Category Archives: fantasy

March 31, 2017 – Valentin Agrees to Help Jason, the Weird World of V.C. Andrews & Quotes

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What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

Elizabeth wonders why Franco is asking her to marry him right now. He says why not?

Jason asks Valentin for a favor, telling him that it’s about Jake. He explains that Jake spent the better part of four years with Helena, and he’s trying to find out what she did to him.

Lulu sees Nelle at Kelly’s and introduces herself. Nelle asks if Lulu is going to tell her off. Lulu says what happened is none of her business, and it’s not her place to judge, but she’d like to talk about her daughter, Charlotte.

Alexis enters a dark house. Her phone rings, but when she answers, she gets a dial tone. It rings again, and she asks if it’s Julian. It’s Sam, who is wearing an awesome white swing top with thumbhole sleeves. Sam wonders why Alexis called her Julian, and Alexis says old habits die hard. Sam wants to come by, but Alexis says she’ll come over to Sam’s house.

Sonny tells Michael about the break up with Carly. He says she’s mad as hell and called it quits. Michael says sorry, and Sonny says he doesn’t seem like it. Michael says he’s not exactly in shock. Now that things have settled down, there are no distractions. Losing Morgan could have brought them together or torn them apart, and they decided on the latter. Sonny says he didn’t want this, but Michael says it’s happening.

Lulu asks if Nelle has a minute. Since they’ll be seeing one another, they might as well get to know each other. Nelle was picking up scones for Charlotte’s birthday breakfast, since they’re her favorite. She thinks they remind Charlotte of her mom.

Laura tells Doc about the upcoming trip. He says that he’s not sure what surprises him more, the trip itself or that she’s going with Tracy. He asks if Luke is in jail again, and Laura says that would be amusing if his ex-wives showed up to break him out, but he isn’t involved.

Franco tells Elizabeth that it makes perfect sense. Any two people can shack up, but if they make it official, he’s her husband and can be stepfather to her children. She asks if it’s about the two of them, or him and Jason.

Valentin tells Jason that Helena was a horrible person. He was sent to boarding school, so they didn’t cross paths much. Jason asks about the island, and if there are any scarecrows on it. Valentin gives him a strange, amused look.

Alexis comes to Sam’s bearing diapers and cookies. She’s doing her grandma thing. Sam says she got the feeling that Alexis was drinking when they last talked. Alexis admits to having a bit of a relapse, but went to a meeting, and was coming back from one when Sam called. A new sponsor might be a good idea. A real one this time. Sam says it’s understandable with all she’s been through. Alexis says ironically Julian was again the one who convinced her to stop.

Michael tells Sonny that he’s not taking sides. Sonny asks if he talked to Carly, but he says he doesn’t have to; he already knows what they do. They’re both strong people, and sometimes turn that strength on each other, and they’re taking out the pain they feel about Morgan on each other. Sonny asks if Michael knows how much he hates hurting the people he loves, including him.

Nelle corrects herself, saying surrogate mother, and apologizes to Lulu. Lulu says it’s not her fault. She says there are so many things she doesn’t know about her own daughter, seemingly insignificant things. She said she would know them had she been there at the beginning, but Valentin kept Charlotte from her all of her life.

Doc is surprised that Laura is traipsing across the world because Tracy asked her to. He wonders how it came about. Laura says they seem like an unlikely pair, but they do have a relationship. She says it was Tracy’s fur coat that she wore to flash Doc, and Doc says he’ll be forever grateful. Laura tells him that Tracy has a situation that may or may not have to do with her father. She thinks she should help, because if Tracy goes it alone, she might miss the chance to reconnect with him. And she’s a sucker for Turkish coffee. She says the best part will be the homecoming, and they kiss.

Franco tells Elizabeth that he’s not asking her to marry him because of Jason or Jake. He’d love to be a permanent fixture in Jake’s life, but he’s asking because he loves her. She can show the world that she trusts him and chooses him over all others. She says she’s told everyone that she trusts him, and she does choose him over everything, including Jason; but Jason is Jake’s father, and she has to consider his feelings. Franco says that Jason doesn’t even believe that Jake has a problem.

Valentin tells Jason that’s a weird question about the scarecrows. Jason says thanks for the help, because he’s an impatient jackass. Valentin says that he never intended to be a father, but Helena took that decision away from him. Now, he loves Charlotte and she’s his life. He says he understands, and if Jason wants to search the island, he’ll set it up. He tells Jason that he might want to start with the olive grove.

Elizabeth says that it’s about Jake after all; Franco thinks that Jason isn’t handling it well, and that’s why he wants to marry her. Franco says yes and no. His feelings for her are real; he loves her, and he loves Jake too. He wants to make sure that Jake gets what he needs. Elizabeth says that Jason is still Jake’s father, and she has to regard his wishes. She thinks that Franco should keep his distance from Jake for now.

Sam tells Alexis that dreams can seem very real. Alexis says that sounds rational, but talks about the knocking at the door, and how no one was there. Then the second time, it was Valentin.

Valentin tells Jason that there’s an old olive grove that was planted before Cassadine’s got there, and it had a scarecrow in it. Legend had it that the scarecrow came alive one night, and it might have made an impression on Jake. Jason appreciates the help, and Valentine keeps the offer open. Jason wonders if Valentine has an agenda in helping him, but Valentin says that no child should be subject to Helena. Jason says he’ll do whatever it takes to help Jake.

Nelle tells Lulu that she knows a little about Charlotte’s childhood, but had no idea what was happening. Yeah, I guess she had other things to concentrate on, like the blow out with Carly and Sonny. Lulu says she’s glad that Nelle is taking care of Charlotte. She tells Nelle that when she found out she had daughter, she blew it. She was so excited, she ended up scaring her away. She didn’t think it through, and acted in the moment, making a huge mistake. Nelle can relate to not being able to take something back.

Sonny watches Michael work in some kind of weird proud dad way. He doesn’t want to leave it like this. Maybe Nelle wasn’t the main reason for breakup, but she helped it along. When truth came out, he knows Michael was hurt. Michael says he was sympathetic to a point, but can’t get past what she did. Sonny asks if he’s sure, and if Nelle staying in Port Charles changes anything.

Lulu apologizes for keeping Nelle, and thanks her for listening. Nelle asks how Michael is doing, but Lulu says she hardly sees him. She tells Nelle that Dante said he’s keeping to himself, and throwing himself into work. She hates that he’s grieving Morgan all alone, and Nelle says that she does too. Nelle leaves Kelly’s, and Lulu looks pleased with herself.

Michael tells Sonny that Nelle got a job as Charlotte’s nanny. Sonny says that Nelle probably still has an agenda (WOTD), and asks how Michael might feel running into her. Michael says they’re not like Sonny and Carly. He tells Sonny not to project, and says he can handle it. If he makes a mistake, he has to live with the fallout, and Sonny should know.

Elizabeth tells Franco that right now, his presence is causing an issue with Jake’s father, and she doesn’t want any more disruptions in Jake’s life. Franco says he wants the crappy cards on Father’s Day and to teach Jake how to drive. Elizabeth needs him to give Jake space until they find out what the drawings mean. Then they’ll have him to thank for getting the ball rolling. Franco says okay, they’ll do things her way, but no matter what, he doesn’t want to lose her. She says he won’t, and they kiss.

Jason interrupts, and says when Elizabeth gets a chance, they need to talk about Jake. I like Jason, but I don’t like when he acts irrational. And I like Franco more.

Sam doesn’t know what’s worse, a visit from Valentin, or Julian’s ghost. Alexis thinks about it and says Valentin. He wanted to do the family bonding thing, and gave her the keys to Windemere. She says she kicked him out of the house. Geez, most people would have just said thanks. Sam suggests it might have triggered a response.  Alexis says she doesn’t need anyone to do that, and says she had a weird feeling about the hang-up call. Sam asks for her phone, telling Alexis that she has an app for that. She messes around with the phones, and a map indicates that the call came from a payphone at the gas station near the footbridge. Alexis says that’s where Julian died.

Alexis thinks that Ava might be right, and that Julian is alive. Sam says not necessarily. Alexis says she know she shouldn’t feel this way, but she wishes he was alive. Scout starts to cry, and Alexis wants to jet, but Sam is worried. Alexis says she’s not delusional, just tired, and wants to go back to bed.

Franco starts to leave, and Elizabeth follows him. She says it’s not the best timing, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want to spend the rest of her life with him. She didn’t say yes, but didn’t say no either. He thanks her, and they kiss good-by. Elizabeth tells Jason that Franco agreed to step back. Jason thinks he found a lead about the scarecrow. Elizabeth says she has lead of her own, and thinks she knows who can help.

Laura runs into Lulu leaving Kelly’s. Lulu she invites Laura for dinner tomorrow, but Laura says she’s galivanting around the globe with Tracy. Hey, that reminds me. Whatever happened to that show, Galavant?

Sonny tells Michael that distractions don’t work. Michael says don’t worry, but Sonny says Michael is his son. Even if he doesn’t need protection, that doesn’t stop Sonny from wanting to protect him.

Nelle tells Valentin about buying the scones, and says that she ran into Lulu. He asks who approached who, and she says she was leaving Kelly’s, and literally almost ran into her. He asks if she introduced herself, and Nelle thought she was just being polite. Valentin asks her to tell him everything that Lulu said. Ooh, Nelle could be a counter-spy.

Sonny says he shouldn’t be lecturing anybody (truth!), and starts to leave. Michael says if he didn’t make it clear, he loves Sonny, and doesn’t blame him for what happened. He only blames Olivia-J. He says Nelle is screwed up; that doesn’t absolve her, but puts it in context. Sonny says Michael is wiser than he was at Michael’s age, and maybe wiser than he is now. Sonny leaves, and the cheese Michael stands alone.

Lulu thinks Laura and Tracy’s trip is crazy, but it makes sense, and the two of them will keep each other out of trouble. Laura feels badly about leaving right now, but Lulu says it’s okay. She tells Laura about talking to Nelle, and that she’d asked about Michael. She hasn’t learned anything useful, but laid the groundwork. Laura tells her to take it easy; it’s just the first step. Valentin is smart, and they have to be smarter.

Nelle thinks that Lulu just wanted to be familiar with her, and make sure she’s all right to be watching Charlotte. Valentin says thanks for telling him. He tells Nelle that he tried offering joint custody to Lulu, but she didn’t want it, and is suing him for full custody. He says that she isn’t to be trusted. He gives Nelle a new set of keys, saying he’d had the locks changed, since you can’t be too careful. She puts the key on the keyring that Michael gave her.

Michael flashes back to giving the keyring to Nelle. What a coincidence!

Franco gets a text from Jake, who can’t wait to do more drawing with him.

Doc tells Jason and Elizabeth that he has to refer them to someone else, because of the personal history. They need fresh eyes and objectivity. He recommends Andre, and offers to make the appointment. Jason says at least it’s some progress, and Elizabeth is glad he was able to put aside their differences. They agree that Jake comes first.

Sam calls the gas station and asks if they have surveillance cameras.

Alexis gets on the couch with the AA big book. She looks at her phone on the table. She hears something and says it’s just the wind, but it doesn’t really sound like the wind.

On Monday, Josslyn asks Carly when she and Sonny are divorcing, Ned says he’s stopping Larry’s plans, and Jax arrives.

Flowers in My Attic

Let’s talk about V.C. Andrews. I don’t know how it happened, but I ended up spending a Saturday watching Lifetime’s version of Flowers in the Attic, and then every single subsequent film in the series. I’m not sure what came over me, but I fell under the Dollanganger family’s spell.

The books of V.C. Andrews were required reading for the young adults of my generation. I’m not sure why. They’re poorly written, and the stories revolve around – let’s just say it – incest. But for some reason, Andrews spoke to us. Apparently, even after death, as she died in 1986, yet her books continue to be churned out written. Highly doubtful that it’s difficult, but amazing that no one seems to care.

The cinema adaptation of Flowers in the Attic wasn’t awful, but it wasn’t entirely faithful to the book either, and I don’t think fans were entirely satisfied. Then, decades later, Lifetime made another stab at it. While their film was roundly criticized by reviewers, they did something right, because the franchise continued on, including My Sweet Audrina.

For those who live on another planet and aren’t familiar with the series, it revolves around siblings Cathy, Chris, Carrie, and Cory, forced to live in the attic of a Victorian mansion for years, so that their mother could get back into her own father’s good graces and inherit a bundle. She’d been shunned by the family for falling in love with her father’s half-brother, starting the chain of the wrong kind of familial love. When he suddenly dies in an accident, she’s forced to go back to the family mansion. After being trapped together through puberty, Chris and Cathy also fall in love, continuing the pattern. They also find out their mother has been lying to them.

Although I usually find Lifetime movies a let-down – their ideas are always promising, but the endings often fall flat – they got this one right. Despite being panned by critics, it was as though these God-awful books came to life. They nearly followed them word for word. The dialogue is not how anyone in their right mind would talk, unless they stepped out of 1900, and Chris and Cathy have absolutely no knowledge of how life works, even though they’ve gone to normal school up until they’re thirty teenagers. (Wouldn’t they even have thought they’re weird?) Ellen Burnstyn must have had a blast playing the grandmother, which she does with gusto, and Heather Graham is spot on as Corrine. Unfortunately, we lost Sally Draper Kiernan Shipka by the second film, but Rachael Carpani makes a lovely Cathy. I honestly think the reviewers thought the actors wrote this themselves; they did the best they could with the bizarre material. I mean, come on, the evil guy’s name is even Bart.

As with most binge watching, a sadness came over me as the final credits rolled. So bad, they’re good, it was a fun trip down Memory Lane. If you’ve never taken a dip into the strange pond of Andrews’s work, check them out next time around. Fans of the book series will not be disappointed.

Quotes of the Week

Acknowledge your gifts and be grateful to the source. Because if you know from whom you are receiving, you can always go back for more.Rabbi Noah Weinberg

In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.Albert Einstein

I get all the tigers I can. At a reasonable price. A hoarder on Hoarding: Buried Alive.

🌻 To whatever attic flowers you enjoy…

PsychedelicFlower

March 26, 2017 – A Happy Ending, an Unhappy Prisoner & a Thought or Two

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What I Watched Today

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

 

 Once Upon a Time

The Evil Queen arrives at a village, looking for Snow White. She wants the villagers to see justice served, and tells the guards to gather them. Her father tells her that she should show mercy, but she says she came for a heart. She finds nothing but straw though. She says someone is going to tell her where Snow went. She tells them that Snow doesn’t love them; she does. Tinkerbell appears, and says that the Evil Queen doesn’t care about love. She was there when the queen threw her chance at love away. The Evil Queen asks Tinkerbell if she shouldn’t be sleeping in a tulip somewhere, and the fairy says she used pixie dust to show the queen her future and the man she should be with. The queen says nothing dictates what she should do, and Tinkerbell says pixie dust only shows the possibilities; the rest is up to her. The Evil Queen says she’s happy with how things are, but Tinkerbell says she believes she doesn’t deserve love. The Evil Queen says she’ll spare Snow’s life to show that she loves everyone. She tells Tinkerbell that she hopes she enjoyed the show of mercy, since it’s the last. I guess she doesn’t love them that much.

In Storybrooke, the Evil Queen tells Robin that Regina wants to keep her dark side a secret. He says he might have the solution, but she says it’s not New York. He belongs in the realm she created with her wish, but she wants him to steal something first.

They go to a graveyard. Robin asks what this is about. The Evil Queen tells him to stop asking questions and dig.

Snow and Henry look at Emma’s ring. Everyone is happy about the engagement. Henry asks how Hook proposed, but Emma says she didn’t give him a chance. She says that Gideon is still out there, and she has to deal with that. Regina and Zelena join them. Regina tells them the snake got loose, and if she shook off her mortal coil, there’s no telling what evil she might be up to.

Robin asks the Evil Queen if they can’t use magic. She says what fun would that be? Robin unearths a box. It has the shears in it. She tells him that they’re capable of setting someone free of their fate. She’s going to use them to finally separate herself from Regina, and then she can destroy her.

Hook sees Captain Nemo on the docks. The captain says, you can tell the ocean your secrets, but will she tell you hers? ♫ Hi-diddly dee! A pirate’s life for me! ♫ He didn’t sing that; it just popped into my head. It’s time for him to go back to The Nautilus, and he wonders what Hook is going to do with his life. Hook says now that he’s found the woman he wants to marry, his past has caught up to him. He doesn’t get a happy ending. Nemo asks who knows Hook’s secrets, and Hook says only him. Nemo tells him that he must tell Emma the truth or keep it to himself forever. He tells Hook to seek forgiveness, because whatever happened will always stay with him.

The Evil Queen wonders if Henry is looking for the pen that’s in her hand. He’s surprised that she’s managed to de-snake herself. He wants the pen back, but she thinks he’s going to write her out of the story. She says that’s what Regina wants. Henry says there’s good in her like there’s bad in Regina, and that means she can change. He doesn’t know what he was going to do. She finally got her revenge, and is she happy? She says she will be. He asks what she’s planning. She says it’s something that he won’t like, but he’ll realize it’s for the best. She gives him something for Regina, and says no matter what anyone else says, she loves him.

Back in the day, the Evil Queen’s father says they need to talk. She says she knows he’ll say revenge won’t make her happy, but she wants to find out for herself. He says he’s there to help her get it. He talks about how happy she was riding, and she says that’s the day she met Daniel. Her father doesn’t believe that killing Snow will help her, but he thinks he can get her what she wants. He gives her a map that will lead to something that can find Snow.

Forward in Storybrooke, Regina shows the others what the Evil Queen sent to her. It’s a page from the book that’s been ripped out – Robin and Regina kissing, an ending that will never be. The Evil Queen wants her to know that she’ll hurt Robin unless Regina faces her. They think it’s a trap, but she doesn’t want to leave Robin. Henry says maybe he was wrong and the Evil Queen can’t change. Regina wants to go alone; otherwise, she’ll hurt everyone she cares about and she can’t let that happen. The queen is getting what she wants – their fight ends today.

Robin says this wasn’t what he had in mind by wanting the queen to tie him up. He’s bound to a chair, and gets the rope undone, but it’s enchanted rope, so it ties itself again. He says all she’ll do is make a martyr of Regina. He tells her to release him; he doesn’t belong here, and neither does she. He thinks maybe he’s there to save her. She says she doesn’t need saving. He says she could use a place for a fresh start. Regardless, in a town full of heroes, a villain like her doesn’t stand a chance. She says the only one who doesn’t stand a chance is Regina.

In the Enchanted Forest, the Evil Queen’s father leads her to a portal. She says it’s dripping with light magic, and he tells her he found it through Tinkerbell. The Evil Queen says he lied; this wasn’t about getting her revenge. He tells her it’s about getting something better. They go through the portal, and see a statue of Cupid. He tells the queen that it’s Cupid’s arrow; it’s a tool. She can use it to see who loves her most, and use it to find him. The Evil Queen says she thought he was on her side. She says she’s getting what she came for – revenge.

On our side of the border, Hook is about to burn the dreamcatcher in the fireplace, and flashes back to killing David’s father. Emma sees him, and says it was him. He says he tried to tell her, but she found the ring and he didn’t want to ruin the happiness. He says he was a broken man for a long time. She says he was going to burn his memories, and he says he was ashamed and scared he was going to lose everything. She says it’s not easy, but he would have been forgiven. He says he’s destroyed his own family, and he didn’t know how he could live with destroying hers. She tells him that they can’t hide things from each other, and he should know that. That’s why she thought they were together, and when he’s ready for that, they can talk. She gives him back the ring.

Hook finds Captain Nemo, and asks where he’s headed. The captain says destinations never matter, and asks what happened. Hook says the captain gave him good advice, but he didn’t take it. He’s not the man Emma needs him to be, and he has to find that man. The captain once said that the Nautilus could help a man discover who he could be. Nemo says get on board.

Regina goes home, and the Evil Queen shows up, poof! in a puff of purple smoke. She shows Regina the shears and says she’s going to destroy her.

Meanwhile, back at the Cupid statue, the Evil Queen smushes up some flowers, and says now we’re getting somewhere. She’s going to find Snow. Her father says not everyone gets a second chance at love, and this arrow will allow her to gaze on who she loves most. She says there’s a thin line between love and hate, as Martin Lawrence learned in the movie of the same name. The tip of the arrow turns black, and she says that now she can gaze on who she hates the most, Snow White. She shoots the arrow.

Moving on. Regina says it’s always about revenge, and she’s ready. She says the town isn’t big enough for both of them, and the Evil Queen says they finally agree on something. The shears glow, and purple lightening bolts shoot between them. The queen tells Regina, see you on the other side, and cuts the bolts. Regina says, let’s finish this. They both make swords appear and start to duel.

Rewinding, the arrow heads to the castle. The Evil Queen says Snow must know she’s not there, and wants to steal from her. She goes back home, but can’t find Snow. She says the arrow should have led her to gaze on the person she hates most. She sees herself in a mirror and smashes it.

The Storybrooke duel continues. It must be weird fighting with yourself. Says Tyler Durden. Regina throws a disco ball at the Evil Queen. The Evil Queen throws her against the wall. She says Regina has been fooling herself. She’s all that will ever be inside of her. Regina says she’s wrong, and the tree mural wallpaper comes to life, trapping the Evil Queen in its branches. Cool! Regina says what’s inside her is real, and the Evil Queen can’t take it away. She takes the queen’s heart. The queen says she hates her. Regina starts to crush the heart, and sees herself in the mirror and remembers. She says she doesn’t anymore, and releases the queen. She says she’s going to do what they never could – be brave for the both of them and choose love over hate. She takes both of their hearts and puts them together for a moment. She puts the hearts back in their respective owners.

The Evil Queen wonders what’s happening to her. Regina says she gave her some love, and she’s taking back some of their darkness. She’s part of her. They’re part of each other, whether she likes it or not. Regina says she loves herself, and so should the queen. There’s a one-sided hug, and the queen tentatively hugs back.

Regina asks if Robin is okay. The Not-As-Evil-Now Queen says she kept her word, and sent him where he wanted to go. She says Gold was too busy worrying about his son to mind the shop. Regina is sorry she didn’t get to say good-by, but the queen thinks maybe it’s better that way. She asks if Regina regrets not walking into the tavern that day, but Regina can’t imagine a life without Henry and all of her Storybrooke friends. It wasn’t her happy ending, but it gave her hope when she needed it most. The queen says she wouldn’t mind some hope. She not sure what she’s supposed to do. She needs a fresh start but has no clue where that is. Regina thinks she knows who can help.

Henry asks where he should send her, and Regina says where she can start over and have a new life. Emma frets that it’s against the rules to change things. Henry says he’s not supposed to affect those in his book, but she’s not in it. Zelena and Snow are worried she’ll still seek revenge. Snow says she wants to believe in her, but not everyone is redeemable. Regina tells Snow that she’s given the queen what she needs to make the right choices. Zelena says don’t blame her if she wakes up to a crushed heart. The queen says that won’t happen – at least she hopes not. She’s truly sorry, and promises to do the right thing. She’s sorry for what she put Snow through again.

Henry calls the queen “mom,” and she says he never called her that before. They hug. Henry asks for his pen and if she’s ready. As he writes, the queen thanks Regina. Regina tells her to promise she won’t waste a single minute. Henry writes that the Evil Queen went to a place where she got a fresh start, and she disappears into some sparkly lights. They wonder where she went, and Regina has her ideas. I have an idea too – did anyone have her take the curse off of Snow and David?

The queen appears in a tavern. She wonders where she is, and then sees Robin. She sits across from him. He asks if she’s kidnapping him again, and requests to finish his ale first. She says that’s not what she’s doing, and he says her villain plan must not have worked out. She says she’s okay with that, since she had a change of heart (wink-wink). She was wondering if maybe she could buy him a drink. He says it’s his round; he’ll buy her one. They clink glasses.

Back to Storybrooke. Snow finds Hook on the docks. He asks if everything is okay. She says Regina did it – she vanquished the Evil Queen, and gave her a happy ending. She didn’t think it was possible after all these years, but it was. Love can save even the darkest souls. She says Emma told her about the engagement, and she couldn’t be happier. She tells him that Emma waited a long time for someone to share her life with, and Snow is happy it’s him. She leaves, and he looks at the ring. Oh, go on. Tell her.

Emma comes home to a dark house.

Nemo asks if Hook is ready for adventure. Hook says he’s going back to Emma, because even villains get second chances, and hopefully third ones. The Nautilus starts to submerge. The captain says he didn’t give the order. Gideon appears, and says that he did. He tells Hook that for what he has planned, Hook can’t be in Storybrooke. He disappears, poof! in a puff of red smoke. The Nautilus starts to go down into the water as Gideon watches from the docks.

Emma looks out window. She turns out the lights.

Next time, Emma wants to move on, Aladdin is back, and Ariel joins the team.

The Walking Dead

Tara talks about the women she met at Oceanside, and how they have guns. Enid asks Carl if he ever thinks about who he killed. We see the Alexandrians taking boats to the island.

Maggie teaches gardening at Hilltop.

Rick gives Michonne a boost up a tree. She asks when the clock starts, and Rick says as soon as she’s up there. Jesus and Daryl put together a bomb. Jesus says he should have tried harder to stop Rosita and Sasha. Daryl says they can take care of themselves. He knows people have to die.

Sasha has been taken prisoner. A dude asks if she’s okay, and she asks for water. He introduces himself as David. He says last night was a sh*tstorm, and he’s the guy who gave them the rope to tie her up. He says if he gives her water – which he’s not supposed to – will she do something she’s not supposed to for him? He asks how thirsty she is, tearing her shirt, and she tells him to go to hell and headbutts him. He says fighting will just make it last longer. Negan comes by and asks what he’s doing in there. Answering his own question, Negan says he’s trying to rape this woman, and it’s unacceptable behavior. Rape is against the rules there, and he wouldn’t want to be somewhere that was let fly. He takes out a Crocodile Dundee sized knife, and says David crossed the line. David says sorry, and Negan stabs him through the neck, saying he doesn’t accept the apology. He tells the guard to get Sasha a new shirt, and tells her he’s sorry she had to see that. He adds sorry about the rope, but she caused one hell of a fracas.

Negan says he remembers her. She was there, and he gets it now. He tells her that she’s got beach ball sized ladynuts. Ha-ha! The phrases this guy comes up with! He asks if Rick put her up to this. She calls Rick his bitch, and says no. He says that’s not the way it’s going to go; this could be the beginning. He puts the knife in front of her. He says she can use it to take him out, but since he’s above her, holding a baseball bat, that would be a bad idea. She could slit her wrists, but that would be a shame. She could do nothing, and let David eat her face, which would also be a shame. Or she could save herself, and join the cause. He knows what he’d do. He tells her that he’s a man short, and he’d like to harness the heat. She could help him run this place. That’s all it was ever about, and still can be for her. He knows it’s hard to picture, but they all have sh*t to get over. He tells her to think about it. No pressure. He apologizes again. He asks her to understand that they’re not monsters.

Eugene brings supplies to Sasha. He explains the pillow isn’t hypoallergenic. He shares that there was debate about him coming, and was told he’s on his own. He says taking up with the management was indeed the right select for him, and suggests she do the same. He says he was full tilt delusional, thinking he could be brave. Referring to Abe and Glenn, he says to see someone brave get killed like that, and then a repeat, he couldn’t. Being there means he’ll never have to again, and neither will she if she says yes. He says Abe would want her to. Then says, no, he wouldn’t. He does though. Things have changed, and they can change with them. They have to. She tells him to go.

Eugene makes a sad face. He looks at David, and says he’s starting to…and Sasha says go. He leaves, and she looks sad. David starts twitching, and opens his dead eyes. Sasha looks surprised, which surprises me.

Maggie is outside the Hilltop wall, unearthing a tree for transplanting. Gregory joins her, and she says she’s never seen him outside the wall. He asks where her friends are, and she says they’re looking for something they need. He wonders why she’s still there. He says it would be better if they could present a united front, and she says it would be easier if they were a united front. He says she’s right, and he needs to be more forthcoming. She says it’s never too late to change, and if he’s serious, she’ll talk with him later. She asks him to keep watch while she digs out the tree. He has a knife. He gets close to her. He makes a lot of faces, then looks like he has a headache, and doesn’t follow through. He sees a zombie, and Maggie says she’ll do it. He says he’s there to protect the pregnant woman. She asks if he’s done it before, and he says he wouldn’t be there if he hadn’t. He runs up to the zombie, chickens out when he gets close, and then says fine, do it. Yikes! Another one jumps him while Maggie is struggling with the first one. He calls for help, like she doesn’t have enough to do. She stabs zombie one in the head, and then deals with Gregory’s zombie. He pukes. Some guys are walking by, and stop to look at them. Maggie says he hasn’t killed one before; he’s learning. One of the guys says that’s not what he told them. Gregory thanks her.

On the island, everything is all idyllic. Tara is waiting for Tanya in her cabin. When Tanya walks in, Tara draws a gun and says hi. Tanya says they should have just killed her. Tara says she’ll be glad she didn’t. Cindy walks in and says Tara promised. Tara says she did, but she didn’t have a choice. She says her friends are out there, and they’re going to take this place. They’re going to fight the Saviors, and Oceanside should join. Tara says the Saviors came back. They killed her friends, her girlfriend, and took over. They’re doing whatever the Saviors want them to, but they’re going to fight back. With Oceanside, they’d have an army. Tara says they’ll win; just talk to Rick. She says she can stop it, but they have to tell her right now. She didn’t want to break her promise, but the world doesn’t belong to fair people. Tanya says if they take the guns, they’ll be killing them. Cindy thinks they should talk to Rick and try to stop it, but Tara says they can’t.

Explosions start happening. Michonne acts as a sniper just in case. Daryl tells a group to put their hands on their heads, and Jesus adds please.

Tanya asks if Tara’s people are killing her people. Tara says the bombs are outside the walls. She tells them that it’s time to move. They get the better of Tara. Cindy holds the gun on Tara and finds out it’s not loaded. Tara tells her to just talk to Rick. Outside, everyone is being rounded up. Gabriel tells them that they want it to be as simple and peaceful as possible, and they can make it that way. Rick says they made a lot of noise, and want to wrap this up quick. No one needs to get hurt. It’s about what they need.

Tanya comes out holding Tara in front of her. She says no one is taking anything, and to leave or Tara dies. Rick says nothing has changed, and to put the gun down. Tanya says they just want to be left alone. Rick says to let go or they’ll get killed. Cindy tells the people that Rick wants to fight the Saviors. Somebody says they tried that once, and it didn’t’ turn out so well. Tara says they’re going to win, with or without them. Cindy says it’s over, and Tanya says after everything they’ve been through, it’s futile to want to fight them. Cindy knocks her out while she’s yapping away, and here come the zombies. Rick tells everyone to shield the children.

They get ready to kill the zombie horde, and it’s a bizarre bit of overkill. They waste a lot of bullets for people who are concerned with gathering guns. To their credit, there are also a few head stabbers. Rick shakes hands with one of the women. Tanya tells them they’re not fighting; take their damn guns and go.

Meanwhile, back at Neganland, Negan sees that Sasha has dispatched David. She says you win, and he says no, you win. He tells the guard to get someone to clean the mess up. He takes the knife back, and says she has a ways to go before he’ll believe she’s on board. Baby steps. Still, the way she surrendered just now was a good start. They have to work on some things, but he’ll make it fun. He says a little birdie told him that Rick and company are up to no good, and she’s going to find them a win-win. He says he’s going to show her a taste of what they have to offer, and tomorrow is going to be a big day.

Gregory gets out the liquor. He looks at himself in the mirror. He pours himself a stiff one, and looks at a map. He calls for his driver and tells him to pack a bag.

Eugene knocks at Sasha’s door he says it might not seem like it now, but she also knows the correct select. She tells him that she was wrong. She says she’s trapped, and he has to help her. He says he’ll help her get used to the idea, but she says he has to get her a weapon. One way or another, they’ll use her to hurt their friends, and she’d rather not give them the chance. If they have her, Rick’s people will get hurt. She has to die; it’s the only way. She knows that Eugene won’t stop them, but don’t let them use her. She begs him to give her something to stop this. The worst thing about this whole scene is that Sasha is behind a closed door – we only see it from Eugene’s POV. I would think they could afford better sound at this point, but the dialogue was muffled. I was straining to hear what she was saying, and it’s not like I couldn’t hear the rest of the show. Eugene says he’ll consider it. We finally see Sasha and she’s smiling. She thanks Eugene. So I get why we only saw things from his side, but take a few bucks from the zombie budget and hire an extra boom person for the day.

Jesus gathers baskets of guns. That’s funny, since usually we hear about Jesus gathering baskets of bread and/or fish. Morgan asks if they really need all of it, and Rick says they do. Carl tells Enid that he thinks of the people he didn’t kill too. Tara tells Cindy that they’ll bring them back when it’s over. Cindy says she wants to go; some of them do, but not all, and it has to be all. She tells Tara that Tanya says they’ll die, but Tara says she’s been wrong before. Tara asks where she is and Cindy says she’s lying down. Tara thanks her for saving her life. Rachel asks if they’re taking it all, and Tara says yep, see you later, and gives her the finger. Rick asks if she’s okay, and she says he’s right; she doesn’t have to feel bad.

Commercial break with important information. Fear the Walking Dead will be back in June.

Sasha paces as much as you can in a tiny cell. There’s a knock. It’s Eugene. He says he’s given things a think, and he’s decided to grant her request. He slips something under the door. It’s a pill. He says certain death in 20-30 minutes. She starts crying because I guess she wanted a weapon. Did she really think it was going to be that easy? Eugene says that she’s honest, brave, and self-aware, and he owes her some things. He says he doesn’t want her to go, but it sounds like she’s gone already. Sasha wonders what the blip she’s going to do now.

Rick and company get back to Alexandria. Jesus asks about Sasha. Rosita says there’s someone here. It’s Dwight in a cell. Daryl goes ballistic, and Rick holds him back. Rosita says he wants to help them. Rick asks if that’s true, and Dwight says it is. Rick looks into Dwight’s eyes and says okay. He points the gun at him and says get on your knees.

Next time, an extended finale. Thanks for the heads up. BTW, I’ve really been appreciating how these shows run a few minutes over the hour as a general rule now. Why? Anyway, next time, Dwight wants Negan dead (get in line), Negan wants Sasha to get things back on track, and Ezekiel an Shiva join the fray.

💋 Feud: Bette and Joan is the best! Learning all the behind-the-scenes politics has been interesting. While it’s no secret that movie stars of the studio era had to play the game, there were power struggles going on with directors and producers as well. My two takeaways for this week are: I’m glad I never had to work with Frank Sinatra, and I wish I had a Mamacita.

🍑 My takeaway from The Real Housewives of Atlanta is how frightened I am that Porsha wants to breed. And that there’s someone willing to help with that.

ScreamPainting

March 19, 2017 – The First Ogres War, Plans to Kill Negan are Set in Motion & Random Thoughts

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Once Upon a Time

The First Ogres War. Or what I’m calling the poor man’s Game of Thrones. Medieval soldiers are in the woods using a catapult. One guy wants out, but Beowulf says if they don’t fight the ogres, they’ll kill everyone. He can be known as a hero or a coward. Beowulf hands him a sword and everyone charges forward. The ogres look just like you’d think they would – giant things with spiky teeth, holding clubs. The soldiers shoot flaming arrows at them and get swatted like flies. Instead of being a hero or a coward, the soldier is squashed when an ogre steps on him.

Beowulf is the only one left standing, and says do your worst. An ogre in armor comes out and whacks him with his helmet. Then he explodes into a fireball, leaving Rumpelstiltskin standing behind him with the dagger. Beowulf says Rumpel killed him, and Rumpel giggles, saying he killed all of them.

Hook sits at Granny’s bar in Storybrooke, throwing back shots. Archie sits down next to him, and asks if Hook talked to David. He says he did, and things went well. Archie asks what’s the problem then? Hook says he found out something about his past. He does want to tell Emma the truth, but he thinks she won’t want to marry him after she hears it. Archie says he’s changed and needs to find that out for himself.

Gold looks for Gideon. The Blue Fairy and Belle join him. He says Gideon’s heart is set on fulfilling his destiny, and needs to kill Emma to make himself a hero. He says he’s already lost one son, and won’t lose another.

In ye olde tavern, everyone toasts to Rumpel. His son, Baelfire, asks if he really defeated the ogres. Rumpel says he did, and shows off the dagger. Beowulf asks why they’re cheering, and Rumpel gives him the sword he dropped. Beowulf wonders how Rumpel was able to defeat the ogres, and says dark magic comes with a price; they’ll all pay dearly for this. Rumpel tells his son not to listen; it’s just jealousy talking. Baelfire tells him that he doesn’t need the dagger now, and should get rid of it. Rumpel agrees to no more magic.

Gideon pops into the Sheriff’s office in Storybrooke. He finds the dagger in a safe, but runs into Rumpel on his way out. Gideon says Emma won’t get the best of him again. Rumpel knocks him out with some magic, saying maybe, but he still has some things to learn from his papa.

Robin hides the box of potions that he stole from Regina. Regina finds him, and says she’s there to apologize for pressuring him to be something he’s not. Robin says it’s taking him longer to get used to this world than he imagined. She asks to help him. He suggests they meet later after he’s had time to clear his head.

Gideon wakes up tied to a chair. Gold says he couldn’t take any chances. Gideon says that his father promised to help him. Gold says he took the dark path to save his first son, but never became a hero. Once you give in to darkness, it’s almost impossible to leave it behind. Gideon says what if he steals Emma’s light magic, and that he thought Gold would want to see the Black Fairy defeated. Gold says no one wants to see that more than him, but giving into darkness can only lead to heartbreak.

Back in the day, Rumpel is doing some spinning. Baelfire comes running in all beat up. He says the baker’s son did it, so he’d look like a monster. Rumpel wants to intervene, but Baelfire says he’ll only make things worse. Some villagers come to the door, complaining that they need protection, and Baelfire says that Rumpel can save them without magic. He can show them he can defeat the beast without the dagger.

Forward in Storybrooke, Zelena walks into her house to find Robin in the kitchen. She produces a green fireball, and tells him he’s not getting her daughter. He shows her the box of potions, and says he needs her help. He needs to break out. He says he came there for a fresh start – new people to rob, new places to drink, new women to whatever – but her sister has thwarted his every step. She asks why she should help, and he says she wants out more than he does. She asks when they leave.

Gold wants to know what the Black Fairy did to make Gideon think that killing the Savior is the only way to become a hero. Gideon says Gold needs to trust him, and Gold unties him.

In the enchanted forest, Rumpel and Baelfire look for the beast. Rumpel says he wants to do it the right way, but he’s brought the dagger just in case. Baelfire says it’s like a crutch, and reminds him of a time he put a fire out without needing help. He tells Rumpel one step at a time. Rumpel gives Baelfire the dagger.

In the present, Gideon gives Gold a book, Her Handsome Hero. The Black Fairy had given it to him. She asked if he wanted to be a hero, and said we’ll see about that. She beat another boy and Gideon heard his cries. He had the chance to save him, but just sat there. He didn’t have what it takes, just like Gold. He wants to show his mother that she was wrong about the both of them, and asks for help.

Gold gives Gideon some tea to drink. It’s been mixed with memory potion. His pain will be gone, and he’ll no longer remember what the Black Fairy did. Gideon says he was raised by the Black Fairy, and pulls out the dagger. He says Gold is no different than she is, and he’s going to help Gideon fulfill his destiny whether he wants to or not.

Way back when, Rumpel sees a bunch of dead villagers and takes a sword from one. He and Baelfire go into a cave, where Rumpel finds a horn and blows into it. Beowulf grabs Baelfire, and Rumpel tells him to stay away from his son. Beowulf says the only monster there is the Dark One. Rumpel asks if Beowulf killed the villagers, but Beowulf says Rumpel did. He has the dagger and commands Rumpel to stay. They’ll think he did it.

Back to Storybrooke, where Gold tells Gideon not to let the Black Fairy destroy his life. Gideon holds up the broken dagger. Gold says there’s good in him and not to snuff it out. If he does this, he might not be able to get back. Gideon says sorry, but go away and don’t try to stop him.

Robin is at the Storybrooke border, and Zelena appears, poof! In a puff of green smoke. Robin asks Zelena where she’s been, and sees that she’s brought her pet cobra. She says with so many dank sewers she couldn’t leave her behind. Regina pops in. She says she should have known. She asks if they thought she wouldn’t notice her magic was missing, and chastises Robin for saying he wanted a fresh start. He says he’s been constantly reminded that he’s somebody who can’t live up to the legacy of someone who died for her.

She tells him to try a potion. He does, but they still can’t get out. Regina says Robin doesn’t understand the world out there, but he says he can handle himself. She says if he really wants to go, she’ll figure out how to break the protection spell. She owes it to both Robins to let him find his happiness, even if it means him walking out.

Beowulf duels with Baelfire. He says Baelfire is just like his father; he doesn’t have it in him. Rumpel appears, poof! In a puff of purple smoke. He says that he told Beowulf to stay away. Beowulf says if Rumpel kills him, his boy will see he’s a monster. Rumpel says he’s taking him back to town and telling them the truth. Beowulf says they won’t believe him, and will think it’s only a matter of time before he turns the dagger on them. Rumpel suggests they find a new village, and Baelfire says he won’t let Beowulf do this to them; he’s the monster and should pay. Beowulf tosses him aside and walks away. Baelfire looks at the dagger. He says, Dark One stop him, and orders Rumpel to kill Beowulf. Which he does.

In the Storybrooke forest, Gideon comes upon his fairy godmother, the Blue Fairy. He says she was supposed to protect him as a baby. She apologizes, saying the Black Fairy was too strong. He says maybe she can help now. She tells him that it won’t be like he thinks, and he says he wants her magic. He freeze frames her, and Gold tells him stop. He says he watched one son darken his heart; he’s not watching another one. He says he’ll do it for him, and slices the Blue Fairy’s hand. He takes a drop of her blood, and her magic goes to him. He tells Gideon that they’ll defeat the Black Fairy and he’ll be a hero. He says he doesn’t think he needs the dagger anymore.

Backing up. Rumpel asks Baelfire what he’s going to do with the dagger. He doesn’t know, but thinks the baker’s son won’t bother him again. He says he’s sorry he made Rumpel give up the power, but they need it to protect themselves. Rumpel says he’s right, and gives him some tea. Baelfire says it tastes strange, and Rumpel says it’s a memory potion. He’s not letting Baelfire follow him into the darkness; one of them has to be strong. Suddenly Baelfire doesn’t remember getting out of the cave, and Rumpel tells him that he hit his head. He says Beowulf won’t be bothering them anymore. Baelfire thinks Rumpel killed Beowulf, and asks how he could. Rumpel says he did what he had to do, and Baelfire says the dagger is turning him into a monster. He runs out, leaving Rumpel alone.

Moving on. Belle asks Rumpel what happened to the Blue Fairy. He says it was the only way to stop Gideon. If he hadn’t, they might not ever get him back. He says Gideon has the sword, and he’s going after the Savior. He hopes there’s enough time to stop him. Belle says they will. He darkened his soul, so Gideon wouldn’t have to. Belle says he finally put their son first, and maybe there’s hope after all.

Hook sits at Granny’s, still drinking, his food untouched. He goes home and calls for Emma, who runs downstairs. He says there’s something he needs to tell her. It’s not exactly easy, and he doesn’t know how she’ll react. She says her answer is yes. He asks what the question is. She says she found something she shouldn’t have, and shows him the ring. She asks if he’s mad, and he says he could never be mad at her. She says no walls, no secrets. She knows she ruined the surprise, but he gets down on one knee and asks if she’ll marry him. She says yes, and they kiss. He doesn’t look too happy though.

Regina messes with her cauldron. Zelena says she’s there to return Queen Cobra before anyone notices she’s missing, and to apologize. Regina says it’s her fault, and Zelena says they’ll go with that then. Regina tells her that when she saw Robin, it was a test to see if she could move forward, and she failed. She says she’ll always be paying the price for what she did. Zelena corrects her, saying the cobra did it. Regina lifts the cover off the cage, and the snake is gone.

Robin is in the woods, and the snake slithers down onto him. It bites him, and turns into the Evil Queen. She’s like, sorry, but she needed some of the potion that was stuck on him. She explains that she’s not Regina, and he should recognize a doppelganger when he sees one. He says he doesn’t care if there’s seven of her, he’s leaving. Nothing will keep him in this abysmal hamlet. She says that he hasn’t had the right tour guide, and when she’s done, he’ll have new appreciation of what Storybrooke has to offer.

Next time, the Evil Queen looks for Snow, and she and Regina have a showdown.

The Walking Dead

Maggie practices knife throwing, and gives lessons. Maggie gets a sonogram. Sasha makes plans. Sasha practices knife killing. Maggie goes over some stuff with Jesus. Sasha visits Abe’s grave. Jesus gives her a blueprint of the Saviors’ camp. Maggie brings Daryl coffee. It’s a busy morning at Hilltop.

Gregory is running out of liquor. He watches as some Saviors come in to the camp.

While Sasha is at Abe’s grave, Rosita asks her for help.

Jesus and Maggie chat. He says he grew up in a group home, so he’s used to a lot of people, but it’s the first time he feels like he belongs. She and Sasha helped him to be a part of things. He says he’s bad at relationships, but she says he should try it sometime. Sasha watches as they talk.

Sasha opens a book that has a carved out inside with bullets in it. Jesus and Enid come in, and she says she was looking for something to read. Jesus says she can have it, but asks her not to go. He says they can’t go after Negan without a lot of people. Sasha says they’re not changing their minds. He asks if Maggie knows they’re here, and Enid says Sasha should tell her about everything. Jesus wants to come along, but Sasha says Hilltop has to be ready for afterward, and Maggie needs him. Jesus asks her to stay, but knows she won’t. He tells her to take what she needs, but they should talk to Maggie; they owe her that much.

Sasha tells Enid that Maggie trusts her and has to be protected. She’s the future, along with Enid. She gives Enid a woven bracelet for the baby, and says maybe she can work on it some more while Sasha is gone. Enid says in ten minutes she’s telling Maggie, and it’s up to Sasha what she wants to do with that.

An alarm is sounded. Enid gets Daryl. Sasha and Enid slip into some wooden boxes. Daryl and Maggie hide in the root cellar.

Simon and his cronies walk into Gregory’s place. Gregory says he wasn’t expecting them so soon, but asks if Simon wants some gin. Simon says he’s into tequila now. Gregory tells Simon that he respects that. Simon says it’s just a quick visit. He says they have somebody, and he wants to be pointed in their direction.

Daryl peeks out through the door, and Maggie tells him to get away from there.

Sasha and Rosita tromp through the woods. They try to hotwire a car. Rosita sees the necklace that Sasha is wearing, and says that she made it. (I guess it was Abe’s? Seriously, who cares about that at this point?) They move on to look for another car. Sasha tries to make small talk, but Rosita isn’t having any. Sasha tells Rosita about some buildings where they might have a good shot, but thinks they should stay outside, do it clean, and maybe get out alive. Rosita says if they miss, they don’t get another chance. Sasha says she won’t miss, but if they get caught, they won’t get another chance for sure. They stab a couple of zombies in the head. Sasha says Rosita should think about it.

Enid gives one of the Saviors a basket of vegetables, but he gives them back and she drops them. He wants her gardening tools. She hands them over, and he opens the cellar door where Maggie and Daryl are hiding. He looks around. They watch him from behind some piles of stuff.

Simon visits Dr. Carson. The doctor says he’s already given them all the medicine he has. Simon tells him that’s not what he wants. Negan wants him to come to their camp. Dr. Carson asks why Negan needs two doctors, and Simon says they don’t. The doctor asks if his brother got himself killed, and Simon gives him condolences. Dr. Carson tells Gregory to arrange for medical care for Hilltop. Simon says fair is fair, and they’re not leaving them without medical solutions. He gives Gregory a crate of aspirin. Gregory asks for a word.

Gregory tells Simon that he’s proven he can work with Negan, but has to hang on to his people’s trust. Someone else might not be as cooperative and have crazy ideas. Simon asks who, but Gregory doesn’t have anyone particular in mind. Simon says if he’s having problems of that nature, to come and see him any time. Just tell the guard who he is, and they’ll let him in – as long as there’s no shenanigans afoot. He says Gregory is a good producer and he doesn’t want him to be stressed.

Savior dude starts moving stuff around in the cellar. He takes a basket of something and brings it outside. Maggie says Daryl was going to kill him, and Daryl says he deserved to die. Maggie says he hasn’t said a word to her since he got there. She asks him to look at her. He says he’s sorry, and starts crying. Geez. She says it wasn’t his fault. She says he’s one of the good things in this world, and that’s what Glenn thought. She wanted to kill that guy too. She wants them all to die, but they have to win. She hugs Daryl and asks him to help her win.

The Saviors leave Gregory’s place as Jesus and Enid watch.

Rosita throws a Molotov cocktail into a car to attract some zombies, while she and Sasha climb a fence to steal another car. We discover that even after death, kneeing a man in the groin works wonders. Sasha drives backward like a bat out of hell and through the fence.

Sasha sees Eugene giving instructions about the zombie guards. She and Rosita are holed up in a building across the way. She tells Rosita that it looks like Eugene is ordering people around. She asks Rosita to teach her some knots, but Rosita says it won’t matter soon. What a barrel of laughs she is. I have the feeling that she and Abe would not have made a good match. He was the only character who actually had a sense of humor. Rosita decides to show Sasha anyway, then stands at the window, aiming the gun. Sasha says Rosita knows how to do everything, and they got lucky having her in the group. Rosita tells her about how she learned different things from various guys. She says a lot of them wanted to protect her, and never noticed everything she was picking up. Sasha asks if that’s how it was with Abe, and Rosita says no. She fell in with him because he knew she could handle things, and she never looked back. Only when it was over. She says she thought she hated Sasha, but maybe she just hated that Sasha picked up on Abe first; Rosita never told him how she felt, and it was stupid to waste so much time. She gets weepy. She asks if Sasha was happy, and Sasha says she was. Rosita says it wasn’t his time. Sasha says he wanted to fight, and the a-hole with the bat took that away. She says no matter how it goes down, she has Rosita’s back.

Sasha looks out the window. She sees a truck coming in. She tells Rosita that they’ve brought Dr. Carson there. She sees Negan, and tries to get a bead on him, but it doesn’t happen. They hear Eugene asking for more walkers over the radio. He says he’s chief engineer, aka Negan. Rosita says they’re going inside.

Jesus meets with Gregory. Gregory tells him that there are too many people in his trailer, and gives him job assignments for the newcomers. Jesus says he must be worried if he wants to split people up. Gregory says who knows what will happen with all the Saviors around. Jesus takes that as a threat, and Gregory says they’re not friends. A guy brings Gregory some tequila, and Jesus leaves.

Daryl asks where Sasha and Rosita are.

Eugene tells the guard he’s with that they need a drill on safety protocol. Suddenly, the guard drops dead, and Rosita comes out of nowhere, telling Eugene to get it together; they’re breaking him out. He says he’s not going. He says he didn’t ask them to come, so go. He practically runs inside. Rosita says she’s going in. Sasha tells her be careful; they could be coming back. But instead of letting Rosita in, Sasha goes inside and locks the gate. She tells Rosita to go. She says it’s not Rosita’s time, and they need her. Some Saviors come out, and Rosita runs.

A man with a crossbow is in the shadows.

Next time, Gregory asks why Maggie is still at Hilltop, and the battle begins.

🍸 If you’re not watching Feud: Bette and Joan, you’re missing out. The casting is impeccable, the acting is on point, and it evokes the period perfectly. And I am so loving the behind-the-scenes story of one of my favorite films, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? While there’s no question of a feud, there are moments where you think at another time, these two strong, talented women might have become friends.

🍑 On the other hand, The Real Housewives of Atlanta is same peach, different day. Porsha has acquired no more brain cells, and possibly lost a few, and Phaedra continues to blame Kenya for some of her marital problems. Seriously? Dude was a raving lunatic who ended up in the slammer, and you’re pointing a finger at Kenya? The trip to Hawaii helped nothing. Bravo needs to stop paying for these trips that are so unappreciated, and send me on vacation instead.

 

March 12, 2017 – Prince Charming Learns About his Father & Richard Tries to Start a War

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Once Upon a Time

A man enters a cabin in the pouring rain. His wife, Ruth, tries to calm twins David and James, who are crying in their crib. He says he’s failed them. Rumpelstiltskin appears, and offers a deal. He says the king needs a son. They can have one healthy son or two dead ones. The man tells Ruth that they have no choice. Rumpel flips a coin to decide which son he takes. Prince James it is. He tells them the deal must remain a secret, and James is no longer their son. Storybrooke’s David is the remaining baby, and the man is his father, Robert.

In Storybrooke, David tells Emma he’s proud of her, and that with hope, nothing can tear the family apart. They toast to family. David wishes they were all there, and Emma says she’ll break the curse, and they’ll get Snow back.

David steps outside and feels something in the air. His father appears with blood all over his hands. David faints. Hook finds him, and he says he’s fine. Hook tells him to get some sleep. David says if he wanted advice, he doubts he’d take it from a pirate. Geez. Just a little touchy. Hook goes back inside, and David discovers that he’s holding an old coin.

Robin complains about the incessant noise bothering him, and Regina explains the alarm clock. She’s brought him some clean clothes, since he probably smells to high heaven. Snow tells Regina that she doesn’t know who this Robin is, but Regina says there’s a part of her Robin in there. Snow says she’s worried, and Regina says she is too.

Hook visits Archie. He tells Archie that David sees him as he used to be. Technically, he’s still a pirate, but he’s a good pirate now. He thinks David wants something better for Emma, and it’s about to get more complicated. He shows Archie an engagement ring. He wants David’s blessing, but doesn’t know how or when to ask him. Archie says he shows progress in just buying the ring – he has a conscience now. He tells Hook not to wait; life is too precious. If he wants to know what David thinks, ask him.

Snow leaves a video message for David, telling him she misses and loves him. His father appears again, and David says he owes him nothing; he was a drunk, and died when David was six. David asks if he’s there about the coin. He tells Robert that he’s spent his entire life trying to forget him, and asks what he wants. Robert answers, the truth.

Back in the day, Robert is at the pub. The bartender suggests he spend the money on his family, but he hoists another one. King George is announced. The king says he knows what they’re thinking – why is he there? He tells them that his son has been abducted. Anyone with information will be rewarded, and anyone withholding information will be in trouble.

Robert wants to look for James, but Ruth wonders why he’d want to come back to a dying farm. A young David asks where Robert is going, and he says on a supply run. David asks if he’ll be better when he gets back. Robert swears he’s never touching another drop, and David gives him a lucky coin. I guess he’s going to rehab? I get a funny mental picture of a medieval enchanted rehab.

In the present, David flips the coin around in his hand. Hook drops by. David says he needs Hook’s help. He shows Hook a bulletin board with all kinds of photos, maps and arrows, and asks if he sees anything. He tells Hook that he saw his father’s ghost, and no matter what, Robert is still his father, and deserves justice. He asks Hook for help. Hook thinks Emma might be better suited to the task, but David doesn’t want to worry her or Snow. He says Hook is a pirate, and that’s what he needs.

Regina shows Robin the book of their stories. The doorbell rings. It’s Zelena, who asks where Robin is. She wonders if he’s scheming to take the baby back, and realizes that Regina hasn’t told him. She starts to blather on about how Robin can never see the baby. Regina tells her to go home, and she disappears, poof! in a puff of green smoke. Regina goes back inside to find that Robin is gone, and the book is opened to the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Out on the streets of Storybrooke, Robin draws his bow on the Sheriff, aka Keith. The arrow goes into a telephone pole, and Robin crosses the street to attack Keith. Keith tells Robin that he’s not the same person. Regina appears and sends Keith somewhere else before Robin does something he regrets. She needs Robin to promise to stop running away and trying to kill people. He says, all right. Well that was easy.

Emma has taken Henry on a canoeing trip. David and Hook go to her house to borrow some spell ingredients and the book that goes with them. Hook is concerned about sneaking into Emma’s place. David says the one time he needs him to be that guy, he gets cold feet. He tells Hook that he needs the shed key and a lookout. Hook gives him the key and stands watch.

Switching to the past, Robert approaches Rumpel for help. He says James is missing, and he wants Rumpel to help find him. He has nothing to offer, but says Rumpel owes him. Rumpel says that Robert finally grew a spine, but Robert says he finally became a father. He wants to tell his boy that he’s sorry. Rumpel says he could be persuaded for a hair off of Robert’s head. Poof! In a cloud of purple smoke, a crystal globe appears. Rumpel says that James ran away, but it’s to a place that Robert doesn’t want to follow him to. He plucks the hair off of Robert’s head, and gives him James’s location. When Robert leaves, Rumpel tells us that small things can hold great power.

Forward to Storybrooke, David goes through the shed. Hook sees Emma’s yellow VW bug drive up. Her car is really hard to miss. He asks what happened, and she says they forgot lifejackets. Hook says he’s desperate to kiss her. She says she knows he’s lying, and asks what he’s hiding. He says he’s been out of sorts because of Archie; he paid him a visit to talk about her. He says he thought that she was going to die, and it changed the way he thought about things, about them. Behind Emma, David sneaks out of shed. Hook tells Emma that it’s hard for him to share feelings, so consider them shared. They kiss. Emma goes to the shed, and Hook and David jet.

Regina asks if Robin was going to kill the Sheriff. He wonders about her calling him on that, when she’s the one cursing everyone. And he doesn’t mean she’s swearing at them. She says she knows she sounds like a hypocrite, but she’s changed. She tells him that the other Robin had a child, really two, but just one is there – the daughter he had with her sister. She says it’s complicated, and he says everything there is. Regina tells him that she’d hoped to give him a fresh start. He kisses her. Hmm… She was kind of looking around during the kiss and has a disgruntled face. She tells him that she’ll show him more of the town. I guess the kiss didn’t go well?

David tells Hook that the spell should show them where the coin was when his father died. David twirls in a circle, and Hook puts something in the beaker that looks like taco chip pieces. The beaker starts to smoke. David dips the coin in it, and then puts it on a map. It rolls around and lands on Pleasure Island. Hook says he knows it, but has never been there.

Way back when on Pleasure Island, we see a humongous, old-fashioned carnival. Robert wanders among the crowd. He’s offered a pint, but says he’s looking for his son. This is not rehab, but he is abstaining. He sees wooden boy Pinocchio on a bench, and sits next to him. Pinocchio asks him if his coin is worth something, and Robert says it was from his son. He tells Pinocchio that he’s looking for his other son, the prince. Pinocchio says he hasn’t seen him, but his nose begins to grow. Robert says tell him where his boy is.

Robert finds where James is hiding. James says he doesn’t want to go home. His father wants him to hunt, and he doesn’t want to kill things. Robert says he’s not taking him to that home, but the home where he has a brother to play with. He thanks Pinocchio. Two of the shills see him, and they start to run.

In Storybrooke, adult human Pinocchio tells David that this is the coin his father had. David thought he was just a drunk, but Pinocchio tells him that his father was sober. Pinocchio explains that it was a part of his story that he’s not proud of, so he took it from the book, but he wants to help, so he’ll look for it.

David tells Hook that because of him, he’s changed his mind about revenge. Hook says he’d stop him if he could, but David isn’t going to give him that chance. He handcuffs Hook to a bike rack, and drives away.

Rewinding, the king is waiting on the docks. He offers Robert the reward for James, but Robert says that James doesn’t want to go with him. He tells the king to let him lie where he’ll be happy. The king says that Robert looks old and that conscience must be a terrible thing. Robert says he realizes what he did was wrong. James begs not to be taken, but the King tells the guards to grab him, and they can have the reward if they kill Robert and make it look accidental.

Fast forward to David finding the king in a cell. David accuses him of killing his father, and the king plays semantics, saying he only ordered him killed. David says he offered a temptation and Robert withstood it. David throws him a dagger, and says fight for your life if you think it’s worth it. They slash at each other. Hook intervenes, and throws the king outside. David says that the king killed his father. He says that in his final moments, his father resisted temptation, but died anyway. Robert did the right thing, but it wasn’t enough. David goes through a bunch of “what ifs,” ending with what if he loses everything that matters. Hook says to kill the king if it will make him feel stronger, but think about his father. He asks if Davud wants to be a murderer in return. David lets him take the knife.

In the enchanted forest, the guards bind Robert to the cart. They say everyone will believe he was drunk and drove the cart off the road. With him tied to it, there’s no way he can survive the fall.

Back to today, David’s father bids him farewell on the dock. Hook asks if David is okay. He says he thinks so, and owes Hook an apology – he’s the noble one. It cost him more than it should have, and he did the hardest thing anyone can – he changed. He saved David from making a huge mistake, and David doesn’t know how to repay him. But Hook knows. He asks if he has David’s blessing in asking Emma to marry him. There’s silence for a moment, then David finally smiles and says of course. He didn’t realize that Hook was so old-fashioned, but Hook says he is over 200 years old.

Snow and Regina talk. Regina tells her about Robin kissing her, and says it was nothing, like kissing a photograph. It just isn’t him. She says Snow was right. Snow says sorry, she didn’t want to be. Regina says it’s not her fault, but there has to be a reason he made it through. If she isn’t the reason, what is? She wonders who he is and what he wants.

Robin goes to Regina’s mausoleum and takes out an intricately carved box that contains a heart.

Pinocchio finds the part he tore out of the book and gives it to Hook. Hook looks at the pages and sees Pinocchio on the bench with Robert.

The guard tells Robert it’s time to die, but Hook stops him. He and his men kill the guards. He says they’ve gotten a fortune. Robert thanks him for saving his life. Hook asks why he would do that, and Robert tells Hook he won’t say anything. Hook says that’s right, because dead men tell no tales, and runs his sword through Robert. (Although this made me wonder why no one would have realized Robert was killed by a sword, not a fall. It doesn’t take modern medicine to determine that one.) Hook tells his men to take the stuff, hide the cart and this poor, departed soul.

Emma comes out of the house to find Hook out front. He says he’ll be in in a minute. He looks at the ring and snaps the box shut.

Next time, Hook gets more analysis from Archie, Gideon wants Rumpel/Gold to help him with his destiny, and a big, scary giant stomps around.

The Walking Dead

Ezekiel’s men set up a single melon in the back of a truck. No clue.

Carol wakes up and lights a lamp. She smokes a cigarette. Do they grow tobacco or is there just an endless dramatic license supply?

Morgan teaches Benjamin’s little brother how to use the staff. He asks if the kid’s goal is to really knock his brother out, and thinks it’s more that he wants to be like him. He tells little brother that if his feet ain’t right, nothing is.

Carol emerges to a beautiful pink sky. She walks down the road and climbs a tree. She pikes zombies in the head with a street sign. She sees Benjamin and asks where Morgan is.

Carol asks Morgan why Jesus was there. Morgan says he wanted to find out if they could work together. She asks if it’s true that a deal was made between the Saviors and Alexandria, but he tells her to talk to Daryl about that. She told him not to say where she was, so he didn’t. Daryl didn’t find her because of him, and what they talked about was between them. He’ll go to Alexandria if she wants to; she shouldn’t go alone. He asks if she found what she wanted getting away from everyone, or was it too late to get away? A tear trickles down her cheek, and he says they can leave now if she wants to. In true Carol fashion, she says nothing and walks out. Carol’s passive/aggressive crap irritates the hell out of me.

Benjamin asks if Carol wants him to walk with her. He says he’s trying to see what she does with the zombies, and asks If she’d let him observe. She tells him to go do his drop. She sees a zombie in the street that she’d incapacitated earlier, but keeps moving. Someone is watching her.

Richard sees a backpack that says Katy on it, and he buries it.

All is well in the Kingdom. Ezekiel observes. He asks one of his subjects, Nabila, what she’s found. She tells him that many of the plants have weevils, and they’ll have to burn them before it gets to all the crops. He tells her to do what must be done. She says the good part is, that it will all grow back. Sheba Shiva makes a noise, and Nabila says she just peed herself, so she’ll be going now.

Benjamin thanks Morgan again for the book. He says he’s still thinking about it – to injure an opponent is to injure oneself; you get hurt no matter what. He gives Morgan a drawing that he found. Morgan hangs it on the wall. Benjamin says a girl helped him with it, but when Morgan asks who, he gets evasive and leaves.

Richard and Morgan talk about Benjamin having a girlfriend, and Richard says Benjamin is too young to be a father. Richard tells Morgan that before the apocalypse, he had the perfect family and life. He asks what about Morgan, and apologizes about how things have been between them. He knows Morgan is a good man, but they don’t look at killing the same way, and the day is coming when you can’t be that good.

Morgan tells Benjamin that it’s time to go. The guys get in the truck with the produce offering. Morgan asks who the girl is, but Benjamin is still not forthcoming.

Somebody has blocked the road with a line of shopping carts. Richard says it can’t be anything good He gets out with his gun. He tells everyone that they can get out, but keep their guns out. They all look around, scouting the place.  Richard tells them to move toward the building. In the back, they see a hole with a sign that says “bury me here.” Ezekiel says that people have lived through every kind of misery, and this is how they must exist now; it’s lucky they’re not all insane. Benjamin says luck has nothing to do with it. Ezekiel made them another world.

They move the carts. Savior Gavin and company show up. When right-hand goon to the right-hand goon, Jared, is chastised by Jerry for interrupting Ezekiel, Jared whacks Jerry in the head with Morgan’s staff. Gavin says that he appreciates the delivery, but this is making him stressed and he didn’t sign up for being stressed. He asks if they have today’s offering. He wants their guns, but the group draws them and Ezekiel says they didn’t agree to that. Gavin says give them up or try to use them. Richard tells Ezekiel that they should give them over. Gavin gets nasty, and Ezekiel says to give Morgan his stick back and they can have the guns. Gavin says he needs to understand the gravity of what’s happening. He was given a choice; which is it going to be? Morgan says it’s fine. Ezekiel says to give them the guns.

Gavin tells Ezekiel that he took guns because things are getting emotional. He checks out the melons they’ve brought, and says they’re short; he counts eleven. Ezekiel says that’s impossible. Gavin says the problems have to end now. Ezekiel needs to learn the stakes, and they’re going to teach him. Ezekiel says they’ll get double in return, but Gavin says right now is what matters. They haven’t held up their side of the bargain, and they’re going to deal with this now. Jared holds a gun to Richard’s head. Richard says, just do it. Jared shoots in another direction, and we hear, no!

Benjamin has been shot. Gavin tells Jared to give back Morgan’s stick and get in the truck. He tells Ezekiel that he’ll make deliveries on time and they’ll be complete. He’s going to show Gavin that he understands by bringing the missing melon tomorrow. Ezekiel says he understands. They grab Benjamin, and put him in the truck. Concern is voiced about him bleeding out. Richard lags behind and Morgan yells for him to get in.

Carol is planting some seeds, and sees the truck pull up. Benjamin is brought in and put on the kitchen table. Carol tries to stop the bleeding, but she’s not having much luck. Benjamin says, injure the opponent, injure yourself, and dies. He dies. Ezekiel tells Carol that he’s sorry, but they had no choice. Morgan walks out. Carol asks him to wait, but he doesn’t listen. He thinks about the grave. He thinks about killing himself. He thinks about a lot of stuff. He kicks a box.

Richard appears tells Morgan to pick his gun up.

Richard tells Morgan that it was supposed to be him. He was going to give his life to show Morgan, and something else happened, because they’ve done nothing to stop them. Nothing. He tells Morgan about how he was in a huge camp, a city of tarps, latrines, wood smoke, and babies crying. He knew they had problems, but didn’t think they were his to solve. He thought there were smarter and stronger people to deal with it, so he did nothing. There was a fight and a fire, and he lost his wife. He ran for three days, no food, no sleep. Then he lost his little girl. Right in front of him, because he didn’t do something; because he waited. Okay. Let’s all say it together: The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. (Edmund Burke? I know this was up for debate at some point.)

Richard asks Morgan to listen. He says they can use what’s happened. They can show the Saviors that they understand what they need to do. They have to do something to make them believe. When they gain their trust back, they kill them. They can join with Alexandria and Hilltop, and crush them in one fell swoop. This is it; Morgan has to kill, or else he might as well kill himself. Someone had to die. Richard tried to be the one, but that didn’t happen, so he’ll be the one to lead the army to destroy the Saviors. He says they’ll talk to Ezekiel. He’ll tell everyone what he did, and live the rest of his life making up for it.

Morgan meditates. Ezekel comforts Benjamín’s little brother. Morgan meditates some more.

We revisit Ezekiel and the melon in the truck from the beginning of the show. They go to the parking lot to meet with Gavin. Morgan asks Richard if he’s talked to Ezekiel yet, and Richard says he will when they get back. Ezekiel hears them and says let’s talk now. Gavin’s truck pulls up. He and Jared get out. The Jerky McJerkfaces. Gavin asks how the kid is, and there’s no answer. He ponders this, and deduces that Benjamin is dead. He tells Jared to start walking back before he kills him, and don’t say one word. Jared starts walking.

Gavin asks if they have the melon that all this started over. Richard says they get it, and Morgan whacks Richard, knocking him to the ground. He starts to strangle Richard, and everyone just stands there. He pounds Richard’s head into the ground until he’s dead. WTF??? Morgan says he set it up. Richard blocked the road, and it was all him. They had everything when they left. Richard took one of the melons from the cargo. He wanted to start something between the Kingdom and the Saviors. Morgan wanted to show Gavin that they get it; they understand what they need to do and how to go on. Gavin says good, but I think he’s a little freaked. He says, next week same time. Morgan says they understand.

Wow this is f-ed up.

Ezekiel says he did this. Morgan says he wanted to die for them before; he wanted it to be him. Ezekiel says they must take their leave, and Morgan shouldn’t be alone. Morgan says he’ll go. The Kingdom people leave, and Morgan puts a knife in Richard’s head.

Morgan drags Richard’s body and buries it. In digging the hole, he’s unearthed the backpack. He buries that too.

Noisy zombies coming through. Morgan pops them in the head with his stick and does some majorette moves.

Morgan visits Carol. He asks if she really wants to know what happened in Alexiandria. She asks what happened to him, and he says he strangled Richard; he’s the one who got Benjamin killed. He asks again if she wants to know, and she nods. He tells her that Negan killed Glenn and Abraham, he beat their heads in with a baseball bat. He says the Saviors have Alexandria, along with everyone else. Everything they do is for the Saviors now. And they’ve killed more, Spencer and Olivia. Jesus brought some of them there because Rick wants to fight. She wanted to know; now she does.

She asks where he’s going, and he says he’s going to kill them one by one. Carol tells him to wait. She packs her bags, and goes into the Kingdom. She sees Ezekiel planting with Benjamin’s brother. She tells him she’s sorry, and he thanks her. She tells Ezekiel that they have to fight. He says they do, but not today. She joins them planting.

Morgan carves his stick, making a point on the end.

Next time, Sasha isn’t changing her mind, Rosita and Sasha work together, and more zombies! Okay, I wasn’t totally paying attention, since I was looking at the digital guide, and the teeny tiny picture was up in the corner.

 

March 5, 2017 – Once Returns, Rick Finds Guns & Feud is Fabulous

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What I Watched Today

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

 

Once Upon a Time

Underneath a bridge, a little girl reads a fairy tale book, then uses the pages to stoke a fire. A young man asks what her story is. She tells him that she ran away and it’s none of his business. He asks her to stop burning the book, and tells her that The Ugly Duckling was his favorite. He says the best fairy tales are about transformation. She says that’s not what it’s about; the duck was always a swan, but didn’t know it. He says it’s about belief; if we believe in something strongly enough, we all have the power to change our fate. He asks if this is the fate she wants.

The little girl tells a desk clerk that her friend brought her there, and her name is Emma Swan.

In the enchanted parallel world, before Emma and Regina can jump into the porthole, Robin holds them up for their jewelry. Some huntsmen ride close by, and Robin jets. Henry leads the pack, and thinks that Emma and Regina crossed the river. Emma tells Regina nothing there is real. The place was created by a wish. Emma thinks she’s found a way back.

David and Hook stroll the streets of Storybrooke. David says they need to give the Evil Queen what she deserves, and he’s not resting until it’s done. Hook says he’s in, but he hopes David knows what he’s doing.

Rumpelstiltskin (as Gold) asks Gideon how this is possible. Gideon says he was in a place where time didn’t move. Gold asks if the Queen harmed him, but he says she toughened him. In all of the dark years, he tried to remember Belle and follow her example. He’s still going to kill Emma though, because he’ll gain her power as Savior. He needs to rid his land of the Black Fairy. He says when he kills Emma, he’ll finally become a hero. He disappears, poof! in a puff of pick-a-color smoke. Okay, I wasn’t looking.

Emma finds Pinocchio, who thought she’d been captured. He asks what happened that she’s in the Enchanted Forest, and she says it’s a long story. He tells her how he desperately wanted to be a real boy, and it only took his father to make it so. He asks what he can do for her, and she tells him to build something to get her out of there. She wonders if he still has the enchanted wardrobe, but he dismantled it years ago. He thinks he can still help. He knows where the grove is that the wood came from, and thinks they might be able to replicate his father’s work. Emma asks Regina what she thinks, but there’s no Regina, only a note. Regina says she knows Robin isn’t real here, but needs to know if he’s better off without her, like everything else in the realm.

Regina looks through the window of the pub, and remembers seeing Robin for the first time. She goes inside and everybody freaks because she’s the Evil Queen. They all run, but Robin asks if she’s going to buy him a drink. He thinks she’s there for the necklace that he stole, but she wants to talk. She asks if he’s happy, and he says she’s a strange one. He tells her that his life is great, he answers to no man and sleeps under the stars. She says he was better off, and he asks why she would care. Before she can say anything, the Sheriff of Nottingham comes in to arrest Robin, and slaps a cuff on Regina. He says Robin comes with a bonus, and tells his men to take her too.

Pinocchio and Emma go to the enchanted grove. Pinocchio checks out his father’s tools, and picks something out. He says that a true wood carver must be in conversation with the tools and materials. Emma pulls out a sword and tells Pinocchio she’s no longer a princess, but a Savior. She explains that her fate is to die while protecting her family.

Hook comes out of nowhere to “rescue” Emma. He’s fat, has grey hair, and looks like an aging Jack Sparrow. Obviously, he wasn’t better off.

In Storybrooke, Gold tells Gideon that it’s lonely. Gideon says that’s his fate. Gold says fate is a tricky business that requires planning. Gideon believes that Gold thinks he isn’t strong enough. Gold says there are things a man learns with time, but Gideon tells him to get lost. He says Gold thinks he knows all about him, but he has no idea. Gold says that Gideon’s life has been full of pain, but if he wants someone to pay, let it be him. He tells Gideon to hit him. Gideon doesn’t do it, and Gold says if he can’t hit his father, how does he expect to kill the Savior? He says he can help, but Gideon says he doesn’t need his help.

Emma tells Hook to let Pinocchio go, and leave the rescue to the professionals. She says she doesn’t need rescuing and Pinocchio easily takes Hook’s sword from him. Hook says there’s a reward for Princess Emma’s return. Pinocchio asks if she knows him, and she says she knows another version of him, and they sort of live together in another world. She knocks Hook out with some magic, and says it’s time to go home and get someone off the rum. Hook disappears, but the tool is broken.

Emma asks if Pinocchio can fix it, but he says he can’t. She says they have other tools, but he says they need magic and he’s not good enough. He says he’s sorry she put her faith in him, and hopes she doesn’t make that mistake again.

Regina and Robin are locked in a cage in the forest. Robin says he’s going to die having accomplished nothing. She says he’s Robin Hood who robs from the rich and steals from the poor. He asks if she’s nuts, and tells her that he just steals from the rich. She finds out that Marion died before they got married. He says there’s no one. She asks if he’s happy. He says if she wants the truth, he hasn’t been happy for a long time. She says he never had love.

The horses begin to rear up and run away. The guards chase them. One approaches the cage and is blown back. Rumpelstiltskin appears. Regina asks him to take the cuff off. He says on one hand she helped him escape, and on the other, the woman he loved starved to death. He dumps out a bag of bones and says that’s her now. Regina assures him that she had nothing to do with that. He says he might not be real, but he has the feeling he can still make her bleed. Yikes.

In real life, David tells Snow he’s sorry he can’t wake her. He promises he’ll find their daughter, bring her home, and fix this. He and Hook try to make a plan. Belle says they’re looking for her son, Gideon. He grew up in another realm, and the experience affected him. She says Rumpel is out looking for him too. David wonders who Rumpel is helping, and Belle says she can stop him, but she doesn’t want anyone harmed. She trusts them, and asks them to trust her. David says when they find Gideon, she can try to get him to listen.

Back in the world of fairies, Rumpel pushes Regina and Robin into a cell, and locks the door. Robin is like, so, I’m living in a fake world created by the wish of a princess who isn’t fake, and I’m a folk hero in another version. Regina is surprised he believes her. He says he doesn’t mind believing that he lives a better life in another world. He asks if he’s a scoundrel there, and she says he’s dead. He asks if the other Robin had a good life before he died. Regina says she thinks and hopes so. He helped a lot of people, and loved his friends and family. And her. Robin says it sounds like a good life, even if it was too short. He tells Regina that he’s not just the world’s greatest thief, and breaks the lock. They leave the cell.

Emma is about to chop at the tree, and spies a carved box with her name on a gift tag tied to it. There’s a carved swan inside. She goes to Pinocchio’s ship and asks him what it is. He tells her happy birthday. He says he always liked swans, and talks about The Ugly Duckling. His father told him that if you believe hard enough in something, you can change your fate. Emma remembers him at the fire, and says, it was you. She says when she was a kid, Pinocchio gave her advice that changed her life. He says she became the swan. She hands him the magic spatula and says he can do this. If he believes he’s a master carpenter, he will be, and his life will change.

Pinocchio chops at the tree. Magic pops out of it, and he says it looks like the swan is going home.

Commercial break. No surprise. It’s for Beauty and the Beast. I’d love to see it on the big screen, but I’ve sworn off any movie below an R rating. The last time I saw something that was PG-13, I felt like I was in the middle of a bus during a field trip, surrounded by the light of phone screens.

Pinocchio builds whatever, and thanks Emma for believing in him. She says his father would be proud. He shows her the finished product – a new enchanted wardrobe. Regina and Robin arrive, and Robin asks if they’re getting back in a tree. Regina tells him sorry for dragging him in. He gives her a feather, saying she’ll have a piece of Robin. She tells him that when her Robin died, there was a feather that was lost. She’d hoped he was in a good place, and thinks somehow, he lives on in this Robin. Emma asks if she wants to bring him as her plus one, but Regina says he’s not real. How can a wish become real? Emma says if Regina believes that any part of Robin is in there, she should bring him, saying that they make their own fate. She did it, and now it’s Regina’s turn. Robin says he’s in. Regina tells him it might not work, but he says it might. She asks if he wants to take the risk, and he says it’s not that great there, so why not go with the woman who was willing to die for another version of him?

Pinocchio opens the door. Emma steps through and Regina thanks him.

In Storybrooke, Emma and Regina come through, but no Robin. Emma says she’s sorry, and Regina asks for a moment alone. While she’s meditating on her sadness, Robin appears. She hugs him. He’d probably hug back, but he has arrows and stuff in his hands. She shows him the town from the top of a hill, officially welcoming him to Storybrooke.

Commercial break. It’s for the Time After Time series premiere. I thought this show had been on already, since there have been ads for it for months. I’m not sure if I’ll get a chance to see it, but I loved the 1979 movie with Malcolm McDowell and David Warner.

Emma strolls down the street, thinking about her vision. Gideon appears and says he’s been waiting. She says she only knows one Gideon, and he’s a lot younger. She asks what he wants, and he attacks her. They battle with their swords. Emma’s sword goes flying, and Gideon has them both. The others run up, and Emma tells them to stay back. Belle tells Gideon that he doesn’t have to do this. He freeze frames everyone. He tells Emma that he’s not going to hurt them, just her. Her hand starts to shake, and he tells her that she’s fated to die. She says not today.

Emma blows Gideon back with magic and holds a blade to his neck. Gold begs her not to kill him. Gideon says he doesn’t need Gold’s help, and disappears. No poof, no smoke, just disappears. Emma is stunned that he was Belle and Rumpel’s baby. They suddenly notice Robin, and Regina explains about the alternate reality. Everyone hugs. We hear a typewriter.

Emma walks in on Pinocchio typing. He says he works in a cabin out there, so his father can sleep. She asks him if he knew it was her when she was little. He says he kept tabs on her for a while. He knew she didn’t belong on the streets, and had to make sure that she did too. Emma sees the book that she was going to burn in a box on Pinocchio’s table. He says when she picked Swan as a last name, it made him happy. He figured she got it, and was on the way to being the person she was supposed to be. She says she thinks she’s on her way to believing she makes her own destiny. He tells her that believing is the first step.

Gold finds Belle on the bridge, and asks if she’s making a wish. She says he succeeded in keeping Gideon from his horrible fate. He says Gideon had the power to make his own choices. He thought Gideon would make the right choice, and even though he was wrong, Gideon may still do it. Gold says that through his whole dark life, he’s sought out light, like her. He doesn’t want Gideon to kill anyone because it’s not the cure for his pain. He doesn’t want that for his son.

Belle says she protected Gideon, knowing what he wanted to do, and it can be easy to rationalize. Gold says, indeed it can. As they’re talking, Gideon is climbing up the stairs inside the clock tower. Belle wonders what they can do. Gold says if there is, they should do it together; not just for them, but for everyone. War is coming to Storybrooke.

Gideon busts out the clock’s face. It shatters everywhere.

Next time, Emma wants to break the curse, David needs a pirate, and Emma wants to know what Hook is hiding.

The Walking Dead

Michonne and Rick comb a house for supplies, gathering anything of value. Down in a van by the river, she thanks him for keeping watch last night. He says they’re getting batteries for the walkie-talkie and getting it to work again. They raid another house, fighting off some zombies. They get busy during a break. Rick is discouraged that all they have are two guns, some dented cans of beans, and some football jerseys, but Michonne says they’re fighting the fight.

They come across a group of Saviors playing golf. They see batteries in the back of their truck.

Back at the van, Michonne tells Rick that they have to get back. Rick wants to stay a little longer, and sounds like a kid who wants to stay up later. Michonne agrees.

Rosita stitches herself up. Tara tells her it’s going to work out. They have the numbers to fight; they just need guns. Rosita asks where they’re going to get them, and says she can’t just wait. Tara says they’ll get the guns and fight. Rosita says it’s not going to be easy; it wasn’t the last time. She says she’s going to find guns.

Rick sleeps while Michonne drives. Rick sleeps while Michonne makes coffee. She sees a deer and tells Rick to shhh! even though he was sleeping. She gets a gun, but the deer is gone. Rick says he owes her a deer. They look around the forest, making so much noise that every deer within miles has disappeared.

They see a fence with a half-fallen tarp on it. Rick bangs on the fence and a soldier zombie stumbles around on the other side. Rick sniffs a bullet casing and they look around. Michonne says something serious happened here a long time ago. Rick says there might be serious guns in there.

Rosita noses around an abandoned house. She starts to go inside, and a Mama June (not hot) type zombie ambles out. She slices mama’s head in half with a machete. She finds a gun, but it’s just a water pistol.

Michonne and Rick go to the top of a building. They see zombie soldiers and civilians wandering around a carnival. Cool! Let’s get those zombies on the Ferris wheel. Rick says there was a fight, and they’re still wearing their guns. Michonne shoots, and ends up doing well at one of the carnival games. Until she and rick fall through the roof. We hear Rick laugh. Because it’s all good when you’re in love.

Rick and Michonne lie there laughing. They look around and find a boatload of food. Some kind off pre-packaged “ready to eat” meals.

Rosita finds Gabriel at the church. She tells him she didn’t find any guns even though she was out there all day. She had a gun, and was going to kill Negan with it. If she’d done it, he’d be dead. Maybe she would too, but who gives a damn? She lists all the people who would still be alive, and says that she’s still there because she was stupid enough to listen to him. She tells him that he doesn’t know sh*t about sh*t, and he tells her she’s right. He told her not to do what she was planning because they needed her, and they still do. It’s easier to be dead, and if it’s his fault, fine, but he did what he thought was right. He says she can blame him for having life, but what is she going to do with it? Anything is possible until your heart stops beating. Since she can’t argue with that, she walks out.

Michonne and Rick open the boxes, pull out the meals, and dig in. Michonne makes a plan to get the others to fight with them and kill Negan, but she doesn’t know what happens after that. They’ll have to reorder the world once he’s gone. Rick says they’ll figure out how to work together. She thinks he should be in charge, but he doesn’t. She says he’d be good at it, if it’s something he wanted. He says he doesn’t think he would, and he doesn’t want it. He says they could work together, and he wants that, if she does. She says she wants that, and they kiss.

Rick says they can take their time. The place is clear, locked up tight, and they found the only way in. He thinks they should get back. He gives her a package of chili and mac and cheese together. That’s love. The zombies stagger about outside, while Rick and Michonne get busy inside. Honestly, I don’t know how busy I could get, or would want to get, with zombies lurking around several feet away.

Tara babysits Judith. She’s torn between telling Rick about Oceanside or not, and uses Judith as a sounding board. She says that the others should just fight with them, but they only want to hide because they fear the world. But if she tells everyone about Oceanside, it might end up proving their point. She wonders what makes their life worth more than the others, because they want to stop the people who want to hurt other people?

Carnival time! Rick and Michonne watch the zombies from behind a truck. Rick wants to block one of the gaps to make it easier for them. He wants to do it quiet with the sword. Michonne makes a noise, and takes out the zombies one by one as they come her way. Rick grabs a gun from a zombie soldier, who’s wedged halfway through the windshield of a car. Rick tries pulling him out by the feet, and the zombie’s foot comes off. Ha-ha! He pulls some more and the guy’s legs come off. Ha-ha! again. Rick finally gets him out of the windshield glass. Michonne joins him and they push the car toward the gap. He realizes that the breaks don’t work, and all of a sudden there’s gunfire from a soldier zombie. Michonne jumps into the trunk, and Rick steers the car to the opening in the fence. Zombies surround the car and claw at it. Rick says it was a great plan, and Michonne agrees that it was.

They jump off the car and behind some ride barricades. They run through the fairgrounds, the zombies trailing behind. They knock over the test-your-strength game, and it blocks the zombies for a bit. Rick asks if Michonne wants to go, but they both think they can do this. Rick goes in front of the Ferris wheel and coaxes the zombies forward. Michonne does the same thing by the big slide. As the zombies get to the gate, they’re dispatched; heads rolling, eyeballs squishing, blood spurting. Rick sees the deer, and jumps onto the Ferris wheel, climbing up to the top. He’s about to shoot the deer as zombies are coming toward it, and he falls off. Oh crap.

Rick is down, but grabs the gun, and starts shooting the zombies. Michonne runs toward him, gun drawn. When she gets there, she sees the zombies circled around something, eating. She looks sick, and tears roll down her face. She drops her sword. The zombies start to come toward her. She backs away, but she’s not herself.

Like Superman, Rick jumps out of a crate, and throws the sword to Michonne. They slice and dice the zombies. They hug, and Rick says he tried.

They gather up the guns. A lot of guns. Michonne has a moment.

It’s quiet on the ride back, but they got tons of supplies. I’d be hiding some of those somewhere. Rick pulls the van into the forest. He wishes they could have spent more time away. He says he hasn’t been sleeping, thinking about what they’ve lost, and the friends he couldn’t save. He says they went through something, and this doesn’t cure it. Michonne says she’s sorry. He says they’re going to fight them. They’re going to lose people, maybe even each other, but it will be worth it. Michonne says she can’t lose him. Rick says she’d asked him what kind of life they’d have by just surrendering, and it would be no life. Fighting the fight is living, making a future for Judith and the others. He says she can lose him. It’s not about them anymore; it’s about a future. If he doesn’t make it, she’ll have to lead, and she can. She asks how he knows, and he says she led him there.

Back at the Heapsters heap, Jadis asks if the guns are all operational. Rick says they need cleaning up. There are over sixty guns, but Jadis says it’s not enough. Rosita suggests they leave and take their guns with them. Jadis says no, and they haggle. Jadis gets to nine and they get the cat back, and Rick says twenty, and they fight together. Jadis says yes, and if they get more soon, they’ll fight. Everyone wanders around looking like they’re doing something important. Michonne tells Rick they have a few more days before what happens next. They’ll figure it out in a few more days.

Back in Alexandria, Tara is looking for Rick. He asks if she’s okay, and if she’s seen Rosite, who hasn’t shown up for her shift. Tara suggests that maybe she went out looking for more guns. She says she has something to tell Rick.

Rosita stomps through the streets, and sees Sasha at Abe’s grave. She says she needs Sasha’s help. Sasha says under one condition – she gets to take the shot. Rosita agrees. She asks if Rosita brought explosives, but Rosita felt that was taking too much of a chance. She has something better. She brings out a bazooka, and hands it to Sasha, so she can take her shot. Rosita says that Rick and Michonne found guns and the Heapsters wanted more guns. She thinks that means more excuses. She tells Sasha that she’s memorized what Carl and Daryl told Rick about the Saviors’ camp. Sasha says she has a map that Jesus drew for her. They discuss how they can’t be caught alive, and it’s a one way ticket for both of them.

Next time, Ezekiel rises up, Carol emerges, and there are lots more guns.

💣 Feud: Bette and Joan is perfection! The casting couldn’t be better, and the topic couldn’t be more current. For all the equality whining going around, not many people talk about how ageist our society is, and the scope is even narrower for actresses in Hollywood. Way back when, Joan Crawford recognized this, and brought the novel, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? by Henry Farrell, to Bette Davis’s attention, thinking it was the perfect vehicle for them both. Being no slouch in the brains department herself, Bette agreed, the rest is history, and their feud is legendary.

While both women are gone from this world, so there’s no one to confirm or deny, this interpretation of their relationship shows an almost softer side. While hating each other on a certain level, neither could deny the other’s talent or their admiration for it. Although “frenemy” wasn’t a term back then, they were the perfect example of it.

The cast is chock full of exceptional actors and actresses, like Kathy Bates, Sarah Paulson, and Stanley Tucci. I was also pleasantly surprised to see Jackie Hoffman playing Mamasita, Joan’s right hand person. I recognized her right away, pointing and shouting “Penny’s mother!” at the TV, as I’d seen her on Broadway in Hairspray.

And lest we not forget one star of any period drama – the clothes and props. So far, I’m enthralled. One of my favorite things in the world are those brocade dresses with matching coats that were so popular in the 1960s. My favorite Barbie outfit will forever be Evening Splendor. (However, I would not have paired the green/blue bag with this.)

barbieeveningsplendor

December 4, 2016 – Emma Lives in a Dreamworld, Negan Wants to Live in Alexandria & Westworld Lives On for Another Season – But When?

Standard

What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

Once Upon a Time

The Evil Queen tells Regina that she wants “the best version of us.” She says the only way for Regina to hurt her is to hurt herself, and tells her that love is weakness. Emma uses her sword to slice the Evil Queen’s cheek and nothing happens to Regina. The evil queen disappears, poof! in a cloud of purple smoke, and Emma says it’s possible kill her.

The Evil Queen reappears elsewhere. Gold tells her it looks like the Savior found a weapon. He says he can focus on finding his son and she can prepare to die. He puts the cuff on her so he can track her whereabouts. It’s like a GPS. He says at the end of the day, if Emma hasn’t done away with her, after he’s done finding his son, hell gladly finish the job.

Snow sleeps. Emma says the Evil Queen needs to die. Hook tells her not to do it. Henry says what if this is how she dies? There’s no face under the hood in her vision, so for all they know, the queen kills her. Emma has a mini vision. She tells Regina to stay with Henry. Hook, David, and Emma set off to face the queen. They hear a cry for help and run into Granny’s. Jasmine is tied to a chair. The Evil Queen says it’s not about Jasmine, it’s about her – always. She can snap Jasmine’s neck before they step any closer. She rubs the lamp and Aladdin appears, poof! in a cloud of yellow smoke. She says she has three wishes. He says they come at a price. She says she’s not going to wish for her, but something someone else wants. She wishes that Emma’s wish to not be the Savior be granted. Emma says no, and charges forward. Aladdin raises his hand and she disappears. No poof or anything though. I just thought. What if you weren’t done with your three wishes yet, and someone else got ahold of the lamp? Does that mean you lose out?

Somewhere, it’s Emma’s birthday. She’s a princess and the palace is celebrating. She didn’t wish for anything, since everything she’s ever wanted is already there. Snow and David are now king and queen, and older. Snow asks Emma what’s wrong. Emma says she had a dream that the queen was successful with her curse and she was the Savior. Snow says that was avoided. Emma says she was in a fantastical land, but David says it was just a dream. Emma says when she woke up, she found this, and shows them a sword that was under her bed – the same one as in Storybrooke Emma’s vision. Henry runs in saying he had been practicing for tomorrow and sorry he’s late. He thinks the sword is for him. Emma says his father would be proud, and he says he wishes he’d known him. They look at his portrait, and Emma says he’s watching over Henry. David says time to celebrate, and Snow tells Henry put the sword away; this family is done fighting. Henry gets a weird look on his face. Or maybe it’s just me reading too much into it.

Back in the future, Hook and David start to argue, and Regina says that’s just what the Evil Queen wants. Regina says she’s thrown a lot of punches, but she knows a way to get her back.

Gold makes magic that includes a strand of his hair. He asks a globe to show him his son. Nope. Didn’t happen.

Aladdin makes a martini for the Evil Queen. She tells him it’s a request though, not a wish. She flirts with Aladdin and he says, eww. Regina walks in. The Evil Queen tells her that wishes can’t be undone, but tells her to have a seat, and tells Aladdin to make another drink. She says there was a time all Regina wanted was to tear Snow and David apart and kick Emma out of Storybrooke, and now it’s been done. She gives a one-sided toast. She tells Regina she’s won and can’t even admit it, but that victory feels luxurious. Regina says she’s right, they are the same person, so she’s not the only master of the lamp.

Regina asks to be sent to the same place as Emma. Aladdin obeys.

Regina is in a beautiful wood. She calls out for Emma. She hears the dwarfs whistling on their way to work, and asks if they’ve seen Emma. They think the Evil Queen is back and Grumpy tells the others to run and warn everyone that the war isn’t over.

Regina sees a statue marking the spot where she was defeated by Snow and David. She sees Emma dancing around, carrying a basket of flowers, and humming Someday My Prince Will Come. Regina frightens her, but she says she’s Emma’s friend and none of this is real. Emma thinks she’s the Evil Queen and tells her that she’s been banished. Regina says she risked her life coming here because Emma is the Savior and her family needs her.

An arrow nearly misses her. David and Snow have arrived. David tells Regina that this is their kingdom now. Snow says they’re protecting their people. Regina tries to convince Emma that this isn’t real, saying some part of Emma must know. David tries to attack her with his sword, and she disappears, poof! in a puff of purple smoke.

Moving forward, David is freaking out. He wants to get the lamp. Hook stops him and says they’re out-gunned and they need a plan. Jasmine wonders what the Evil Queen is doing to Aladdin. Probably not what she’d like to be doing. David says to meet him at the sheriff’s station in an hour. The Evil Queen’s reign ends today.

Somewhere in the Enchanted Forest, Regina goes into a mountain where there’s a prison cell. Rumpelstiltskin is in it, humming the tune of the day, Someday My Prince Will Come. He tells her to come closer and says the apprentice is back to see the old master. Regina says she needs his help. He says she’s his biggest failure, so why would he help? She says she’s not the Evil Queen in this reality, and it’s not even a reality, it’s all fake – he’s fake. She says the world was created by a wish to trap Emma.

Rumpel says maybe he can help her and wants a deal. Regina says he’s not even real. He says he wants his freedom in return, and she says it’s not worth it. He says if the world isn’t real, what’s the harm? She says he has a point, but she knows better than to deal with him in any realm. He tells her that every Savior needs a villain, and that a real queen with purpose can remind Emma that the world needs a savior. Show her inner darkness, and the Savior will be reborn. Regina says they’re just old friends talking, so they haven’t made a deal. Rumpel says she doesn’t know the way back to Storybrooke. Regina wonders how he knows the name of the town she’s from, and he says he can find her a magic bean, but it will cost her. She opens the cell.

He says he needs fresh air and starts to go, but she asks about the bean. He tells her to meet him tomorrow at noon by the lake. He says if she wants to be an Evil Queen, she should look like one. In a puff of purple smoke, poof! she changes into an Evil Queen outfit. He tells her to go be evil.

In Storybrooke time, Gold sees Belle. She says he sped up her pregnancy and the fairies sped up her recovery. He tells her their son is gone; he’s not anywhere. He says he knows his words mean nothing, so he’ll give her actions. He gives Belle a card with Mother Superior’s number, so she can verify his story. Mother Superior isn’t doing too well. She’s been walloped by the Black Fairy who’s kidnapped Gideon.

Where fairy tales happen, everyone gathers for Prince Henry to be knighted. He makes his entrance wearing some really cool copper armor. Snow takes the infamous sword out, and she and David say the stuff you say when you knight someone. Before Henry can be dubbed, Regina as the Evil Queen pops in and says sorry she’s late. She throws the knights aside and freezes David and Snow, saying she vows to destroy their happiness. Emma asks her not to hurt her parents. Regina says hurting them is the point, unless she knows a hero who can stop her (wink-wink). Emma begs for mercy. Regina tells her to look for the hero, and when you find one, you know where to find us. The three disappear, poof! in a puff of purple smoke.

In Storybrooke, the real Evil Queen confronts David. He tries to attack her, and she blows him back with magic. She tells him that he can’t kill her. He picks up the lamp, saying he can do something much worse. He rubs the lamp and Aladdin appears. He tells Aladdin that he has a new master. So back to my original question. She loses the one she has left now? Or is it just postponed? What are the lamp rules?

The Evil Queen tells David not to dabble in forces he doesn’t understand. Aladdin reminds him wishes come with a price. He says the only one paying a price will be her. He wishes the Evil Queen gets what she deserves. Nothing happens. Aladdin says he granted the wish. The Evil Queen says David wasted it. She wanted to tear the family apart and she did. She already has what she deserves. Okay, so doesn’t he have two more wishes now? This is the kind of nonsense I think about while watching this.

David rushes her, and she stops him mid-stride. Hook and Jasmine enter. Hook says they have the lamp and the Evil Queen is lost. She drops David, saying death is too good for him and she’d rather watch him suffer. She disappears, poof! You know the rest.

In the unreal world, the Evil Queen has the Charmings prisoner. Prince David says they always defeat her. Emma shows up with a box. Regina says she knew Emma would find the hero in her, but it’s the key to the kingdom. Emma wants to surrender. Regina says she doesn’t want the key; she just wants Emma to get back to Storybrooke. Emma says that was the name of the place in her dream. Regina says this is the dream, and she’s going to have to wake her. She takes David and Snow’s hearts and says stop her or they die. Emma says she’s not the Savior. Regina says she knows how to fight when she has to and crushes the hearts to dust. Emma starts to weep. Regina says she doesn’t remember and can’t fight. Henry comes in and says the Evil Queen will pay. Emma tries to stop him. He says he has the sword. Regina says she won’t fight, and Henry throws the sword at her. Emma stops it, surprising herself. Regina says she saved her. Emma says Regina came to this crazy land to save her, so it’s fair. She remembers. She asks if her parents are dead, and Regina reminds her that they’re not real. Emma thanks Regina, and says, but it was very dark. She tells Regina let’s go stop the real Evil Queen.

Walking the streets of Storybrooke at night, the Evil Queen says the town is almost tolerable when the peasantry is hidden away. A hooded figure comes out of Granny’s. She asks who the hell are you? and gets blown back. She starts to follow, and the hooded figure turns her into a cobra in a cage.

It’s time for Regina and Emma to go back, and Regina wonders where Rumpel is. Surprisingly, he shows up. He tells her to throw the bean and think of where she wants to go. He disappears, poof! in a puff of red smoke.

At the Charming’s Storybrooke apartment, David is worried that he’s like his brother. Hook tells him to grow up and kiss his wife. Jasmine comes in with the lamp, and suggests that David use it to break the curse with Snow. He gives it back to her, trusting she’ll be wise with it. She says that she and Aladdin have to find Agribah. Henry asks if she’s sure, and she says they have to make the sacrifice. Aladdin gives Henry a pendant for Emma, from one savior to another. Jasmine wishes to go to Agribah and they disappear. Okay, I wasn’t totally paying attention, but it was probably poof! in a puff of yellow smoke.

Grumpy comes in with the snake. He tells them it’s the Evil Queen and a guy in a hood put her in there. David asks if he saw who was under the hood.

The hooded figure comes into Gold’s shop. It’s Gold and Belle’s son, Gideon.

At the lake, Regina throws the bean and it turns into a green whirlpool. She and Emma are about to leap in, when arrows fly past them. It’s Robin. He says it’s a robbery and to give him their jewelry. Regina is mesmerized, seeing him again, and starts to walk toward him. Emma tells her he’s not real, but she doesn’t pay attention. The whirlpool disappears.

In March, a war is coming to Storybrooke where romance, danger and hope collide.

The Walking Dead

Michonne walks along the road, whistling Farmer in the Dell. A zombie lumbers out of the forest. And another. They trail behind her. She drops her bag, stabs one in the head and decapitates the other. She drags the headless one’s body away. Her radio sits unattended.

Jesus and Carl are in the back of the truck with the scotch. Jesus cuts open the bottom of one of the boxes. He opens one of the bottles and leaves a trail, like breadcrumbs. He tells Carl that they should bail and walk the rest of the way. He says to roll with the fall and stay in the blind spot. Jesus goes first and Carl waves good-by. Brat!

The truck stops. A guy picks up the box that Jesus cut, and the bottom falls out. Carl shoots a few people and says no one else needs to die, he just wants Negan. Negan comes out whistling (what’s up with that tonight?) and says he’s adorable. He asks if Carl picked the gun because it looks cool. A couple of people rush Carl and he shoots, but gets pulled down. Negan tells Dwight to back off, saying that’s no way to treat a new guest and he wants to show him around.

Negan tells Carl he has the same stank eye as his dad, but half as good since he only has one eye. What a card! We see the zombie target practice or whatever it is, and Daryl is in with the zombies. Negan asks him how the job is going. I hope it pays well. Carl lets Negan help him up. Dwight takes Daryl out to learn grub prep. Carl asks what he’s going to do to him. Negan tells him not to shatter his image of him as a bad-ass and says screw him if he thinks he’s going to ruin the surprise.

He taks Carl into a warehouse. A bunch of people are there they kneel when they see Negan. He tells them to work hard and play by the rules. He says everyone gets fresh vegetables tonight for dinner – no points needed. They applaud, and he tells Carl that respect is cool.

Eugene and Rosita walk to the gate. She says they aren’t doing anything for Negan. Spencer tells her not to fight it. Father Gabriel says maybe they should all go together. Spencer says they have to produce for the Saviors; it’s like taxes. He tells Rosita not to be pissed at him. He didn’t do this; Rick did. She tells him to pay his taxes from all the stuff he stole and leave her alone. She leaves with Eugene. Spencer gets into the car with Gabriel.

Negan shows Carl his harem. He tells him to knock himself out. He asks Sherry if he can talk to her. They step aside and he asks what happened with Amber and Mark she says what they talk about when he’s not there is none of his business. Wow. She’s brave. He tells her that he heard Mark skipped out on a directive and needs to know if it’s true. He says there are rules for a reason and nothing matters if you’re dead. She tells him to calm down, but he says he’s never hit any of them. She says what he does is worse. He smiles and says, to be continued.

Negan gives Carl a beer. Amber is crying. He tells her he doesn’t want anyone there who doesn’t want to be there. If she wants to leave and go back to Mark, she can. But she can’t cheat on him. He says there are plenty of gals who would like to take her place. He suggests he put her on the same job as Mark and her mom. I’m assuming they’re on zombie duty. She tells him no, and he says she knows what that means. She tells him she loves him and he says of course, and that it will all work out for her.

Negan tells Sherry that he wasn’t hard on her, and she calls him an a-hole. They start kissing. Dwight brings in Daryl, who’s job tonight is serving hors d’oevres. Daryl asks why Carl is here. Negan says what they talk about when he isn’t here is none of his business, and not to make him put the toothpick in his hand through the only eye Carl has. He tells Dwight to fire up the furnace. It’s time for deja vu. Daryl lingers and Dwight pulls him out the door.

Rick tells Aaron they only have today to find something. The climb over a fence that has a sign saying the only thing to be found there is trouble.

Spencer drives with Gabriel. He asks if thoughts are a sin, but Gabriel says they’re just thoughts; it’s our actions that matter in the end. Spencer says he hates Rick, and that his mother served in congress and brought out the good in people. Gabriel says Rick brought out the good in him by inspiring him; he kept everyone together. He says it wasn’t Rick’s fault. Gabriel says that Spencer looks at it a different way, but they’re here now and can look to the future. Spencer says what future? There isn’t any with Rick in charge. He says the only good thing that could happen is Rick not making it back. Gabriel tells him to stop the car.

He tells Spencer that what he’s saying doesn’t make him a sinner, but does make him a tremendous sh*t. Just for now; it doesn’t have to be terminal. He gets out of the car and says he’s going back. Spencer gets out and jets into the forest. He sees a zombie hunter up on a blind.

In Negan’s parlor, Carl asks Negan if the women are actually his wives. Negan says he thought why not make life better? He tells Carl to sit and says let’s get started. He wants to get to know Carl better. He says Carl is smart. He’d expect a kid his age to be moping around, but instead he has a mission. He came looking for Negan, but he’s not going to let things slide. He asks if Carl really wants to piss him off, and asks to see Carl’s non-eye. Carl takes his bandana off and Negan goes on about how gross it is. He asks to touch it. What is he, ten? He says it’s easy to forget Carl is just a kid, and he was just screwing around.

There’s a knock at the door. Fat Joseph brings Lucille in, telling Negan that he left it by the truck. Negan tells Carl that it might not be a hit with hit ladies, but no one will want to screw with someone who looks like him. He asks Fat Joseph if he treated Lucille like a lady. He makes a joke, Fat Joseph laughs, and Negan tells him get out. He tells Carl that this is the sh*t his dad should be teaching him – men busting each other’s balls. I could almost like this guy.

Negan asks what Carl does for fun and if he likes music. He wants Carl to sing. He says that Carl mowed down two of his men, and he wants something in return. Carl is like, no, and Negan points Lucille at him and says start singing. Carl starts to sing You Are My Sunshine. Negan swings the bat around as Carl sings badly. He tells Carl not to let him be a distraction. Carl starts crying and now I want to hit him with the bat. No offense to the teen and tween hearts that are going pitty-pat right now.

Carl finishes the song, and Negan says Lucille loves being sung to more than she loves bashing brains, and mentions how weird that is. It’s weird all right. He asks if Carl’s mother sang that to him, and where she is now. By Carl’s reaction, Negan knows she’s dead, and he asks if Carl saw it happen. Carl says he shot her before she could turn. Negan says no wonder he’s a serial killer in the making, and tells him that was an example of breaking balls. He tells Carl to get up, because it should be ready.

Dwight tends the furnace. The crowd is back in the warehouse. Negan comes in, banging Lucille along the banister. He tells Carl to hold the bat. He tells the people that they know the deal. What’s going to happen will be hard to watch. He doesn’t want to do this, but he has to. Why? Because rules keep us in line. They survive and provide security to others, which is civilization. To the world, they’re the Saviors, but they can’t do it without rules. Rules make it work. It’s not easy, but there’s always a cost. If you try to cut corners, it’s the iron for you. He tells everyone to get up from their kneeling positions.

Mark is tied to a chair and Negan approaches him. Dwight takes a literal iron from the fire. Negan says, sorry, but it is what it is. Mark gets on iron on his face, and even Dwight can’t look. Mark passes out. Negan says it wasn’t so bad. Carl and Daryl lock eyes. Negan says Mark peed himself and tells Daryl to clean it up. He tells the doctor to do his thing.

Negan tells the crowd everything is cool. Let Mark’s face be a daily reminder that the rules matter. He hopes they all learned something, because he doesn’t want to have to do this again. He says Carl probably thinks he’s a lunatic. He says let’s figure out what to do with you, and leads Carl away.

Spencer gets a rope. He jiggles the hunter’s plaform until his weapon falls. Poor dude is just hanging there, and Spencer finally gets him down and goes through his pockets. There’s a note in there that I can’t read, but Spencer finds it of interest.

Rosita and Eugene go to the auto shop or whatever it is. Eugene says he didn’t want to come back here, and tells her no. She says she asked him to make her a bullet and he said yes, so make one. He says he can’t figure out any way it makes sense, and wants her to slow her roll. She says she’s not waiting, and he tells her that she’s being stupid. He’s analyzed it top to bottom, and Abe was right; they have the numbers. He says even if she’s willing to pay the price, it’s unlikely she’ll be the one who pays it. She says he’s not talking her out of it. He owes her and Abe. She says he’s a coward and weak. The only reason he’s alive is because he lied, and people feel sorry for him. She tells him to do something useful and make her a bullet. Eugene gets the bullet-making stuff ready.

Sherry is in the stairwell having a smoke. Dwight joins her. He tells her not to beat herself up about selling out Mark. She says that’s not what happened. Okay, don’t tell us or anything. He says whatever helps you sleep at night. For him, it’s watching TV until morning. She leaves before they get caught.

Carl wants his bandana back on, and Negan says no; he’s not done with him and he likes looking at his rat-ass bad-ass eye. Ha-ha! If nothing else, Negan is colorful. Carl asks why he hasn’t killed him, Rick or Daryl. Negan says Daryl is going to make a good soldier, and Carl’s dad is already getting him great stuff. As for him, they’ll see. It’s more productive and fun to break him. He asks what Carl thinks he should do. Does he kill him, iron his face, chop off his arm, what? Carl says he should jump out the window to save him the trouble of killing him. Negan says there’s the kid he knows and loves. Carl says he’s not doing anything and won’t. He should kill them, but he can’t. Negan says maybe he’s right and decides they should go on a ride. I’m not sure what to think about this exchange.

Jesus is on the top of the truck that Negan and Carl pull out in. Negan calls Daryl over. He says he’s taking the kid home. Daryl says if you do anything to him – and Negan tells Dwight that Daryl needs a time out and to put him in the box for a while. Daryl looks up while he’s being led away. There’s no Jesus on the top when it leaves though.

A note is slipped under Daryl’s cell door. it says go now.

Zombie piles! There’s a blockade of zombies in the road, and a woman has to stop her car. Michone comes out of nowhere and tells her to drop her weapons. She asks if Michonne wants her shoes too. Michonne says take her to Negan. They get in the car. The woman breaks quickly and tries to get the better of Michonne, but that doesn’t happen. Michonne tells her again to take her to Negan.

In Alexandria, Negan visits Olivia. He’s all happy and asks where Rick is. She says scavenging for him, and he says he’ll wait. She says they might not be back today. They’re out of everything and practically starving. He notes her weight and says not really. He’s so obviously mean, it’s funny. She starts crying, and he tells her she has no sense of humor. He apologizes for being rude, and says he thinks it would be enjoyable to screw her brains out if she’s agreeable. She slaps him. He says he’s about 50% more into her now. Okay, I have to say at this moment he made me laugh out loud. He asks her to make them lemonade.

When she leaves, he tells Carl to take him on the grand tour. He plays with the water and a dartboard while we hear a country tune. He sees baby Judith and loves on her, doing the coochy-coo thing.

Rick sneaks around with Aaron. They see a sign with long explaination and warning. It says if they’ve goten this far without being shot, the dude is dead. Maybe. They see a lake or river with zombies bobbing around in it.

Rosita has her bullet. She thanks Eugene and says she’s sorry for what she said. He says maybe the words, but not the intent. She meant it, she felt it, that’s her truth, and he’d like silence now. She got what she wanted and is just feeling bad.

Spencer drives up with a load of cans. He says they got it off a dead guy, and found all kinds of stuff like medical supplies. Rosita says he’s just going to give it to them ? He says that’s what Rick said to do, so that’s what they’re going to do. The gate to Alexiandria is opened, and they see that Negan is there.

Negan is on the porch, rocking Judith. He tells Carl that he likes it there, and might have to stay. He wonders why he’s trying so hard to keep Carl and Rick alive. Maybe he should bury them in a flower bed and settle into the suburbs.

Next time, the mid-season finale…sigh…

👢 Quick Westworld mention. After making a few failed attempts at watching HBO’s new drama, I caught a marathon a couple of weekends ago. It took me a minute, but I decided I’m in. I thought they were a bit heavy on the sub-plots, but let that pass because it’s so damned fascinating. I love me some Ed Harris and James Marsden as well. Obviously, it’s a far cry from the 1973 film, which I probably saw ten times in the theater. I could watch Yul Brynner chase Richard Benjamin around all day, and it was a lot cheaper back then.  (Digression: I was blessed to see Yul Brynner in a revival of The King and I on Broadway in the late 70s. Shall We Dance? is forever burned into my mind as one of my all time favorite moments in theater.) I do have the same desire with the series as I did for the original film – I’d like to see more of the park. It’s touched on by both that there are other worlds, most notably Roman World and Midieval World, but we don’t see much of them. I’d like to see those explored further, and it’s been hinted at that this will happen. Sadly, I also heard that Westworld might not return until 2018. Like Nancy Kerrigan, I cry, why? why?

November 27, 2016 – We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Squid Ink & Tara’s Oceanside Vacation

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What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

Once Upon a Time

Gold ties up one of Blue’s fairy nuns, poof! in a puff of red smoke. The Evil Queen joins him. He wants her to take care of Zelena, but she’s not willing to kill her sister for him. He claims he’s come to his senses as far as Belle loving him is concerned. Gold says he’s going to send a message via fairy and dumps some gold sprinkles on the nun, making her turn old.

Belle tells the group that Gold is going to do the same thing to her to speed the baby along. She says he’s trying to scare her into going back to him, but it’s still a no.

Back in the day, Rumpelstiltskin brings a baby to Belle, asking her to take care of it. She asks where its parents are, but Rumpel says it doesn’t matter, the baby is his now. Belle realizes he stole the child, and wonders what happened to him to make him so awful. She asks the baby’s name, but he says you don’t waste a name on something you’re not going to become attached to. She asks what he’s going to do with the baby. He says he’ll be back at sundown and don’t even think of hiding it.

Back in Storybrooke, Belle finds a book on defeating the Dark One. It tells her to follow the strand. Voila! She look down and there’s a red strand in the form of a glowing red ribbon. She follows it. It leads to the shears, but they disappear when she tries to take them. She says she’s in the dreamworld and her son appears. He’s come to warn her. He says she followed the strand of his fate, and his father intends to use the shears. He tells her the answer is inside of her and she has to move quickly.

Snow and Jasmine grade papers. Jasmine thinks Aladdin found a way to find Agribah, but she’s worried about what the price will be for finding it. Snow tells her to be the princess she was meant to be.

Emma and Belle peruse the book Belle was looking at. Hook says the magic is in the ink and Emma thinks she can extract it.

Back at ye olde palace, Belle reads a story to Nameless Baby. She wonders what Rumpel is planning. She leaves, carrying the sleeping baby in a basket.

The Evil Queen visits Zelena. She says Gold sent her, and suggests they take it outside. In the backyard, the Evil Queen tells Zelena enough games; let’s end it. She slams Zelena up against a shed, but as she’s about to finish her off, she clutches her heart. Regina is standing behind her and says it’s her heart. She’s willing to crush it to stop her twin. Zelena tells her it’s because of Rumpel, who says it’s either her or him. Regina says he lied. The Evil Queen has a hole in her heart, and she’s so desperate, she believed him. She tells the Evil Queen they’re done with her, and she disappears, poof! in a puff of purple smoke.

Hook goes to Gold’s shop. Gold is about to zap him, but Emma gets him first, and using the squid ink, puts Gold in freeze mode. Emma and Hook start to look for the shears, and Emma has a vision. She’d thought they’d stopped, and it throws her totally off-balance. In the meantime, Gold becomes animated again and leaves the shop.

Gold finds Belle, telling her that he’s far too powerful to be beaten by squid ink. She tells him it’s never going to happen, and he says he can’t lose another son. Belle stumbles backward into the elevator. She asks why he’s doing this. He says he can never be who she wants him to be. He says when they met, he told her that he was a difficult man to love, but he’s come to believe that he’s actually a man no one can love. With his son, he can start over. Belle says she never wanted him to be perfect, just to try. He says he did and look what happened. He thinks all they have is magic, and she reminds him that it comes with a price. She says he’ll lose her forever and asks if that’s a price he’s willing to pay.

In olden times, Belle takes the baby to library tower. She sees an incantation from the Black Fairy. She wonders out loud what Rumpel would need with that, and Rumpel appears, saying it’s for him to know and her not to find out. He says he doesn’t speak fairy, but he has her. He makes the baby disappear, and says she can stay there for a while, in case she has any ideas about stopping him.

Regina heals Zelena’s wounds. Zelena says she should have been the one to reach out, but Regina says she didn’t come here to apologize; she came to steal something for a spell to reverse the fairy’s aging. When Zelena questions why she didn’t just ask for help, Regina says she didn’t think Zelena could be trusted after what she’s done. Zelena realizes that Regina still holds her responsible for Robin’s death and asks what about forgiveness. Regina says she can do a lot, even spare Zelena’s life, but can never forgive her.

Jasmine rubs the lamp that Aladdin gave her, and a gold cuff pops out, poof! in a cloud of yellow smoke, but Aladdin tells her the genie has been freed. He puts the cuff on himself. She tells him he’ll be a prisoner of the lamp now, but he thinks it can help them find Agribah. He tells her let’s find out and goes into the lamp. I wonder if it has tiny couch inside, like in I Dream of Jeannie.

The Evil Queen lambastes Gold. She tells him even if he could be the person Belle wanted him to be, how long would it last? She says this time, Belle has a child to protect, and she’ll do what she should have done long ago. Leave and take the child, and he’ll be alone. He tells her to look in the mirror, and not to question him again. He says they’re done and to get out.

In the tower, Belle bangs at the door with a metal thing. She calls for help. She opens the little window in the door, and the Blue Fairy flies in. Belle says she needs Blue to get her out. Blue says they have to stop Rumpel before he gets to the Black Fairy, who stopped defending the children she was supposed to protect and started stealing them. Rumpel is going to use the baby to lure her. Blue says Belle is the only one who can help. She opens the door and Belle scurries out.

At Granny’s, Hook tells Emma that they have to make sure Gold can’t use the magic on Belle. Belle sips tea while Hook grills Emma about her vision. She tells him that there was something new. The sword used to kill her had a glowing red jewel in it. Belle says something about the tea, and she’s suddenly about to give birth.

In the enchanted forest, Rumpel does an incantation to bring forth the Black Fairy. She’s very punk looking. He tells her she can’t have the baby yet and she asks who summons her. He squid ink freezes her and she realizes who he is. She says squid ink won’t hold her long. He brings out a dagger as back-up, and asks why she abandoned the one child that was hers. She says it can’t be and he says it can, mother. Hard to believe Rumpel was once a baby. He says she didn’t even bother to give him a name. He asks why she abandoned him. She says she’s surprised he’d even ask, and sometimes you have to choose power over love. She tells him time’s up, and he’ll just have to keep on wondering. She flies off and Belle is standing there with the baby.

She says he didn’t deserve what the fairy did, but sacrificing an innocent child isn’t the answer, no matter how much pain he’s in. He says no one knows anything about his pain and woe is him, and disappears, poof! in cloud of scarlet smoke.

Fast forward to Gold saying behind every pita there’s a fairy. He tries to go toward the house where Belle is giving birth, and is held back by fairy magic.

With Emma and the aged fairy in attendance, Belle goes into her dreamworld and meets her son on a swing set. She says his father’s coming and will use the shears. She needs to know what to do, but he says she already knows. She jumps up and says she can’t. He says there’s no other way; they’re out of time. She says she loves him more than anything, and he says he won’t ever forget it. He tells her not to forget the book. As she asks what book? she’s back in the bed pushing.

Belle has her son. She’s asked for Blue, and says she needs her help. She asks if Blue will be his fairy godmother, and take him somewhere safe and far away. She says it’s her sons only chance. She thinks it will be over someday, but until then, she wants distance between him and Storybrooke. Blue agrees and takes the baby. Belle gives Blue a book to read to him so he knows where he came from. She tells him she loves him and blah-blah- blah, stuff you would say in that position.

Gold enters, but Blue is already gone with the baby. Foiled again! He looks out the window and sees Blue soaring away. He accuses Belle of abandoning their son. She says she gave him his best chance at a good life and tells Gold that it’s over. Belle says he can do what he wants with her, but he’ll never find their son. Gold says he will, and leaves.

In the old days, A couple gets their son back from Belle as Rumpel watches. Foiled again in the past!

Gold goes into his shop and the Evil Queen asks if someone lost another son. He tells her don’t, and she says Belle really hates him now. He tells her to go, and she says she’s waited a long time to see what happens when you poison your love. He says she did it. She says she did the legwork with the tea, but he forced her hand. She says just tell Belle, no, wait, she won’t believe him. He tells her she crossed the line and he’ll make sure she pays. The Evil Queen says she’s not too concerned. He says he plays a very long game, and she’s nothing more than another pawn. She tells him good luck finding his son – again – adding that fairies make wonderful mothers.

Gold is abashed and beaten. He trashes his place, smashing everything.

Hook says Regina was able to reverse the aging spell on the fairy, and Belle is as good as expected after what happened. Emma says that’s why she keeps fighting. Belle remnded her why she doesn’t run. She wants to help her family and friends. Hook knows the vision is still getting to her. She suggest they find out what really happened to her.

They go into Gold’s shop, and Emma says someone had a temper tantrum. She sees the sword that was in her dream. When she touches it, she has a vision. She says this is the sword that will kill her. Now that they have it, they can find out who’s responsible and stop them.

Next time, be careful what you wish for, Emma disappears, and the course of fairy tale could be altered forever.

The Walking Dead

A zombie flounders on the beach and gets a stick in his head for his trouble. A child and young woman are walking on the beach. The child sees another one, but as she’s about to stab it, the woman says to wait. She says the woman isn’t “a bobber,” she’s alive.The child wants to do it anyway, but is told that they don’t have to if they don’t tell anyone. She asks if the child is going to be a snitch. The child says no, but she’s not going to help.

It’s Tara washed up on shore. The woman drags her in.

Two rusty cans of okra and a bottle of aspirin are all Tara and Heath could find on their run. Heath says it’s been two weeks. They need ammo and medicine and there are people counting on him. He talks about all the people they killed just for some milk and corn. He says you take what you can and take out who you have to and keep going, but no one is in this together anymore. Tara says it only hurts because he knows it’s bullsh*t. Heath says it’s him, her, and whoever else wants to stay alive. He tells her that after today, they go back.

The woman from the beach looks at a map. She brings water, a weapon, and something wrapped in a cloth to Tara. Tara is still unconscious, so she leaves everything next to her. When she’s gone, Tara drinks some water, watching from behind a huge tangle of driftwood. She finds dried fish in the cloth. She follows the woman while keeping her distance.

They go through a forest. Tara sees some women talking while carrying baskets into a cabin. Children are playing outside, and it looks like it was once some kind of resort. It’s now a mini-colony called Oceanside. Tara stealthily checks the place out. Looks like it’s also all women.

Something is happening. Several women go inside a shed that houses weapons and come running out with guns, and the rest flee inside. They start shooting at Tara. She runs and they chase her. One catches up but falls. Tara gets the gun, but doesn’t shoot her. She continues to run. The kid from the beach confronts Tara, saying they’re supposed to. The woman who was with her calls her name, Rachel, and stops her.

The rest surround Tara with their guns drawn. Tara says hi, she’s cool, and not here to hurt anyone. The young woman, whose name is Cindy, tells them to put their guns down, but she’s told to get away. Tara says sorry, she just stumbled in, and didn’t even realize she was in. The women continue to aim their guns at her.

In the backstory, Heath and Tara stand on top of a dumpster and survey some possible scavenging. Heath says it looks like there are a lot of blind spots, but they jump down. I would break my ankle for sure if I did that. They look around for a while and go past some tarps that are hanging across part of the road. They see a humongous dump truck that has dropped a load of sand. Tara starts pulling at something in it. Heath is digging around with his foot and finds a ton of bullets. Just as he’s about to tell her Tara, the tug she makes causes the sand to shift and come tumbling down. The sand hill is filled with zombies.

They fight them off, but the struggle is real. Heath and Tara get separated in the melee. Tara gets cornered.

Back at the seashore, a lady asks Tara if she needs to use the bathroom before they begin, but Tara indicates that she’s handcuffed to a radiator. There are several women there, and the speaker, Natanya, introduces the others as Cathy and Beatrice, and Cindy, the woman from the beach. Tara asks about the bells she heard, and Natanya explains their alarm system. She says that they were lucky the place was relatively clear to begin with. She asks Tara where she’s from. Tara tells her Atlanta originally, but she’s been traveling with a companion for a few years, and they’ve been working on fishing boats. Natanya asks a few questions and asks how she got there. Tara explains that they were attacked by zombies, she ended up falling off of a bridge and the current brought her there. She says she followed Cindy back from the beach to see if she could get help. She’s asked why she was sneaking around and Tara says she wanted to see if it was safe – and she’s still not sure. Natanya says they usually shoot strangers on sight. Tara says if they just point her in the right direction, she’s gone. I have no idea why these people aren’t satisfied with her answers. Natanya says give them a while and maybe they’ll have a brainstorm as to what to do with this anomaly.

Beatrice fetches Tara, taking her to Natanya’s house. Natanya formally introduces Cindy, who is also her granddaughter, and Tara thanks Cindy for what she did. She says she was trying to show Rachel. Natanya assumes she means how to kill zombies, but Tara knows that she was also teaching her compassion. Everyone sits to eat. Nice dishware.

Natanya says she’s hoping to convince Tara to stay. They can keep their village a secre,t and she can put down roots. She says if they can find Heath, he can stay too. Tara says forgive her, but where are all the men? Natanya says there was a skirmish with another group, and none of them made it. They lost others too. After that, they decided to protect themselves no matter what. They left with nothing except the clothes on their backs. They found this place, and could stay hidden and alive. She hopes Tara understands why they shoot first and don’t bother asking questions. Natanya tells Tara that she knows she was lying about her past, and asks her to tell the truth.

Tara tells her about Alexandria, and how they did things just like they do in Oceanside. She talks about taking out the Saviors, and how they got what they deserved. She says they didn’t do it to make the world a better place, but they did it to stay alive. Tara thinks the women shouldn’t be hiding though. She says if they keep seeing everyone as an enemy, that’s all they’ll find. If they band together, they can keep each other safe.

Natanya suggests sending a guide with Tara to find Heath, and then on to her community. Cindy wants to go, but Natanya tells her no, because she didn’t follow the rules. She says if it works out, there will be other chances, and if not, she doesn’t want her going. Tara says there will be other chances.

Tara gets ready to leave. Cindy is in the cabin sulking, and Natanya sees her off. Beatrice and Cathy go with her. A zombie is stuck in a tangle of tree branches, and Tara says she’s on it, but Beatrice shoots at her and she runs. She tumbles down a hill and stays there, holding her knife. She watches as Cathy comes by with a gun and jumps her. She does not win the battle.

Tara says she could have killed Cathy back in the village, but she didn’t, and to return the favor. Cathy says Tara’s people are all dead. She says that was just a Savior outpost where they killed the people, and Tara has no idea what they did. She says if the Saviors know about her friends, it’s already too late. Tara asks if the Saviors were the ones who killed their men. Cathy says they tried to fight, but lost, and every male over the age of ten was lined up and shot in the head. They were supposed to work for Negan, but they left in the middle of the night. She says Tara will lead the Saviors back to them. She’s about to shoot Tara, when Cindy intercepts her, and Tara takes off.

Cindy calls after her to wait. Cindy aims her gun, but Tara says she’s saved her three times, she isn’t going to shoot. Cindy wants Tara to swear she won’t tell anyone about them, even her own people. Tara asks why she would do that? Cindy asks why they killed all those people? She says they didn’t really have to, and nobody’s evil; they just decide to forget who they are. Tara says some people are evil. She’s seen it, and that’s why she has to go back. Cindy asks her to swear.

Tara says she swears. Cindy gives her a pack of food and water. She says it will take Tara to the bridge, and try not to fall off this time.

Cindy takes Tara back where she was at the dumpsters. Tara tells Cindy to just go back and say that Tara attacked her. Cindy says Cathy and Beatrice will be coming, and she has a gun and ammo. Tara asks why she’s different from the others, and Cindy asks why Tara is.

They sneak around and whack a sand zombie in the head. Cindy is grabbed by a surprise zombie from a car, and Tara nails that one. This alerts two other sand zombies to their presence, and all of a sudden, there are tons of them. More than I think could have fit in that sand pile. Cindy and Tara run along the tops of the cars. Cindy covers Tara as she runs the sand zombie gauntlet. Cindy runs out of of ammo just as Tara gets to the other side.

Tara has a flash back, remembering Heath running out of ammo. She tells him to leave her, but he won’t and she gets pushed back and falls off the bridge. Back in the present, Tara dodges sand and car zombies, one of which gets an eerie bead on her. She looks in between the dumpsters and sees Cindy being led away. She sees Heath’s glasses on the ground. And fresh tire tracks nearby. She says, maybe that was you, then sees a hotel room key with PPP on it, and adds she hopes it was.

Tara scavenges something from a boat and sees a gift shop. Wanting to purchase some sunglasses, or perhaps take a break from the zombies stumbling around outside, she goes in and checks the place out. She eats some of the dried fish that Cindy packed for her. She finds a shell bracelet in the backpack.

Holy! She did get sunglasses. Bright orange ones.

Eugene looks through his binoculars and opens the gate. Tara enters. He stands there and cries.

Rosalie says she’s sorry, and Tara says she’s sorry too. She asks if Tara has any leads. She says she doesn’t care how dangerous it is, she’ll go. She says they can make it right; they have to. Tara says they can’t, and she didn’t see anything like that up there, making good on her promise to Cindy

Next time, Negan and the Saviors (sounds like a band) return, but so does Jesus, so it’s not all bad.

 

November 20, 2016 – The Walking Dead Stands Alone, Except for a Short Visit from Atlanta

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What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

Because the American Music Awards eclipsed Once Upon a Time, and I’m just touching on the Atlanta Housewives for now, it’s mostly zombies tonight. The spellcheck at WordPress seems to have taken the evening off as well, so apologies for any typoooooz.

The Walking Dead

Dr. Carson is there when Maggie wakes up. She has some a condition placenta previa, resulting in a placenta separation that could have been caused by trauma. He says the baby seems fine, and we all listen to the heartbeat. The doctor tells her to take it easy for a few days, like she has to call in to work.

Maggie asks Sasha where “they” are and Sasha shows her two fresh graves. She gives Maggie a pocket watch that was Glenn’s. She says all Abe had was a cigar. Maggie leaves the watch on the makeshift headstone pile of rocks, instead of saving it for their child like a normal person would. Sasha tells Maggie she’s going to be okay, and they’re both staying until the baby is born.

Jesus has cleaned up well, so I guess they have showers at Hilltop. He brings some flowers to the graves. Gregory accosts Maggie about Negan. He wants her to leave, but she says the doctor told her to stay. Gregory seems seriously out of touch, and Jesus tries to explain who the two women are. Gregory tells him that Maggie said her group could keep them safe from the Saviors, but so far she’s only put them in danger. He says plausible deniability is their way out. Jesus says it will be dark soon and Gregory says they can stay for the night. Sasha says Maggie is pregnant and Gregory says that’s her mistake. Geez. Jesus tells them he’ll take them back in the morning.

Rick wants to go on a supply run since the Saviors are coming back soon. Carl asks if this is how it’s going to be now, and Rick says yes. Rick gives Michonne a radio and says if she changes her mind, they’re headed North. They kiss good-by.

Carl asks why Michonne didn’t go and she says she needs to figure some things out, like how they do this. Carl says Rick is wrong and she knows it. Michonne says even if she thinks he is, she doesn’t know for sure. She tells Carl to make sure to change his bandage and be nice to Olivia. She leaves. Presumably not to go with Rick.

Carl finds Enid climbing the wall. She’s walking to Hilltop. He says he’s not saving her any more. She says she’s sorry he had to see it, and he says he’s not. He walks away and she goes over the wall.

Jesus tells Sasha he’s glad she’s there. He says he’ll try to change Gregory’s mind, but he’s not a leader. Sasha says she’ll leave and scavage for Hilltop if they’ll keep Maggie. Jesus doesn’t want that, and she asks what he does want. He says he just tries to help where he can, and she tells him maybe he has to do more. He gives her Abraham’s necklace, saying that he liked Abe. He was the only person he knew who could say things that would make you smile and wince at the same time. Yeah, he was the only character with a sense of humor and they killed him off. Thanks, Walking Dead. 😕

Maggie comes in and Jesus says he’s sorry. He’s going to see what he can do. She asks why they burn their dead, and he tells her that the idea was to just keep going. He says he’ll see them in the morning.

Maggie asks now what? Sasha says they’ll stay. She wonders if Gregory is dangerous, but Maggie thinks it’s worse – he’s a coward.

Enid rides her bike toward Hilltop and almost gets attacked by a zombie, but a car runs it over. It’s Carl. A man true to his word. She asks why he’s there, and he says he was just going for a drive.

At Hilltop, everyone is asleep and loud music starts blasting from nowhere. Sasha sees the gates open and fires burning. She goes up to the roof. A bunch of zombies are walking through the gate. WTF?

Sasha calls to Jesus (no, not that Jesus), saying that Maggie needs help. Some of the guys come out. Jesus kicks ass. Sasha tries to get into the car that’s playing the music. It’s wrapped in chains, and the hatchback is sealed with a middle finger made out of metal. Gregory watches from a window. Sasha almost stabs Jesus by accident. He runs to close the gate, but here comes Maggie with a bulldozer. Why fool around? Squish, squash, kick, stab. Maggie rolls over the car, which hopefully isn’t a relative of Christine’s.

Carl and Enid walk down the road. Carl says he’s glad he saw what he did, so when he has a chance to kill Negan, he won’t hesitate. She says it’s how it is you do things for the ones you love, or loved. He says it’s not for love. He says he’s sorry he locked her in, and she says she didn’t need to see it. Enid says they don’t even know if Maggie is okay, and Carl says they’ll get there.

Jesus talks to Gregory, who tells him all this can be his if he sticks around and becomes a part of things. Wow. What incentive. Maggie and Sasha come in, and Gregory tells them they have to go. Jesus can’t believe he’s saying that after the save last night. Sasha says she’ll go; Maggie can stay and they’ll call it even. She asks how they can make this work, and Gregory says they could meet one on one (wink-wink). She tells him to go to hell. He cancels an order for preserves he was going to give them, like it matters, and I’m thinking forget coward, this dude is a nut.

A truck caravan is coming in. Gregory says Maggie and Sasha have to hide. He tells Jesus to put them in the closet. It’s the Saviors. Zzzzzz….. Sorry, but they’re such one-trick ponies.

Carl finds a backpack with roller skates in it. How fortuitous! He and Enid skate down the road. They hold hands. 16 Magazine readers go crazy.

Gregory opens the door and the Saviors walk in with Simon at the helm. This is so stupid. Gregory welcomes them to Hilltop and tells them to make themselves at home. Simon says it isn’t a social call; they need to talk. He wants to talk in the study and see some painting. Referring to Rick and company, Simon tells Gregory that the people he used to deal with have been removed from the field of play. Gregory acts ignorant.

Gregory tells Simon that the message was loud and clear. Now it’s Simon’s turn to act ignorant. They look at the painting. I looked this up and it’s Portrait of Charles V on Horseback by Anthony van Dyck. There doesn’t seem to be any meaning behind it though. Simon says the Saviors like to show management by example, and last night was them working their asses off to provide an example. He says people at Hilltop probably forget what the corpses look and smell like. He says they were going to come in for a save, but the Hilltoppers cleaned up the mess themselves – “good on ya.” He says since they picked up their skills from the Saviors, it was still their win. I had a boss like him once. Simon calls Gregory a team player, and says his people are spoiled. He refers to Rick’s group again, and says the Hilltoppers who associated with them are extremely dead, and the people who killed them work for Negan now and are real go-getters. Gregory says it’s a shame, but tell Negan that he understands the benefits in crossing the aisle, whatever that means. Simon says for now everything is as Negan wants, but thanks him for recognizing what they bring to the table. That’s why he’s still there while others aren’t. Simon asks if there’s anything else Gregory wants him to know. Uh-oh. Trick question.

Gregory comes out of his office with Simon. Jesus looks hard at them. It looks like Gregory is going to rat out Maggie and Sasha when he opens a locked closet, but the only thing inside is a case of Scotch. Simon says he hates Scotch – it tastes like ashtray and window cleaner – but Negan will love it. I hate it too, although I’d probably be more gracious in my description. No points for Gregory though, since Simon is going to say it’s from him. He takes the case, and tells his men to take half of whatever they have. And the painting. Simon asks Gregory if he can get a kneel out of him and I think he said “neon,” so I wonder wth? for a moment, and think he has neon signs as well as paintings. Simon tells Gregory it’s a solid kneel and remember it for next time. These guys are so boring. Where is Ezekiel when I need him?

Carl doesn’t think Negan is there, since he doesn’t see the truck. Enid tells him that she knows he wasn’t taking a drive, he was coming to get her. He asks her to come with him to kill Negan. She says it would be for them, not Abe, Glenn, or Maggie. She says asks how, but Carl says it wouldn’t matter. He kisses her forehead and then they start really kissing. Tween/teen Twitter accounts explode. Enid tells him he shouldn’t go, but she can’t stop him.

Jesus lets Maggie and Sasha out of a different closet. Gregory says he told Jesus the hallway closet, and Maggies says, yeah, so he could give them up. Jesus asks Gregory wants to let everyone know he works for the Saviors and lose his position. He says that Maggie and Sasha are staying, and they’ll be one big dysfunctional family. Gregory says he made progress today, and he’ll see them through it. He says the Saviors can be reasonable, and Maggie punches him. She takes the pocket watch from him. He tells her that he didn’t want it left out in the rain. Since he’s been calling her everything except what her actual name is, Maggie says he’s going to start calling her by her name now – Maggie Rhee.

Jesus talks to Maggie and Sasha about Gregory, saying that when he got there, Gregory was already in charge. He thinks it just happened, and it wasn’t because Gregory had any special skills. He apologizes for not talking to him sooner. Maggie leaves for the trailer. Sasha tells Jesus that if he wants to make it up to them, he can he find out where Negan lives. Jesus says that one of the trucks is going back soon, so sure. She asks him to keep it between them. He says that he doesn’t like not telling Maggie, and she says she doesn’t either.

Maggie sees Enid at the graves. Enid asks if Maggie is okay, and Maggie says she’s not. She says she won’t be either, and hugs Enid.

Enid says she heard Maggie killed some walkers and a car when she’s supposed to take it easy. Maggie says it wasn’t too hard she’s had practice. Sasha comes in surprised to see Enid. Sasha asks why balloons are on Abe’s grave, and Enid says there’s nothing marking it. Maggie tells Sashe that she was going to use the watch her father gave Glenn to mark his, but decided to give it to Enid instead. Enid asks if she doesn’t want to keep it to remember Glenn by, but Maggie says that they don’t need anyting to remember him by – they have themselves. Well, she also has a baby coming. Maggie says a prayer before they eat.

The Saviors load up the truck and the caravan leaves. Sasha sharpens her knife. Jesus sneaks into a truck and drinks some Scotch. As he’s pouring the remainder of the bottle out, he sees that Carl is in the truck with him. Hi, Carl! Tiger Beat readers go out of their minds.

Next time, Negan wants to bring civilization back to the world, and Rick says they have to do something. Biggest. Understatement. Ever.

What would Carl and Jesus do?

💋 Just brushing up against The Real Housewives of Atlanta. Kenya went with Matt to his family reunion in Cincinnati. Even though she offered to pay for his first class plane ticket, Matt insisted on driving, feeling that it would be a bonding experience. An 8-hour car ride and Kenya agreed. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.

Porsha is looking for a baby daddy, frightening all of us. First of all, because she’s going to breed, and secondly that there might be someone out there who agrees with this cockamamie idea, and that’s who she’s going to breed with. She and Phaedra are the two phoniest phonies I’ve ever seen. If they had a full brain between them, they’d be dangerous.

It looks like Sheree might get back together with Bob, although he’s moving a bit fast for both of our tastes.

Next time, Phaedra sets up a game of drunk laser tag and Mama Joyce goes nuts. Both of those events should make it worth watching.

November 18, 2016 – Valentin Obtient la Garde, Lucy is Found Then Unfound & Quotes to Ponder

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What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

General Hospital

Valentin opens his arms and Charlotte goes to him. She whispers something to him in French. He tells her the nice judge will decide if he’s taking her home.

Curtis meets Julian for breakfast. He says he’s done some more digging. Julian says Sonny confessed at the funeral, but Curtis says he almost confessed. Somebody stopped him.

Franco looks at Tom’s picture in the newspaper online at the hospital. He flashes back to choking Tom. Suddenly, the paper is gone and it’s a 404 error. He starts banging on the computer and I identify. The tech guy comes by and tells him that’s not going to help. Franco sees Sam in the hallway.

Elizabeth is about to go into Kelly’s and Tom is there. She asks if he’s following her, but he says it’s a coincidence. He’s glad he ran into her though, because they have unfinished business.

Jax makes surprise waffles for Josslyn, and I’m skeptical that they’re homemade. Josslyn tells him that she misses Morgan. She says yesterday was hard, and she wasn’t even there for the worst of it. She can’t believe what Sonny said. Jax says he did the right thing. Josslyn thinks Carly will never go back to him now.

Carly shows up at Sonny’s cell. Sonny tells Carly he wants to make it right, and wants Morgan to have peace. She says there is no peace. She brings out a jar and says there’s pieces of their son in there. She opens it. Sonny wakes up. Jason is there.

Jax tells Josslyn that he can’t answer that question. Carly comes in and sits with Josslyn to eat. Jax says he’ll try pancakes tomorrow and Carly says it sounds like he’s staying a while. Josslyn says she wants him here, and so does mom.

Elizabeth takes out her pepper spray. Tom says he’s not going to hurt her. He tells her that legally, he can’t say certain things, but if he’s ever done anything to harm her, he’s sorry. He says he’s trying to get on with his life, and she doesn’t have to send her boyfriend after him. Elizabeth says Franco told her about it and she doesn’t blame him. Tom says Franco left out the part about choking him.

Franco apologizes to Sam for what happened in Hawaii. He says it was sick, but there’s no excuse, tumor or no tumor. He apologizes for what he took away from her. He knows it’s a lot to ask, but hopes that one day she’ll forgive him. She tells him to go to hell. Well, that answers that question.

The judge asks Claudette why she calls Valentin “papa,” and Charlotte says because he is. The judge asks if she likes him, and Charlotte says she loves him.

Curtis tells Julian that he thinks Jason knows more than they do. Julian says he’ll be right back, and wants to hear about some actual investigating. Curtis moves over to sit with Diane. He wants to talk about her client.

Sonny asks what Jason has for him. Jason says the bomb had nothing to do with Sonny or hi contractor, but they have to find out who planted it. Sonny asks if it matters, since Morgan is dead. He wonders why he should keep fighting.

Carly tells Josslyn that Jax has work and a life. Jax says he has no obligations right now, and he can stay as long as they need him. Carly offers a suite at the hotel, but Josslyn wants him to stay with them.

Sam asks what Franco’s end game is, to lower their defenses so he can blindside them? He says something happened to someone he cared about, and he realizes he has to come to terms with some things .He doesn’t want to be that guy. It dawns on Sam that he’s talking about Elizabeth, and she says there is no being better person; he’s sick and cruel and he’s lying to himself.

Tom shows Elizabeth the marks on his neck. He tells her that Franco said he was going to torture Tom until he begged for death. He says he doesn’t want to go to the police or harm her, and to tell Franco that he’s no threat to her. Elizabeth says he’ll always be a threat because of what he took from her.

The judge wants to wrap it up. Valentin says his daughter loves and trusts him, and wants to be with him. Anna says he’s dangerous. Valentin says she only has allegations, and to prove it. Anna shows the judge some Interpol stuff. She says Valentin didn’t even exist prior to 2011. She thinks he intends to disappear again, with Charlotte. The judge wants to review and deliberate in private. They step outside. Griff tells Anna, nice save, but Valentin says he wouldn’t be so sure.

Diane tells Curtis that Sonny must have remembered her advice and kept silent. Curtis says that Sonny talked to Jason. Diane tells him that she has nothing to say, since he’s working for dirtbag Julian. She thanks him for picking up the tab and leaves.

Jason tells Sonny that he didn’t fail Morgan. No matter what guilt he’s feeling, it isn’t going to change anything, and throwing his life away won’t help anyone. He asks if Sonny wants Avery with Ava. Sonny says Carly will work it out. Jason asks if Sonny knows Oscar Jessup. Sonny says when he worked for Skully, Oscar was a contractor for the Jeromes. Jason tells him not to do something he can’t take back, and that it’s not too late.

Jax tells Josslyn not to put her mom on the spot, but Carly says she’s right. They have plenty of room. Josslyn wants to finish her homework so her weekend is free. When she’s gone, Carly asks Jax how he thinks she’s doing. He says she’s hurting a lot. Carly is worried she’s not there for Josslyn, and Jax says that Josslyn gets her strength from Carly.

Griff says Claudette meant something to him and he owes it to her to fight for Charlotte. Valentin says Claudette only has a passing relationship with the truth, and doesn’t love him. Griff asks what Valentin did to her and punches him. Well, that was a bad move.

The judge comes out, asking if she needs to call security, or are the three of them capable of sitting down while she renders her decision? She says she understands it’s a heated situation, but she can’t condone any violence. She tells them what just happened has no bearing on her decision, but it’s clear that Charlotte has bonded with her father, is secure in his presence, and loves him. Anna has serious allegations, but no corroborating evidence, and his lack of history has no bearing on his fitness as a parent. She awards custody to Valentin.

Carly tells Jax it’s great having him there, for Josslyn and for her. He knows what she needs. He tells her that the waffles are a one time thing. He’s making a green smoothie tomorrow and he won’t let her put it in the planter. She laughs and says it’s been a while since she found anything funny. She says Morgan wouldn’t like her like this, but his life is over. Jax says he wouldn’t want hers to be. She wonders how to move through this. Jax puts his arm round her and says maybe they can try together. Josslyn sees them and smiles.

Jason meets Sam. She tells him about Franco. She thinks he’s trying to get into her head. He apologized for what happened in Hawaii and says he truly regrets it. Jason asks how Sam feels. She says it’s not up to her to make him feel better, and thinks he’s a coward. She wonders what Elizabeth is thinking.

Franco asks Elizabeth where the donuts are, and she says she forgot them. She asks if he tried to choke Tom. He says he told her he went to see him, but Elizabeth says he never told her that he tried to choke him. Franco says he never said he didn’t. She says it was lying by omission. Franco says it wasn’t an end-his-life choke, just a send-a-strong- message choke. She wonders if they can make this work. He says he’s not sorry for anything he’s done. Tom is garbage and scares her, and her being scared upsets him. He asks who told her, and she says Tom did.

Griff says the judge can’t give Charlotte to Valentin, but she says there’s no legal reason not to. She talks about equal protections of law, and that you don’t get to violate someone’s rights because of your opinion of them. Should Claudette resurface, that will be a separate matter. Her decision is final. Griff looks sick, and Valentin smiles.

The judge thanks Charlotte for her help and says she’s made her job easy today. She tells Valentin to stay in New York for the time being, and he says he’s staying in Port Charles indefinitely. The judge lets Griff say good by. Griff tells Charlotte that he knows he’s not her dad, but she’s in his heart just the same, and he’ll always be there for her.

Franco is like, what? Elizabeth says she saw Tom at Kelly’s. She says it’s disgusting he’s out of prison, but he’s legally paroled. He has every right to have Franco arrested, but she doesn’t want Franco taken away from her. She wants him to swear he’ll let it go.

Josslyn is doing a report on Pride and Prejudice. She asks Jax and Carly for some input. She talks about Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, and how they realized they belonged together. She hints that the story relates to Carly and Jax, and asks if she got her point across.

Diane tells Sonny he’s reviewed the confession and has a strong case for reasonable doubt. She says why bother though, since he’s determined to plead guilty, but he says not any more.

Jason tells Sam about talking to Sonny. She says she talked to Spinelli about Jessup’s phone number. In perfect soap timing, her phone rings and it’s Spinelli.

Curtis tells Julian that something about the bomb doesn’t add up. Julian tells him go on a wild goose chase on his own time. Since Sonny confessed, Curtis doesn’t need to follow up anymore. He’s fired.

Anna tells Valentin she’ll uncover the truth about him. He tells her to open her eyes in Latin and leaves with Charlotte.

Elizabeth tells Franco that Tom has done enough damage; they can’t let his release from prison consume them. She goes back to work, and Franco thinks about what Sam said to him. The computer tech comes by, and Franco asks if he can break into the cloud and hypothetically track someone’s GPS.

After she goes back upstairs, Jax and Carly talk about Josslyn wanting to pair them up again. Jax says she probably thinks it would get Carly away from Sonny. Carly says other people see Jax and Sonny as opposites, but she looks at them at individuals. She says she and Jax’s time with each other was herhappiest, and she should have worked harder at the relationship. They kiss.

Diane asks if Sonny has decided to take her advice, and he says yes. She wonders what brought about his change of heart. He tells her that they both want the same thing – justice.

Sam hangs up with Spinelli. She says Oscar has been dead since 1990.

Curtis tells Julian that he’s done good work. Julian can’t argue with that, but says he wanted Sonny in prison and that’s where he’s going. He gives Curtis a check. Curtis leaves, and Julian’s phone rings. Julian says he got rid of him like he was asked, and he’s done everything Jessup has wanted.

On Monday, Curtis asks Hayden what’s going on, Jason is afraid they’re too late, and Jax is hesitant, but Carly isn’t.

Z Nation

Doc and Addie run as some Lucy’s adoptive father shoots at them. Her adoptive mother, who also has a gun, them. She says she won’t hesitate to shoot them, and that Lucy needs new friends. They’re taken inside.

Murphy says he needs an assistant for all the paperwork. 10K is brought in to see him. He tells 10K  that he’s not like the others; they’ve all embraced him. When he doesn’t have a booster shot, he’s a pita, but when he has one, he’s uncommunicative. He reacts, but doesn’t act. They’re preparing to go to war, and 10K should be leading. Murphy says they need to fix his problem. He thinks it might be 10K’s name. It’s also his mission and purpose, and as long as he’s 10K, he’s of no use. He needs a new purpose. The world has moved past zombie killing and he needs a new mission. He renames 10K “Thomas,” and says first, he needs to know if he can trust him.

Addie and Doc are tied to chairs. “Pa” says they aren’t playing games. Doc says they’re not there to cause trouble. “Ma” asks who they are and where they’re from. Addie makes the introductions, and says they came from upstate. Doc says they were traveling with Murphy. Addie tells them that Murphy sent them to get his daughter. Doc adds that he helped deliver her. Addie explains that Murphy asked them to take him to California. Pa says that must be at least 100 miles and she tells him it’s more like a few thousand. And I thought I was geographically challenged.

Pa asks if Addie is a princess. Doc says it’s really Lucy talking, and Addie asks if he’s having a stroke. Addie remarks on how big Lucy is. Ma says the zombies love her; they keep her safe and even help with the chores. Addie asks Lucy if she’d like to go on a trip, and Lucy says she’d like to see her daddy. Pa says they have to see if they’re telling the truth, but Doc says how would they know all this? Pa says just give them the password. Ma says Murphy gave them a password in case he had to send someone one day.

Addie tells Doc to tell them the password. He looks at Lucy and says “Smurf ,” and waits to be shot. The couple puts their guns down. Pa brings out a humongous knife and says he’s cutting them loose. He amends that to it’s the wrong password and Doc is going to meet his maker. Doc says Murphy must have given them the wrong password and asks for a do-over. Addie tells Lucy they can’t take her to see her daddy if Pa kills Doc. Lucy says she wants to play with them, but Pa says they mean her harm. She says no, play. Ma tells her whatever she says, and they’re cut loose. Ma says they’re not out of the frying pan yet.

Lucy takes them to meet her friends. A bunch of zombies hanging out in the backyard, dressed as princesses, pirates, and fairy tale characters.

Lucy tells Addie and Doc not to be afraid; these are her friends. Addie thinks Lucy’s friends aren’t going to like them. Doc explains they’re not like her; the zombies think they’re food. Lucy gives them “tea,” and then wants to play hide and seek. Doc is “it,” and the zombies and Addie are supposed to hide.

Murphy asks 10K if he knows the knife game and 10K nods. He does that between the fingers thing with the knife. Murphy says they have a history. He needs to know it won’t interfere with things and what 10K is willing to do for him. 10K’s knife goes faster. Murphy says he needs to know if he’ll kill for him and die for him. 10k now Thomas moves the knife even faster.

Doc finishes counting. He hears Lucy giggle. He’s not about to find any of the zombies, so he starts looking for her. Ma is behind the house with a gun and he tags her. She seems annoyed. Doc follows the sound of Lucy laughing. And finds a zombie dressed like Raggedy Ann.

Murphy concentrates on 10K with leopard iris eyes. 10K stabs himself and stops with the knife. Murphy says good thing it wasn’t his trigger finger, and wraps the wound. He says let’s talk about the new mission.

The zombie tries to attack Doc. He calls for Lucy. He grabs a rock and hits the zombie in the head with it. Addie runs to him, asking if he’s okay. Lucy comes out asking them to do it again. She wants Raggedy Ann to get up, but that’s not happening. Addie says Doc had to stop her or she would have bit him. She’s dead. Lucy says Doc broke her and she hates him; he ruined everything. She runs off, and Addie follows. Pa goes too, and the zombies surround Doc, but Ma is still there with a gun.

Addie and Pa run after Lucy through the woods. Ma takes Doc inside. Seriously, what was he supposed to do? Ma says they’ll have to round the zombies up now, since Lucy hates it when they run off. Then they’ll probably shoot him. She asks if he’d like tea.

Lucy checks out some flowers. A zombie comes out of the woods, and she tells it to take her home, but the zombie is threatening. Lucy says bad zombie, but the zombie says she’s no zombie, and to come here. Lucy screams.

Lucy comes to the edge of a cliff and tells the woman to stop. Addie comes up from behind and knocks the woman down. She tells Lucy it’s not a zombie, she just looks like one, and to run. Addie fights the woman and grabs a huge stick, chasing her off. Lucy says Addie saved her and runs to her.

Murphy gives 10K instructions and asks if he understands. 10K nods. He says he has a surprise for him, and shows him a syringe. He says it’s what 10K wants, to be himself again and be human. 10K hesitates. Murphy concentrates, and 10K puts the syringe down. Murphy says good, and to remember what they talked about. 10K leaves.

Lucy jumps up and down, happy she’s going to meet her dad. Doc says he brought her into the world and won’t let anything happen to her. She asks about her mommy. Addie says her name was Serena and she loved Lucy very much. Doc tells the story of Murphy and Serena meeting, and we flash back. He says they fell in love over a blueberry pie. He says they were king and queen of the apocalypse. Lucy asks if they lived in a castle. Doc says yes, and we flash back to things that didn’t happen. Lucy asks how babies are made. Doc says it’s like baking a pie. They loved each other so much, they ate the whole pie she baked. Lucy asks if that’s why she’s blue, and Doc says yes. He says by the time they finished the pie, her mom had a bun in the oven of her own. We see Serena giving Murphy a list of baby needs while he sips a martini.

Doc says they were separated by fate and we see them leaving Serena in the dust. Doc says Murphy looked for her, and we flash back to when they met up again. Doc says that Lucy was ready to come out and meet the world, and he was there to help. We see the delivery, and he says she made quite an entrance. He talks about Murphy loving her immediately. Lucy asks if her mommy loved her. Doc says she loved her so much, she had to fight off zombies who wanted to hurt her. Lucy says zombies are her friends, and Doc says not all of them. We flash back to how Serena met her end. Doc says Serena is a warrior princess, and fought them off and saved her, but afterward, she had to rest, and went to a faraway land. By the time he’s done, Lucy is asleep in Addie’s lap.

Zombies gather outside. Along with a hooded figure that has Freddy Kruegerish knives.

Doc and Addie buckle Lucy into the car. Addie asks where Ma and Pa are. Doc goes back to see what’s keeping them, but the house looks empty. He goes out back and sees them sitting in chairs. He approaches them saying this is best for Lucy. They’ve been tied up. He undoes the bonds, and Ma says it’s his fault. Pa says he lied to them, and the couple chases Doc. He locks the back door and runs out the front. It’s a little tense when he can’t get the front door open, but he breaks the lock.

Doc calls to Addie. Ma says if he hurts her, every zombie in the apocalypse will be after him. Doc says he doesn’t know what they’re talking about. He finds Addie on the ground next to the car. The Man drives off with Lucy. Doc calls to Lucy, saying they’ll find her, and tends to Addie. Ma and Pa come running out.

They come after Doc. He tells Addie to play dead and runs. He lights a flare, and sticks Pa in the back of the head with it. I’m not so sure you could get through a skull with a flare, but okay. Ma knocks Doc down. She tries to bite him, and he says it wasn’t him. Addie comes from behind, and smashes her in the head with a garden gnome.

Lucy asks The Man a million questions, including are we there yet? She says he’s not a good bully, and asks why his head is shiny. He tazes her, and she says do it again. He does it again, and she laughs and says again. He tells her to shut up. She wants her Aunt addie. The Man tells her that Addie is dead and Lucy screams. Murphy hears her.

Doc stitches up Addie’s head wound. Addie says they have to go after her. She says they have to get help. They passed a radio tower and one of them has to contact Citizen Z or Roberta. Doc suggests that she take the motorcycle and follow Lucy; he’ll go to the tower.

Murphy feels hot and it’s getting hard to breathe. He goes out for air, loosening his collar. Somewhere Lucy is fussing with some ropes. She has a hood over her head and is gasping. The Man stops the car. He takes Lucy’s hood off. He asks what happened to her, I assume he’s noticing her color for the first time, and she says wait until she tells her daddy.

Murpy stares into the distance, presumably connecting with Lucy.

Addie rides down the highway with determination.

Outside Murphytown, 10K looks at his dog tags that say Thomas. He consults a paper. We don’t see it, but there’s not much written on it. What there is, is written in large print in felt marker. I can make out the words “end” and “kill.”

Next time, Doc makes a broadcast and becomes a guru.

Quotes of the Week

What’s the answer to a perfect square? – You. — Greg Ottot (Diedrich Bader) and Taylor Otto (Meg Donnelly) respectively, on American Housewife

The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: It connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity. From the day of the Declaration, the American people were bound by the laws of God.John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, 1821

Don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining.Judge Judy

November 13, 2016 – The World Behind the Mirror is Revealed, the NJ Reunion Drags On & Negan Shakes Down Alexandria

Standard

What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

Once Upon a Time

Snow talks to David while he sleeps. She says maybe this is their normal now. Regina blames herself. She says she’s the only one who can hurt the queen, but Emma doesn’t want her to engage. Emma says her own sentence is already death, and Henry needs one of them to be there.

Snow is about to kiss David, and makes a face like she smells something weird. She looks at the mirror and then throws something at it. The Evil Queen is watching them.

A split screen shows us how Snow and David are living now. They leave notes for each other and videos on the phone. He leaves her flowers all the time. I’m thinking this is a great way to avoid any marital conflict, and wondering how I can arrange this for myself.

Emma visits Regina and asks if she has anything. She says she got an idea when Snow broke the mirror. They might not be able to hurt the queen, but they can imprison her in the world behind the mirror. Henry volunteers to be bait.

Henry meets the Evil Queen on the beach. She tells him that she knows he’s upset about his parents, but someday he’ll understand that you have to make hard choices. She talks about when they used to come there and feed the seagulls. She says he was afraid of them, and he tells her that he’s not afraid of anything now, especially her. He disappears, poof! in a puff of purple smoke. Regina and Emma show up with a mirror, but the Evil Queen tells them that it’s the wrong one because she switched them. She flips the tables (or mirror, as it were) on them, and they end up in the world behind the mirror. The Evil Queen says she hopes they enjoy where they’re going, because it’s where they’re spending the rest of their lives.

Emma wakes up and sees Storybrooke in a mirror. She’s in a room with mirrors everywhere, and calls out for Regina. The camera pans out and it’s a stone room within a forest of mirrors. Emma sees Granny in one of them, and tries to get her attention. Regina appears and tells her they’re all one-way mirrors. They have no way to communicate. She says it was the perfect prison for the Evil Queen since she has no friends anyway. Emma says people might not be able to break out, but maybe someone can break in. They think Henry is their answer.

The Evil Queen as Regina tells Henry that it worked and she’s finally free. Hook asks about Emma, and the queen tells him that Emma is driving to NYC to find the Dragon. She directs Hook to a fake voicemail. Snow says they finally got rid of the monster, but the queen says maybe not so much of a monster. She says they have someone else to worry about – Henry has to get ready for a dance. She says she’ll make sure everything works out for him.

Belle tells Zelena that Gold has closed his shop. She says he’s after her baby and she needs Zelena to help stop him; they’re both mothers and know what it’s like to care about someone who lets them down. Belle says she’s seen Zelena make portals before. Zelena says Gold has the wand she needs under lock and key, but Belle says she knows who can get it.

They meet with Jasmine and Aladdin, who claims to be the best thief anywhere. Jasmine doesn’t want him to get involved, but Zelena says it’s their fault that Gold is in possession of the shears in the first place. Belle says if Aladdin is any kind of a hero, he’ll help her escape the beast.

The Evil Queen visits Gold. She tries to come on to him, but he’s like, not today, he’s working. She says she needs the Hammer of Festus, which makes me think of Festivus for the rest of us. He says the hammer’s magic is only useful to someone who doesn’t have any. She says she wants it for Henry. Gold says villains don’t get happy endings, but the queen says she’s looking for a beginning. He asks what she has to offer him in return. She says now they’re on the same team, aren’t they? He tells her to remember her mother’s lesson – love is weakness. She says it can be, but it can also be a weapon, and she’s going to use it on her son.

Hook keeps leaving messages for Emma. He says he knows phones work in NYC and something doesn’t feel right. He sees the glass from the mirror on the beach. The Evil Queen appears and he asks what she’s done with Emma and Regina, but she says she’s not answering his question and blows him back with some magic.

Emma and Regina are getting nowhere, and Regina says they have to zero in on something. Emma suggests Granny’s, where Henry is meeting Violet before the dance. They see Henry adjust his tie, and they bang on the mirror. The Evil Queen as Regina calls to him. Emma says he has no idea they’re even gone. Henry tells the queen that he doesn’t think he’s good enough for Violet. The queen says Violet is a nice girl, but still a commoner and she’s lucky to have him. She says they might go back to her castle one day, and he’ll be king. Henry says he thinks he should finish high school first, but she says it’s not always about actually sitting on a throne, it’s about how you carry yourself. She tells him girls notice these things and to go off and be kingly. He leaves and the Evil Queen looks into the mirror and smiles.

Henry meets Violet. She asks if the homecoming dance is like a ball. He tells her something more important is happening, and to keep looking at him. He says that the woman behind him isn’t Regina, it’s the Evil Queen. He tells Violet to think of a reason to leave. She says she isn’t crazy about her dress, and wants to show him another one in the shop window. He tells her she’s a great liar. She says thanks, and they leave.

Emma and Regina are upset about Henry. Suddenly, Emma thinks someone else is with them. Regina says she doesn’t think so, but the Dragon comes out. He was imprisoned by the Evil Queen. He says everything is off balance, the dark and the light, a lesson sometimes learned at great cost. Emma says they’re worried abbot their son, and he says he once lost a daughter and paid the price.

Aladdin sneaks around Gold’s shop. Gold is doing some spinning (on a spinning wheel, not a bike). He hears something, but it’s just a windup toy. Aladdin finds the wand.

The Dragon takes Emma and Regina to another room in the mirror forest. Emma says she was looking for him. He says unfortunately, breaking their curse is beyond his ability. He tells them that Sidney was working on a way out, and points to a broken mirror. He thinks together they can mend it. Regina fixes one of the cracks by touching it and starts messing with the glass pieces.

Henry talks to a mirror. He says if his moms are in there, say something. The Evil Queen overhears and says it’s not like leaving a voicemail. She tells him that a gentleman never ditches his date. He says that Violet is somewhere safe, and he realized his mom wasn’t his mom. She brings up how she once helped him be brave, and says he could be great, but not if he’s a wimp. He says she can’t Darth Vader him and he’ll never join her. She says she’s not really evil, despite the name. She’s not a hero either, but a leader, and they do what’s necessary. She brings out a heart.

The Dragon tells them Henry is safe. Emma and Regina realize it’s the Evil Queen speaking through him. She’s also in the mirror and tells them that she has the Dragon’s heart. The Dragon doubles over. He says he doesn’t want to do this, and red smokes envelops him. When the smoke clears, he’s turned into a huge dragon.

The Evil Queen says to kill them, and the dragon Dragon goes crazy, flying all around and breathing fire. The queen gives Henry the hammer and says he can save them by smashing the Dragon’s heart. Henry says the Dragon is innocent, and it won’t make him hers. She says he’ll understand more of who she is though. He says if Regina dies so does she, and she says that’s how certain she is he’ll do it.

Emma and Regina hide behind some pillars. They discuss being mothers. Emma says neither one of them are sacrificing themselves, and Regina says they’ll do this together. She comes out and distracts the dragon. Henry says if the Evil Queen is his mom, not to make him do this. She says her own mother proved that sometimes all you need is a little push. The dragon comes after Emma and Regina. They cry out for help, but Henry smashes the mirror instead of the heart.

Good choice. The dragon breathes fire on the mirror, and Emma and Regina pop through. The Evil Queen says they made Henry soft, and accuses him of hiding behind them. He says he’s not hiding, and strong families make you stronger than you would be by yourself, but she’ll never understand because she’ll always be alone.

Hook grabs the queen from behind with his hook and tells Her Majesty to shove off. The Evil Queen tells Henry that she only wants what’s best for him, and disappears, poof! in a cloud of purple smoke.

Jasmine tells Aladdin she’s proud of him. Why do they both have British accents? Is Agribah lost in the UK? She says she was so focused on finding Agribah, she almost stopped him from helping Belle. Along with stealing the wand, he lifted a genie lamp, and gives it to her. She says the genie is gone, but he says he’s free now, but whoever’s inside might be able to help them find Agribah

Belle brings the wand to Zelena. Gold pops in right behind her. He says he can’t let Belle take their child away. He puts a spell on her and says no matter where she goes, he’ll find her. She calls him a beast, but he says it’s love. She says next time, she’ll run so far and so fast, he’ll never set eyes on his child. He says Rumpelstiltskin takes children, and she says tell your first son that.

Gold falls to the floor. Zelena says his heart only beats because of her, and if he hurts her, he hurts himself. He struggles up and says they’re far from done. He disappears, poof! in a cloud of purple smoke. I guess a lot of the smoke budget was blown on the dragon Dragon, so they couldn’t afford another color.

Snow writes to David. She says she can’t do this anymore and she misses him. They switch places. David takes the crumpled paper from her hand and says he misses her too.

Violet goes to Granny’s. Henry apologizes for them missing the dance. She says they had their first date there, and it’s better than the dance. Henry says she’s seemed distant, but she says it’s not him; she’s having a hard time adjusting to school. She feels out of place like the kids in the John Hughes movie, and doesn’t know if shes a jock or a nerd. He says he should have started with Sixteen Candles, and tells her that she doesn’t need a label; she’s Violet. He asks her to dance

Emma tells Regina that Henry is going to be okay with or without her. Regina says the queen was wrong about him. She was so worried about how they’re going to raise him, she didn’t realize that they already had.

Gold looks at the sonogram picture. The Evil Queen tells him that children rebel; it’s their job, but it’s the parents job to make them strong. Gold asks how far she’s willing to go, and she says she’ll do anything. He suggests they might both get their happy ending and kisses her. She says they are on the same page this time, and he says for now. But there’s one more thing to take care of. He tells her that Zelena has become a bit of a problem, and he wants her dead.

Next time – in 2 weeks – Gold becomes a beast who goes too far, and Belle might lose her baby.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey – The Reunion Part Two

Teresa claims she had a gut feeling that Jacqueline set her up. Andy takes a break. Jacqueline says no wonder Teresa is so angry with her. In the dressing room, Chris tells Jacqueline that Teresa is crazy.

Chris and Joe #2 join the group. Andy says that was quite an accusation. Teresa says she doesn’t feel Jacqueline was responsible, but she dabbled in it. She went to “certain people” getting information, and started the ball rolling. Andy asks Siggy and Dolores what they think. Siggy says she’s been friends with Jacqueline for 2½ years, and Dolores says she doesn’t think that’s something Jacqueline would do. Chris says they have a mutual friend who called him about a possible Federal investigation, then Chris called another friend who had some ideas on how to circumvent things. He approached Joe #1 who told them to f-off, so he washed his hands of it. He asks when Teresa is going to take responsibility.

Jacqueline drags Melissa into it, saying that Melissa was giving her information. Melissa says she thought of her as a girlfriend who she told things to in confidence. She warns the others that Jacqueline will spill their secrets. Jacqueline tries to get Chris involved and Melissa points out that she doesn’t need to drag Joe #2 into her business. Chris says blah-blah-blah about how they used to be friends. He claims Jacqueline tried to get everyone to be friends when Teresa was on the outs with Melissa, but he told her one day she’d be the one on the outside.

Joe #2 thinks this is petty stuff, and that his family destroyed him. He says he was a mess for a while. and we flash back to some choice moments like the christening party. Chris talks about how he met Jacqueline, and somehow the subject of Jacqueline being a stripper pops up again, but doesn’t linger. Chris insists that Jacqueline never meant any ill will toward anybody.

Andy lightens the mood by saying sometimes he thinks he needs a Jersey translator, and shows some clips of “Jerseyisms,” which are more like Teresaisms. Like when Teresa confused an enema with edamame. Dolores confuses things further by telling her that it’s really a colonic. Teresa blames everything on having had braces on the back of her teeth. Jacqueline admits to it being an endearing quality.

Andy talks about Italian families and how it’s sometimes like being at war. He touches briefly on the rift between Teresa and her brother, but moves quickly on to Teresa coming home and how even prison didn’t bring her down. We see clips of the family, and of Joe leaving. Andy says he was surprised to hear that Teresa might have to sell the house. She says she thought it might be good to downsize, but the kids don’t want to leave, so she’s working hard to keep them there. Andy asks what she learned in prison. She talks about the wonderful women she met there, how they’re not bad people, and actually uses the word prison. She says it really wasn’t exactly a camp, and a lot of it was disgusting. She says she took responsibility, but she really just signed a paper. Andy asks if she blames Joe #1, but she says he took full responsibility, telling the court she had nothing to do with it, but since she’s a celebrity, it went the way it did. We see all the paparazzi screeching at her. Melissa says if Joe #1 could have done her time, he would have. I honestly believe that is the way it went. I think she had no clue what she was signing – why would she have read it, since she trusted her husband? And I think she was made an example of because she’s a reality star.

A viewer remarks that Teresa doesn’t seem to have remorse, and she’s like, what more do you want? They talk about Joe #1 now being inside, and how he almost has a six-pack now. Andy asks about Teresa’s insistence that Joe never cheated, and she says show her proof. They talk about Teresa’s going away party when she left the clink, and how Gia has a boyfriend now. Andy suggests she date Dolores’s Frankie, and Teresa says you never know.

Andy asks if Teresa thinks Joe will keep it together, and she says he is already. He asks about the possibility of Joe being deported. She says because it’s a legal matter, she can’t really discuss it and they’ll see what happens. He asks her why it’s something she doesn’t want to discuss, and she says there’s no need to give it life. Amen to that. Of course she doesn’t want to discuss it. Geez. That’s possibly the stupidest question Andy has ever asked anyone.

Chris is back, although I hadn’t realized he left. Andy asks why Teresa doesn’t want to deal with her cousins. Teresa says they’re toxic; they never called or wrote once, and Rosie really hadn’t been there for Joe. Jacqueline says that Teresa wouldn’t even sit on the same couch with them, and Teresa basically tells her to mind her own business. Siggy says Jacqueline just wanted to bring the family together, and Teresa says she doesn’t see it that way. Siggy says Teresa had different priorities than dealing with her cousins.

A viewer asks about Melissa and Kathy, but Melissa says they just drifted apart. Jacqueline tries to voice an opinion, but Melissa shuts it down, saying Jacqueline knows it’s true.

Next up, the nightmare in Vermont. We flash back to all that, and I want to smack Jacqueline’s stupid face all over again. Andy asks why Melissa invited Robyn and Kristina, and she says they were friends. Teresa talks about Jacqueline antagonizing Robyn, but Jacqueline says she was calling Robyn’s bluff. Chris says Jacqueline thought it was going to be a time of genuinely mending fences and was disappointed. Which I guess gave her leeway to scream at whoever she wanted to. Dolores thinks Melissa should have come to Jacqueline’s rescue, and Melissa says after Jacqueline barked at her like she was one of her kids, she didn’t answer Jacqueline fast enough. Andy asks Melissa if she had four nose jobs. Melissa barely starts to talk and Jacqueline jumps in with her two cents. Melissa says it’s her secret to tell, and wants to know why it’s Jacqueline’s business.

Jacqueline says blah-blah-blah, and claims Teresa went to jail for lying. Melissa calls Jacquleine a sh*tty friend. Teresa says she has a clown’s face, and that she’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing with rabies. She calls Jacqueline disgusting, and Jacqueline acts like she doesn’t care, but Teresa says she does and that’s why she keeps coming back.

Andy asks Joe #2 why Jacqueline and Melissa had problems after Teresa came back. Joe says Jacqueline got weird, and Melissa says she acted paranoid and never believed that Teresa could change. Jacqueline questions whether or not Melissa and Teresa are really friends. Melissa says when Jacqueline lies, she turns the sound off. Chris claims that Teresa messed up their relationship with Joe #2 and Melissa. Melissa says there was a time they were friends, but Jacqueline ‘s mind messed with her and she started to question things. Then she called a magazine with stories about them, and that ended it.

We flash back on more of Jacqueline’s idiocy. Andy brings up the lunch that went south. He asks Jacqueline why she even went. Jacqueline says her intention was to talk to everyone one on one. Andy says that seems rational and logical, but that wasn’t how it came off. Jacqueline claims that Teresa and Melissa came in with an attitude. Dolores insists they were still angry about Vermont, but then stands corrected after they tell her that wasn’t the case and we see a clip.

Andy asks if Jacqueline’s approach had been different, would Teresa have accepted it. Teresa says she would have. Andy asks what about Melissa, and the lovely Jacqueline squeaks that he was going to talk to her. Melissa points out that Jacqueline was never a friend in the first place. Chris claims that Jacqueline feels too deeply for people, and when she’s hurt, she goes to extremes. Okay.

Andy asks Siggy and Dolores what it would take to heal the friendship. Dolores suggests a lobotomy and Siggy says you have to put gas in a relationship to keep it moving forward and this tank is out. We flash back to some better times. In an old interview, Chris says they have a strong bond, whether they admit it or not. Jacqueline says it’s hard, and Teresa says no matter what, she’ll always have a special place in her heart for Nicholas. Jacqueline says they’ve both said and done things that are terrible, but Teresa says she’s never done anything to intentionally hurt Jacqueline. They had great times, but something went sour. Dolores says once someone apologizes, you can’t go back and say you don’t trust them. I dunno about that.

Andy brings up Jacqueline being hit hard when Joe #1 went away. She says just because she’s angry doesn’t mean she doesn’t have compassion. She starts crying. Andy asks if Teresa felt warm toward Jacqueline when she saw that, and Teresa says she did at the time. Dolores insists that neither one of them would turn the other away if there was an acutal need.

Andy talks about them leaning on one another. He asks Jacqueline if she was surprised that everyone was so supportive about Nicholas, and they all start crying. Teresa and Melissa hold hands. Melissa says even as angry as she is, she doesn’t like to see anyone hurt. Siggy says they’re all the best moms ever. Everyone agrees. Siggy says she loves them all, but she’s never going to Vermont again. She asks if everyone would do a group hug for her. Andy wants to see one too. Jacqueline says everyone doesn’t have to be friends, and Teresa begs her not to talk to people who want to hurt her. Dolores thinks they should stop talking before it goes bad, and Andy says let’s move forward.

They all hug, including Andy.

Best quote of the reunion: If you need to remove the knives, then there should not be a lunch. —- Dolores

The Walking Dead

Michonne stares at Rick while he sleeps, but it’s not exactly a loving look. She gets out of bed and gets her sword. And kills Rick. Just kidding. She messes around in the fireplace and brings out a gun. She quietly puts it into her duffel bag and leaves. Rick sees her and who knows what he thinks.

Michonne walks across a field to an abandoned truck, and gets on top of it. She surveys the land and waits.

Rick tends to Judith. Eugene crunches numbers or whatever he does. Rosita asks him to open the gate. Spencer asks if Eugene wants to come, but he says no. Rosita says no surprise. Eugene says he’s getting a music player back together and doing his part.

The Whistling Man Negan pounds on the gate, telling the little pigs to let him in. Is he going to huff and puff? A guy opens the inner gate and asks who he is. Negan is like, are you joking? and then Rick joins them. He tells Rick don’t make him have to ask. Rick says they were told a week and he’s early. Rick opens the gate and Negan says he missed him.

Negan kills a zombie with Lucille and says “easy peasy lemon squeezie.” We already know he’s one of those funny guy villains. He’s brought Daryl along with him, and says he just took care of a dead prick that could have killed them all, instead of bashing someone’s head in. He hands Lucille to Rick and strolls into Alexandria.

Negan says things like hot diggity dog, and that Alexandria is an embarrassment of riches. He tells Rick that they’ll have plenty to offer up. Rick tries to talk to Daryl, but Negan tells him no, and the same goes for everyone. Negan is so ridiculously satisfied with himself, he’s almost not scary. He tells Rick they’ll decide what they take and his workers move out into the town. Negan says they’re going to search the houses a bit and keep the process moving. He asks if Rick is going to show him around.

Rosita starts to go back to the car. Dwight asks where she’s going, and then says he doesn’t care. He takes the weapons from the car. He tells Rosita he has a job for her. Get Daryl’s bike. She says it’s not there and he says she knows where it is. She starts to leave and he takes her cap, telling her she can go now. She and Spencer get back in the car. Dwight dumps out her water and says don’t take too long.

Michonne is still at her post on the truck. She aims her gun at a zombie. She shoots and misses. She shoots again and misses. She practically unloads the gun. Either she’s a really bad shot or the site is off. She splits the zombie’s head open with her sword. I’m sure that’s more satisfying anyway. She walks through the woods and sees a dead deer. I’d eat the whole thing right there before I’d bring it back for Negan to steal.

Some of Negan’s people bring out a ratty chair. Negan is pleased, and says they’re reasonable people once you get to know them. Daryl follows him around silently. One of the guy’s wants to show Negan something. It’s Rick in the old video that Deanna took. He looks all Jeremiah Johnson, and Negan says he wouldn’t have wanted to mess with that guy, but it’s not Rick anymore. He asks what happened to the sick girl, referring to Maggie, and asks if she was married to number two. He tells Rick to be careful with how he looks at him, and goes on about good looking widows. He says he’d love to see her. Father Gabriel asks if he wants to pay his respects, and Negan says he’s freaky as sh*t, sneaking up on him like that. Negan assumes Maggie didn’t make it. He says it didn’t need to happen, but Daryl forced his hand. He was going to ask her to come back with him.

While Negan is prattling on, there’s a shot from somewhere. It’s Carl telling the guys to put stuff back. Rick tells him to put the gun down. Carl says they’re taking all the medicine. He tells Negan that he should go before he finds out how dangerous they really are. Negan asks if Carl just threatened him. Rick says to put the gun down, but Negan tells him they’re having a conversation. Negan tells Carl he likes him and doesn’t want to go hard proving a point. He says half and half is what it is. He asks if Carl wants him to prove how serious he is…again. Carl gives Rick the gun and Rick gives it to Negan.

Negan is reminded how many guns they have. He says this emotional outburst has made it clear he can’t allow that, and they’re all his now. He asks Rick where his guns are.

Negan shakes down Olivia at the armory. She says she keeps track of everything like the rations and the guns. Negan says they have slim pickin’s as far as food goes, and they’re no good to him if they starve, so for now they can keep their food. He says is a thank you too much to ask? but Rick says nothing. Negan says he knows they started off on the wrong foot, but Rick forced his hand. He says he’s reasonable if people cooperate, and asks if Rick is cooperating. He wants to know if there are any guns waiting for their moment. Rick says the guns are all in the armory to the best of his knowledge, and Negan says he’s counting on that.

Rosita and Spencer go out to the forest. Spencer looks under a pile of branches and says it’s still there. It’s Daryl’s bike. He says he knows it sucks, but this is their life now, this is where Rick got them. He says maybe if Rick had thought it through, it would be different. People might still be with them. I’m not a huge Rick fan, but he’s being just a little harsh. Rosita trots into the woods.

Negan tells Rick he thinks their attangement is going to work just fine. He wonders if Rick has been taking care of his guns. He aims one at Daryl, who doesn’t react, but shoots out a window. Some guy brings out a bazooka. Negan says he’s going to have fun with it. A woman tells Negan they’re short two guns. Rick says they had some people leave and maybe the guns are with them. Negan asks if Olivia sucks at her job, but she says the inventory is correct. He asks if she knows where the guns are and that he’s disappointed. It shows that someone isn’t on board and he can’t have that. He says he doesn’t enjoy killing women, but it was Olivia’s responsibiltiy. He badgers her and she starts to cry.

Rick’s people gather at the church and he tells everyone he thought of hiding some of the guns, but what if the Saviors found them or they had the guns on them when they ran into one of them? It doesn’t matter how many bullets they have, it isn’t enough. He says hiding guns isn’t the answer anymore. He asks who has the two they’re looking for or who knows where they are? He says if they don’t find them, Negan will kill Olivia. A guy asks why they care and Rick asks if he has them, but he doesn’t. He says most of them weren’t there; they didn’t have to watch. If they give Negan what he wants, they live in peace. Another guy gets up and asks how they’re getting out of this. Rick says there is no way out of this. He’s not in charge anymore. Negan is. He asks again who has the guns. Eugene says not everyone is there.

Rosita slinks trough the forest following some zombies. Spencer calls for her. She hides behind a tree and takes the zombies out with a knife. I don’t know if there’s a purpose or she’s just getting out her aggression. She impales one’s head on the end of a log. Ooh. She took a gun off of him. But it’s empty. Rosita tells Spencer that Negan is going to take all their guns and asks if he’s going to tell. She says this is not their life and he walks away.

Rick watches Negan sitting with Olivia. He starts tearing the place apart. Gabriel comes in and says he feels like it’s going to work out. They’ll find the guns, get through today, and find a way to beat this. He has faith in Rick. He says things change; they weren’t always friends. He asks if Michonne has them, but Rick says she doesn’t have what they’re looking for. He thanks Gabriel for his quick thinking about Maggie.

Aaron tells Rick there’s nothing so far. They all split up to look elsewhere. Rick opens a floor grate and finds a lot of stuff, like bouncy ball, a can of beans, and whiskey. He pulls out a sack that has two guns in it. He brings them outside. Some guy is bothering Enid about keeping some balloons, making her say please a bunch of times. A-hole.

Rick gives Negan the guns. Negan says funny how a little thing like holy sh*t someone is going to die, lights a fire under everyone. He asks where Rick found them. I’d tell him it was Maggie’s house. Might as well make her the scapegoat since she’s supposed to be dead anyway.

Negan’s people start to pull out. Negan tells Rick he’s got a helluva place. Negan sees Michonne out of the corner of his eye. Rick asks for a second. Negan says no at first, and then smiles. Rick goes in, and Michonne sees him holding Lucille. Rick says he needs the rifle. He says he knows it’s in the bag and that she was out practicing. He says they have to give up their guns. If Negan finds them, someone dies, and he’s not losing anyone else. He asks if she’ll let him give the guns to Negan.

Michonne comes out with the deer like she was hunting. Rick gives Negan the gun. Negan says this is something to build a relationship on. He tells Rick that he’s special. Rick asks if Daryl can stay. Negan says, not happening, but amends that to maybe Daryl can plead his case and sway him.

Daryl says nothing. Negan says Rick tried. Now he has to get over that tall wall and earn for him. They’ll be back soon and Rick had better have something interesting for them, or Lucille will have her way. Someone will die, and no more magic guns. Michonne throws down the deer, and Negan says he loves a gal who buys him dinner and doesn’t expect him to put out.

Dwight takes Daryl’s bike and throws Rosita’s hat back to her. He asks if they found anything else, and she says just his dead friend. He rides off on Daryl’s bike. He tells Daryl to just say the word and he can have it back, but Daryl remains silent.

Negan tells Rick that nobody died. He thinks he and Rick can find their understanding. He asks if Rick wants him to go, and Rick says that would be good. He tells Rick to say the two magical words, and Rick says thank you. Negan is like, no, thank you, because he’s cuckoo.

Another zombie comes by and Negan says they need his help. He tells Rick they’re going to both come out winners and to watch his form. Rick tightens his grip on Lucille. Negan kills the zombie with a candlestick. (It was Negan in Alexandria with the candlestick.) Negan says win win, and to clean the candlestick up for next time.

Negan stats to leave, and says how careless of him, going back for his bat. He wonders why Rick would want Lucille after what she did, and thanks him for him being accommodating. He tells Rick that he just shoved his d*ck down Rick’s throat and Rick thanked him for it. Finally, they leave. Daryl looks at Rick from the back of the truck.

Rick tells Spencer that they were going to kill Olivia over two guns that were missing, and he found them in Spencer’s house. He doesn’t fault him for having the guns, but the food and liquor? He calls Spencer weak, saying they got lucky this time, and Spencer says they should have made a deal when they could. He asks if Glenn and Abe were lucky too. Rick tells him that if he says something like that again, he’ll knock Spencer’s teeth down his throat.

Rosita confronts Spencer about the guns. He says he had them for a while because he didn’t trust Rick. He says he was worried about Rick being in charge, and she said it already, that this doesn’t have to be their life. He drives away, and she takes a gun out of the wheel well of another car.

Rick fixes up a bed on the floor since the mattresses were all taken. Michonne says the rifle belonged to the Saviors and wasn’t on the list. He asks if she has more, and she says no. She says everything they have, they got from fighting for it. Rick says he made a choice and Negan has the numbers. She says what about Hilltop, but he tells her they still outnumber them. He says if they play by the rules, they’ll have some kind of life. Michonne says what kind?

Rick talks about Shane and how he took care of Carl when Rick was out of commission in the beginning. He says Shane hooked up with Rick’s wife because they thought he was dead. He says he loves Judith, but she isn’t his. He had to accept that to keep her alive. He hopes he can raise her and protect her and teach her to survive. He says he had to accept how they live now to keep everyone else alive. He tells Michonne that she has to accept this – they all do – or it wont’ work. Michonne says she’ll try.

Michonne goes back to the abandoned truck. She hears something and looks in the distance. She gets down and walks across the field. She sees a smoldering pile of gravestones and starts hyperventilating.

Rosita picks up a shell casing. She takes it to Eugene and asks him to make her a bullet.

Next time, Maggie is at Hilltop and at risk, Carl is done, and Jesus is back (no, not that Jesus).