What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Josslyn asks what Nina means. Dex was there when Cyrus was there? Nina says, that’s right. Cyrus survived the beating from Sonny and also survived his hospital stay, which she’s guessing was just as dangerous. Josslyn asks what Dex was doing there, and Nina says, he was in hospital scrubs. Let’s not forget that detail. Josslyn’s smart. She’ll figure it out. Nina leaves, and Josslyn looks at Dex.

Sitting next to Dante’s bed, Sonny says he knows Dante is in God’s hands, and he believes Dante’s spirit is strong enough to come back to them. He knows Dante can hear him and wants Dante to know he hasn’t given up on him, and he doesn’t want Dante to give up on himself. If Dante can hear him, Sonny wants him to know that his father is always with him. He puts his hand on Dante’s.

Tracy puts a blanket on Olivia, who sits up and says, Dante. Is he okay? Tracy says, no change, and he’d want her to sleep. She was at the hospital all night. Olivia checks her phone and says, no word from the hospital. She thinks she’s going to take a nice, hot shower. Tracy says, actually, she just walked past Olivia’s room, and Sam and Scout are asleep on her bed, and Olivia says, hot coffee it is (because there are no other showers in the house). Tracy says, coming right up, and Olivia says, Tracy is going to make it? She didn’t think Tracy knew how. Tracy laughs, and leaves for the kitchen.

At the gallery, Trini tells Ava, what a talented artist. Ava knows she studied at the University of Paris, right? Ava says she knows that, and Trina says, so many colleges and universities, all a part of each other and around each other. Paris is really the perfect creative environment. Ava says she understands the impulse to throw yourself into work to help you cope, but maybe being here, around all of this, isn’t helping. Trina says, yeah, but she doesn’t know what will.

Diane says, the Appellate Division came for Alexis after a ruling in front of the medical board, correct? That’s a division of the Department of Health, and that’s deep state. Alexis says, now they’ve gone from magical thinking to just being ridiculous. It was regulatory body; she was under oath. Diane says she knows plenty of elected officials who have lied under oath and none of them have been disbarred, and Alexis says she knows a lot of them should have been disbarred, but how does any of this have anything to do with her?

Marshall tells Doc, it’s true. During that time, he was a young Black man, down on his luck. And yes, he felt a certain kind of way toward the world around him. Curtis says, angry, right, pop? and Marshall says, yes. He was angry. Stella says she has to take issue with two things. They don’t characterize low-income people as poor. Being deemed poor isn’t good for one’s self-esteem or state of mind. And that anger Marshall was feeling was justified. But she understands what Doc was trying to say. Marhsall says, so does he, but given how things were back in the day – his age, his social standing, his Blackness – how well-adjusted could he possibly be? That doctor called him schizophrenic. Did he have to be mentally ill to feel how he felt? Doc says, exactly. Marshall just correctly diagnosed his misdiagnosis.

Josslyn asks why Dex went to the hospital, and Dex says he was told to go. She says, by Sonny? and he says, yes. She says, to deliver some sort of message? and he says, no. She asks why he was in scrubs, and Dex doesn’t answer. She asks if Sonny asked him to do something, and he says, yes. She says, to kill him? and he says, yes.

Lois puts a cup of coffee under Olivia’s nose, and Olivia sits up. She says she must be really tired. Wasn’t Lois just Tracy a few minutes ago? Lois says, no. Never in any lifetime. But she did have to go, so she asked Lois to look after Olivia. She said to bring her this – she hands Olivia the coffee – and make sure she enjoys every sip. Olivia says, aww, and takes a sip. She says, damn. That is good coffee. Did Lois make this? Lois says, no, and asks if Olivia is okay, but Olivia says, no. Is there any word from the hospital? Lois says, no, there isn’t, but she can call if Olivia wants her to. She just figured they’d call if they needed anything. Olivia asks if she means like if there’s any change in her son’s condition. Honest to God, she doesn’t know if she should be relieved or terrified.

Ava says she knows it sounds trite, but Trina has to give herself time. She’ll get through this. What did she say about that painting? It’s fire? That’s more than going through the motions. Nina comes in and asks if Ava has time to talk, and Trina says she’ll just take the painting to the back. Trina leaves, and Ava asks if Nina is okay. What’s going on? Nina says she’s not okay. The Invader ran this really insensitive story about the shooting on the pier that mentioned Sonny. Ava asks why she’s acting surprised by this, and Nina says, because she’s the publisher of The Invader and they slipped it by her and published the story. If she’d known, she would have done damage control or she would have killed it altogether. Ava says, if she’s worried about Sonny, he couldn’t care less about the story, and Nina says she ran into Josslyn. She went over to Dex’s and Josslyn was there. Ava asks why she went to see Dex, and Nina says, because she can’t see Sonny. She can’t even go to the hospital to check on Dante. Ava asks if Dex said anything, and Nina says, no, and she probably just made everything worse. But she doesn’t care because she’s being pushed aside when her husband needs her most. She has to find a way to get to him and she’s running out of options. She needs Ava to help her.

Diane says, right off the bat, she wants to take issue with a couple of things. The charge of perjury against Alexis came long after Dr. Byrne’s hearing in front of the medical board in 2020. Right? Yes. And that charge stemmed from Julian Jerome and Britt Westbourne, both of whom were known perjurers, both of whom were criminals, both of whom are dead. Alexis says, but neither of them brought this to the attention of the bar, and Diane says, but they had to be deposed and they’re both liars. That’s off to the side. What she wants to circle back to now is why Alexis never defended herself. Why she never mounted any sort of filing for herself. Alexis says, because it was true, and Diane says, irrelevant. Let’s just say, she was never presented the opportunity… No. She can’t do that. It’s just them here. Alexis knows full well she has the right to mount a defense. So why didn’t she? Alexis says she guesses at the time she didn’t think she had anything left to fight for. Diane says, well, snap out of it. Shake off the poor me’s and wrap whatever’s left of that steel-trap mind because she’s got two things to focus on now. Number one, why working here isn’t working for her, and number two, how she plans to get out of it.

Doc asks if any of them have heard of a book called The Youngest Science, and Stella says she read that. If she recalls correctly, it’s an account about medicine evolving as a science from an influential doctor’s point of view. Doc says, yes. It’s a personal, historical accounting of 20^th century medicine’s evolution. It’s a fascinating read. Marshall says, sounds great. Maybe he’ll pick it up. Why are they talking about it? Doc says, as a reference. Medicine as a science has come a long way, but after a long period of time. Psychiatry is much younger, and as a discipline, it’s made all the same mistakes all the other disciplines have made. Think of it as how astronomers used to believe that the sun revolved around the earth. The point is, scientists and researchers like to be right, and they often fall into the trap of proving what they already believe. Curtis says, that happens everywhere, and Doc says, which brings them to Dr. Braddock and his work. He wasn’t alone in his beliefs and practices. And Doc won’t defend the mistakes his discipline made when psychiatry was still trying to figure out what the heck mental health even was. The point being, the big question at the time was, what is normal and does that mean being like everybody else? Curtis says, like everybody else, and Doc says, right, and if you’re a mid-twentieth century psychiatrist making that determination, you tend to look to the people you already know, which are going to be decently educated, employed, church going, and predominantly white. That was the control group, and if you didn’t belong to this normal, predominantly cultural group, if you don’t share any of those hallmarks, or maybe you’re not as adept at code switching, then you present a problem, an illness.

Josslyn says, so Sonny gives Dex that order and he says, yes, boss. She can’t believe he’d agree to something like that. He says he tried to talk Sonny out of it, and she says, of course (🍷). Dex would never go through with something like that. It’s just Nina stirring up trouble, per usual. He says, except that’s not how it went down. He was going to do it, but Sonny stopped him.

Tracy goes into Dante’s room and says hi to Sonny. She says, any news? and he says he’d give her some if there was some. She says she left Sam and Olivia are both back at the house. They both needed sleep. She hopes he won’t ruin her reputation as being cold and unfeeling, and he says, her secret is safe with him. She says she’s sorry. Every time she sees a hospital bed, it reminds her of seeing Luke lying in it.

Diane says, perhaps Alexis’s memory is impaired, because as she recalls, Alexis wasn’t living her best life at the time. Alexis says, no. She was drinking. Defintiely not making good choices. Diane says, she never even had a proper hearing. She was the one who informed Alexis of the decision by phone. Remember? Alexis says, rings a bell, and Diane says, there’s also a case to be made for bias. Alexis says, why? Because she’s a woman? Diane says, because she’s a lawyer. Who does the medical profession hate more than anyone? Alexis says, lawyers. She hates most lawyers too, but more than anything in the world right now, she wishes she still was one.

Doc says, long ago, psychiatrists deemed aggression, anger or offensive dislocation from the dominant cultural group as a mental maladjustment. Never mind the societal injustices that existed only because they hadn’t been challenged for centuries. Curtis says, which was the actual maladjustment to begin with, and Doc says, right. So defiant, anxious, young Black men were tagged as schizophrenic, whether the diagnosis was accurate or not. Especially when one of the hallmarks of the disease is a misconception of reality, such as an institution or society at large is out to get them. Someone might be obsessed about it or angry about it. Marshall says, or desperate to figure out why his heart is suddenly racing for no reason. Why his hands are sweaty and it’s suddenly hard to breathe, or why people are just looking at him funny. He couldn’t play his horn like that. He was mad and frightened. He thought something was wrong with him. He thought somebody was trying to do something to him. Doc says, so he sought help and he, like a lot of young men, was deemed schizophrenic when all he was doing was perceiving the reality around him. On top of that, the medications he was likely prescribed would cause unexplained behaviors, which would likely reinforce the diagnosis. Stella says, Lord have mercy, and Doc says, an entire generation of unhappy women were prescribed valium. It’s a muscle relaxer. Gay, lesbian, and trans people were tranquilized, hospitalized, or worse, electroshocked into acquiescence. And that’s only if they had health insurance, by the way. Did Marshall? Marshall says, for a short time, until the insurance companies knew he’d been institutionalized, and he was dropped. Out the door with all those others he was talking about who couldn’t pay. They’d be found in the streets or bars or prisons, worried they’d pose a danger at home to the people they most loved – he puts his hand on Curtis’s shoulder – or bring shame on them. Doc says, it’s no shame for Marshall. The shame is, and always will be, ours.

Josslyn asks if it was that night Adam was in the hospital… Oh my God. It was, wasn’t it? She was in the chapel, and he came in. She fell asleep. When she woke up, he was in there, and she remembers thinking how lucky she was that he was there, and she could always depend on him. Now he’s telling her that if Sonny hadn’t stopped him, he would have what? Just come and sat in the chapel with her. He says he doesn’t know what would have happened. All he knows is what did. He was in scrubs. He had lifted a bottle of fentanyl from the pharmacy storage, and he was going to inject it into Cyrus’s IV line, when Sonny showed up. She says, and if Sonny hadn’t stopped him, if he hadn’t walked in right then, Dex is telling her that he would have done it? Dex says, yes, and she says, who are you? (Like, she didn’t know he’d been a mercenary? Told you that she was too immature for him.)

Nina says, Ava promised to help her put her marriage back together. The need to come up with a strategy, a way to break through Sonny’s anger and get him to see he still needs her. Ava says, the timing isn’t very good for Nina. What is she going to say? Sonny, don’t look at your son whose life is hanging on by a thread. Look at me. Nina says, of course (🍷) not. No, it’s more like, Sonny, let me be there to support you. Let me love you. Let me be there while you’re going through this incredibly difficult time. Let me be your wife again. That’s what it would be. She cries, and says she understands why Ava was with Sonny at the warehouse, but that means Sonny trusts her. If Ava advocates for her, he will listen. Trina comes in and says she just tracked the other packages, and another should be coming in today; a delivery was pushed up. Ava says she has to go out. Is Trina up to staying here and receiving it? If it comes before she gets back, just log it in and lock up. Trina says she’s got Ava. Is she all right? Ava says she’ll be fine and leaves with Nina.

Lois asks if Olivia remembers when her Nona told them that boys were easier to raise than girls, and Olivia laughs, saying, she lied. Either that, or she didn’t know any of the kids Dante grew up with. Lois says she thinks maybe it was just their neighborhood, because those boys were maybe just a step above hooligans, and she means a tiny step. Olivia says, and Dante was one of them. That kid got into so many scraps at that high school, they felt they had to send him away for counseling. She was scared to death there was actually something wrong with him. But it turns out it was just Dante being Dante. He was always standing up to bullies, defending the weaker kids, and not letting anyone get pushed around. That’s why he’s such a great cop. The best kind. The ones who know what it truly means to protect and serve.

Stella tells Doc that she was a social worker for many years before she was a patient advocate. The reason she switched was because she saw the inequities I the medical system firsthand. Those mistakes he spoke of were born of racism, sexism, and all the other isms, plain and simple. And what happened to Marshall wasn’t a mistake. It was malpractice, signed, sealed, and systemic. She’s sure he’s seen the stories of how Blacks, minorities, and women experience medical bias. It’s all over the news lately, but it’s nothing new. It’s been going on since the Jim Crow era and they still aren’t taken seriously by medical professionals. She knows because she has patients she has to fight for in this very hospital. Not to mention the ongoing maternal health crisis for women of color. And what burns her up is, they have great, talented medical professionals in this country. There’s no excuse for any of this. She’s sorry. She could go on, but she’s done. Curtis says, as Doc can see, his auntie is a passionate social justice warrior. Stella says, but she’s getting tired of this fight. Why, after all this time, are they still reckoning with things like this? They’re all human. It doesn’t matter the variety. Biology is biology. Doc tells her that she’s an advocate in every sense of the word. He hopes she never stops. He knows an apology from someone like him at this late date is meaningless… Marshall says, no, not meaningless. Not at all. Doc told the truth. He validated what Marshall has been going through most of his life. He just wishes he’d been able to understand all of this sooner, and not handed over his sanity and his life to some guy with a degree because he thought the doctor was helping him. Curtis says, that’s hard to do if the person he trusted to help him was attacking him. It’s insidious. He just wonders how many other people Braddock did this to. Doc says, oh there were others. Braddock was a respected, published doctor. Marshall says, they always figured it was something like this. Not only did Doc confirm it, but he’s shone the light on his life. It’s a lot to process. He gets up and says he’s so grateful to Doc, calling him kind sir, and Doc says he’s sure Marshall is a bit leery of shrinks right about now, but his door is always open if he’d ever like to talk this through. Marshall says he’ll think about it, and Doc laughs, saying, of course (🍷). They shake hands.

Dex says, Sonny gave him an order. He didn’t have to option to refuse. Josslyn says, he’s telling her that he would have killed for Sonny, and he says he didn’t want to. He just didn’t see a way out. But Sonny asking him was a test. And either he passes, or he’s the one who gets eliminated. He’s just lucky Sonny changed his mind. She says, he’s not understanding her. In her head, yeah, he’s working for Sonny, but he’s also working for her mom and her brother, her whole family. She never thought he would cross this line. She’s pictured a life with him that isn’t possible. She was willing to give up everything for him. Now she feels like she doesn’t even know him. He says, that’s not true. She does know him. And he knows her. He’s glad it didn’t happen. He didn’t see the point in getting himself killed for refusing to take out Cyrus. She says, this isn’t about Cyrus. She hates Cyrus. This is different. Neither him nor Sonny were being shot at. There were no guns out. This was a defenseless old man in a hospital bed. She cannot unsee the image of him going into that room. This is about him killing someone. Does he understand? He says he’s killed before, and she says, he’s right. He has. And she’s put him on this pedestal in her head and never imagined this is something he’d be okay with, but she’s not. This changes everything. She can’t do this anymore. She picks up her things and leaves.

On the phone, Alexis says, when they wake up, give her a call and let her know if there’s any news about Dante. Love you. Bye. Diane says, Sam? and Alexis says, voicemail. So what did she find out? Diane says, apparently, she has to file an appeal with the Appellate Court before she can file an appeal with Appellate Court. She’s glad Alexis understood what that means. Maybe she’s remembering how redundant and full of catch-22’s the law actually is. Maybe that steel trap isn’t as rusty as she thought. Alexis says, it’s creaky, but functioning. She’s supposing it has to be a special pleading since she did lie so Neil wouldn’t lose his medical license, and then he lost it anyway. Diane says, Alexis threw away her career for him, and Alexis says, why did she do that again? Diane says, because she’s a rescuer. She wants to be the heroine in everybody’s life but hers. In hers, she’s the arch villain. So no punishment is ever enough.

At the desk, Tracy tells Stella that she’d like to request a phone call if there’s any change in Dante’s condition. Her cell phone number is on file with the hospital board. Stella says she’ll note it in Dante’s file. And speaking of the board, there are a few things she needs to run by Tracy. Tracy says, oh? and Stella says, but they don’t have to get into it right now. Tracy says she’s here right now, so let’s get into it right now. Unless Stella has something else she needs to be doing.  

Curtis finds Marshall in the PT room and asks how he’s doing. Marshall says he’s sorry he took off. He just figured he needed some time to himself. Curtis says, some history lesson, and Marshall says, Dr. Collins broke it down for them, didn’t he? But he didn’t say anything they hadn’t already put together. Curtis says, if Marshall wants to be left alone so he can rant, vent, curse, and damn Dr. Braddock’s name to hell, he can take off. Marshall says he came in here intending to do just that, to holler and curse, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t get something Stella said out of his head. Curtis says, which part? She said so much. Marshall says, she’s something else, but she got him when she said they’re all human, and Curtis says he guesses at the end of the day, that’s what it all boils down to. Marshall says, then why in blazes can’t they act like it? It’s so wrong. Most everybody is all wrong about everything they think about. He lost decades because of how people wanted to see him or not see him. That doctor lost a lifelong career because of his misbeliefs. It’s so senseless. Curtis says, Marshall’s being very philosophical about this doctor. Him? Not so much. Marshall says, he’s dead, and now he finds himself in the position where he has to forgive that man. Because that’s what Curtis’s momma would want him to do. Irene always said, forgiveness isn’t for the other person as much as it is for ourselves. If he carries around hate for that man, he’s going to turn into a hateful person. He’ll be just like him. Curtis says, maybe he has to work harder on that, but he will. For Marshall and himself. Marshall sits down and says he just thought of something. That disgraced doctor is six feet under and he’s here. He’s here with his family; his beautiful, accomplished, talented family. A family any man would be proud of. Everything he thought was wrong somehow turned out to be right. Or is it just another proof that there is a God?

Josslyn come into the gallery crying, and Trina hugs her and asks, what happened? Is it Dante? Josslyn says, no. She doesn’t know how Dante is doing now, but… Trina says she needs Josslyn to calm down and stop crying, because she’s two seconds away from joining her, and if she starts, she’ll never stop. So take a deep breath – Josslyn does – and tell her what happened. Josslyn says, it’s Dex, and Trina asks if he’s leaving town again. Josslyn says she hopes so. She hopes he never comes back. Trina says, what? and Josslyn hugs her again.

Stella says, Tracy is the only board member who hasn’t made an appointment for their annual complimentary wellness exam. Tracy says, it’s not necessary. She’s no longer seeing Dr. Finn. His brother is marrying her granddaughter, so it felt a little too close. Stella says, there are a lot of doctors in this hospital, and Dr. Randolph would be happy to see her. Tracy says she’ll get around to it, and Stella says, when? Tracy says, when she gets around to it. What’s the big deal? Does she look sick to Stella? Stella says, no. Tracy looks foolish. She just came down off a soapbox, talking about the inequities in the medical system, and how people are literally dying for proper care, and here Tracy is, the very picture of privilege, refusing to get a free annual exam.

Lois asks Olivia if it isn’t a rip. Olivia’s son and her daughter growing up together, and now she’s going to marry his partner. Olivia says, life is funny. Chase is really a sweetheart. Lois agrees, and Olivia says, very devoted to his job. How is Brook handling that? Lois says, she’s crying her eyes out and hiding it from Chase so that she doesn’t worry him, and Olivia says, that’s her new reality. She honestly doesn’t even know what to say to her about it. Lois says she doesn’t know how Olivia put up with it all these years. She’s terrified that her daughter is about to marry a cop. Olivia says, you’d think it would matter that Dante is on the right side of the law. A bullet doesn’t care. Sonny didn’t get shot. Dante did.

Alexis says she doesn’t think she’s still her own nemesis. She’s had her dark night of the soul. She goes to meetings, she does the work, she knows that she’s going to be the only one to champion herself. Diane says, so she’s out of the rescue business? and Alexis says she may get a cat. Maybe three. Diane laughs, and Alexis says, but in her personal life, she’s hung up the cape. But old impulses die hard. She still roots for the underdog. Diane says, until they get her law license back, the only underdog she wants Alexis rooting for is herself. Now she’s going to see how far and how fast she can push this appeals process along. In the meantime, she needs two things from Alexis. Don’t sleep with any more doctors. As far as she’s concerned, attorneys should just sleep with attorneys. Alexis says, maybe just District Attorneys. That way, they narrow down the pool. Diane says, the second thing is, get rid of that insipid gossip columnist that came for her. She leaves.

Ava puts her hand on Sonny’s shoulder. He looks at it, then back at Dante.

Josslyn tells Trina that she thought nothing could ever change the way she feels about Dex, but she was wrong. She feels like she doesn’t even know him. She feels like he’s a different person. Or maybe he’s always been this person and she’s just now seeing it, but what he’s okay with, she’s not okay with. And what he can live with, she can’t. She won’t. Trina hugs her.

Dex gets on his phone and says he needs the police non-emergency number.

Tracy tells Stella not to make a federal case out of this. She’ll get her free wellness exam. Stella says, good. Should she set it up now? Tracy says, no. She has to check her calendar. She’ll get back to Stella. Stella says, fine. You do that. Tracy says she will. Stella starts to leave, when Tracy calls her name. Stella says, yes, Miss Quartermaine? and Tracy apologizes for being rude. She’d also like it if Stella would call her Tracy. Stella says she was a little worked up already and Tracy has been rude to her before. They both start to laugh.

Sonny says he’s surprised they let Ava in, and she says, no one stopped her. In fact, they told her at the nurses’ station that Dante was stable. He says, they’re not really supposed to give out that information. Only to family. She says, maybe they thought she was Nina, and he says, don’t say that name. She says she’s sorry. She won’t even talk. She’ll just stay and wait here with him a minute. She stands at the foot of the bed, and Sonny takes Dante’s hand.

Tomorrow, Brook says John is a disgrace to his badge; Carly tells Josslyn that it’s not a realistic option; Dex says he did it and he’s prepared to pay for it; Sonny asks if someone can keep a secret; and Jason says, they can make it like it never happened.

Below Deck

Captain Kerry tells Kyle and Jared that he can hear them in his cabin and tells them to hit the sack. In the captain’s interview, he says, it’s the second time he’s been woken up, and this time, it sounds like threatening behavior. He heard yelling and screaming, and it’s unacceptable on his boat. In the morning, everyone fumbles around, hungover. Kyle says, rock and roll. In Jared’s interview, he says he doesn’t feel like he handled last night well. He has a lot on his mind and he’s stressing out. We flash back to him trying to call his daughter and not being very smooth with Barbie. He says, it doesn’t excuse how messy things were. He could have handled it better. The girls talk about Jared getting reamed out by the captain, and Barbie says, he was a total d*ck last night. Ben dances around stupidly, and Kyle says, Jared was on his ass before he had a chance to clean up.

Kerry calls Kyle to the bridge, and in the captain’s interview, he says, there was a lot going on he didn’t see last night, but it looked like Kyle was trying to deescalate the situation. Jared has a history of getting drunk and he’s going through sh*t. He needs to know the facts of the evening. Talking to the captain, Kyle admits he left a mess. They were all drinking. Separately, Barbie tells the captain that Kyle was bunking with her, which was no problem, since they’re stupid friends. Kyle stormed into the room. Captain Kerry asks if he made threats, but Barbie says, it wasn’t directed toward her, so she didn’t feel threatened. Kyle says, it was more demeaning, and Jared was angrier than he needed to be. Barbie says she thinks it was a personal thing. Cat tells Xandi that she feels alone, even though she’s surrounded by people, and Xandi tells her, that’s what she says about yachting. You’re never alone, but you’re lonely. In Captain Kerry’s interview, he says, Jared released heavy equipment on the dock without permission, and he’s made several docking mistakes. We flash back to that, and the captain says, alcohol doesn’t help. We flash back to Captain Kerry lecturing Jared, and he says, at the end of the day, his primary responsibility is the safety of the vessel and crew, and this guy is creating a problem. Barbie tells Fraser about Jared busting into her cabin, and Captain Kerry calls Jared to the bridge. He tells Jared that they had a discussion yesterday and he told them all to have a great night. Jared’s not getting it. He was absolutely f***ed for the second time and exhibited bad behavior. He’s in a leadership role and he’s got to be above the fray. The way he’s treating the crew isn’t acceptable. The captain has tried to show compassion, but Jared’s got sh*t going on and he’s his own worst enemy. He needs to depart the vessel.

Jared says, it sounds like he’s getting the boot, and the captain says, yes. He’s got a lot going for him, but his emotional side apparently isn’t where it should be. Jared says he’s not in the right place at the right time, and Captain Kerry says, exactly. He doesn’t blame Jared. Take the time to work on himself. Keeping him would be doing him a disservice. Jared says he respects that, the captain says, goodbye, and they shake hands. In Captain Kerry’s interview, he says, it’s not going to be easy on the rest of the crew in the short term, but in the long term, it’s the right decision. Jared distressed and acting out, and it’s not fair to his crewmates or safe. He’s got to go. The captain calls Ben to the bridge.

Jared tells Barbie that he’s been let go, and she tells him to go meet his daughter and be happy. Captain Kerry tells Ben that Jared is leaving, so they’ll be down a crew member. Can he handle being bosun if person they’re a person down? Ben says he can, and in Captain Kerry’s interview, he says he doesn’t have a whole lot of choices. Ben knows the boat, so this needs to happen. Ben will have to lead and go along with decisions he might not agree with because the captain said so. He asks if Ben will be okay with more pressure, and Ben says he will. In Ben’s interview, he says he’ll finally be able to show Captain Kerry what he can do. Jared says goodbye to everyone and pretends he’s happy about it. In Jared’s interview, he says he thought he was in a good headspace, but he’d be lying to himself if he didn’t admit that it wasn’t as much as he’d like. The situation sucks, but he does feel lighter. His last words to the St. David are, damn, I’ll miss you. See you down the line. As he leaves, they all yell that they love him.

Kerry texts yacht staffing about a bosun and calls a crew meeting. He tells them that the deck team is down a person. He’ll help and Ben got a promotion. Either they’re going to bust out this charter or unfold. Fraser gives the stews some instruction on making beds, and I take notes on fluffing pillows. Captain Kerry calls a preference sheet meeting. The primary is Lesley, who is a mortgage loan officer. Ben reads that the guests want a surf and turf dinner with Mardi Gras décor. They also want to go to Carriacou, and in Captain Kerry’s interview, he says, it’s the most beautiful, sexy beach on the planet. There are reefs everywhere and people flock there for diving. The place is magnificent. Anthony is happy to read, no French food, and says, it’s like a vacation. Ben reads that the guests request a murder mystery after-party, and the captain congratulates Ben on his promotion. It’s a big deal. How he’ll interact with the crew will need to change. Meanwhile, Barbie tells Xandi and Fraser that her mom is a sex therapist, and in her interview, she says she tells her mother everything. Her father is super conservative and she’s in the middle. It does get weird, but she embraces it. It’s weirder for her brother. Cat’s friend calls and she’s crying hysterically. In Cat’s interview, she says, it’s a situation she can’t talk about, but her friends are her family. So she feels sh*tty that she can’t be there for her.

In Ben’s interview, he says, the tender is out and they’re a deck member down. There’s two of them on deck to run a 60-meter boat and get it off the dock. Provisions come in, and they almost make scrambled eggs trying to balance the egg cartons. There’s the last-minute running around, and Anthony calls his mom, who asks if the guests and passengers are happy. Anthony says, so far, and asks if Fraser wants to say hi. Fraser talks to Anthony’s mom in French, and says, everybody is happy with Anthony. She must be proud of him. In Anthony’s interview, he says he misses his mom.

The guests arrive, and Captain Kerry welcomes them. Fraser gives the tour and promises snacks at all times when he finds out primary Lesley is a snacker. In Captain Kerry’s interview, he says he’s working harder because he’s a team player. He worked with a captain who would be in his room and pretend to be on the phone. He caught him with the phone next to his head and no call. What kind of a-hole doesn’t help when it’s needed? They pull out, and in Ben’s interview, he says he’s nervous, but can’t let it show. He saw the pressure Jared was under and saw Jared’s mistakes before he made did them. He knows what the captain expects. When they get out to sea, Ben says, and we are underway. Thank God.

Fraser schmoozes with the guests and finds out all the women do mortgages and there’s one realtor. Sunny goes out on the tender, and in her interview, she says she was never given the opportunity to prove herself on her other boat. She wanted to learn the tender and she did. She does a happy dance. At least I assume that’s what it is; she didn’t preface it. Fraser welcomes the guests to Pan Asian Japan for lunch and tells Barbie that the table is stunning. Sushi is served, and Fraser tells Anthony that the guests are loving it. Would he lie? Yes. Is he lying now? No. Anthony comes up for compliments from the guests, and Fraser says he has huge lashes like a baby camel. The guests get in the water, and in Captain Kerry’s interview, he says he’s watching Ben and things are running smooth. He has more confidence in Ben than he did Jared. Ben is ahead of the game. The guests get in the hot tub, while Mardi Gras décor is put out. In his interview, Anthony says, tonight is surf and turf, the filet medium rare. If you ask him for medium well, he’ll say, f*** you. Agreed. In Sunny’s interview, she says she went to bed with a lead deckhand and woke up with a bosun. It’s kind of hot. She hopes it doesn’t create a rift in their relationship. Fraser tells the other stews that his sister is at Mardi Gras. She’s got huge knockers. The guests are seated, and even the beet salad is exquisite. In the pantry, Captain Kerry says he’ll do the dishes and fixes Fraser’s tie. As the lobster and filet mignon are served, I realize I’m staring at this amazing dish open-mouthed. Food porn at its finest. In Anthony’s interview, he says he’s like a butterfly flying around the galley. It’s perfect. The guests love it. It’s a celebration day.

The stews are behind with the cabins, and Fraser tells them to go as quick as they can, and Barbie joins in with housekeeping. Anthony comes up with the vanilla cheesecake and takes a bow. Lesley tells the others that you can say what you want in French, and it doesn’t matter. These easy-going guests go to bed at 11:11, and Barbie deflates the unicorn.

Second day of charter, en route to Halifax Harbour. Guest Brian wonders how Fraser is so chipper all the time, and Fraser says he’s got to be. As the boat heads for Tyrelle Bay, Xandi radios Cat several times before getting a response. She tells Cat to check the sinks and mirrors. All surfaces weren’t wiped. Cat says she’s done. She’s over this sh*t. Barbie asks if she wants to talk, but Cat says, no. She goes into the bathroom and cries. Breakfast is lobster eggs benedict, and I weep into my box of  water crackers. Fraser asks if Cat is okay, but she says she’s not good, as she sobs in her bunk. She says she wants to push through, but she’s losing her mind. Fraser says he’d rather put her health and mental health first and get her help as soon as he can – if that’s something she wants him to arrange. She says she feels like she might need it. She’s sorry. They hug, and in Fraser’s interview, he says he doesn’t know what’s going on, but there’s a look in the eyes sometimes that says a person has no more to give or do. They’re going through enough. Cat needs to do what’s right for her. He tells her that she’s been amazing and to do what’s right for her. Get her stuff together and they’ll make this happen. Barbie says she thinks Cat is finished, as the guests rave about the incredible food. Kyle tells Ben that Cat is leaving, and Xandi asks if Cat wants to talk. Cat says she can’t, and Xandi says, if Cat does, she’s here for her. Fraser tells the captain that Cat was in tears. She doesn’t want to disclose the information, which is fine, but he asked he if she needed to deal with it immediately and she answered yes. In his interview, the captain says he was worried about Cat’s mental state, and we flash back to Fraser telling him that Cat is fragile. Fraser says, it could be horrific, but maybe not. They need to give her the benefit of the doubt. Captain Kerry says, to Cat it’s horrific. Cat packs and anchor is home. Fraser tells Kyle and Sunny that Cat is leaving. Sunny asks if she’s all right, but Fraser says he doesn’t think so. The captain tells Cat to ask if she needs help, and in his interview, he says, his number one job is to take care of the crew. He’s well aware of mental health and Cat has to go now. He helps her with her suitcases, and Ben radios the crew to the aft deck. A guest wonders what’s going on, and the crew says goodbye to Cat. In Cat’s interview, she says she wishes she could stay, but no. It’s way too much. She needs to be with the people who need her. She’s at her breaking point and needs to protect her mental health. Her support system is at home, not here. She gets in a little boat, and heads for shore. Ben says, that’s yachting, mate, and Captain Kerry says, being one down will be hard. Two down… He sighs. In the captain’s interview, he says he’s been in tough situations before, but this is one of the toughest. Regardless of personal issues, where the guests happiness is concerned, they could all be in trouble.

Next time, a murder mystery party; new guy Dylan arrives, and Sunny is turned on; and a storm.

⚰️️ This Week In Ones…

A helicopter accident; creepier zombie deterioration; progress and redemption through innovation; Michonne reminds Rick of his own words, when folks try to save the world their own way, it tends to go to sh*t; Michonne gets trapped; a double eye poke; a double zombie poke; and lots o’ lovin’.

https://www.cbr.com/the-walking-dead-the-ones-who-live-season1-episode4-recap-spoilers

🗣 Asking For a Friend…

Join me tomorrow for soap and VanderChatter. Until then, stay safe, stay not standing in front of the elevator (or train) doors when waiting for them to open, and stay being the hero in your own life before trying to be the hero in anyone else’s.