What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Trina says, what happened on the Haunted Star taught her how much she relies on everyone she loves. Even though she values her independence, knowing someone will be there to catch her means the world to her. Portia says, that’s what happens when you become a parent, and a messenger comes out of the elevator. He asks Spencer to sign for the fancyish envelope, and Trina asks what it is. Spencer says, let’s find out. He opens it, and says, it’s an invitation to the reading of his Uncle Victor’s will. Trina wonders what Victor left him, and Curtis says, more trouble.
At the station, Jordan leaves a message for TJ, saying, she feels like she’s spoken to his voicemail more than him lately. She was thinking of him, and hoping she could grab dinner with him and Molly soon. Let her know. Text if he must, but a phone call would be most welcome. She loves him.
TJ waits with Molly in an exam room, and asks if she wants anything. She says she wants him to relax. She’s nervous enough for both of them. He says he’s very relaxed, but she says, he’s such a liar. He asks if she’s kicking him out, but she says she needs him here. Her mind is racing. No matter what she tries to think about, she just comes back to the same question – what if she can’t get pregnant? He says, it’s too soon to go there; they need more information. She says she can’t help it, she’s terrified, and he holds her.
Alexis shows Esme around The Invader, and finds Sam in her office. She says, this is a surprise, and Sam says, so is this. What’s going on?
At The Savoy, Holly tells Robert, what a lovely surprise. He says, nice try, but it’s not going to work. She’s up to something. She asks what he thinks she’s up to, and he says, conspiring with Selina Wu.
Esme says she saw Sam at Spring Ridge. Sam asked her about Maggie Fitzgerald. Sam said Maggie was Esme’s former nanny, and that she was a private detective. Did Sam lie to her? Does she really work at The Invader? Was Sam just trying to get her to say Ryan Chamberlain was her father? Sam says, no. She is a private investigator, and Alexis is her mother. Esme asks if Sam’s last name isn’t McCall, and Sam says, it is. Esme says, Sam’s a Cassadine too, and Alexis says, long story. Maybe some other time. Esme says, she gets it. Sam tried to manipulate her like every other Cassadine, and Alexis wants her to believe there’s no ulterior motive in offering her this job?
Robert asks what Holly is getting involved in here. She knows what Selina Wu does for a business. What’s next? Dropping in on Sonny Corinthos? Holly says, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, but he says he knows her. She likes to play fast and loose with the law. N’neka comes in, and says, excuse me. Who let them in? They’re closed. Robert introduces himself, and says he’s here on official business. Holly says, which is now over, but he says she’s not getting off that easy. Holly says, he’s right. Maybe he does need to be filled in. She suggests they go somewhere more private.
Dr. Navarro comes into the exam room, and says, as they suspected, Molly’s biopsy revealed she has endometriosis. Unfortunately, it’s severe, but Molly hasn’t complained of pain previously. Molly cries, and says, the pain has been more severe lately, but warm baths help, and an occasional missed period, like right now, but she’s not pregnant? Dr. Navarro says she’s sorry. Irregularity is common with endometriosis. Per Molly’s request, they conducted a fertility test, and Molly says she needs all of the information before making a decision about treatment, and she doesn’t want to delay trying to get pregnant. What did the fertility test say? The doctor says she’s sorry. It’s not good news. Molly cries harder.
Portia looks at Spencer and Trina walking away, and wonders if Trina will ever be free from this horrible family. Curtis says, Victor’s dead now, so there’s nothing he can do to harm Trina, but Portia says, in the meantime, Trina and Spencer are closer than ever. He says he knows she’s wary of Spencer, but he witnessed firsthand how Spencer stepped up for Trina in Greenland.
Trina says, Spencer’s his Uncle Victor tried to control him, and when he realized he couldn’t, he turned against Spencer. Nothing in this will is going to be good for him. Spencer says, probably not, which is exactly why he should deal with it now, rather than putting it off until later. If Uncle Victor had succeeded, there would be no need for this will. She says, he planned on ushering in the new age, and Spencer says, this is worst case scenario; this is a contingency plan in case of disaster. In order for this will to mean anything, Uncle Victor would have had to assume he’s A, dead, and B, his plan had failed. She says, then why let him have the last word? and he says, because if this will is Uncle Victor’s last shot at revenge, if it sets something in motion, he has to be the one to stop it.
Curtis tells Portia that Spencer didn’t care about himself; he only cared about Trina. He put himself in the line of fire to protect her. Portia says, so did Curtis, and she’s grateful to him for bringing Trina back home. He says he cares about Trina, and she says she knows he does. And Trina cares about him. She could see the look in Trina’s eye when she looked at Curtis. She thinks Curtis has a permanent place in Trina’s heart. Taggert walks on to the scene.
Trina runs to Taggert, hugging him, and he asks, how is his baby girl? She says, when she woke up this morning, he was gone, and Portia says, they were up so late last night celebrating her return, her father crashed in the guestroom. Trina says, Taggert wanted to camp out in the living room, like they did when she was little. Sorry for being a party pooper and asking to sleep in her own bed. He says he understands, especially after she’d been gone for so long, but they did do the fireplace s’mores, which is the next best thing. Curtis looks like he feels awkward, when the tech tells them, the lab’s ready for them. Who’s first?
Sam says, Esme works here now? and Alexis says, meet their new receptionist, but Esme says she’s out. She should have gone with her first instinct. I can’t believe I keep getting fooled by you people. She starts to leave, and Alexis says she’s sure Esme must be very scared, and now that she’s lost her memory, she must be so confused. But her nephew Nikolas, the father of Esme’s son, has disappeared. So her only motivation is to keep the rest of her family intact. Whether Esme likes it or not, her son is a Cassadine, and through her son, Esme is now extended family. She’s offered Esme a job so she can financially support her son. Isn’t that something any mother would be grateful for? Esme says, fine. She’ll try. Alexis says, good, and Esme says, for now. Alexis says, that’s all. Esme can go to HR and complete her paperwork, and when that’s done, she can start immediately. Esme leaves, and Sam asks, what’s going on?
Dr. Navarro says, the results of Molly’s hormone testing show that she’d be unlikely to conceive. She’s sorry. TJ says, many women with endometriosis are able to get pregnant; why can’t Molly? The doctor says, in some cases, endometriosis doesn’t mean infertility, but in Molly’s case, it’s different. Molly says, because of her condition is that severe? and Dr. Navarro says, there’s still a lot of uncertainty about how the condition affects some and not others. Her condition is severe because of where endometrial tissue occurs in the body and how far it’s spread. But the condition can also affect fertility on a microscopic level. It can change the hormonal level around the eggs as well as affect the quality. The reasons aren’t well understood. Molly says, so that’s it? She’ll never be able to have children?
Curtis says he’ll go first, and follows the tech. Portia asks if Trina is doing okay, and Trina says, yeah. She wants to do the test. Taggert says, it’s okay to be nervous, and Portia says, it’s totally understandable. Trina says she really wants to take the test and put an end to all the secrets. But what if they find out Curtis is her biological father? How do things not change? Taggert says, no test is going to tell him how he feels about his girl. She is, and always will be, his little girl. She says she hopes so, and he says, she can count on it, and hugs her.
At Pier 54, Holly tells Robert that she does need money, but not for her, for Ethan. Robert asks if he’s in trouble already, and she says, he stole from the wrong people. Robert asks, who? and she says, it’s a long list. Dictators, a hedge fund billionaire or two… Ethan only kept a little bit of it. Most of it, he gave away. He says, worthy causes he’s sure, and she says she can give him the contact information of the orphanages Ethan supports if he doesn’t believe her. He says he believes her. And believes Ethan. Ethan has a larcenous soul, but he’s not greedy. He likes the rush. So did Luke. So does Holly. Holly says, they’re people with obscene amounts of money, and they’re willing to spend it to see Ethan dead. That’s why he’s gone back to Australia to hustle enough money to pay them back. Robert says, that’s a whole bunch of problems in itself, isn’t it? and she says, that’s why she needs a large influx of cash. He asks why she didn’t come to him. He cares about Ethan, and sure as hell cares about her. She says, it isn’t as simple as asking a friend for a loan. She wouldn’t have spoken to Selina Wu. She even inquired about working for the WSB, but that wouldn’t have paid off fast enough. The only way to get these people off Ethan’s back is to compensate them, and she has to do that before they find him. He asks why she didn’t bring this to him sooner; he still could have helped her. They help each other. That’s what they do. She says she’s gotten him in so much trouble already, and doesn’t want to do that to the man she loves.
Spencer leaves to try and get more information about the will reading, and Trina says, he did that so she and Portia could be alone. Portia asks if that’s okay with Trina, and Trina says she’s happy Portia is here. She knows it’s hard on her too. Portia says, the hardest part is that she had to put Trina in this position in the first place, but she’s proud of Trina’s courage. She wishes she was as brave as Trina is in the beginning. When she found out she was pregnant, she should have told Curtis and Taggert that she wasn’t sure who the father was. Then Trina never would have had to make this decision. She’s sorry. Trina says she knows they haven’t unpacked everything, and she’s still angry that Portia chose not to be honest with her, but she’s not as mad as she was anymore. Portia says, it means the world to hear Trina say that, and they hug.
Esme comes out of the elevator, and sees Spencer. He asks if she’s okay. Where’s Ace? She says, he’s with Spencer’s grandmother. She hated leaving him, but she had no choice. He asks what she’s doing here at the hospital, and she says she’s here to drug test for her new job. He says, she’s never worked a day in her life. Who would offer her a job? She says, his Aunt Alexis?
Alexis says she fully expected to get that look, and Sam asks if she has to remind Alexis what happened the last time she invited a snake into her life. Alexis says her eyes are wide open as to who Esme is, and isn’t. Esme isn’t snowing her. She really is doing this for the family. When she went to Laura’s, Esme was halfway out the door with that baby. She was going to take Ace and leave, with nowhere to go and not a penny to her name, because that’s how much she doesn’t trust Laura, Spencer, or anybody else. Sam says, Victor did try to steal her son. She knows what Alexis is doing. Alexis got her a job at the paper to keep her in Port Charles, which keeps her in close proximity to Alexis, a set of eyes… Alexis says, exactly. Laura asked her privately to help keep Esme here, so she and Spencer wouldn’t be separated from Ace. Sam says, that’s lovely for them, but Alexis is the one who has to work with Esme. What happens when this noble gesture comes back to bite her? Alexis says, duly noted. Now why doesn’t Sam tell her why she’s here? There’s a knock at the door, and the messenger has Alexis sign for the infamous envelope. Alexis says, looks like she got invited to the party too, and Sam says, she knows about this? holding another envelope up. Alexis says, Sam got one too? So did Laura and so did Anna. Sam says, Victor hated both of them, and Alexis says, he hated her too. He was never too fond of her for rejecting his call for family solidarity. Sam says, so anyone Victor disliked or downright hated was invited to the reading of his will? That doesn’t bode well, does it? Alexis says, no, it doesn’t.
Holly says she loves Robert – not just in the past, but in the present. She’s in love with him. He says, Holly… but she says, let her finish. They’ve been through so much since she returned last year. Victor taking Ethan… staging the fire in the cabin… Greenland. She hasn’t had time to dwell on her feelings, but now that Victor’s been dealt with, she realizes that she’s still hugely in love with him. She wants to be with him. She wants to devote herself to him. And them. But first she has to help her son. And if that takes her to shady places, so be it, but she refuses to pull him in. They played fast and loose enough with Scotty, but she won’t drag him down; he’s the DA. He says, yeah, and he takes those duties seriously, but there are things that are more important in life. She says she can’t keep asking him to cross the line for her; she doesn’t want to keep asking him to do that. She can handle this on her own. He says, she doesn’t have to. It’s you and me; it’s us. She doesn’t have to do it on her own, and shouldn’t have to. She asks if this is his choice, and he says, question. Where does this end?
Curtis goes to the club, and asks N’neka how everything is looking for tonight. She says, the sound system was glitching, but the technician is already on his way, and he thanks her. He asks if she’d wait for the delivery driver out back, and he’ll look over the paperwork. She gives him a folder and leaves. As he’s looking at it, Jordan comes in.
Dr. Navarro says she realizes this is a lot to process, but there are options, and Molly says, but conceiving a child isn’t one of them. The doctor says, it’s not impossible to get pregnant. Like she told them, the condition still isn’t fully understood, or how it affects fertility. Molly says, but the possibilities are slim, and TJ tells her, let’s not call it a day yet. There are still treatments. Dr. Navarro says, TJ’s right. She’s happy to discuss all treatments available for Molly’s condition, as well as alternatives to help her have a child. She’ll give them time to talk, but please don’t lose hope. They’ll find the best option. TJ thanks her, and she leaves. Molly clings to him.
Robert says, it’s a pattern with Holly. She gets involved in all these below board things with questionable payouts. If, as she says, she loves him, and doesn’t want to drag him in with her, he doesn’t get what kind of a relationship that is. She says, all she knows is that she loves him, and he says, love is certainly part of the equation, but if this is her life, and that life says she has to keep things from him, how does that work? Maybe they’re not compatible. Maybe there’s not meant to be a me and you. All he knows is, he’ll always be there for her. She tells him that he doesn’t have to say it. After all these years of fighting to make this work, maybe she missed her chance.
Curtis asks if this is official business, but Jordan says she just wanted to see if he was all right. Is that a problem? He says, of course (🍷) not; thanks. She asks if something is bothering him, but he says he’s good. She says, it’s her. What’s up? He asks if he made a mistake going through with that DNA test. He might be upending a perfectly healthy family.
Spencer says, Esme is working for his aunt? and she says, believe her. It wasn’t her first choice. He asks when this happened, and she says, Alexis was visiting his grandmother, and she was about to leave with Ace… He says, to go where? and she says she hadn’t decided yet. Trina and Portia walk over to them, and Esme says she wasn’t sure, but Laura gave her a million different reasons why it was a bad idea. She said she wanted her independence – which she does – and that’s when his aunt offered her a job. Trina asks, what’s going on? and Spencer says, Esme got a job. Esme says, as a receptionist, and Spencer says, so Alexis just offered her a job out of the blue? Esme says, she didn’t do it out of the kindness of her heart. She had an agenda, just like every other member of his family, but she can play the game too. And if she’s going to build a life with Ace far away from here, then she’ll need money. He says, wherever she goes with his little brother, he’ll be right behind her, and she says she won’t let him take Ace away from her, but he says, that’s not what he means. She can leave Port Charles. She can go to the ends of the earth, and he’ll be right there to buy a home next to her. She says, as long as she’s with Ace, she really doesn’t care what he does. Wow. I’d have popped him in the nose by now. Esme leaves, and Spencer wonders, what was Aunt Alexis thinking? but Trina says, this is a good thing.
Sam says, whatever Victor had in mind, she’s not up for it, and Alexis suggests they be grateful that Spencer and that baby are back safe, Victor’s stopped, and nobody else was harmed. Sam says she is grateful for that, and the story Alexis put in The Invader was pretty amazing. Alexi says she had help, and Sam says, from whom? Alexis says, from Gregory, and Sam says, the last time they talked, Alexis thought she’d never see Gregory again. Alexis says, he’s full of surprises. After Sam left, he showed up. Sam asks if they worked things out, and Alexis flashes back to Gregory telling her that he has ALS. She says she thought so, and Sam asks what that means. Alexis says, Gregory told her what he’s been dealing with, and Sam says, that’s good, but Alexis says, it’s not good. It’s good he told her, but she hasn’t heard from him since.
Holly says she always thought one day it would be their moment, but Robert says, it never is. She says, and it never will be, and he says he’ll always love her. Nothing’s ever going to change that. He takes her hand, and she cries, saying, but you’ll always be you, and I’ll always be me. She so wishes he was wrong, but he’s not. Love can’t fix this. He says, what now? and she says she has to help her son, one way or the other. He asks how she’s going to do that, and she tells him not to ask questions he doesn’t want the answers to. But she’ll take care of it. He doesn’t have to worry about her. He says, too late.
Sam asks if Gregory and Alexis got into another fight, but Alexis says, they didn’t. In fact, after he told her what was wrong with him, she thought he’d be more accepting of her help. From what he told her, he could use the help. Sam assumes he swore Alexis to secrecy, and Alexis says, he asked her not to tell anyone. Sam says she won’t pry, but it must be pretty hard on Alexis, and Alexis says, what’s hard is, she doesn’t know if this radio silence means he’s in some kind of trouble. Apparently, she’s the only one who knows about this, but if he doesn’t tell her, how can she help him? Sam asks if she tried to talk to him, but Alexis says she’s not comfortable doing that. Sam says, why not? and Alexis says, because he insisted she respect his privacy. Sam says, she can respect his privacy without ignoring him, and Alexis says, if she recalls, Sam is the one who told her to trust him, and if he needs her, he’ll reach out. Sam says, he did. Didn’t that change everything?
Spencer says, if Esme can afford it, she’ll disappear with his brother, and Trina says, or the job can be the reason she stays. The longer Esme stays in Port Charles, the more time he has to convince her that his brother needs him. He and his grandmother can show Esme how important it is for Ace to have a support system. He says, what about Trina? The more Esme is involved with his family, the more Trina is exposed. She says, don’t worry about her. She’s gotten used to having Esme around. Portia listens, and Trina says, Esme will always be part of Spencer’s family, job or no job. That’s part of the deal when you have a family. He asks if he’s told her lately how amazing she is, and she says, about a thousand times, but he can tell her again. Portia doesn’t look thrilled as Spencer kisses Trina’s hand. Taggert asks, what’s wrong? and Portia says, just history repeating itself. This time she’s ready for it.
Jordan asks how Curtis is responsible for what happens to Trina’s family. Did he push for the DNA test? He says, no, Trina wanted that, and she says, then why is he blaming himself? He says, because he’s the complicating factor. Everything was perfect between Trina and the people who raised her. They had the perfect, stable dynamic for twenty years, and here he comes, complicating things. Jordan says, their so-called stable dynamic was already complicated, and not because of him. Portia made her choice, and right or wrong, it’s what she needed to do at the time. But with the revelation that she doesn’t know who Trina’s biological father is, that dynamic was bound to change. Curtis says, but it doesn’t have to. Taggert is always going to love Trina as his daughter, and Trina is always going to love him as her dad. So wouldn’t the best outcome be for those results to show he was her biological father? If that’s the case, Trina can go on living her happy life. Jordan says, spoken like a true father, and he says, honestly, he just wants what’s best for Trina. But selfishly, he wants those results to show that he’s her father. He wants that so bad, it hurts. The only thing that would hurt worse is finding out he’s not her father.
Molly tells TJ that she’s sorry. She feels silly. He says, she just had a bomb dropped on her. Of course (🍷) she’s upset. She says, but she’s a logical person. Her brain completely understands that they can still have a child, and they’ll love that child whether she carries it or not. He says, they will, but her brain isn’t her heart. Her heart is broken. She cries, and says she feels like she just got hit with a baseball bat. She came expecting the worst, but when Dr. Navarro actually said the words, it’s unlikely you’ll get pregnant… He says, it’s not impossible, and she says she told herself it didn’t matter either way. They’re non-traditional people, and if they have a baby by non-traditional means, no one would be surprised. But she thinks it took finding out how unlikely it would be for her, to realize how badly she wanted to be pregnant; how badly she wanted to carry his baby. She cries and says she’s sorry. He puts his forehead against hers. and says he can’t imagine what she’s going through, but they’re here together; he’s with her. They’ll figure this out.
Alexis wonders how she can insert herself into Gregory’s life, and let him come to her at the same time, and Sam says she’s not telling Alexis to press him to talk. She’s just saying Alexis can reach out without being intrusive. She can just call. Send a text or a voicemail letting him know she’s there for him if he needs her help. Alexis asks if she means act like a normal grown up. How did Sam get to be so grown up and so wise? Sam hugs Alexis, and asks, what is normal anyway? It’s in her DNA.
TJ tells Molly that Dr. Navarro downloaded a bunch of information on endometriosis for them to look at… Whenever she’s ready. She asks if it’s okay if she’s not ready yet, and he says, more than okay. Like Dr. Navarro said, she has a lot to process. Molly says, they both do. He doesn’t have to just make this about her. He says he’s thinking positive. They can, and they will, expand their family. She says, just not in the way they thought they would, and he puts his arms around her.
Holly says she should go, and Robert says, right now? She says she wishes they could shut out the world, but they can’t. Letting go of him is going to be the hardest thing she’s ever done… It’s what they both need. She truly wants him to be happy, and she thinks the best is yet to come for him. She kisses his cheek, but it turns into a romantic kiss, and she tells him goodbye. He tells her to take care of herself, and she says she always does. She leaves the pier, and Robert says, goodbye Holly.
Spencer asks if Trina is ready for the DNA test, and says he’ll walk her. They leave, and Taggert says he’s just as upset as Portia is about this, but no good is going to come of her continually talking to Trina about Spencer. Portia says, this is beyond talking, and time for action. He asks what she’s saying, and she tells him that she’s not standing by and watching Spencer take their daughter down. She wants to make sure Spencer is out of Trina’s life for good.
Jordan tells Curtis that she’s sorry, but if there’s one thing she knows, it’s that Curtis Ashford is strong enough to weather whatever comes his way. And he won’t have to go though it alone. She takes his hand, and says, he has so many people who love him, and they’ll be right by his side, no matter what. They stare at each other for a moment, then kiss.
Tomorrow, Sasha tells Nina that she’s taking charge of her life again; Scotty tells Obrecht that he doesn’t want to ruin the surprise; Josslyn says she’s about to take Sonny up on that offer; and Portia tells Taggert that Jordan did that deliberately.
👯♀️ Footstep Following…
Now that they mention it, there’s quite a resemblance.
📝 Not Again…
He has said this before. They wouldn’t dare… would they?
🚓 There’s This Thing Called Uber…
This explains the recast.
🏆 Waiting On Their Award…
No ETA on this or the strike.
💐 Celebrating Moms…
What the soap stars did for their big day.
💍 Congrats, Mate…
I’m happy for him. I like Ben.
https://people.com/tv/below-deck-ben-robinson-engaged-kiara-cabral/
Apparently, everyone’s happy for him.
🍹 Hitting Pause…
Yeah, we’re all tired.
https://www.tvfanatic.com/2023/05/real-housewives-of-new-jersey-put-on-pause-following-exhausting/
🍸 Post Finale Tidbits…
It’s on the Today show, in the New York Times. Scandoval has reached every corner of the globe. Sandoval: Every woman wants to spit on him, and every man wants to distance themselves.
https://www.today.com/popculture/tv/ariana-madix-vanderpump-rules-scandoval-interview-rcna85063
Don’t believe it. If they were that good of actors, they be… actors.
Wednesday morning quarterbacking.
🐶 Who’s a Good Boy…?
Congratulations, Bobi!
https://people.com/pets/worlds-oldest-dog-bobi-turns-31-birthday-party/
🤸🏽♀️ Feeling It Still…
Let us join together tomorrow for soap, tea but no VanderSympathy, words to think about, and music for May. Until then, stay safe, stay not hogging the remote, and stay not asking questions you don’t want the answers to.
What I Watched - TV With Theresa 