What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)
General Hospital
Laura meets Jordan at the crime scene, and asks, what happened? Jordan says she was on her way to Spring Ridge, when she found Mac on the side of the road. She’s glad she did. Now on a stretcher, Mac says, that makes two of them. He’s got to get to Spring Ridge. Jordan says, he has to get to the hospital and get himself checked out, but he says he’s got two fugitives on the loose. She says, he’ll go, and that’s an order, and Laura asks to be brought up to speed. Who are the inmates who escaped? Mac says, Heather Webber and Esme Prince, and Laura asks how he knows about that. He says he’s the one who found them.
Valentin asks Anna where Felicia is. She said she’d be late, but he wonders if something happened to her plan. He doesn’t think Eileen Ashby is the right one to get to Victor. Anna says, she’s all they have, and before she threw in with Valentin’s father, her record was unblemished. Anna doesn’t know what Victor has on her, but Eileen isn’t a career criminal. Valentin says, she’s a politician, and Anna says, she probably didn’t have any idea what casting her lot with Victor would cost her. She’s in over her head. If they keep spooking her, she’s going to crack. She won’t be able to live with the guilt, and hopefully she’ll flip on Victor. Then they’ll be able to get all the evidence they need to put him away. He says, Eileen has been working with his father for a while. He doesn’t know that she still has a conscience.
In a private area at the MetroCourt, Eileen tells Victor that she can’t do this anymore. She’s of no good to him. He says, she’s been moderately useful in the past, and wonders what’s happened to make her lose her grip. Eileen flashes back to hearing Anna say, you’re next, over her car radio, and says, things have gone too far. Anna and Valentin are dead. He says he doesn’t need her to remind him that his son is gone. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made for the greater good, and she’s going to continue to serve as Deputy Mayor and keep him informed. She says she thinks Laura might be on to her, and he says, then she’ll have to apologize to Laura as soon as possible. Tell Laura that she realizes she overstepped her authority in a sad attempt to impress her. The power of the job went to her head, and that’s why she sent in the Federal Marshals. Do whatever it takes so she doesn’t disappoint him.
Victor finds Spencer at the bar, and says, he’s looking very dapper. Spencer says he was at Trina’s mom’s wedding, and Victor says, of course (🍷). Why isn’t he at the reception? Spencer says, the party’s over. He just thought he’d stick around in case a friend needs him.
Taggert wonders where things went south, and Curtis asks Portia if Trina is all right. Spencer told him that Aunt Stella was never sick; that she stayed away from the wedding purposefully. She’s always got her nose in other people’s business. Portia says, Stella was right. This is Curtis’s business… and Taggert’s. Taggert asks Portia why their daughter is bawling her eyes out, and Trina tells him, mom says I may not be your daughter.
Maggie says she has no idea who Esme’s mother is, but with that monster of a father, is it any wonder she gave Esme up for adoption? Who knows if she’s even alive, or how she came to bear Ryan Chamberlain’s child. Sam asks if she’s met Ryan, and Maggie blesses herself, saying, thank the saints, no. She only knows him by reputation. When she thought they’d been sent by him, she was ready to abandon her life here to keep it that way. Sam says, they have absolutely nothing to do with him. He’s a dangerous psychopath. Dante says, Ryan’s locked up, serving a life term in prison, and he’s also paralyzed, so he can’t hurt her. Maggie asks if he can still talk, and Dante says, apparently, no. He blinks to communicate, but he’s locked away. He can’t get to her.
Holding Mac’s gun on Ava and Felicia, Ryan backs them into the living room. He says, that’s right. Nice and easy. No sudden moves please. Felicia asks how he’s here. He couldn’t walk or talk. He says, she thinks she’s seeing things; he’s a medical miracle. Now be a love, and shut those doors. Felicia closes the doors, and Ava says she knew he was faking it. He says, and here he thought he was so convincing. She smiles, and he asks what she’s got to smile about. She says she’s thinking about all those times she saw him at Spring Ridge, taunting him, testing to see if he’d react, and he says, he didn’t. He wins. Thank you. She says, but he heard her and couldn’t do anything about it. He had to sit there and listen. Felicia says, that had to burn. He really was helpless. Weak. He says, not weak. Unless she’d like a further demonstration. He points his gun at Ava.
Spencer asks how Victor is doing, and Victor says, regretting lost time; things left unsaid. He’ll never see his son again. That’s the reality he has to face. The more it sinks in, the more he thinks he needs to mend the rift between himself and Spencer’s father, but he can’t reach Nikolas. Spencer doubts Victor will be hearing from him anytime soon. Ava says he left town.
Jordan asks if they’ve secured the area, and Detective Bennett says, they’ve set up parameters, and have officers to keep looky-loos at a distance while they process. CSI is en route. She tells him to keep her posted, and goes over to Mac. She says, Mac told her that he had Esme and Heather in his sites; who hit him? He says, never saw them. Everything went black. She says, there was a third person. They took his car. Mac says, and his gun, and Jordan tells the paramedics to get Mac to GH. She’ll be there soon. They leave, and Laura says, Spring Ridge reported two inmates missing. Does Jordan think Esme and Heather had a third person on the outside? And how did those two end up together to begin with? Jordan says, they were seen talking in the common room. Maybe they bonded? She leaves to follow up with Spring Ridge, and Laura wonders why Heather would side herself with a woman nine months pregnant.
Maggie says, Esme became obsessed with tracking down her birth parents. There were no records, and the only clue to their identity was a four-leaf clover brooch. It was pinned to the baby blanket that swaddled Esme when she was left with the nuns. She helped Esme track down the person who commissioned it, Connie Cooper. Ryan Chamberlain’s first victim.
Ryan says, all Felicia has to do is show him the respect he deserves, and asks what she’s doing here anyway. She’s far too self-righteous to ever be a friend to Ava. He thinks ultimately that’s why they didn’t work out. Felicia says, she thought it was because he almost burned to death in that funhouse, and he says, that too. But then again, there’s nothing like your first love. Which reminds him, Mac didn’t mention she’d be here when he saw Mac earlier. Felicia asks if Ryan saw Mac at Spring Ridge, but he says, no. He ran into Mac when he was on his way there. She doesn’t recognize his gun? He won’t be needing this anymore. She asks what he did to Mac, but he says he doesn’t think she wants the details. Not after he spent all that time in Spring ridge, pretending to be locked in. Day after day, month after month; all his rage and hatred bult up until he thought he’d explode. And then suddenly he was free, and then there was Mac. He might have gotten carried away.
Curtis asks if what Trina is saying is true. When he found out about Trina, he asked Portia if she was his daughter. She looked him in his eyes, and said it was impossible. Portia cries and says, it’s what she wanted to believe. Taggert says, Trina’s not his? and Curtis asks if he’s Trina’s father. Portia says she doesn’t know, and Trina says she can’t hear this again. She leaves, and Taggert follows her.
Sam wonders if Connie was Esme’s mother, but Maggie says, she was killed before Esme was born, by Ryan Chamberlain. The brooch was missing when Connie’s body was found. Dante says, Ryan used to collect trophies from his victims; they found one on Cabrera. Sam says, taking the brooch is the sick sense of humor Ryan has, but Dante thinks it’s a bit of a stretch; the brooch proving Ryan is Esme’s father. Maggie says, true or not, Esme was convinced.
At the hospital, Laura asks Warden Brewster how Heather and Esme got out, and Jordan asks about security footage. The warden says, there was a problem with one of the cameras in the corridor. He can tell them, none of the doors appeared to be forced. One of the guards is also missing. Laura says, Heather’s hostage perhaps? when Eileen joins them, and says, or accomplice. What kind of guard gets ambushed by two women, one of whom is pregnant? Laura thinks it’s early to assign blame, and thanks the warden, asking him to keep her posted. He leaves with Jordan, and Laura asks what Eileen is doing here.
Felicia says, Ryan’s lying; Mac’s fine. Ava says, of course (🍷) he is. Felicia knows Mac can take care of himself. Ryan says, maybe. If Mac had seen him coming. Felicia calls him a sick bastard, and Ava asks if he has a plan here. He just escaped from prison to get himself trapped on an island? He’s slipping. He asks if she’s worried about who’s going to come save her. He doesn’t think Avery would be much of a challenge, and of course (🍷) Kiki’s dead. Ava tells him not to speak her name, and he says, too soon? He’s sorry. He couldn’t think of anybody else… except for that waste of space Nikolas. He’d love to see him again. When is hubby expected home anyway? I just had a scathingly brilliant idea. Ava should show Ryan Nikolas’s dead body, shove him in the closet with Nikolas, lock it, and blame him for killing Nikolas. Boom. Win-win.
Taggert finds Trina outside, and asks what she’s doing out here in the cold, as he puts his jacket around her shoulders. She thanks him, and says, she’s not even cold; she just feels numb. Like her life is ending. He says, they’ll figure this out, but she wonders how he can say that. Her mom has been lying them her entire life. Doesn’t that matter to him? He says, no, because she has been and always will be his daughter, his baby girl. He holds her, and says he’s not going anywhere.
Curtis says, Portia lied. All those talk they had about having kids, and she didn’t tell him that he already had one – with her. She says she didn’t know for sure, and he says, because she didn’t want to find out. She says, he walked away from her. He hated her… He says, for lying to him about being married, and she says, he made it clear he didn’t want anything to do with her; no discussion. She thought he was out of her life. Taggert was making an effort for the first time in a long time. She wanted to save her marriage, especially with a baby on the way. He says, a baby that might have been his. He had the right to know if he was going to be a father. She says, in her mind, Taggert was going to be a father, and Curtis was gone. What was she supposed to do? Was she supposed to destroy her marriage and the possibility of a family because Curtis might want to be a part-time dad? With a woman he didn’t want anything to do with and didn’t trust? He says, she’s justifying her lie, but she says she’s telling him where her head was at. She was afraid of losing everything when she needed love and companionship the most. She cries, and says she knows she should have been braver. She should have been honest with him. But there was a chance Taggert was the father, so that’s what she told herself. She wanted her child to grow up in a loving family. She just wanted Trina to have a happy home. He says, a happy home without him.
Eileen tells Laura that she heard about the escape and the attack on Mac, and she came to see if she could be of any help. Laura says, Mac is going to be fine, and everything is under control. Eileen says she wants to apologize for overstepping while Laura was away. She was just eager to prove she could handle the job, and live up to Laura’s expectations. Laura says she appreciates it, and there is something Eileen can do for her. Go deal with the reporters outside the hospital. She can confirm there are two inmates missing, but don’t give out any names. Eileen says, on it, and leaves.
Victor asks if Nikolas said goodbye, but Spencer says, no. His father was furious with him the last time they spoke, when he told Nikolas that he was suing for custody of his kid. Eileen calls Victor, and he steps away to take it. He says he thought he made himself clear. The subject of her moving on is closed. Eileen tells him, Esme Prince has escaped from Spring Ridge, and he asks, when? She says, at least an hour ago. It’s not clear how she got out. He tells her to keep him posted, and goes back to the bar. Spencer asks if that was about his father, but Victor says, no, his ex-girlfriend. Seems Esme has escaped.
Valentin’s phone dings, and Anna wonders, where’s Felicia? She asks if it’s his contact, and he says, they’re all set. The next time Eileen Ashby uses her phone, they’ll be ready.
On the phone, Jordan asks if Dante found Maggie, and he says, they did. She knows who Esme thinks her father is. Jordan says, just give her the name and explain later. She’s in the middle of a situation. Esme’s escaped from Spring Ridge, and she’s with Heather Webber. Dante looks like he had a headache, and says, Esme thinks her father is Ryan Chamberlain. Jordan says, what the hell? and Laura says, more bad news? Jordan tells Dante to hold on, and tells Laura, Ryan Chamberlain is Esme’s father. Warden Brewster joins them, and says he has an update. Correction Officer Williams has been located in Ryan Chamberlain’s cell. He was dressed as an inmate, and propped up in Chamberlain’s wheelchair. Laura says, so it was staged. He’s… the warden says, dead. The report is that he was stabbed in the back. He was mistaken for Chamberlain in the initial sweep. Jordan says, Ryan Chamberlain’s on the loose too? How is that possible?
Ryan says, Ava doesn’t look very confident that hubby will show, let alone ride to the rescue. He knew she and Nikolas wouldn’t work out. Not as long as she shares a soul with him. She says, he hasn’t got a soul, and he says, figure of speech. They’re alike. Two peas in a pod. Felicia says, someone will come for them. They have people who care about them. Ava asks who helped him escape, or did they figure out he was faking? He asks if she thinks he’d give himself away. He still has Ava’s fingernail marks on his arm. His aide was valuable enough, but the person he let in on his secret was much more worthy. Chip off the old block you might say.
Portia says, everything Curtis is saying, she said to herself a thousand times. She was wrong, but did what she thought was best for all of them at the time. Curtis was gone. How was she supposed to know he’d want a baby with a woman he despised? He says, she could have kept him in the loop. He never despised her. He broke things off because she was married. He walked away from her, but he never would have walked away from his child. She says she never thought she’d see him again, and he says, but she did. Never mind what happened twenty years ago, what about the last two years? When they realized they both lived in Port Charles and her relationship with Taggert was over? Why didn’t she tell him the truth then?
Eileen calls Warden Brewster, asking for an update before she talks to the press. Have they determined how the inmates escaped? He says, actually… but there’s suddenly interference on the line, and she asks if he’s there. Anna’s voice says, you’re next, Eileen. You’re next. Eileen asks who this is, and Anna says, she knows who it is. Eileen killed her. Eileen says she didn’t know, and Anna says, yes, she did. She has blood on her hands. There’s static, and Brewster says, hello? She asks if he heard that, and he says he thinks their connection was temporarily lost.
Anna asks Valentin how she did. Was it scary? He says he thinks it was hot, and kisses her.
Laura tells Mac, this puts Esme’s obsession with Ryan in whole new light. That’s why she was so desperate to see him, especially after Doc made him off-limits to her. Mac says he can’t get Felicia on the phone; it rolls right to voicemail. If Chamberlain’s on the loose, she could be in danger. Chamberlain’s wheelchair was left behind. He could have been faking his paralysis the whole time. Jordan says, Heather Webber sometimes acted as Chamberlain’s aide: she knew how to communicate with him. She wanted Robert to use her as an informant so she could get Chamberlain talking. Laura says, sounds like they’ve been planning their escape for a while, and Mac’s call goes through. He asks Felicia where she is, and Ryan says, how’s his head? Mac says, Chamberlain? and Ryan says, he’s coming off a little needy, always calling his wife. Doesn’t he trust her? Mac tells him, put Felicia on the phone, but Ryan says, she can’t come to the phone right now. Mac says, touch her, and he’ll kill Ryan, and Ryan says, yeah, yeah; predictable. Felicia is with him as his insurance policy. If he sees a cop, Felicia dies. Mac wants her alive, stay out of his way. He hangs up.
Victor wonders if Nikolas could have sprung Esme from Spring Ridge. Could he be taking the mother of his child away, so Spencer can’t get custody? Spencer wonders if Esme has been faking the memory loss. Perhaps she’s not the blank slate she pretends to be. That means Trina could still be in danger. Victor says, the police cleared Esme of being The Hook killer, and if she’s on the run, he doubts she’d take the time to settle a score. Spencer says he’s not taking any chances. Esme is all about revenge. He jets.
Taggert dries Trina’s tears, and says, better? but she says she’s still numb, which she suspects is for the best. Did Taggert ever suspect she wasn’t his? She remembers when she was little and being a brat, he would yell to mom to get her daughter. He says he was just joking. Her mom would turn it around on him when she got frustrated with Trina’s messes, but he never for a moment thought she wasn’t his daughter. She says, even when mom cheated on him? and he says, even then. She asks how he could forgive Portia after she betrayed him like that, and he says he struggled for a bit, but it takes two people to ruin a marriage, and he left her mom hanging. He made her feel like she wasn’t important in his life, and the affair was a wake-up call. He didn’t want to lose Portia. Then he found out Trina was coming, and didn’t want to lose her. So he forgave Portia. They were happy for a while, but then he got all crazy about that Cyrus case. Trina says, after all the talks she and Portia had about being honest with each other, this whole time, she was the liar. Trina will never forgive her.
Portia says, for the last two year she’s agonized over telling Curtis, and he says, so it’s crossed her mind. She says, of course (🍷) it has. He’d be an amazing father, but Trina already had an amazing father, and they were so close. It was hard to imagine blowing that up. And when they thought Taggert died in the warehouse, Trina was grieving so hard. How could she tell Trina that the man she loved might not be her father? She couldn’t take that away from her. He says, so she lied instead.
Felicia says, Ryan was lying; Mac is fine. He says he just forgets what a hard head her husband has. He should have taken care of Mac when he had the chance. Lesson learned. Austin comes into the foyer, but before he opens the living room door, he hears Ryan say, okay, ladies, it’s time to go. They’ve taken too long already; they could be getting impatient. Felicia asks, who’s with him? and he says, kindred spirits. One of them is special, and he can’t wait for them to meet her. Ava says, they’re not going anywhere with him, and he says, she might be right. They might have a problem. Austin listens from the foyer.
Anna says, Valentin’s contact really paid off. Tapping in on Eileen’s phone call was perfect. Eileen’s afraid. He says, maybe Felicia’s plan is going to work out after all, but Anna says she’s beginning to think there’s a problem.
Mac says, Felicia’s phone immediately goes to voicemail, and tells Jordan to call IT. She says she already did. Did he hear any background sound? He says, no, and Laura says, Felicia is strong, she’s smart, and she knows how to fight back. He says, that’s what he’s afraid of. Chamberlain’s been obsessed with Felicia for decades. When Ryan fixated on Ava, he thought she was safe. Apparently not. Laura says she thinks she knows where to look.
On the phone, Victor says, his nephew Nikolas has left town, and he’s not about to lose any more family. Find him.
Taggert says, no matter what happens, nothing changes between him and Trina. She says, he always tries to make her feel better, and he says, that’s what fathers do. He hugs her, when Spencer comes out, and says he’s sorry to interrupt. Taggert says, then don’t, but Spencer says, it’s important. Taggert says, so is this, but Trina says she doesn’t really want to talk about this anymore. She’ll call him. She gives him back his coat, and they hug. She tells Spencer, get her out of here, and they leave.
Portia says she never wanted to take anything from Curtis. She loves him. The longer she stayed silent, the worse the consequences if she did speak up, so she lived with the constant anxiety and guilt. She didn’t want to jeopardize the life they planned together for something that might not even be true. He asks, what kind of life could they have had with that kind of lie between them?
Maggie jumps out of her chair, and says, Dante told her Ryan Chamberlain was in prison and helpless. Dante says, because he was the last time they checked, and Sam asks what Heather Webber has to do with any of this, but Dante has no idea. Maggie says, now that he’s taken Esme, they have to find her. They have to stop Ryan before he kills again.
Felicia asks, what’s the problem? and Ryan says, there’s not enough room in the boat for all of them. One of them is coming with him, and the other is never leaving this room. Now who’s ready to say goodbye?
Austin takes out his phone, as The Hook slips in. He turns to see the hook raised up.
On Monday, Curtis asks if Portia was ever going to find out the truth; Laura can’t shake the feeling she’s missing something; and Heather asks if there are any last words.
🥀 The Bad News First…
I kinds, sorta remember her from GH, but more so from her films.
🌞 Now the Good News…
And some beautiful blue eyes.
🧂 Shahmacked…
I missed a lot of this on the actual show, but kept up with the aftermath. Again, like with Kathy Hilton, it’s so convenient that there’s no footage. Although no doubt Jen is capable of giving someone a black eye.
And she’s headed for the slammer anyway.
⚓️ Bad Delivery…
Maybe fungus would have been a better choice. I see both sides, but her delivery was poor. As I’ve said they could do worse, but Captain Sandy has been a mite cranky while filling in for Captain Lee. On the other hand, Fraser was being very unprofessional, and didn’t have to overreact when called on it, regardless of the captain’s lack of tact. On the third hand (it goes with the third eye), the bottom line is, this is Captain Lee’s boat and it might have gone differently with him – the same as with Hannah, although not his boat that time – so Captain Sandy should keep that in mind.
👾 No Mario Brothers…
Most of this is foreign to me, having never been a video game player. I was too afraid I’d get sucked into the void. Although in watching the series, I can see the parallel. It’s like the characters go to the next level… or not.
https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/the-last-of-us-all-differences-between-tlou-game-tv-show-2034193/
⚰️ Dead Byproducts…
The latest about TWD spinoffs.
Proof things are moving forward.
https://collider.com/walking-dead-rick-and-michonne-spinoff-behind-the-scenes-image/
https://collider.com/the-walking-dead-daryl-dixon-images/
🐕 From Tail To Tale…
I’ll bet she never had to call the owner in Belgium to tell him that his cat had to be put to sleep. Or find out that Buttons’ woo-woo sound at 3 am did not necessarily mean he needed to go out. I was a pet sitter too.
🐱 Making the World Brighter…
Celebrity pets doin’ it for the ‘gram.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/kaileyhansen/celeb-pet-owners
🐝 Quotes of the Week
Those who do not find time for exercise will have to find time for illness. – Earl of Derby (I don’t have time for illness either.)
A narcissist’s weapon of choice is often verbal — slander, lies, playing the victim in flipped tales of who was the victim and who was the abuser, gossip, rage, verbal abuse and intentional infliction of emotional pain. It is a systematic dismantling of another person’s relationships, reputation, emotional, physical and spiritual health, life and very soul. This is why narcissists are so often called ‘emotional vampires.’ – Gail Meyers
Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit. – Conrad Hilton
Do what you feel in your heart to be right – for you’ll be criticized anyway. – Eleanor Roosevelt
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. – Melody Beattie
You’re only as young as the last time you changed your mind. – Timothy Leary
That’s the trouble with your whole MTV, microwave dinner generation. You want it all now. You think you deserve it just because you want it? It doesn’t work like that. You have to earn it, you have to take it, you have to make it yours. but before you do that, Guy, you need to decide what it is you really want. – Buddy Ackerman (Kevin Spacey), Swimming with Sharks
For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness. – Ralph Waldo Emerson (Uh-oh.)
Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. That is why some people with mediocre talent, but with great inner drive, go much further than people with vastly superior talent. – Sophia Loren
If exhausted from severe and long-continued thought, he had to touch the earth again to renew his strength. When this weariness set in he would stop thought, and get down with a little dog or kitten to recover. – William Herndon, Abraham Lincoln‘s business partner
If you set your goals ridiculously high and it’s a failure, you will fail above everyone else’s success. – James Cameron
🐯 Can’t Be Tamed…
Let’s meet again on Monday really Tuesday for soap and more Deck drama. Until then, stay safe, stay saying what you mean and meaning what you say, and stay making your partner feel important in your life before you get a wake-up call.