts-to-victor-strand-finale-ending-8403734

https://ew.com/fear-the-walking-dead-showrunners-explain-alycia-debnam-carey-finale-return-8404001

🦃 Twice the Thanks…

I saw Thanksgiving for my birthday. They were giving out swag and I got a poster.

While it was a good time, and Eli Roth is a great director, this news surprised me.

https://people.com/thanksgiving-slasher-film-getting-sequel-2025-director-eli-roth-8409658

🫏 Practice Run…

Warming up for pets dressed as Santa, Santa’s elves, the Grinch, and whatever other humiliating holiday costume their pet parent can find.

I have no clue who these people are, but their celebrities somewhere and they have cute pets.

https://push.abs-cbn.com/2022/12/24/celebrities-flex-their-pets-on-christmas-day-1413

🐳 Quotes of the Week

My songs will pass and be forgotten. What counts, however, is that I sang them. – Father Andrew Greeley

Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.Lou Holtz

Compassion is the ultimate and most meaningful embodiment of emotional maturity. It is through compassion that a person achieves the highest peak and deepest reach in his or her search for self-fulfillment.Arthur Jersild

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

No matter who you are, we’re creatures of habit. The better your habits are, the better they will be in pressure situations. – Wayne Gretzky

The world needs a-holes. Otherwise, where would the sh*t go out? – Dusan Mirkovic (Christoph Waltz), Downsizing

If you’re going to be able to look back on something and laugh about it, you might as well laugh about it now. – Marie Osmond (Who knew she was such a philosopher?)

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

Tomorrow I’m going to feel the pounds. – Andrei Castravet, 90 Day Fiancé, The Other Way: Pillow Talk

🐹 On the Holiday Hamster Wheel…

Take some time to stop and smell the pine needles this weekend, and join me on Monday really Tuesday for soap and that mess in the Med. Until then, stay safe, stay keeping realistic expectations of yourself and others, and stay allowing yourself to feel what you feel, without trying to edit it or control it.

November 30, 2023 – Dante Questions Ava, Charleston Invades Jamaica, A Thought, All the Salt, I Can’t Look & Last

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Portia goes into the breakroom and sees TJ staring into space. She says, it looks like he’s got a lot on his mind, and he says he was lost in his thoughts. He asks if she’s on a break or just getting off work, and she says, he doesn’t have to do that with her. She can tell something’s wrong. Does he want to talk to her about it? He says he might have made a huge mistake with Molly.

Molly walks into the park and sees Willow playing with Amelia on a picnic blanket.

Maxie says, it’s generous of Felicia and Mac to offer to bail her out of credit card debt, and Felicia says, she’s their daughter. Of course (🍷) they want to help. She and Mac are confident that Maxie will be on her financial feet in no time. The Deceptor will be flying off the shelves and Deception will make an historic comeback. Maxie says, maybe she can hang on until it does. Or she could take out a partial loan. They don’t have to completely bail her out. She looks at the unmade desk and says, if someone would just assemble this desk, she’d be eternally grateful. Felicia asks if Maxie wants her to ask Mac to come put it together for her, when James runs in and says, guess what? He saddled his own pony today. Felicia says, by himself? and James says, Cody helped. Cody is the coolest. Cody walks in.

Sam and Kristina go to Sam’s place after shopping, and Kristina says, watching Sam move around with maximum efficiency… She knew exactly what she wanted and exactly where to get it. Sam says, when she feels like wandering, she goes to the farmers’ market, but for staples, she is in and out. Kristina asks if Sam is telling her all this is only going to last her three days. Teenage boys. Sam says, and Scout. Scout can hold her own. Trust her. Kristina picks up a brochure and says, Westwood. That’s where she went. She loved Westwood Academy. Are they thinking of sending Scout there? Sam says, Drew is pushing it, and Scout really wants to please her dad.

Michael sees Nina at the MetroCourt and asks if she knows where Sonny is. She says she hasn’t seen Sonny since he left the penthouse this morning. Are Willow and the kids all right? He says, they’re fine. Sonny asked him to meet there. Nina says she’s sure he’ll be along soon. If he wants to sit at a table, he’s more than welcome to. Sonny comes in and says, good. They’re both here. There are a few things they need to settle.

Giles welcomes Ava home and tells her that all her mail is on the desk. He asks if he can make her a martini, but she says she’s surprisingly not in the mood. He says he’ll be down the hall if she needs him, and she thanks him. She goes into the living room and pours herself some (I think) water. She remembers Sonny telling her that Austin is dead, and that if she killed Austin, she needs to tell him now. The doorbell rings, and Ava hears Dante say he’s here to see her.

Maxie tells Cody that James said he saddled his own pony today, and Cody says, he did. He aced all of his riding lessons too. James tells Maxie that Cody said he was a natural with the horses, and Cody says he sure did. James has come a long way since he took his first riding lesson. James says his riding lessons are his favorite part of the week. He looks forward to them more than recess. Felicia says she knew Cody was a jack of all trades, but he’s gone from riding instructor to handman. She looks at the tool bag in his hand, and James says, Cody fixed Comet’s stable door really fast. He told Cody that Georgie’s desk went back in the box because they didn’t know how to put it together. Maxie says, what? and tells Cody that she’s sorry James put him on the spot like that. He doesn’t need to assemble Georgie’s desk, but thank you. James tells them, Cody said he’s going to help him put it together, but Maxie says, no, he’s not. She tells Cody that she’s going to send the desk back, and he asks if she’s sure. Because he always likes an opportunity to show off his handyman skills.

Kristina asks if that’s the blender she heard, and Sam comes in with two smoothies, saying, she thought they should try the new protein powder she bought. She gives one to Kristina, who tastes it and says, it’s really good. The other place that has really good smoothies is the snack bar at Westwood Academy. Funny. She doesn’t know if Sam remembers, but she really enjoyed her time there. She thinks in hindsight, it might have been better to stay there through 12th grade, rather than transferring to Madison. Sam says, she used to talk about Westwood a lot, and Kristina says, it was a lot of fun, and she still keeps in touch with a lot of the girls from there. It’s a great school, and the teachers there are invested; they really care. Why does Sam think it might not be a good fit for Scout? Sam says, because she’s thriving where she is right now, and Kristina says, what if she thrives even more at Westwood? All girls. They have a great swim team. Sam says she knows. Drew told her about all that, but she doesn’t think he realizes Scout had a really tough time when he was in prison. She would ask Sam every single day if he was going to be okay, and school is a bright spot for Scout. She likes her teachers and her friends, and Sam doesn’t want to take her away from all that, especially in the middle of the year. Drew wants her to start at Westwood in January, and it can be tough on a kid. It’s not fair. Kristina says, just say no then, but Sam says she’s not sure she should.

Giles brings Dante in and tells Ava that Detective Falconari is here to see her. She says she can see that and thanks him. Giles leaves, and Ava says she assumes Dante is here on official business. Best to keep her wits about her. What can she do for him? He says, answer some questions? and she says, go for it. He asks, when’s the last time she saw Austin Gatlin-Holt?

Willow sees Molly and says, come. Hang out. She pats the blanket, and Molly walks over. She says she doesn’t want to intrude, but Willow says, it’s no intrusion at all. The more, the merrier. What brings her out this afternoon? Molly says, this gorgeous autumn day. How many more of these do they have before it gets cold? Willow says, winter is right around the corner. And with the lake effect winds, it will be cold before they realize. She asks Molly to have a seat, and Molly kneels down on the blanket. She tells Willow that Amelia is so precious, and Willow says, they were just enjoying some mother/daughter bonding.

TJ says, the service that matched them with Andrea contacted Molly about other potential surrogates, and Portia asks how he feels about that. He says, it’s too soon. He’s still processing the miscarriage. He can’t imagine investing in the prospect of another baby this quicky. She says, how about Molly? How does she feel? He says, Molly is ready to meet with the matching professional and other possible surrogates, and she asks if he’s told Molly how he’s feeling about the whole thing. He says he sort of put it on hold for now. It’s such a time consuming and complicated process, does Portia think trying again so soon would be rushing it? She says, actually, she doesn’t.

Sonny says, Christmas is around the corner and Michael is probably busy with a lot of family obligations. Is he right? Michael says, between mom and Josslyn and bringing the kids to the Quartermaines, he just has enough time for him, Willow, and the kids. They’re fully booked. Sonny says, that’s what he thought. They have a busy schedule too. He was thinking maybe Michael, Willow, and the kids could spend time with him and Nina as a family.

Ava wonders why Dante is asking her about Austin, and he says, because Austin’s dead. She says she’s so sorry to hear about the doctor’s passing, but he says, she doesn’t seem that sorry or surprised to hear about it. Did she already know? She says, so what are these questions he came all the way out here to ask her? She’d like to get on with her afternoon. He says, she shows a remarkable lack of curiosity, and she says, curiosity killed the cat. He asks if she doesn’t want to know how Austin died, but she says she imagines he’s going to tell her. He says he imagines she already knows.

Michael says he’ll have to talk to Willow, and Sonny says he figured that. That’s what he’s approaching Michael now. Do they have any plans for Christmas yet? Michael says, nothing definitive yet. Wiley’s really excited about Santa Claus. Willow wants to make Christmas morning really special for him. Sonny says he knows Carly is going to want to carry over the tradition of Michael coming over for Christmas breakfast and the Qs are going to do their traditional gathering on Christmas Day. So he was thinking maybe they could come over on Christmas Eve. Everybody can see them. They’ll make everybody happy. Nina says, that’s a great compromise, and Sonny says, the kids will open up their Christmas presents from grandma and grandpa. They can make up their own traditions. He’ll even cook. Egg salad… ravioli… like the one Michael used to love. Nina asks if it’s Sonny’s own recipe, but Sonny says, no. It’s Mrs. Cerullo’s, but Lois doesn’t even know the recipe. But if Michael comes early and brings Wiley, they can come in the kitchen, and help cook like they used to.

Portia tells TJ, if she’s learned anything in her life, from keeping Trina’s paternity a secret for as long as she did to Curtis’s shooting, it’s that life is too short. Don’t postpone your joy; don’t postpone happiness. And you can’t sit around and wait for somebody to come knocking on your door to make your dreams come true. They want to have a baby, right? There is never ever going to be the perfect time that you’re guaranteed everything is going to work out the way you want it to. It just doesn’t work like that. You’ve got to take a leap of faith. He says, they’re both still in mourning, and she says she gets that. They’re going to have to find another surrogate. They’re going to have to go through the whole process again and it’s going to take time, maybe even months. He says, so why subject themselves to that kind of stress? and she says, he’s always going to have stress. He’s got stress now being a doctor. And she knows Molly’s got all kinds of stress being an ADA. But time? Time waits for no one, and it plays by its own rules. Rules that you can’t, and honestly you won’t, change.

Willow tells Molly, since she went back to work at GH and Michael’s been running Aurora, Amelia’s been spending a lot of time in the Q’s nursery. And Wiley’s in school full-time now. If she’s not careful, she’ll blink, and it will be Amelia’s turn. So they thought they’d take full advantage of her day off and hang out in the park while they had the chance. Molly says, and here she is intruding on their special day together, but Willow says, not at all. She wanted Molly to join them. She and Michael were talking this morning about how fast Amelia’s growing. She’s loved watching every stage of Wiley growing up, but there is something about this time when they’re still babies. She wants to take in every moment, every smile, every laugh. Molly says, she’s a sweet little angel, and Willow asks if Molly would like to hold her.

Felicia says, James has really taken to Cody, and Maxie says, yeah. Don’t tell Cody she said this, but he’s kind of terrific. James runs out and tells Maxie, come on. He and Cody put Georgie’s desk together. Maxie goes with James, and Cody comes out. Felicia says, it sounds like he impressed James with his handiwork, but Cody says, James did it all himself. Felicia says, sure he did. She’s impressed too. He says, it was no big deal, really, and she says she wasn’t just referring to the desk, although it was really lovely for him to put that together for Maxie. What she meant was, all the attention he’s been giving to James. Teaching him how to ride and tie knots, and now assembling a desk. He says he really likes James a lot; he’s a great kid. And he does have a way with horses. He doesn’t just want to ride them; he wants to get to know them. He has a real understanding of them that’s going to lead to a great connection. He’s going to be an awesome rider someday. Felicia says she’s quite the horsewoman herself. She grew up on a hacienda in Texas that she and her grandmother ran. They had some really wonderful horses, so it runs in her family. Maxie comes back with James, and says, wow, she’s impressed. She tried for two hours to assemble that thing and got nowhere. Georgie’s going to love it. She thanks Cody, and James says, he and Cody did an awesome job. They high-five.

Kristina asks if Sam is going to tell Drew how she really feels about Westwood Academy, and Sam says she’s really torn over it. Kristina says, Scout is Sam’s daughter. She can and should do whatever’s best for her. She knows Drew is a good dad, but mother’s intuition knows best, right? If she doesn’t think this is a good fit for Scout, then just say so. Sam says she wants to parent with Drew amicably and wants to respect what he thinks is best for Scout. If that’s going to Westwood Academy, then maybe she should just agree. After all, he’s been through so much. (Then let him go to Westwood.) Kristina asks how he’s doing physically from the assault, and Sam says, it seems like he’s recovering, but she can tell he’s in a lot of pain. She keeps finding him trying to hide it from her or trying to cover it up. She just doesn’t want Drew to feel more shut out from Scout’s life than he already has. She adores her dad. She would do anything for him. Kristina says, even if she doesn’t want to go? and Sam says, she doesn’t. Scout already told her. Kristina says, then there you go, and Sam says she knows Scout deserves to have her opinion considered, but she’s way too young to be choosing what school she needs to go to. In the end, it’s between her and Drew, but what unsettles her is the way he just decided this for her. There was no discussion, no debate. It literally went just like that. Kristina says, let’s face it. There are a lot of gaps in Scout’s childhood where her father was missing. She thinks now he’s trying to make up for that time. Sam says she doesn’t know. There’s something different about Drew. She didn’t see it at first, and she can’t quite put her finger on it, but something about him has changed.

Molly thanks Willow for letting her hold Amelia. She’s so amazing, such a blessing. Willow says, she really is a miracle, considering everything she went through to get here. Molly asks how many weeks pregnant Willow was when she had to have a C-section, and Willow says, thirty-six. She heard from TJ that their surrogate miscarried. She’s so sorry. There are support groups at GH who specialize in this kind of loss if Molly ever needs Willow to point her in the direction of one. Or Molly can talk to her. Anytime. Molly thanks Willow for being so understanding, and for being so open and generous with Amelia. Willow says, of course (🍷), and Molly says, Willow could have easily scurried away the second she saw Molly, thinking the sight of a baby would upset her too much, but she didn’t. Willow says she thinks it depends on the person, but when she learned her son had died, she found tremendous comfort in holding Wiley. It helped her on her road to healing and she thought it might help Molly to hold Amelia. Molly says, it does, and wonders if she can ask Willow a personal question. Willow says, no subject is off the table between them, and Molly says, after what happened with her first child, did she ever think that maybe she didn’t want to try again?

Nina, Michael, and Sonny sit at a table, and Nina says, having the whole family gathered at their place on Christmas Eve sounds too good to be true. She wants to hear about these fabled ravioli and why she hasn’t had them. Sonny says he only makes them on Christmas because they’re very special, and Nina says she can’t wait. Is it totally 100% homemade or is he secretly buying the dough premade? Sonny says, all authentic made from scratch. Does she know those big raviolis? You got to cut them with a water glass? Put ricotta cheese in there and some secret ingredients. He asked Gloria for the recipe for years and she wouldn’t give it to him. Finally, she gave him the recipe, but he can’t make it as good as hers. He excuses himself and says he’ll be right back. When he’s gone, Michael asks what Nina is trying to pull, using Sonny to get around him. Michael officially becomes insufferable.

In the hallway, Dex says he thought Sonny would want to know right away. They heard from Pikeman.

James says he has their next job, and Cody asks, what is it? James says, the cabinet in the kitchen is loose. Let’s go take a look at it. Cody says, all right, boss, and follows James, but Maxie says, that’s enough. Cody’s already done plenty for them. Cody says, no big deal. He’s sure he and Big James can fix it. James says, they can. And when they’re done, they can take a look at the garage door and the front door; they both squeak. And can Cody build him a treehouse? There’s a huge tree in that backyard, and that would be perfect. (He sounds like me talking to my husband on the weekend.) Maxie tells James, if Cody does everything on his list, he’s going to be here all night, and James says, that would be so cool if he did spend the night. Can he? Cody can sleep in his room. He has two sleeping bags and they’re both Star Wars. Grandma bought them for him. Felicia says, and grandpa, and Maxie says, Cody has a job he has to go do. He needs to go back to the Quartermaine stables to take care of Comet and the other horses. James says, this isn’t fair. Grandpa’s at work and if Cody leaves, that means he’s the only boy. He wishes Cody was his brother.

Ava says, Dante came all the way out here to Spoon Island to inform her of Austin’s death. He’s done his civic duty. He can go now. He says he can’t. He’s here on behalf of the Pautuck PD. They have questions for her. She asks, why Pautuck? and he says, that’s where Austin died… or was murdered. Two shots to the chest, close range. Whoever did it wasn’t messing around. But because he lived and worked in Port Charles, the Pautuck PD thinks the killer is here. She says, there’s a whole big city of people out there, and yet, he’s questioning her. He says, no one knew Austin quite as well as she did, but she says, Austin had a lot of associates. Has he spoken with the Quartermaines? How about Maxie Jones? How about all the people he worked with at the hospital? Dante says, none of those people were kidnapped by Austin’s cousin Mason, but she was.

Kristina tells Sam, of course (🍷) he’s changed. Sam did when she was in Pentenville and Michael was a shell of himself at first. Maybe Drew wanting Scout to go to Westwood is his way of proving to himself that he can provide better opportunities for his daughter. You never really know. Sam says, she could be right. That’s why she doesn’t know if she should fight Drew on this. Kristina says, then don’t. Maybe Scout will be as happy as she was at Westwood. Sam says, or maybe she won’t be. She doesn’t know what’s best for her.

Dex says, Hume came in person to the restaurant and asked to see Sonny, and Sonny asks what Dex told him. Dex says he sent him away pretty quicky, but before he left, he told Dex to give Sonny this message. He needs to see Sonny and he’ll meet Sonny wherever he wants.

Nina says she didn’t put Sonny up to anything. Michael should know his father well enough to understand he’s not easily manipulated. Wiley and Amelia are his grandchildren, so of course (🍷) he wants to see his grandchildren at Christmas. Can’t Michael see that his whole plan to police her access to her daughter and grandchildren isn’t going to work? They’re family. Their lives intersect on too many levels for him to continue this vendetta against her. He says, his mom is family too, and her life intersects with his and Willow’s on just as many levels, but that didn’t stop Nina from turning her in to the SEC. She says she’s done everything he’s wanted her to do. She offered to sell her half of the hotel back to Carly and Carly refused. What more does he want? He says, what he wants is to expose her in front of the whole world for the liar she really is. The only reason he’s not doing that is because he knows how much it will hurt his father and Willow. So he’s keeping silent for them. For them, not her, but she benefits, so it’s going to cost her. She says, what if she’s not willing to pay? when Sonny comes back. He asks if they want to tell him what he just missed.

Willow says she always knew she wanted more children, and Molly asks where she found the courage after losing her first. Willow says, it’s different for everyone. Molly may feel the same way she did, or it may take her a while to decide. But when Willow realized she was pregnant with Amelia and was diagnosed with leukemia, she was advised to terminate her pregnancy so she could start chemo right away. Molly says, but despite the health risks involved, she kept the pregnancy, and Willow says, in her mind, there was no alternative. She even went so far as keeping her diagnosis a secret from Michael. Something she’ll always regret. She should have shared everything with him. It’s not fair to shut the person you love out of a life altering decision.

Maxie tells James that she always wanted a brother, but even though Cody would make an excellent brother, they’re going to settle for him being their friend, okay? James says, Cody would be an awesome brother. They could play video games until midnight every night. Felicia says, but not on school nights, and Cody says, that should do it; no more squeaking. James says, now he can sneak candy without his mom hearing the door open, and Maxie wonders if that’s why he wanted the cabinet door fixed. James wants to move on to the garage door, but Cody says he’s really got to get back to the stables and bed down the horses. James asks if he can’t stay for dinner, and Cody says, James wouldn’t want Comet to be uncomfortable in his bed tonight, would he? James says, no, and Cody says he’s sorry. He really does have to go. James says he’ll walk Cody out and asks Maxie to come with them. Felicia thanks Cody and he says he’ll see her later. She flashes back to Cody saying he’s not Mac’s son, and Mac telling her that looking at the paper isn’t going to change that.

Dante asks, when was the last time Ava saw or spoke to Austin, and she says, two days before Thanksgiving. He asks, where? and she says, he came by her gallery to see her. They spoke. He left. Dante asks if she has proof, and she says, yes. They have security cameras. He’ll be able to see Austin leaving through the front entrance. He asks what time she left the gallery, and she says she was working late. It had to be some time after midnight. He asks if the security footage will back up the time that she says she left, but she says, unfortunately, no. She locked the front door after Austin left, went in the backroom to do inventory, and left out the back. He says, there’s no security cameras at the back door? and she says, they’ve been having trouble with those cameras. They’ve been shut off for weeks. They’re in the process of upgrading them now. He says, so basically, she’s saying she can’t prove she was at the gallery past midnight. He thanks her for her time, and says he imagines the Pautuck PD will have more questions for her at a later date. She says she’ll be sure to have her lawyer with her, and he says, that would be a good idea, and leaves.

Sonny says he’s trying to take the temperature down between Nina and Michael. The reason he wanted to have this discussion today was to make plans for Christmas. He leaves for five minutes and there’s tension? Nina says, no. There’s no tension. She was just quizzing Michael about what he’s going to get Wiley for Christmas. She just doesn’t want to duplicate gifts. Sonny says, speaking of which, he wants to get Wiley a ticket to the Yankee game next summer. Michael, him, and Wiley sitting behind Homeplate. They’ll take the jet. What does he think? Michael says he thinks it’s a great idea. He never thought about giving Wiley Yankee tickets, so yeah, feel free to. Sonny says he just wants to create family memories with Michael and Wiley, and Michael says he’ll have to talk it over with Willow, but he hopes he sees Sonny at Christmas. He leaves, and Sonny asks if Nina is okay.

Portia offers to take care of TJ’s patients for the rest of the day, but he says he thinks being at work actually helps. He thanks Portia for her time and advice. She always knows what to say. She says she should take her own advice, and he says, they’re their own worst critics. She’s doing fine. She tells him, good luck, whatever he and Molly decide.

Molly says, obviously, Willow and Michael got past all that. She’s never seen two people more in love. Willow says, they’re very lucky, and Molly says, she’s in remission, she and Michael have two beautiful children, and Willow even has her birth mother in her life as a bonus. How are things with her and Nina now? Willow says she and Nina are getting along better than she ever dreamed possible, and Molly says, that’s great to hear. Willow says, the kids adore Nina. She brought over gifts on Thanksgiving and gave Wiley this robot that he still can’t put down and a stuffed kitty for Amelia. Molly says, if she knows Michael, he’s still holding a grudge against Nina, and Willow says, he can’t seem to let go of his anger at her. Molly says, when Michael makes up his mind, it’s hard to change it, and Willow says, don’t get her wrong. She respects Michael’s feelings, but she wishes he’d see Nina for who she is now, instead of focusing on what she’s done in the past.

Ava goes through her mail and comes to a handwritten envelope. She opens it, and a folded note says, you’re welcome. She unfolds the paper, and inside is a picture of Austin’s dead body.

Sam looks at the Westwood brochure, when Dante comes in. He says he really hates going out to Windymere. Between the cold, foggy boat ride to Spoon Island, and its inhabitants, not a good time. Is she okay? She says she’s just got a lot on her mind, and he asks, what’s going on? She says she thinks she and Drew may have hit their first co-parenting snag, and she doesn’t know what to do about it.

Michael goes to the park, and says, here’s his two favorite girls. He sits on the blanket and takes Amelia. He asks how Amelia is liking the park, and Willow says, she loves it. She was pointing out a few squirrels to Amelia and she was smiling. He just missed Molly. She hung out with them for a bit. He asks how she’s doing, and Willow says, she’s still dealing with her surrogate’s miscarriage. It helped her to see Amelia though. She understands what Molly is going through right now. Hopefully, she and TJ will figure out how they want to proceed. Where has he been? She tried to reach him at his office, but his assistant said he was out. he wasn’t picking up his cell. That’s why she sent him a couple text messages. He says he had a meeting outside of work, something that needed to be straightened out.

Nina says she’s okay, and kisses Sonny on the cheek. She’s better than okay. He says he just worries about her, and she says, why? The prospect of having the whole family over at their place for Christmas Eve, having this legendary ravioli, and a beautiful set table… and Christmas carols. The family she always wanted. It’s perfect. He says he knows things with Michael are still tense, and he’s sorry about it, but she says, he doesn’t have anything to apologize to her for when it comes to Michael. Sonny says, yes, he does, because Michael is his son and he knows Michael doesn’t make it easy. It’s taken Michael a long time to get right with him and he still feels like the relationship is tense. He wants her to know he appreciates her being patient.

Molly sits on a bench in the park and looks through the pictures of the surrogates. She flashes back to Willow saying she should have shared her diagnosis with Michael and it’s not fair to shut out the person you love from a life altering decision. She starts to cry, and the folder falls to the ground. Kristina comes into the park and runs to Molly. She takes Molly in her arms and holds her as she sobs.

Tomorrow, Lois tells Brook and Chase, if you’re in love, put a ring on it; Finn tells Elizabeth that GH plans to sacrifice him; Dex thinks a mistake has been made; and Nina tells Sonny that the person she should hear it from is him.

Southern Charm

Craig tells Austen that he invited the whole crew to Jamaica so Paige can get to know everyone better. JT says, Rod that has to come on the trip. He needs his wingman. Venita calls Madison and tells her that Manny can’t come because he’s in Utah, and Madison says, Brett had to go back to work after only three days. Paige will make it better. They can have a pina colada and laugh at everyone else. Craig paints one nail blue and I wonder, what’s up with that? He calls Paige and says he was thinking about taking a trip together. He asks if she’s ever been to Jamaica, and she says, no. He says, he found this last-minute deal to go next week for three days. If she came, all the crazy cats in Charleston would get to know her better. She says she thinks it would be a heck of a time, but workwise, it would be irresponsible of her. She wants to hang out, but she can’t right now. In Craig’s interview, he says he’s more of a big picture guy. He should have checked with Paige before scheduling the get to know Paige trip and inviting all his friends. Well, yeah.

Craig and JT meet to shop for beach stuff, and in Shep’s interview, he says, the last time he was in Jamaica was when he was in college. He had a lot of fun. He was partaking in extracurricular activities. He tells JT that after the guys’ dinner, Taylor tried to make him jealous. She texted asking where he was and if he wanted to hook up. He said he didn’t think it was a good idea, and she said, fine. She’d stay with Austen. In his interview, Shep says, the text shocked him to say the least. He doesn’t know what Taylor is trying to do. JT says he thinks she needs closure and she’s having a hard time with it. Shep says, maybe it’s his fault. Maybe??? In JT’s interview, he says, Shep cares about Taylor, but he thinks Shep’s presence is causing complications. Shep says he should leave her alone, and JT says, after their dream trip to Jamaica.

Austen goes to his therapist Kristen and tells her that he feels his routine is good; he’s keeping busy. He’s going to Jamaica, and Taylor is going. He told Kristen about the entanglement at the guys’ dinner. Taylor texted him and Shep. She met them there and proceeded to attempt to make Shep jealous via him. In Austen’s interview, he says he wonders what he got himself into. It was already tense with Shep. She didn’t have to use him for that. He tells Kristen that he thought it would be fine to hang out with other people, in a group setting, but he should have boundaries. Kristen tells him to listen to his intuition, his gut feeling. In his interview, a producer asks if Austen thinks he had good intuition, but he says, no, he doesn’t. Kristen tells him to listen to himself instead of getting caught up in everyone else. In his interview, he says he doesn’t want to piss off people. He’s a people pleaser and his first instinct absolutely gets him in trouble. Kristen says, he can’t make everyone happy, and Austen says he’s realized how much his life is consumed by a pretty girl. He’s not seeking out somebody or dating. That’s not what he’s looking for. He and Olivia now have a working friendship. We flash back to their last conversation, and Kristen says, be clear that his intentions aren’t romantic. Listen to his intuition.

Madison calls Brett on the way to her OB appointment. In Madison’s interview, she says she couldn’t imagine having another child, but she met Brett and thought she’d be crazy not to. He’ll make an amazing father, and he’s amazing already as a stepfather. She tells him that she’ll treat this trip as her last hurrah, since she’ll be getting pregnant when he comes home. He tells her to have fun, and says he hates that he can’t be there. In her interview, Madison says she just got this body, and now she’s going to ruin it, but it’s totally worth it. She tells Dr. Pound that she’s had an IUD for five years, and wanted to know if she needs to do anything beforehand. She’s also having PTSD about being pregnant because she had a pelvic fracture during delivery. In Madison’s interview, she says she was on bed rest for three months after the baby was born. She had a Baby Bjorn and a walker. Being pregnant scares her, but she’s doing it again. Dr. Pound recommends a C-section, but just to avoid fracture. She’s not high risk. When she’s ready, they’ll take out the IUD, and as soon as it comes out, she’ll be immediately fertile.

Taylor visits Leva at the restaurant, and says she has a lot of emotions right now. She knows Shep and she’s comfortable with him. This past weekend, she texted him, and asked what he was doing after the guys’ dinner. She supposes it was a booty call. In Taylor’s interview, she says she’s not sorry about calling. She’s in love with Shep, and it wasn’t a mistake. She tried and it didn’t work out. She tells Leva that Shep said he was headed home, so she said she’d stay with Austen. She was being petty. Leva says she’d love to see them untethered, and in Leva’s interview, she says she’s not sure this is the person she knew, but she thinks Taylor is just having bad breakup. Guys act out of pocket all the time after a breakup, but as women, they’re seen by different standards. She tells Taylor that Shep doesn’t bring out the best in her. She needs to find new boys to hang out with.

Olivia packs while she talks to her mom Robin. Robin asks if Olivia is going to talk to Taylor, but Olivia says, no more conversations. Taylor doesn’t understand the level of betrayal. So she’s taking some space and wants to shelve this in Jamaica. She wants to have fun. Robin says, Rob is sweet, but Olivia says, they agreed it’s better for them to pump the breaks. We flash back to her putting Rob in the friendzone, and Olivia tells Robin, thinking about the different dynamics of uncomfortableness is overwhelming. Austen is saying he still loves her. Robin says she knows it’s confusing at times, and in Olivia’s interview, she says she’s annoyed at herself for back questioning her feelings. She tells Robin that she’s looking forward to the trip and having vacation time.

Craig and Austen work out, and Craig says, Paige isn’t able to make it. They’re more fortunate than most to be able to go at the drop of a hat. He probably should have checked with her earlier. Again, I say, well, yeah, and Austen says, classic Craig. Craig says he can’t get mad, and in Austen’s interview, he says, Craig puts on a façade that it’s all good, but deep down, he’s fretting. He’s not saying there’s trouble in paradise, but Craig can talk to him. He tells Craig that Olivia calls him and they just chat. He has to figure out how to move forward as friends. Craig asks if Austen thinks it’s a steppingstone back to romance, but Austen says he has no agenda. Craig wonders if a friendship can continue. She’s a gal pal, but they used to have chemistry and history. In Craig’s interview, he says, that’s why you shouldn’t hang out with your ex. You just remember the good, but the bad and the reason you broke up is still there, and will rear it’s ugly face sooner or later. Austen is trying to compartmentalize.

They all meet at airport, and fly to Montego Bay, going straight to the Shot Bar. Craig explains the dynamics of the group to the bartender, who I’m sure couldn’t care less. In Craig’s interview, he says, all the exes are hanging out together without closure. He doesn’t know what he was thinking. A bus comes to take them to the hotel, and Craig says, everyone has an oceanfront room. In Austen’s interview, he says, when he and Olivia are getting along, they’re like two peas in a pod. They have to make sure to stay in the friendzone. It takes forever for everyone to check in, Whitney wondering if he got the presidential suite. In his interview, Craig says, checking into a hotel is not that hard. It’s like they never did it before. Taylor suggests someone is trying to get her drunk, and Shep is all for it. In JT’s interview, he says, he and Shep just talked about not giving mixed signals and they just got here. Whitney says his room is not presidential. Not at all.

Dinner is outside, and Madison, Olivia, and Venita show up first. Madison says she wants a conversation with Taylor, but it’s not the time or place. There’s a bunch of mess about seating, and Shep says, the last time he was in Jamaica was 22 years ago. Venita says she’s 29, and Shep looks uncomfortable. Craig thanks everyone for joining him, and says, no matter what’s happening, they can still enjoy a meal, share a smile, and poke non-malicious fun. He tells them that Paige couldn’t make it, and friends sub in when a couple in a long-distance relationship can’t be together. Shep asks if Craig has a girlfriend, and says, that changes everything. In JT’s interview, he says, it’s hard feeling bad for Craig. He’s kind of perfect. (Huh?) But he feels bad that they’re in a beautiful place and Craig must be bummed she’s not here. He’s doing a good job of not showing it. After Shep makes a dig at Taylor for not being more well-traveled, in her interview, she says, Shep acts like he has more life experience, but he’s 40. In his interview, JT says, Shep is being patronizing and disrespectful to Taylor. Let the fish off the line. (Ugh. He acts like he’s so respectful, and consistently likens women to some kind of prey.) Craig tells everyone, it’s an adventure chic aspect tomorrow, but wear a bathing suit underneath. They drink, balancing the glasses on their biceps, and Shep wanders out to the beach, rolling up his pants, and putting his feet in the water. Austen says, they’re all on vacation together, and in Madison’s interview, she says, Austen is like a big kid and drives her crazy, but deep down, she thinks he’s a good person. She sits with him away from the table and asks how he is. She’s seen his face and demeanor, and feels like he loves Taylor.

Austen laughs, but she tells him, don’t laugh. He says, it’s not what he was expecting her to say. She says she’d hate for him not to pursue something because of other people. That motherf***er (i.e. Shep) is the is most selfish person in the entire world. Deep down, she knows Austen has a good heart. She doesn’t want either of them hurt, but at the same time, she wants to be happy for him. The others hang by the bar and discuss Madison talking to Austen. Austen says, at one point, they thought there might be something and Taylor made a move, but now she won’t admit there was a moment. She said it was a two-and-a-half-hour thing, but it was a four or five-day thing when they were thinking about it. He wants the romcom ending. Madison says, he’s a dork, but it’s his niche. That’s what draws people to him. Austen says, this is not his romcom ending. It wasn’t Taylor. They were confused and thought there were vibes, but it was because they were hurting. He was hurting for Olivia.

Olivia tells Craig that Austen talks negative things about Madison. He’s so f***ing fake. Craig says he knows she’s not able to shake him, but she can do better than that. Olivia says, maybe she has unresolved feelings, and Craig asks if she had closure. Olivia says, no. Logically, she knows Austen’s not the person for her. In Olivia’s interview, she says, the problem with Austen is, you don’t know what you’re going to get with him. He’s confusing and can be manipulative. It reminds her of why she didn’t want him in her life in the first place. Craig says, there must be things she can never forgive, and Olivia says, it bothers her that she’s so bothered.

Austen tells Madison, it’s not about Taylor; it’s about Olivia. He loves her. It was always about her. He went to therapy for her and should have ended up with her. Madison asks why he still can’t. He says he doesn’t know why. If he can’t be happy with the person who’s perfect, what’s he going to do?

Next time, waterfalls; Page Six writes about Austen and Taylor hooking up; and Shep and Craig butt heads.

💭 This episode was fairly innocuous. Probably because we need a break now and then. It looks like next week will make up for it.

🧂 Rubbing Salt In the Wound…

I’m watching this peripherally, but it just seems to be circling the same drain. It’s sad that the first season seemed promising and at this point, women who were genuine friends at the start are now at each other’s throats. Jen’s life in prison is probably more peaceful.

🎿 Schwartz Skates Out…

The show I literally can’t watch anymore, but no judgement.

🍤 Requesting the Secret Menu…

Start your weekend off tomorrow with soap and a sleigh full of internet joy. Until then, stay safe, stay not giving to receive, and stay not postponing your joy or happiness, or waiting for somebody to come knocking on your door to make your dreams come true.

November 29, 2023 – Petrov Pays a Visit to Port Charles, More Gloria, Kyle Is the Least Empathetic Human Ever & Strangers

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Gloria tells Lois that she thinks everything is going to be okay. Probably. Yuri said he could fix this, right? Lois says she hopes so. These are not good people to make angry. Gloria says, it’s not her fault. She just spoke her mind and now they’re threatening Ziti, and if they don’t fix this misunderstanding, they’re going to kill him. (Well, I feel stupid. Ziti is a dog. I thought maybe they were threatening to steal her secret recipe or something.) Yuri comes in and says, no one kills Ziti. He’ll handle it. He makes a call.

Felicia tells Maxie that she’s sorry she’s late. Is James ready to go? Maxie tells her, don’t worry about it. Cody came and picked him up, and he’s going to drop him off, so she doesn’t have to go to the Quartermaines. Felicia says, that’s thoughtful, and Maxie says, isn’t it? Even though it’s not as long of a drive as it would have been from their old place. Felicia says, this place is definitely a better fit for Maxie and the kids all the way around. She looks at the living room, sees a box, and says, more new furniture? Maxie says, don’t even get her started, and Felicia says, bad purchase? Maxie says, the worst. Just another tragic example of her trying to save money and it ending up costing her more. Felicia asks what she means, and Maxie says, so she got Georgie a desk and it’s 20% off. It came unassembled, so she figured she could put it together herself. Felicia says she sees where this is going, and Maxie says, the only person who could put this thing together is a professional carpenter. She wanted to send it back, but it was on sale. Felicia says, so it’s probably not returnable, and Maxie says, just another example of a stupid financial decision she’s made.

Alexis goes into the PC Grill and tells the maître d’ that she was here earlier, and he says he remembers. She was having lunch with Mayor Collins. She says she can’t find her phone and she’s hoping she left it here, and he says, she’s in luck. One was turned in at the bar. She can ask them about it. She thanks him and heads for the bar, where she sees Molly at a table nearby.

Finn thanks Martin for coming on such short notice, and Martin says, of course (🍷). It sounded urgent. What can he do for Finn? Finn says he understands his father and Alexis told Martin about him being sued for malpractice, and Martin says, they did. Just a broad outline, but he thinks he has a basic understanding of the case. Finn says, on their recommendation, he’d like Martin to represent him, and Martin says he thought that’s what this might be about. Finn asks if he’ll take the case, and Martin says, before he agrees, he wants to be fully transparent. This case, Finn’s case, is going to be a tough one to win. Finn says he appreciates Martin’s honesty and to be honest with him right now, he thinks he might have just made things worse.

Brook says, Chase’s truck drives really well, and he says he could tell how much she liked driving it by how fast she took that last turn. They walk into the station, and she says, he can unclench his jaw now. She got them here safe and sound, didn’t she? And don’t worry. She’ll take good care of his baby. He tells her, just remember, the parking sticker goes on after it’s detailed. She says, a deal’s a deal. She’s going to get his truck detailed, and he’s going to come by the house to say goodbye to Grandma Gloria after he breaks this big case he’s working on.

Dante introduces himself to Detective Brisco, saying, they spoke earlier. Brisco says, good to meet him in person, and Dante says, likewise. They shake hands, and Brisco says he’s requesting interdepartmental cooperation to investigate the murder of Dr. Austin Gatlin-Holt. Dante asks what he needs, and Brisco says he needs to know Dante doesn’t have a conflict of interest. Two months ago, Dante shot the victim’s cousin in his jurisdiction.

Ava meets Sonny in a private lounge at the MetroCourt, and he says, she made it here quickly. She says, it sounded urgent. Something tells her that she’s about to get some bad news. He says, that depends, and she says, on what? He says, her perspective. Some people might consider it good news. Austin Gatlin-Holt is dead.

Finn says, DeeDee Clark, the attorney representing the hospital in the malpractice suit, came here earlier to interview him, and Martin says he’s going to stop Finn right here. The first thing Finn has to understand is that he and the hospital are not on the same side of this thing. That’s why they have separate attorneys. Finn says he’s learning. Martin is the tenth person who’s told him that this week. Martin says, good, because there’s a process here; it’s a strategy. The hospital’s got the deep pockets, not Finn. That’s why the hospital is the one the Muldoons want the judgement against, but to do that, they have to present that not only was Finn negligent, but the hospital allowed and/or contributed to that negligence themselves. Finn says he understands, and Martin says he hopes so. Because at this point General Hospital’s first and probably only defense is that Finn and Finn alone is responsible for the malpractice that led to Mr. Muldoon’s death.

Alexis thanks the bartender for her phone and orders a club soda. At a nearby table, the matching professional tells Molly, this was a good start. She’s sorry none of the surrogates she and TJ interviewed were available, but she hopes Molly will agree there are several other amazing candidates in here. She gives Molly a folder, and Molly thanks her and says, it’s encouraging to know other options are waiting for them. She and TJ will discuss them all and get back to her. The matching professional says, take your time. It’s a big decision. When they’re ready, she’ll be here. She leaves, and Alexis asks if she can join Molly.

Felicia says she doesn’t understand. Why does Maxie owe so much money? Maxie says, because she’s run up a lot of credit card debt, and Felicia asks how that happened. Maxie says, in the beginning, Deception was doing great and she was able to pay off every balance every month on every card, no problem. Then the lawsuit happened and The Deceptor was taken off the market, and she could only afford the minimum payment. Felicia says, that’s how they get you, and Maxie says she knows, but she didn’t have a choice. And she thought all this would get resolved faster, so she was just making the minimum payments and she was still having to charge things every month. (Ugh. I feel her pain.) Now they’re living in this bigger, more expensive place, but the kids love it, so she can’t bring herself to regret it. She just feels like she’s dug herself into a hole she won’t be able to get out of.

Yuri asks if Lois and Gloria both know the plan, and they say, yes, when Brook walks in. She says, that’s never a good question to walk in on. What plan? What’s going on? Lois says, Brook’s grandma is in trouble, and Brook asks, what kind of trouble? Gloria says, it’s a just a misunderstanding, and Lois says, she had a difference of opinion with a woman who has close ties to the Russian mob. Brook asks what Gloria was thinking and says, they have to call Uncle Sonny.

Ava asks how certain Sonny is that Austin is dead, and he says, very certain. She asks how he died, and he says, maybe she should tell him. She asks what he’s implying. How the hell would she know? Sonny says, she’d know if she was there, and she says she didn’t even know he was dead until Sonny told her just now. He says, listen to him. If she killed Austin, she needs to tell him, now.

Brisco says, if Dante had reason to suspect a kidnapping victim was being held in Pautuck, they should have been his first call, but Dante says he didn’t have reason to believe anything. He acted on a civilian tip. By the time he got there, the perp was about to throw another man down a cliff. So he didn’t have time to call anyone. Brisco says, Dante’s been cleared by his department. He has no problem with that. He does have a problem with some defense attorney claiming Dante had a conflict of interest and getting any evidence he uncovers suppressed. Dante asks if Brisco wants him to recuse himself, but Brisco says, not at this time. That may change once they get a suspect and start building a case. In the meantime, he needs Dante’s help questioning the associates of the victim here in Port Charles. Chase comes in, and Dante says, good timing. He introduces Chase and Brisco, and Brisco says, let him fill them in on what they have so far. The property is rural, but the house is visible from the road. The neighbors saw the front door wide open, so they went to investigate. They saw the body and immediately called the Pautuck PD. Dante asks if they have an estimated time of death, and Brisco says, the preliminary report is 24 to 48 hours prior to Thanksgiving. Chase asks, how’d he die? and Brisco says, it was pretty brutal. Two shots to the chest, close range.

Ava says she told Sonny, she didn’t kill Austin. Why would she? She has no reason. He says, they both know that’s not true, and she says, then tell her. Why would she want to get rid of him? He says, Austin played her, strung her along, pretended to be in love with her, lied to her, when all the while taking orders from Cyrus. She says, wouldn’t that make it much more likely Cyrus killed him? Why doesn’t Sonny question him? Sonny says he doesn’t give a damn about Cyrus. She’s the mother of his child. She’s no good to Avery in prison. So if she killed Austin, she has to let him know because the police have his body. And every second they waste makes it harder for him to cover her tracks.

Brisco says he was just telling Dante that he needs help putting together a list of the victim’s known associates. Dante says, Austin’s cousin Mason is currently in the hospital at GH, but he’s also been arrested for attempted murder and kidnapping. Chase says, as soon as he’s well enough, he’s going to be transferred to Pentenville, and Brisco says, he’s injured and handcuffed to the bed and there’s a guard outside his door. Seems unlikely he’d be able to sneak out and murder his cousin. But he’d like confirmation on Mason Gatlin’s whereabouts on the night in question, just in case.

Yuri says, they’re all family. Problem go away. Brook asks if he’s sure about that, when the doorbell rings. Yuri says, Mr. Petrov is here, and Lois asks how he knows. He tells her, just stick to plan, and goes to the door. He opens the door and thanks Mr. Petrov for coming in Russian. Also in Russian, Petrov says he hopes it’s worth the trip, and Yuri brings him to the living room where Brook, Lois, and Gloria are lined up. Yuri says, this is Brook Lynn Quartermaine, and Lois and Gloria Cerullo. All good women. Brook says, hello, and Lois says, hi. Gloria nods, and Petrov says, you. She’s the one who upset his Petra. Gloria starts to move forward, but Lois pulls her back. Petrov and Gloria stare at each other.

Molly says she didn’t expect to see Alexis today, and Alexis says she was here earlier having lunch with Laura and left her phone here. She came back to retrieve it, and it looked like Molly was having an intense conversation. Molly says she was, and Alexis says she also noticed that when Molly saw her, she shut that folder really quickly. So she’s assuming whatever it is, Molly would like to keep it private. She just wants Molly to know that she loves her and she’s here for her if she needs to talk about anything. Molly says she does actually. She started looking for a new surrogate. She hands Alexis the folder.

Finn tells Martin, it’s absurd. There was no negligence, not by him, not by the hospital. Mr. Muldoon had a tapeworm like the tests showed. The only way to know he had cancer is if he got follow-up tests and Mr. Muldoon refused to do that. Martin says, listen to him. It’s one thing to be upset, but never ever tell a grieving family, people who’ve lost a husband or father, that their need for redress is absurd. The jury will hate him. Finn says, that’s not what he meant. The last thing he wants to do is downplay their pain. He grieved for this man when he died, but the GH lawyer implied that he should have been able to tell immediately that Muldoon had cancer in addition to the tapeworm. There’s a knock at the door, and Clark comes in. She says, good. Finn’s still here. She’s assuming this is his lawyer. Martin introduces himself, and Clark says, as long as he’s here, she still has a few more questions for his client.

Yuri says, let’s all take seat, and takes Petrov’s coat. They all sit, and Yuri thanks Petrov for coming. He’s sure there’s a way they can all get past this… misunderstanding. Petrov says, he come here only because his beloved nephew take trombone lessons from Yuri (Yuri plays trombone?). He plays beautiful, no? Lois says, that is so generous of him. She knows her mother is very sorry for upsetting his wife, and she’s very passionate about Bingo, but she knows she went a little overboard. Gloria says, overboard? All she asked her to do was lower her voice. Yuri says, what Gloria means is that she apologize, and Gloria says, why should she apologize? She’s done nothing wrong. Petrov says, a wasted trip. He’s leaving. He gets up, but Brook says, he can’t go.

Felicia tells Maxie, what’s done is done. She has a lot of debt to pay off. What about Deception? Now that the lawsuit has been settled and The Deceptor is a big success, won’t she be bringing a lot of money in from that? Maxie says, eventually, but during the lawsuit, Deception went into debt too. It’ll be months, maybe even years, before they’re not operating at a deficit and she’ll be making what she was. Felicia says, she’ll get back there, and Maxie says she thinks so. But in the meantime, her kids are growing and getting older and more expensive. It’s not their fault, but now they have after school clubs and sports and tutors and braces soon. That’s not even mentioning the stuff she needs. Felicia says, like what? and Maxie says, anything, everything. She’s never been good at sticking to a budget or being frugal. Now it’s coming back to bite her in a big way. She thinks she’s in over her head and she doesn’t know what to do.

Martin apologizes to Clark, but they have to decline her offer. His client won’t be answering any other questions until his deposition. Clark says, that is his right, but before Dr. Finn puts anything on the record, they need to be crystal clear about what led to Mr. Muldoon’s death. Martin suggests they save the obfuscation for the courtroom. They’re all well aware it’s her job to shield the hospital from liability and try to place it solely on his client. She says, that’s a bold accusation, but he says, not at all. He’s suggesting she change her tactic. If General Hospital hired her to stab the good doctor in the back, he can and will shift all the blame to General Hospital.

Brisco thanks Dante and Chase for the information and the copy of the coroner’s report, and Dante says, they’ll get him the list of associates. Brisco says, that reminds him. He understands the victim had family other than Mason in Port Charles. Chase says, Austin’s father, Jimmy Lee Holt, was the illegitimate son of the late Edward Quartermaine, and Brisco says he’s familiar with the name. The Quartermaines are a very influential family. People of their stature may not be happy with an illegitimate grandson showing up. How’d they feel about the victim? Chase says, as far as he knows, they didn’t associate with him much, and Brisco asks, then who did Austin associate with? Who was he close to? Dante says, the kidnapping victim, Ava Jerome.

Ava says she appreciates Sonny’s willingness to cover up a murder he thinks she committed, but she had nothing to do with Austin’s death. She still doesn’t know how the man died. Sonny says, his body was found by a neighbor in a house in Pautuck. He was shot twice at close range. Ava wonders what he was doing in Pautuck. He always told her that he was so happy to leave that place behind. She doesn’t know why he’d ever go back. Sonny says, maybe the killer lured him there. (Ooh, could it be Nikolas?)

Brook says she still wants to hear about how well Petrov’s nephew plays the trombone, and Petrov asks, why? She shows him her card and says, because she’s a music manager. One of her artists is about to go on tour, and they’re putting together a brass section of talented musicians, and they still need a trombonist. Petrov asks, who is this artist? and Brook says, Luke West and the Stacked Seven. Petrov chuckles and says he loves Luke West and the Stacked Seven, and Brook says, they’re amazing. And she can guarantee his nephew a spot on tour if he can just find it in his heart to let go of this whole misunderstanding. Petrov says, is no misunderstand, but his nephew’s the most important. He will make her cry with his beautiful music. Fine. No more Bingo for her and we forget this ever happened. Brook hands him her card and says, thank you so much. Yuri says, is good, huh? and Lois says, very good. So what does Gloria say?

Alexis tells Molly that she’s impressed with this agency. They seem to know what they’re doing. All of these women look like they’d be very good candidates for their surrogate. Molly agrees, and says, it was a very positive meeting. Alexis says, but she’s still worried, and Molly asks if it’s that obvious. Alexis says, not to other people, but she’s Molly’s mother. It’s her job to know these things. She takes Molly’s hands and says, she’s been through a lot, and she really respects Molly’s resolve to keep fighting to get what she wants. She knows Molly and TJ will look at these women and find the perfect surrogate. Molly says, that’s the problem. TJ has no idea she’s doing this.

Felicia takes out her checkbook, but Maxie says, absolutely not. She’s not taking Felicia’s money. Felicia says, Maxie needs the money and this is just a little something to tide her over for now. After she leaves, she wants Maxie to go through all her accounts and add up all her debt. When Maxie has that, she and Mac will go through their retirement portfolio and see what they can liquidate to get her the rest of the money. Maxie says, that’s really generous of her, but what part of absolutely not does she not understand? Felicia says she’s not taking no for an answer. Maxie needs the money and she’s not giving her a choice. Maxie snatches the checkbook and says she’s a grown woman. She got herself into this; it’s her responsibility to get herself out. Felicia says, not at 25% interest she can’t.

Sonny tells Ava, Pautuck is a small town. A lot of farms; a lot of isolated homes. Ava asks what he’s getting at, and he says, if somebody wanted to off Austin, that would be the place to do it. A lot less chance of somebody being a witness there than in Port Charles. Maybe more private than Spoon Island. She says she already told him, she didn’t kill Austin, but he says he’s not the one she needs to worry about. How is she going to convince the cops that she’s innocent? She asks if she’ll need to convince the cops. There won’t be any evidence that she did it because she didn’t do it. He says, really? She and Austin were associates. A lot of people saw them together. It’s not a stretch that they could be lovers. How many times did she visit him at the hospital? People don’t forget that. What about the gallery? How many times… What? What happened at the gallery? She says she didn’t kill him there if that’s what Sonny is implying. But Austin did come to see her at the gallery a couple of days before Thanksgiving and that’s the last time she saw him. And he was very much alive.

Dante goes to Mason’s room at the hospital and tells the guard that he needs to speak with the patient. He goes in, and Mason says, get out. Dante asks what he’s yelling about, and Mason asks what Dante thinks. He’s the cop who shot him. And for no good reason. Dante says, no good reason? Mason almost killed two people. Mason says, that’s not how he remembers it. He doesn’t want to be alone with Dante. Dante might try to hurt him again. He yells, help! Police brutality! The guard pretty much ignores him, and Dante says he doesn’t know if he wants to be alone with Mason either. He asks the guard and a nurse to come in and be witnesses, and tells Mason that he wanted to inform him that his cousin Austin Gatlin-Holt has been murdered.

Clark tells Martin that she thinks they’re losing sight of the bigger picture here. The goal is to fight the Muldoons, not each other. Martin says, good. Then he’s sure she’ll agree there’s only one possible position for the hospital to take – the truth. That Dr. Finn treated his patient in good faith, in accordance with all professional and medical standards. She starts to interrupt, but he says, let him finish. And that the hospital also complied with those same standards. Mr. Muldoon’s death was a tragedy, but an unforeseen one. One that couldn’t have been prevented by either Dr. Finn or the hospital. Clark says she’s not at liberty to reveal the hospital’s position, but she can say she’s looking forward to getting all her questions answered when Dr. Finn sits for his deposition. Finn says he can’t wait, and Clark says she’ll see them later and leaves. Finn says, now he knows why Alexis speaks so highly of Martin, and thanks him, but Martin says, it’s way too soon to start thanking him. You, sir, are in a pickle.

Mason says, Austin’s dead? How? Dante says, took two in the chest, close range. Whoever did it wanted to make sure. Mason asks when this happened, and Dante says, just before Thanksgiving, in Pautuck. Mason asks if they have any suspects, and Dante says, that’s what he’s here to talk to Mason about. Does he know anyone who would want to kill his cousin? Mason says he doesn’t know everyone Austin was associated with, but Dante says, he knows most of them. He and Austin spent a lot of time together. Maybe he has information that’s important and just doesn’t know what it is. Mason says, and Dante wants him to tell him, but Dante says, that’s up to him. Mason gives him info that helps them catch and convict Austin’s killer, that works out well for him. Mason asks, how so? Dante says, Mason is looking at spending a lot of time in prison. Does he want to make a deal or no?

Gloria says she doesn’t like to be told where and when she can Bingo, and Lois laughs. She says, but Gloria will stay clear of Mrs. Petrov and St. Nicholas Church. Then she can play anywhere, anytime. Okay? Gloria gets up and says, fine. She’ll never set foot in that place again, not even for a funeral. Lois says, great, and thanks her. Yuri says, good now? and Petrov says, yes. Good. He tells Brook, now you call Luke West for nephew, and she says, consider it done. Yuri says, all is well that ends well. He’ll show Petrov out. Yuri and Petrov leave, and Lois tells Brook, that was amazing. How did she know how to handle him? Brook says, music industry execs and Russian mobsters aren’t so different really, and Lois says, her baby. Gloria looks at Brook lovingly.

Molly tells Alexis that TJ wants to wait before trying a new surrogate. He just isn’t ready to try again. He’s worried they’re just setting themselves up for more heartbreak. Alexis asks how Molly feels, and Molly says she was devastated by the loss of their baby too, and it’s not like she doesn’t get TJ’s point. The thought of going through that again scares her too. Alexis says, but? and Molly says, but then she ran into Dr. Navarro, and when she told her about the miscarriage, she was sympathetic, but she also made Molly hopeful. She said, there’s always a chance of miscarriage, but surrogacy actually has a high success rate and there are tons of loving people out there who longed to be parents and wouldn’t have the children they have today if it weren’t for surrogacy. Alexis says, it’s a wonderful, selfless thing to do, and Molly says, it is. It’s an amazing gift they’d be getting from their surrogate. And since the matching professional agreed to meet, she thought it was the least she could do was speak with her again. Alexis says, without telling TJ.

Lois puts her arm around Gloria and says, there are plenty of Bingo places in Brooklyn, and if she finds herself within three blocks of St. Nikolas Church, she wants Gloria to think of Ziti and turn the other way. The doorbell rings, and Brook opens the door to Chase. She says, look at him. Right on time. They kiss, and he says he tries. Does he even want to know who that sketchy guy he saw leaving was? Gloria says, delivery guy, and Chase addresses her as Mrs. Cerullo, but she says, Gloria. She thought they settled that. He says he just wanted to stop by and tell her what a pleasure it was to meet her. Gloria thanks him, but says, the pleasure was all hers. Now that she has him here, there’s a few things she’d like to say to him about her granddaughter.

Gloria says, Chase seems like a very nice young man, and he thanks her. She says she raised four sons, and she’s learned from experience that a lot of young men find a nice young woman and they think she’s going to wait for them forever, but sometimes that’s not the case. Brook twirls Gloria around, hugging her, and says, that’s something to think about. She loves Gloria and wishes she could stay longer, but she knows Gloria has to get back. She gestures to Lois, and Lois agrees. She says, Brook is right. She’d better hurry or she’ll miss her bus. Gloria says, and she’s got a Bingo tournament to get to… Kidding, kidding, kidding. Chase offers to take her bag, but Yuri comes back. Brook says her grandma’s ready to go, and Yuri is going to drive her to the bus station and wait with her until she gets on the bus, and Yuri says he would never leave Miss Gloria until he knows she’s safely on her way home. Brook hugs Gloria again and says she loves her. She tells Gloria to have a safe trip home, and Gloria says she will. Chase says, it was a pleasure to meet her, and Gloria hugs Lois. She’s almost out the door, but she turns around and says she’ll have to plan her trip back, so she has one question for Brook. When are she and Chase getting married?

Felicia says she knows Maxie feels bad about this, but it’s nothing to be ashamed of. It happens to a lot of people. Credit card debt is everywhere, and it’s insidious. (Preach!) The balance just keeps sneaking up on you. Maxie says, the balance sneaks up on you really fast, and Felicia says, that’s why they have to stop it now before it gets any worse. Maxie says, no. That money is for Felicia and Mac. She doesn’t want to use it. Does Felicia know how many times Mac told her to put the max in her 401k once a month? Felicia and Mac did that and they saved a lot, so they could travel and enjoy themselves. Felicia says, they can do both. They can do all those things they planned, and they can help Maxie now. Maxie will be able to pay off her credit card debt and stop her interest from compounding, and when Deception starts making money again, they can work out some kind of payment plan for her. Maxie says she thinks they should take some time and think about if this is the best solution. She doesn’t want to bail herself out at the expense of Felicia and Mac.

Molly says she only took the meeting because she wanted to see if there were more eligible surrogate candidates available. She didn’t expect for there to be so many. Alexis says, which makes it even harder, and Molly says, now she can see a path forward. Andrea wasn’t their only option. There might even be a better one out there for them, but she doesn’t know if she can convince TJ. Alexis says, Molly knows she only wants what’s best for her, and Molly says, just talking about it helps. Alexis says, that’s what she’s here for, but Molly really needs to talk to TJ about this. And if she wants to go forward with this surrogate, and have this baby, it has to be something they both want.

Martin says, since Finn is legally required to take part in this deposition, he needs to prep Finn carefully beforehand. Finn says, of course (🍷), and Martin says, it’s vitally important that no matter what they ask him, he limits his answers solely on that question. He doesn’t want Finn expanding answers, trying to defend himself, or offering up extra information that might implicate him somehow. Finn says he’ll do what Martin asks. Clearly, he’s the expert here. Martin says, if his deposition makes him look vulnerable in any way possible, the hospital might try to offer the Muldoon family a separate settlement. In other words, if they can buy their way out at a discount, they won’t hesitate to throw Finn under the bus.

Dante asks if Mason has any idea who might have killed Austin, and Mason says, Ava Jerome. Dante says, why her? and Mason says, because they were involved in not too legal activities. They were sleeping together and… Dante knows his cousin. He was high strung, and he had a big mouth. Austin never met a secret he couldn’t keep. Maybe he said the wrong thing to the wrong somebody and Ava had to shut him up permanently. Dante says he guesses they’re going with that, and Mason says, tell them he helped, okay? Dante says, he’ll get right on that, and goes to the door. He stops and says he forgot to mention, he just got word that Mason is being transferred to Pentenville tonight. You have a safe trip. He leaves, the nurse and guard following him, and the guard closes the door.

Sonny asks if Ava is telling him that nothing happened the last time she saw Austin at the gallery, and she says, well… He says, she’s hiding something. Tell him what happened. She says she was angry with Austin, livid actually, for leaving her to die at the hands of his demented cousin. That was his fault. And they fought about it. Sonny says, now they’re getting somewhere, and Ava says, Austin kept giving her excuses and his reasons for not being responsible, but she wasn’t having it, because like Sonny said, he was playing her all along. He probably knew that Nikolas wasn’t dead, and he was just using that to manipulate her to do what he wanted. Sonny asks if she knows what that sounds like to him. A motive for murder. Austin had no reason to keep that secret for her. How does she know he didn’t go tell somebody in order to get something out of it? She says she guesses she doesn’t, and he says, that’s right. For all she knows, he could have told everybody, including the cops. So whether she killed Austin or not, she could end up being a prime suspect.

Tomorrow, TJ says he might have made a huge mistake; Kristina asks Sam why she thinks it might not be a good fit for Scout; Dante asks, when was the last time Ava saw Austin; and Michael asks what Nina is trying to pull.

🍝 With Ziti On the Side…

The Gloria wiki.

https://general-hospital.fandom.com/wiki/Gloria_Cerullo_(Ellen_Travolta)

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills

Dorit meets Crystal and they go to Kyle’s house. Kyle has a bigger stack of unread mail than I do, and says she needs someone to help her organize. In Dorit’s interview, she says, their business manager tells her to stop shopping, but she doesn’t listen. Crystal says, when she and Garcelle came back last night, things looked good. We flash back to Dorit apologizing to Garcelle, and Dorit says, it was the right thing to do. She apologized for making Garcelle feel bad. It takes time. Kyle says she cares about Sutton, but she seemed off a couple times. The other night, Sutton insisted the elevator door opening in Vegas was planned. Dorit says, impossible, although I’m not sure why it would be. Kyle imitates Sutton imitating Erika, but doesn’t do a good job. This is why she never made it past the Halloween movies. Kyle says she told Sutton that it wasn’t planned, but Sutton said she was just defending her friend. She was so aggressive. It was mean. Dorit says she’s been there. Sutton goes from 0 to 60 quick. Dorit says, Sutton is a drinker. She wouldn’t be surprised if Sutton put vodka in her coffee. In Crystal’s interview, she says, this, from the woman who drinks a three carcass cocktail everyone knows about. Kyle says, vodka makes some people mean, and in her interview, Crystal says, Kyle stopped drinking yesterday. That doesn’t mean she can make judgments. Maybe she’s jealous that Sutton can hold them down. Dorit asks what Kyle wants to do and Kyle says she wants to repair it. Crystal wonders if it might not be different if the environment was calmer.

Garcelle meets Sutton for dinner, and Sutton says she’s having a drink, since she didn’t drink at Garcelle’s thing. Garcelle says she drank too much at her thing, and they order food. In Garcelle’s interview, she says she doesn’t think Sutton is a vegetarian. She eats bacon all the time. She tells Sutton that she couldn’t be happier with the turnout, and asks who Sutton was surprised to see. Sutton says, Jerry O’Connell, and we see a clip. They agree he’s cute, and Garcelle asks how things are with Sutton and Erika. Sutton says, they don’t have anything to talk about, and Garcelle says, it was wild. There they were and the elevator doors opened. Sutton says she told Kyle that it was a set-up, but Kyle defended Erika and got upset. It’s about Sutton and Erika, and has nothing to do with Kyle and Sutton. She thinks Kyle feels the need to insert herself when it comes to her, and it was a bit hurtful. We flash back to that, and Sutton says she told Kyle that a lot of the time when you exercise excessively and lose weight, something else is going on. Garcelle suggests Sutton hit a nerve, and Sutton says she noticed the sapphire and diamond ring Kyle is wearing is brand new. In Garcelle’s interview, she says she doesn’t know how Sutton noticed. She never pays attention to things like that. The only time she noticed jewelry was after the robbery; Dorit still had hers. She takes a sip of her drink. Sutton wonders if the ring is a make-up gift. The tabloids say there are problems in their marriage. In Sutton’s interview, she says, the news is, Mauricio may be having an affair. It’s all over the internet. She has zero interest in Kyle’s marriage, but she cares about Kyle. She though they were close enough that Kyle could come to her, but it’s hard to be close if you think someone’s hiding something. Garcelle says, just be honest and clear the air, but Kyle has to do that with Sutton too.

Erika goes to talent manager Alexis’s house, and in Erika’s interview, she says, Alexis is a talent manager with a background in publicity. Erika wants to talk strategy going forward. She’s rejuvenated her team. She and Jack decided not to work together. We flash back to the discussion on who leaked the Kathy Hilton stuff, and Erika being told it was someone who works for her. Erika says, they’re still friends, but they’re not in business together. Alexis says, Erika was at a pivotal point. She was essentially on top of the world. She was doing Broadway and had everything going for her. Obviously, she got stopped in her tracks. We flash back to all that, and Alexis says, it created uncertainty about her name and her brand. Erika says, Tom’s indictment didn’t help. Even though she didn’t get indicted, it translated into people not wanting to work with her. In her interview, Erika says, these were the worst years of her life. Her reputation was in the toilet, she was getting no offers, and defending herself was expensive. She’d always had help and now she doesn’t. Alexis says, Erika needs to take accountability, and Erika says she’s come back with a better sense of herself, because she had no choice but to face herself. We flash back to her group apology and crocodile tears, and Alexis says she imagines Erika wants to perform again. Erika says she wants to be back on stage and have a relationship with the audience. Alexis says, she’ll make some calls and see if anyone will take a meeting. They won’t know if they don’t ask.

Jax and Garcelle go to dinner, and Garcelle tells him, at his age, she couldn’t have a conversation with her mom and dad like they do. She’s from a different generation, where they didn’t talk like that. In Garcelle’s interview, she says, it’s hard parenting twins. As they get older, they have separate, different needs. Jax wants to talk things through and she’s learning to be patient with his conversation. She needs to hear him out more. She tells him that he said something that hurt her on the beach, and we flash back to Jax saying they could have used more parenting when they were younger. She says, he thought she should have kept the family together, but Jax says he knows damn well it was his dad’s fault. He’s known since he was 8. He was curious and looked it up. She asks, why not say something? and he says he’s known forever. In her interview, Garcelle says she found out about Mike’s infidelity when she borrowed his phone. She saw a text that said, I love you, and it wasn’t from her or the kids; it was from a different number. She asked him, who is it? and he said, it’s nothing, it’s nobody. They were in the car, Jax and Jaid in their car seats, and Jax said, tell mommy what? That shut them both up. Jax says he’d never hold it against his dad, even though he knows it’s his fault. In Garcelle’s interview, she says, it was all about shielding them. Hearing Jax say he’s known all this time, she’ll never be okay with that. Jax says, almost half of all marriages end in divorce, and Garcelle says she doesn’t even know who he is. In her interview, she says she realizes she needs to see the smart, brilliant, outspoken child he is. She tells Jax that she’s proud of him for being who he is. He’s helping her grow and she loves him. He says he loves her too, and she tells the waiter, he’s paying.

Kyle visits tattoo artist Stephan and says she didn’t tell Mauricio. It’s not a secret; she just didn’t tell him. Morgan Wade joins her, and Kyle introduces her to Stephan and says, she’s all covered. In Kyle’s interview, she says, Morgan is a very close friend. They talk every day. People are confused by their friendship. Stephan asks how they met, and Morgan says, Kyle stalked her. Kyle says she heard Morgan’s music and wondered, who’s the girl with the voice and these lyrics? In her interview, Kyle says, Morgan is 100% herself, no excuses. We see pictures of them together, and Kyle says, no apologies. There’s something freeing about it. She’s always worried about being together and perfect, and she was taken by that. She tells Morgan that she’s hosting a CBD/THC dinner party. Herbal chef Chris is amazing, and it will be a culinary experience even if the guests don’t participate. She sometimes feels that the women are pushing at her about not drinking. If she doesn’t do edibles, they’ll get annoyed. Morgan tells her, never feel pressured. When she got sober, she lost friends. Go and if she wants to try it, try it. If she decides no, then don’t. But don’t make a big deal about it. In her interview, Kyle says, Morgan’s been sober six years. It’s nice to have friends with things in common. They both like to work out and not drink. It’s nice to surround herself with like-minded people. Morgan holds Kyle’s hand as Stephan tattoos her hip. Morgan tells Kyle, it’s a penis, and Stephan says, maybe he did. Stephan finishes the tattoo, a little planet Saturn surrounded by stars, and Kyle and Morgan agree it’s cute. Morgan says she’ll post a picture. They need more rumors started.

When Kyle gets home, she sees Mauricio, and there’s this whole boring exchange about some book he wants her to read. Mauricio says he has to leave super early, and she says, it looks like there’s a body in his bag. (It does!) He says, it’s golf clubs, and Kyle says she would fit in there. She tells him that she got a small tattoo, and he asks if it was his name, calling her lovebean. I think that’s why Kyle is unhappy. She’s tired of that stupid nickname. She shows him, and he says he hopes he gets to see it. She says, he’s seeing it now, but he says he means often.

Sutton’s #2 assistant Zach and Avi fuss over things, when matchmaker Alessandra arrives. She wonders if Sutton’s dog Waylon will help pick a match, and Sutton says she invited Dorit, who knows more about her than Alessandra and her service is free. Dorit claims she’s figured out why no one wants date Sutton. We flash back to Dorit telling Sutton that she’s doing it all wrong, and Dorit walks in. In Sutton’s interview, she says, Dorit is the perfect person to help her pick a date. If Dorit fell in love with PK, maybe she needs to be not so picky. Alessandra says she selected three candidates for Sutton to choose from, and Dorit asks what Alessandra’s take is on it. Alessandra say she did a lot of figuring out. Sutton is very resistant, but there were so many aha moments. She believes Sutton isn’t looking for a billionaire, but Sutton tells her that she didn’t say that. Alessandra says, Sutton wouldn’t turn one down, but she thinks Sutton is self-aware. She asks Dorit’s take, and Dorit says she thinks Sutton’s lack of self-awareness is her biggest downfall. She gets snippy and is impossible to comfort her. Dorit says, Sutton needs to give the benefit of the doubt, relax, and be herself. Confidence is sexy. Sutton says she is confident, and Dorit says she’s reiterating it to her. The first candidate loves kids and travel, and the second is the CEO of an entertainment firm. Sutton says she’s swiping left. She doesn’t like a black shirt with a black tux. In Dorit’s interview, she says, like it’s the worst thing ever. It’s called the monochromatic look. Alessandra says, imagine if someone judged Sutton on what she wore, and we flash back to her kitty sweater. In Dorit’s interview, she says she’s not sure Sutton should be the judge on fashion taste, The last candidate likes classic films and a good bottle of wine, but the first candidate is the chosen one. Alessandra tells Sutton to get out of her head and into her body. Give him a hug when they meet. Sutton say she’s not hugging him.

Kyle videochats with Morgan, and they discuss the tattoo Morgan let Kyle ink on her. We see a clip, and I wonder if Morgan is nuts. Kyle does some kind of circle thing that, in the grand scheme of Morgan’s tattoos, is probably not noticeable. Still. Morgan says, no one else can say they’re tattooed by Kyle, and Kyle says, what’s one extra circle?

Everyone gets ready for the CBD/THC dinner, and in Kyle’s interview, she says, the ladies are giving her a hard time about not drinking. She’s getting peer pressure. She can drink margaritas, do the splits, say something she regrets, then wake up with a headache, or eat or smoke weed. That should shut them up. The morally corrupt Faye Resnick is there, as well as friends Annemarie and Justin. In her interview, Kyle says, Annemarie is a new friend. She’s married to ex-NFL player Marcellus Wiley. They met at a party and found out they live on the same street. Kyle asks how much Annemarie works out, and she says, six or seven days a week. Kyle tells her that Sutton said she works out too much. In Crystal’s interview, she says she doesn’t know Annemarie, but they have mutual friends. She talks a lot and asks a lot of questions. That bitch is nosy. We flash back to the Dinner Party from Hell, and drunk psychic Allison saying Mauricio will never emotionally fulfill Kyle.  Camille and Denise arrive together, and Denise suggests they get an In-N-Out Burger and go home. They’re both nervous.

In Garcelle’s interview, she says she’s somewhat of a newbie, but even she knows what went on at the Dinner Party from Hell. We flash back to Camille talking about the morally corrupt Faye Resnick, and Garcelle says, they don’t like each other. She knows that. Edibles are discussed, and I’m with Garcelle who doesn’t like them, since you never know when they’ll kick in or turn off. I tried them once. It did not sit well with me. Faye gives Camille a fake hug, and they end up seated across from each other. Kyle’s idea of a joke or is it just her stupidity? Faye changes seats, and Sutton and Kyle sit in another room for a private conversation. Sutton says, it got heated which she hated because it’s not like them. Kyle asks why Sutton said she wasn’t being herself, and Sutton says, because she wasn’t. She was with ex-husband Christian over the weekend. He got a big promotion, and he’s moving to London. He wanted her and James to move with him. Kyle says, tell him f*** off.  He doesn’t have the right to tell her what to do. Sutton says she didn’t know, and in her interview, she says, when she went through the divorce, he had a bigger team and could fight harder. It was like Princess Leia against Darth Vader and all the Stormtroopers. Christian is powerful globally. She asks Kyle if he can take James, but Kyle says, no. Sutton says she didn’t know if James would want to go, and it was weighing on her. She overreacted because her brain was somewhere else, but it’s fine. She and James aren’t going and she’s going to have James full-time, so her support will have to be increased. Kyle asks why this is a problem because she lacks any empathy whatsoever, and Sutton says she has to deal with it legally. In Kyle’s interview, she says, let her get this straight. She’s supposed to have sympathy for a move that’s not happening and Sutton getting more money and having her son all the time. Help her connect the dots. What I said about empathy. Kyle asks what was going on at Sutton’s house. She was aggressive and seemed off. Why? Because of her ex moving to London and getting extra money? Sutton wonders why Kyle can’t be sympathetic. It’s a big deal, the end of an era. Kyle asks if she’s that out of touch, and Sutton says, he’s leaving indefinitely, and she loved him. Kyle says she can fly there and back. She thinks it’s just an excuse, because Sutton makes excuses when she behaves like this. Sutton asks, what’s Kyle’s excuse? She’s not being a friend. Crystal comes in and says, everyone is waiting, and Sutton says, if Kyle can’t be honest, they can just sit. Kyle says, maybe Sutton wasn’t being a friend. She was weird and off. She wondered if it was Sutton’s medicine or if she’d had a couple of drinks. Something’s not right. Sutton leaves, and Kyle yells, if she has something to say, f***ing say it. In the kitchen, Chris wonders if he should serve dinner if they’re yelling at each other. Maybe serve the CBD first? Crystal tells Kyle that she thinks Kyle and Sutton are doing the same things to each other, and Sutton goes to the table. Erika wonders where their hostess is, and Sutton says, in denial about something.

Kyle says, Sutton is acting like she’s concerned about something she should be sharing, and Crystal reminds her again that everyone is waiting. They go to the table, and Chris explains that he’ll be serving a five-course tasting menu that will be optionally injected with cannabis, then he’ll gently bring them down with a CBD dessert. They’ll choose their own dosage, and it’s never overwhelming. His assistant Jack takes dosage orders, and Garcelle and Denise opt out. Crystal says she thinks they need to clear the air, and Kyle says she doesn’t like to feel like a friend is making a veiled threat. Sutton says, no threat, and Kyle says, if Sutton is going to ask her to be honest, have the balls to tell her what to be honest about. Sutton says she shared something personal, and Kyle made fun of her. Kyle tries gaslighting Sutton by saying she told Sutton that she understood, and it was sad, but she thought it was just an excuse for Sutton’s behavior. Sutton says, Kyle is deflecting, but Kyle says she’s explaining herself. Sutton says she was talking to Kyle, sharing with her and being honest and real. She’s asking Kyle to do the same and she’s not doing it. Kyle says she’s being honest, and Sutton says, then she’s perfect. Kyle tells her that she didn’t say that. If Sutton is going to put it out there, have the balls to say what she’s trying to insinuate. Sutton says, Kyle’s been overly working out and eating differently, and Kyle says, she has the guts to say that when Sutton doesn’t eat. In her interview, Kyle says, Sutton is making comments about her working out and not drinking, when she pushes her food around like Kyle’s kids do. Annemarie wonders if she’s the only one in the dark. Friends can say things, but they’re not saying anything right now. Be blunt, say it, and move past it. Sutton says, something is going on in Kyle’s personal life that she’s not sharing, and someone says, with what? Garcelle says, her marriage. She has a new wedding band. Sutton says, Kyle hasn’t been wearing her ring, and Kyle says, it’s in the bank. Sutton says, things add up, and Kyle says she’s been wearing a different ring that she bought herself. Garcelle says she thought it was a make-up band. Like when your husband messes up and you get a gift. Camille says she used to get cars, and Kyle says, it’s not a gift. She bought it herself. Faye says, it seems inappropriate, asking these questions at the table, even though Kyle was the one going on about having balls. Denise says she doesn’t know what this is about, and Kyle tells Garcelle, it’s a weird thing to say. Where did Garcelle get her necklace? Garcelle says, Zara, and in Erika’s interview, she says she’s glad it’s not her this time. She’s enjoying watching this show.

Sutton says, then it’s been cleared up, and Kyle asks if Sutton is saying her husband cheated. Crickets are heard, and Sutton asks if she said that. Annemarie asks if Sutton is saying Kyle can’t get new jewelry or an outfit, and Kyle says, she told them on the retreat that it hadn’t been the best year of their marriage. She shared at the retreat that they were having a hard time, and it feels like a low blow. Does Sutton want her husband to have cheated? Sutton says, no, and in Garcelle’s interview, she says, Kyle doesn’t want to address the elephant in the room. Something is going on in her marriage. The question is not, who bought the ring? Sutton says she’s content with all of Kyle’s answers, and Faye thinks it’s weird of her to say that. Kyle says, everyone is wondering what’s going on if she’s not drinking, but if she does, she feels down and depressed. And she can’t afford to feel depressed right now.

Dun dun duuun!

To be continued…

🖥 Cybering Through…

Stop in tomorrow for soap and suspect Charm. Until then, stay safe, stay making sure to take care of yourself in all the holiday chaos, and stay not letting your credit card balance sneak up on you. Credit card debt is insidious.

November 28, 2023 – The News About Austin Travels, Goodbye, Her Return, All Grown Up, Celebrations, Mary’s World, Salty Channel, Two Cents, All Better, Special, That Tree & 45th

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Portia asks if Elizabeth has heard from Austin. He was supposed to be in at 10 am and they haven’t heard from him yet. He’s never been late like this. Elizabeth says, no one has heard from him. She left him a voicemail and she texted him a few times. Still nothing. Portia says, could be a flat tire, a broken phone… Can she keep trying? Elizabeth says she will, and Finn approaches Portia. He asks her to sign off on the treatment he’s prescribing for a new patient.

There’s a knock at Sam’s door and she opens it to Sonny, who says, hi, neighbor. She says she can’t get used to calling him that, and he says he likes living down the hall from his son and grandson. Is Dante around? She says, of course (🍷), and invites him in. He asks how her Thanksgiving was, and she says, it was different. Dante took the boys to a football game. He says he saw Scout at Carly’s; she was with her dad. Sam was at Alexis’s? Sam says, her, Kristina, Molly, and assorted others. Where was he? He says he and Nina had a quiet Thanksgiving at the MetroCourt, and she asks if he missed cooking. He says, yeah, but next year he’s going to do it right. He’s having a Thanksgiving feast with his kids and their kids and whoever wants to show up. She can come. She can mark it on her calendar. Dante says, he can count on that. What brings him by? Sonny says, a matter of concern.

On the phone at the hospital, Molly says she has to reschedule the 4 o’clock meeting. She needs to free up some time this afternoon. TJ comes by, and she says she managed to get a postponement on the Hamlin case. He says, she came all the way to the hospital to tell him that? but she says, no. She came to tell him that they have an appointment to find a new surrogate.

Alexis meets Laura at the PC Grill, and the maître d’ seats them. Cyrus takes notice of Laura being there.

Finn tells Portia, pretty standard diagnosis and treatment. Nothing out of the ordinary. She says she agrees with his assessment. As soon as she gets back to the office, she’ll log on and okay the treatment. He thanks her and leaves. She tells Elizabeth, that was tough, and Elizabeth says, he’s a leader in his field. It’s ridiculous that he has to have supervision to treat his patients. Portia says, just a reminder, she’s not the enemy here. Finn isn’t the only one being sued for malpractice and wrongful death. The hospital is also listed as a defendant on the suit. She has no choice. She’s just following procedure. Elizabeth apologizes and says she’s sorry if she made it seem like it was all Portia’s doing. She knows it’s not. It’s just that this whole situation is very frustrating. Portia says she knows, when her phone dings. She asks if Elizabeth can try Austin again. In the meantime, they’ll have to give his patients to other doctors. She leaves, and Elizabeth picks up the phone.

Sam tells Dante that she and Scout are running late, so he can fill her in on this matter of concern when she gets back. She calls to Scout, who comes down the stairs and asks Sonny, guess where she’s going today? Sonny says, the museum, but she says, nope. She’s meeting daddy at the MetroCourt and she’s going to interview him about his job for a report for school. Sonny says, wow. That’s a big girl assignment. Maybe when she’s finished with the report, she can show it to him. Scout says, okay, and she and Sam leave. Dante asks, what’s this matter of concern? and Sonny says, it’s about the man who tried to kill Avery’s mother.

Alexis says she’s always glad to see Laura, but she’s curious. Is this a social meeting or is this about business? Laura says, actually, it’s family related. She wanted to check in with Alexis and see how Esme is doing at her job and whether or not Alexis was still happy with her work. Alexis says, actually, she is. She’s proven to be competent, organized, and efficient. She works well with the other departments and manages to stay 10 steps ahead of Alexis, which is not easy. She even asked for a raise, and Alexis gave it to her because she earned it. Laura says she’s so happy to hear this. Esme is about to move out on her own and Laura is about to sign the lease tomorrow, but she just wanted to know Esme was going to be employed in the near future. Alexis says, unless something changes, she doesn’t see why not. She’s wondering about Spencer though. He’s so attached to Ace, she’s worried about how he’ll handle Esme and Ace leaving. Laura says, so is she.

Molly tells TJ that the matching professional called her this morning. She asked how they were doing after Andrea’s miscarriage. She informed Molly that Andrea doesn’t want to try again, which she explained she already knew, but then she asked if they wanted to move forward with a new surrogate. The other women they interviewed were both successfully matched with other couples, but the matching professional had some other candidates she felt might work well for them. He says, so Molly told her yes when the matching professional asked if they wanted to try again without asking him.

Elizabeth goes to Finn’s office, and he says he just wants to finish this email reminding Portia to sign off on the treatment he’s recommending. It’s a good thing it’s not an emergency, or his patient would be dead by the time he finished all this paperwork. He finishes and says, okay. What can he do for her? She says she wants him to close his eyes and take a breath, and he asks if she thinks this is really a good time for yoga. She tells him that it’s a breathing exercise, and takes his hands. She says, close your eyes, and he does. She wants him to breathe in for a count of four, hold it for two, and breathe out for five. He asks if she’s going to keep track, and she says she’ll count for him. Ready? Breathe in, 2…3…4. Hold, 1…2. Out, 2…3…4…5. One more time. She repeats the exercise, and he says he’s not complaining at all, but what’s that supposed to accomplish? She says, it’s supposed to push all that anger and frustration out of his head and clear everything out, so he can actually hear her when she tells him this. He did nothing wrong.

Sam and Scout meet Drew at the MetroCourt, and he says he’s so excited to tell Scout about what he does at work. It’s going to be fun. He shows her a picture of her swimming plaque on his phone and says he looks at it every day. She asks if he likes it, and he says he loves it. She says her teacher said she should record the interview, so she doesn’t forget when she writes her report. She asks if that’s okay with him, and he says, of course (🍷) it’s okay. He gives her permission to record their conversation. She can asks him anything she wants. She says she’s ready to start, and he says, ask away. She says, what is the name of the company he works for? and he says, it’s Aurora Media. He works there, but he also owns it. Scout says, for how long? and he says, for six years. He and her mom bought another man’s business and then they renamed it Aurora. Scout asks why he made this company, and he says he and her mom wanted to build something for her. They wanted to have a company Scout would be really proud of and would maybe work at someday if she wanted to.

Dante says, Sonny knows he can’t discuss an active investigation, but Sonny says he’s not asking for anything privileged. Can Dante at least tell him how long before Mason Gatlin is transferred to Pentenville? Dante says he guesses when the doctors clear him, and Sonny asks when that’s going to be. Dante says, could be any day, and Sonny says he’s assuming the DA is going to make him some kind of plea deal. Dante says he doesn’t know what Robert’s plans are with this case. Why is Sonny so curious? Sonny says he doesn’t want Scorpio to let Mason off so easy. If it were up to him, Mason would be in prison for life; throw away the key. Dante says he agrees, but the theory is, Mason was working for somebody. He didn’t order Ava’s kidnapping. They’re pushing him to get the name of his boss. Sonny says, don’t waste his time. He can tell Dante right now who’s responsible for Ava’s kidnapping.

Laura tells Alexis that because Nikolas disappeared the way he did, Spencer took on a role in Ace’s life that was more like a father than a brother. So naturally, he’d want Ace to continue to live in the same house. Alexis says, obviously, he reconsidered, and Laura says, he absolutely did. He’s still very sad about it, but he’s not angry about it anymore. He’s not even fighting it. Alexis says she’s sure it had something to do with Trina, and Laura says, yes. She’s heard Trina’s a very good influence on him. Alexis says, that’s not an easy feat. She knows her family and how stubborn they can be… fatally when they actually make up their mind. And Spencer gave every indication that he was heading down that path. Laura says she actually gives Spencer a lot of credit here. She thinks he’s matured an awful lot. In part because of the role he’s played in Ace’s life. He had to put somebody else’s needs ahead of his own, so that’s made him more thoughtful and a little less impulsive. But to be honest, there aren’t many men his age who would take interest in a newborn baby brother. Alexis says, good for Spencer, and Laura says, good for him. He’s no longer the grandchild she’s most worried about. Alexis says she assumes Laura is referring to Charlotte, and Laura nods.

Molly tells TJ that she didn’t commit to another surrogate, just to entertaining more candidates. The matching professional is going to meet them at the Port Charles Grill this afternoon for a preliminary discussion. He asks why she didn’t tell him, and she says she just had the conversation this morning and she is telling him right now. He says, this is happening too fast for him. He’s still processing the loss of their baby Andrea was carrying. It wasn’t just a hypothetical; it was real. They had hopes for it. They had dreams for it. They were only a few weeks off from knowing if they were going to have a son or a daughter, and he didn’t even realize how emotionally invested he’d become, and he doesn’t know when he’s going to be up for making that kind of emotional investment again. He just knows he’s not ready now. His phone beeps and he says he has to go. He’ll see her tonight. He leaves and she flashes back to Alexis telling her that she’s here for them, whatever they need.

Finn says he wants to believe he did nothing wrong, and Elizabeth says, he didn’t. He says he keeps going over it in his head. Is there anything he missed? Was there some little thing that could have saved Muldoon’s life? She says, what’s the first hardest lesson any doctor has to learn? and he says, we’re not God. She says, right, and it’s not just doctors who think that. Sometimes it’s the patients too. They want to believe, they need to believe, doctors have all the answers, that there’s a medicine or treatment out there that’s going to give them their life back. But they both know medicine doesn’t work like that. You run tests, you make a diagnosis, prescribe treatment, and you hope it’s the right one. Between what Mr. Muldoon told him and the tests Finn ran, he provided the best treatment possible. She knows that and she’s going to keep reminding him until he knows that too. He says he wouldn’t dream of arguing with her, when there’s a knock at the door. Finn opens it, and a woman tells him that she’s DeeDee Clark. She’s representing General Hospital in the Muldoon malpractice lawsuit.

Scout says, last question. What is Drew’s favorite part of his job? Drew says, nobody’s ever asked him that before. That’s a very good question. He thinks his favorite part of the job is knowing Aurora entertains people as well as informs them. And also that Aurora is a really great place to work. People have good jobs with good benefits and are treated with respect. Scout says, thank you for your time, Mr. Cain, and he says, you’re welcome, Miss Cain. All this interviewing made him thirsty. What if they ask the waitress for some drinks? How about three ginger ales? Scout says she’ll go get them, and leaves. Drew asks if Sam thought he was too preachy, and she says she thinks Scout asked him some honest questions and he gave her some honest answers. He says, she took it so seriously. Maybe she has a future in journalism. Sam says, she could have gotten it from Alexis, and Scout comes back. She tells them, the drinks are coming, and Drew says, in the meantime, he has some big news for Scout.

Dr. Navarro sees Molly and says, this is a nice surprise. Molly says, it’s good to see her, and the doctor says she was told Molly’s surrogate suffered a miscarriage. She’s so sorry. Molly says, of course (🍷) they’re disappointed, and Dr. Navarro says she didn’t mean to upset Molly, but she should know miscarriages are always a risk in the first trimester. Does she think she and TJ will try again?

Finn invites Clark in and introduces Elizabeth, saying, she was recently named head nurse at General Hospital. Clark says, nice to meet her and congratulations on her promotion. Elizabeth thanks her, and Clark says, since Elizabeth is already here, did she have any involvement or interaction with Mr. Muldoon? Elizabeth says she’s sure she was here when he was a patient, but she doesn’t recall having any personal interaction with him. Clark says her team will be doing a comprehensive records check. So if it turns out Elizabeth had any involvement with Mr. Muldoon, they may need to interview her in the future. But right now, she’s here to speak to Dr. Finn. Elizabeth says, understood, and tells Finn that she’ll talk to him later. She leaves, and Finn asks Clark to have a seat. He says, before they begin, he’s been advised to retain his own separate counsel, and she says, as he should. His attorney will focus on his defense. She represents the hospital, but his actions with regard to diagnosis and treatment of Mr. Muldoon will directly affect her defense. That’s why she’s here. And she apologizes in advance if any of her questions seem intrusive, but the key to defending a malpractice suit is having all the information, so that there are no surprises in the courtroom.

Laura says she also wanted to thank Alexis for the discretion The Invader showed in reporting the shooting. Alexis gave all the facts and managed to leave out Anna and Charlotte’s names. Alexis says, first of all, Charlotte, the victim, is a minor, so she’s protected. And Anna has been so unfairly treated by The Sun, she just wanted to protect Anna’s privacy. Laura says she’s so grateful Alexis made that call. When she was elected, she had to learn how to deal with the media scrutiny. She thinks she’s developed a tougher shell, then reads one of these opinion articles about herself, and it’s just absolutely brutal sometimes. Cyrus brings out a tray of glasses, and Laura says, she’d never want Charlotte to be exposed to anything like that, and it’s the last thing that Anna needs. Just having to live with the fact that she knows she shot a child. Laura can’t imagine the guilt she must be feeling. (I can’t imagine talking about this with Cyrus within earshot, especially when Laura just got done saying how great it was names were left out. Erg. And I have no doubt he’s listening.) Alexis says, in truth, if the circumstances were different, she would have had a searing op ed written about gun violence. If someone as trained and skilled as Anna Devane could shoot an innocent person by accident, what better argument is there against carrying guns? (How about the argument against rooting around someone else’s apartment in the dark?) Cyrus drops the tray of glasses, and they shatter. He glances at Laura before bending down to pick up the pieces.

TJ says he can take some of Austin’s patients, and Portia says, that would be perfect. She also called Dr. Park. He should be here soon. Elizabeth says she called Austin again. Still no answer. She left a message. Portia asks, what about the texts? but Elizabeth says she got nothing. Portia asks if they checked when he was last on duty, and Elizabeth says she did. It was two days before Thanksgiving. He had the holiday off and he was due back this morning. Portia says, still, it could be anything. He could have car trouble, or his phone could be dead. Elizabeth asks if Portia wants her to go to his apartment and check on him, and Portia says she doesn’t want to ask Elizabeth to do that, but Elizabeth says she’s volunteering, and leaves.

Dante says, Mason Gatlin is working for Cyrus Renault? and Sonny says, that’s right. Dante asks how long he’s known, and Sonny says, since the day Cyrus was released from Pentenville. Does he remember Avery’s temporary nanny, Betty? Dante says, yeah. He was wondering why Sonny moved on from Pilar. Sonny says, because he knew Betty was a plant. Mason used her to spy on him, so he got Brick to dummy up the computer and put in false information. She stole the information, took it to Austin, and Austin delivered it to Cyrus at Pentenville. Dante says, hold on. Austin Gatlin-Holt was in on this too? Sonny says, it looks like Austin and his cousin Mason have been working for Cyrus all along, and Dante says, dammit. He takes Austin’s card out of his wallet and calls. A man answers, and Dante asks who he’s speaking to. The man asks who he’s speaking to, and Dante says he asked first, but Detective Falconari from the Port Charles Police Department. The man says, nice to meet you, detective. Paul Brisco with the Pautuck PD. Why is he calling? Dante says he’s trying to get ahold of Dr. Austin Gatlin-Holt. He’s on staff here at General Hospital in Port Charles. Brisco says he’s sorry to inform Dante, Austin Gatlin-Holt is dead. (Boo! Hiss!)

Clark asks how Mr. Muldoon became Finn’s patient, and Finn says his daughter Violet and Mr. Muldoon’s daughter are in the same class at school. They were at a parent gathering, and Mr. Muldoon mentioned he traveled abroad for business, and he was feeling under the weather and he may have contracted something along the lines of a tapeworm. He recommended Mr. Muldoon come in and make an appointment with him here at General Hospital, and he agreed. Clark asks if he came to see Finn, and Finn says, he did. She asks, how soon after his initial conversation with Mr. Muldoon did Finn examine him?

Scout says she’s glad Drew’s office is here so they can come to the restaurant. Should she put that in her report? He says, it’s her report. She gets to decide what she puts in there. It’s good training in case she decides to become a journalist. She gets to decide what to put in her story and what she doesn’t. Sam says, if their daughter isn’t going to ask him about his good news, she will. What’s going on? He says he closed a deal with Steve Harris, and she asks if she should be familiar with that name. Drew says, he works in venture capital. He has a daughter a little bit older than Scout who attends Westwood Academy. Sam says, that’s that fancy private school, and he says, yeah. Steve’s on the board, and he told Steve about Scout and convinced him to open a spot for her, so Scout can go to Westwood too.

Molly tells Dr. Navarro that she always knew miscarriage was a possibility, but she wasn’t prepared emotionally. The doctor says, no one ever is. What are her thoughts about moving forward? Molly says, Andrea, their surrogate, made it very clear that she does not want to try again. So if they decide to move forward, they’ll have to start from scratch. Dr. Navarro says she knows it will set them back a few more months, but she’s sure Molly and TJ will find a suitable candidate. Molly says, honestly, she’s not sure they can go through this again, and the doctor says, it’s very understandable. It’s a decision only Molly and TJ can make, but while miscarriages are not uncommon, many, many surrogacies have been successful. There are lots of parents in the world, lots of people in the world, who prove that surrogacy can work. She wishes Molly and TJ the best, whatever path they choose going forward, and she leaves.

Dante thanks Brisco for the update, and Sonny says, sounded serious. Dante says, it was, but he can tell Sonny about it, because he’ll hear about it soon enough. Austin Gatlin-Holt is dead. Sonny asks if he knows how it happened, and Dante says, he was shot to death in a house in Pautuck. Does Sonny know anything about it? Sonny asks why he would know about it. He doesn’t know anyone in Pautuck. Dante says, unless Sonny arranged for it to happen, and Sonny says, Dante has known him long enough. Dante knows how he works. If he’s going to arrange for Austin to be dead, they’re not going to find his body because it will be in the Pine Barrons. And the last thing he’s going to do is come here and talk to his son the detective. Dante has to give him a little more credit than that. Dante says he’s relieved Sonny didn’t do it, but now he has to find out who did. Sonny says, no, he doesn’t.

Cyrus cleans up the glass, and the maître d’ says, if the tray is too heavy, than make two trips. Cyrus says, got it, and the wicked stepmother maître d’ says, the cost of the broken glass will come out of your paycheck. Now finish the clean-up. (Geez. A little tough on him for a place that’s supposed to be sympathetic to ex-cons.) Cyrus says, yes, sir, and Alexis tells Laura, either he doesn’t know who his new dishwasher is, or that maître d’ has a death wish.

Sam says she and Drew never discussed Scout going to a private school, and Drew says, it’s a great opportunity. Sam says she knows. Kristina went to Westwood. She remembers her mom having to do backflips to get her in. Not to mention, Sonny had to give a talk with them to get her accepted. It’s really expensive, but he could afford it. Drew says, so can he, and she says she believes the acceptance rate is 7% or something, and there’s an epic waiting list. Is Scout just going to jump to the front of the line? He says, there’s a big waiting list because it’s a great school. And it turns out there’s a student in Scout’s class that had to leave, so Scout can just slide right in there and start right after Christmas break. What does Scout say? It’s an amazing school. It’s all girls and they have one of the best swim teams in the state. She’s going to be able to study so many more subjects than she did at public school, and as she gets a bit older, they even have a study abroad program. Looking less than thrilled, Scout asks if he wants her to go there, and he says, all he’s ever wanted for her is the best life possible. Westwood is a great step up. He thinks she’s going to love it. What does she say? Scout says, okay, daddy, and I want to smack Drew. Probably Sam does too.

Dante tells Sonny, Austin lived and worked in Port Charles. It’s his duty to investigate, but Sonny says, Dante just told him that Austin was shot in Pautuck, the same place where Dante shot his cousin Mason. Dante says, it was in the line of duty, and Sonny asks if it isn’t going to be a conflict of interest for him to investigate Austin’s death. Shouldn’t that fall on the cops in Pautuck? Dante says, if he was running lead investigator, it would be a conflict of interest, but it’s not because Austin was murdered in Pautuck, so the Pautuck PD will run lead. But because, like he said, Austin lived and worked in Port Charles, he and the PCPD have to share information. Sonny could save them a lot of time and effort if he’d tell Dante who he suspects. Sonny says, it’s the same person Dante suspected all along – Cyrus Renault. He tells Dante that he has to go, and leaves.

Cyrus finishes sweeping up the glass, and Alexis tells Laura that she’s surprised an upscale place like the Port Charles Grill would hire an ex-con like Cyrus. Laura says, maybe the manager here believes in second chances, and Alexis asks if she thinks he can be reformed. Laura says she just had this conversation with her other brother Martin, and she’ll tell Alexis what she told him. It is entirely possible Cyrus hasn’t changed a bit and this turn toward God is just a big act, but she believes in second chances. So until Cyrus has proven himself to be a threat, she’s going to stand by her own principles and say her brother deserves a second chance, just like everybody else. Alexis thanks Laura for lunch, and they leave. Cyrus watches them go down the block from inside the restaurant.

TJ tells Portia that he checked on Austin’s patients and they’re all doing fine. They shouldn’t need to be checked on until he makes his rounds. Portia thanks him, and tells him that she hates to say this, but she may have to ask him to stay late to cover. He says, actually, the timing couldn’t be better, and she asks what that means. He says he and Molly had a difference of opinion on whether they should look for a new surrogate, and it’s not a conversation he wants to have right now. So if he can bury himself in work instead… bring it on. Elizabeth comes back and says she really needs to talk to Portia. TJ says, not a problem. He’s got more patients to see. He leaves, and Elizabeth tells Portia that she went to Austin’s apartment. No one was there, but there was food delivery sitting outside his door. She looked at the receipt and it had been delivered on Thanksgiving Day. Clearly, he never brought it inside. Portia says, now she’s starting to get concerned, and Elizabeth says she found the super and explained the situation. He let her in. No sign of him. In fact, it looked like Austin hadn’t been there since before Thanksgiving. Portia says, what? and Elizabeth asks if Portia is thinking what she’s thinking. Should they call the police?

On the phone walking to the elevator, Drew tells Steve that he has an update on his daughter. He spoke to Scout and her mom about Westwood Academy and they’re all for it… Yes. So let’s pick out a time when we can move forward and talk about Scout getting admitted.

Sam and Scout arrive home, and Sam says she knows Scout needs to write her report about dad’s job, but did she have any other homework to finish up? Scout says, no, just the report, and Sam says she was thinking maybe they could take a drive over to Westwood Academy and see what it looks like on the outside. What does she think? Scout just gives her a sad look, and Sam says, they could go by Kelly’s and get some hot chocolate. Scout says she doesn’t want to go to that school, and Sam puts Scout in her lap and strokes her hair.

Molly goes into the PC Grill and tells the maître d’ that she’s meeting someone, but they’re not here yet. She said the reservation should be under her name, Claire Brown.

Finn says, Mr. Muldoon came to visit him about a week after their conversation, and Clark asks what kind of symptoms he complained about. Finn says, he had some G.I. distress, weight loss, general fatigue, and she says, anything else? Finn says, he complained about some dizziness, but it hadn’t gotten as far as fainting, and she asks how Finn treated him. Finn says he ran some bloodwork and a culture. The tests came back with low hemoglobin and elevated white blood cell count, and the culture came back positive for a tapeworm. He treated him for the tapeworm and Mr. Muldoon called a few days later saying he was feeling much better. He also requested Mr. Muldoon come in for a follow-up just in case. Clark says, just in case what? and he says, it’s standard procedure to make sure the patient was properly treated, but Mr. Muldoon refused, saying he had to go on another business trip. She says, then what? and he says, Mr. Muldoon came in two months later, at which time he ran further bloodwork and a colonoscopy. At that time, he discovered Mr. Muldoon had cancer. She asks, what happened then? and he says he referred Mr. Muldoon to oncology. Unfortunately, it was already Stage IV. Mr. Muldoon passed away shortly after. She asks if any of the symptoms Mr. Muldoon complained about in his first visit signs for cancer? Finn doesn’t say anything, and she says, when Mr. Muldoon initially told Finn about his symptoms, did he ever think it might be cancer? Finn says, before he answers any more questions, he thinks he’d like his lawyer present.

Sonny gets in his car and makes a call. He says he’s on his way to the MetroCourt. Get over there now. There’s something you need to know. He drives away.

When Dante goes into the station, the desk sergeant says he has a Detective Brisco from the Pautuck PD waiting for him. He put Brisco in the interrogation room (where all the PCPD action happens!) Dante goes in, introduces himself, and says, they spoke earlier. Brisco says, good to meet him in person, and Dante says, him as well. Brisco says, they’re requesting interdepartmental cooperation to investigate the murder of Dr. Austin Gatlin-Holt.

Tomorrow, Gloria asks when Brook and Chase are getting married; Maxie says she’s in over her head and doesn’t know what to do; Finn tells Martin that he might have just made things worse; and Sonny tells Ava, every second she wastes makes it harder for him to cover her tracks.

🩺 Roger Come Back…

It’s just a shame. They never quite knew what to do with him. Now we all lose… sniff…

https://ew.com/roger-howarth-goodbye-general-hospital-8405164

He was at his best when he was Todd with Blair. I remember when Todd putt crumpled beer cans on his Christmas tree for decoration. It was at that moment I knew I liked him.

🍜 G-L-O-R-I-A…

Well, somebody had to ruin the turkey.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/rena-sofer-reveals-how-she-got-ellen-travolta-back-to-gh

🏥 Another Thanksgiving Return…

How ironic she’s in nursing.

🦃 Turkey Talk…

How they celebrated.

And if that’s not enough, some Thanksgiving memories from soap past.

Rushing the season.

👒 That’s One Word To Use…

She is kind of entertaining, but probably not if you’re in the same room.

🧂 Only a Matter Of Time…

There are certainly enough characters in the franchise to glean from.

https://ew.com/sarah-paulson-channeling-real-housewives-of-salt-lake-city-meredith-marks-for-next-role-8405859

💎 Nothing Earthshattering…

She probably just wants to stay relevant since she’s no longer on RHOBH.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1390413/kathy-hilton-weighs-in-on-possible-kyle-richards-mauricio-umansky-reconciliation

📹 Looks Blankly At the Camera…

I don’t even know what to say.  The Twitterverse (X-verse?) seems to be anti-Kyle and telling Natalya to watch out. I officially Willy Wonka strike that and reverse it.

👠 Demi Plus Drag…

This looks like fun because, Trixie Mattel! On Roku, December 8th.

https://ew.com/demi-lovato-a-very-demi-holiday-special-first-look-8403774

🎄 Get Ready, Get Set…

The season has officially begun. Better to watch it on TV. It’s going to be a zoo this year.

https://www.rockefellercenter.com/holidays/rockefeller-center-christmas-tree-lighting/

🎋 Jingling One Bell…

Join me tomorrow for soap and SMH at Beverly Hills. Until then, stay safe, stay not feeling pressured to feel holly or jolly, and stay remembering that doctors are not God and do not have all the answers.

November 27, 2023 – Nina Comes To the Thanksgiving Dinner Rescue, Chef Jack Opens a Book Of Worms On Deck & Gave

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

As the smoke alarm goes off, Yuri, Ned, and Chase run to the kitchen. Lois asks Gloria, what did you do?

Nina leaves a gift basket outside the gatehouse. She says, they couldn’t be together, but she could leave her little ones a bit of her love.

In the MetroCourt elevator, Anna tells Emma, just what she needs, Thanksgiving with the three of them. As the elevator stops, Robert says, the four of them. They get out, and Diane is waiting. Robert says, there she is.

Drew plays a board game with Josslyn, Scout, and Avery, when the doorbell rings. Carly opens the door to Sonny, Dex, and Donna. Donna hugs her and says, happy Thanksgiving.

Marshall tells Curtis, all quiet on the Western Front. There’s not much for him to do around here. Curtis says, Portia is on-call at the hospital and Aunt Stella is off globe-trotting again. Marshall says, and Miss Trina is off doing her own thing, but Curtis says, it’s just as well. He looks at a floorplan on his tablet, and Marshall asks, what’s all this? Is he considering becoming an architect? Curtis says, this is the floorplan of the 11th floor of the MetroCourt hotel, and Marshall asks why he’s looking at it. Curtis says, because someone took a shot at him there and left him in this wheelchair. And he wants to find out who it was.

Portia leaves a message for Trina and says she’s just checking in. She knows Trina wanted to have a marathon study day, but she was calling to say hi. It’s pretty slow here at work. She’s sorry things aren’t working out with Spencer. She knows it has to be difficult, so she just wanted to say she’s here and she loves Trina. She hangs up and says, hopefully, that will be the last of Spencer Cassadine.

Hardly. In bed, Trina tells Spencer, happy Thanksgiving, and asks what he’s thankful for. He touches her and says, these arms… these hands… these lips, and he kisses her. Trina says, her mom – she’s like Wonder Woman without the hot pants – and then her granddad – he is gold – and she has two amazing fathers. She thinks that’s it. He says, not even an honorable mention? and she says, oh yeah. She’s thankful for him too. She kisses him.

Curtis tells Marshall that he has to admit there’s a lot to be thankful for; a beautiful house, a beautiful family, and now he has a purpose. Marshall says, solving this case is his purpose, and Curtis says, it is now.

Gloria looks at some texts on her phone. We warned you not apologizing would be very regrettable for you. Your silence on this matter is quite upsetting. We are owed an apology. Time’s running out. Lois says, she looks a million miles away. What’s up? Chase, Ned, and a sopping wet Yuri come back, and Yuri says, onions burning in pan set off sprinklers activated by smoke. Turkey’s wet. No good. Olivia says, oh my God, the turkey, and runs out. Ned runs after her, and Chase says, there’s no saving it. Brook says, wanna bet? and he says, unless you like soup. Yuri leaves to change, and Brook says she’d better call Cody and tell him that he, Sasha, and Leo don’t have to rush up here. She leaves with Chase, and Lois asks if Gloria knows the first thing she taught Lois about cooking. You never leave anything on the stove unless it’s on simmer. So what’s going on?

Robert says, this delightful young lady is their granddaughter Emma Drake, and Diane says, of course (🍷). So lovely to see her again. Emma thanks her and says, grandfather didn’t mention they’d have her with them. How wonderful. Anna says, absolutely, and Robert says he’s taken the liberty of ordering them turkey. Anna and Emma go to the table, and Diane says, Robert’s outdone himself this time. He says, all in a day’s work, Killer, when Nina comes in. She and Anna exchange glances.

Michael brings in the basket, and tells Wiley, it’s all his. Go for it. He unwraps it, and Willow asks what he’s got. He says, candy and a cool robot and a kitty for Amelia, and Michael looks at the card. Willow says, that’s so sweet. Who’s it from? Michael hands her the card and says, who else? She reads: To Wiley and Amelia, Happy Thanksgiving. So sorry I can’t be with you, but I left you some treats. Love, Grandma Nina. That is so thoughtful. Wiley asks why Grandma Nina isn’t coming for dinner at the big house, and Willow says, she’s working today, but they’ll see her soon. Wiley says he hopes so. He loves her. He goes to play with his robot, and Willow says she gets Michael’s not thrilled about the gift, but could he try for Wiley’s sake?

Sonny says he brought pecan pie, and Carly says she’s sure it’s going to be delicious. She suggests Donna go into the living room where they’re playing Monkey, and Donna runs off. Carly tells Sonny that Donna loves that game, and Dex says he’s going to leave, but Sonny asks if he wants to say hi to Josslyn. Dex says he would and tells Carly, happy Thanksgiving. Sonny tells him, don’t say I never do anything for you, and Dex goes into the living room.

Josslyn tells Dex that it’s unexpected to see him, and he says, she has Sonny to thank for that. She says she just might have to, and kisses him.

There’s a knock at the door, and Carly opens it to Ava. Ava says, happy Thanksgiving, handing Carly a bag, and Carly smiles at Sonny.

Olivia says, Gloria’s feast is drenched, and Brook says, Tony’s is closed for renovations. Olivia says, Tony’s is never closed. And they can’t use their pizza oven because the kitchen is ruined. Lois says, it’s not ruined. It’s just extremely wet. Olivia tells them that she hates to say I told you so, but Thanksgiving never works at the Quartermaines. The place is cursed. Lois says, stop it. Olivia owns a hotel with a gourmet restaurant. She’s just going to make a phone call and she’ll get turkey for the Quartermaines if it’s the last thing she does.

Nina answers the phone at the MetroCourt, and Lois asks, who’s this? Nina says, it’s Nina Reeves. May I help you? Lois says, it’s Lois Cerullo calling from the Quartermaines. She would like to order some turkey. Gloria tells Olivia that she’s so sorry, but Olivia says, it’s not her fault. Thanksgiving never works out. She doesn’t know if it’s the house or the family, but they haven’t had a turkey on Thanksgiving since the 90s. Lois says, ha-ha-ha! The problem is solved. They are back on track with the turkey. Olivia says, she’s kidding, but Lois says, nope. Nina Reeves is on her way over with a feat for 15; turkey, nibbles, deserts, the whole shebang. Olivia says, Lois is a genius, and asks Brook to come help her set up. Gloria says, Lois sure rode in to the rescue, and Lois says, although she wouldn’t have had to if Gloria had remembered she had onions on the stove. Gloria says, my bad, and Lois asks, what’s going on? First, she cancels her plans in Canarsie, then she ruins Thanksgiving in Port Charles. Gloria says, she heard Olivia, it’s the Quartermaine curse, but Lois says, no. She can tell something’s going on, and the more Gloria deflects, the more she’s going to worry. Gloria says, all right. A couple of weeks ago, she was playing Bingo at St. Nicholas Church, the Russian Orthodox up on North Street. She was playing her boards, minding her own business. She can do 15 at the same time… Lois asks if there’s a point to this, and Gloria says, yeah. Along comes this broad. She sits down next to Gloriaa and starts talking Russian on her phone at the top of her lungs. Gloria very nicely looked at her and said, could she turn it down a notch? and She swore at Gloria in Russian. Lois asks how Gloria knows what she said; she doesn’t speak Russian. Gloria says she played cribbage up in Brighton Beach (my old beach!) – Yuri comes back and stands outside the door – and she picked up a few words. Lois asks, then what happened? and Gloria says she tried to ignore it and keep things calm, but she kept pushing and pushing. So. Gloria finally swore at her… in English. Lois says, ma, and Gloria says, everyone has their limit, and she was not going to let that obnoxious woman bully her and she told her that. Lois asks how she took it, and Gloria says, she screamed and screamed, and they kicked Gloria out of the church. And she’s not allowed to play Bingo anymore until she apologizes to her, and she didn’t apologize. Lois says, fine. So she goes somewhere else to play Bingo. Gloria says, that’s what she’s planning on, and Lois says, so what’s the problem? Chase comes in and wonders where everybody went. Outside the door, Yuri looks troubled.

Willow suggests Wiley be a good big brother and see if Amelia woke up. If she did, he can surprise her with that adorable kitty cat. Wiley goes upstairs, and Michael asks if Willow isn’t finding this the least bit manipulative; sorry I can’t be with you today. She says, Nina’s a part of their family. Wiley really bonded with her at the wedding. Michael says, she’s going to take advantage like she did the last time, and Willow says, Nina’s made mistakes, but she’s trying. Why is he so intent on rekindling bad memories? He says, she’s right. He’s sorry. He’s just being protective, especially when it comes to her. She says, don’t be. Nina has been nothing but kind and wonderful. He says he’ll try to do better, especially around the kids, and she thanks him. Wiley comes back and tells Willow that Amelia’s awake. Can they go to the big house now? He wants to show Leo the cool toy from Grandma Nina. Michael says he’ll get Amelia ready, and goes upstairs.

Nina tells Trish that she just got off the phone with the Quartermaines. They need a turkey dinner for 15. Trish says, they have a 200 headcount tonight and a big party in the ballroom. Their turkeys are taken.  

Diane asks how long Emma’s in town, and Emma says, just for the weekend. She has to get back to the lab. Robert explains that she has an internship at Berkely, and everyone starts to chat. Anna sees Nina, excuses herself, and follows Nina out to the hallway. She says, Nina is avoiding her, and Nina asks what she wants. Anna says she just thinks it’s time they had a chat.

Spencer says he knows he can be a jerk sometimes, but who isn’t, right? and Trina says, let her see… Her mom, Curtis, Spencer’s grandmother, Doc… He says, okay, she’s right, and she asks if it isn’t easier to agree with her from the start. He says, yes, ma’am. He’s glad she’s able to forgive him. She talked him down from the ledge and he’s sorry it took so long. She says, he usually comes around, and he says he just doesn’t want his little brother to feel abandoned like he did, and she helped him see it’s not 100% one way or the other, that Esme wanting to take Ace and be independent doesn’t make her the villain. She says she knows it’s hard, but you can’t always get what you want, and he says he knows, but this one isn’t going to be easy. She says, good things never come easy. You have to work for them.

Curtis tells Marshall that he spoke with Jordan about getting all the preliminary police records. He just can’t sit around and wait for the PCPD to solve this. He’s got to be involved in his own investigation. Marshall asks if he really thinks that’s a good idea, and Curtis says he was a cop and a P.I. He knows his way around a good investigation. Marshall says, of course (🍷) he does, but he thought Curtis wanted to move on, and Curtis says he has to be proactive. It’s like being the passenger when he’s supposed to be the driver in his own car. Marhsall asks if he thinks getting involved in this investigation is going to make a difference, and Curtis says, at least he’ll be doing something. He’s learned in life that it’s not always about getting; it’s about giving and the experiences you get along the way. They fist bump.

Ava thanks Carly for inviting her, and Carly says she knows Avery would really want Ava here, especially after everything their family’s been through. They’re playing games in the living room. Ava says, hopefully nothing to do with water, mimicking a squirt gun, and Carly says, nothing with water, she promises.

Josslyn and Dex greet Ava, Dex calling her Miss Jerome, and Ava says, after everything that’s gone down, she’d prefer he call her Ava. Avery runs over to Ava, who picks her up and says she loves her.

Sonny asks if Carly is all right with Ava being here, and she says, actually, Josslyn suggested it. After the kidnapping, she thought it would be nice for Avery to be with her mother. Sonny says, but Carly agrees, and she says, yeah, because they do what’s best for their kids. He says, they always will.

Anna asks if Nina has any idea how her actions escalated an already volatile situation. By deleting that security footage and keeping quiet about it, Nina basically enabled Charlotte, which led directly to her being shot. Doesn’t Nina think she and Valentin had a duty to come clean about it? Nina says she thinks this is between Anna and Valentin. She was just doing a favor for a friend. Anna asks if she thinks Sonny will see it that way.

Sonny says, nice to see Drew out of that jumpsuit, and Drew says, nice to be seen. Sonny and Drew chat, and Dex tells Josslyn that it’s nice she got all the kids together. Sonny asks if Dex has the keys, and Dex asks if he needs something from the car, but Sonny says he has to get going. He thought maybe Dex would want to stay. Dex asks if he’s sure, and Sonny says, happy Thanksgiving. He says goodbye to the girls and leaves. Dex stops him at the door and says, happy Thanksgiving. Sonny says, him too, and leaves.

At the Quartermaines, Michael tells Willow, it looks like turkey’s off the menu. The kitchen sprinklers ran amuck. Brook says, there will be turkey, but Nina will bring it from the MetroCourt. Chase says, that’s Wiley’s grandma, saving the day, and Michael asks if there’s anything she can’t do.

The doorbell rings and Ned opens it to find Nina there with trays of food. She says, Ned, and he says, remember me? He remembers her, very clearly, but don’t worry. He’s not going to make any trouble. At least not today. Olivia comes in and says, let her take those. A guy comes in behind Nina with pizza boxes, and Olivia says she thought Nina was bringing turkey. Nina says, she told Lois she was bringing turkey, but then she found out their turkey was spoken for, so she had Fernando fire up their new pizza oven. Lucky for them, they started testing it last week. Ned asks if his grandfather can hear that. The curse continues. He takes the pizza boxes, and Brook comes in, saying, here she is to save the day… with pizza. Olivia says, don’t ask, and Wiley runs in. He hugs Nina and tells her, it’s the best robot ever. He thanks her and she hugs him, saying, he is so welcome.

Sonny says he didn’t know Emma was in town. Is her mother here? Emma says, no. She was grandpa’s surprise for grandma. He sits with them, and Diane suggests they toast to this lovely young woman’s visit, and to brighter holidays for all of them. They clink glasses.

Terry calls Portia at the hospital, and Portia asks, how’s the conference?… She’s not missing anything here really. It’s like a ghost town.

Trina and Spencer go to Trina’s house, bearing flowers and dessert, and Spencer produces a bottle of champagne. Marshall asks if it’s the good stuff, and Spencer says he wanted to make sure they had a happy Thanksgiving. Marshall looks at the bottle and says, no argument here. He and Spencer go to the kitchen, and Curtis says, this is a nice surprise. He thought since her mom was working, they agreed to do their own thing this year. Trina says, that was the plan, but then she realized this would be their first Thanksgiving since they found out he’s her father, and she didn’t want to miss that.

Olivia thanks Nina and asks her to join them. Wiley asks her to stay, but Nina glances at Michael and says she would love to, but she’s meeting his Grandpa Sonny at the MetroCourt. Olivia asks Brook and Chase to help her set up and tells Nina that she’s a life saver. Somehow, Michael and Nina end up alone, and he says, this isn’t the deal they made, but she says she didn’t plan for this. She can’t control fate at the Quartermaines. He says, she’d better figure out how to control it, and walks out. What a jerk.

Ava thanks Josslyn for everything she did to help Dex and Dante find her, and Josslyn says, they’re just glad Ava’s okay. Ava says she’s putting it behind her. And she’s so glad that’s what Trina’s finally done with Spencer. Josslyn says she’s happy they made up, and Ava thanks Carly for making room for one more. Carly says, of course (🍷), and Drew says, Carly told him that Ava is selling Windymere. Carly asks how it’s going, and Ava says, Lucy’s got a serious buyer, but she has no idea who it is. Drew says, let’s hope it’s some benevolent billionaire and not somebody who’s going to bring bad karma to Port Charles, and Ava says, too late for that. Windymere’s got nothing but bad karma. She’ll just be glad to forget all the bad memories.

Portia hugs Trina, and says she thought Trina was studying all day. Trina says she thought Portia was working, and Portia says, it was so slow at the hospital, she decided to just go ahead and… She sees Spencer come in with flowers in a vase and says she could have sworn Trina told her that she and Spencer were on the outs. Trina says, it was just a misunderstanding. They worked it out. Spencer wishes Portia a happy Thanksgiving, and she thanks him. Curtis says, look at this. He thought they weren’t going to have anyone for Thanksgiving, and now they have a houseful.

Emma asks how long Robert and Diane have been dating, and Robert chokes on his drink. Emma says, if she can handle grandma’s entanglement, she can handle his, and Diane laughs. Robert says, to answer her question, they’ve been dating a month. Standing to the side, Sonny says, it’s nice to see Emma in town, and Anna says, much needed relief. Just what the doctor ordered. He says, that bad? and she asks if he’s talked to Dante. He says, no, should he have? and she says she just wondered if Dante mentioned a certain dead man who showed up here. She’s been doing these deep dives in her past and found something that could conceivably tie in to the shooting at the pool, but the supporting evidence all disappeared in the chaos on Halloween night. And the man this information pertains to turned up dead here in Port Charles. What are the odds? Sonny says, looks like someone stacked the deck.

Anna says, even with all the setbacks, she feels like she’s inching toward the truth, and Sonny says, whoever’s behind this isn’t messing around. Again, if she needs protection, he’s here… She says, that was really all about Charlotte, and he says, and Valentin. She says, lesson learned. She won’t be fooled by him again. Nina comes back, and Sonny says, finally. He heard she had a crisis or something. She says she just got back from the Quartermaines. Lois’s mother set off the sprinklers in the kitchen. He says, Gloria? and she says, yeah. She tells Anna, hello, and Anna says, Nina. She tells them that she has to get back to her family, and leaves. Sonny looks at Nina.

Lois asks to talk to Gloria in the foyer, and asks, what is the problem? Gloria says, that broad, her husband is kind of a big shot. They call him Uncle Pete. Lois says, Pete Petrov? and Gloria says, yeah. His wife’s name is Petra. A lot of Ps. Yuri listens in, and Lois says, Uncle Pete Petrov is in deep with the Brighton mafia. They’re as crooked as they get. Gloria’s got to apologize and fast. Gloria says, it’s too late. They’re after her ziti. That’s why she didn’t go to Canarsie. They’re hiding ziti for her. Lois says, please tell her that they’re just trying to be intimidating, when Yuri steps out. He says, they have a problem with Russians? He’ll help.

Marshall says he’s so thrilled. This has turned into one perfect Thanksgiving. Portia says, and everyone under the same roof, but Marshall says, almost everyone. Stella is still galivanting around London. She’s taken a real shine to her new cousin Wanda. Trina toasts, to new family connections, and Marshall says he’s really happy they’re all here. And lucky them, he’s got a vat of turkey gumbo ready to go. Curtis says, Marshall always makes enough for a small army, and Trina says, if they run out, they have all that dessert Spencer insisted on bringing. Spencer says, it’s always good to have options, and Marshall says, the Lord always provides, but we just never know what that’s going to look like.

Carly says, dinner is served, and everyone dashes for the table. Drew says he just wanted to steal a moment and tell her that he’s so grateful to be spending Thanksgiving with her. She says, it’s so normal, isn’t it? She can’t believe it after everything they went through. She almost lost him. He kisses her and says, let’s stay right here and forget about the past. She says, it’s just so fragile. They take love for granted and she doesn’t know why, since they can’t guarantee it’s always going to be there. He says, that’s why they have to savor moments like this. They have to be grateful because there’s no guarantee there’s going to be anything like it in the future. Ava comes in and overhears, and Drew kisses Carly.

Sonny says, something seems off between Nina and Anna. What’s going on? She says, it’s nothing. It’s a Valentin and Charlotte thing. Anna knows how close she is with Charlotte. Can they just forget about that for right now? They’re finally in the same room and this is their first Thanksgiving as husband and wife. They hug, and she asks if he misses the girls, but he says, no. They’re having a great time. Plus, his life is full of blessings. He and Nina are married. Cyrus is exposed and in his sights. Drew’s out of prison. Michael is in their lives again, and basically, their family is together. But does she know what makes him happy? It’s that she and Willow are getting along. She says, they have so much to be grateful for.

Gloria tells Yuri, no offense, but they don’t need any Russian translation, and Lois says, she’s right. These are dangerous people and a nice boy like him doesn’t want to get involved with Uncle Pete. He says he knows he looks like nice boy, but he’s not always nice. He can handle these people. Brook says, come on in, guys. Let’s get Thanksgiving started.

Olivia says, Cody is bringing Sasha and Leo up from the stables, and Ned says, that’s just the time they need. Everyone here knows the drill. Wiley? Wiley says, first we sing… and everyone says, then we eat. Ned plays his guitar as they sing, We Gather Together.

Marshall says, since Stella isn’t here, he’ll lead the prayer, but Curtis says he’d like to do it this year. Marshall says, go ahead, and Curtis asks them to join hands. Dear God… I’m covering for Aunt Stella. Usually, I talk to You in private, so if I lose my way, take the wheel. There have been a lot of ups and downs this year for a lot of us, and for those of us going through it, we’re reminded that there is a Higher Power that keeps tabs and guides us to our next step. And so we’re gathered here with good people and a table full of good food and we’re reminded just how blessed we are. Perhaps more than most. So God, we ask that You keep a watchful eye out for those less fortunate than us, because life does throw us curveballs. So we’re going to hit those curveballs out of the park, learn a lesson or two, and still find a reason to crack a smile at the end of the day.

We see everyone at their Thanksgiving tables, and Curtis says, Aunt Stella would probably say something poetic about butterflies or rebirth, but God, I’m going to keep it simple. As we prepare to enjoy this meal, we thank You for being better to us than we are to ourselves. We thank You for yesterday, today, and the promise of tomorrow. And God, I know You’re listening. This goes out to You. Amen.

Scout and Donna jump on Drew and Carly, and Avery gets into Ava’s lap. Josslyn and Dex gaze at each other. On the terrace, Curtis looks up at the sky, and Portia puts her hands on his shoulders from behind. Trina and Spencer see them and kiss. Marshall comes out, and they go back to the table for pie.

In Loving Memory of Tyler Christopher.

Tomorrow, TJ says, Molly told someone yes without asking him; Finn asks Elizabeth, what’s that supposed to accomplish; Alexis asks Laura if this is a social meeting or about business; and Dante says, Sonny could save them a lot of effort if he’d tell them who he suspects.

Below Deck Mediterranean

When we left last week, Kyle was getting reamed out by Captain Sandy, who told him that he was the common denominator in all the toxic situations on the boat. She says, he wants to be chief stew, but he won’t be because he can’t control his emotions. If he doesn’t change, she’ll put him on the dock in a heartbeat. She’s not putting up with his bullying, screaming, and lack of respect for people in the workplace. If one crew member comes to her about him, he’s off the boat. Luka wonders, WTF is going on? and tells Haleigh that Max is leaving because he needs to follow his heart. Haleigh says, the vibe is off today, and Luka says, it’s crazy how much things can change in a day. Kyle tells Tumi that he’s resigning. He’s never seen the captain so angry. He tells her about the captain saying he’s the common denominator, and she says she can understand why he’s upset. People got angry, but it was resolved. She tells him not to let it affect him. She wanted them to end together. In Tumi’s interview, she says she’s starting to see how Kyle is the common denominator. You can’t always be the victim. She can’t force him to focus on work, but they’re screwed if he doesn’t. Lara asks Max not to leave, and he promises not to let her down. She asks if he’s spoken to Captain Sandy, and he says he’s scared to. In Lara’s interview, she says she and Max got off to a rocky start, but slowly and surely, he’s growing on her. She wonders if she needs to take him in like a little dog and nurture him. She doesn’t know what to do. She doesn’t want him to leave. The captain talks to Norma on the phone, and says, great. She calls Luka, Tumi, and Jack for a preference sheet meeting.  

The captain says, it’s going to be a short cruise, and in Luka’s interview, he says, with a short cruise, everything is amplified, and they have to be perfect. Captain Sandy says, the primary is Tonia, who is the founder and editor of P.O.W.E.R. magazine. She’s bringing some likeminded women to celebrate her birthday and celebrate women’s empowerment. Jack reads that they want some healthy salads, and the primary doesn’t eat eggs outdoors. In his interview, he says, that’s next level weird, and wonders how they found that out. Tumi says, they want an all-white party, and Luka reads that they want to explore Portofino. The captain says, it’s a tight dock and she has to back in. It’s going to be a challenge. They’re going to talk her through a ton of little boats and make sure she doesn’t hit anything. She tells Tumi that she’ll be getting a new stew tomorrow, and in Jack’s interview, he says, Kyle is a f***ing rat. He’d cause drama in an empty room with a mop bucket. Luka thinks more people should quit. The tip will be massive.

Max tells Captain Sandy that, even though it’s a super crew, he might want to leave. Shocked, she tells him that they only have two and a half more weeks, and he’ll leave them shorthanded for the rest of the season. He says he’ll think about it, and she says she doesn’t want to lose him; he’s an asset to the boat. She’ll even let him drive when they anchor. In Max’s interview, he says, so much ugliness is affecting him. He’s not getting his Eiffel Tower, and the body is the master. If he receives the call for one more charter, he’s not wasting his time and energy in a bad environment. The captain promises it will be a good charter. Jessika says she’s afraid of who’s coming next, when Tumi is called to the bridge. Captain Sandy shows her the CV of the new stew, who’s only worked on small boats. In the captain’s interview, she says, at this point, it’s not easy to find someone. Tumi has to be clear on her direction. A few boats is better than no boats, and she doesn’t have much choice. New stew Lily arrives, and in his interview, Max says his Eiffel Tower is back, and sings I love you. In Lily’s interview, she says she’s a quick learner. She grew up in Windsor and worked key events like the Royal Ascot and Wimbledon. Her last boat was catamaran, and she’s never worked on a boat this big. She’s sh*tting herself. Max tells Luka about the new stew. He can’t remember her name, but her eyes are blue. Kyle obsesses over what the captain said, and in his interview, he says, this is killing him, all that’s happening and has happened. He needs to fix this. He doesn’t want Captain Sandy to have this perception of him. Jack tells Lara that she’s got a good vibe. In Jack’s interview, he says, Kyle won’t look him in the eyes. He’s the one who got rid of Natalya who only gave him positive vibes. Kyle goes to the captain and says he’s truly apologetic for what he’s done and the way he allowed himself to react. He let his emotions get the best of him. We flash back to him trying to make nice with Natalya, and Captain Sandy says she appreciates someone who admits they’re wrong and wants to change. Sometimes it means you have to remove yourself from the situation. In Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, what Kyle did was not okay, but she’s giving him the opportunity to change what he needs to.

The guests arrive, and Captain Sandy says, we got this, adding that the guests are going to tease the boys. She gives the guests the usual spiel and the usual tour happens. The guests toast, to power women, and guest Marcie asks for her underwear to be ironed. The pilot comes on board for the check-out, and they depart. The captain tells the crew, nice work. Stay this sharp in Portofino. Kyle shows Lily the laundry, and in her interview, she says, she’s had to be a fast learner her whole life. She’s a rare breed of sushi. Kyle tells Tumi that it’s Lily’s first-time steaming, and she doesn’t know how.

Kyle is still getting silence from Jack, and in Kyle’s interview, he says, Jack blames him for being the sole person who pushed Natalya off the boat. Normally, silence is deafening, but Jack’s silence speaks a multitude of words. Tumi shows Lily the laundry system, and in Tumi’s interview, she says, it’s tough doing training while on service, especially on a busy boat. She needs Lily to succeed ASAP. She misses Natalya. Not for her mouth, but for her skills. Captain Sandy shows Max how to turn the boat, and in Max’s interview, he says, it’s like pressing a button and moving all the cosmos. He has goosebumps all over his body. We see his Eiffel Tower meter is on 7. The water toys are put out, but the guests don’t seem too interested, and just want to chill. In Lara’s interview, she says, usually the guests can’t wait to swim. They’re a 55-meter yacht water taxi. In the captain’s interview, she says, a big part of Luka’s job is selling the toys to the guests. That’s why they buy this stuff. He needs a gentle reminder to be that energy. Captain Sandy tells the guests how fun it is and plays it up. Luka tells Max, show the ladies how it’s done, and Max goes down the slide. Jack accidentally sprays himself with the dishwasher nozzle, and I can identify. In Luka’s interview, he says, the guests are happy, smiling, and enjoying themselves. Captain Sandy motivated him, and it was exactly what they needed. Lily talks with Max, and in her interview, she says she’s never been anywhere longer than 6 months. She’s lived in America 4 months out of the year since she was young. She demonstrates an impressive American accent for us.

Portofino. In her interview, Captain Sandy says, docking in Portofino is difficult. It’s narrow and she has to spin around on a dime, then back down a narrow area to get to a piece of dock this big. She holds her fingers like two inches apart, and says, boats are coming out, oblivious to them. Every ounce of her trust is in her deck team. That’s the only way she can pull this off. In Luka’s interview, he says, there are million-dollar boats everywhere and they have only inches on each side.

Since there are no ground lines, they have to do this thing where they drop two anchors, while a hundred people watch and take pictures. In the captain’s interview, she says, they’ve never done this before, and they killed it. Everyone deserves an ice cream. That was some scary sh*t. She takes the crew to shore for ice cream, and in Max’s interview, he says, he wanted to leave, but he sees that people like him. It’s like a family here. Lily came and brought her energy. He has a new goal. We see his Eiffel Tower meter is now at 9. So apparently all he needed was a new woman? The guests wander around Portofino, and Marcie says she’s living her best life. Back on the boat, Captain Sandy wonders about her underwear. No one is in the laundry, and she radios Kyle, telling him to make sure her underwear and socks get back to her cabin. Don’t lose her laundry. In Jack’s interview, he says, Kyle made them lose their goddess of f***ing laundry. There are lots of bleeps from Lily, and in Kyle’s interview, he says he doesn’t know what shade of green she is. Lily apologizes to the captain, and the guests get back to the boat. Jack is still giving Kyle the silent treatment, and in his interview, Kyle says he feels like he’s in high school, and wonders what’s being said behind his back. It’s time for the all-white party, and the guests get dressed. Jack says he’s tried to put as much white in the menu as possible. Jessika and Lily do the cabins, and in Tumi’s interview, she says, with Lily’s lack of experience, she can’t do anything on her own, and it takes Jessika away from her. She needs to find out what Lily does well and focus on that. Tonia tells Tumi that they need to turn it up, and the guests ask for the guys to strip. Tumi tells the deckhands that she needs a little Chippendales, and Luka tries to run. Max tells Luka that it’s a guest request. He was a deckhand when he came on the boat, and now he’s a stripper. Jack pretty much volunteers and I yell, put it on!

The guys dance around with feather boas, and in Jack’s interview, he says if he takes his clothes off, it might hurt the tip. Agreed. There’s a lot of dancing around, and the guys disrobe somewhat. In Jessika’s interview, she says, Luka is a very attractive man. After everyone goes to bed, Jessika gets in Luka’s bunk. Max walks in and says, no way. In Luka’s interview, he says he thinks Jessika is easy going like him. She’s not in an open relationship, so that’s a good sign. He just wants to cuddle. After a while, Jessika slips back out. In Max’s interview, he says his Eiffel tower is back, and imitates a snake charmer. Tonia explains that she can’t taste eggs out in the air; it gives them a foul taste. Wouldn’t that be a fowl taste? BA-DUM-CHH! In Tumi’s interview, she says, that’s prima donna stuff. On her last boat, a guest asked for raspberries every night, and they were everywhere… and coconut oil. It’s time to take the boat back out, and in Haleigh’s interview, she says, it’s like Frogger. She tells Luka, these people are ruthless, and in Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, it’s like NYC taxis. It can be a huge distraction, but all she sees is navigation. In Lily’s interview, she says, in her old boat, they didn’t even have a laundry room, and in Kyle’s interview, he says, he assumed laundry was a safe spot. He wonders if it’s basically luggage compartment at this point.

They dock, and Max is all happy now. They get ready to say goodbye to the guests, and Tonia says, the whole team was incredible. It was a beautiful day with beautiful people. She gives the captain the tip envelope, and the guests leave. Captain Sandy tells the crew, well done. They assemble for the tip meeting, and Kyle says, it wasn’t much work. Jack tells him to speak for himself, and in Jack’s interview, he says, it’s going to go off tonight. He can feel it in the air. The captain praises the deck team’s docking skills, and says, the tip is $18K, or 1252 euros per person. She tells them, don’t spend it all in one place, and the crew heads for shore. In the taxi, Kyle says he’s putting $100 on Lily getting wasted tonight. At the table, Jack tries to flirt with Lily and gripes about how Natalya had to deal with negative stuff. Lily asks Kyle, what happened? and Kyle says he has to take a wee. He leaves, and in his interview, he says, he knows the game Jack is playing. He’s influencing Lily. He can see it and hear it. Nothing is going to bring Jack’s princess back, and now he’s opened a book of worms.

This season, a big gay breakfast; underwater statues; Jessika likes Luka more than she should; Katie Flood (isn’t she from that horrific Winter House?) texts Luka; Tumi says, Lily isn’t getting it; Captain Sandy tells Lily that she’s got one more chance or she may have to make a change; Tumi tells Kyle that he’s overstepping boundaries; and Natalya aka Jack’s princes surprises everyone by showing up at the bar, but surprises no one by causing trouble.

🌚 Harvest Mooning…

Hoping you enjoyed a long weekend, whether you gathered together or not. Stop in tomorrow for a helping of soap and a pot of tea. Until then, stay safe, stay giving yourself a break if you overdid it, and stay hitting those curveballs out of the park, learning a lesson or two, and still finding a reason to crack a smile at the end of the day.

November 22, 2023 – Curtis’s Independent Investigation Begins, Garcelle Screens Her New Film, Salty Talk, Most Awfulest House & Restaurant

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Sasha looks at the photo of her and Brando that she left in the kitchen drawer, when there’s a knock at the door. She opens it to Sonny.

Gregory asks if he can bother Alexis for a moment, and she asks when he started using the cane. He says, it’s been by his side for a couple of days now. Dr. Cramer says he’ll need it until… She says, until he may need a wheelchair, and he says, yes, before the inevitable presents itself. He actually feels secure with it because Dr. Cramer says it can keep him from damaging himself if he falls… He guesses he should say, when he falls. She says she’s in favor of him staying on his feet as long as possible, and he says, this, from the woman who always keeps him on his toes. She asks if he just came by to show her the cool cane, or can she do something for him. He says, she has to help his son.

Curtis wheels himself into the MetroCourt, and Nina runs over to hug him. She says, it’s so nice to see him out and about, and he says he’s been to the club, he’s been to the gym a few times, and he figured whether he’s in this chair or not, life goes on. What’s he going to do? He can’t sit at home every day, right? She says, that is a great attitude. She owes him an apology. She should have gotten in touch much sooner, but she’s glad he called her to meet. He says she may not be so happy after she hears what he has to say. He has a pretty big ask.

Martin thanks Laura for sorting out the building permits for him. He knew he could count on his baby sister. They fist bump, and Laura says, he’s welcome, but let’s be perfectly clear about something. Everything was above board. It wasn’t a family favor. She simply presented it for a vote and zoning approved it. He says he just appreciates the fact she did it so quickly, and so does his client. She starts to say something, and he says, and no. It isn’t Valentin Cassadine. He does have less controversial clients. It just so happens Mr. Phelps is one of the biggest real estate developers in Port Charles, and now he is thrilled with Martin’s work. She made her brother look good, and he’s grateful. He kisses her hand, and she says, speaking of brothers, what are they going to do about theirs?

In the morgue, Dante asks the coroner what they’ve got, and he says, cause of death was catastrophic internal bleeding and blunt force trauma. There were injuries to his neck and vertebrae. Fractured jaw and extensive damage to the skull. There was bleeding on the brain as well as some other medical stuff. Chase says, in English, please, and the coroner says, hemorrhaging around the heart. Dante wonders what can cause that, a fall or an attack? But the coroner says, the injuries were consistent with the pedestrian hit at a high rate of speed by a large vehicle, like a truck or an SUV. Chase asks if the deceased was impaired in any way, but the coroner says, the preliminary autopsy says no contributing factors. There was no alcohol in his system and he wasn’t under the influence of drugs. Dante says, what about any medical conditions? and the coroner says, he suffered from no maladies or illness. There wasn’t any indication in the bloodwork that he was on medication, so he can’t think of any reason a relatively healthy man would step in front of a speeding vehicle. Dante says, maybe the vehicle was aiming for him.

Anna lurks around Charlotte’s hospital room, and when she sees Elizabeth leave, she sneaks in. She tells Charlotte, shhh, but Charlotte freaks and says, no! Go away! She’s not supposed to be here. Anna says she just wants to talk. She needs to explain what happened. Please let her. Charlotte says, no, no, no.

Chase says, according to CSI, there were no tire tracks or skid marks. So if he was hit by a car, there’s nothing to indicate the driver swerved or hit the break. Dante asks, what about traffic cameras? but Chase says, unfortunately, it was at a stretch not covered by cameras. Dante says, there’s got to be a building or gas station, somewhere with a camera, and Chase says, they’re already on it. But there was something interesting. Get this. The guy had three IDs on him. Dante asks if he checked them out, and Chase says, yeah, and they’re all legit.

Charlotte says, there’s nothing to explain. Anna shot her. Anna says, it was a horrible accident, and Charlotte asks how it was an accident. Anna pointed a gun right at her. Anna says she didn’t know it was her. She didn’t expect to find Charlotte in her apartment, but she now understands why Charlotte was there. She wanted to do something to scare Anna, to drive her away, but she needs to know nothing Victor told he is true. Nothing.

Valentin asks how Charlotte is doing, and Elizabeth says, she’s had some progress, which is encouraging. They hear Charlotte yell for help, and run to her room. They find Anna there with a hysterical Charlotte.

Nina says, just name it, but Curtis says he’s not sure she’s going to feel that way when he asks. It requires they ignore the instructions of the PCPD. Nina says she’s completely confused. What’s going on? Curtis says, the shooting happened months ago, and the PCPD is no closer to finding out who shot him. She says, they still don’t have any leads? and he says, nothing credible. This is completely stalled. It’s only a matter of time before they box up his evidence to some warehouse for cold cases. She says, he can’t let that happen, and he says he’s not. He’s going to find out who put him in this wheelchair and see that they’re brought to justice. Nina says she doesn’t see where she comes in, and he says he’s starting his own investigation, and since the shooting happened at her hotel, he was hoping she’d give him complete access.

Martin says, one wonders why Laura doesn’t use her position as mayor, and banish Cyrus from the kingdom of Port Charles, and Laura laughs. She asks if he watched Robin Hood last night. He says, the original? It’s a classic. She says, this isn’t Sherwood Forest, and even if she could banish Cyrus, she doesn’t know if she’d do that. He says, she’s a highly intelligent woman. Does she expect him to believe she thinks Cyrus is reformed? She says she wouldn’t go that far. She’s been suspicious of this born-again persona ever since the beginning. He could be giving the performance of a lifetime; he could be playing all of them. Martin says he did tell her that Cyrus had him give away all his money to end recidivism. That’s another thing he was suspicious about. The Cyrus he grew up with didn’t have an altruistic bone in his body. Laura says, a judge signed off on his release, but Martin says, that doesn’t mean anything. Cyrus used to line his pockets with important people. The judge could be on his payroll, expecting some sort of a kickback. Laura says, the bottom line is, Cyrus is free, and he is their brother, so don’t they have some sort of responsibility here to acknowledge him as a sibling, to see the best in him, and support him in his effort to become a productive member of society? Martin says he can’t think of one thing Cyrus can contribute to Port Charles, but he does have to admit, part of him wants to believe Cyrus. Which is saying a lot, considering his track record. Look at the damage he’s done. There’s a knock at the door, and Jordan says she’s sorry to interrupt, but she needs to discuss something with Laura.

Gregory tells Alexis, Diane can’t represent Finn because she’s representing the plaintiff. She says, the Muldoon family hired her? and he says, yes. He met Finn at the MetroCourt as Diane was leaving. Finn seemed dejected, and when he pressed Finn, he said, she couldn’t take the case. Alexis says, that doesn’t make any sense, and Gregory says, it seems she got a phone call just before the meeting from the father-in-law of the deceased, who just happens to be a long-term client of hers. Alexis says, she’s already on retainer with the Muldoon family? This is a disaster. She’s sorry. He says, it’s not all that dire. Diane explained she couldn’t represent him, and left, no hard feelings. She says, he doesn’t understand. Diane is the disaster. She is that good. She never loses.

Sonny looks at the photos of Sasha from the photoshoot and asks how it feels to be back at work after being gone a few months. She says she was so fragile when she got out of Ferncliff, she was worried it was going to awkward going back to Deception, but it’s going really well. They did this photoshoot, and she just finished a segment on Home & Heart. He asks if that’s the show where they sell stuff, and she laughs and says, yes. She reintroduced their most popular product, The Deceptor. He says, what is that? and she says, Nina will know what it is. Anyway, it sold out in record time. He says, that’s great. Dang. She says she was so relieved. She really needs the company to do well. They lost so much money, and their stock was frozen during the lawsuit. He says, that’s what he wanted to talk to her about. He wanted to discuss her financial situation.

Nina tells Curtis, this is the master keycard, and slides it over to him. It will give him access to all the areas around the pool and the hotel room above the pool as well. He asks if there’s anyone staying in the room now, but she says, no. The PCPD requested they keep that room vacant for a while. They didn’t even want housekeeping in there. She thinks they were planning on doing another sweep of the room, so maybe they could get additional evidence, but she’s not complying. He says, this is good, but it’s not enough. Can she get him security footage of the day of the shooting? Maybe even a few days prior. She says she’s not sure about that. The police officers were all over the security system. That was the first thing they went to. And they had a warrant. But the original footage could be accessible by the MetroCourt mainframe. He says, and she knows her boy’s pretty tech savvy. He knows his way around a server. Can he use her password to log in?

Laura tells Jordan that she and Martin were just discussing the very delicate subject of their brother Cyrus, and what, if anything, to do about him. Jordan says she knows Cyrus is Laura’s family, so it’s not her place to say, but there’s nothing to be done about Cyrus for now. All signs show he’s behaving. They all know it’s just a matter of time before he breaks the law again. Then Laura and Martin won’t have to make any decisions about him. The courts will make it for them. Laura says she’s afraid Jordan’s right. It’s just a matter of time then, isn’t it? Well, Jordan didn’t come here to listen to their family problems. What can Laura do for her? Jordan says she needs Laura to look into something, but it has to be off the record.

Gregory says he’s aware of Diane’s reputation, but she’s not Clarence Darrow, and Alexis says, her nickname is Killer Miller, because she goes for the jugular. Not only is she ridiculously prepared in court, she can improvise. So she can think on her feet. He says he guesses Alexis isn’t overreacting, and she says, the hardest cases she’s ever tried have been the ones against Diane. She once had a case where Diane’s client was accused of a felony, and she was representing the plaintiff. Alexis was so on this case. She had two dozen depositions; she had witnesses like crazy. It was an irrefutable case. It was a slam dunk. And you know what happened? Diane won. She was victorious. He asks if she thinks Finn has a chance to win this, and she says, look at this case. A loving family that lost a husband and a father to an arrogant doctor that was negligent. He says his son isn’t arrogant and he’s certainly not negligent, and she says, maybe arrogant is too strong of a word, but sometimes Finn is not that personable. He comes off as overly confident, and Diane is going to convince a jury of that. He asks if she’s saying Finn is doomed, but she says, not yet. She’s going to make a call.

Valentin runs to Charlotte, who says, Anna wants to kill her. Anna says she doesn’t, as Valentin comforts Charlotte, and Elizabeth tells Anna that she has to leave. She hustles Anna out, and Valentin says, Charlotte is safe. No one is going to hurt her. In the hallway, Elizabeth tells Anna that it was very clear. She’s not allowed anywhere near Charlotte’s room. Anna says she wanted to explain what happened. She needs Charlotte to know she never wanted to harm her. She didn’t want to. Elizabeth says, she’s done just the opposite.

Chase tells Dante, this guy had three valid pieces of ID on him. One from the US, one Canadian, and one from the United Kingdom. Dante asks if they’re aliases or all the same name, and Chase says, all the same name, which makes it even more confusing. Dante says, especially since you can’t be a resident of three different countries, and Chase says, CSI is going to his hotel room. He was staying at the Metropolitan and registered under the Canadian ID. Dante says, run his DNA and check his fingerprints. Be sure to run it by intelligence services too. Chase leaves.

Anna says, the shooting was an accident. If Elizabeth believes nothing else, believe that. Elizabeth says she knows it was an accident and Anna would never want to hurt Charlotte, but deliberately walking into her room when she’s been asked to stay away is unthinkable. Valentin asks if Elizabeth will sit with Charlotte for a second, and she says, of course (🍷). She leaves, and Valentin asks what the hell Anna is doing. She says she’s just trying to undo the damage he and his father caused.

Dante asks what else the coroner can tell him about the condition of the body, and the coroner says, like he told Dante, there were multiple injuries, but there was one thing that stood out. He had a significant bruise on the left heel. Dante asks if that’s unusual, and the coroner says, actually, yes. It was starting to callous. Dante asks what that tells him, and the coroner says, it indicates it wasn’t a fresh bruise and it certainly didn’t come from the impact of the vehicle striking him. He found that odd, so they looked into his left shoe, and they found this under the lining. He holds up a key with a tag that says 18. Dante asks if the coroner will bag that, and don’t mention this to anyone. The coroner leaves, and Dante puts the bag in his pocket. Chase comes back and says, they got a hit. The fingerprints match up with the UK ID, Jameson Forsythe.

Jordan tells Laura that she really wants to do this for Curtis. Not only does he deserve to know who put him in a wheelchair, she thinks it will be good stimulation for him to put his energy into an investigation. Laura says she didn’t know him way back when he was a police detective, but she has a lot of respect for him as an investigator. Beyond that, they’re friends. Jordan says, they went through some intense experiences in Greenland, and Laura says, did they ever. Victor Cassadine was on the rampage and Curtis was pivotal in bringing him down. Jordan asks if she’s got Laura’s blessing to pursue this, and Laura says, yes, absolutely. She’s behind Jordan 100%. Jordan says, it could cut into her hours here. She may not be available for all of her duties. Laura says, it’s absolutely all right. She’s back home again, and besides that, it is vitally important to the people of Port Charles to find out who opened fire at the MetroCourt pool.

Nina gives Curtis her ID and password, and he says he knows she’s going out on a limb for him and wants her to know he appreciates it. She says she trusts him implicitly, and if this helps him, she’s happy to do it. She knows why this is so important to him and wants him to know it’s important to her as well. He says, it means a lot, and she says she heard the police don’t think he was the intended target. He says, they definitely believe the bullet was intended for Anna… or Sonny, and she says, if someone tried to kill Sonny, the man she loves, they could try again. And she wants to do everything she can to make sure that doesn’t happen.

Sasha says she knew Sonny was a coffee importer, but is he an accountant? He says, no. He just wants to help her. He came here to get permission to audit her accounts. He wants to know exactly how much Gladys stole from her. She says she doesn’t see the point. The money is gone, and so is Gladys, thanks to him. She never got a chance to acknowledge what he did to get Gladys out of town. She thanks him, but he says, no thanks necessary. She says, he could have sent Gladys to prison, but he didn’t, and she’s grateful for that. Despite all the awful things Gladys did to her, she was Brando’s mother and Liam’s grandmother, and Sonny was merciful in sending her back to Connecticut. He says, now she doesn’t have to see Gladys or even think about her, and she says, now she can move forward. Focus on the future. He says, she deserves more than that. She deserves to get her money back.

Alexis introduces Martin and Gregory, and Martin says, so Gregory was a professor over at PCU. Gregory says, yes, and before that, he was at Berkeley. Alexis says, Hamilton Finn is also Gregory’s son and he’s in need of representation. While she hasn’t had the privilege of going up against Martin in the courtroom, he has quite an impressive record. Martin says he understands she was quite the attorney, and she thanks him. She says she was also very impressed that Valentin Cassadine has him on retainer. Martin says, someone’s done her homework, but he’s not sure how that’s relevant. Gregory says he doesn’t understand either. What does that have to do with Finn’s case? Alexis says, Finn is in need of a lawyer who has experienced defending a client that may come off as somewhat indelicate, and Greogry asks if she’s putting Finn in the same category as Valentin. She’s related to him, and even she admits he’s done some reprehensible things. Martin asks how disparaging his client starts the conversation, and Alexis says, they’re both highly intelligent, but they’re missing the point. If Martin can make someone like Valentin come off as sympathetic, he should be able to do the same thing for Finn.

Curtis thanks Nina and says he’ll do his best to keep things under the radar. What if her staff starts asking questions about why he’s hanging around so much? She says, they’re not going to say anything, and if they do, just tell them that he’s helping her with a special project. Which happens to be true. He’s giving her feedback on the handicap accessible areas and telling her where she can make improvements. He says, you’re good. Maybe she should be part of this investigation. She says she thinks she already is. This has so much to do with him, but it also has to do with Sonny. And she’ll do anything she has to do to keep him safe. He says, she’s fierce about protecting her man, and she says, her husband. He says, excuse me, Mrs. Corinthos, and she says she’s happier than she’s ever been in her entire life. She’s married to the man of her dreams and she’s closer to Willow and her grandchildren. And she’s scared to death. He says, scared of what? It seems she has everything. She says she does, and that means she has a lot more to lose.

Sonny says, Gladys was his dad’s cousin, so he feels responsible for what happened, but Sasha says, none of this was his fault. Gladys lied to him as well. He says, but he pretty much knew Gladys was not a good person from the start. All she wanted was a quick buck. He should have sent her back to Bridgeport, but because she was family, he couldn’t see what was right in front of him and gave her the benefit of the doubt. She didn’t deserve it, and that part is on him. Sasha tells him not to beat himself up over this, but he says he never should have let Gladys be her guardian. That was his mistake, compounded by the fact that he didn’t keep an eye on her to make sure she did the right thing. That’s on him and he wants to pay her back for that. He wants to reimburse every dime Sasha lost.

Charlotte tells Elizabeth, Anna wasn’t allowed in here. Anna came to hurt her. Elizabeth promises that Anna won’t be back.

Anna asks if Valentin doesn’t think he kept enough from her and Charlotte. His actions have caused this whole mess. He says his actions? and she says, yes. Charlotte needs to know the truth, that Victor lied to her, that he planted seeds in her head that Anna is dangerous and wants to hurt her. She was just trying to explain. He says, let’s get some things straight. His daughter is convinced Anna tried to kill her intentionally. Does she think she can explain that to a child, his child, in her hospital bed? He doesn’t know how many years of therapy she has ahead of her to get through all this, but if Anna really wants to help, stay away. She says, my God. He blames her for this. He says, no, he blames himself, and leaves.

Anna’s phone rings, and Dante asks where she is. She says she’s at GH; why? He asks if she can meet him at the morgue. There’s something here she’s got to see.

Gregory says, while he appreciates the suggestion, it’s not his place to hire a lawyer for his son, and Alexis says she doesn’t want to rush him. But right now, Diane is preparing a case against his son, so the sooner he puts a lawyer on retainer, the better. Gregory says he guesses she’s right. He wants to give Finn the option, so is Martin interested? Martin says, Gregory is going to have for forgive him. It’s a little too cart before the horse for his taste. Normally, he likes a little information about the case before he signs on anything. Alexis says, it’s a malpractice suit, and Gregory says, his son is an infectious disease specialist. A patient named Mr. Muldoon came to see him, concerned he might have contracted something in his travels; apparently, his work sent him out to remote locations. He thought he might have picked up a parasite. His son ran some tests and confirmed he had a tapeworm. He thought it would be an easy fix, but then about two months later, Mr. Muldoon came back. That was when Finn discovered he had Stage IV cancer. Martin says, so his son missed something important and now a man is dead as a result, but Gregory says, absolutely not. And he takes offense at Martin assuming his son made a mistake. He is not responsible for that man’s death. Martin asks Alexis if this is how Dr. Finn reacts when someone questions his expertise, and she says, worse. Much worse.

Laura says, there are a lot of files to go through. This has been an ongoing investigation. Have Jordan and Curtis figured out where they want to begin? Jordan says she thinks it’s best to start with a clean slate. It’s not that she won’t consider the information the police have compiled, but this case needs fresh eyes. Laura says, okay. Hopefully, she and Curtis will find something they overlooked. Jordan says, the first thing she needs to do is request the evidence the PCPD has gathered. She doesn’t anticipate any roadblocks, but should she hit some red tape… Laura says, she won’t hit any red tape. The mayor’s office will be backing her completely. Jordan thanks her and says she knew she could count on Laura. And this is exactly what Curtis needs.

Curtis assures Nina that Sonny can take care of himself. He heard Sonny’s been a target for decades, yet he’s still standing. So he doesn’t think there’s a reason that’s going to change. She says she guesses he’s right. She should stop worrying so much. It takes her away from enjoying the here and now. He says, exactly. When he was in rehab, Aunt Stella came to visit him. She told him, Curtis, stop focusing on the negative. Take advantage of the good moments right in front of him now. She asks if he was able to do that, and he says, it took a while to sink in, but he got it eventually. She says, things are good for her right now. She just doesn’t want it to change. She doesn’t want anybody to take her family away. He asks why he has the feeling they’re not talking about Sonny anymore. Something’s bothering her. What is it?

Dante thanks Anna for coming, and she says, dead body? He says, yeah. A jogger found the body by the side of the road this morning. Multiple injuries. Looks like a hit and run. At the scene, they couldn’t find any evidence that the driver avoided hitting the deceased, and the injuries are consistent with a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed. She says, murder, and he says, looking that way. She asks what that has to do with her, and Dante says, the guy had three IDs on him from three different countries. She asks if they were legit, and he says, yeah. Dante was thinking maybe he worked for the WSB. it’s a long shot, but does she want to take a look and see if she recognizes him?

Martin says, while he completely respects Gregory’s need to protect his son, he’s got to understand what goes into a malpractice suit. When dealing with accusations of wrongful death, often the facts of the case are far less important than how the jury feels about the plaintiff versus how they feel about the defendant. Gregory says he’s been teaching for decades and he always makes sure his students are presented with all the facts before he asks them for an opinion. Martin says, with all due respect, there are times when perception is reality, and Alexis says, especially in a courtroom. Martin says, where he sees a doctor doing his job to the best of his ability, they’re going to see a grieving widow. And if this man had young children – Alexis says, he didthat could be the nail in Finn’s coffin. If he overreacts, if he gets defensive on that stand, says he did nothing wrong, he’s going to lose. Greogry says, but if Finn admits he may have overlooked signs of cancer, which he didn’t, he’s going to lose anyway. His hands are tied, so what is Martin suggesting they do? Martin says, the best approach is to present his son as an exceptional doctor, who did everything he could to save his patient, by the book. A talented, dedicated physician who’s already saved many lives, who has the potential to save countless more. He has to make the jury see that finding him liable will do more harm than good. Alexis says, if she were trying this case, that’s the angle she’d go with, and Gregory thanks her. He says he thinks they found a lawyer for Finn.

Sasha tells Sonny, it’s not that she doesn’t appreciate the gesture. She really does, but she can’t let him do this. He says, yeah, she can. All she has to do is accept the offer and move on. She says she’s touched he would do this for her, but honestly, she doesn’t need the money back. If this ordeal had taught her anything, it’s that she’s resilient. She’s stronger than anyone thought, including herself.  And she’s excited for the challenge to continue being Deception’s spokesmodel. He says he believes she can do it and he’s happy for her. She says she’s drug free and she’s enjoying herself for the first time in ages. She really feels like there was a weird silver lining in all this. Because now she sees every day as a gift. She looks at herself in the mirror and sees a survivor who can stand on her own. He says, she is, but he thought he still owed her and he’s somebody who likes to pay off his debts. She says, this isn’t his debt. She has an idea. Take the money and give it to a charity, something that supports mental health. Make the donation in Brando and Liam’s name, and they can call it even. What does he say? He holds out his hand, and they shake. He says, deal.

Nina says, it’s nothing really. Just a little edginess in the family. Curtis says he thought things were solid between her and Sonny, but she says, it doesn’t have anything to do with Sonny. It’s Michael. Not that they’ve ever gotten along. They’re making an effort now, for the sake of Willow and the children, but they’ve definitely hit a rough patch. Curtis says he sees Michael at the gym from time to time. He doesn’t want to get in her business, but he could talk to Michael, try to smooth things over. She says she knows he means well, but she has to handle this on her own. She thinks if she brings him in, it will just add to the friction. He says he knows his friend and he knows when she’s not telling him everything, but that’s okay. He won’t push, because she’s done him a huge favor here today. He just wants her to know if she needs help with Michael or anything, he’s here. No questions asked. She thanks him and says, and if she needs extra love and support, he’ll be the first person she calls.

Jordan wishes Laura could have seen Curtis’s face when he told her about the investigation. It was the first time since the shooting that he wasn’t only alert and engaged, but he was enthusiastic. He got his old drive back. There was a light in his eyes again. Laura says she’s glad to hear that. She went to visit him a few days ago and it was really sad to see him in that wheelchair, but she thinks he was happy she came over. Jordan says she can’t even begin to understand what he’s going through or know what it’s like to face life with such a daunting disability, but to see him focus on what he can do instead of what he can’t, is incredible. Laura says, he’s really lucky to have someone like Jordan helping him, and Jordan says, but this was his idea and that’s what makes this investigation so important. Curtis is taking action. Laura says, both of them have her full support, and Jordan says she appreciates it, especially since Laura has so much on her plate.

Elizabeth tells Valentin that she’s sorry, but he says she doesn’t have to apologize. This is on Anna and no one else. Elizabeth says, what was she thinking? and he says he’s starting to believe Anna doesn’t like anyone thinking she’s wrong. He goes into Charlotte’s room and says he’s going to stay with her for the rest of the day to make sure she feels safe. She says she’s still afraid of Anna. What if Anna tries to hurt her again? He says, they have some things to talk about, but they can wait until she feels stronger. Just know this. She’s in no danger from Anna Devane. Charlotte says she knows he believes that, but he’s wrong.

Dante lifts the sheet and Anna looks at the body. The coroner slides it back in the vault, and Anna asks Dante if one of the IDs was Jameson Forsythe. He says, it was, actually. She knows him? She says, that was his name. At least it was when they worked back in the WSB. She hasn’t seen him for 30 years or more. He asks, so what was the deal? Was she working a case? She says, yeah. That was the op. The one that went bad. That’s the guy she found all the evidence on; the paperwork and files that show there was some really shady stuff that went on back then. He asks if that’s what went missing the night Charlotte was shot, and she says, right. He asks if she thinks this guy got into her apartment, and she says, he must have. Dante says, of course (🍷) he’d want to destroy the files, and Anna says, the question is, who killed him? And where is that evidence now?

Tomorrow, Thanksgiving; Charlotte asks how someone could think that of her; and a surprise arrives.

About that. I’ll be taking the whole day off tomorrow, but on Friday, we’ll have a quickie.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills

When we left, it was in the middle of Sutton telling Kyle, name ‘em, and Kyle says, be quiet and she will. She names ‘em while we flash back to ‘em. It suddenly dawns on me that Kyle acts like she’s Sutton’s big sister, and it’s probably the way she wants to act toward Kathy. In Kyle’s interview, she says, this isn’t kooky, It’s flat out bizarre. Apparently, her bizarre bar is pretty low. She asks what’s going on with Sutton, and Sutton asks what’s going on with her. In Sutton’s interview, she wonders what’s going on in Kyle’s life, since she never talks about herself. Her life is perfect. Kyle says, bring it on. She’s happy to answer questions. Sutton says she’s not bringing it on, and Kyle says, they’ll talk another time and jets. In Kyle’s interview, she says she needs to get out before she hits the point of no return. Sutton says she’ll walk Kyle out, but Kyle says, she’s good. I have no words. I didn’t like Kyle much to begin with and now she’s insufferable.

Erika’s mom Renee is visiting, and in Erika’s interview, she says she and her mother have had good times and bad times, and there were times Erika didn’t want to talk to her. She visits Erika in Los Angeles once a year for a couple of days. After that, they get on each other’s nerves. She says, they’re very close… in age. A lot of times, her mom felt like a sibling, instead of a parent. She had a good time going clubbing with her mom and her mom’s friends. She was living like she was 20 at 15. At the old place, her mom could be on the other side of the house when she visited. Now they’re sleeping in the same bed. She doesn’t want to do this. She’s grown.

In Garcelle’s interview, she says, Jaid can be a like her boyfriend; he’s very protective. He doesn’t like drama, and it’s easier with him. He doesn’t challenge her as much as Jax does. They have a lot of fun. We flash back to Jax at the beach, and Garcelle says she feels that she wants them to express themselves because she couldn’t with her mother. She doesn’t just want to be a parent; she wants to have a relationship with her kids. She asks if Jaid wants more freedom, and he says he wants Ashlyn to sleep over, but Garcelle says, Ashlyn’s mom wouldn’t allow her to and neither would Garcelle. She couldn’t even date at his age. In her interview, she says she wasn’t allowed to talk to boys, so she had to sneak around. One night she told her parents that she was at Debbie’s, and then Debbie’s mom called looking for Debbie. She was in her mom’s car with a guy, and her dad followed her. She got to a light where he couldn’t catch up, and kicked the guy out of the car. When her dad caught up to her, he said, follow me home. It wasn’t pretty. She’s so excited about Black Girl Missing, because she’s executive producer and has the say-so. We flash back to a to meeting with Lifetime where Garcelle introduces director Delmar Washington. She tells Jaid that all the ladies will be at the screening, and he asks which ones she likes at the moment.

Crystal and Rob send the kids off to watch a movie while they linger over dinner. In Crystal’s interview, she says, her brother Jeff and Rob are close and often travel together. Rob needed to check on their house in China, and Jeff went along. It was hard on him because it was his first time seeing his ex-fiancé. Rob says, Jeff has not moved on, and in her interview, Crystal says, Rob was engaged and in China when the pandemic happened. She and her mom were desperate to get him home, and forced him into coming back to the US. Vivi couldn’t come, and the distance was the reason they broke up. Rob says, Jeff is at war with himself; he’s conflicted. He should have said no, but he was more worried about what his family thought than Vivi. Crystal says, it’s the Chinese way, and Rob says, he gets that, but for Jeff to start his own family, he has to break away. He thinks Crystal is competitive with Vivi about who has the more primary relationship with Jeff. Crystal says, who asked for his f***ing opinion? but he just laughs. In Crystal’s interview, she says, Rob doesn’t know what he’s talking about. She’s not competitive. She just knows what’s best for her brother. Rob calls Jeff and gives Crystal the phone. He says he encourages her to tell Rob how she feels, and tells Jeff that Crystal is feeling some regret. Crystal says she feels bad, and Jeff says he needs to talk to Vivi. He doesn’t want to cry, so he ends the call, and Rob says, one step at a time.

Jennifer Tilly and Sutton go to the stables to meet Sutton’s new horse, Santos. In Sutton’s interview, she says, her mani/pedi lady has a horse, and she thought she wanted one too. She saw Santos online and it was a perfect match, so she hit buy. We see a picture of Santos, who is gorgeous, brown with white markings, and also cost $47K. She says, her father was from Texas. From 8 years old, she was on a horse, and she would snap green beans with her mom. That’s who she is. She’s Southern. Sutton meets the trainer and feeds Santos carrots which he promptly throws up. Sutton and Jennifer have lunch, and Jennifer says, Sutton travels so much, she’s glad to have her happy Sutton time. Sutton says she wishes others felt that way. Kyle was incensed and it escalated. Kyle said something was going on with Sutton, but Sutton said no, something was going on with Kyle. And she doesn’t think it’s just her. Kyle has gotten very thin. When they were in Las Vegas on vacation, Kyle was going gym for three hours. She’s eating differently and not drinking, and Sutton hasn’t seen her wedding band. In her interview, Sutton says, Kyle’s acting in a way she’s never seen, and there’s been a rumor in the tabloids about Mauricio cheating. She feels like all of these numbers add up to something wrong. Jennifer thinks maybe Kyle is going through something extreme. When people make extreme changes like with self-improvement or cutting their hair, they’re moving on to a new phase or trying to regain control of their lives.

Erika gets on her mom for not washing the dishes, reminding her that Belle only comes in once a week; it’s all Erika can afford. In Erika’s interview, she says, they’re only good for 24 hours, and Renee needs to start packing. We see it’s been 31 hours so far. They talk about changes in NYC, and Erika says, it’s sad. (Agreed.) Renee says she’s glad she saw Erika’s show, and Erika says, it was somewhat of an ambush. In her interview, Erika says, her mom just showed up after they hadn’t been talking for a year. They argue about why they argued, and Renee says, Erika didn’t like a question she asked about Tom, and in Erika’s interview, she says, her mom didn’t know things were so bad. She was just trying to get through the shows and back in L.A., Tom was MIA. She was trying to sing and dance, and there was Renee waiting to f*** it up for her. Erika tells Renee, it’s like cutting open old wounds, and Renee says, at some point, she has to let it go. Erika says she’s happy it’s behind her, and in her interview, she says she loves seeing her mom being grateful and supportive, but she’s grateful her mom is leaving. She’s reached her limit. See you at Christmas.

Everyone gets ready for Garcelle’s screening. On the phone, Sutton tells Garcelle that Kyle’s visit didn’t end well. Kyle is on the phone with Dorit, and says, Sutton thinks Erika set her up. I do too. Kyle acts out Sutton acting out Erika, but Sutton did it better. She tells Dorit about Sutton asking her, what’s going on? and makes insane animated faces when she talks. Dorit says, it feels like a threat, and Kyle says, Sutton is talking about the rumors. How they can get all that from someone asking, what’s going on? is beyond me. Dorit says she’s riding with Sutton tonight, and Kyle says, have fun with that.

In Sutton’s interview, she says she’s learning that social media is the venue for sales and exposure, and her store needs that constantly. So she’s bringing Dimitri in to take good pictures. Sutton gets her picture taken a thousand times, while Dorit is parked outside whining about Sutton’s tardiness. When Sutton gets in the limo, Dorit scolds her.

The screening is at a gorgeous theater, and Garcelle says she’s excited but nervous. Kyle arrives looking like she’s dressed for a safari, and carrying a $16K Hermès bag. In Kyle’s interview, she says she appreciates how difficult it is to get a project sold and made. Garcelle’s not just producing, she’s starring in it, and the story is an important message. Sutton tells Dorit that Garcelle invited 100 people. That’s herding cats. In Dorit’s interview, she says she was under the impression it was an intimate screening. She needs to prepare mentally and emotionally. At the venue, Dorit says, she gets jumpy around a lot of people, and in Sutton’s interview, she says she had no idea Dorit’s PTSD was this bad. They’re just watching a movie… about a girl who gets kidnapped and goes missing. Other than that, it’s going to be fun. Dorit tells Garcelle that she’s having a hard time, and Jax tells Crystal that he’s nervous Erika is here, but he might as well talk to her. He asks if Crystal wants to come, and in Crystal’s interview, she says she’s proud that Jax wants to approach Erika. We flash back to Erika being a drunken a-hole to Jax, and Crystal says, in Vegas, Erika showed them a side that was more open, and she wants to make an effort to help other people see her in a better light. Jax says, Crystal can be his back-up.

Hors d’oeuvres food porn! Jax goes over to Erika and says he wanted to let her know that everything is okay between them. Erika says she apologizes from the bottom of her heart. She was totally out of line. (I do believe she’s actually sorry for this) She says she spoke to his mom, but she’s glad he can hear it from her. He says he accepts her apology, and in Erika’s interview, she says, he’s a class act to walk up to her and say, no hard feelings. Garcelle did a beautiful job. Garcelle asks everyone to take their seats for the movie, and Jax tells her about approaching Erika. In Garcelle’s interview, she says she wishes Erika had approached Jax, since she’s the adult and was in the wrong, but she’s glad Jax was confident enough to approach her. She thanks everyone for taking the time to come out, not just to support her, but the idea of when Black and Brown people go missing, it’s important they be seen and heard and supported. In her interview, she says, the subject is important to her. So many times, Black and Brown women are overlooked – getting jobs, getting paid, going missing. They want the same passion and compassion when they go missing. We see pieces of the film and the audience reaction. It looks good (it’s on Amazon). Denise arrives, and she and Garcelle hugs. She thanks Garcelle for inviting her, and they watch from the back. The film ends with applause, and in her interview, Dorit says she’s excited that Garcelle gets to see her dream coming to life. There are lots of hugs and congrats, and Denise says hi to Dorit and Crystal. She says, it feels like forever, and in  Dorit’s interview, she says she hasn’t seen Denise in years. We flash back to Denise walking off the Zoom Reunion, and Dorit says, their contact became less and less. Sutton sits down near Kyle and says, they’ve got to talk. Kyle raced out of her house. Kyle says, Sutton got so aggressive and not nice, and Sutton says, Kyle is doing that now. Kyle asks if Sutton wants to hear the truth or a lie, and Sutton says, she was being calm. Garcelle brings Denise over to Erika, and there’s hugs and catching up. Kyle tells Sutton that she seemed off, and in Sutton’s interview, she says, Kyle is supposed to be her friend, but she’s using words she knows cut to the core… and take your safari hat off. Kyle says, Sutton is full of sh*t. For the billionth time, is it me? Kyle is sooo nasty. Even her face is all twisted up. She’s creeping me out.

Sutton tells Kyle that there sometimes seems to be a lack of respect. Kyle treats her like a little sister. (That thud is me fainting, since I said that in beginning. Kyle says, don’t flatter yourself, and Sutton says, these are her feelings. She doesn’t know if Kyle is mad about the Kathy thing. Kyle says, that hasn’t even registered to her. She doesn’t care. In her interview, Sutton says, she’s lying. If someone was friends with her sister and not with her, she would care. Kyle says, that’s between her and her sister, and in Sutton’s interview, she says, if Kyle admits she’s upset, it will mean she doesn’t like Kathy.  It’s love triangle gone awry.  Garcelle asks to talk to Dorit, and tells Dorit that she felt when she shared how she was feeling, Dorit took it on the defensive and wasn’t hearing her. We flash back to Dorit saying, that’s hurtful. Garcelle says, in the moment, she knows Erika was drunk, but she didn’t feel Dorit reprimanded her in the moment. Dorit says, their relationship moved slower then backward, and Garcelle says, they had a great time in Cannes, but she feels like her kids are disregarded. All she did was share her feelings. Dorit also asked her why she wasn’t over it. We flash back to that, and Dorit says she takes it back. Garcelle says she would never tell that to Dorit. It was insensitive. Dorit says she’s sorry. She wants Garcelle to share her genuine feelings. In Garcelle’s interview, she says she likes Dorit. She doesn’t think Dorit is malicious or mean, but she gets in her own head. She just wants Dorit to hear her. They hug it out.

Kyle says, Sutton was obviously talking about the rumors. She could tell by the look in Sutton’s eye. Sutton says she wonders who Kyle is now, but Kyle says, the change is just physical. Sutton says, it’s more than that. Kyle is very different from last year. In Sutton’s interview, she says she’s not sure why Kyle can’t confide in her. Friends confide in one another. This friendship is a farce. Kyle says, she had a rough year, and Sutton says she thinks that’s fair. Maybe Kyle can say Sutton could be right about this.

Next time, Kyle goes country; Garcelle talks to Jax one on one; Denise and Camille join a dinner; Sutton and Garcelle confront Kyle about her marriage; and Kyle says she can’t afford to be depressed.

🧂 Passing the Salt…

The latest on RHOSLC.

🏂 Awful In Winter…

The preview alone creeped me out. I had to change the channel.

Happy Thanksgiving!

🦃 Grateful For You…

Enjoy your Thanksgiving, no matter how you spend it. I’ve spent it nearly every way possible – with family, with friends, with strangers, volunteering at a soup kitchen, and one year with my cat, who stole a turkey leg when I wasn’t looking. I’ll drop in for a note on Thanksgiving in Port Charles, but come by on Monday really Tuesday for the full soap treatment and a Deck possibly without Kyle. Until then, stay safe; stay being grateful for what you have, not just on Thanksgiving, but every day; and stay not worrying so much. It takes you away from the here and now.

November 21, 2023 – Charlotte Makes a Confession, Sniff, Seeya Eddie, Legacy, What’s On, Bravo’s Con, To the Curb, Truth, Heritage, The Parade, Adorable Pilgrims & Love

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Cody goes to Maxie’s office and asks why she’s blowing up his phone. What does she need? Ferdinand for another shoot? She says, no, she needs him, and drags him over to a table littered with photographs of him and Sasha. She tells him to feast his eyes. Aren’t they gorgeous? He says, gorgeous, focusing on one with only Sasha in it.

At the MetroCourt, Finn thanks Diane for meeting him. He knows she’s juggling a lot of clients, and he can’t tell her how grateful he is that she agreed to take his case. She tries to interrupt, but he keeps going, wanting to show her what he has with him, but she says, nope. She doesn’t want to see it. Can’t see it. He says he thinks these notes are crucial to his defense, and she says she’s sure they are, but let’s cut to the chase. She can’t possibly represent him.

Curtis thanks Jordan for coming by, and she says, of course (🍷). What’s going on? He asks if she’s thirsty, but she says she’s sure he didn’t invite her over here for a tea party. So tell her, why is she here? He says, because she’s the only one who can understand what he’s discovered.

Carly looks in Kelly’s window from the courtyard, and Drew asks if she’s spying on her employees. She kisses him, and he asks what that was for. She says, just celebrating.

In a private area of the MetroCourt, Valentin thanks Anna for coming and she gives the standard answer, of course (🍷). They sit down, and Valentin asks what she’d like to drink, but she says she’s fine. He says, is she? and she says she’s just trying to find her footing. How’s Charlotte? He says, she’s healing, getting stronger every day. He’s hoping to have her home by Thanksgiving. She says, thank God, and he says he now knows why she was targeting Anna.

Nina goes into Charlotte’s hospital room, and gives her a giftbox, saying, it’s a little special something for a very special lady. Charlotte says, Nina didn’t have to do that. Her being here is gift enough. Nina says, it’s nothing. Just an excuse to see her really. Charlotte opens the box and says, riding gloves. They’re so soft. She loves them. Nina says, they’ll go riding again soon. It seems like it’s been forever since their last adventure. Charlotte says she’d love that. Nina is always so good to her. Some people are just nice because of papa, but she thinks Nina really cares about her. Just her being her. Nina says, by some people, does she mean Anna?

Cyrus scrubs the floor at the PC Grill, when Sonny walks in.

Drew and Carly sit at a table, and Drew asks if the celebration has anything to do with her buying back her half of the MetroCourt, but she says, no. As tempting as it was, she couldn’t do it. She turned down the offer. He says, so she decided to come to her restaurant to do a little people watching? but she says she was just appreciating what she has. She went to the MetroCourt today to turn down Nina’s offer and when she stepped off the elevator, she had a sense of déjà vu. She found herself staring into the dining area, watching the activity of the day, and then she saw Nina. It was hard watching her stand where Carly used to stand, like she owned the place. And she knows Nina does, but it was hard watching her live the life Carly used to live. She knows it must sound awful to him. He says, it doesn’t sound awful. It sounds human.

Valentin says, read this, it explains everything, and hands Anna Victor’s letter to Charlotte. She says, it’s from Victor? What’s he doing writing to Charlotte? Valentin says, it’s all in there, and Anna reads: It is with a heavy heart I must write to you and share my concern about our family’s future… Anna has completely manipulated your father. She’s taken advantage of his infatuation with her… She’s used [her charms] to control your father. Her extensive training in espionage has afforded her the ability to mask who she really is. I tell you this, Anna Devane is not who she seems. Do not trust her. Not for a minute.

Charlotte says, Anna pretends to be nice, but it’s just a way to get closer to papa, and Nina says, her grandmother Laura told her and Charlotte’s papa that Victor warned her about Anna, that he said she was dangerous. Charlotte says, because she is. She tricked him. He can’t tell that she’s using him.

Cyrus says he’s sorry to disappoint Sonny, but they don’t open until 5, and Sonny says, that’s all right because he already ate lunch. Cyrus can keep working while they talk. Cyrus says, they’re going to talk? but Sonny says, he’s going to talk; Cyrus is going to listen. He thinks he’s so slick. Father Teresa. Mr. Clean. It doesn’t matter what part he plays, they both know who he is. Get used to that mop because it’s the last job he’s going to have in Port Charles, and Sonny’s going to make sure of that. Cyrus says, then he guesses he’d better get back to it, and Sonny says, stay focused. Because if he gets a glimpse or hears a whisper that Cyrus is back to his old tricks, he will shut Cyrus down permanently.

Jordan asks, what’s this new discovery? and Curtis says, meditation. She says, TJ’s been trying to get her to try it, and he says, it’s a great way to quiet the noise in your head and to slow down your thoughts and just be still. She says, it sounds profound, and he says, she’d be surprised what comes from stillness. He got this memory of a case they worked on in Baltimore. He doesn’t remember the details, only how he felt. Following the lead, putting the clues together, connecting the dots… that spark, and the answer comes.

Finn asks, why the sudden reluctance? and Diane says, it’s very complicated. Under other circumstances, she’d be all in to represent him, especially since she doesn’t want to disappoint Alexis. He asks, what’s holding her up? and she says, when Alexis called her this morning, she was running around. She didn’t quite understand all of the details, and after they hung up, she got a call from the Muldoons, the family that’s suing him.

Maxie tells Cody, every shot is a masterpiece. She can’t stop thinking about their next Deception campaign. Sasha is about to come in, but stops and listens from outside. Maxie says, Salvadore’s people are already on board, and Cody asks if she’s sure about him. She says, he can’t stop talking about how much camera chemistry Cody and Sasha have. Cody says, listen, he just… She says, picture this for the next Deception campaign. Think, sophistication meets untamed allure. He says, untamed allure? and she says, yeah. Him, in a tux, with a twist. Shirt slightly undone, showcasing rugged charm. Then there’s Sasha opposite him, looking exquisite in a radiant ballgown. Think, cowboy meets elegance. Sasha continues to listen, and Maxie says she can see it now. Stark desert landscape. The sunset painting the sky. He says, at least it will be a short shoot, and she says, they’ll spend the holiday setting up for that moment. He says, good luck. He’s sure it’s going to be great, whoever they get to stand next to Sasha by that sunset is going to look… Maxie says, come on. It screams Cody. He says, sorry. No can do. He’s out.

Anna continues reading: She will use your father and lead him into danger. She will lead him to his death. My dear Charlotte, you are the only one who can protect your father from Anna Devane. She puts the letter down and asks Valentin, what did he do? He put so much fear into a young person’s mind like that. Charlotte was just trying to protect him from her. He says, Laura finally got Charlotte to open up. Victor didn’t just write a letter. He visited her in boarding school. He filled her head with stories that Anna was a threat, that her motive was to ruin him and put him in prison or worse. Anna says, so all of her actions were just a young girl desperately trying to save her father, and he says, yeah. She thought by getting Anna out of Port Charles, she was keeping him out of harm’s way. Anna asks if she admitted to everything. Burning her house or…

Nina asks why Charlotte didn’t tell anyone about Victor’s letter, and Charlotte says she didn’t think anyone would believe her. Nina says, that’s a lot for her to carry, isn’t it? She thought Anna was a threat, so what did she do? Charlotte says, Nina already knows, doesn’t she? Grandmother must have told her. Nina says, Laura told her that she wanted Anna to leave Port Charles. Will Charlotte tell her? What did she do to make Anna want to go?

Curtis says, that memory of him and Jordan working on that case. It was not just nostalgia; it was a wake-up call. Jordan says, from what? but he says, not from, to. It reminded him of who he is deep down. He thought he left the P.I. world behind him. She says, he was finding a new path, and he says he just didn’t want to get pigeonholed. And he’s still doing that work, badge or no badge. Helping Drew figure out where Victor Cassadine took Trina and Ace was a huge part of him. That’s who he is at the core. He wants to live to uncover the truth, to seek justice. She asks if he thinks he lost that part of himself, and he says, not lost. Just sidetracked, especially after the shooting. The PCPD hasn’t made any progress, and he can’t just sit here waiting for something to happen. He’s got to dig in. He’s got to take matters into his own hands and figure out who put him in this wheelchair. But to do that, he needs access to the police investigation. She says, and that’s where she comes in.

Finn says, Diane is going to represent the family that’s suing him and General Hospital for malpractice? and she says, yes, she is. The deceased, Dennis Muldoon, she and his father-in-law go way, way back. He was her client before she was even truly established. The Muldoons have her on retainer. Finn says, oh, that’s nice, and she says, so they should probably cut this chat a little short, considering they will soon be on adversarial sides in a courtroom. However, she does have some unsolicited advice for him. He says, by all means, and she says, he may trust the higher ups at General Hospital, but trust her, when push comes to shove, the GH lawyer will focus solely on the hospital’s reputation, not his. He’ll be an afterthought. He tells her, Alexis said the same thing, and she says, Alexis was right. Gregory comes in, using a cane, and Diane says she does wish him the very best of luck. She gets up, and Gregory says, don’t let him interrupt. If they need more time, he can wait at the bar. She says, not at all. Her business with Dr. Finn is done, for now. She leaves, and Finn says, yeah, that went well.

Maxie says, come on. She doesn’t understand why Cody is being so obstinate. She will pay him. In fact, she has his last paycheck around here somewhere. She digs it out, and says, see? handing it to him. He says he appreciates… Oh wow. That is a hefty sum. She says, it’ll be heftier when he signs on as the male Face of Deception, but he says, sorry. This face has seen its last paycheck. He appreciates it, but he can’t do this. Sasha looks worried, and Maxie says, fine. She’ll give him a sign-on bonus, double what’s on that check. He says, it’s not the money. It’s Sasha.

Cyrus says he doesn’t imagine Sonny will believe it, but this is him trying to start fresh. Every move he’s made since his release has been by the book. This job is a genuine attempt to go straight. His past issues with Sonny, water under the bridge. Sonny says, that’s hard to believe after everything Cyrus did to set him up, and Cyrus says he has no idea what Sonny is talking about. Sonny says, maybe there’s too much bleach in his brain. Let him refresh Cyrus’s memory. His boys Austin and Mason blackmailed Ava Jerome to put a mole in his house, his daughter’s nanny, Betty. She did a perfect job. She did what she had to do. She got to the computer, grabbed the information, brought the information to Austin, and Austin brought it to Cyrus at Pentenville. Then Cyrus gave it to the Feds because he thought it would take Sonny down. Cyrus says, that’s a hell of a story, and Sonny says, here’s the punchline. All the information Betty stole was a lie. It was all a trap. And guess what? Cyrus walked right into it.

Carly tells Drew that she’s not going to keep dwelling on everything Nina did. She’s moving on from the past. He says, that sounds very healthy, and she says, look at everything she has. Him. He’s back from Pentenville, and this amazing business her mother gave her with a major connection to her family history. Her kids are healthy and happy, she has an amazing moss bowl🎍home. She has so many blessings. He says, and she’s so resilient and strong. He’s got to be honest here. Her optimism inspires him. She says she gets that from him. He always teaches her to see the bright side, to move forward. He says, moving forward doesn’t mean she pushes Carly down, and it especially doesn’t mean she lets the people that hurt her have another shot.

Curtis tells Jordan that he knows it’s a grey area. He’s not asking for a free pass to the evidence locker. He’s just asking if she can bend the rules, just a little bit. She says, it’s a thin line, but given he was the victim, the one who got affected, it seems to her he has the right to know what’s happening with the investigation. She’ll get him access to the statements, evidence, leads, the works, but… He says, thank you, but she says, hold on. Don’t go getting all grateful just yet. There is a catch.

Finn says he sees Gregory brought a friend. How’s that working out? Gregory says, these things really do make you feel older, but it does provide a grounding and he’s more steady on his feet. Finn says, stability is everything, and Gregory says, not to pry, but did something happen with Diane? Finn says, that? Just some legal nonsense. Of greater importance, Violet had her first school debate. She and her team defended humans against robots as better helpers. Violet pointed out that although robots might be better at following instructions, humans have intuition. That we are better able to sense when something’s off. We can adapt and provide comfort. And more important, no batteries required. Gregory says, sounds like Violet is talking about the difference between Finn and Elizabeth, and Finn says, ha-ha-ha. That’s a good one. Gregory says, as much as he enjoys talking about his intuitive granddaughter, it doesn’t take intuition to see something’s bothering Finn. Was it the meeting with Diane? Finn says, yeah. It didn’t go the way he’d hoped.

Charlotte tells Nina that she never did anything to hurt Anna. She was just trying to scare her. Nina says, by doing what? Everyone makes mistakes. Everyone. She’s done some foolish things when she was upset. Charlotte asks if Nina remembers the article coming out about Anna being a double-agent, and Nina says she does. Charlotte says, one night, after she saw that article, she went to Anna’s house and painted the word murderer on her door. Nina says, and? and Charlotte says, and after the fire at her house, she got another idea and went to Anna’s hotel. She snuck in with a keycard she borrowed from papa and messed up Anna’s stuff. She even wrote on Anna’s bathroom mirror with lipstick. Then on Halloween, she was going to spray paint another message in her apartment, but then Anna found her, and she had a gun. Anna shot her. Charlotte starts to cry.

Valentin tells Anna that he hasn’t discussed it with Charlotte. He just knows she told Laura that she was trying to drive Anna away. Anna says, Charlotte tried to terrorize her… He says, she needs professional help, and Anna says she thinks Charlotte needs intensive deprogramming, doesn’t he? He says, but everything she did was to protect him. She wasn’t acting out of malice. Anna says, it’s powerful conditioning, and he says, it can be fixed. Have faith. As soon as Charlotte is on the road to healing, then the three of them can move forward together. She says she’s really not sure how that’s going to happen.

Cody says he doesn’t know if Maxie heard, but Sasha said she doesn’t want to work with him anymore. She was crystal clear. Maxie says, once she understands… Cody says, no way. He’s not going to let Maxie force Sasha into doing something she’s uncomfortable with. Maxie says she wouldn’t do that to Sasha. This is just business. He says, well, it’s personal to Sasha. She’s been through hell. She was being used by Gladys for months and controlled by Montague. She’s just now getting her life in order. She deserves to have her wishes respected. He’s not going to interfere with anything like that. He already told her, he’s out. He heads for the door, when Sasha appears and says, maybe not.

Finn tells Gregory, there’s a situation at the hospital that he’d rather not discuss. It’s nothing to worry about, especially with everything else on his plate. Gregory asks if Finn means his ALS. While he can’t alter his condition, he can alter how he chooses to deal with it. Like this cane. Speaking of which, Finn should have seen Violet’s face. She doesn’t think less of him because of it. In fact, she said she thought it makes him look like a dapper snowman. Finn laughs and says, classic Violet. Greogry says, if Finn is grappling with something, share it. He may not be able to provide an answer, but maybe it will give him a break from his own troubles. Finn says, okay. Gregory asked for it. Yesterday, he got some unsettling news. Gregory says, he’s not sick, is he? but Finn says, nothing like that. It’s work. He was informed that he, along with GH, are being sued by the family of a former patient for malpractice.

Carly asks Drew, so what’s going on? He’s usually the one telling her to let things go. He tells her that he’s just saying to be aware and stand on guard. She never told him what that kiss was celebrating. She says, the fact that he’s free to show up out of the blue, that means she can kiss him whenever she wants. Compared to a month ago, her life is so much better. He says his too, and she says, then what was that comment about, not letting people hurt you again. He says, Ned. Ned’s pushed him one step too far.

Sonny says, Cyrus must have seen the headlines about his arrest. Corinthos in Hot Water; FBI Brews Trouble for Coffee Kingpin. It was basically a comedy of errors. Cyrus handed them watered down espresso for that bogus data. Cyrus says, Sonny gives him too much credit, and Sonny says he was actually in shock at how much credit they gave Cyrus, but he got his release, right? Cyrus says, because of his poor health, nothing else, and Sonny tells him to make sure he takes good care of that precious health. Because it’s going to get a lot worse if Cyrus crosses him.

Valentin tells Anna that they can get through this. Charlotte wasn’t acting in her right mind. It wasn’t truly her. Anna says she doesn’t have a problem with Charlotte. But he’s known since the night her hotel suite was ransacked that his daughter was the one threatening her, and he said nothing. He tells her that he was hoping… She says, hoping what? That he could manage it from behind the scenes? Like they did when they were agents in the field? He decided not to tell the woman he claims to love that instead of fearing professional assassins, she was merely facing a misguided teenager. He says he didn’t know how to handle it, and she says, because he has no faith in her. If he’d told her the truth from the start, then they could have talked about it. They could have handled it themselves. And she would have never pulled a weapon that night. It’s all because he doesn’t believe in her. Does he know why he doesn’t trust anyone? Because he himself cannot be trusted.

Nina says, other than the spray paint and the hotel, did Charlotte do anything else to try and frighten Anna away? Charlotte says, no, she promises, and Nina says, okay. Anna’s house. It was just the spray paint? Charlotte says, yes, and Nina takes her hand. She says, this is her that Charlotte is talking to. There is nothing she could ever say or do to get Nina to stop loving her. She will never stop loving Charlotte, but in order for them to make this right, Charlotte has to be honest with her. Did she have anything to do with the fire in Anna’s house?

Drew tells Carly, let’s just say, Ned is back to his old self, as arrogant as ever, and she says, wow. What did he do? Drew says, he stopped by Aurora, and everything seemed fine at first, until he found out Michael had salvaged a deal for ELQ. And he kind of freaked out. Instead of being grateful for it, he said Michael had no authority to broker that deal. She says, even though he wasn’t around to do it himself? and Drew says, exactly. Instead of thanking Michael, Ned told him to keep his nose out of ELQ business. She says, it’s unbelievable, but it sounds just like Ned, and he says, it does. Proving once again, Ned puts his pride, puts his ego ahead of what’s best for the company. Carly asks what he’s going to do about it.

Jordan says, she and Curtis are both investigators at heart. She wants to be right there in the trenches with him. He asks if she isn’t Deputy Mayor, because digging could ruffle some feathers and cause embarrassment to the whole city, which could make her life very difficult. She says, difficult is relative. She can handle the heat. And she’s happy to ruffle any feathers if it means putting the person who shot him behind bars for twenty to life.

Gregory says, so Alexis arranged for Diane to represent Finn, only to discover Diane is representing the family suing him? Finn says, yeah, that’s pretty much the gist of it. Gregory says, Finn’s always been an outstanding doctor. This is his first brush with a lawsuit, right? Finn says, yes, and Gregory asks if he believes the suit has merit. Finn says, no, but sometimes in cases like this, grieving families have sway with the jury. Gregory asks if he has his bases covered with malpractice insurance (FYI, if he didn’t, it’s doubtful the hospital would have him on staff), and Finn says, of course (🍷). If for some reason the jury favors the Muldoons, the insurance will pay out a settlement. Gregory says, that’s a silver lining at least. Finn won’t be staring down the barrel of financial ruin. Finn says he doesn’t know. If the insurance company has to pay out because of this case, they’ll find a reason to drop him. Without malpractice insurance… Gregory says, he won’t be able to practice medicine, and Finn says, this lawsuit could be the end of his career.

Sasha says she really appreciates Cody’s willingness to step away from Deception because of her feelings, but if Maxie asked him to work with any other model, would he say yes? Cody says, he… and Sasha says, they’ve been pretty honest with each other so far, so don’t stop now. Cody says, yeah. If it was another model, he’d take the job. Sasha asks Maxie if having Cody as the male Face of Deception is important to their brand, and Maxie says, only if they want to be successful. Their chemistry was off the charts. It jumped through the screen at Home & Heart. These pictures capture it perfectly. Cody looks at her, and she says, but Cody is right. Sasha’s wishes and comfort come first. Sometimes she gets a little excited. Sasha says, no. You know what? She needs to trust and pay attention to that excitement. If Maxie thinks this is for the best, then she wants to do it… for the company. Cody asks if she’s sure, and Maxie jets over to her and says, really? Sasha says she’s sure, and Maxie says, oh my God, this is so amazing. She promises it won’t be awkward. No blind gossip pieces about their pairing. This is just business. Strictly professional. Sasha and Cody look at each other and we see a photo of them with Ferdinand.

Gregory says, Finn dedicated his life, he poured his heart and soul into medicine. He can’t let them take away his calling. If GH’s lawyers won’t stand up for him, he’ll have to stand up for himself. He says, that’s what he’s trying to do, and Gregory says, someone doesn’t get Stage IV cancer out of the blue. There had to have been signs, symptoms. He knows from personal experience. When he was diagnosed with ALS, there were countless warnings. He was too stubborn to see them. Finn says he knows that… and Gregory says, listen to him. If that patient was Stage IV, then there had to have been indicators that were overlooked or ignored. Finn thanks him, and Gregory says, for what? Finn puts his hand on Gregory’s and says, for believing in him. For always feeling the weight on his shoulders and trying to lighten the load. Gregory puts his hand on Finn’s and says, always, son. Always.

Charlotte tells Nina that she never set fire to Anna’s house. She was just trying to get Anna to leave town. She had to keep papa safe. Nina has to believe her. Nina says she does, and hugs Charlotte, saying, it’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay.

Valentin says, Anna’s right. He is at his core untrustworthy. When he learned about Charlotte, his first instinct was to hide the truth. She says, it’s called lying, and he says, to protect his daughter. But also maybe to protect their love. He’s dreamed of a life with her forever. He just doesn’t have the faith. He was afraid she’d leave him when she found out. Maybe he’s afraid she doesn’t love him the way he loves her. She says she thinks he always doubted them, and he says he thinks she’s right. She sighs and wipes tears from her eyes. She says, it’s never been about how much she loves him. It’s just been this persistent mistrust that’s created this chasm. Except that now the lies and secrecy ended up with her shooting an innocent kid. He says, Charlotte will recover, and she asks what that even means. She picks up a napkin and dabs at her eyes and asks if that makes it okay. It doesn’t absolve her. Charlotte is never going to get over this trauma, ever. No matter how much deprogramming, it will never erase it. Every time Charlotte sees her, she’ll be reminded of that night. And Anna is afraid every time she sees Valentin, she’ll be forced to relive it. So she thinks if she’s going to have any peace in her life, she needs to see him as little as possible. She’s sorry. She leaves, and Valentin hangs his head.

Curtis tells Jordan that all he wanted was access to the police files. He can handle the rest alone. Besides, if he comes up empty, it will only be his time he wasted. Jordan says, it was that memory of them investigating in Baltimore that gave him this idea to begin with. That should be a clue that she’s right. They made a great team. He says, they were a force, and she says, and closed a lot of tough cases, cases that stumped everyone else. They were unstoppable because they complimented each other’s strengths. He says he remembers, and she says, so they team up. They can get to the bottom of this faster together. What does he say? He says, there’s no point in fighting her, and she says, because he knows she’s right. He says, true that. Let’s get started.

Carly says, okay. With Ned back to throwing his weight around, what’s Drew’s next move? He says he’ll tell her what he’s not going to do. He’s not going to make any more rash decisions, giving Ned more power for his pals at the SEC, so they can maneuver him back behind bars. She says, so he does think Ned was the one who tipped them off, not the FBI? He says, the theory that they were targeting Carly to get to Sonny makes sense, but sometimes things just are what they are. There’s no grand conspiracy. Ned was even going to tell him something about the SEC right before he started freaking out about Michael and ELQ. She says, with everything he just told her, Ned hasn’t changed one bit. He says, exactly. People act on raw emotions, like anger and spite, and given Ned’s ego and his obvious resentment toward him, it fits. Ned saw an opportunity for revenge, and he took it.

Sonny says, let him make himself clear. Cyrus is to stay away from him, his family, his business. And when he says his family, they’re all under his protection. Sasha Gilmore, Ava Jerome, his ex-wife. Cyrus crosses paths with them, he crosses paths with Sonny. Cyrus says, anything else? and Sonny says, yeah. Keep working on that mop. He moves closer and whispers that he’s got his eyes on Cyrus. Every hour of every day. Cyrus steps over the line, Sonny’s going to make sure no one ever sees him again. Sonny heads for the door, and Cyrus says he understands. Sonny comes back and says, one more thing. Lay off Laura. Don’t show up at the city hall. It embarrasses her. Or at her house. It’s Laura’s choice if she wants to see him, but don’t just go there uninvited. Are they clear? Cyrus says, oh yeah, and Sonny says he’s glad they understand each other. Now get back to work. Sonny leaves, and Cyrus looks like he’s barely keeping a lid on it.

Tomorrow, Curtis says, Nina may not be happy after she hears what he has to say; Gregory asks what Martin suggests they do; and Valentin tells Anna, stay away.

😢 Say It Ain’t So…

I’m so bummed! I wasn’t totally crazy about the Austin character, but Roger Howarth made it his own. IMO, he’s one of the greatest actors in daytime, if not the greatest.

👔 Different Kind Of Goodbye…

Now he has to put suits on again.

🎓 In Memory Of Billy…

His death was such a shock. I’m sure he’d be proud of the memorial scholarship.

Billy Miller’s Family Creates Memorial Scholarship in His Honor

🦃 This Thursday…

In an odd twist, GH decided to air a new episode on Thanksgiving, even though they haven’t in years. Don’t expect a recap on Thanksgiving. I’ll be busy letting out my waistband.

🎰 What Happens At BravoCon…

Maybe there was a reason Sutton ignored her.

No surprise here.

In related news.

💎 Gets My Vote…

I’ll say it again, I don’t see any new Erika. What I see is the old Erika waiting for the right moment to pounce. We got a taste of it when the elevator randomly stopped on their floor, and Erika’s Magic Mike friend just happened to be riding in it, along with her… whatever he is, Mikey.

☔️ Not To Rain On the Thanksgiving Parade…

Time to rewrite history right.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/thanksgiving-myth-and-what-we-should-be-teaching-kids-180973655/

🌻 Something To Celebrate…

The resolution.

https://nativenewsonline.net/currents/us-senate-passes-resolution-recognizing-november-2023-at-national-native-american-heritage-month

The facts.

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/a38083079/native-american-heritage-month-facts/

Ideas for celebrating.

https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/how-to-celebrate-native-american-heritage-month

🥁 Before It Passes By…

About the parade.

https://www.macys.com/s/parade/

The new balloons. Scroll down for the gallery.

Macy’s Parade Eve. I knew someone who used to do this every year. Nope. That’s why God invented TV sets.

https://abc7ny.com/nyc-thanksgiving-parade-balloon-inflation-upper-west-side-macys-balloons-american-museum-of-natural-history/14088735/

🐾 Good Pilgrims…

A gallery of adorable pilgrims. I just can’t.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/25-pets-in-pilgrim-costumes-photos_n_2160020

🍼 At The Kids’ Table…

Stop by tomorrow for pre-Thanksgiving soap and picking a bone with Beverly Hills. Until then, stay safe, stay taking advantage of seasonal items while you can (maple everything!), and stay knowing that sometimes things just are what they are. There’s no grand conspiracy.

November 20, 2023 – Finn Goes To Alexis For Help, Kyle Is the Common Denominator On Deck & Almost

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Trina walks past the gazillion bouquets and opens the door to leave her dorm room. Spencer falls in and says, good morning.

Josslyn brings Adam into the hospital, and parks him on a bench. She tells Elizabeth that this is her friend Adam Wright. She just brought him in from PCU. He was nauseous, hyperventilating, sweating. She thinks he needs to see a doctor right away. Adam jumps up and says, no!

Finn knocks at Alexis’s office door, and she says, right on time. He thanks her for seeing him, and she says, of course (🍷). Is he okay? He didn’t say what this is about. He seems a little… He says, edgy? and she says, mm-hmm. He says, yeah, and she says, have a seat and tell her what’s going on, but he says, no seat. He needs to find an attorney, and he was hoping she’d point him in the right direction. She says, okay, but he’ll have to narrow this down a little bit. What kind of attorney? He says, one that can save his career from being destroyed.

Blaze says she doesn’t know how Brook did this. She’s doing a guest vocal on Magnum’s new track. Brook says she told Blaze, they’re going to take her career to the next level, and Blaze says, she delivered. Brook says, but they’re on a tight schedule. They have to deliver these tracks today. Blaze says she’s ready to get in the recording booth, and Brook asks if she needs any support. Kristina walks in, and Blaze says, actually, her support just arrived.

Drew says, now that Ned is back to being Ned, they have to come up with a new game plan for ELQ, and Michael says he hasn’t changed his mind. They’re moving forward. Drew says, of course (🍷) they are, but it might be easier said than done, and Michael says, they have to do what’s best for the company. ELQ has been unstable for almost a year, between Valentin’s absence and Ned’s erratic behavior, they’re still on shaky ground. Drew says, their whole plan was predicated on Ned remaining Eddie. That’s not the case anymore, so they need to come up with a new strategy. Michael’s phone rings, and he says, send him up. He tells Drew, Ned’s here. Showtime.

At the MetroCourt, Carly watches as Trish seats a customer, and Nina is on the phone about a king crab order. Nina leaves to get a bartender for a customer, and Trish says hi to Carly. She says, there’s a rumor going around that Carly might be back. Is it true?

Alexis says, Finn isn’t prone to hyperbole. This clearly sounds serious. He says, it is, and she tells him, take a breath. Have a seat. They sit down and Alexis asks for some specifics. He says he’s facing a malpractice lawsuit, and she says, that could be significant. It could also be frivolous. It could be a disgruntled patient that’s looking for a payout. Finn says, it isn’t frivolous. The patient in question, Dennis Muldoon, died. Now his family is suing the hospital and himself. Money isn’t an object for these people and he doesn’t think they’re looking for a quick payout. She says, let’s start at the beginning. When was the first time he saw Mr. Muldoon? He says, it was in April of this year. Muldoon traveled extensively for work, mostly in remote locations, and he came to see Finn because he thought he might have contracted something along the lines of a tapeworm. Finn ran extensive bloodwork and cultures, and confirmed he had a tapeworm. Finn sent him home with a plan of treatment, and he called a few days later, saying that he felt much better. Finn also asked him to come in for further testing, including a colonoscopy just to be sure, but he was off on another business trip and didn’t come back for two months. At that time, Finn increased the scope of the bloodwork and any additional testing, including the colonoscopy. It revealed he had Stage IV cancer. At that point, there was nothing he or oncology could do to save him. Now his family is filing a lawsuit against the hospital and himself. So what does she think? She says, the first thing she’s going to advise him is to stay clear of the General Hospital attorneys. She has the utmost respect for the place, but do not associate with these attorneys. Because they have one goal, and that goal is to protect the hospital. He says, meaning? and she says, they will throw you under the bus.

Blaze does vocal exercises in the sound booth, while Brook gives the sound engineer some instructions. The engineer says she thinks she knows what Brook is looking for, and Blaze asks for less reverb. Kristina says, this is so cool. It’s much more fun to mix music than mix drinks. Brook says she forgot how great the energy is.

Elizabeth brings out a wheelchair, but Adam says he doesn’t need to see a doctor. He thought he did, which is why he agreed to let Joss bring him here, but he’s fine. He just wants to go back to his dorm. Josslyn says, he’s not fine, because they were in class, and he started to have trouble breathing. They had to stop the exam. They wanted to call him an ambulance, but the only reason they didn’t was because she agreed to bring him here. Adam says, oh my God, the test. They’re missing it. What are they going to do? Josslyn says, it’ll be okay. Don’t worry about it. Getting loud, Adam says, it’s not going to be okay. What if he fails the class? Elizabeth suggests he sit down for a minute, and helps him into the chair. Josslyn says, he’s not going to fail the class. Please just try to stay calm. Elizabeth says she’s going to take Adam to an exam room and have a doctor check him out. As he’s wheeled away, Adam begs Josslyn not to leave him.

Spencer gets up from the floor, and Trina says, please tell her that he didn’t sleep outside her dorm room all night. He says he sure did, and she says, he could have gotten her in trouble with the RA. Is he crazy? He says, crazy in love with her, and she says she’s serious. He says, so is he, and she says, so this is how he chooses to get her attention? He says he tried everything short of skywriting. She wouldn’t return his calls or texts. She asks if he didn’t think maybe she didn’t want to talk to him. It never occurred to him to respect her wishes apparently. She goes inside, and he follows her in and closes the door. He says he’s really sorry. He knows he screwed up. It was one of those moments that the words were coming out of his mouth and he wanted them to stop, but it was already too late. He can’t un-ring the bell. She says she doesn’t even know what that means, and he asks if she even read the cards he sent her. She says, no, and he says, they all say the same thing, taking one of them from a bouquet. She says, then she’s glad she didn’t bother reading them, and he tells her, they all say he’s sorry and he was wrong. She says, and exactly what does he think he’s wrong about?

Carly tells Trish, you never know what the future holds. Maybe someday, but now she’s focused on Kelly’s. How’s it going here? Trish says she can’t complain. It’s all good, but Carly is definitely missed. Carly says she misses them too, and Trish says, Mr. Cain was here last week. He looked really great. Carly must be out of her mind that he was in prison. Carly says, he never should have been there in the first place, but she’s really happy he’s home. Nina hears them from the hostess podium and goes over to them. She asks if there’s any chance Carly is here to discuss her offer.

Ned joins Drew and Michael, and Michael says he’s not sure which greeting is appropriate. Is it a welcome back situation or… Ned says he doesn’t know if there’s any rule book for this one, and tells Drew that he’s sorry to hear about Drew’s ordeal in Pentenville. He was relieved to hear Drew was released early. Drew says, nobody was more relieved than him. He couldn’t wait to get out of that place. Ned flashes back to confronting Nina about turning Drew and Carly in to the SEC, and says he promised he’d sit on this information for a while, but it can’t wait. There’s something Drew needs to know about the SEC charges.

Kristina tells Blaze that she wouldn’t miss this for the world. This is great. Blaze tells her that she says that now, but it’s not all glamorous. There’s a lot of sitting around between takes and it helps to have company. Brook says, hello? and Blaze says, she’s there in a professional capacity. Kristina and Blaze sit down, and Blaze thanks Kristina for distracting her; keeping her mind off the butterflies in her stomach. Kristina says, Blaze is a pro, cool and confident, but Blaze says, it’s just smoke and mirrors. This is a huge opportunity. There’s a lot riding on this. She’s been dying to work with Magnum, but what if she blows it and the song tanks? Kristina says, what if she doesn’t? What if it’s a hit?

Elizabeth sees Terry in the hallway and gives her some figures she’d asked for. Terry is in a hurry to get back to work, but Elizabeth asks if she has any updates on the malpractice suit. Terry says, Elizabeth knows she can’t talk about this, especially to her, given her relationship with Finn. She’s not at liberty to disclose anything about the case. Elizabeth says she’s not asking for details. She just hoped Terry could give her a sense of what’s going on. Terry says she’s sorry. She knows Elizabeth is in a difficult position, but hospital policy is clear, and as Co-Chief of Staff, she has to be in full compliance. There can be no sign of any impropriety. Good luck in protecting Finn. Elizabeth asks if that isn’t what Terry should be doing. He’s not only her co-worker, he’s her friend. Terry says, that’s the problem. Personally, does she want Finn to win? Of course (🍷), but professionally, she has to keep her distance and follow the rules to the letter. Does Elizabeth understand?

Finn tells Alexis, Terry and Portia are not only Co-Chiefs of Staff, but he’d like to think they’re his friends and wouldn’t throw him under the bus. She says, regardless of his personal relationships, this is not about friends. This is business to General Hospital. He came to her for advice. She really needs him to listen to her. She used to be pretty good at this, and she knows her way around a courtroom and knows these kinds of attorneys. She knows their only objective when it comes to a malpractice suit is to win at all costs. They will not do the noble thing, and if he ends up being collateral damage, so be it. He says, and here he thought she was going to put his mind at ease. He gets up and she follows. She says she’s just trying to get him to understand this case and see what they could do. They’re going to present this in the most simple narrative. This is a wealthy family who lost a son, father, husband – in his prime – and they’re grieving, and they want someone to pay. What does he think the jury will believe? He says, hopefully, the truth, that he had nothing to do with this man’s death.

Trish says she’s going to get back to work and leaves. Nina asks if Carly wants to sit down, and Carly says, sure. They sit at a table, and Carly says she’s just curious. Why? Why did Nina offer to sell her back her half of the hotel? She knows Nina has a lot on her plate, but she could ask Olivia to take on more work. Nina says, Olivia is stretched pretty thin as it is, and Carly says, then hire a manager. Or promote from within. There are many ways for Nina to retain her half of the hotel. Is she having financial… Nina says her financial situation is on solid ground, and Carly says, great. Then why is she doing this? Is it because of Willow?

Ned says, this was before the fall at the pool, and Drew says he was there with Tracy. Ned came rushing in, calling his name, like he wanted to tell him something important, and that’s when he hit his head. Ned says, the details were a little fuzzy at first, but he remembers everything now. He remembers what he came to tell Drew. Michael’s office phone rings, and he says, hang on a second. He picks up the phone and says, put her through. He says he has the figures for them and will see them in Sydney next month. They’ll celebrate breaking ground. He hangs up, and Ned asks if that was Angela Trance from RCD in Australia? Michael says, yes. Is that a problem? Ned says, yes. He doesn’t see why Aurora, a media company, would be making a deal with RCD. Michael says, the deal was for ELQ.

Blaze asks if Kristina really thinks it could be a hit, and Kristina says, Blaze is talented. Why not? And from what she knows about Brook, that woman is unstoppable. Blaze says, but the market is so saturated these days. Everyone is posting their music online. The competition is fierce. Kristina says, this is when she roars. Show them what she’s got. Blaze says, even if the song does take off, the real money’s in touring, and Kristina says, then tour. She’s got enough material. What could be better than singing to a sold-out crowd? Blaze says, being with someone. Touring is lonely. To be honest, she’s tired of being alone.

Alexis tells Finn, it’s not going to take much to convince a jury that an overworked doctor had a patient who believed he had a tapeworm. And this doctor took the patient at face value and missed the clue that the real ailment was cancer. Finn says he’s an infectious disease specialist who went looking for a parasite and he found one, but Alexis says, when the jury hears the word cancer, it will trigger them, because at least one of them, if not all of them, have lost a loved one to cancer. That’s a compelling story, doesn’t he think? He says he doesn’t know what to think anymore, and she says she’s telling him that he needs to find the right attorney. Because if he doesn’t, his career will be over.

Spencer says, it was wrong of him to give Trina an ultimatum, and he’d do anything to take it back. Trina says, obviously, it’s too late for that now, and even though she doesn’t like the way he said it, he did bring up a good point. What are his priorities? Who comes first for him? She’d like to think it’s her and their relationship, but maybe it’s Ace and Esme. He says he doesn’t care about Esme, but Trina says, sometimes she’s not sure about that. He says, his little brother needs him and he’s not going to turn his back on Ace, but she says she’s not asking him to do that. The fact that it’s hard for him to accept Esme moving out as a normal progression tells her all she needs to know. He asks what that means, and she says, clearly, they have different ideas about what their relationship is and where it’s going.

Elizabeth says, Adam is cleared to go home, and Josslyn thanks her. She says she was so worried. She’s never seen anyone in the middle of a panic attack. It’s scary. Elizabeth says, Josslyn did the right thing by bringing him here, and Josslyn asks if he’s going to be okay. Elizabeth says, all she can tell Josslyn is, he’s been cleared to go home and that’s a good sign. Does she know what else is a good sign? Josslyn’s future as a doctor. Josslyn asks what she means, and Elizabeth says, the fact that she brought him here and looked after him shows what kind of doctor she’s going to be. She has high hopes for Josslyn. Josslyn thanks her, and Elizabeth says she’ll see if Adam’s paperwork is ready. Josslyn goes into the exam room and asks how Adam is. He says he’s fine. He’s really sorry, but it’s all good now. She says, no, it’s not.

Alexis says, they have to find the right fit for Finn. She so wishes she could do this for him. She wishes she could fight for him, but she can’t. He says, there must be somebody who’ll take this on, and she says, the person she would recommend would be Diane, but she knows Diane is swamped. She’s overwhelmed right now and probably won’t be able to take the case. So why doesn’t he give his pal Tracy a call? He says, she’d be tough in the courtroom, but last time he checked, she doesn’t have a law degree. Alexis says, she has the last name Quartermaine, and anyone with the last name Quartermaine has access to top notch lawyers on retainer. He says he knows, but it’s the wrong time to ask Tracy for a favor. She says, Tracy would be happy to help him, and he says he knows she would, but she’s in Amsterdam. She’s meeting Bobbie Spencer. Something about settling Luke’s affairs. She says, who else? and he says, Elizabeth offered to talk to Scott Baldwin. He’s not sure Scotty is the best choice, but Scotty says he’s good at his job. She says, Scotty can be brash and he’s a little odd, but he’s actually smart. He’s also not the right attorney for Finn. He doesn’t need brash; he needs subtle. He says, that’s probably not Scotty, and she says she just told him Diane is probably too busy, and she probably is, but she’s going to call anyway.

Kristina asks how Blaze can possibly be lonely with thousands of fans chanting her name. She wishes the staff at Charlie’s would do that for her when she walked in. And the pub goes wild. They laugh, and Brook asks what they’re laughing about. Blaze says, it was getting too serious and Kristina’s trying to make her smile. Brook says, it seems like she’s succeeding, and Blaze says she was just telling Kristina that touring isn’t as cool as it looks. It’s hard work. Sound checks, dance rehearsals, promotors… Never mind. She’s being ridiculous. Kristina says, Blaze is right. It does sound lonely. Blaze says she has the feeling Kristina knows something about loneliness. The engineer asks if they’re ready to do this.

Ned says, Michael did what? and Michael says he made a deal with RCD. Actually, they closed in July, but there were a few terms they had to iron out first. Drew says, this is what’s best for the company, but Ned says, last time he checked, he’s President of this company. Drew says, they had no idea when Ned was going to recover, and Ned says, Drew makes it sound like he was in rehab. He was in Port Charles the whole time. Drew says, for all intents and purposes, Ned wasn’t here. It was Eddie. Michael says, the deal is done, and Ned asks, what are the terms? Michael says, ELQ has all the paperwork. Feel free to look it over, but he’ll see Michael got RCD to agree to more favorable terms. He’s going to oversee the first stage of construction, but Ned says he has no authority to do that.

Nina asks why Carly thinks Willow had anything to do with this. She just found out about it when they were discussing it at Kelly’s. Carly says she just wondered if Willow was the real incentive for Nina to sell. It makes sense. Nina wants a closer relationship with Willow and her grandson, and what better way to get that than to make peace with her? Is she right?

Ned says, while he appreciates Michael taking this on, he had no authority to act on ELQ’s behalf. Michael suggests he look over the deal before criticizing it, and Ned says, whether it’s a sound deal or not is irrelevant. Michael knows it wasn’t his place to take this on. Drew says, Ned should have been the one dealing with this, but they couldn’t count on him, because he proclaimed to the world that he was Eddie Maine. All he cared about was his music. And Valentin’s been AWOL for months, dealing with the fallout from his lunatic father. And he was in prison, so what did Ned expect Michael to do? He was the only one qualified to engage with RCD. If it wasn’t for him, there would be no deal, so Drew thinks the appropriate response should be thank you.

Nina says, of course (🍷) she wants a closer relationship with Willow, and she thought Carly getting her hotel back would go a long way in repairing the family rift. Carly tells her, that’s what Willow said. She gets it that things won’t feel right until she gets her hotel back, and Nina says, great. She’ll come over with the paperwork… Carly says she appreciates the offer, but she’s going to pass.

Trina says she’s been supportive to Spencer and his situation. He says he appreciates that, and she says, and she’s been respectful to his love toward Ace and his sense of responsibility to him. But that somehow translates to her standing on the sidelines; she’s not on the field. She’s watched him put all his focus and energy into Ace, and by extension, Esme, and she’s not okay with that. He asks what she’s saying, and she says she doesn’t want to be around Esme anymore. This is the woman who tried to destroy her life. He says, but that was the old Esme; she has no memory of that. Trina says she understands that, and she’s accepted it, but she still has to live with the memory. Esme still looks like the same person and that is difficult for her. She doesn’t want to be around her. Spencer says, okay, but Esme and Ace are a package deal. What does she want him to do? Trina says, he wants her not to make him choose, but he never asked her what her choice would be. He says, okay, what is it? and she says she chooses to put herself first. Not to go along with this dysfunctional situation that’s bound to blow up. If he’s going to stay with Esme and Ace, he’s going to do it without her.  

Adam says, don’t make it into something it’s not, but Josslyn says she’s not overreacting. The second the exam started, he was freaking out. He was dizzy and hyperventilating, and even in the car on the way over, he told her that his heart was racing. He says, that was just the stuff he took to help him study, and she says, what stuff would that be? He says, it’s a supplement, a pill. Some big, long name, dextro something. It’s supposed to help you focus. A ton of people take it and he took too much this morning. It’s no big deal. She says, it is a big deal because that’s an amphetamine, that’s speed. He says he didn’t score some street drug. He has a prescription for it. He’ll be more careful next time. It won’t happen again. She says, and if it does happen again? and he says, now she’s the one who needs to calm down. She asks why he’s doing this to himself. He’s miserable. If pre-med is torture for him, then he needs to switch majors, something with less pressure. He says, there is nothing else. Does she understand? This is all he’s ever wanted ever since he was a kid. It’s been his dream. She asks if it’s his dream or his parents’.

On the phone, Alexis says, Diane has to trust her on this. This is a David versus Goliath type case… Finn paces and nods, and Alexis says, no. She wouldn’t pitch this to Diane if she didn’t think Diane wouldn’t have a huge victory if she took this… She will? Yes. Thank you. You’re the best.

Blaze sings in the booth, and Brook tells Kristina, originally, they got a huge artist who shall remain nameless… Kristina says, Beyonce, and Brook says she’s not at liberty to say. But the artist’s reps wanted extra singing on the song. Then there were rumors flying around that negotiations were at an impasse. That’s when she swooped in and picked Blaze up. Kristina says, very impressive. She’s lucky to have Brook. Brook says, if there’s one thing she’s learned in the music biz, it’s that timing is everything. She has a really good feeling about this song. She really thinks it could become a hit, take Blaze’s career to the next level. Kristina’s phone chimes, and she tells Brook that she’s got to go. There’s something going on with her family, but good luck. She leaves.

Spencer tells Trina that he knows what he has to do now. He has to let go. He needs to stop trying to be Ace’s father and needs to realize he’s Ace’s older brother and nothing more. She says, he can still be supportive of Ace. There just has to be clear boundaries. He says, she was right the whole time. He’s sorry. He just couldn’t see it. He needs to stop trying to control Esme and Ace. It’s not his place. So they’re going to move into their own place, and he thinks that’s probably what’s best for everyone. Trina asks if he’s just saying that to put her mind at ease or does he really believed that? He says he’s trying to, but it might take him a little while to get there. But it will. And he knows one thing for certain. He doesn’t want her to become secondary to anyone. From now on, he’s going to make her his one and only priority. She’s her own person and has every right to be who she wants to be, and to make the choices she wants to make, live the life she wants to live. But he really hopes there’s a place in it for him.

Back at the dorm, Josslyn asks if Adam is okay. He barely spoke in the car. He says he’s sorry for snapping at her. He messed up everything. She didn’t even get to take the test. She says, here’s what they’re going to do. They’re going to take the make-up test and even if it doesn’t go well, it only counts for a fraction of their final grade. So just try and give himself a break. He says, okay. He’ll try.

Finn brings Elizabeth some coffee, and she thanks him. She says, he seems to be in better spirits than he was this morning, and he says, maybe. She says, and the reason is… He says he just thinks it’s going to be a beautiful day, and she says, he’s not talking about the weather. He says, no, and she says, this morning he’d been distracted by the possible malpractice suit. Is it dropped?

Blaze wonders where Kristina is, and Brook says, she had to leave. She got a text, something about her family, and she took off. Brook texted her that they’ll be here a few hours, so maybe she’ll be back. Blaze says she just hopes everything’s okay with Kristina’s family.

Kristina walks into Alexis’s office and says, guess where she just was? Alexis asks if Kristina is going to make her guess, but Kristina says, fine. She’ll tell her. She was at a recording studio with Brook and Blaze. Blaze was laying a guest track for a major artist. She can’t say who, but it’s going to be huge. Alexis says, that’s great, and asks if Kristina has heard from Sam. Sam said she was going to call her. Kristina says, Sam’s been leaving her messages and texting her, asking Kristina to call her, but she called her and it went straight to voicemail. So she came here, thinking maybe Alexis knew what was going on.

Adam tells Josslyn, okay. He’ll let himself off the hook. Like she said, this doesn’t count for much of the grade. She asks if he’s going to be okay, and he says he’ll be fine. He thanks her for everything, and goes back to his room. Josslyn goes into hers and sees Trina and Spencer kissing. She says, it looks like they made up. Trina says, yes, they did, because somebody realized he was wrong. Spencer says he had some help getting there, and Josslyn says, at least something worked out this morning. Trina asks if that means her Organic Chem test didn’t go well, and Josslyn says her test didn’t go at all. She has to take a make-up test. Trina asks, what happened? She studied so hard. Josslyn says, Adam had a panic attack and she had to take him to the hospital. Trina asks if he’s okay, but Josslyn says, actually, she doesn’t think so. She’s really worried about him.

Carly says, it’s not like she doesn’t want her half of the hotel back. She does, but she’s just not in the financial situation to do it. Nina says she assumed Michael would… but Carly says she’s not going to take money from her son. She got herself into this situation and she’ll get herself out on her own. Her phone chimes, and Nina flashes back to Michael giving her terms, one of which was to sell Carly her half of the MetroCourt back. Nina asks if Carly is sure she won’t reconsider. Why doesn’t she take the deal for the good of the family? Carly says, don’t worry. Willow knows she’s not accepting, and she understands. Nina made points by offering to sell to begin with. Take the win. Nina gets to keep her hotel and she’s even closer to Willow. Enjoy. She walks off.

Ned tells Drew, don’t pretend Michael is some kind of hero. He’s a shark. Michael was just waiting until he and Valentin were out of the picture; then he made his move. Michael says, don’t be so dramatic. He made a deal, plain and simple. Drew says, and it works for ELQ. Ned couldn’t have negotiated such favorable terms. Maybe that’s why he’s throwing such a tantrum. It’s killing him that Michael did a better job than Ned could have done. Ned says, Michael had his moment of glory, but from now on, stay the hell out of ELQ. He’s not a corporate officer; he’s only a shareholder. And let’s keep it that way. He walks out, and Drew says, that’s proof Ned is unfit to run ELQ. He’s a loose cannon and they have to move forward with this takeover while there’s still a company to save.

Finn tells Elizabeth, the malpractice suit has not been dropped, but at least Alexis has agreed to help him. Elizabeth says she’s confused. Alexis hasn’t been able to practice law for years. He says, but she still has contacts. He was just at her office and asked her if she could help him find a good lawyer. She set up a lunch with Diane Miller. Elizabeth says, that’s great. She can’t tell him how many times Diane represented Jason in court. And she always won. She’s the best. He says, that’s what he’s counting on.

Blaze sings again in the booth. Brook and the engineer look pleased. Brook says, they’ve got it.

Alexis says, Sam was going to tell Kristina, and Kristina says, Alexis is scaring her. Did something happen? Alexis says, the surrogate had a miscarriage. Molly and TJ lost the baby. We hear Blaze sing, I’ll be right by your side, as Alexis hugs Kristina.

Tomorrow, Carly asks what Drew is going to do about it; Cody says he’s out, but Sasha says, maybe not; Curtis says, Jordan is the only one who’ll understand what he discovered; Nina questions Charlotte; and Sonny says he’ll shut Cyrus down permanently.

Below Deck Mediterranean

Kyle says, Natalya can disappear. Get away from him. She says he doesn’t tell her what to do or how to talk, and they snipe at each other. Kyle says, Natalya will never control him, and she’s been a fake-ass bitch from day one. Natalya says, he started it, and Kyle says, don’t test him. Lara suggests they chill, and Kyle says, instead of giving her opinion about everyone else’s life, focus on her own f***ed up life. Tumi tells them that they’re going to sleep in separate rooms and asks if Natalya would like the master. She would, and Tumi says, Kyle will stay in the crew mess until she goes in there. On her way out the door, Natalya calls Kyle a horrible human. In her interview, she says, Kyle’s not the lovely, yes queen person he says he is. What’s the point in arguing with Satan? Jessika wonders what’s happening, and Kyle says he’s done arguing with a bunch of imbeciles. In Kyle’s interview, he says, Natalya constantly inserts herself into things not relevant to her. He’s sick of her gossiping and talking behind people’s backs. Who does she think she is? Lara keeps Natalya company, and Natalya says, Kyle’s behavior is not right. Lara says, it seemed all of a sudden, and in Lara’s interview, she says she’s upset because they’re both her friends. It’s not good of Natalya to mix in things, but Kyle going off is completely unacceptable. He goes from one person to another, loving then hating them. She can’t keep up with who he likes. Luka tells Jess, it’s over with Natalya, and she asks if it’s been there, not done that. He says, it’s been there, too much begging. Kyle and Max make some sort of drunken truce and high-five. Kyle says, Max isn’t the problem he’s upset about. Natalya was shutting his voice up. In Max’s interview, he says he didn’t understand allies, but he learned tonight and now he can be one. If they want him to be a Teletubby, he’s a Tellytubby. Tumi asks if Natalya is okay. What was said was horrible. She asks if Natalya is okay to sleep on the boat, and Natalya says she feels safe. In Tumi’s interview, she says, it wasn’t Natalya’s battle, but she’s not an a-hole and realizes Kyle’s behavior was inexcusable. She’s going to let them breathe. Then they need to have a conversation and resolve it. There’s only so much she can do. Luka gets in Jessika’s bunk, and in Tumi’s interview, she says, he’s a Scorpio. He’ll eat anything that comes his way that he wants.

2 days until charter. Kyle says he’s hung over as balls, and Lara says, all crew, wake the f*** up. They need to be there at 11.  In Tumi’s interview, she says, she never wants Natalya to feel uncomfortable, regardless of how she feels personally about her. Tumi tells Natalya that she wants her to feel safe, but Natalya says she feels the boat is the easy part. In Natalya’s interview, she says Kyle was fake and she thought he was a good friend. She doesn’t want to be on a team where she’s not valued or appreciated. In Luka’s interview, he says, when he woke up, he said he was never drinking again, then cracks open a beer. Natalya tells Tumi that she’s waiting for Kyle to leave. Maybe she’ll join them later. Jack needs someone to shave his back and Lara bravely volunteers. In Jack’s interview, he says he has a big baby face, but his back looks like King Kong. There’s going to be women at the beach club. In Lara’s interview, she says, this is exactly why she’s gay. Max wants to sleep, and in his interview, he says Kyle wanted to make his drama Max’s and they had a fight. When there’s toxic energy, he wants to explode everything. He’ll be fake later, but not now. Natalya tells Max that she’s quitting because Kyle is an a-hole. She’s never speaking to him again. She’s out tomorrow. In her interview, she says she doesn’t like giving up. She came on confused about her relationship, butted heads with Tumi, then vile Kyle. She’s ready to throw in the napkin. She tells Max, let’s enjoy the sunshine. The others get to the beach club, which is absolutely stunning, and in Tumi’s interview, she says, it’s so beautiful. This couldn’t have come at a better time. They need to get over last night. If they can’t get over it, they have a problem. The drinking commences in the taxi and continues at the beach club. On the boat, Natalya thinks Max should take the day and chill. Sleep on it and see how he’s feeling. Captain Sandy wanders around eating a bag of chips, and Max and Natalya go to meet the others. Kyle says he doesn’t want to be here and jets. In her interview, Tumi says, they need a miracle for the interior. She follows Kyle, who says he can’t do it for any more days. F*** the money. He can’t be near her. Tumi says, they can’t talk tomorrow, and he says he’s just keeping his distance. Tumi goes back to the table, mumbling that she wants to get drunk. In Natalya’s interview, she says she doesn’t understand what’s happening. Luka didn’t stand up for her and didn’t check in on her this morning. She expected more support. She hates how everyone is so calm about what happened. Jessika chats with Max about positivity, when Natalya stomps over to them. She says she hates how Jessika promotes good vibes, yet hasn’t spoken to her or checked in on her. Jessika says she didn’t know stuff went down, and Natalya says, that shows lot about her. In her interview, Natalya says, she’s had Jessika’s back since day one, and Jessika didn’t even check on her. We flash back to Natalya stirring the pot with Jessika on several occasions, which I guess is how she defines having someone’s back. Natalya tells us that it says a lot about Jessika. She needs to be told she’s a bitch. Natalya – judge and jury for the world when she can’t get her own sh*t straight. Natalya tells Jessika, don’t preach good energy when she was in a bad place and Jessika didn’t even check in on her. Jessika wisely just keeps saying, you’re right, since reasoning with Natalya is like reasoning with a three-year-old. Or a drunk.

Jessika tells Luka that she’s not perfect, but it was crazy. She was talking to Max about her life and suddenly her life become something else. In Jessika’s interview, she says she feels bad for Natalya. She’s had exchanges with Luka, Tumi, and Kyle, but she put herself in those situations, and now she’s taking it out on everyone else. She tells Max, this is why she doesn’t put herself in other people’s drama. Natalya calls AJ and says she’s not well. F***ing Kyle is a f***ing a-hole. There are good people, but it doesn’t feel good. She’s stressed and her anxiety is through the roof. Now she’s stuck at this beach club. She shouldn’t have come. She wants off the boat and isn’t spending another night on it. In Jack’s interview, he says he can feel the divide. He feels no one cares how Natalya was treated. Jessika says, Natalya literally yelled at her that she couldn’t believe Jessika was talking good energy. She was right not to get involved in the issue. She just had one and doesn’t want another. In Kyle’s interview, he says, Natalya is 100% a short-fused martyr. He regrets how he acted, but the emotions come back when he sees Natalya. Natalya goes back to the boat, while the others freshen up for dinner. On the boat, snoring comes from Captain Sandy’s cabin. Natalya packs, and at dinner, Tumi tells the server, just pour. In Natalya’s interview, she says she wants nothing to do with Kyle. She’ll have a conversation with Captain Sandy in the morning. She wants to sleep on it and make sure she wants to go through with this. She texts Lara to ask Luka if he’ll help carry her suitcases. Is it me? I have little to no sympathy for Natalya because of the immature, mean girl way she demands attention. She not only thinks everyone not involved should be a mind reader, she’s not even going to let them have dinner in peace without screaming, look at me! Lara tells Luka that Natalya is leaving, and Kyle says, they handled it with three people before. In Tumi’s interview, she says, if Natalya feels she wants to go, she’s not holding her back, and tells Kyle that she thinks they’ll be fine with three. In Jack’s interview, he says, that everyone is okay with Natalya leaving doesn’t sit right with him. They leave the restaurant, and Jack tells Max that he feels Natalya is being pushed out.

On the way to a club, there’s twerking and nipple flashing on one taxi, and sad looking Max and Jack in the other. When they get to the club, Max decides to stay in the taxi. Tumi asks Jessika if she wants something to happen with Luka, but Jessika says she gets attached. Tumi says, Luka’s not that guy, and in Jessika’s interview, she says she’s a relationship girl. The longest she’s been single is maybe four months. Her first relationship was at 16, and they were together two years. There was a brief relationship with a guy in Vegas, but her advice is, don’t date Vegas guys. Her latest relationship lasted six years. She gives it her all. In Tumi’s interview, she says she’s worried tonight isn’t going to end well. Luka and Jessika sort of kiss, but are mostly goofing around. Jack accosts Haleigh about Natalya, and Haleigh says she doesn’t blame Natalya for going. Jack says, no one else is bothered, and Haleigh says, let’s get drinks, which seems like as good an answer as any to the problem. Jack says his phone is dead, so he wants a drink. Kyle says he’s feeling more liberated. He’s never felt more free as himself. Hmm… Sounds like drunk talk to me. Haleigh and Lara get on either side of Jack to help him to the taxi. Kyle says he’s going to help Natalya pack, and in Luka’s interview, he says, Kyle’s being a mean girl. It’s awkward. He doesn’t want to stand up for Natalya too much. He’ll get his head bit off. When they get back to the boat, Haleigh says she’s going to sleep, and Lara says, let’s make some noodles, bitches. In Lara’s interview, she says she can’t keep up with this sh*t. At least she’s not the center of the drama. Ugly drama. She scarfs some, no doubt cold pasta out of a huge bowl, and Tumi checks on Natalya, who says she’s leaving in the morning. Tumi tells the rest in the crew mess that Natalya is done, then asks for some noodles. She says she doesn’t want to be a bitch, but can someone help with Natalya’s bags tomorrow. Kyle says, maybe he can try to talk to her, and Tumi says she has no time for this again. He goes to the door of the master, and in her interview, Tumi says she’s holding her breath. Kyle opens the door and asks, can he… Natalya says, no.  

Natalya tells Kyle that she’s so tired. He says he doesn’t want to make it worse. He just wants her to know it hurts his heart what happened to them. He apologizes and isn’t blaming it on anything. He said what he said. In Natalya’s interview, she says, she can accept his apology – even that’s fake – but she doesn’t want anything to do with him. Kyle says, this is an indefinite goodbye. It wasn’t a normal fight. She says, it’s heartbreaking is what it is, and he says, if she ever wants to rechart, she knows where he is. He leaves and tells Tumi that he said apology words, but there was no forgiveness. She may never reach out. He wasn’t there to ask her to stay. Tumi says she wishes Natalya well, and in her interview, she says, Kyle thinks he’s the victim. Maybe the boat will be better, maybe not. Luka and Jessika roll around in the bottom bunk, when Tumi comes in. She says, they’re going to make the best babies, and gets in the top bunk. Luka makes his exit.

29 hours before charter. In Max’s interview, he says he wasn’t sleeping last night. When his Eifel Tower is down in the morning, it’s an indicator that he’s not in a good environment. Good to know. Natalya asks to meet Captain Sandy on the bridge. She tells the captain, besides personal stuff at home, Kyle is fighting with everyone. She misrepresents what happened in Kyle’s fight with Max, which was basically a stupid drunk fight, and tells the captain that she thought Kyle was her best friend. He had Jessika crying because he screamed at her. We flash back to the green stew debacle, and Captain Sandy says she’s going to speak to Kyle. It’s not okay for him to be bullying. Natalya says she needs to get off the boat. She feels safe, but she just doesn’t feel good. The captain says she won’t find anyone as excellent as Natalya. She wants Natalya to stay, but if she wants to leave, nothing is worth her mental health. They hug, and in the captain’s interview, she says, she can’t make Natalya stay nor would she want her to. She wants Natalya to feel supported, but at the same time, she’s pissed about losing Natalya. It’s going to be hard on the interior, and they’re in trouble with their next charter. She’s not condoning Kyle’s behavior. The way Natalya described it, it’s unacceptable, and she’s pissed.

Natalya hugs Jack, who’s all bummed. In Luka’s interview, he says he can’t believe she’s leaving. It will be amazing for her to go home and sort out her stuff and find out what she wants to do. In Natalya’s interview, she says she’s happy that she stuck it out as long as she could, but at a point, she needs to say, sayonara. She needs to have a hard conversation with her partner. Luka should have encouraged her to stay, but he was too focused on vagina. If not for Kyle, she could have had a good relationship. This was the last straw. She’s done. She’s unfollowing him. That makes it official.

Captain Sandy texts Norma asking for a new stew. She calls Jack to the bridge, and in her interview, she says she’s not sure what happened, but she’s not happy. She wants to know the full story, so she’s getting other people’s feedback. Jack says he doesn’t remember what the argument was about (I’m not surprised with the amount of alcohol in him), but Kyle was mad. He stuck up for Max, but Kyle was out of order. It all came out when he was drunk. Everyone seemed happy Natalya was leaving, but he thinks they’re insecure. She’s the best stew they’ve had. The captain says she’ll deal with it, and when he leaves, she says she didn’t expect that. In Jessika’s interview, she says she’s not sure how this sh*t is going to pan out. She feels relieved, but what’s happening is confusing. It’s stressful thinking about it. The captain calls Tumi to the bridge and asks if Tumi remembers they talked about respect in the workplace. She asks about the issue with Kyle. What happened with Max? Tumi says, it got heated, but she didn’t understand the story. Captain Sandy asks if she witnessed Kyle and Natalya’s altercation, and Tumi says, it caught her off-guard and it was also heated. The captain says, even when they’re off the boat, they still represent the boat. Tumi says she respects Kyle as a co-worker and loves him, but the way he reacts when he’s emotionally triggered is incorrect. Captain Sandy says, it’s not okay, and asks Tumi to get Kyle. Max is starting to look smart at this point.  

Max compares the yacht to a casino, and he wants to cash out. He wants to go out after one more charter, but Luka says, they have four to go. In Luka’s interview, he says, his team was making progress. They were doing great. He’ll tell Max and maybe that will change his mind. In the crew mess, Tumi tells Jessika about talking to the captain, and on the bridge, Captain Sandy tells Kyle, have a seat. It’s not a good morning for her. She has ears and eyes, and in every situation on the boat, he’s the common denominator. He had screaming matches with Max, Jessika, and Natalya, and he’s the person always in screaming matches. She’d never bring him back as chief stew because he can’t control his emotions. This is a professional setting, and he’s bullying and screaming. She doesn’t want a person like him on board. Does he understand? He says, yes, captain.

To be continued…

🚙 Gathering Together…

Start working off your future Thanksgiving dinner by running here tomorrow for soap and a mixture of side dishes. Until then, stay safe, stay not being the unexpected early guest, and stay never going along with a dysfunctional situation that’s bound to blow up.

November 17, 2023 – Austin Offers Dante What He Wants, Departing, Her Fans, Wedding Bliss, Diamonds Aren’t Forever, Net Worth, Coming Up, Went By, Furry Thanksgiving, Not Quite 8 Quotes & Parade

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Jordan goes to Laura’s office and asks if she’s burning the midnight oil. Laura invites her in and says, they have so much to catch up on. She thanks Jordan for attending the town hall meeting of the dockworkers for her, and Jordan says, it was her pleasure. They’re very hard-working citizens that deserve to be heard. She forwarded Laura some emails about things that needed to be approved. Laura says she saw that and thanks her, and Jordan says, there are a few issues that came up while she was gone that they need to discuss. Laura says, before they get into that, she has a question for Jordan. Would she like her position as Deputy Mayor to be a permanent one?

At the hospital, Felicia tells Mr. Williams that his MRI was just approved by his insurance company, and he thanks her. She sees Robert wave to her, and she asks if Mac sent him to spy on her. He says he’s here on his own, and she says, perfect timing. She’s due for a break. What brings him by? He says he needs her help.

Spencer knocks on Josslyn’s dorm room door, and she says she’s glad he’s here. Come in. He needs to see this for himself. There’s like a wall of floral bouquets, and Spencer says he might have gone overboard. Josslyn says, he’s lucky she doesn’t have allergies. Don’t get her wrong, they’re beautiful, but unfortunately, Trina isn’t here to see them.

Curtis is lifting hand weights when Marshall comes in from the kitchen. Curtis says, he’s got dinner smelling good, and Marshall says, it’ll be ready in about a half hour. Curtis says, good, because he’s worked up quite an appetite, and Marshall says, Curtis has increased his reps. He’s not pushing himself too hard, is he? Trina comes in the front door and is obviously aggravated. Marshall asks if Curtis wants to take this one, and Trina says, where’s mom? Curtis says, she’s taking her Chief of Staff job seriously, so she’s working late, and Marshall says, dinner’s almost ready. Give him a half-hour and he’ll have the table set. Trina says, dinner smells great, but she’s not hungry. She’s going to her room. She starts to leave, but Curtis calls her back and asks if she wants to tell him what’s going on. She says, no.

Michael says, they didn’t have to come to Kelly’s to see his mom, but Willow says, just come inside. Carly greets them and asks what they want. Chili, burgers… Michael says, Willow insisted they come by to see her. Does she have something to tell him? Carly says, Nina offered to sell her back her half of the MetroCourt.

Nina tells Trish that they have a large party coming in tomorrow night and asks if she can make sure they have two bottles of their best red wine, and Trish says, will do. Nina thanks her, and Sonny walks in. Nina says, it’s great that Sonny could break away and have dinner with her and asks Trish to bring them two menus. He says he thought he’d come while she’s still co-owner. Why did she decide to sell her half of the MetroCourt back to Carly?

On the phone in the interrogation room, Dante says he wants everything from the Charlotte Cassadine shooting. An officer knocks at the door and says, there’s a guy out here demanding to see Dante, Dr. Gatlin-Holt. Dante says, send him in, and Austin says he’s here to give Dante what he wants.

Laura thanks Jordan for helping her, and thanks her for her service to the city of Port Charles. She did an excellent job while Laura was off looking for her son, and since she’s been back too. She feels bad that Jordan had to step in for her. Jordan says, Laura had some crazy circumstances thrown at her. Her granddaughter was shot and her son was missing. Jordan would have done the same thing. How is Charlotte? Laura says, physically, she’s one the mend, but emotionally, she thinks it’s going to take a little while to figure out what’s going on with her. Which is why Laura wanted to ask if Jordan wanted to stay on as Deputy Mayor. There’s no one she trusts more. Jordan says she appreciates the vote of confidence, but this isn’t an easy decision to make. As Laura knows, she spent her life in law enforcement, and she feels that there’s still a lot of good she can do for the community. There’s a knock at the door, and Laura tells Jordan that she’s so sorry. She says, come in, and Cyrus walks in. He asks if the mayor has a moment for her brother.

Dante tells Austin, have a seat. He expected to see him here. Austin says, really? He’s completely shocked to be here. But now that he is, maybe they can get this over with as quickly as possible. That’d be great. He sits down, and Dante asks if he’s ready to name the person he’s working for and testify against him. Austin tells Dante that he didn’t say anything about testifying. Dante needs to keep his name out of this. He needs complete anonymity. Dante says he doesn’t know what Austin thinks this is, but he’s not The Invader and he’s not a journalist for The Invader. Austin is already being looked at as an accomplice in the kidnapping of Ava Jerome, and now he’s the one they’re looking at as possibly having killed Gordon Stevens. Austin says he didn’t kill Gordon Stevens, but Dante says, if this keeps going the way it’s going, he’s going to be considered an official suspect. So if he wants to produce something in exchange for leniency, now is the time. Dante switches on the recorder.

Felicia asks what Robert needs her help with. Is it Anna? He says, pretty as well as smart. Yeah. Has Felicia heard from her? She says, they spoke briefly on the phone, and she’s been sending Anna texts to check in, and she always responds. But they haven’t actually talked since Anna shot Charlotte Cassadine. He says, she’s had more contact than he has. Anna hasn’t responded to any of his calls. He got a text that says, reach out when I can. He shows Felicia his phone and says, if he didn’t know better, he’d say Anna’s hiding from him. Felicia says she’s pretty sure Anna is.

Trina says she’s sorry. She didn’t mean to be rude. Curtis tells her, that’s okay, but if there’s something bothering her, they just want to help… if they can. She says she knows that, and Marshall says, come on. Sit down. Whatever it is, maybe he and her father can help iron it out. She says she appreciates that, but she knows how they both feel about Spencer, so she’s just going to deal with it herself. Curtis says he’ll stay open-minded, and looks at Marshall, who says, me too.

Nina says, it was Sonny. He’s the one who advised her against hanging on to her half of the hotel. He says, but that was months ago. Since then, he’s seen her tackle every obstacle and challenge that’s been thrown her way. And now the MetroCourt is doing good. Business is booming. She says she’d like to think she helped with that, and he says, and she and Olivia are doing great. In the beginning, Olivia was tough, but Nina won her over, and that’s not easy in his experience. So she’s enjoying running the day-to-day at the hotel. Carly’s settled in at Kelly’s, right? She says, mm-hmm, and he says, so they’re all getting along, co-existing. So why would she want to rock the boat by selling her half to Carly?

Willow says, isn’t it exciting? and Michael flashes back to telling Nina that he’s not going to take away his father’s happiness. He’s sure Sonny will be happy until he finds out the kind of woman Nina really is. But he’s not risking his family. She’ll only see them when he says it’s okay, and he wants her to sell her mother her half of the MetroCourt back. Michael asks Carly when Nina decided to sell her back her half of the hotel, and Carly says, she stopped by on her way to work this morning.  That’s when she made the offer. Michael says, tell me about this offer.

Spencer says, it smells like a flower shop or a funeral. He’s not sure which. Josslyn says, really? She doesn’t think so. He should probably take some of these and donate them at GH. He says, on a scale of 1 to 10, how mad is Trina? and Josslyn says, 11. Speaking for herself, if Dex threw down with her, and told her not to ask him to choose between her and someone else because she wouldn’t like the answer? She hates to break it to him, but seems like a red flag. Possibly a relationship ender.

Marshall says, how dare Spencer give Trina an ultimatum? He’s sorry. He promised to remain neutral. She says, but now he sees why she’s so frustrated with him. Her phone chimes a few times, and she says, not to mention, he’s blowing up her phone with text messages and phone calls. She knows she needs to respond; she just doesn’t know what to say. She looks at her phone and says, stop texting me, Spencer. Curtis says he’s never seen her this upset at Spencer. He knows he hasn’t been her dad for that long, but may he offer her some unsolicited parental advice? She says, as long as it’s not telling her to talk to Spencer again. Curtis says, but that’s exactly what she’ll need to do. But first, she needs to figure out for herself what she needs to discuss with him. He believes in any romantic relationship; you have to be very clear about what you want and what you’re willing to put up with. So if she’s willing to do the hard work with her feelings, he and Marshall could help her figure some things out.

Austin shuts the recorder off and sets it aside. He says he will give Dante the name of Mason’s boss. As soon as there’s a deal in place. Dante asks, what kind of deal is he talking about? and Austin says, a deal that guarantees his freedom. Immunity from prosecution and he’s not going to set foot in a courtroom and testify against anybody. Dante says he’s not in a position to negotiate right now. So he guesses this conversation is over. Austin can see himself out. Austin says, Dante doesn’t understand the risk in coming here. If his boss finds out he’s here before Dante has a chance to bring him into custody, he’s a dead man.

Cyrus says, Deputy Mayor Ashford, it’s good to see you. You’re looking well. Jordan says, congratulations on his hardship release from prison. Not many people who’ve done what he has are given yet another chance to become a productive citizen. He says, and he’s grateful for the opportunity. He came by this evening because he wanted to share some news with his sister. Laura says, about what? and he says he found gainful employment. She says, really? Doing what? He says, washing dishes at the Port Charles Grill.

Robert asks Felicia, why would Anna be hiding from him? She can’t possibly be thinking he’s going to prosecute her for the Cassadine shooting. Felicia says she thinks the opposite. Anna probably feels he might come under scrutiny if he doesn’t prosecute her. Everyone knows the history they share. He says, it’s a hell of a time to be thinking about his reputation, and she says, maybe it’s simpler. Maybe Anna knows she got herself into this situation. It’s on her and her alone to get herself out.

Trina doesn’t know what she wants, and Marhsall says, maybe she should start by ruling out a few things first. Does she want to break up with Spencer? She says, no. Of course (🍷) not. Marshall says, there it is. Sometimes we figure out what we want by figuring out what we don’t want. Curtis says, and from what she’s told them, she doesn’t want Spencer, Esme, and Ace living together either. Trina says, it’s at least better now that Laura and Doc are back in town, but yes, in a perfect world, Spencer would not share a home with Esme and Ace. Curtis asks, why is that? and she says, because Spencer is Ace’s brother. He’s not his dad. Curtis says he spoke with Laura when she came back from Europe, and she received confirmation that Nikolas is alive. And by his own free will, choosing to stay away from Port Charles and be an active father in Spencer and Ace’s lives. So can she blame Spencer for wanting to play a role in his brother’s life? She says, yes. This whole thing is just so messy. Esme is Spencer’s ex-girlfriend, and she knows Esme doesn’t remember that part of her life, but Trina does, and there’s still that history of them being a couple together. And now they’re taking parenting classes together, they’re living together, and she’s just not comfortable with it. She’s been patient and she’s been understanding, and she’s reached her limit. She’s done. Curtis looks at Marshall, and Marshall says, there’s something she’s going to have to tell Spencer.

Spencer says he knows he blew it. He lost his temper. Josslyn says, he has a tendency to do that, and he says he knows. He put out an ultimatum and he doesn’t want to have to carry that out. She says, he’s raised an important question. If he had to choose, would he rather be with Trina or live with Esme and Ace? He says he doesn’t know. He guesses he was fooling himself, thinking that this scenario could continue on like this for forever.

Marshall says he has another question for Trina, but since he got a late start at being her granddad, let him give her a brief history on himself. Her grandmother Irene wasn’t his first girlfriend, but she was his first love. In fact, that buttermilk cornbread baking in that oven is her secret recipe. He’ll teach it to her sometime. Curtis says he doesn’t even know how to make the cornbread, and Marshall says he loved Irene. He loved her with all his heart and soul for the longest time. He thought she would be his only romantic love. That is, until he met Epiphany Johnson, may she rest in peace. Trina says she’s sorry he lost Epiphany, and he thanks her. He asks if Spencer is the first boy she’s been in love with, and she says, yeah. For the most part. Curtis says, whoa, wheeling himself over. Those answers don’t seem to go together. Can she explain what she means? Trina says, Joss has been her best friend since junior high. When Josslyn got involved with Oscar, their friend group solidified around Joss and Oscar and her and Cameron. And when Oscar got diagnosed with cancer, and eventually died, things got really intense and emotional. Marshall says he’s sorry she lost her friend to cancer, and she says, it was hard, but she and Cameron spent a lot of time being Joss’s support system, helping her deal with the loss of Oscar. And if she’s being honest, she had really strong feelings for Cam. Marshall says, she did? and she says, yeah, but that was a long time ago, and what she felt for Cam is nothing like what she feels for Spencer. He’s the real deal and she thought he was going to be her future, but… Curtis says, but what? and she says, but she thinks she might have been wrong.

Josselyn says, Spencer’s situation with Trina, Esme, and Ace can’t continue. It’s obvious. He says he loves Trina so much. The more time they spend together, the deeper the connection he feels with her. She is so smart. She’s so passionate. She’s so real. She’s a beautiful person and he’d never want to hurt her, and he’d never want to give her up. Josslyn says, then maybe that’s his answer, and he says, but she’s also an adult. She is responsible and she is capable. She survived his Uncle Victor and all the crazy that happened in Greenland when they were together. But Ace is a baby. His father abandoned him, and he knows what that feels like. And while he doesn’t think Esme is a bad person… anymore, he doesn’t think Esme can give Ace what he needs on her own. Like the support Ace is going to need growing up. She says, that’s fair, and he says he just knows in his heart that his little brother needs him. And isn’t what a baby needs more important?

Carly says, so while she was getting Nina’s to-go order ready, she saw Nina was having a very intense conversation with Martin Grey out front. But then Drew came in and surprised her and she got a little distracted. Willow says, it’s so good having him home, and Carly says, it is. It feels so good knowing he’s not in danger anymore and he’s back home where he belongs. It just makes her so happy. Drew left and she brought Nina’s order to her, and that’s when Nina offered to sell her back her half of the MetroCourt. Michael asks if Carly thinks Nina selling her back her half of the MetroCourt is what she was talking about with Martin, and Carly says, Nina did say that what she was discussing with Martin concerned her. That’s when she presented the offer and that’s when Willow arrived. Willow says she knew the second she heard about it that it was the perfect way to heal their family.

Nina tells Sonny that she got some really good advice recently. Instead of making enemies, she should start making more friends. (Wow. That must have been tough to come up with.) He says, she thought she would start with Carly? but Nina says, no. It’s not like she’s deceiving herself into thinking she and Carly will ever be friends. It’s just that they have a lot of people in common. People that they love, and they should stop clawing at each other and continuing this armed truce. Gritting their teeth and waiting to take the other one down. He says he couldn’t agree more, and Nina says she does think it’s better for everyone if they left the past in the past, right? And the best way she can do that is to sell Carly back her half of the hotel.

Felicia says, Robert knows how independent Anna is, and he says, to a fault. She says, as much as he wants to fix this for Anna, she’s the one who shot Charlotte. She needs to find her own way to deal with this and move past it. He says he hopes she’s not avoiding him because of Valentin Cassadine. He never trusted the guy. Any Cassadine. He told her over and over this relationship she had with him would end in disaster and here we are. Mind you, nobody could have predicted a disaster quite like this one. He just hopes she doesn’t think he’s going to say, I told you so. Felicia takes his hand and says, Anna knows him better than that.

Dante says, there isn’t going to be a deal until Austin gives them his boss’s name. If he doesn’t want to testify, fine, but he has to give them other evidence. Documents, records, something they can use to get Mason to flip on this guy, or something they can use in court to prove his guilt. Austin says he can do that, and Dante says, great. And he can talk to the DA about a deal. Austin looks sick and says he knows Dante doesn’t like him. He gets it. He can see why. But he’s not a bad guy. He’s just a guy who’s been coerced into doing things that he knew weren’t the right thing to do. So he thanks Dante for giving him the opportunity to do the right thing. He leaves.

Cyrus says, something Laura doesn’t know about him is, he worked as a cook back in his youth. And he believes with a little hard work and determination, he should be able to move his way up at the Port Charles Grill. Laura asks how he got the job, and he says, the manager is part of a network of businesses that work with a charity to end recidivism. They give formerly incarcerated people such as himself a chance at employment. She tells him, congratulations, but as he can see, she and Jordan were in the middle of a meeting. He’s going to have to… He says, of course (🍷). He stopped by unannounced. It’s great to see her. He nods to Jordan and leaves. Jordan says she doesn’t believe a word that comes out of his mouth. Does Laura?  

Curtis says he thinks Trina needs to talk to Spencer about priorities, because family is important and a priority. She says she gets that, but family can’t be more significant than the primary relationship, right? Curtis says, right. For example, take her grandfather. He’s very important to Curtis, and so is Aunt Stella. And Trina, she’s a huge priority for him, but her mom is his wife. She is his primary relationship, first and foremost. He’s not suggesting she go off and get married, or that she’s even ready for it, but he doesn’t know how important her relationship is with Spencer. She says, it is, and Curtis says, but is he her first priority?

Josslyn says she totally gets that Spencer just wants to take care of his little brother, and he asks if it’s so difficult for people to understand. She says, it’s not difficult for people to understand, but has he thought about what that looks like? Does that look like him, Esme, and Ace living together, while at the same time, he and Trina are a couple. They’re going on trips together, spending time together, but every night, he goes home to Esme and Ace. He asks if that would be so impossible, and she says, it wouldn’t be impossible, but it wouldn’t be fair to anyone, including him.

Willow says, Carly shouldn’t have lost her half of the MetroCourt to begin with, any more than Drew should have gone to prison for what he did. None of it was fair to either of them. The whole insider trading indictment was wrong. Michael says, but it’s over now, and Willow says, and Drew’s free, where he belongs, rebuilding his life. And when you think about it, all that’s left now to balance the scales is for Carly to get her hotel back. Carly says, if only it were that simple. She can’t just accept Nina’s offer. She has to figure out how she’s going to pay for it. Willow says, that’s where Michael comes in.

Nina says she’s assuming Sonny found out about this offer because Carly wanted to talk it over with him, and he asks why Nina didn’t tell him. She says, he has a relationship with Carly. She’s always going to respect that. She’s not going to run to him in advance to get him on her side, so he views her actions from her perspective. She’s a businesswoman. This is a business transaction between her and Carly. It really has nothing to do with him at all. He says, Nina’s not that naïve.

Michael says he can give Carly the money to buy back her half of the MetroCourt and she can return it any time she wants. She can take it as a gift if she wants. Willow tells Carly to let Michael do this for her, and Michael says he wants to, but Carly says, absolutely not. When everything was falling apart, Josslyn offered to give Carly half her trust, but she turned Josslyn down. Just like she’s turning him down. She loves him. She can’t take his money. He says, hear him out for a minute. He’s been very fortunate financially. He runs Aurora, he has the second largest amount of voting stock in ELQ, and Jason set him up with a substantial trust fund when he was a baby. What he’s trying to say is, he’s benefited greatly from the generosity of his family his entire life and he’d like to give something back to her. If anyone deserves it, it’s her. He wants to do this for her.

Sonny says, Nina just told him that offering Carly her half of the hotel was a peacemaking gesture, and she says, it’s the best one she could think of. He says, so it wasn’t just a simple business transaction. It was more than that, right? He appreciates her leaving him out of it, but he’s already involved because she’s his wife and Carly is the mother of his children. They’re going to be tied for life, so this affects their entire family. She says, he’s right. If that’s the case, did he advise Carly to take her offer?

Laura says she honestly doesn’t know what to make of Cyrus anymore, and Jordan says, Laura has to trust her instincts. Laura says she knows how dangerous he can be, but she also knows how close to death he came with this heart attack, so maybe this new perspective of his is real. He’s an older man and he’s in poor health. Maybe now he just wants a simple life as a dishwasher. Jordan says she doesn’t believe that, and she doesn’t trust him. She knows Cyrus lives for one thing and one thing only – power. And that will never change.

Robert goes into the interrogation room, and tells Dante, it’s been a long day. This better be good. Dante says he wouldn’t have called Robert here if it wasn’t, and Robert asks what he’s got. Dante says he’s been squeezing Austin Gatlin-Holt to see if he can get him to give up his cousin and the guy they work for, the guy they think is responsible for kidnapping Ava Jerome. Robert says, maybe he should squeeze a bit harder, and Dante says, he’s willing to give up his boss’s name and corroborating evidence, but he wants a deal.

Austin goes into his house and turns on the light. He sees someone and asks what they’re doing here. We hear gunshots.

Josslyn says, the longer Spencer stays in this pseudo family with Esme and Ace, the more it’s going to hurt when it blows up, and it will. He knows it will. Esme’s going to meet someone, she’s going to want a life of her own, and Trina deserves better than him fitting her in when he’s not out with them. He says, okay, so what’s the alternative? Bowing out? He just lets Esme take Ace, and they move into their little apartment, and he gets to visit on weekends? Josslyn says, yes, but he says, nope. He’s not going to do that, and he refuses to accept that as a reality. He’s not going to let Esme take his little brother away from him. Josslyn says, this is exactly how he would operate when they were children. He wanted what he wanted, and he never stopped to consider who could get hurt in the process and what it would cost. He’s an adult now. He has to slow down and realize he’s not going to get everything he wants. This time he really does have to choose.

Trina repeats Curtis’s question, is Spencer her priority? She doesn’t like the sound of that. She wanted a career and because of that, she feels her education should be her first priority. Marhsall says he doesn’t think her dad was suggesting she prioritize a man over her invaluable education, and Curtis says, absolutely not. He knows he had nothing to do with her decision to go to college or for her choosing art as her major, but he’s very proud of her for pursuing her dreams. Let him think… How can he simplify this? Who is the first person she texts in the morning and the last person she texts at night? Is it her mom? Is it Josslyn? She says, no, it’s Spencer, first and last, and Curtis says, there you go. Now she has her answer, and she has her question for Spencer. Because is it the same for him?

Sonny says he knows better than to offer Carly advice, but he hopes she takes Nina’s offer, and Nina asks, why? He says, because once Carly is running things at the MetroCourt again, they can stop rehashing the past and move forward. Nina says, that would be nice, but he says he doesn’t think Carly sees it the way he does. She just told him that she’s happy to be working at Kelly’s and that she appreciates Bobbie let her have the diner as a safety net, so she wants to stay there. But he wants to say, even if Carly doesn’t accept her offer, he appreciates what she did. She thanks him, and he says, because she is the bigger person and she’s the one trying to make peace with their family.

Carly thanks Michael and Willow so much for caring, and Michael says, that’s what family does. She says she has to admit, she was thrown a little bit off her game when Nina presented the offer. Willow says she thinks they all were, and Carly says she’s been thinking a lot about it, and she appreciates that Nina made the offer. And she believes Nina did it for Willow and the kids because she wants to mend fences and she wants to make peace. Willow says, so Carly’s going to accept the money from Michael? but Carly says she can’t. She can’t accept Nina’s offer. Michael protests, but Carly says, as badly as she wants her hotel back, it won’t feel like hers if she doesn’t get it back on her own.

Laura says, Jordan would be in a better position to keep an eye on Cyrus as Police Commissioner, and if he violates the terms of his release, she can bust him. She won’t be able to do that as Deputy Mayor, so whatever decision Jordan makes, Laura will respect. Jordan says she refuses to make Cyrus her obsession, to become Captain Ahab, chasing him down to her own detriment. He’s not worth that. Before he came in, she was about to accept the position of Deputy Mayor permanently, and she sees no reason to change her mind. Laura says she sees no reason to either, and thanks Jordan. She really believes that together, they’ll be an effective team. And together they’ll be able to do some really good things for the people of Port Charles. They shake hands, and Jordan says she’s counting on it.

Mr. Williams gets Felicia’s attention, and she asks how it went. He says, everything went smoothly. She says, that’s great. She checked, and the hospital received the approval from the insurance company, and he says he wouldn’t have been able to get his MRI if it wasn’t for her. He thanks her, and she says she was just doing her job.

Robert asks where Dante left the good Dr. Gatlin-Holt, and Dante tells him, Austin says he’s got evidence against Mason and his still nameless boss. He’s gone to retrieve it apparently, and he will hand it over if they make a deal with him and give him immunity. Robert asks what Dante thinks about this Austin. Is he on the up and up? Dante says he thinks at this point Austin is just scrambling, trying to save his own skin. But he is motivated to put his boss away before his boss turns on him. He says they should give him the deal. Robert says, the DA’s office could never make a case against Austin for abetting in the Ava Jerome kidnapping. So if he gets a name and evidence of guilt, Austin can have immunity.

We see a man leave Austin’s house. Austin lies on the floor, shot in the chest, unconscious and bleeding.

On Monday, Josslyn asks why Adam is doing this to himself; Trina says, that tells her all she needs to know; Ned says, there’s something Michael and Drew need to know about the SEC charges; and Carly asks Nina why she’s doing this.

🍭 Bye, Bye, Cuz…

Everyone says the same thing; GH is the best job they’ve ever had.

👠 Love The Look…

She’s one of my favorites too. I like a female mob boss.

👰🏻‍♀️ Relive The Moment…

Take a stroll down Luke and Laura Memory Lane, when Helena was Elizabeth Taylor.

What else happened on November 17th.

💎 The Missed And The Unmissed…

It was horrible what happened to her. I hate that mean girl stuff. Unless I’m watching Mean Girls. That movie never gets old.

One mean girl gone. But I disagree that Erika is blossoming without her. It’s more like Erika is just becoming a more subtle mean girl and sliding into LisaR’s position.

🍸 Belle Of The Bank…

I wonder if she’d like to adopt an older child. That house is big. She’ll never notice I’m there. And what’s a few extra dogs?

🏆 Awards Starting With G…

Grammy nominations. Great music, but predictable.

https://ew.com/awards/grammys/2024-grammy-awards-nominations/

When the Golden Globes will air.

https://ew.com/golden-globes-2024-will-air-on-cbs-8404310

🐎 Belated Congrats…

CMA Winners.

https://people.com/cma-awards-2023-complete-winners-list-8391737

And more important, CMA fashion.

https://people.com/2023-cma-awards-best-dressed-stars-8399491

🦃 Thanksgiving Is For Pets…

All the info on celebrating with the furbabies, including what foods they can’t have.

And you thought Halloween was the only time to dress them up. Including the cutest pilgrim in the world.

http://www.hipstercrite.com/2012/11/21/13-pictures-of-dogs-and-cats-dressed-up-for-thanksgiving/

A few repeats, but more cute pilgrims.

https://en.paperblog.com/the-most-adorable-dogs-dressed-in-thanksgiving-costumes-731831/

And should you get the notion to DIY. I don’t know if these costumes are still available, but there are great ideas here.

https://www.dailypaws.com/gear-apparel/dog-supplies/dog-clothing-accessories/dog-thanksgiving-outfits

🐚 Quotes of the Week…

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

Death floods the mind with memory, but there’s always new ones to make. – Carl (Steve Coulter), Insidious: The Red Door

My belief is that personal freedom cannot grow beyond personal responsibility. The more people that learn to be fully accountable for their lives, the more freedom each of us can enjoy and the more fulfilling all of our lives will be. – Ross Parmenter

Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom. – Thomas Jefferson

As to wishing it had not happened, one can’t help momentary wishes: guilt begins only when one embraces them. You can’t help their knocking at the door, but one mustn’t ask them in to lunch. – C.S. Lewis, from The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume III

I do believe that when we face challenges in life that are far beyond our own power, it’s an opportunity to build on our faith, inner strength, and courage. I’ve learned that how we face challenges plays a big role in the outcome of them.  – Sasha Azevedo

I don’t think you can shock an audience anymore [today]. If I cut my arm off and ate it, OK, that would be shocking. But you can only do it twice.Alice Cooper                                   

🧮 Counting My Blessings…

Stop by on Sunday for a finale of Fear. Until then, stay safe, stay telling your Thanksgiving host about any allergies or dietary restrictions before Thanksgiving, and stay figuring out what you don’t want, when you can’t figure out what you do want.