What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Elizabeth says, the beating Drew took was severe, and the doctor says he’s concerned about Drew not regaining consciousness. He hopes the X-rays and CT scan will give them more answers. He asks Elizabeth to let him know when Drew is back in ICU and when the test results come in. Jake comes in, and Elizabeth says, it’s not a good time, but he says he has to talk to her about Charlotte.

Charlotte sleeps on the couch, and Anna wakes her, saying, she fell asleep. Charlotte asks, where’s papa? and Anna says, he’s not here. Charlotte asks if he’s coming back, but Anna says she doubts it. He has other things to do. He’s very busy. Charlotte says she needs to see him, but Anna says, he doesn’t have time. Charlotte says, Valentin always has time for her, and Anna says, that was before. Charlotte says, before what? and Anna says, before he fell in love with her. He’s all hers now. Charlotte says, no, but Anna says, he’s mine, all mine. Charlotte keeps saying she wants papa, but Anna just smiles. Charlotte sits up, and Nina says, she had a bad dream. It’s just a bad dream.

Anna nearly walks into Portia, mumbles an apology, and keeps on walking. Portia asks her to wait.

At Charlie’s, Blaze looks at a headline from The Invader on her phone: BLQ OUT @ DECEPTION; Quartermaine heiress and former songbird given the boot. Brook runs in and says she’s so, so sorry she’s late. She was on her way, and life happens. She promises she didn’t ask Blaze to come here to waste her time or beat around the bush. After a lot of soul searching, and a fair amount of family drama, she’s decided to go back to music management. She’d like to sign Blaze as her first client. So what does Blaze say?

Alexis walks into Charlie’s, and Kristina says, fancy seeing her here. Alexis says she’s here to see her daughter, and Kristina asks if her daughter is meeting her here. Alexis says, Kristina’s her daughter; she’s here to see her. Kristina asks, what’s up? and Alexis says she has a message from Kristina’s sister. Kristina tells her, please say Sam, but Alexis says, Molly.

Molly approaches the nurses station and asks if the reception nurse knows where she can find Dr. Ashford.

TJ sees Curtis and asks what he’s doing at the hospital. Curtis says he had a check-up appointment and thought he’d stick around and see TJ. TJ says, that’s great; he has a little break right now. How was the check-up? Curtis says, same, when Molly joins them. She says, Curtis is here too. Perfect. TJ asks, what’s going on? and she says she has news to share.

On the phone at Pozzulo’s, Sonny says he doesn’t want any more excuses. Understand?… Yeah. He’s done. Just let him know. Dex runs in, and says, Drew Cain was attacked and beaten up. Sonny says, what? and Dex says, they told him it’s bad. Sonny asks, how bad? and Dex says, they took him to the hospital.

Jake says, Elizabeth came in late last night and left early this morning. He didn’t get a chance to talk to her. She asks if they can talk about this later, but he says he just needs a few minutes. It’s about Charlotte. It’s important. She says, okay, and seeing Carly run in, she asks him to wait for her. Carly asks where Drew is, and Elizabeth says, he’s in the ICU, but he’s been taken for some tests. Carly asks if Elizabeth saw him, and she says, yes. Carly asks how he looks. Did he say anything? Elizabeth says, he hasn’t regained consciousness since the beating, and Carly says, please tell her it’s going to be okay. Elizabeth says, Drew’s getting the best care possible. They just have to wait for the tests to come back. Carly says she knows Elizabeth is just trying to be professional, but please tell her what’s going on. She’s just going to call Monica, and Monica will tell her. Elizabeth says, Monica is in Berlin for a conference, and there’s no need to notify her until they know more. Drew put Carly down as his emergency contact. The doctor will talk to her as soon as he has any information. Carly says, he never should have been in that prison, and asks if Elizabeth thinks this is her fault. It is. It’s 100% her fault. Elizabeth says, Drew made his own choices, and this isn’t about blame. She has to go talk to her son. Carly says, Jake’s here? but Elizabeth says, he’s here about something else. She hasn’t told him anything yet. He already lost his dad and Franco, and at one point, Drew was a father figure in his life, and if he loses him too…

Nina tells Charlotte, it’s okay. Sometimes it helps if you talk about your bad dream. Charlotte says she’s already forgetting what it was about, and Nina says, that happens to her. Sometimes if she has a bad dream, she concentrates and she realizes it’s something that happened in the past. Sometimes it’s something she did the day before. Valentin comes in, and Charlotte runs to him, hugging him. Nina says, Charlotte had a bad dream.

Brook says she’s so sorry to spring this on Blaze. She would have worked up to it, but she walked in so late. Blaze says, it’s okay. She had a great conversation with the manager while she was waiting. Brook says, Kristina, she’s the best, and Blaze says, she seems like a cool person. Brook says, she’s super cool, and she sings too. She sang at the Nurses Ball. She was terrific. Blaze says she saw the video online; Kristina was great. She thinks she embarrassed Kristina by watching it. Brook says, people not in the business tend to be embarrassed by their talents, but Blaze is in the business and she’s here with a proposal to get Blaze front and center, and get her career to the next level. She brings out her tablet and says, since Blaze dropped that sleaze Linc, the public hasn’t heard from her. They’re going to change that.

Kristina says she swears, she’s given Molly all the space she’s asked for, but Alexis says, this isn’t anything bad. In fact, it’s good news. Molly just found out from her surrogate that she’s pregnant. So Molly and TJ are having a baby.

Molly says she was going to wait until TJ got off work to tell him, but she’s too excited. Curtis says, they probably want to be alone, but Molly says she’s really glad Curtis is here. She wants them to know; she wants the whole family to know. She takes TJ’s hand and says, it worked. Andrea is pregnant. TJ says, we’re having a baby? and she says, we’re having a baby. He picks her up and spins her around, while Curtis smiles wide.

Sonny asks, what the hell happened? He told Dex to make certain Drew is off limits. Dex says, that’s exactly what he told Book when he visited the prison. He made sure everyone knew Drew was being protected by Sonny Corinthos. Sonny says, who’s after him? and Dex says, that’s what he’s trying to find out. Sonny says, someone went against his orders? and Dex says, yes. Sonny says, that someone needs to be punished, and Dex asks what Sonny wants him to do. Sonny says, they’re going to find out who that someone is, and they’re going to make them pay. Where is Drew right now? Dex says, they took him to GH, and Sonny says, let’s go.

Anna asks bodyguard Tre to make himself scarce, and Portia says she thinks they need to clear the air. Anna says, they don’t. She should have never come to their house. She should have called first. She really needed to see Curtis and needed to apologize. She’s sorry. Portia says, Curtis doesn’t blame Anna, and Anna says she knows. Curtis was extremely gracious. Portia says, and she wasn’t, but Anna says, that’s not what she meant. There was nothing Portia said that was unjustified. Portia says she knows that, but it was out of proportion. Anna was there and it was convenient for her to focus all of her anger on Anna, but she didn’t deserve all of it. Anna says, all of it.

Elizabeth promises to let Carly know as soon as she hears anything, but it could be a long wait. Carly says she’s not going anywhere. Not until she sees Drew. Is Elizabeth going to tell Jake? Elizabeth says she doesn’t know, and Carly says she’s sorry. Go.

Elizabeth goes over to Jake, and says she’s sorry she took so long, but she is working and doesn’t have a lot of time. What did he want to tell her? He says he was with Charlotte last night.

Charlotte says she doesn’t even remember her dream. She’s just glad Valentin came. He asks what they’ve been up to, and Nina says, they went to Kelly’s for some breakfast, then they did some window shopping and saw some really great ideas for winter clothes. Charlotte agrees, and Nina says, then they came back here and Charlotte read Crimson magazine and fell asleep. Valentin suggests he and Charlotte do something together, and Charlotte says, what? He says, it’s a surprise. It’s going to make that bad dream fly right out of her head. Charlotte says she’ll go get her jacket, and goes in the bedroom. Nina asks, what if she was dreaming about what she’s done to Anna? and he says, who knows? He just hopes what he has planned is going to make them all move past it.

Portia tells Anna that she apologizes for her actions the other night. She’s still angry. She’s angry that Curtis was collateral damage because someone was targeting Anna or Sonny. She knows Anna didn’t pull the trigger, but Curtis is in a wheelchair. He’s in a wheelchair through no fault of his own. It’s one thing to take responsibility for your own actions, but it’s a whole other thing to have to pay the price for someone else’s.

Brook shows Blaze the tablet, and says, these are some platforms she thinks might help get Blaze back in the public eye. Concerts, social media, potential producers, collaborators… Blaze says, interesting, and Brook says she knows how important it is for Blaze to be herself and not some image like Linc conjured up. So she’s open to suggestion. Blaze says she can see Brook put a lot of work into it. She’s really into this, isn’t she? Brook says, yeah. She enjoyed trying to push Chase’s career. He’s an amazing performer, but if your heart’s not in it, what’s the point? But Blaze is so committed. Brook can see it in her performances. She hopes Blaze knows how much she respects her, and that she’d never do anything to make Blaze feel uncomfortable or dishonest, which is why she’s so excited to sign Blaze as her first client. Blaze says, okay, but Brook keeps going. She says, and Blaze is such a unique talent. That’s something she doesn’t think Linc ever really saw. She has great style, and Brook really wants to help her reach the next level in her career. Not just in business, but through songwriting. Blaze tells Brook that she said okay, and Brook says, excuse me? Blaze says, O…K, and Brook asks if she’s saying yes. Blaze says she is; she’s in. Brook says, just like that? and Blaze says, just like that. Brook stood up for her when everyone else looked away. She’s not sure she would have been able to get away from Linc if it hadn’t been for Brook.

Kristina says, Molly just found out? and Alexis says, today. Kristina asks if it isn’t a little early in the pregnancy to be telling people, and Alexis says, it is, and she promised Molly that when she talked to Kristina, she’d say they cautiously had good news. It was Molly’s decision, and Alexis thought it would be great if they could all be supportive together. Kristina says, of course (🍷). They must be really excited. She knows Molly and TJ both really want this baby. Alexis says, fingers crossed it’s all worked out for them, and Kristina says, it has. Alexis says, what? and Kristina says, it would have been nice if she’d had that moment with her sister where Molly tells Kristina herself, and she got to see the look on Molly’s face. But she’s hearing it secondhand, and if she’s honest, it hurts a little.

Molly hugs Curtis, and he says, that’s great news. She says she knows it’s a little early and some people think she should have waited, but Andrea’s already glowing and she’s so positive about everything. TJ asks if she called this morning, but Molly says, Andrea actually came to the courthouse to tell her in person. Her mom was there, so she already knows, and Curtis can tell Portia and the rest of the family. TJ asks if anyone else knows, and Molly says her mom is going to tell Kristina. She hopes that’s okay.

Elizabeth says, Jake was with Charlotte? She thought he was with his friend Angus. He says he’s sorry. He guesses he was a little embarrassed that he was seeing Charlotte again. She asks, why? and he says, she’s a girl. She says, and he felt the need to tell her this now? and he says he shouldn’t have told her he was seeing Angus. And Charlotte was taking all of these selfies of them. She says she sees. He was afraid if Charlotte posted them, she’d find out. He says he’s sorry.

Sonny and Dex come out of the hospital elevator, and Dex says he’ll see what he can find out. And he’ll make that call for Sonny. Sonny walks over to Carly, and she says, Sonny promised to protect him. He says he doesn’t know what went wrong and he’s sorry. She says, Drew is fighting for his life. They put him in danger for asking him to find out information. He tells her, Drew said he wanted to find out who Austin was visiting in Pentenville, and she says, for Sonny. He says, Drew’s a smart guy. He’s sure when Drew asked questions, he was careful. She says, really? Then why is he in the hospital right now?

Elizabeth says, maybe Jake has a thing for Charlotte, and he says, stop it. She tells him, she’s just saying. He’s been spending a lot of time with her lately. What is it he likes about her? He says, everything. Plus, she likes him.

Charlotte, Nina, and Valentin approach a house, and Charlotte asks what they’re doing here. Whose house is this? Valentin says, see for herself, and opens the front door. They go inside a gorgeous, beautifully furnished living room with floor to ceiling windows.

Anna says she thinks Portia summed it up pretty well, and Portia says she knows Curtis and Anna got closer from the time they spent together in Greenland. She hopes Anna knows how much she appreciates what Anna did to save her daughter. Anna says, it was a group effort, and Portia says she’s just trying to clear the air, but Anna says she doesn’t have to apologize, because Portia was right. Curtis doesn’t deserve to suffer the consequences meant for someone else. No one does. Portia says she heard about Anna’s home; how her house burned down and she lost everything. She’s so sorry. Anna says, it’s just things. She thinks they’ve both been through enough to know things aren’t important. Portia says, the fire could have cost her a lot more, and she’s glad Anna’s okay. Curtis also told her the story about how she saved Valentin’s life. Wow. The two of them are closer now. She’s glad Anna has someone in her life. Anna thanks her, and Portia leaves. Anna flashes back to telling Valentin, each new layer that gets peeled back, she gets to see who he really is. Like maybe she never knew him. He tells her that he loves her, but she says, he’s not answering her question, and he admits he wasn’t at ELQ the night of the fire. She remembers him telling her that the footage outside of her suite the night of the break-in is missing. Tre comes back, and she asks him if they can meet at the car. She’s perfectly safe here. He leaves.

Brook says she let what happened with Blaze and Linc go on for too long, and Blaze says, so did she. If Brook hadn’t finally stepped in, who knows what could have happened? Brook says she should have stepped in sooner, but Blaze says, stop. Not to pat themselves on the back, but doesn’t she think anyone who met them would think they were two strong women? Brook says, if they didn’t, they wouldn’t hesitate to correct them, and Blaze says, yet somehow, they both managed to let a man like Linc take advantage of them. Brook says she thinks back, and she still can’t believe it, and Blaze says she went to a support group for survivors of both physical and emotional abuse. There were women in there like them; strong, intelligent women who went through the same thing. Guys who are predators have had a lot of practice. They know what buttons to push, what vulnerabilities to take advantage of, and they do it all with a slimy smile on their face. Seeing Brook put Linc in his place was absolutely priceless. Brook exposed him to everyone for exactly who he was. And now he’s canceled. Brook says, amen to that, and they clink glasses.

Sonny tells Carly, Drew is tough; he’s going to get through this. She asks how he knows. He hasn’t even regained consciousness. He was beaten so badly, who knows if he even will. Sonny says he’s going to figure out who did this, and she says, and then what? He says, as soon as Drew gets better, Diane is going to do everything she can to get him released from Pentenville. She asks if he’ll even be alive to get released.

Blaze asks if Brook brought papers or is there a contract she can sign on that fancy tablet of Brook’s? Brook asks if Blaze doesn’t want to take some time and think it over, but Blaze says she knows she can count on Brook, not just to promote her, but to care about her. Brook says she does, and Blaze asks, what about Deception? Brook says she’ll miss the people, but that world never really spoke to her. Blaze shows Brook her phone and says, it’s speaking in all caps now. Does this have anything to do with Brook going into music management? Brook says, bad news travels fast.

Alexis asks if Kristina thinks it’s possible she’s being a little overly sensitive about this, and Kristina asks, how? Her own sister can’t even pick up the phone and tell her the news herself? Alexis says, because she was excited and wanted to have lunch with the surrogate; they wanted to celebrate. Kristina wonders if Molly asked Alexis to tell her, or was this perhaps Alexis’s idea? Alexis says, well… and Kristina says, this is unbelievable. It just keeps getting better and better. Alexis says, please don’t… Kristina says, don’t what? Her sister has explicitly singled her out to be completely hands-off to her surrogacy journey, and now her mother has to beg Molly to let her in on the news that the baby’s on its way? Alexis says she didn’t beg Molly, and the baby is far from being on its way. They both know how much pressure Molly’s been under, and frankly, she doesn’t think Molly’s been able to even process the fact she can’t get pregnant. But now that the surrogate is pregnant, maybe Molly can relax, and they can just support her and give her some space. Kristina says she’s giving Molly all the space she’s asked for. Is she honestly that overbearing? Molly’s her sister. Why does Molly not want a relationship with her?

TJ says he thinks it’s great that Molly’s mom is telling Kristina, but for now, let’s just keep it family. Molly says, of course (🍷), and her phone rings. She says, it’s the office, and steps away to take the call. Curtis says, so TJ is going to be a dad, and TJ says, in nine months, if all goes well. Curtis says, so far, so good, right? and TJ says, right. Curtis asks if he’d be right in assessing that TJ is overjoyed. He’s honestly never seen TJ so happy. TJ asks, how could he be happier? He’s going to be a dad. They shake hands bro style.

Charlotte tells Valentin, it’s beautiful, when Nina’s phone rings and she excuses herself, going outside. She asks Dex, what’s up? and he says, sorry to bother her. He knows she was supposed to meet Sonny at the MetroCourt in a little while. She asks if something is wrong, and Dex says, no. He had to come to GH. Drew Cain is here. Nina asks if he’s okay, and Dex says he’s not sure. He was beaten up pretty badly in Pentenville. She thanks him for letting her know.

Valentin tells Charlotte, the lot is a little more than two acres and they’re less than half a mile from Winding Road Stables. She says, that’s where Butterscotch is boarded, and he says, and they’re just a short drive from her school. Nina comes back in, and Charlotte says, it’s perfect. Is he thinking of buying it? He says he’s not thinking of buying it… because he already bought it. She hugs him and says, this is their house? For real? He says, for real. He knows it’s been a long time coming, but from now on, this is their home. She says she loves it.

Sonny tells Carly not to go to the worst-case scenario, but she says she loves Drew, and he might die because someone told the SEC what they did. Then some power-hungry judge gave him an insane sentence for it, just to further his career. It’s wrong. It’s all wrong. She walks away.

In the elevator, Dex asks Sonny if he thinks the guy from Pikeman had something to do with Drew getting attacked, but Sonny wonders why Pikeman would care about Drew Cain. Dex says, what if they found out Sonny was protecting him? It might have been their way of sending Sonny a message. The guy’s threat wasn’t exactly subtle. Sonny says, good thinking, but there’s a lot of people in Pentenville who would have it in for Drew if they knew Drew was helping him. Dex says, there are a lot of guys in there from the other Families who are locked up, right? He takes out his phone and asks if any of the names jump out. Sonny says, they’d love to take him down, and Dex says he’ll keep pushing. He made that call to Nina. They come out of the elevator and hear Portia saying she’s so happy for Molly and TJ. Curtis says he thinks they should celebrate at The Savoy because his dad just managed to book Eddie Maine, and TJ asks if Curtis will be there. Curtis says he will, and Molly says, they’ll see them later. She leaves with TJ, and Portia sees Sonny starting to head toward them. She stops smiling, and tells Curtis that they should get out of here too, and get ready for tonight. She wheels Curtis away, and Dex asks if Sonny wants him to hang around, but Sonny tells him to go. He’ll call Dex if he needs him.

Alexis says, Kristina is not overbearing. Maybe a little impatient. Kristina says she feels like the way things are going right now, she’s never getting her sister back. Alexis says, since Kristina has this instinct that she’s inherited from her, sometimes it’s best not to tackle a problem head on. Kristina asks what she’s supposed to do; sit around and wait? Alexis says, yes. This baby’s a blessing for Molly and TJ, so let them have their moment and when they’re ready, they’ll reach out. Kristina says, okay. She really is happy for Molly. Alexis says she knows, and she knows Molly knows that too. Anyway, Kristina has big things to do right now. Diane said she has her first board meeting for the youth center. Kristina says she does, and she’s excited about that, but she’s not excited about talking about her least favorite topic. Alexis says, fundraising. It’s a drag, but she has to come up with an idea to get people pumped up. Kristina says she’s been wracking her brain to think about something – she looks over at Brook and Blaze – and she thinks she may have a really good idea.

Brook reads, Brook Lynn Quartermaine, the infamous trust fund wannabe was fired from her job at Deception Cosmetics amidst lawsuit turmoil. Sources tell us the Quartermaine princess is out because of allegations regarding the hot Deceptor wand. What’s next for the former warbler? She seems to be zero for zero. While no one can fault BLQ for her singing career being unceremoniously slashed short due to a freak attack, we can wonder about her suspicious exit from Deception. Perhaps it’s all in the name. This had to be Lucy. She swears this had nothing to do with wanting meet Blaze. Blaze says, it’s a hit piece. She’s had some herself. Hers are usually accompanied by an incredibly unflattering picture. It’s no big deal. Don’t worry about it. Brook thanks her, and Blaze says, it was a really low blow to make fun of her being attacked. Brook says, it’s not easy losing the one thing you loved more than anything in life.

Elizabeth says she’s glad Jake told her about Charlotte, but she has to get back to work. She tells him to head home, and he wonders if he should ask Carly about Uncle Drew. She said he could go visit Drew, but it’s been so long… Elizabeth says, wait. There’s something she has to tell him about his Uncle Drew.

Carly flashes back to talking to Sonny a minute ago, and then to telling Ava that Drew was going to find out who Austin was talking to at Pentenville. She says, Ava, and gets up.

Sonny goes into the chapel and finds Anna there.

Jake cries, and says, Uncle Drew has to be okay. Elizabeth says, the moment she knows anything, she’ll call him, but he says he wants to be here to find out. Please.

On the phone, Carly tells Ava that she’s at GH on the 10^th floor. Get here as soon as she can. Nina comes out of the elevator, and Carly asks what she’s doing here. Nina says she heard what happened to Drew, and Elizabeth tells Carly that they’re taking Drew to emergency surgery. Carly asks, why? What happened? Elizabeth says she doesn’t have any details, but the doctor will be here soon to give Carly an update. Carly says, please let him be okay, and Nina looks uncomfortable.

Outside Charlie’s, Kristina thanks Alexis for the brilliant idea, and Alexis says she has no idea what that idea was, but she’s welcome. Kristina says she knows she was a little hard on Alexis, but she does appreciate Alexis coming to tell her the news. Alexis says, Kristina and Molly are going to get through this. Her girls love each other. Just be the strong one for Molly this time, okay? Kristina promises, and they hug. Alexis leaves, and Kristina watches Brook and Blaze through the window and smiles.

Brook says, if anyone could understand what it would be like, it would be Blaze. Singing was everything to her. For it just to be taken away suddenly, forever… Blaze asks how she deals with it, and Brook says she had a lot of help. Chase made her realize that there are different ways she can use whatever talent she has. Blaze says, but Brook never really lost her love for music, and Brook says, not even close. It’s in her blood. Her dad’s a musician. Her mom was a music manager – Lois Cirello. She is quite a character. Blaze would really like her. She always says the old cliché, when life gives you lemons… and they both finish, make lemonade. Brook says, she’s got quite the style; it’s definitely her own. Blaze says, maybe she’ll want to meet Brook’s first client, and Brook says, Blaze still wants to sign with her? Blaze says, hell yeah, and they shake hands.

The doctor comes over to Carly, and she asks if Drew is conscious. He says, no, but that might have saved his life. He broke one of his ribs, and the X-rays show there was a threatening of the aorta. Any unnecessary move could have been fatal. Carly says, so the surgery’s going to fix this? and the doctor says, that depends on many factors, but they have a specialist coming in. The surgery will take a few hours, and they won’t have any answers until it’s finished. Nina watches Carly stress out.

Anna says she and Sonny seem to end up in the strangest places together, and he says, that’s true. She says she feels like maybe they should be here right now, and he asks if she remembers asking him if it was worth it; the life he chose. She says, yeah, and he says he’s beginning to wonder.

Outside, Valentin tells Charlotte that he thinks they should put a tennis court right there. His phone rings and he says, that’s the landscaper. He’ll be right back. He goes inside, and Charlotte remembers opening a package from Switzerland she received while at boarding school. She opens it and takes out a of tarot cards, along with an envelope that has Charlotte written on it. She opens the envelope and read the letter inside. Valentin comes back and asks if everything is all right. She says, everything is going to be perfect.

Tomorrow, Gladys wants to know where her daughter-in-law is; Jake asks if they sit around and do nothing, but Elizabeth says, not necessarily; Valentin asks how Charlotte would feel if Anna moved in with them; and Carly says she knows exactly what Ava did.

Below Deck Mediterranean

Bear with me if I get any names wrong. My cross to bear in life is being bad with names and this new season brings nearly all new people.

Genoa Italy. Captain Sandy tells us that the Italian Riviera is an epic experience. The season hasn’t even started yet, and it’s a sh*tshow. Natalya is the temporary chief stew, since chief stew Tumi and second stew Kyle are stuck with an immigration problem. In her interview, the captain says, to save the season, they’re starting with two temps. There isn’t a ton of time, and she had to make a last-minute decision. Natalya is a hard worker with a great attitude (the latter is debatable), and she’s grateful Natalya can make it. She tells Natalya that she’ll have to teach the temp stew, since she’s primarily a deckhand. In Natalya’s interview, she says, she thinks she’ll do a better job than last season’s chief stew. Tash gave her PTSD, but she loves Captain Sandy. Chef Jack arrives, and in his interview, he says he trained in Liverpool and worked on the French Riviera and Asia. His forte is sauces. The initial reason he became a chef was for the travel. Growing up, he ate frozen food and McDonald’s, and didn’t have a vegetable until he was 16. Bosun Ruan arrives, and Captain Sandy says she’s happy with his experience on big vessels and driving the tender in big swells. In Ruan’s interview, he says he’s been a bosun for three years. There wasn’t much opportunity in his hometown, and he dropped out at 16. He’s 100% a water baby and a smooth sea never made a good sailor. He knows where he comes from and knows where he wants to go. Stew Jessika and deckhand Lara arrive, and Ruan dances in his cabin. There’s a bunch of introductions and checking out the boat. Deckhand Luka comes on board and says he worked for Captain Jason. We get a Down Under flashback, and Captain Sandy says, Captain Jason highly recommended him. In Luka’s interview, he says, he’s really an ETO, an electrical engineer, but he enjoys being on deck. In Natalya’s interview, she says she’s impressed with Luka. She thinks he’s hot. Agreed. Deckhand Haleigh joins the crew, and in her interview, she says her dad wanted a son. I understand this, since I’m the son my father never had. She tells us that she played a lot of sports growing up, and worked on tugs. You get all your money and are done in one month. Then you can go home and drink beer. She burps. An MCA inspector arrives, and in Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, this season is a different. The Mustique (the boat) is a huge adjustment. It’s a commercial built vessel and it’s heavy. There’s full displacement, and it’s a whole different ballgame for her. They’re also in a major port that’s highly regulated. An MCA officer can board at any time. It’s all about safe operation of the vessel, and their job is to make sure the boat is safe. The inspector says, Ruan gave the captain photocopies of his certifications, and you should always have originals. It’s a problem.

Ruan is called to the bridge, and he says, it will be hard to get originals. The inspector tells him, on a private boat, it’s fine, but not on a commercial vessel. In Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, this is not okay, and now they’re in a bind. There’s a reason why they want originals; you can’t forge an original. If Ruan doesn’t get the documents in five days, it’s going to be a sh*tshow. In Jessika’s interview, she says she finds comfort in people, and wonders, who’s going be her friend? She grew up with a best friend who was a leader, and she’s comfortable in that situation. That’s why she’s a strong second stew; she’s a good follower. Natalya explains to Jessika that she’s only a temp and will be leaving. Ruan tells the deckhands about needing the original documents, and everyone gets to cleaning the boat. In Lara’s interview, she says she grew up on a farm in a conservative family. She used to dive and play in cow manure. At that age, you don’t care, but she wouldn’t do it now. Maybe if she was drunk enough… The captain asks Natalya what happened to Storm (her boatmance last season), but she says, he has a girlfriend. Ruan calls the friend holding his original certificates and explains that he needs to send them. Provisions come in, and for once, there’s enough space for everything. In Jack’s interview, he says he was always shy. He didn’t talk much until he was 8, and he hasn’t stopped yapping since. Temp stew Brooke arrives, and in her interview, she says, she’s not usually a stew. She’s been a deckhand on smaller vessels, but never been on one this big. It’s her first live aboard, and she’s excited, but she’s sh*tting her pants. Ruan calls a deckhand meeting, and his advice basically boils down to, they don’t want to hit anything or the season will be done.

Captain Sandy calls a crew meeting, and welcomes everyone. She says, there are a lot of women, and it’s the highlight for her. She tells them, no drugs, they can’t drink on charter, no racist comments, and don’t take her smile away. She introduces chief engineer Tony and chief officer Nikola (or vice versa). The captain then calls Natalya, Ruan, and Jack to the crew mess for the first preference sheet meeting. She says, primary Kian is her friend and doctor. He turned 40 during the pandemic and wants to celebrate in style. He’s bringing along friends Cameron, Jesus, Geraldo, Nathan, and Carl, and they want to do water sports, so the captain wants to water toys out when they drop anchor. Natalya reads that they want a coastal Italian meal and would like the captain to join them. Captain Sandy says, be prepared, and in her interview, she says, Kian is incredible. She saw him after she was in a car crash and one of her eyes wouldn’t close. He took skin from one eye, added it to the other, and fixed it. The crew is finally finished with getting the boat ready at around 9 pm. Ruan gets a phone call and starts crying. One of his best friends died. The only friend he’s known since he was little. He had a head on collision with a bus.

The crew is up before dawn, and in Ruan’s interview, he says, it wasn’t just a friend who died. He had been by Ruan’s side since he was 8, and every memory is with him. Ruan’s dad died when he was young, and it wasn’t about family; it was about friends. He lost someone who means so much to him. The first person he’d speak to in the morning, and the last to speak to before bed. It’s all gone. He tells himself, pull yourself together. Jessika claws at the linens on the beds to get the wrinkles out, and I file this away for future reference. The guests arrive, and Natalya tells interior, the boat looks amazing. Well done. Captain Sandy hugs Kian, and says, they’re going to show them the best time ever. One of the stews greets them with shots, and Kian says he likes what he sees. Natalya gives the tour, and in the galley, Jack says, welcome to my dungeon. Kian says, they’re collected 20 Michelin stars, and in Jack’s interview, he says, and they’re friends with Captain Sandy. It’s serious squeaky bum time. I have no idea what that means, but it sounds like some babytalk for getting in the bathtub. The MCA inspector calls and says he has additional questions about Ruan’s certificates. In Captain Sandy’s interview, she says, there’s someone else’s picture on Ruan’s certificate. This is not okay. They could be arrested because of one crew member.

The inspector says, Ruan can’t remain on board, and the captain thanks him for bringing it to her attention. She calls Ruan to the bridge. She tells Kian that they’re going to depart in one hour, and he says she’s holding her to that. Captain Sandy asks Ruan if he’s that guy, and shows him the picture. He says he is, but he doesn’t look like he believes it either. She says, whoever issued this, it’s not his, and asks where he went to school. He says, on a boat. He needed one quickly. She says, you have to go to a class to get it. Did he go to school? He says he did, in Moraco, but she says, you can’t get your yacht masters on a boat, and there’s no school in Monaco. In Ruan’s interview, he says, he’s worked on boats for three years using the same ticket. The captain says, he has to leave. If it turns out to be verified, a tender will bring him back to the boat, but if not, they can’t bring him back. They have to get moving, so he needs to get off the boat. In her interview, Captain Sandy says she’s a factual person. She’s seeing what she’s seeing, and this is a problem. Sometimes mistakes happen, but she doesn’t think that’s the case. Regardless, it’s a problem. She’s starting with no chief stew, and now no bosun. She texts provisioner Norma. In Jack’s interview, he says, they’re in Italy and have the best Italian ingredients. He’s making fresh, Italian food. He doesn’t believe in making swans and stuff. Lunch is served. Food porn! Food porn! Captain Sandy calls Luka to the bridge, and says she’s had an incident and Ruan has to leave. Until they can verify his documentation, they need an interim bosun. He says he doesn’t mind helping, and in the captain’s interview, she says she has to get off the dock, and doesn’t have a lot of choices. Luka’s CV is impeccable, and Captain Jason said he was excellent. The guests compliment Jack on lunch, and in Jack’s interview, he says his anxiety is gone. He’s Harry Potter and the galley is his Hogwarts. In Jessika’s interview, she says she knew Brooke was green on a boat, but she’s also green in real life. A bright green stew? Ruan packs and the crew wonders what’s going on. In Luka’s interview, he says, if you get pulled over by the cops, you don’t show them a photocopy of your license.

In his interview, Luka says, it looks a different trip for all three of them on deck, and he’s a little nervous. His main focus is to not crash the boat while they’re leaving the dock. Captain Sandy calls to shore for a pilot, and in her interview, she explains that if a boat is over 500 gross tons, they need a pilot on board when coming in or leaving the dock. A pilot is like a live google maps and knows the traffic in the marina. The unnamed marina pilot boards, and they leave the dock. In Luka’s interview, he says, they’re getting help now, but they need someone for the rest of season. There are so many people here, if they f*** up, it will be on the news. He’ll be the guy on stern saying, you just hit the dock. In Captain Sandy’s interview, she says she saw red flags with Ruan, but department heads are hard to come by. She thinks there’s a 0.5% chance he’ll come through. If she can’t find someone, they’re totally screwed. Luka teaches Haleigh anchor stuff, and in his interview, he suggests they fake it until they make it. The guests dress for dinner, and in Jack’s interview, he says he has a big act to follow. We flash back to Chef David, and Captain Sandy says she’s hoping dinner goes well for her friend.

Captain Sandy joins the guests for dinner – more food porn! – and Kian asks about her story. She says, her career saved her life. A neighbor gave her a quaalude and it changed life. She got on the drug train, but one day, she realized it was just another Groundhog Day and got sober. She started washing boats to pay her fines and feels that now it’s her job to mentor others. Kian asks how many chances she gives people, and she says, three, but I’m not so sure about that. Haliegh says, she hates washing dishes, but it’s what she knows how to do. Interior isn’t complicated; it’s just something she’s never done. She wants to be a captain. Her dad was a captain, and he was her biggest motivation. He came up with Sprouts grocery store, and before he passed away, he told her to do what makes her happy. The cake is, well, the cherry on the cake; it’s amazing, and so velvety chocolate looking. Kian says he wishes he was on a yacht in Portofino and blows out the candles. Natalya tells Jack that they’re loving it, and in his interview, he says he likes a chief stew who’s supportive. When they’re thrown in the deep end, they need to work together, and he thinks Natalya is rising to the challenge. In Natalya’s interview, she says she’s happy. The boat looks good, and the interior is running smoothly. If she gets a gold star from Captain Sandy, she’ll be loving life. The captain tells Jack that he’s really good, and in his interview, he says he’s cooked around the world and got the Michelin Knife Award in his 20s. Growing up, he was the wrong child. Ruan calls the captain, and says he’s sorry, but he thinks he’s going home. She asks about the original documents, and he says he stopped his friend from mailing them. He’s deciding to call it quits and go back to South Africa. In Captain Sandy’s interview, there are nothing but bleeps.

The guests get in the hot tub, and in her interview, Captain Sandy says, you don’t want to disturb the client. It’s an embarrassment for the boat, and better to just keep them happy. Smoke and mirrors. Nothing to see here. She hopes Norma pulls it off. Jessika thinks Natalya is going too easy on Brooke. They all need to break a sweat. Natalya says, she’s from the deck and it’s literally her first day. In Natalya’s interview, she says, Jessika needs to chill out. It’s Brooke’s first night and she’s brand new. They’re already one person down. Realize you’re not the chief stew. She never thought she’d say that. Jessika says, the problem is having to guide Brooke while she’s doing her own duties, and thanks Natalya for not stressing out. She thinks Natalya is a good chief stew. I’m sure this will somehow come back to haunt Kyle after he gets there. Luka says he doesn’t know what’s happening, and in his interview, he says he’s been chucked in deep, but never this deep. He never managed a team. He tells Haleigh what to do on the bridge, and in his interview, he says, his biggest problem is, he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know. The last thing he wants to do is let Captain Sandy down.

2^nd day of charter. Norma calls, and Captain Sandy says, she can’t get anyone for two weeks? Now what does she do? Unbelievable.

To be continued…

⛓ Linked Out…

Join me tomorrow for soap and tea offerings. Until then, stay safe, stay not finishing other people’s sentences, and stay realizing that there are many different ways you can use whatever talent you have.