Tag Archives: MasterChef

Jan12

January 11, 2016 — GH, 10 Little Chefs & the Scent of a Stassi

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

General Hospital

Elizabeth says someone must have broken in, since the picture was fine when she went upstairs.

Maxie freaks after seeing Johnny. She says she’s going to get the police, but Johnny stops her.

Sonny sees Lucas at the hospital and asks if he can be Sonny’s new doctor, but Lucas says no can do.

Nicholas says the lawsuit is going to be a real pita. Hayden says she’s got an idea to prevent that, and asks him to marry her. She says it will protect ELQ. I can’t wait to hear the logic for this.

Sam is moving back to the apartment and tells Alexis that she and Julian will finally get some privacy. Kristina looks at a letter saying she’s on academic suspension because her grades totally blow. Alexis startles her, so she eats the letter. Not really. Just seeing if you’re paying attention.

Kristina stashes the letter and talks nonsense about how great Alexis and Julian’s privacy will be when everyone leaves. Kristina makes up some story about why her classes aren’t starting next Monday. When Alexis asks just when they’re going to start, Sam saves the day by walking in and diverting attention. Kristina asks Sam what’s going on and Sam says Jason remembered kissing her.

Jake pops downstairs and asks if “the bad man” broke the picture frame. How old is he supposed to be? He certainly looks older than a kid who would use the phrase “the bad man.” And he spent his formative years with Helena. You’d think he’d be reciting Shakespeare. Jason tells him everything is going to be okay and he says he agrees because his dad is here now.

Nicholas says the court case will hurt the Quartermaines as much as it will hurt him. Hayden says she saw it happen all the time when she worked in finance, that most of the time, companies were hit the hardest in a lawsuit among the individuals in them. She says the Qs might pull a Medea and destroy ELQ entirely. Her bright idea is to get married and put some of the shares in her name. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! She’s good.

Lucas recommends Dr. Maze, who is highly skilled, but doesn’t have e a great bedside manner. How convenient – here he comes! Nathan introduces Dr Maze to Sonny and Carly, but he says he just needs to meet the patient. Sonny isn’t too happy about that.

Johnny has Maxie’s phone. Lulu reminds Maxie of the time she helped Johnny out, and they go down Memory Lane to get everyone up to speed. Maxie asks where he’s been all this time. Johnny says no one has really been looking for him and that it’s a cold case. While Maxie distracts him with this question, she grabs her phone back and says she owes it to Nathan to call him.

Johnny asks Maxie to give him the phone. She says Nathan has been working a super secret case and maybe it’s him. He says hardly, and I tend to think he’s telling the truth. Lulu interjects that she would be in trouble too. Maxie says she can lie and Lulu says she won’t.  Maxie sees some flowers and asks where they came from. When Johnny says from him, she jumps to the conclusion that Lulu and Johnny are sleeping together because that’s a sure sign of it.

Dr. Maze is certainly abrupt. He says he’s not a family doctor so he doesn’t have to be nice. He reminds me of some doctors I’ve worked with. Sonny says he’s had movement in his legs and Carly says how great that is, but already obviously a wet blanket Dr. Maze says he’ll decide if it’s great after he examines Sonny.

Kristina suggests maybe his environment helped jog Jason’s memory. Sam says they were in his apartment, and Alexis asks if they’re moving in together and looks like she’s about to panic. Sam says no, Jason just said she and Danny could live there. Sam says something about Kristina studying law, and Alexis gets all excited. When she has to answer the phone, Kristina tells Sam to let her tell Alexis about her plans.

Elizabeth acts all weird, saying it’s her fault that Jake is a loony toon. Jason tells her to get a grip and the police knock on the door. He suggests maybe they can figure it out.

Hayden says that when it’s all over, she’ll give Nicolas back the shares. Nicholas says it’s his and Spencer’s future and he’s not letting it go. Hayden says he won’t have to if he marries her. He counters with what if she’s up to no good?

Sonny says the doctor doesn’t get to tell him whether his wife can be involved with his treatment. He says he wouldn’t be where he was today if it wasn’t for Carly. That probably wasn’t the best way to put it, considering where he is today. Dr. Maze says he’s the only doctor on staff who can treat him. And there are no other hospitals anywhere in the world.

Alexis says it was Diane on the phone and she’s going to take a trip with Max. Sonny’s Max? Are they an item? Alexis says Diane wants her to take over Jason’s case while she’s gone. Alexis says it’s going to be rough because both Nicholas and Hayden are saying the same thing, that Jason deliberately pushed Nicholas over the balcony.

The police tell Elizabeth that since it’s the second incident, they’ll send in CSI to take fingerprints. Jason has to tell them that he has a record and he’s out on bail now. He says he had nothing to do with what’s going on here, and the way Elizabeth jumps to second that, if I didn’t know better, I’d think he did. The police ask if he has any enemies. How much time do they have?

Hayden says trust is trust, but Nicholas says trusting emotionally and financially are two different things. He says that she was a shark once before, and he’s not willing to take the risk. She suggests a pre-nup.

Sam says it was an accident. Alexis says Sam wasn’t there, but Hayden was . Alexis says she’s surprised Jason even got out on bail. Sam says someone else must be in their corner and she’s going to find out who else might have seen the fight. Isn’t that something Alexis should be pursuing? Like right now?

Dr. Maze says he wants to focus on the patient, not field questions and feelings from their loved ones. Sonny says too bad. Carly takes him aside and says it’s fine with her that she wants Sonny to concentrate on getting better and she has work to do anyway. Dr. Maze tells Sonny it’s really the best way and let’s get going.

Nicholas says Hayden lied to him for a long time, saying she’d lost her memory. Hayden says she thought they were past that. Nicholas says she does enjoy his money. Hayden says of course she does, but that she’s made money for other people and for herself and she’s seen it destroy families and love, and she doesn’t want to be part of that.

Jason says he didn’t see anything weird in the neighborhood. The officer asks him if he thinks there’s any connection to what he’s out on bail for. Jason says he doesn’t think the incidents are related. He asks if they can keep a patrol car outside, but the officer says they can’t exactly waste a man on that. Jason is like, oh come on, and the officer says he can’t promise anything, but he’ll see what he can do. When the police leave, Jason tells Elizabeth to pack up the boys and they’re spending the night somewhere else. Ah-ha! in Nelson voice. Elizabeth thought he was going to move in there. I’ll bet she gets around this somehow though.

Maxie says Johnny is who Lulu was with on New Year’s Eve, and how can she do this? Lulu says, to Dante? And Maxie says no, to her. How could she do this and not let her in on it? Lulu says she’s not sleeping with Johnny, but she was in the stateroom with him when Dante came by and Dante assumed she was sleeping with Dillon. Maxie says that things with Dante will be over if he finds out Johnny is there for whatever reason and he has to go.

Maxie says she’s not keeping another secret from Nathan. Johnny says she wasn’t directly involved, so it’s no big deal. Maxie says she and Lulu have to think about their children. Johnny asks how Georgie is and she tells him how Spinelli brought her to Port Charles for Christmas. Johnny says Spinelli is one of the good ones. Somehow, Johnny gets the phone again. They’re going to go back and forth like this until someone else, probably Dillon, walks in.

Dr. Maze says he’s the best doctor on earth. Sonny says he doesn’t care because he’s also an a-hole and to move along to his next patient. Lucas comes by and Sonny asks if he has a plan B. Because, even though they’re not far from NYC, they can’t travel to see any other doctor. Maybe Port Charles is like Brigadoon and they’re not allowed to leave.

Sam meets Carly at the MetroCourt and they discuss who might have been able to see the fight. Carly goes to get the guest list from that night.

Jake asks if it’s safe now and if the bad man is coming back. How come the police didn’t talk to him? Jason says they’re going to sleep somewhere else tonight and Jake asks if he’s coming. Elizabeth says no, and that he doesn’t have to because she’s a fake witch.

Nicholas says he believes Hayden, but he has a team of fabulous attorneys who will get him off the hook, so she doesn’t have to enter into a charade. Hayden says she really loves him and she thought her feelings mattered to him. Nicholas says they do. Hayden says they’re happier together than apart and isn’t’ that a good enough reason to get married.

Johnny says he wasn’t planning on staying long and he’ll be gone before Maxie knows it. She gets her phone back again and runs off. Johnny says she’s bluffing, but Lulu says she’s right about Dante. Johnny says she doesn’t deserve the way Dante treats her. Lulu says getting rid of Valerie is her only hope, but after they’re finished with that, Johnny has to leave.

Lucas phones another doctor for Sonny. Because no one has a car.

Alexis says she can’t believe Kristina is taking pre-law and didn’t tell her. She says she must have had a really tough semester. Alexis tells her that when she’s arguing in front of the Supreme Court, she’ll come and watch. Kristina looks guilty as all hell.

Nicholas says he thinks marriage would be a huge burden so early, and he doesn’t want to sacrifice what they have for ELQ. Hayden says she can’t believe he’s putting them before the business. He says that they should explore their relationship more and Hayden says cool.

Jason says he wants to set Elizabeth and the boys up at the MetroCourt. Elizabeth says thanks for looking out for them.

Carly asks Sam about Jason. She says it has to be hard on him because he doesn’t understand why they love him so much and he must feel pressured. Carly checks to see what guests had a view of the terrace that night. I guess we’re assuming these people were all at a window or balcony at just the right moment. Carly recognizes a name and says they would have had a perfect view, but they’re someone she knows would not want to get involved. Elvis is alive!

Tomorrow, Michael wants to get back with Sabrrrina, Anna thinks there’s a break in the Carrrlos case, and Morgan sees a shrink. That guy is going to have a field day.

MasterChef Junior

We’re down to ten contestants. Immediately starting with a Nickolodeon moment, Graham is dressed like a chicken and the kids have to crack eggs on his head to find out which team they’re on. I want to know how they got the coloring inside the eggs because these sure seem like real eggs. It’s a deviled egg challenge and Graham and Gordon are the third team. I would think they’d be automatic winners, but maybe not.

Graham and Gordon end up being the big losers, but needless to say, every single deviled egg made is better than any I would make.

The elimination challenge has the kids making their signature dish from their future cookbook. One kid says he’s been working on his signature dish since he was four. Another one talks about taking a cupcake to “the next level,” when I haven’t taken one to the first level. . I throw out everything in my kitchen except the microwave.

Uh-oh. The cupcake idea did not go over well as a signature dish. Because it’s a cupcake. At least she doesn’t cry. I would. The next mistake is infinitely worse. Raw chicken. Now that’s one thing I’ve never had a problem with. I cook the crap out of chicken because I’m so afraid it will come out raw.

My favorite and my pick for the win, Addy, barely squeaks by. The cupcake and the chicken go home. Raw chicken aside, these kids have every reason to be proud of themselves. The top ten in what’s essentially an adult competition is extraordinary.

The next challenge involves a mystery box put together by Christina’s mother. It’s a box of Christina’s favorite childhood foods. What these kids are going to do with Fruit Loops and chicken breasts is definitely a mystery to me. The kids also get to make a Skype call to their best friend for inspiration. I wonder who they pal around with? Guy Fiery?

Another team challenge, this time in teams of two. The winner of the last challenge pairs up the teams. The kids have to make international street food. This is not to be confused with a dirty water dog on the street in NYC. They’re making three different dishes at once and switch team leaders every couple of minutes. This seems confusing to me, I can’t imagine how pressured these kids are feeling.

Gordon says pressure is good, and when we’re at our weakest, we find our strongest parts. Thanks, Kahill Gibran.  I don’t know what this is on a bun with a pickle, but I’d like one right now. Especially since my dinner is kale and quinoa soup due to too much holiday food cheer. When Gordon examines something that looks like lamb on a stick, he says the only thing missing is the wool, it’s so raw. Ouch! I’m glad the judges make it fun for the kids, but aren’t patronizing. Might as well learn about the world now.

Good-by little girl with the braids and kid with the mowhawk. Just remember, even if we lived to be 100, most of us won’t cook as well as you on your worst day. You put us all to shame.

Vanderpump Rules

Katie and Schwartz are having a picnic in a gorgeous park. They’re all happy and in love and just engaged. I hope it lasts for them. Katie reads a text from Stassi. Stassi says she’s thrilled with the engagement. Schwartz says Katie has been more relaxed with Stassi out of her life (no surprise), and Katie says she’s not really interested in that friendship anymore (understandable).

The girls fawn over Katie’s ring at work. Lisa says she’s almost as excited for Katie as she was for Pandora. I think Lisa just likes a diamond ring and a good party.

Jax has this huge quandary about who’s coming to the Hawaii trip, because thought processes are hard for him. He says James is definitely out, and although Kristen is out too, he’s inviting her to his birthday lunch. He invites Ariana to the lunch, but warns tells her Kristen will be there. Ariana says maybe she should take a pass. Scheana says she’s creating something where there isn’t anything. Ariana says Scheana is always talking over her and putting words in her mouth and that’s not a real friend. Scheana says that she’s not having this conversation and walks away. Because rainbows and butterflies.

Katie and Scheana are taking a break outside. Scheana tells Katie that Ariana doesn’t think they’re true friends because they keep throwing Kristen in her face. Scheana says Ariana is being like Stassi, although I disagree. Geez, let Ariana have some space from Kristen.

These guys steal so much liquor from the bar, it’s disgusting. Lisa comes in and says Stassi is back in town, and she doesn’t want her being “enabled” hanging out there again. Lisa says Stassi was seriously disrespectful and she doesn’t need to be giving her free drinks when she’s done enough for her and it wasn’t appreciated. Jax concurs that they’ve been getting along just fine without Stassi.

Max and James discuss James not being invited to Hawaii. Max seems to think it’s some passive aggressive thing about Kristen. And maybe James’s drinking has a little to do with it. Yeah. Maybe it has a lot to do with it. James says he’s just going to kiss Jax’s ass, and because Jax is so stupid, he’ll invite him.

Jax tells James he’s a liability. He brings up James acting like a d-bag when Jax was talking to Lala. (I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, who names their kid Lala? It’s a lot easier to type than Scheana though.) He says if he wanted to sleep with Lala, he would. James begs like a dog (not to insult dogs) and Jax says he doesn’t want to be sorry about it. Jax says if he didn’t forgive James, he’d be a hypocrite and tells James he can go. James calls him a dumb ass in his individual interview. That says it all about James. I like him even less than I do Jax.

Katie says Kristen did some f-ed up things, but she’s apologized and is doing better now, so she thinks they can be friends again. Katie tells Kristen about Stassi’s text. Kristen is still friends with her, and she says that Stassi is heartbroken over the loss of Katie’s friendship. That’s funny, since she’s the one who didn’t want to be friends anymore.

James tells Lisa that Jax told him he can come to Hawaii. James says that Lala is going to be there too, and his tongue hangs out, which ticks Lisa off. She says Lala is a human being, not a trophy. Lisa isn’t thrilled about Max coming along either. Lisa astutely points out that if Max is with Faith, that opens up the door for James with Lala. Lisa tells him not to do anything stupid, which she knows are futile words.

The girls go bikini shopping. Faith and Lala are going to be rooming together on the trip. Scheana says she wants to renew her vows in Hawaii. Didn’t they just get married? Lala comes out modeling pasties and a thong, and Scheana thinks this might be a bad idea, since there are a lot of other girls coming along. Scheana predicts Lala will sleep with James on the trip, but Lala says she can’t stop flirting with Jax. Ugh! I’m starting to really not like her. She acts like this is okay on days when he’s not with Britney. Of course he thinks it’s okay too, but I already can’t stand him.

Britney is moving in and Jax says they’ve hit a good stride, whatever that means. Jax asks if she’s okay with Lala going on the trip, even though he’d originally said he wasn’t inviting her. Britney tells him Scheana told her what Lala said when they were out shopping. Britney adds that he doesn’t help any. Jax asks if Britney is going to make things awkward and Britney says she’s going to have to speak with Lala. This makes Jax cringe, but this is his own damn fault.

It’s time for Jax’s birthday lunch! He’s 29 for the 7th time, which means he shouldn’t be hanging out with this crowd. Ariana and Tom show up, and Kristen says she’s not going to waste any more of her time trying to be friends with them. She makes a toast starting off with “since I’m not going to Hawaii” and in his individual interview, Tom says Kristen can’t help but be passive aggressive.

Lala, Faith and James visit Max at Lisa’s house. Max was in an accident and has a mess of dental work that needs to be done, so he doesn’t know if he’s making the Hawaii trip. James was some kind of hero in this because he’s the one who got him to the dentist. He’s probably the cause of it in the first place. Or Lisa arranged it rather than seeing Max vacation with these cretins. James goes on about how selfish Max is, since this blows his plan of hooking Max up with Faith so he can get to Lala.

At the birthday lunch, they discuss James’s…size. Why? Then they move on to Lala being man hungry.

Back at Lisa’s, Lala and Faith are topless in the pool and cavorting with James. What is this? The Playboy mansion? BTW, it’s up for sale, but you have to take Hugh Hefner with it. I’m not kidding. Google it.

When Tom gets up to have a smoke, Kristen follows. For God’s sake, leave that guy alone. Kristen asks for a light and Tom sets her on fire. Not really, but I wish he did. Kristen tells him she’s not going to Hawaii and wants to know what it’s going to take for him to stop being so hard on her friends. Using like about 12 times in a sentence, he says she makes him and Ariana uncomfortable. He says this is about her and not her friends.

The others notice they’re gone and Ariana says Kristen is on her Apology Tour 2015. Ha! She says it’s really about Kristen wanting to go to Hawaii. Kristen tells Tom she’s tired of the tension because she’s not going anywhere. She says she’s going to be helping out with Katie’s wedding too. Tom says she has to understand how truly horrible she was and sometimes actions have consequences. She says she respects his feelings but she’s going to be around. Thanks for the warning.

Scheana asks Ariana to meet her at the bar. Katie comes along. Schwartz says they keep losing people from the lunch. Scheana says that Ariana is being mean and unreasonable, and Katie days she feels like she’s being backed into a corner. Scheana says that Ariana and Tom act like Kristen holds a grudge, when really it’s the other way around. In her individual interview, Ariana says that they’ve all hated Kristen at one time or another, and that she’s never been friends with Kristen for a reason. Scheana says she spoke to Ariana’s mom, who thinks Ariana has been in a bad mood, so it’s not just them. Ariana finds it hard to believe her mom would prompt something like that. She says she’s not going to put herself in a situation where she feels uncomfortable and I don’t blame her. She says she’s now going to have to get on a plane with a bunch of a-holes who look like people who used to be her friends. Man, I’d keep my distance from Kristen too. This bunch is living in unicorn-bunnyville.

At the airport. Jax isn’t thrilled with James being there. James is thrilled because he wants to get with Lala. Scheana says it’s too bad Kristen isn’t there, but Tom and Ariana got their way. All these people claim to be such good friends, yet they all seem to have forgotten it’s Tom’s birthday too, and this is supposed to be a joint effort.

The plane takes off.

Next week, we’re in Hawaii and Jax gets arrested. Looks like lots of Stassi crying this season too.

Dec19

December 18, 2015 — GH, No GH, Mini Chefs & Friday Night Zombies

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

General Hospital — Thursday

Alexis asks Molly to try and be nice to Julian when they’re at the Nutcracker Gala. Molly tries to get out of going by saying she needs to look after Sam. Alexis says Sam can look after herself just fine.  Mystery occasional daughter Christina arrives.

There’s something wrong with the mic system at the gala. Tracy is worried that no one will hear Paul’s speech. Little hearts pop out of her eyes like in the Pepe LePew cartoons.

Franco sees Elizabeth at the hospital and he ducks. Then he asks if she’d go to the gala with him.

Robin tells nice dude Henrico that he’s the first guard who’s ever been nice to her and maybe she can return the favor. Wet blanket Jerry Jax comes in the room.

Anna tells Patrick that they might be on a wild goose chase. He says he doesn’t think so because of the necklace. She says maybe the Cassadines planted it on purpose just to throw them off.

Tracy asks Nina if she’s seen Dillon. Nina says no, but he’s supposed to be working the gala for Crimson.

Dillon sees Maxie outside. They start reminiscing about Georgie.

Elizabeth says she’s not going to the gala with or without Franco. He says he’s not asking her out on a date. He needs to be there for work. He asks if she’s afraid she’ll run into Jason and she says he’d hardly be at a function like that.

Carly checks Jason into the hotel and says let’s get a drink.

Robert says that the WSB has been monitoring the Cassadines. Patrick asks what they know and who has Robin. Anna asks if it’s Jerry Jax.

Henrico tells Jerry he was just about to kill her and Jerry says hurry up then. Jerry also says both Patrick and Anna aren’t far away. Jerry tells Henrico to execute the plan and Robin and don’t make a mess. Robin tries to get Jerry to change his mind to no avail.

Henrico says there’s nothing he can do, so don’t ask. Robin says he’s wrong. There is one last thing.

Christina asks Sam prying questions about her love life. Christina says exams ended early and Alexis says good, she can go to the gala too. Sam gets her jacket on and says she has a quick errand to run, but hopes everyone has a good time.

Christina asks Molly about their mother’s password. She says she doesn’t want to, but she has to hack into Alexis’s account.

Maxie and Dillon think about Georgie as they look up at the stars. Dillon gives Maxie and envelope. We don’t see it, but I assume a picture of Georgie is inside.

Franco tells Elizabeth that he knows she’s feeling all alone in the world right now and does she have a dress?

Carly asks if Jason wants a martini, but he says scotch will do the trick. She says she thinks she’ll join him. They drink to friendship. Jason tells her to go ahead and say she told him so. She says she had no idea Elizabeth knew all that time. He asks if she thinks it’s for the best, and she says Elizabeth always tried to turn him into the person she needed and he’s not that person. Jason says he wasn’t ready to listen before, but who’s he supposed to be? Carly says he has to figure it out for himself.

Henrico is listening to opera and Robin makes chitchat about it. She says her family traveled all the way to Pars and she can’t bear for them not to know what happened. Henrico says there’s nothing he can do. She asks if he was named for the guy in the opera who was a hero and tells him he needs to do the right thing.

Patrick says the last time Emma and Robin talked, it wasn’t their regular time and he thinks Robin was trying to tell them something.

Christina is working the laptop like a boss and thinks up a password I never would have. She looks at Alexis’s email and Molly reads something about disciplinary action with Christina at school. Christina deletes it before she can finish and says why ruin Christmas?

Maxie says she was going to visit Georgie’s memorial stone, but this is better. She asks if Dillon ever talks to Georgie. She says she does and it helps and hurts at the same time. Dillon says he thinks of both the high and low points of their relationship and it was everything. Maxie says she used to love the holidays, but now, not so much. Dillon identifies and so do I. Maxie says this year she has to work and they’d better get going before Nina sends out a search party.

Sam wants to leave something for Patrick at the hospital, but is told he’s on a leave of absence. Elizabeth pops out asking what does she expect, since she turned everyone’s lives upside down. Boo! Hiss!

Carly says normally she likes to interfere, but Jason should trust himself and that he has good instincts. Jason balks and Carly points out instances in the past seven months when he’s used them.

Patrick’s phone rings and it’s Robin. She says her neighbor told her he was looking for her. She finds out that Emma is there too. Robin says good-by and says she’s off to Elysium.

Alexis asks what’s going on and Christina says something about needing the computer for school work. When she goes back upstairs, Molly asks what kind of trouble Christina is in. Christina avoids the question.

Carly asks Jason to come to the gala. She says neither Elizabeth nor Sam will be there. She says he and Sonny can be miserable together. He says he only has a duffel bag of jeans and T-shirts, but Carly says she can set him up with one phone call.

Elizabeth, who apparently has no idea why Patrick is away, gives Sam a humongous lecture on how it’s her fault. Sam says for 7 months, she kept Jason’s identity while everyone else suffered. Elizabeth says that Sam is worse, pretending to love Patrick while really wanting Jason.

Robin tells Patrick she loves him and Henrico takes the phone. Impatient Jerry pops in again and says if you want a job done right, do it yourself. Henrico says he doesn’t know what to do about the lab. Jerry says he’ll do that part and Henrico takes Robin out of the lab. She says now they can escape and he needs to live up to his name as a hero. He says endings aren’t always happy and grabs her arm to take her down the hallway.

Patrick asks if Elysium is code for something. Robert says maybe, but Anna says it means “heaven.”

Sam goes home to Alexis’s, who looks absolutely amazing in a navy blue formal gown. Alexis says Sam looks like she wants to punch something and Sam tells her about running into Elizabeth. She also tells Alexis about Patrick and says she can’t figure it out. The ladies all leave for the gala.  Sam sees that Alexis forgot her check, but it’s too late, she’s gone. Fastest pulling out of a driveway ever.

Nina explains how she wants the guests’ pictures taken (in a bower of white branches) to Dillon. She chastises Dillon and Maxie for being late. Maxie says they’re here now and has Dillon take Nina’s photo.

Carly shows up at the gala with Jason. Monica says it’s great to see them. Carly says she left her phone at the bar and Jason goes back to get it. Monica thanks Carly for getting him there.

Franco and Elizabeth arrive. Franco says he’s proud of her for facing her challenges. He rambles and she tells him to stop talking.

Anna wonders if Robin knows they’re here. Robert says she isn’t in the compound anymore but is on the island and they’re going to have to hurry. Patrick wants to go with them. Robert says it’s dangerous, but there really isn’t much argument. Oh, yay, a hero moment for the lip gloss king.

Monica asks where Paul is and Tracy says he must have gotten tied up, but he’ll be there. Monica says she has to admit, the artwork from Ava is top-notch, but she still didn’t invite her. Alexis gets there and realizes she forgot the check. While she runs out, Christina makes sure her phone doesn’t have the message from the school

Maxie says Nina is really getting the hang of things. Franco shows up and says that Nina looks more beautiful every time he sees her. He says he brought a colleague.

Sam shows up with the check and sees Elizabeth. Jason sees the both of them. Soap opera faces all around.

The Scorpios get their old moves back and bust into the lab. With Anna and Robert’s guns drawn on Jerry, Patrick backs him up against the wall. Jerry says they’re too late, Robin is dead.

Monday – the Nutcracker Gala and more Scorpio fun!

General Hospital — Friday

I started typing until I realized they’re repeating the Thanksgiving episode. What ? Why? My only guess is that they got scared. When I turned it on, George Stephanopoulos was talking. I have no idea about what, since I was cursing him and my life at that moment, but then he went away. Whatever it was must have scared ABC into showing a repeat because they feared the viewers’ wrath should there have been  a total preemption. Better to just put the show off totally.

Master Chef Junior

I always preface this with how I don’t say much about this show because I’m snarky and mocking children isn’t my thing. I do love this show though, and Gordon Ramsey rocks. It’s nice to see his kinder, gentler side.

Tonight, the kids have to recreate a dish that they’ll be tasting while blindfolded. This is tough when the adults do it, never mind someone whose palate hasn’t been around the world yet. Oh, and they have 60 minutes to do it.

The team challenge, with the captains being the winners of the taste challenge, is to run a restaurant. Again this is similar to the adult version of either Master Chef or Hell’s Kitchen. They both blend in together after a while.  One team has ingredients from New England and the other, New Mexico.  I always feel bad for whoever’s picked last when it’s a team challenge.

A whole bunch of grandmas – and I mean that literally – are the judges, so I’m thinking maybe they’ll go easy on the kids, but then again, maybe not. It all looks good to me.

Speaking of Hell’s Kitchen, it’s premiering January 15.

The blue team wins, with Addy heading them once again. I predict her for the win.

Don’t worry kids who went home – one of whom was a surprise to me – I can barely get a buffet for 15 catered, never mind cook for an entire restaurant. Job more than well done!

Next week, Graham dresses like a chicken  and eggs are involved.

Z Nation

Citizen Z is trying to contact Addy. Or anybody for that matter. He’s down to his last battery. He’s desperate to tell them to abort the mission because the location has been compromised. The battery runs out and he throws the laptop away.

Vasquez and Roberta have gone inside the renegade diner. Roberta takes some tea from the woman behind the counter. Vasquez passes, but they signal for the others to come in. The counter lady talks about the diner and asks what it’s like out there.

Doc says all Zs. She asks if there’s anywhere safe, and Roberta says a few places, but not many. A car pulls up and it’s nothing good. It’s a bunch of guys from Deliverance and they ask for liquor. They ask if the woman’s name is Annie and when she says yes, the head guy says she’s the one who knows about The Murphy. They want the bounty.

Main dude buys a round of drinks for everyone. (Does anyone use money? What do they use?) The guy says they have The Murphy sedated and show them a zombie on a leash. Obviously not Murphy. Murphy is dressed like a woman with a scarf over his face. When head dude asks for a dance he pretends to be shy. Head dude throws something at Murphy and all the guns come out.

He says he’s noticed the real Murphy and his Murphy move at the same time. He’s getting suspicious about Murphy and while he’s talking his own zombie takes a bite out of him. There’s a mini shoot out and Annie stops it with her own gun. She sees that Muphy is the real deal

10K has been shot. Annie goes outside and fires a flare to contact Dr. Merch and what’s left of the CDC lab. 10K is losing a lot of blood. Murphy asks questions about where Dr. Merch has been hiding, but Annie says it’s classified.

Citizen Z packs up a sled, along with Pup, and says they’re not coming back.

A military team approaches the diner. Roberta asks Murphy if he’s ready. He says no, but when has that ever mattered? Roberta tells the lieutenant that Murphy is there. The Lt calls him “The Murphy” and Murphy says he doesn’t know where the “The” came in.  10K is taken out on a stretcher. Roberta tells the lieutenant to treat Murphy humanely. He say’s they’ll treat him like the celebrity he’s about to become. Addy says don’t forget the little people. Doc wants to go with 10K, but there isn’t enough room.

I don’t like this one bit.

Murphy tells Vasquez he’s sorry about Vasquez’s family. Doc says no good-by? Murphy holds out his hand, but Doc hugs him. Murphy gives Doc an Ace playing card and Doc gives Murphy a z-weed joint.  Murphy says good-by to Roberta. He says who knows, maybe he’ll actually do something good and she says they’re counting on him.

The caravan leaves. They start to clean up, but as Doc is removing a body, a shot hits it. Operation Bite Mark duck for cover. It’s the Zeros shooting up the place. We hear La Reina calling Roberta to come and get some mercy.

She’s looking pretty jacked up, hair all crazy and fire in her eyes. A gun battle ensues and La Reina tells her troops to advance. Annie, who’s pretty mean with a gun herself, calls everyone inside. La Reina has Dr. Kurian’s head in a box. When he starts being annoying, she closes the box. She looks through the site of her gun for Roberta.

Annie shows OBM her arsenal. She says she’s low on ammo, but they can give them hell in the meantime. It’s suddenly quiet, which Roberta says worries her more.

Murphy is on a submarine along with 10K, who is wheeled into surgery. They tell Murphy 10K is in good hands and he continues with Dr. Merch and the lieutenant. The doctor asks if Murphy has had any side effects, and Murphy says he is a walking side effect. The lieutenant talks about the development of a whole new world and tells Murphy that Zona (a reference to another episode) is not only real, it’s the future. At the beginning of the apocalypse, some businessmen and scientists created a new world on a zombie free island. Murphy notices that some of the crew have funny eyes. He says if they’re going to save the human race, they’d better get to it.

La Reina says she just wants Murphy. Roberta says too late, he’s gone. Vasquez tries to shoot La Reina, but misses. The back row of troops runs swords through the front row and uses them as shields like Uma Thurman in whichever Kill Bill movie that was.

Annie  gets shot and turns into a zombie. After a small tussle, Doc gives her mercy.

The Zeros are getting in.

Back at the sub, the doctor is preparing Murphy for giving some blood samples for tests. He asks her what the deal is with the crews’ eyes. She said it was a side effect of one of the early vaccines given to people on Zona . She says that some of the earliest people are losing their immunity and turning. She says that’s why they need him, especially the founder of Zona. He says he thought the vaccine was for everybody, and the doctor is a little vague in that it sounds like maybe when they get around to it, the peons will get a turn. Dr. Merch asks questions about childhood diseases and the usual medical background. When she asks id he has children, Murphy says that’s kind of personal and doesn’t answer.

Murphy asks for privacy, and Dr. Merch asks the guards to leave. When they’re gone, Murphy turns on her. He says he doesn’t want to be a blood bag for some billionaires when he traveled all that way and went through so much to save all of humanity.

It doesn’t look good for OBM. A big Zero dude is swinging around a mean looking weapon. Roberta shoots, but she’s out of bullets and the gun just makes that clicking sound. We both say, oh sh*t. Addy tries to fight him, but he breaks her weapon and hits her with his. While she’s down, she still has enough strength to hit him where it counts. In the meantime Roberta has reloaded and shoots him.

La Reina come drags her sorry self over to Roberta. She says it’s good to see her and can they talk like sisters. She says she’s unarmed and it’s not too late for Roberta to  be her right hand. She asks Roberta to help her find Murphy. Roberta says the CDC has him. La Reina says that was a big mistake.  They go head to head and it’s a pretty good fight scene. Again very Tarantino.

Finally Roberta is down and La Reina is standing over her, but Escorpion runs her through with a sword. What?

Citizen Z is pulling the sled with Pup in it through the snow. He doesn’t look too good. I’m always worried about him and Pup.

Roberta comes too and can’t believe Escorpion is there. Vasquez knocks him in the head and Roberta says he saved her life. Addy is surprised he’d kill his queen. He says she wasn’t human anymore. He says he won’t rob Vasquez of his revenge and he’s not afraid to die. He apologizes for killing Vasquez’s family and says he realized it was the worst thing he ever did and he wanted to die too. The rest of OBM leave the room so Vasquez can make his decision. They hear a gunshot and Escorpion comes out. They run in and Vasquez is sitting at the bar. He says he couldn’t do it and Roberta says she’s glad for him.

He’s looking at a picture of his wife and daughter. He says his mission is over. Roberta says it’s time to say good-by. Oh come on. Say something. She leaves and tells the others that Vasquez is alive, but he’s not coming with them. Doc asks what they’re doing now and Roberta says she doesn’t know.

An alarm is sounding on the sub. 10K is alone and gets off of the examining table.

Escorpion pulls up alongside OBM he asks if they need a ride. He says he’s got enough food, ammo and z-weed for a month. Addy tells Roberta they can always kill him and steal the truck. She’s kidding. I hope.

Vasquez is just sitting by himself looking at the picture. He rolls his bandana and puts it around his head. He leaves the diner to face a crowd of zombies and begins shooting and running.

Doc says he hates to admit it but he misses Murphy. Escorpion says he didn’t know him long, but Murphy seemed like kind of a dick.

They get to a cliff and look out to the ocean. The sub is burning. A small boat is jetting across the water from it. Doc looks through binoculars, and sees Murphy, but not 10K. The sub blows up. Addy starts to freak.

Some military planes fly overhead and Doc says they don’t look American. Roberta says, they’re not, and a bunch of military guys with guns pop out of the woods.

We get closer to the boat. Murphy is controlling it, as he’s bitten the lieutenant and Dr. Merch. 10K is playing the part of a soldier in a helmet.

Nooo! Citizen Z is conscious, but frozen in his tracks. He sees someone coming toward him, but does he really?

In the final reel, we see Murphy’s daughter who, no surprise, is growing like a weed. She’s controlling her foster parents who have now been turned into hybrid zombies.

While Z Nation will be back next year (they didn’t exactly say when), why must we have these hiatuses? I wish we could just go back to normal TV seasons where we were on a school year schedule and we had the summer off.

Dec12

December 11, 2015 — GH, Little Chefs & Zombies

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

General Hospital – Thursday

Dillon finds Johnny behind the bar. He says he’s going to call the cops, but Lulu tells him to chill.

Olivia asks where Dante is. Valerie says he’s out getting baby aspirin.

Bad dude tells Robin that Helena is dead. He says she has explanations to make. She says to who? And Jerry Jax pops in.

Patrick tells Sam it’s over. She says her love for him hasn’t changed.

As our early Christmas gift, Elizabeth tells Jason she lied to everyone. Woohoo! He asks how long she’s known who he is and she says since the Nurses Ball in May.

Olivia says she resents Valerie sabotaging Dante and Lulu’s marriage. She says that Valerie’s presence is making things worse and she obviously doesn’t care that she’s breaking up a family. Dante walks in and asks what’s going on.

Johnny says technically Lulu is an accessory to his fugitiveness. Lulu suggests Dillon act like he never saw Johnny.

Jason says he felt wonderful that Elizabeth was willing to take a chance on him when there were so many unknowns, but it turns out that she knew everything. He asks if Nicholas was the one who told her and she says yes. She says she had every intention of saying something at the Nurses Ball, but when she saw how happy Sam and Patrick were, she couldn’t. Jason finally has a clue and says she didn’t do it for them, she did it for herself.

Patrick says that Sam wants to prove Elizabeth is lying because she wants him to choose between them. He asks who she loves more. She doesn’t want to answer, and he says Jason is the love of her life, and it’s not fair to anyone if they stay together. Sam asks if he can’t give her more time to adjust to things.

Jerry says now that Helena has passed, he has to take up where she left off, and Robin is his first priority. She says she’s making progress. Jerry says she’s not moving fast enough. She was supposed to keep Helena alive. Apparently, he thinks science can be rushed.

Lulu says Johnny helped her through difficult times and she wants to help him now. Dillon runs down the list of all his crimes, but Johnny has an answer for everything.

Olivia says Valerie is trying to take Lulu’s place. Dante says that’s not true and Lulu said it was over. Dante says Olivia is taking Sonny’s cheating out on Valerie.

Jason asks if Elizabeth was going to lie to him for the rest of his life. He asks if she was going to keep him from Danny and Sam. And what about poor confused Jake? Elizabeth said she knew everything would be okay, because she lives in a dream world and thinks words can fix this.

Emma is on her way home. Patrick says it will be better if they don’t drag things out. He wishes they could go back to when things were easier, but it’s not going to happen. He says Jason coming back has changed everything, including what they meant to each other. He doesn’t want things to turn bitter. Sam tells him she loves him, but she understands that he deserves more than just part of her heart. She gives him back the ring. Patrick says he doesn’t blame her and she shouldn’t blame herself.

Jerry says imagine the profit margin on immortality. He says Robin’s research has hit a dead end and ergo she has too. Robin says she’s developing something new, but she needs Helena’s body. Hmmm…is she going to bring Helena back to life? Remember Stavros?

Emma pops in the door and asks when Patrick and Sam are getting married. Um…never?

Olivia says Dante and Lulu owe it to Rocco to put their differences aside. She raised Dante as a single mother and doesn’t want Rocco to have the same upbringing.

Dillon asks why he should cover for Johnny since he doesn’t owe him any favors. Lulu says he owes her a favor though.

Elizabeth says she’s sorry and Jason says she’s sorry she got caught. Ha-ha! She says she didn’t want any of this to happen, but he says oh yes she did. He says she got in between him and anyone who wanted to tell him the truth. He says she had him kick the mother of his child out. Elizabeth says she’s also the mother of his child, and Jason says that doesn’t give her the right to dictate who else is in his life.

Jerry says if he can’t shoot it, fight it or make money off of it, it’s of no interest.  It’s good to have a credo.

Emma says she stayed away for as long as possible so they could be romantic and when’s the wedding date? Sam tells her that it’s not going to happen. She says they decided it would be best if they split up. Emma starts to cry and says no it’s not. Patrick tries to explain that what Sam and Jason have is too strong, even though they tried. Sam says it’s better for Emma and Patrick if she and Danny leave. Emma begs her to stay. Geez, this is almost making me cry, even though I couldn’t care less about Patrick.

Lulu says Dillon wanted her to find out about Dante so she’d turn to him. She says he can redeem himself by keeping his mouth shut. He says it’s emotional blackmail and she asks if it’s working. He says he’ll stay quiet, but if anything happens to Lulu, all bets are off.

Dante brings up the separation papers. Olivia says Lulu was hurt and just lashing out. Olivia says if Valerie really cares about Dante, she’ll back off. Dante says that’s not her call. Olivia says if he continues down this path, he’ll be throwing his life away and eventually regret it. She leaves.

Emma gets a little hysterical and tells Sam if she’s going to leave, get out now. She starts crying that she misses her mommy and I tear up.

Robin says Jerry doesn’t have to kill her, and she won’t say anything if he just sends her home. Sure, that will work. He says he needs to eliminate the uncertainty by eliminating her. She says if he can’t let her go, at least let her keep working.

Elizabeth says she was afraid if she told Jason the truth, he would leave her. Jason says, so she took away his choices. She says she was afraid if Sam knew the truth, she would take him away. Jason says all he’s done is push Sam away since he found out who he was. Elizabeth says he must know she did the wrong things for the right reasons and they can still be together. What an ass.

Lulu tells Johnny as much as she would like him to remove Valerie from her life, too much could go wrong. She says it’s a shame it can’t be retroactive, but what’s done is done. Johnny is leaving in the morning. I like Johnny and wish Lulu would run off with him. He goes to bed and Olivia shows up. She says she knows how hurt Lulu is and that she needs time, but…and she doesn’t finish.

Lulu says that Olivia is clearly upset by something with Dante. Olivia says she found Valerie looking after Rocco and she’s afraid if someone doesn’t take action, things will get out of hand. I think maybe it’s too late for that.

Dante tells Valerie that none of it is her fault. She asks if Dante would rather be alone.

Robin’s phone rings. It’s Emma and Robin asks to talk to her since Jerry is going to kill her anyway. Emma begs her to come home. She says she doesn’t understand why people who love each other don’t stay together. Robin says one day she’ll understand that Emma kept her alive and she loves her. Emma asks why she can’t come home then. Robin says she just can’t, but remember she loves her and says good-by. Emma is killing me here.

Elizabeth says Jason doesn’t remember his past, but he remembers the love they’ve recently shared and they can work it out. He says she didn’t trust him enough to tell him the truth and manipulated him; therefore, she doesn’t really love him. He says admitting everything now is too late.

Johnny finds Lulu drinking and asks if he can join her. He asks what happened to going home and she says Olivia stopped by, so there was a change of plans. She says she wants him to make Valerie go away. Me too.

Valerie leaves Dante’s. He asks himself what the hell he’s doing.

Jerry says he’s more or less inherited Robin and has to bring things to a satisfactory close. She says he has nothing to lose and everything to gain by letting her continue working. He says she has 48 hours. Where is Eddie Murphy when you need him?

I’m going to need some aspirin before this episode is over. Emma is crying her eyes out and Sam tells Patrick it is for the best, and he deserves to be loved the way he loved her. Patrick hopes that things work out with Jason. It’s okay, Sam, Patrick would only hog the mirror. When Sam leaves, Emma tells Patrick she wants her mommy and collapses in his arms crying. Honestly, this kid should get an award. Patrick says they’ll find mommy.

Elizabeth says she and Jason can be happy. He says living a lie isn’t his idea of happiness. He says it turned out the woman he loved is no more real than Jake Doe and that she broke his heart. He leaves on his motorcycle, leaving Elizabeth going wah-wah-wah, and me saying, good.

Tomorrow, will Jason seek Sam out?

Commercial break during The Big – It’s about time Sheldon and Amy got back together – Bang Theory. Angel from Hell will be premiering in January. It’s been so long since they announced the new shows, I’d forgotten all about it. September to May television seasons are now nothing but a dim memory.

General Hospital – Friday

Curtis meets Hayden at The Floating Rib. He says he found the stray bullet at the garage.

Carly is being a helicopter mom to Morgan. He says he know she and Sonny are worried, but he’s taking his meds and they don’t need to be. Kiki is now waitressing and thanks Carly for dropping the charges and giving her a job. Kiki asks the lady at the next table what she can get for her and it’s Ava who says, a conversation with her mother.

Sam is staying in the guest room at Alexis’s house. She tells Alexis and Julian that she and Patrick aren’t together anymore.

Elizabeth is sniffing Jason’s jacket when Nicholas shows up. I’m not kidding. She was really sniffing his jacket.

Sonny is working the punching bag at the gym. Jason comes in and asks what the bag ever did to him. Ha-ha! Sonny says he wasn’t expecting to see Jason and Jason replies that he wasn’t expecting a lot of things. Well, sorry, but he should have seen them coming. Sonny asks how Jason got in because he had the doors locked. Jason says he told the guard that he was Sonny’s best friend and Sonny says, fair enough. Jason says he wants to punch something out.

Elizabeth tells Nicholas that Jason is gone and not coming back. She says that Sam told him that Elizabeth knew who he really was and when confronted, she confessed. More like he had to drag it out of her.

Sam tells Alexis and Julian what happened.

Kiki asks if Ava wants coffee. Ava says she doesn’t have to treat her like a stranger and Kiki says that’s what she is. Ava asks for two minutes.

Carly says every day they’re making advances in drug therapy. She says that both Morgan and Sonny are bi-polar, but experience it differently, and that being healthy doesn’t have to mean life is boring, although Morgan isn’t so sure about that. She asks if he’s taking his meds. He says he already told her he was, but he doesn’t like the way they’re making him feel.

Hayden tells Curtis she’s impressed, especially since he doesn’t have a car. He gives her a bill for an SUV rental. She asks why he couldn’t have gotten a sub-compact. He says the garage is a front and most criminals drive SUVs. You learn something new every day.

Morgan says he just feels different and that maybe he isn’t used to the meds yet. Carly tells him that Sonny would be a good sounding board, but Morgan says Sonny has enough going on and that he needs some trust right now.

Kiki screams at Ava to leave her alone and breaks a glass.

Jason asks Sonny if there’s been any change in his condition. Sonny says not yet, but if Jason hadn’t stepped in, he wouldn’t have made it. Jason starts punching the crap out of the bag. He tells Sonny about Elizabeth lying to him.

Elizabeth says Laura predicted correctly. She tells Nicholas about Jason kicking Sam out, but then going to her. She says she told him Sam was just jealous, but Jason kept hammering at her until she confessed. She says it ended up costing her everything just like Nicholas had said it would. I’ll bet Nicholas isn’t too happy about this on a couple of levels.

Curtis says he can’t prove the bullet did or didn’t come from Shawn’s gun without the gun, which is in possession of the PCPD. HE says he has friends in high places though.

Carly tells Ava blindsiding Kiki on her first day is no way to build a relationship. She tells Ava it’s her restaurant and to get out. Ava asks what she thinks family court will feel about that. Carly leaves. Kiki asks Ava what she wants and Ava says for the arctic chill between them to end. She asks Kiki to give her a chance to fix things, but Kiki says that will never happen.

Elizabeth says it’s her own fault and blah-blah-blah sorry she’ll be taking Nicholas down with her because Jason is mighty pissed. She says she not only wrecked her life, she’ll be wrecking his too. Despite my loathing Elizabeth, I give a nod to both the black and grey sweater she’s rocking and her hair color.

Alexis says Sam should try explaining things to Patrick. Julian says Elizabeth’s lies have nothing to do with her, but Sam says they do.

Jason tells Sonny the whole story and how Elizabeth knew since May. He says Carly was also telling him the truth, even though she didn’t know everything. Sonny says Carly’s instincts are usually spot on. Jason says everyone thought he was dead and Elizabeth just let them continue grieving.

Ava tells Kiki she’s breaking her heart. Kiki says look on the bright side, at least she isn’t screwing Ava’s boyfriend. She tells Ava that as a mother, she was supposed to protect her. Ava says she just wants to be sure Kiki is okay and Kiki says she’s fine and leaves the table. Carly tells Ava time’s up. Ava says that if she wants visitation, she’ll let her stay and take her order. Morgan tells her to get lost.

Alexis tells Sam she made a mature decision, but Sam says it was really Patrick. Julian says she and Jason can get back together now, but Sam says that’s up to Jason.

Sonny and Jason are passing a bottle of whiskey back and forth. Sonny tells Jason about how he and Carly always found their way back to each other, and that when they used to fight, Jason would always play middleman. He says in the end, he always forgave Carly because he’d rather accept what she did than live without her. Jason asks if that’s what Sonny thinks he should do with Elizabeth. Hell to the no on that one.

Ava says she’ll leave, but Carly can’t tell her when she can and can’t see Kiki. On the other hand, she has control over when Carly and Sonny can see Avery. Carly says she’d better not violate the court order. Morgan says blah-blah-blah and Ava leaves.  Kiki and Morgan chat about their respective mothers while picking up the glass. Kiki asks how he’s doing and he says fine for someone whose mental health revolves around a prescription bottle. He says he feels flattened out, like a balloon with the air taken out.

Curtis tells Hayden that if she wants him to continue, he needs a little more time and a lot more money. He asks if she wants to prove someone other than Shawn wanted her dead.

Nicholas says that maybe Jason will realize Elizabeth did what she did for love. She thanks Nicholas for standing by her. He says all the people lining up to judge her don’t walk in her shoes and she doesn’t owe anybody any explanations. She says sooner or later Jason is going to be knocking on his door and to be careful.

Sonny tells Jason that a lot of people tried to talk him out of working for Sonny, but he made his own decisions. Sonny says that Elizabeth wanted him for herself and didn’t care how anyone else suffered. He wouldn’t forgive her, but he says Jason isn’t him. Carly comes in. Jason says he has something to do. He tells her she was right and that she really knew him better than he knew himself.

Sam asks if she and Danny can spend Christmas with Alexis and Julian. They both say, of course, and Alexis adds that they’re her parents and will support her no matter what. Sam reminisces about the previous Christmas with Patrick. She leaves the room and Julian tells Alexis that he feels Sam with Jason is a bad idea because of how often he put her in danger.

Hayden says of course she wants proof, that’s why she’s going broke paying him. Nicholas comes into the restaurant and sees them talking.

Sonny tells Carly about Elizabeth lying. She says thank God, and he says that’s not exactly the reaction he expected. Carly says she didn’t mean it that way, but she’s glad she wasn’t wrong. She says the best part is that Elizabeth did it to herself and Carly had nothing to do with it. He says Jason can probably forgive Elizabeth for what she did to him, but not what she did to everyone else. Sonny advises Carly not to talk to Jason about it right now. He asks about Morgan and Carly says they had a good talk and Morgan is taking his meds.

Morgan shows Kiki his pills. Why isn’t he taking them? Kiki says he seems good, but he still has to adjust. Morgan says he wants to be friends. Kiki says seeing her mom brought back a lot of stuff and she thinks they should stay only friends, and is that what he wants. He says no and I laugh. He says that he’s okay with it though. He gets a call from Darby, who I guess is only on the show when needed for Morgan’s rebounds.

Julian asks if there’s a chance that Sam will get back with Jason. Sam comes down the stairs and she says don’t worry, they’re just friends. She says she’ll have to accept it if he goes back to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth sees Jason on the porch. He’s getting a call from Sam. Elizabeth comes outside and asks if he’s home. He looks at the phone.

Lulu and Johnny plot about Valerie and hopefully Elizabeth gets bad news.

Master Chef Junior

Tonight, the kids have to make the perfect lemonade. In the Nickelodeon moment of the night, the losing team gets drenched in the stuff. Luckily, Christina’s team wins, so she gets her wish not to get her hair wet.

In the challenge segment, each judge is dressed from the decade they were born. Gordon is dressed like a hippie (60s), Graham looks like he’s from Saturday Night Fever (70s), and Christina is a roller girl in workout wear (80s). While the lemonade winners don’t have to do the challenge, the others have to prepare signature dishes of each decade. Duck a l’Orange for the 60s (something I have never eaten, nor do I want to); Chicken Kiev for the 70s; and for the 80s, surf & turf, which I would have thought was also from the 70s, but okay.

Tip for tonight from Gordon – put a little flower on a metal pot/pan handle so you’ll know not to touch it when it’s hot.

Observation for tonight from me — vegetarians have it rough in these competitions.

Uh-oh, Gordon tells one kid he’d fire him. My father would have too. He put a mayo sriraccha sauce over the lobster and filet mignon.

These kids are probably just as cutthroat as the adults, but they genuinely cheer each other on and I imagine must have real sadness when one of their friends leaves.

It’s okay, kids who went home, I wouldn’t have made it past the lemonade.

Z Nation

Washington DC pre-Z – Citizen Z (Simon in this segment) has been arrested. His lawyer says he won’t take a plea bargain. The DA says if he loses they’ll peruse espionage charges and he’ll spend his life in prison. He says he’s a citizen, not a spy. An NSA officer, the leader of the team that hunted him down, says he has a best and final offer. He says if CZ comes to work for the NSA, they’ll drop all the charges. He says he needs an answer immediately and CZ will be stationed at the Camp Northern Light in the North Pole.

The agent gives him a paper and says he can’t even show it to his lawyer. CZ looks at it and laughs. He asks if it’s code for something. It says “zombies.” The agent isn’t laughing.

Flash forward to CZ right now. (And Pup!) His laptop says file locked and password denied. He’s been hacked.

Operation Bite Mark’s El Camino is dead. Roberta says they’ll have to travel on foot. No surprise Murphy isn’t thrilled.

Vasquez says everything looks the same and Doc says 4 years of a zombie apocalypse will do that. Robert asks how it came to this.

Pre-Z Roberta is back at her military training base. There’s been a change in deployment. She tells the soldiers they have to scratch Philly and they’re going to Trenton. She says she doesn’t ask questions, her job is to move vehicles. An ambulance siren is going off and she goes outside to investigate. She turns it off and sees a trail of blood. She opens the back of the ambulance to see someone under a sheet. She removes the sheet and it’s a zombie, but she thinks it’s just someone who’s really sick. Luckily he’s tied down. She goes to get help.

Everyone has disappeared and the phone line isn’t working. A TV announcement says to wait for important information. Suddenly, one of the soldiers who is zombified runs out and attacks Roberta. She shoots him in the head. Others follow and she continues to shoot while the TV announcer says not to panic.

OBM trudges forward. Murphy says he’s not feeling so good and wonders how much further. Addy finds a plaque and realizes they’re in Disneyland. “It’s a world of laughter; it’s a word of tears,” Doc says.

Pre-Z Doc is a therapist in his office talking to his patient, Larry. They’re both recovering addicts – Doc five years, and Larry 6 days. Doc asks if Larry is going to meetings and Larry says nobody is, it’s hard to get through the roadblocks. Doc says he has 15 more minutes. They hear something out in the hall and Doc goes to investigate. Another therapist is being attacked by patient Bernie who just found out his wife is leaving him. Doc tells Bernie he has the best therapist and it will be okay. Doc talks him down and they hug it out.

This is way cool seeing OBM pre-Z.

Doc opens the door to his office and thinks he sees Larry with “his gay lover” on the couch. He suddenly realizes it’s a zombie and pulls him off of Larry. Too late though. Larry’s been turned and that’s not a gay reference. Doc shoves Larry out the door and locks the office. He hears a scream, takes a golf club, and goes out into the hall. There’s a bloody zombie mess and Doc gets sick. He tries the exit door and sees panic in the streets. He downs a couple of oxys, says “here we go,” and goes outside.

Citizen Z says the servers have been powered down since the nuclear blast, and he can’t figure out how he was hacked. He sees something plugged into the server, says “well played,” and gets back online to see who’s been “sleeping in [his] bed.”

Pre-Z Addy is at a hockey game.  (I was at a fight once and a hockey game broke out. Ha-ha!) All of a sudden, there’s a zombie in the stands and everyone goes running. A couple of the players use their skates to crack zombies in the head in the hallway, but they become outnumbered. Addy is trying to get out and comes into the room where the players are fighting the zombies. One of the players saves her from getting bitten. She runs toward the rink with the player left standing and they get to another hallway. There are zombies pretty much everywhere and they have to fight them off as they go.

Addy says she has to get home because her mom and brother are alone. The two go out the exit to the street.

Murphy says, “Even for us, this sucks.”

Pre-Z 10K is watching as a flock of birds goes by. He’s fishing in a creek.  He takes his catch and is going through the woods. He sees the back of someone and asks if they’re okay. It’s a female ranger zombie with arrows stuck in her. 10K thinks she’s just hurt until she tries to attack him. More zombies come toward him and he runs. Whoa, they’re close. Now a crowd is after him and he slams into a tree. Luckily, he tumbles down a hill, but the zombies keep going

When he comes to, he calls for his dad. A zombie is coming toward him and it’s suddenly shot in the head. His father comes out with a gun and we learn 10K’s name is Tommy. His dad tells him sh*t’s going down and to grab a weapon and run.

Citizen Z hears an alarm from the computer. He’s following the path back to the hacker.

Pre-Z Vasquez is in a funeral parlor. The funeral director comes in and tells him he’s sorry for Vasquez’s loss. Vasquez approaches the coffins of his wife and daughter. The caskets are closed and he begins to cry looking at their pictures. He hears a scratching noise and asks if the funeral home has rats. Then he realizes the noises are coming from the coffin. The funeral director comes back in – as a zombie.

Vasquez is like wtf? and the director attacks him. Vasquez pulls a gun out of his sock, but because he’s not shooting the zombie in the head, his efforts are futile. Finally, Vasquez beats his head to a pulp with the butt of the gun. He hears more noise and runs to find the coffins overturned and his wife and child crawling around on the floor zombiefied. Wow. Tense scene. And a little depressing.

Commercial break. Oooh, The Forest looks good!

OBM are holed up in an underground building while zombies go past them above. Murphy asks himself what they want and does he care. He does but doesn’t know why. He says he doesn’t want to be the savior of the human race or the zombie messiah. He just wants to curl up and die. He wants to know where his mercy is.

Pre-Z Murphy is in the prison yard, where he and some other inmates are playing cards for cigarettes. Murphy folds. The guy next to him asks why he folded and wants to see his cards. There’s a fight, and an inmate gets stabbed. He turns into a zombie and attacks a guard. Murphy runs out and locks the gate behind him, leaving the card player who questioned him to fend for himself and get bitten.

Roberta asks Murphy if he can’t sleep. He says he can’t dream either. He says he doesn’t think he can do this. He asks Roberta to just take some pints of his blood and let him slip out. He says if she was his friend, she would help him. She says she’s not his friend, and she promised to get him to California. He’s afraid they’re going to hurt him and she says she won’t let that happen. Murphy says she can’t do that if she’s not there. She says there isn’t going to be a happy ending for any of them, but he has the chance to save them. Murphy says the zombies will be gone soon and she should wake the others.

Citizen Z traces the hacker. The final connection is in Hawaii. He hacks into the hacker’s computer. He looks into the files to find out they’ve been using him to track Murphy. He destroys the server.

OBM are hiking up a hill. Murphy asks, “Are we there yet?” Addy says they’re close, like just past the trees. The come out of the forest and see the Pacific Ocean. They also see what looks like a rest stop with cars in the parking lot, but it could be an underground lab. Roberta says she doesn’t want them walking into a trap, so she and Vasquez will check things out first. Roberta says if they’re not out in ten minutes, GTFO.

Roberta and Vasquez proceed with caution. Music is coming from the diner. They enter, guns drawn, and there’s an old lady behind the counter. She asks if they’d like tea and ginger sandwiches. I’m wondering if she means sandwiches made out of real fingers. Vasquez tells her to put her weapon on the counter. She does, but under the counter, there’s something that looks like a bazooka. And I don’t mean the bubblegum.

This was an awesome show! The explained each character’s backstory, but also showed the progression of the apocalypse.

Next week is the finale <SOB!>. The Zeros are back along with La Riena, and what’s left of the CDC.

 

Dec5

December 4, 2015 — Two GHs, 16 Chefs & Lots of Mexican Zombies

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

General Hospital — Thursday

Ewww! Dante and Valerie are flirting at work. Please tell me on what planet they would even allow this at a police station?

Lulu and Maxie discuss the whole Dante/Valerie thing. Lulu says they insisted they weren’t sleeping together the whole time, just on Thanksgiving when she walked in on them. Even though I know this is true, if I was Lulu, I’d be saying, yeah, right.

Tracy and Monica are discussing a Toys for Tots fundraiser. Monica thinks Tracy’s idea of the name “Winter Gala” is too boring. Monica suggests “Nutcracker Gala” and Tracy says it’s not horrible.

Paul and Ava are making out in the gallery. I guess it really is guns that Paul is smuggling because they talk about it. Ava wants to be apprised of everything that’s happening.

Anna is down at the docks and runs into Dr. Andre, who is running. Apparently, Andre told her that the medal isn’t absolute proof of Carrrlos being alive. Anna has stopped going to therapy and gets all defensive. She had the medal tested and it shows positive for Carrrlos’s DNA.

Geez, I missed a lot yesterday. Carrrlos is the father of Sabrrrina’s baby. She doesn’t want Michael to find out, so she wants to talk to the tech about avoiding discussion of the due date. Ha-ha! She goes in to talk to the tech and it’s Carrrlos in scrubs and a mask. Man, I just love this guy. He pops up everywhere.

Tracy tells Monica she’s in charge of the silent auction. Monica challenges Tracy to see who can drum up more bucks.

Ava tells Paul she wants to be more involved in the business. She wants to take Sonny down and tells Paul she wants him to see what she’s capable of. She’s capable of some other things too, but Tracy calls in the middle of it.

Ewww again! Valerie asks Dante if he wants to go on a date. These two are making me sick. They agree to keep things discreet at work. Fat chance in Port Charles. Valerie leaves and Nathan asks if he just heard what he heard.

Sabrrrina tells Carrrlos he’d better get lost since Michael will be there any minute. She also insists it’s not his baby. Felix tries to stall Michael by saying how well-received his green bean casserole was on Thanksgiving. Sabrrrina says she’ll meet Carrrlos in an hour if he goes now. The revolving door twirls, Carrrlos leaves and Michael and the tech walk in.

Andre tells Anna she still needs some therapy. She says their business is concluded, but Andre says if she doesn’t continue therapy, he’ll be forced to go to the police with what he knows.

Sabrrrina has a sonogram. Michael thinks the baby looks bigger than it should be. Because he’s had so much experience with this. I worked for two years at a gyn clinic and still don’t know what’s what with one of those. The tech says sometimes the baby can look bigger on screen. Okay.

Andre tells Anna that the shooting is still tearing her up inside. Anna says Carrrlos isn’t dead, and asks if Andre is trying to build a case against her. Andre says no, but this isn’t helping. She says it’s not going to help even more if he turns her in.

Paul tells Tracy he’ll meet her at the Metrocourt. He tells Ava he’ll call her later and his associate will pick up the guns.

Nathan is like, Dante, you need to calm down because everyone is noticing. He says Dante still loves Lulu, but Dante says Lulu told him it was over and he doesn’t want to drag it out.

Lulu is going on and on about what a witch Valerie is and how she tried to blame Lulu for everything. Maxie isn’t hearing a word though, because she’s working her cell phone like a boss, wheeling and dealing for the magazine. Lulu leaves.

In the hallway, Felix tells Angie (the tech) that he’ll take the sono over to the doctor. He tells Sabrina and Michael that Dr. Lee got called away and asked him to give them the details. He says the baby is about 20 weeks and everything is cool. He gives them a copy of the sono. Michael has a meeting, so he leaves.

Andre says technically he’s still Anna’s therapist, so what’s up? She tells him that she thinks Paul is involved. She says the body was cremated before she got a chance to see it, per Paul’s orders, and that the autopsy report was inaccurate. I’m guessing either Andre is into her or he really wanted to be a detective when he grew up.

Paul meets Tracy at the Metrocourt. Tracy tells him about the gala. She says it will get more attention if the DA is involved and it will give him good publicity. He says she has a point, since the position of DA has been a revolving door. I have news for Paul; there are many revolving doors in Port Charles. He asks what she needs him to do and she says be her date.

Monica goes to the gallery. She tells Ava she needs some art, and Ava asks what her price range is. Monica says “free.” She tells Ava it’s only fair since she’s responsible for the death of her son. (What? What happened?)

Valerie comes into the interrogation room where Nathan and Dante are talking. He leaves and Lulu shows up at the station, saying she wants to make a report of fraternization between Dante and Valerie. Nathan says that’s a pretty big deal. She says she doesn’t care and starts to get louder. Maxie comes running in behind her and says she doesn’t want to do this. Why not? I would. Maxie says she’s there to save Lulu from herself. She says that the result could be the loss of two cops and it’s not fair to the department. She asks Lulu to come to Kelly’s with her to ease her pain. With a BLT?

Michael shows up at the Metrocourt and yaps about the baby. He shows them the sono picture. Please don’t tell me that Tracy will figure out it’s not his baby just from looking at that.

Sabrrrina thanks Felix for his help. He tells her to be careful because her “bambino” is huge and at least 26 weeks. Sabrrrina leaves and Carrrlos emerges from his eavesdropping position.

Ava says she knows what will bring in the most money. Monica says she doesn’t need help, but says she’s not seeing anything that she thinks her donors will be crazy about. Then she points to the gun crate and asks what’s in it. Because we always do stuff like that at a gallery.

Nathan tells Dante he’s a lucky guy and that Lulu almost outed the both of them.

Maxie tells Lulu they’re getting fries because the situation calls for carbs. She says it would be a mistake to get Rocco’s father fired and Valerie would have gotten a slap on the wrist. She says the need to strategize and think of something big.

Andre tells Anna she’d best be careful. She leaves to go do whatever sneaky thing she has in mind.

Ava tells Monica the crate has artwork from a touchy artist, so hands off. Monica says she’ll be expecting two significant pieces of work, which just begs for one of the many sarcastic replies at the tip of my fingers.

Carrrlos meets Sabrrrina at the docks. He tells her he knows she’s carrying his baby and he’s mega excited. She tells him to do the right thing for once and leave Port Charles and not look back. He says, no way he’s going without her.

Tomorrow, Sam and Jason move forward with the divorce – maybe.

General Hospital – Friday

Paul shows up at the station looking for Anna. But Anna’s not at the station. She’s busy breaking into an apartment. Oops! She got caught.

Sabrrrina tells Carrrlos to do the right thing for once and get out of town. He says he’s not going anywhere without her, but she says she’s not going anywhere with him.

Blah-blah-blah, romantic stuff with Jason and Elizabeth. She says she’s worried about Jake. I’d be worried too, since he spent his formative years with Helena. Jason tells Elizabeth he saw Laura at Sam’s, but he doesn’t know what they were talking about. Elizabeth has a voicemail from Nicholas saying they have to talk.

Curtis calls Hayden and asks her to meet him outside of Kelly’s. She makes up some baloney story for Nicholas. For whatever reason, Nicholas tells Laura that Sam must have dropped her suspicions about who knew what. Laura says au contraire.

Sam meets with Alexis. Sam tells her that she has information that can break Elizabeth and Jason up. She wants a divorce pronto, so she’s not tempted to use it. Oh, come on, use it. Make me happy.

OMG – it’s Mac sneaking up behind Anna! I think the last time we saw him was like 2002. He says he’s been tailing her because he and Felicia haven’t been able to get ahold of her. She tells him she’s being accused of a murder she doesn’t think she committed and she’s breaking into Sloan’s apartment to try and find evidence.

All of a sudden, Elizabeth has errands to run and tells Jake she has to go.

Nicholas tells Laura she doesn’t know what Sam is thinking or what she’s going to do and neither does he. He says she might be asking questions, but that means she doesn’t have answers. Laura tells him to be prepared for things to blow up.

Sam says she’s convinced that Elizabeth is lying to Jason and she doesn’t want to put her life on hold because of it, and what difference does it make anyway? Alexis says that it obviously makes a difference to Sam.

Jordan tells Paul she doesn’t keep tabs on people who don’t work for her. Paul tells her they both have the same goal, but their working styles are different. He asks if she sees Anna to let her know he’s looking for her.

Anna explains what’s going on to Mac. He wonders whose body was pulled out of the river. She says that’s why she’s there, to find out. (Oh, duh, it was probably Sloan.) Mac says she’s rusty at breaking and entering, and takes the tools from her.

Carrrlos says no way he’s walking away from Sabrrrina and his child. Not gonna happen.

Sam says she reevaluated the consequences after Patrick pointed them out. Alexis says that eventually Jason is going to find out what’s going on, and when he does, is this going to affect things between her and Patrick?

Carrrlos asks what Sabrrrina has going on besides idiot Michael? She says she doesn’t love Carrrlos anymore and she’s not a kid anymore. She reminds him of the St. Christopher’s medal that she gave him. He says he lost it and she says, good. She says they started off with him being older, but now he’s like the child. She tries to leave but Carrrlos grabs her. Paul is lurking in the shadows.

Elizabeth walks in on Laura and Nicholas. Having heard the tail end of Laura’s conversation with Nicholas, she gets all stupid with Laura, thinking Laura told Sam something. Laura says she didn’t say anything, but Sam suspects everything.

Diane shows up at Elizabeth’s. She says she never met Jason as “Jake Doe,” but she’s pleased to meet him now. She says she’s prepared a statement and that he had a will in place, leaving a huge amount to Sam, but pretty much taking care of everyone else too.  She says his estate is intact and he just needs to sign something saying he’s not dead and he’ll have access to it. I won’t mention that someone seemed to have access of it when he went to Greece, since the trip was paid for out of it.

Diane says she thinks he shouldn’t make any huge decisions until he fully grasps his situation. He says he wants a divorce now. She asks if it will be uncontested and he says he and Sam are on the same page.

Curtis meets with Hayden. He says there are too many familiar people inside Kelly’s for them to go in, so they’ll have to freeze outside. It’s colder in Port Charles than it is here.

Oh for God’s sake! They’ve decided to break in about discoveries in the San Bernadino shooting. Why? Why can’t this wait a whole 25 minutes?

Oh, thank you, great and powerful ABC, for giving me the last ten minutes. I think. We’ll see.

Alexis says Sam needs to make the choice that’s best for her and not anybody else. Sam asks what Alexis would do, and Alexis says Sam already knows the answer. I don’t. What is it?

Jason says he wants to make sure Sam and Danny are taken care of, as well as Elizabeth and the boys.

Elizabeth whines that she’s cursed. What an idiot! Laura says all three of them are victims of their own bad decisions and have to deal with it. Nicholas acts like everything is all cool, and says that Sam can ask all the questions she wants, but the only way things will go wrong is if Elizabeth panics and outs herself. Elizabeth leaves, and Nicholas asks Laura if they can give it a rest now.

Hayden returns. She says the meeting was nothing that couldn’t have been done through an email. She says everything is good, verging on perfect, and he asks why she seems so lost in thought. She says because she’s all wrapped up in how lucky she is.

Jordan sees Curtis at Kelly’s and it’s obvious she knows him.

Paul tells Carrrlos to leave Sabrrrina alone (she must have disappeared during the news break) and stay away from Anna. Carrrlos says he has no intention of bothering Anna again.

Anna calls a number she found at Sloan’s and Paul answers from his cell phone.

Jason goes to Kelly’s and Alexis asks how it’s going. She says she was just going over things with Sam. They both agree that everything should go smoothly, but I see something else in Alexis’s eyes.

Elizabeth gets home, but Jason isn’t there. She finds a love note form him and thinks everything is okay. There’s a knock at the door and it’s Sam.

Monday, Sam tells Elizabeth she knows everything. Whether she does or not.

Master Chef Junior

This week, it’s kids cooking for other kids in a carnival atmosphere.  It’s a birthday party for kids from 8 to 12, the same ages as the contestants. There are two teams of eight, with the winners to be voted on by the guests.  Gordon and Graham’s kids will also be in attendance, but not voting. One kid says they’re probably used to sophisticated food, and I say they’re probably begging for McDonald’s. I feel badly for the last kid picked.

I was hoping for corn dogs and curly fries, but the kids make fish tacos, turkey burgers and chicken wings. One girl is wearing a Ramones shirt and I laugh because most of the Ramones were probably dead before she was born.

The blue team wins and the pressure test is to make a croquembouche.  You’ve probably seen this pastry, it looks like a tree of little balls of cake, which are profiteroles, something like cream puffs.

That’s okay, kids who went home. I can barely pronounce croquembouche and couldn’t make a profiterole to save my life.

My money is on Addie

They’re having auditions for the next season. Go to Fox.com/masterchefjunior

Z Nation

When last we left Operation Bite Mark, Dr. Kurian was about to inject Vasquez with the vaccine. Roberta tells La Reina that she doesn’t trust the doctor. La Reina says that the doctor should have the honor of taking the first dose and he’s like, no, no, you must have the honor. She says if she thought that, she would have said it. He injects himself.

And keels over. I think Murphy is eating popcorn. Yes, I believe he is. La Reina says to kill Kurian, thinking he’s going to turn into a zombie, but he says, no, I’m good (reminding me of, “I’m not dead yet,” from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. ). La Reina says to test him. Escorpion brings out a zombie head and it bites the doctor’s hand. They wait and nothing happens. Dr. Kurian says he can’t believe it actually worked. Me too.

The queen isn’t looking too good. She sort of swoons, but it seems to be out of happiness. She praises Roberta. She says because of Roberta, there is hope because she brought Murphy to them. La Reina says Roberta must be next. Murphy steps in and asks if he can have the honor of saving her life the way she’s saved his many times. I think he’s not buying that the vaccine is good and is going to pull a fast one.

And I’m right. He just pretends to inject her. Escorpion (who only La Reina seems to call “Hector”) says these are outsiders and not to be trusted. He asks to “question” Vasquez some more. While pummeling Vasquez, who is hanging from the ceiling, Escorpion asks him why he was trying to kill La Reina. He says he wasn’t.

Everyone is getting injections. Murphy has kept OBM from actually getting the vaccine. La Reina says she’s feeling strong and calls Roberta to come drink with her. I love Gina Gershon in this role. You can tell she’s having fun.

Murphy is in Kurian’s office and says it’s a priceless turn of events. “Not if I can help it,” the doctor tells him.

Vasquez says he was trying to kill Escorpion, and reveals who he is and says that Escorpion killed his wife and daughter. Escorpion actually seems to be having the feels when Vasquez describes how his daughter died. Escorpion says he should have killed Vasquez too. He says that explains Vasquez, but what about the others. He wants to know what Roberta wants with the queen. He orders Vasquez to be put into “the maiden.”

La Reina and Roberta are bonding over drinks. La Reina has been saving some $2000 wine for a special occasion and this is it. La Reina toasts to new beginnings and also to her true love, because if he hadn’t died during the apocalypse, she wouldn’t be where she is today.

Kurian mixes up something to reverse the effects of the serum. Too late. Murphy does his mind meld thing on the doctor and makes him drop the antidote. Murphy says, “Oops! Did I do that?” a la Urkel.

Roberta walks in. Murphy demonstrates his control over Kurian. Roberta realizes that what was in the needles wasn’t a vaccine. Murphy tells her that Kurian is building him an army of zombie blends. She asks if he’s still going to California and he says maybe, but it will be with his army that he can control. Roberta reminds him that he didn’t control Cassandra very well. Murphy tells her the bright side is, she didn’t get injected because he likes her just the way she is.

Vasquez is put into a box with a chained zombie. Escorpion says they’re more alike than he realizes.

Roberta tells Doc, Addy and 10K that the vaccine is really just turning people into zombie slaves for Murphy. She says they’re going to California regardless, even if they have to take Murphy by force. She says that there’s an incubation period, but they need to move fast.

Escorpion tells a story about his son being shot in a drive-by and dying in his arms. He says Vasquez thinks the apocalypse gave him a reason to kill, but they all have their own apocalypse going on. The queen asks for his presence and he leaves Vasquez with the zombie two inches from his face.

Escorpion tells La Reina that Roberta is head of an assassination team that wants to take over their operation. Everybody just stares at everybody for a second, and then Roberta says he’s lying. She says all she wanted to do was bring Murphy to California so they could make a vaccine and that Vasquez wanted revenge on Escorpion. Escorpion draws a gun on Roberta.

Murphy has control over La Reina and suddenly she’s saying Escorpion is a trash bag and to take him away. He’s about to be dragged away and vows to kill Roberta. La Reina tells Roberta to kill Escorpion. Roberta tells Murphy it’s done and to knock it off. La Reina then tells them to do with Escorpion what they will. Roberta tells Murphy she doesn’t want any part of it, and he tells her if she isn’t part of the solution, she’s part of the problem. She tells Escorpion to take her to Vasquez.

Kurian comes in and Murphy asks what’s up. Kurian tries to attack him, but La Reina pushes him away. The court starts to circle Murphy. Murphy takes a knife and slices his own hand so that blood drips on the floor. The zombie blends start lapping it up. Murphy grabs the doctor and backs out of the room.

Roberta finds that the rest of OBM is trying to free Vasquez. Addy holds Escorpion at knife point and they get Vasquez out of the box – and put Escorpion in.

Murphy throws Kurian into an examining room, where he tries to bite at Murphy. Murphy calls him a zombie quack and Roberta comes up behind Kurian and takes his head off. She asks Murphy if he’s ready to go to California. Murphy puts on his spiffy traveling outfit and they leave, with Kurian’s head calling after them.

La Reina finds the doctor’s head and asks where Murphy is. She and her court start to follow OBM. Doc says they’re going to need something to slow them down. He says what better idea to fight half zombies than full zombies. They start to look for where Escorpion was keeping zombies for compost. They decide to let the zombies loose. Roberta tells Murphy to let his people go.

Murphy does magic trick hands, and bibbidy bobbidy boo the doors open and zombies pour out. Murphy sends them in the direction of La Reina while OBM goes the other way. It’s quick and unmerciful.

Roberta tells the others to keep going, but she’s going to wait for Murphy. Addy waits at the door while the others go out into the sunlight.

Murphy has some angst about leaving, but Roberta says they were given a chance and there’s nothing more he can do. They run to join the others. OBM just makes it up the stairs before the mass of zombies gets there.

When OBM gets outside, they see a real mess. Dead bodies, burned up cars, rubble where buildings were. And freaking Escorpion! He says no one disrespects him and lives. Roberta is about to shoot him, but Vasquez stops her. He’s going mano a mano with Escorpion.

Vasquez must be pretty tough because Escorpion is beating the crap out of him and it takes him a while to fall. He gets his memories going about his family and rises up. Now it’s his turn to beat the crap out of Escorpion. He ends it with throwing him down the stairs and into the zombie crowd at the bottom. Escorpion goes down cursing them out.

Doc and 10K see an El Camino dealership and are ready to rock and roll and get a new car. And you get a car! And you get a car! Everyone drives off in their own vehicle. 10K sees a drone following them, which is how they got into this mess, and shoots it with a slingshot.

At the border, where it says “Welcome to the United States,” someone has crossed out “United States” and written “Z Nation.”

The doctor’s head says, “It’s you. You’re alive,” and someone picks the head up. It looks like La Reina to me.

Only two more episodes left. ☹ Next week, Citizen Z is back!

Nov28

November 27, 2015 — Of Chefs & Zombies

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

Master Chef Junior

Just a few words on tonight’s show. I don’t say too much about this one because making sarcastic comments about a children’s competition just wouldn’t be right.

The deal this week was a three team relay race to make 7-layer dip, with the judges ending up with their faces in the dip. They do a lot of Nickelodeon  type antics on this show. I guess the kids enjoy it. It’s kind of funny because they’re so mature, you sometimes forget they’re kids. Until someone’s face goes into the dip.

The winners also get to pick wrinkly, smelly or spicy ingredients for the non-winners (are we allowed to say losers anymore?) to use in the elimination challenge. One of the smelly ingredients is liver. I’m the only person on the planet who likes liver. In butter with mushrooms and onions. The winners pick the smelly ingredients for the others to cook with.

You know when Gordon asks you to taste something, it’s not going well for you. But that’s okay, kids who went home, I’m decades older than you and I wouldn’t even have a clue as to what to do with truffle oil.

Z Nation

We start off at the USA/Mexican border with a zombie trying to eat a drone. Operation Bite Mark is getting rid of a whole load of zombies and I’m wondering if 10K is still counting and how does he keep count anyway?

Murphy isn’t looking too good, but Roberta tells him that if he’s the zombie messiah, it’s time for a miracle.

Doesn’t happen, but suddenly a bunch of people in Day of the Dead makeup drop down from the roof like a SWAT team and take care of the mini horde.

It’s our old friend, Escorpion. Murphy outs himself as The Murphy, and Roberta says they have to get him to CDC. She says if Escorpion doesn’t back off, she’ll kill him. Murphy not Escorpion. Murphy shows his bite marks. Escorpion tells them to lower their weapons and he won’t interfere. He says if he wanted them dead, he would have left them to the zombies. Good point.

Escorpion is making zombies into compost from which he can create energy. He takes them through the building and out into a gorgeous compound on the Mexican side. Escorpion says they’re lucky one of his drones spotted them. He says he’s been tracking them and that whenever there’s some crazy bullsh*t going on, it’s them. He says their queen can give OBM a bounty better than the CDC. Since the bounty isn’t what OBM is after, I’m not sure what’s up here.

He introduces them to La Reina, Queen of the Zeros, played by Gina Gershon. She praises Roberta on her skills at getting Murphy to her, when her best men weren’t capable. On the side, Addy asks Roberta what the plan is. Roberta says to stay alive and get out when they can – with Murphy.

La Reina says Escorpion is aggressive and lacks tact so the people come to her for inspiration and hope. She says only the Zeros have the ability to distribute narcotics globally and she can get the antidote to the people. Her doctor has been working on a vaccine and the final ingredient needed is Murphy’s blood.

Oh dammit! It’s Dr. Kurian from the CDC suddenly popping in.

La Reina is surprised to find they know each other. She’d lost track of the doctor in Colorado, where he took off with her money and research. He was brought back to “atone.” She tells Roberta that she gets where Roberta is coming from, she would want revenge too, but she doesn’t want her killing the doctor. Roberta says she can’t anyway because they took her gun.  La Reina says that sometimes to save humanity, you have to put up with some disagreeable men, but some day that will change.

Murphy goes to Dr. Kurian’s lab. He asks why the doctor didn’t contact him and does he realize all the stuff Murphy’s gone through.  Dr. Kurian asks what he wants him to do, send a Hallmark card? Murphy gets ready to have his blood taken.

La Reina offers OBM future positions in her empire. Vasquez tells Roberta to say yes. La Reina says there is a formality first, an examination, and burlap bags are put over the heads of OBM. OBM is put into a room where they’re supposed to fight zombies with rather primitive weapons. Escorpion and his cronies place bets. A zombie is let in and Addy gives it mercy. Escorpion says he’s going to do them a favor and Vasquez flashes back to another time where he’s heard him say that before. Oooh, Escorpion was the guy who killed Vasquez’s family.  Escorpion turns out the lights and lets in a load of zombies.

When the lights come back up, the zombies are dead and OBM is still standing.

Dr. Kurian sticks a needle in a guard’s neck and brings him into the lab. He gave him a full dose of the vaccine. He immediately pops up with crazy eyes and tries to attack Murphy. Murphy does his mind meld thing and the zombie backs off. Murphy plays a mirror game with him for a while and then he keels over. Dr.Kurian apparently needs to work out some kinks.

In the meantime, the rest of OBM is getting spiffed up. Apparently, the Zeros had amazing outfits in just the right sizes. Ha-ha! Doc’s beard had rollers in it and comes out all curly. Escorpion tells them to come with him. We see the same tattoo as the guy had in Vasquez’s flashback.

There’s a big ceremony and La Reina comes out in a burgundy mantilla with a crown of buzzard skulls or something. She says she’s going to bestow the greatest honor on OBM by making them “one of us.” OBM are given their weapons back and it’s on to the celebration, which consists of Spanish music and a nice buffet.

Vasquez tells Roberta he wants to kill Escorpion and he has to do what he came there to do.

Addy is wandering around and sees some guys using a zombie as a piñata. Way to rock a party!

And there’s entertainment. Señor somebody gets on stage with his ventriloquist dummy and Escorpoin promptly shoots him in the head. Tough crowd. I would be afraid to follow that act. Luckily, the lady doing the flamenco dancing passes muster.

Roberta asks Murphy, who is dressed in a matador outfit, what happened. He tells her that Dr. Kerian took his blood. He says he wants a cure as much as anybody, but she says he’s enjoying his power too much.

Vasquez is about to shoot Escorpian in the back of the head, and Roberta stops him. Because Escorpion is standing in front of La Reina, the queen thinks Vasquez was going to assassinate her. Escorpion says he might be working with others and takes Vasquez away to be tortured. Escorpion asks why he was trying to kill the queen and he says he wasn’t.  He asks who Vasquez is working for, the Russians, the Chinese or rich people. Vasquez says he doesn’t know what Escorpion is talking about. Escorpion threatens him with an egg beater. A messenger comes to tell Escorpion something and he tells Vasquez he has good news, but not for him.

Dr. Kurian announces that he has the vaccine. La Reina wants a demonstration. For that he needs a volunteer. Escorpion graciously offers Vasquez. Le Reina says this is the beginning of a new world order. The doctor is about to inject Vasquez, when the screen says —

Continúara .

Nov21

November 20, 2015 — Cassadines, Mini Chefs & Corporate Zombies

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

General Hospital — Thursday

Nina tells Franco she called every lawyer except Ric, but everyone is unavailable. Franco says that’s okay, he’s been in jail so often, he has a rewards card. Nathan says everything points to Franco’s car having run Carly off the road. Wouldn’t they have interviewed him before arresting him? Or at least asked him where he was?

Morgan tells Kiki about Franco’s arrest.

All righty then! I guess Nicholas and Hayden must have sealed the deal because they’re waking up together. Good. They’re one of the few couples I like. Lots of I love you stuff. Oh, thanks, GH. All of a sudden, Nicholas is trying to choke her and it’s all a dream.

Ha-ha! Jason drops down into the Cassadine mansion on a Mission Impossible rope, while the theme plays in my head. When a guard sees the rope and investigates, Jason jumps him.

Sam and Elizabeth are on the plane to Greece. Sam says Elizabeth is just trying to do damage control. She says Elizabeth is afraid that Helena will bring back memories, and that Jason will remember that Elizabeth could never accept him as he is. I wasn’t watching a lot during the whole Sam/Jason/Elizabeth storylines, so I really don’t know what went on. Probably when Jason remembers, I’ll get the lowdown.

No matter what Nathan says, Franco tells him it wasn’t me (meaning Franco, not me). Nathan says given Franco’s history with Carly, it might not have even been an accident. Franco says his car was in the garage all night, while he and Nina gave crappy candy to kids in crappy plastic costumes. He says the next day, he saw his car had been scratched. Nathan says it’s irrefutable that it was his car, so he must have gone out. Suddenly, Franco says it was his car.

Kiki tells Morgan that it was her, not Franco who had the car out, and she wants to turn herself in. Morgan asks her why. She says basic human decency. Wow. She actually knows what that is.

Hayden visits Sean in prison. He says that he didn’t mean to shoot her and was aiming for Jake Doe, and that he’s prayed she would be okay.

Jason steals the guard’s key card and let’s himself into…where?

Sam says she wants Jason to have his life back so he can make his own choices. Elizabeth says a bunch of really nasty stuff and Sam throws a drink at her. She should have aimed a little higher though. It mostly hit Elizabeth in the chest and not face. I assume this was a directional choice. It takes too much time to reapply makeup maybe?

Franco says that after Nina went to bed, he was restless and went out. It’s pretty obvious he’s making this up as he goes along. Nathan just sits there and watches Roger Howarth work. Nathan wants Franco to write out a statement.

Since everyone can just come and go in jail, Kiki and Morgan come in where Franco is being held.

The stewardess has to tell these two grown women to settle down. They should have had Obrecht play that part, since she’s playing a stewardess in the Fear: 462 web series. Elizabeth asks questions that are none of her business. Sam says Elizabeth isn’t Jason’s equal, she’s a damsel in distress and was his cross to bear. This time Elizabeth throws a drink.

Hayden tells Sean that Jake is Jason.

Oh man, this is good. Jason enters a room where a closed door opens to – Nicholas, who beat him there. I have to get one of those Star Trek transporters like these people have.

Commercial break. What is this “winter finale” business? Why don’t the networks just admit that there are no TV seasons anymore and they’ll put their shows on any time they damn well please.

Nathan asks if Nina is covering for Franco. She says no, he was with her all night.

Franco says he’s taking the blame for Kiki and Morgan thinks this is okay, since her life is getting better now. Yeah, let’s teach her about lack of responsibility while we’re at it.

Hayden tells Sean she’s 99.9% sure the bullet that hit her wasn’t from his gun.

The stewardess threatens Sam and Elizabeth, but gives them another chance. She says whoever Jason might be, God help him. Sam asks Elizabeth to agree that right now they’re in this for Jason. Elizabeth says it’s one of the rare times she’s glad Sam is with her because Jason needs them both.

Nicholas says he assumed Jason was going to pay a visit to his grandmother. Jason asks what he’s afraid of Helena saying. Nicholas says not everything’s about him, and that Helena has taken a turn for the worse and he’s there to say good-by. Ha! Helena took a turn for the worse decades ago, but that didn’t keep her from being pretty feisty.

Franco says that a DUI would be the cherry on Kiki’s lack of a future cake. He says he’ll just get off with a fine. He says there was no loss of life, so why ruin hers? Um…she doesn’t have to say she was drunk. I can’t believe she’s going along with this. What a couple of lowlifes she and Morgan are being. Morgan goes blah-blah-blah what a nice guy Franco is.

Nina grabs Kiki on her way out. Kiki asks how Nina’s job is going, and Nina asks how the drinking is going. Kiki says she hasn’t touched a drop in two whole days. I don’t think Nina is buying this. Yep, I’m right. She busts In on Franco and asks why he’s confessing to a crime he didn’t commit.

Sam thinks Nicholas is involved. Elizabeth says she doesn’t think Nicholas did anything but nose around.

Hayden asks Sean if he saw anyone else, but he says no. He asks if she told the police, but she says no, because the guy who’s the real shooter might get wise and finish the job.

Nicholas says he asked Helena about Jason, but she refuses to answer. He asks why Jason continues to pursue a life of misery when he has a new one waiting for him. Jason tells him he doesn’t want to shoot him, but he will, and pushes him back into Helena’s boudoir.

There she is! Helena on oxygen, but other than that, she looks pretty spry. She’s certainly not on her last legs. I think this is a set up.

Hayden says she can’t go to the crime scene to look for the bullet, and asks Sean what to do. He says he knows someone who can help her.

Helena says she can’t leave her bed. Jason says, gee, I guess no one would think she might be faking. She says it hurts when she laughs and he says good and I laugh. Helena says she’s ready to cross her last bridge and Mikos will be waiting for her, but only if she can right some wrongs. Ha! She called Elizabeth insidious. I love her. Suddenly, Elizabeth and Sam’s asses are dragged into the room by the guards.

Nina says she knows Franco is covering for Kiki. Nina says she understands, but he’s enabling her. Franco says he hates psychobabble. Nina says it’s the truth. She says as a parental figure, he has to teach her there are consequences for actions and she has to take responsibility. Nina says they’re both contributing to society now, and they’re good together, but how can they continue if he goes to prison? She’s concerned that Nathan will pursue specific charges because it was Carly. I can’t believe Nathan doesn’t see what’s going on. Are all the detectives here stupid?

Oddly enough, Kiki is the only one making sense. She doesn’t think Franco should take the rap and she needs to own up to her responsibility. Morgan is like, you deserve a break after all you’ve been through. She says how is she supposed to be a better person and live with herself if Franco ends up in prison. Morgan says she needs a big change and she should leave Port Charles with him. What? Are there some stupidity enhancers in the water?

Franco says as soon as Scotty is back, he’ll get him off the hook. Nina is skeptical that Nathan won’t throw the book at him. Nina tells Nathan that it was Kiki driving the car.

Morgan – who apparently has no job either – tells Kiki let’s just go without any timeline. He talks about going to some cabin and putting Port Charles in the rear view mirror, and he’s going to sing a Meat Loaf song any second. Is he in another manic phase? This is just a bad freakin’ idea and Kiki should know better when he says I don’t want to see a shrink. Continuing to be a moron, she agrees.

Sean tells Hayden to make whoever did this to her pay.

For a sick lady, Helena doesn’t seem to have slowed down much. She says it’s a fascinating conundrum for Jason, since his wife is there and brought his fiancé. She calls them “Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumber and I die laughing. She says she can rest when she’s dead.

Helena says in order to have redemption and see her beloved Mikos again, she has to tell Jason everything he needs to know.

Tomorrow, Helena talks, Morgan wears a weird hat and Epiphany smacks Sonny around.

General Hospital – Friday

Nina tells Nathan to let Franco go and arrest Kiki. Meanwhile, Kiki and Morgan arrive at his family’s cabin.

Sonny goes to the gym and after two seconds becomes a big baby and wants to go home. Too late, Epiphany blocks his exit.

Patrick clues Carly in on Jason and Sam going to Greece.

Helena says that returning little Jake is not the only contrition she has to make. She says there are some things that Jason might not want to know, but he says he wants to hear it all. So do I, so start talking, Helena.

Franco says he’s already signed a confession, so justice has won. Franco tells Nathan that Nina is just trying to cover for him, but he’s talking so fast and so much, I’m sure Nathan isn’t buying it. Yep. Nathan says he can’t believe he’s doing this, but calls to have the pictures pulled up from the car so he can get an ID on the driver.

Morgan finds fishing gear while Kiki tries to get a connection on her phone. She wants to call Franco, but Morgan says that it will just be a traffic violation for him and he’ll be out in no time. Morgan encourages her to go fishing, even though the cabin has everything. He’s definitely in a manic phase.

Epiphany (who I’m so glad is getting some screen time) tells Sonny he’s going to have to do his PT. He says it’s a gym for boxers and she counters with it’s a gym for fighters, and that’s what he is.

Carly argues with Patrick about the progress Jason has made. He complains about Sam going after Jason, and Carly says it doesn’t mean she loves him any less.

Helena says it’s tedious being in bed and she feels rejuvenated by having visitors. She gets all sarcastic with Elizabeth and I love it. She tells Jason his taste runs to insipid even without memories.   She says she’ll take as long as it amuses her. Sam asks what she did to Jason, and she says she saved his life. When Jason got shot, Helena’s associates scooped him out of the water and brought him to her. I’m being concise because she’s so full of funny, smart remarks, I can’t type it all that fast and I’m also trying to enjoy it.

Franco says he did the same thing for Nina, that he loves both her and Kiki in different ways. He says if she doesn’t understand that, maybe they should reevaluate their relationship. When Nathan produces the photo, Franco says it was Halloween and he was in a khaleesi costume. ROFL! Nina tells Nathan that the last time she saw Kiki, she was with Morgan.

Carly argues with Patrick who just isn’t having any because he’s almost a bigger baby than Sonny. Carly asks how he left things. Patrick says he was supportive and Sam said she’d come back to him, but he’s wondering if they’re kidding themselves. Carly gets a call from Nathan, who is looking for Morgan.

Kiki says she doesn’t want to stay that long at the cabin. Morgan says they’re wiping the slate clean and he wants to start over with her. He says that no one will ever find them there. Okay… Kiki tells him there isn’t “the two of us.” He says he’s not asking for anything but an adventure. Kiki says his family will miss him, but he says he’s just a drag to them. I concur. He says whatever she wants to do is fine, but he needs this. He asks if she wants to play cards and she says she wants to make it interesting.

Epiphany screeches at Sonny. She asks what he wants and he says to bash someone’s face in. She produces his boxing gloves. He says there’s no such thing as wheelchair boxing and she says he needs to get out more and to google it when he gets home. I guess there is such a thing then.

Carly storms into the police station and demands to know why Franco isn’t in handcuffs. Nathan tells her it was Kiki and she doesn’t believe it because she’s really ,really stupid, and can’t get a clue that Kiki was drunk. She insists that Franco is framing Kiki, but Nina says it was just the opposite and he’s noble as hell. Franco tries to call Kiki on the sly.

Morgan has apparently lost the card game and has to go jump in the water outside in his underwear. Franco gets through on the phone.

Patrick shows up at the gym. Sonny wants to school Patrick in boxing, because he doesn’t know enough to even wrap his hands.

Sam says she could have saved Jason. Helena says she would have retrieved a corpse if it hadn’t been for her. Sam says Helena has no clue what love is and that Mikos went off with her grandmother because Helena is unlovable. Oooh! Helena curses Sam and everyone close to her. She says Sam and her people will never know happiness. Could she please curse Elizabeth too, while she’s at it?

Carly can’t get through to Morgan. Franco tells Kiki that the police know what happened and tells her to run. Nathan grabs the phone, but it’s too late, they were cut off. Morgan comes back into the cabin after freezing his butt off in the water. Kiki says she feels sick. Morgan sees a message on his phone from Carly saying the police are looking for Kiki.

Sam says pfft! to Helena’s curse. Helena says just ask Luke and Laura about her curses. (That’s right! When she was Elizabeth Taylor, Helena cursed them at the wedding.) Elizabeth says let’s get out of here because she’s a wimp. Helena is like, why go before you get what you came for, and says her story has the power to change all of their lives. Oh boy! Oh boy! This new storyline could definitely take us through the new year.

Nathan asks Franco where Kiki is, and Franco acts cagey. Nathan says he’d be doing her a favor if he tells her to turn herself in. Franco is pissed at Nina for interfering. He says Nina needs some consequences, but stops short of saying he’s breaking up with her.

Kiki says they have to go back to Port Charles. She says Franco told her the police are looking for her. All the more reason not to go back, Morgan tells her. Morgan says he’ll tell Carly not to press charges, but Kiki says it’s probably not up to her. Morgan suggests they go to Canada. Kiki says he’s nuts (truth!) and then Morgan hears someone outside.

Sonny tells Patrick things might not turn out the way he thinks, and gives him boxing instruction.

Nicholas says Helena is getting tired and it’s time to take a break. Elizabeth says she probably doesn’t know anything and that Helena is weak and frail and should rest. Helena says how nice she’s concerned, but doesn’t she think Jason might want some answers. Sam says, are you saying you did this to Jason? Um…if that wasn’t the case, why would we even be here in the first place? For a smart woman, Sam often has trouble with the obvious.

Aww, Franco doesn’t really want to break up. He says he’s going to hide the remote so she’ll have to get up to change channels and when they get a dog, she’ll have to walk it. They say I love yous, and Nina says she’s sorry, but Kiki has to deal with her drinking.

Epiphany says Sonny did good today. Not just with the PT, but with encouraging Patrick. Carly comes in and asks Sonny if he’s seen Morgan, and explains what’s going on with the accident.

Uh-oh, Morgan thinks the cops are there and gets a gun. No good is going to come of this. Kiki says there’s no one there, but he loads the gun and says he’s going to protect her.

Sam says Helena must have wiped out Jason’s memory. Elizabeth says she did it to Lucky. Sam says Lucky was able to come back from it. Helena says anything is possible and Sam asks if she can do it.

Monday, Hleena plays more with her guests and Kiki hears a gunshot.

Master Chef Junior

In a nutshell. 8-year-olds cook better than I do, but are less realistic. They bring out astronaut Tracy Dyson, and one of the contestants says she would like to be a chef, a spy and an astronaut. Hmm…maybe kids are just more ambitious than I am.

Graham filets the most giant flat fish I have ever seen and it creeps me out a little.

I’m bucking for Avery to win.

Z Nation

We start with that piece of music from that commercial, you know what it is. Everything is in slo-mo, OBM fighting zombies in the woods. It also has an orange filter. So I’m assuming this is a dream. No, they’re apparently fighting in a way I’m unaccustomed to.

OBM find an abandoned hotel. It’s crawling with zombies outside, and Murphy works his magic. There are people inside. One says they can’t leave people outside and it’s been a year since they’ve seen anyone new. He slides open the door and all guns are on OBM.

The leader (Anthony Michael Hall) tells them to turn around. He introduces himself as Gideon Gould, saying he is a facilitator, but not leader – everyone participates in decision making. Gould tells them to put their weapons away. Someone suggests a “popcorn circle process.” Oh no, it’s the talking stick thing – whoever has the stick has the floor, and they pass it like a bowl of popcorn.  Gould was a corporate expert in corporate conflict resolution and they were all at his seminar when the apocalypse happened. Gould does an “honest inventory,” giving his honest impressions of them with no filter. Boy, he has them all down to a T. He gives Doc a hug. He tells Murphy he don’t get no respect. OMG – he is one of those corporate guys.

Murphy says now that they’re all friends and stuff, could they get some food. Roberta tells Gould that Murphy has a vitamin deficiency. Murphy says the corporate doublespeak is making him hungry. Gould takes Roberta and Addy aside, and  tells them they can stay as long as they like as long as they go by the system. Roberta says they won’t stay long because they have to be somewhere.

The guy who let them in, Iggy, takes 10K and Doc to the kitchen. He says he wants to leave but is always voted down. He was sent to the seminar to hone his people skills and has been there 4 years. Addy and Roberta go with popcorn woman (Dana) to the roof to try and get the satellite dish going. Dana says some people left and some were banished and they always came back zombies, so they stopped trying.

Dana says Gould is controlling and she’d like some open space. Addy says it ain’t what it’s cracked up to be. I think Dana is bucking to come along with OBM and also flirting with Addy.

A gunshot is heard. A group busts down a locked door and finds Murphy shot, along with another guy (Greg).

Commercial break. Holy! In the Heart of the Sea looks fantastic! Definitely worth seeing on the big screen. Even if you have to take out a second mortgage to buy a ticket and popcorn. Thank God for that dollar store at the mall. They have Boston Baked Beans and gummi bears too. The good gummi bears.

I’d totally tweet with Z Nation if I liked tweeting.

Vasquez says they have to mercy Greg before he turns. Doc says Murphy has a concussion or worse. Murphy is dreaming of being back at the canyon with the zombies going over the edge and he falls. Vasquez says he only heard one shot but there are 2 victims. He thinks the bullet passed through Murphy and hit the other guy in the heart. Doc says that’s why he’s not turning. The bullet had Murphy’s blood on it, so he’s going to be like Cassandra.

Roberta tells Gould she’s concerned about one of them having done this. Gould says violence begets violence. Another woman suggests maybe a member of OBM shot Murphy, since Vazquez let slip he’s their prisoner. They do the stick thing and point fingers at 10K. Dana gives the stick to Addy and she says 10K doesn’t miss. She says he might kick Murphy in the nuts, but would never try to kill him. 10K says Murphy isn’t his friend and he has reason to kill him. When the time comes, he will, but that time isn’t now.

Vasquez says he found a duffel bag of food and one of them was packing for a getaway. Murphy must have caught them. Gould says the punishment for stealing food is banishment. Gould points a finger at Iggy and says he ‘s the only one with a key and he wants to leave. Iggy says the place is a death trap and he wants everyone to leave. Gould yells at him and says tell the truth, and Iggy he attacks Gould. Gould says he’s out and Roberta says it’s a death sentence and at least give him a weapon. They boot iggy’s ass out with a Thor type hammer.

We don’t see what happens to him, but his yell tells me it’s probably not good.

Doc says Murphy isn’t doing so well, the bleeding has stopped, but he’s still unconscious. Roberta wants to get moving, but Doc says they could kill Murphy if they don’t wait. Doc has been soaking a rag in Murphy’s blood and letting Greg suck on it. He’s turning blue like Murphy. Roberta says to keep Murphy alive while she goes and climbs the corporate ladder.

10K listens in on a conversation between a man and a woman. The woman doesn’t want OBM there because it’s costing them food. Gould talks to Roberta and tries to explain the rules. He says at first, it was a real horror show with people trying to leave and they made it work by applying a system. There are zombies ensconced in some off limits rooms. Gould apologizes for the shooting.

Murphy is still having the zombie fantasies in his head.

Gould is looking for someone named Washington and a zombie pops out. 10K shoots it and the woman he saves turns into a zombie in like a second. She’s dispatched by Vasquez. Dana and Addy go down the hall toward some sounds. Dana thinks it’s zombies, but Addy says they’re human since they got quiet when the two approached.

We see the shadow of someone taking things outside and Dana just nods her head and let’s them pass. Addy doesn’t see this. Addy and Dana are in a closet hiding, and Dana asks Addy to take her along. She says she’s always afraid. She’s crying and she hugs Addy. Just in time Addy sees that Vaxquez and Roberta are aiming at the zombies and they duck to avoid getting shot.

They all return to Gould who asks to speak with Dana. Hmm…is he the guy with the suitcase?

Murphy’s visions are still going on, and suddenly they become real with a zombie breaking its head through the wall. Roberta cuts its head off, but others are banging to get in. Doc continues to feed Greg blood. Is he nuts or that bored? Roberta is like, maybe you should stop that, and Doc tells her the guy is getting better, but Murphy is still in dreamland.

10K says the hotel zombies are out and the gate isn’t going to hold. Zombies come busting in.

Gould asks Doc what’s going on. He says a blood transfusion with alternative medicine. Everyone starts to argue and they’re all talking at once with no stick. Roberta tells them to shut up and do their stick thing. Gould says the rules are more important than ever, so that they can find out who shot Greg. Greg is awake so Doc suggests the ask him. He points.

Commercial break. Krampus looks awesome too! Except I’ll save that one for the small screen, since it’s rated PG-13. The last time I saw a PG-13 movie, I felt like I was in the middle of a bus on a field trip. I have great peripheral vision too, and I could see phone screens for miles. Sometimes, I’d like to take one of those cell phones and – oops! show’s back on.

Greg poins at Guy Whose Name I Don’t Know. He says he’s not surprised a zombie figured it out before the corporate morons. He tells Dana to come with him. Dana tells Gould she’d rather take her chances out there than die listening to him in there. Her companion is shot, turns into a zombie and is given mercy. Dana tells Addy this isn’t what she wanted. Gould says it’s time for OBM to go. Vasquez draws his gun and Roberta says that unless the stick shoots something, they’ll be staying

There’s a knock at the door. It’s iggy. Alive. He says no thanks to any of them. Gould says he has the right to be angry because the process failed him and he’s sorry. Iggy laughs. Gould tells him to work through his feelings. Iggy takes the stick and beats Gould with it (it’s pretty big).

Murphy regains consciousness. He asks Doc what he missed. Suddenly, all the zombies outside leave. Murphy says he had the craziest dreams. I guess when he was unconscious, he couldn’t control them?

OBM is ready to leave. Roberta thanks them for the food and Iggy thanks her for the freedom. Iggy says they’ll be hitting the road too. One woman says she’s always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. Doc says it ain’t what it used to be.

Dana apologizes to Addy. Dana asks if there’s anything she can do to stay with Addy, but Addy says no. Doc & 10K banter about the corporate mentality. The truck pulls away with Addy looking wistfully out the back window.

Next week, Gina Gershon guests stars and is starting a new world order.

Nov7

November 6, 2015 – Almost Jason, Roswell & Some Returns

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

General Hospital

It’s almost time and I’m already feeling that let down you get when the party is over and the guests go home. I’ve watched this storyline like some men watch a football game.

Doc is referring Anna to another therapist.

Ava shows up at Paul’s office with a gift for him. A blah-blah-blah, whatever artist it was both he and Tracy were looking for the other night. I’m guessing he’s the big gun she’s going to switch for Scotty. Ric says pretty much nothing to Sonny.

Come on, let’s get to the wedding.

Felix is having to deal with the boys (I mean the real boys) and Epiphany comes to take over. That’s what she’s best at, taking over. Michael says to Sabrrrina he’s glad their baby will have both his parents. Right now Sabrrrina’s wishing she’d never slept with Carrrlos, and I’m hoping with the tiniest hope that he’s not dead. Could happen. Nicholas is looking for Hayden. Michael wonders why he brought such a despicable woman there. Like Nicholas is any better, since he stole Michael’s company.

Jason thinks Carly is out of her mind, but she’s so overwhelmed with feelings, that she’s not really explaining. He says he’s not Jason, and she says yes, he is, and she’s got proof. If that laptop is okay, I want to know what brand it is.

Elizabeth asks Hayden why she’s there. She plays around with Elizabeth a little, saying things like “you know why,” and then says she’s there to wish Elizabeth every happiness.

Patrick hadn’t known Sabrrrina was pregnant. Really? I guess he hasn’t seen her in a while. Patrick wishes her and Michael well. I’d forgotten they were engaged at one point.

Anna doesn’t want to switch shrinks, but Doc says objectivity is key here and Dr. Whatshisname is new. He’s also pretty good looking. It’s Dr. Andre. I thought it might be, but then I thought I misheard because I once had a medical Dr. Andre.

Ava tells Paul that the hearing was moved. Paul says If the governor was involved, he can’t get involved. There goes that idea. Ric says it would be better if Carly came to the hearing. Gee, he might have thought of that before, doncha think?

Carly shows Jake the laptop and shows him his face changing. Not only is the laptop okay, the program works perfectly. He says it’s unsettling, but it must be a glitch in the program. She says she has paperwork, and he gets it from the car. It’s the DNA test and it says right there, JAKE DOE IS JASON MORGAN. For some reason Jason doesn’t want to believe he’s Jason. He says to Carly that Jason is dead and she needs to let him go. He so desperately doesn’t want to be Jason, I would think he knew all along, but I can’t imagine he’d have allowed Spinelli to get involved if he didn’t really want an answer.

Anna tells Dr. Andre about Duke’s death. She tells him she saw a man she has reason to believe is dead, so it must have been a hallucination. She tells him she couldn’t sleep and Doc prescribed anxiety meds.

Nicolas switches places with Hayden in Elizabeth’s dressing room. Elizabeth asks Nicholas why he brought her, and he says he really didn’t want to come by himself. (Um…he could have brought Spencer. Obviously there are kids allowed.) They talk about what good friends they are and all they’ve been through and how many lies they’ve told. Okay, not that last one. He says they deserve some good times.  He says not she has the opportunity to be with NuJason (he actually says “new Jason”) and they hug. Blech. Let me at those rainbows and unicorns.

Hayden runs into Patrick. She tells him her memory seems to be coming back all on its own. Sam who was passing by and couldn’t help but hear, asks if that means Jake’s identity too. Hayden says you never know, and I rub my hands in glee.

Sonny gets Michael on the phone. He hasn’t seen Carly either. Michael decides to help Sonny out and foregoes the wedding. How long do they think the ceremony will take? He tells Sabrrrina to stay and have Carly call him when she gets there.

Carly lists all the similarities between Jake and Jason. She doesn’t understand why he’s fighting it. Jason is pissed because nothing seemed familiar. Carly says everything was familiar. Spinelli thinking it was him, Elizabeth latching on to him, even her own trust in him. (And how about that old lady from the Lucky Buddha or whatever that restaurant was? And Sonny?) Jason says she just feels that way because she loved Jason and lost him. He says his name is Jake (stop it, Jason!). He says if he was Jason, he’d remember and he doesn’t, so, nyah-nyah, he rejects the DNA test. Nice try.

Sonny asks for Morgan to testify too. Ric thinks he’s making a mistake with that one, and I’d like to make a smart remark, but I can barely pay attention. Ava says Paul agreed to help her and owes it to her. He says the only reason she isn’t rotting in prison is because of him. She’s going to leave with the painting, but he says hold on there a minute, and says he’ll give her the strategy to beat Sonny. The painting must be better than I think it is.

Anna tells Dr. Andre that she’s seeing Carrrlos. He asks why and she says isn’t he supposed to tell her that? He says it might have something to do with guilt. She doesn’t get why she’s supposed to feel guilty or at least that’s what she says to the doctor. She says some other nonsense about Duke’s death and loving him.

Carly tells Jason the last thing she thought was that they’d have a fight when she found him. He say did she think they’d go get a beer and relive old times? Carly says he’s been waiting a year for this info so what gives? He’s all la-la-la I refuse to believe it. She says he’s always been true to himself and that he must be scared of something.

Sonny says he’d kill anyone who hurt his children. That’s probably not a good thing to say at the hearing.

The natives are getting restless because Jake and Carly aren’t there. The kids were told that when Hear Comes the Bride plays, the wedding starts, so when that music from Ordinary People starts playing, they go get Elizabeth. She talks to Patrick and is all panicked because Jake isn’t there and she knows damn well he shouldn’t be. Sam texts him, Where are you?

Jason is still screaming at Carly that he’s not Jason. She brings up how he was working for Helena. He says he can’t be Jason because he doesn’t feel it. He says even looking at his face changing on the laptop, he feels nothing. She says DNA doesn’t lie. He says maybe it’s true; he can see it, but he doesn’t feel it. So what is he supposed to do now? Carly tells him he has to cancel the wedding. He’s still married to Sam. Oh boy! Oh boy!

Anna tells the doctor he’s been helpful and she’ll be going now. Not so fast, says Dr. Andre. He knows she’s lying and tells her to come back when she’s ready to be honest, but he’s not refilling her meds. She complains to Doc about Andre on her way out.

I don’t know what Paul told Ava, but she’s happy about it. He tells her that if she wasn’t being so emotional she could have thought of it on her own. He also tells her how beautiful she is. Ava says he can keep the painting and that if all goes well, she’ll have to find another way to repay him. He grabs her, dips and kisses her. As Anna peeks through the door. Shame on you, Anna!

Oddly enough, Carly’s phone has been abandoned at the accident scene, so the 50 people trying to call her get nowhere. Sabrrrina throws a red herring in by saying Carly might be at the courthouse. Epiphany decides to take the boys for ice cream with Felix. Oh, okay, while they’re waiting for the wedding to start? I would think Epiphany would know better than that. Elizabeth knows something is wrong and Carly ain’t at the courthouse. Sam says she just got a text from Jake. I doubt it says that he’s Jason.

He says he’s on his way. Elizabeth says she feels silly, that Jake probably did drop Carly off. Elizabeth is going to make an announcement about the delay, and I’m hoping Hayden has an announcement of her own. Just as Elizabeth says the groom is running late…

…Jason walks in with Carly.

Z Nation

We’re in Roswell. Two people are running down a road and one gets zapped and sliced in pieces by what looks like a beam from an alien spaceship.

Cut to Operation Bite Mark, traveling by Jeep. Something is watching them. They see a zombie chopped in several pieces, moving around (the victim of the spaceship?) and give it mercy. 10K talks about mutilated cattle and how he knows all about aliens from an uncle. Doc suggests he’s been smoking z-weed or needs to. Murphy says if there were aliens, they would have been repulsed by the human race a long time ago. Hey, that’s my theory. Some garbled dialogue comes through the radio and it sounds like, what else? Aliens. They see a Close Encounters type light in the distance that disappears.

Roberta talks about her father being an air force pilot and believing in aliens and he was a no nonsense kind of guy. Murphy isn’t having any, but Doc says that UFOs are more believable than someone flying a jet after the apocalypse. OBM finds a crash site down the road. It’s been there a while and Roberta says it probably crashed when everything went to hell in a hand basket. OBM picks off several zombies that come out of nowhere.

Cool! They drive up to a little fast food place that looks like a spaceship. A guy with a clipboard pops out and asks if they’re here for the visitors. He’s one of a group of “extronauts” who have been invited, not abducted. He says the aliens are coming to save them from the apocalypse, and they must be part of the chosen. He explains that the aliens communicate through one of their group, Bernadette, but they’ve all seen the lights.

He leads them to a small crowd out back. Bernadette emerges and says they’ve been waiting for the strangers to arrive, and among them is the one the aliens have been waiting for, an emissary. In case there’s any doubt, that would be Murphy.

OBM sits down for some food. A guy who introduces himself as Dan Scully, but reminds me of Max Headroom, sits down at their table. He says he was just passing through and these people are all crazy. He says what’s really going on is the aliens aren’t coming because they’re already here and are the ones who caused the zombie virus. Murphy says he’s crazy, and Dan says crazy stays alive. The look on Doc’s face says he agrees with that. Dan suggests they leave before the zombie aliens come back.

Dan leaves and Bernadette joins their table. She says the aliens prefer the term “visitors,” and I wonder if that’s an homage to V. Bernadette wants to take them to an abandoned air force base.

They drive to the base. Bernadette says that the zombies won’t bother her, but apparently they haven’t gotten the memo because OBM have to give mercy to several. Behind a hangar is a landing strip that Bernadette has prepared for the aliens. She tells OBM that the voices told her only to bring the emissary. Roberta asks how long she’s been in contact with them. We go back to the beginning where she was the one running on the road. They take a break in a small office and Bernadette keeps insisting that Doc get some gum from the vending machine. Both Addy and Roberta notice everything is nailed down or magnetized, and Bernadette has put on a seatbelt. As Doc pulls the knob for the gum, the building starts rocking like Dorothy’s house in Wizard of Oz and begins to descend. It’s an elevator.

After reaching the bottom, they follow one of the tunnels, finding something like a mini version of the alien from Alien. Murphy isn’t liking it and OBM shoots at it. 10K gets it in the head. They almost examine the body, but hear a sound like a bomb about to go off and take cover. The zombie alien explodes, and Doc says that he’s wearing paper jumpsuit during the next apocalypse. Everything does seem to be pretty messy.

They go into a room with some kind of interactive hologram thing. Addy knows the program and starts messing with it. Addy stays with the holograms and Doc, hoping to make contact with someone. The others go back to where the alien exploded. Murphy is wondering why everything is mostly in English. Addy says maybe this is based on our old internet. Addy then gets to pictures and info about Bernadette,  the members of OBM, and a whole lot about Murphy.

Bernadette and OBM follow some lights until they get to another zombie alien or alien zombie or whatever these things are. Bernadette is like they come in peace, but no, they don’t. And they’re hard to kill because it’s like they’re wearing armor. Oh thank you. One just grabbed Bernadette. I got tired of her  harping on how wonderful they were.

The others find some alien weapons, and 10K takes one after affirming it works by blowing off a zombie’s head. Roberta, Vasquez and 10K end up back at the runway. The entire city is lit up and Bernadette is in an alien beam. The spaceship comes flying around and puts a spotlight on Murphy. He starts to follow it. 10K shoots at the ship with the weird gun, but it shoots back and he drops the gun. Doc yells to Murphy not to go, that they’re going to probe him and not in a good way. Roberta picks up the gun and gets the saucer. It flies away, and Murphy comes out of his trance. The ship crashes and there are a lot of pretty colored explosions.

They all go to the crash site, and find an alien. They remove its helmet and it’s Dan Scully. This is like Scoobie Doo. You darn kids! Dan says there are no aliens and he was going to tell Bernadette the truth when she got on board. The others were test pilot zombies. He’d been recruited to salvage any technology there, but wanted to bring Bernadette back with him, dragging Murphy into the story just for fun. She’s like, why didn’t you just ask me? Too late, he dies and Roberta has to give him mercy. This was all a pretty complicated way just to get a date, but I have to hand it to him. He had us all going.

Bernadette and Roberta look at the sky, and Bernadette wonders how she’s going to tell the others. Roberta tells her she’ll be okay. She returns and says the aliens told her the human race isn’t ready yet and they need to wait longer. Way to learn a lesson about lying.

Next week, it looks like we’ll get to see Citizen Z again. I hope so. I miss him and Pup.

Master Chef Junior & Grimm

Master Chef Junior is back. It’s fun to see the kinder, gentler Gordon Ramsey. It’s a bit of a blow to the ego though that an 8 year old can cook better than I ever have or will in my finest hour. The judges do their best to make it fun for the kids. This season, it’s Gordon Ramsey, Graham Cracker Elliot and Christina Tosi. They started the kids off with making a burger, all of which were fabulous and made me hungry, and ended with a marshmallow dish. Marshmallows are difficult to cook with, and as sometimes happens, one of the kids cried when their dish didn’t come out as planned. I’d like to add that no matter what it looked like, Christina said it tasted good, and I have no doubt she was telling the truth. This kid wasn’t much older than I was when I decided to bake my father a birthday cake. That part actually went well, but I also decided to ice it when it was still hot. I ended up trying to hold it together with toothpicks. So, there you go, kid. You might have gotten cut tonight, but at least you didn’t have to hold your dessert together with toothpicks.

Grimm is also back, and no one told me. I don’t always pay total attention to this show, but it’s very clever and I love when the characters turn into stuff.

Sep17

September 16, 2015 — Port Charles, Los Angeles & We Have a Winner

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

  

General Hospital

Hey, yeah, where has Diane been? I think the last time I saw her, she was on Devious Maids. I know she works a lot, but she couldn’t show up for Ava?

I don’t want any of these people to visit me in the hospital ever. They haven’t stopped yelling at each other for days. Julian tells Lucas that he’s really out of the mob business, and “this time it’s different.” Whenever someone uses that phrase, it’s time to not believe them.

Commercial break.There’s something called The National Sleep Foundation and they have an official pillow? Is there a mascot too? Some ad for a marathon is using Back in the New York Groove as background music. Best solo song by a KISS member (Ace Frehley) ever.

Scotty claims that Diana is no longer representing the Jeromes because she’s dating one of Sonny’s goombahs, and she ripped up the retainer check. Ava says she doubts Diana would ever rip up any check and I tend to agree.

Oh man, this whole Valerie/Dante/Lulu thing is getting good. Cool. Nathan is calling Valerie out. Good Lord, she needs to get a grip. Not that I ever was in her exact position, but back in the day, I’d eat some ice cream, cry, and then move on.

What the blip kind of room do they have Sonny in? It looks like some strange hotel and the machines he’s hooked up to aren’t even making any noise.

MasterChef: 2 Hour Finale

We start off with a race through my beloved pantry. Can we move this pantry to my house? I swear I’d cook every night. Each home cook has to make a 3 course meal and gets a sous chef, one of the contestants who was ousted earlier in the season. The judges are 30 chefs from the restaurants of Gordon, Graham and Christina.

What does a “provocative dish” mean? Is it wearing pasties or something? I wish Claudia would quit messing around with that octopus. I’ve actually eaten it and like it, but prefer the Japanese breaded and fried version. I don’t like anything I’m eating to look like it did when it was alive. OMG – she runs out of octopus because they forgot to take one out of the pot. Really? How can you forget about an octopus?

Everything looks amazing and I’d even eat the looks-like-it-did-in-the-ocean octopus. Stephen makes pan seared scallops. He’s used edible flowers, which heretofore have been a turn-off for me. Claudia has the octopus going on and Derrick has made Miso Black Cod. Derrick wins this round, both on the show and with me personally.

The pressure test is also a 3-course meal: a cheese soufflé, steak frites and panna cotta – some kind of dessert I’ve never heard of, but looks like it’s seriously hard to make, on par with the soufflé. The contestants get to SKYPE with some friends and family members. Claudia has some problem with the dessert, but I don’t have a clue as to what it is. Stephen has put his soufflés in too early and Gordon has his hand to his forehead like he has a headache. Whatever Claudia’s problem was, has apparently been solved. Graham examines one of her fancy French fries like it’s a precious diamond. I love how he always holds everything up to the light and looks at it six different ways.

Claudia wins this one and is going on to the final final. I eat my words about Stephen being the winner and make a stupid pun. Rooting for Claudia now.

Derrick is making a pork belly (nice cut of meat!) dinner and Claudia is going for a Mexican tamale extravaganza. Wow. I never noticed how many tattoos Graham has. Derrick is “infusing” practically everything with watermelon. I just prefer my fruit separate from my proteins, with the exception of pineapple on ham or pizza. I guess if you’re going to do something like that, do it with pork. The other white meat. Sorry, it just naturally follows. Citrus fruit doesn’t count either.

Uh-oh. This really isn’t good. It’s only the appetizer round and Gordon is asking why Claudia chose food he could get on a food truck and she talks about her roots and how she wanted to elevate this food style. He eats, likes, and tells her she took something common and made it unique. What looked really awful for a second has made a 180.

Derrick’s entrée is venison; Claudia’s is swordfish. Still rooting for Claudia. I don’t know how these people can cook with all the noise from the spectators. Man, I don’t know what it is that Derrick is making to go with the venison (hey, I have to eat too, and I went to the microwave), but it looks phenomenal and crunchy. Puff pastry cage. Love it, but you can have the huckleberry sauce. Gordon tells Claudia that if the fish is dry, she’s screwed. Why do they like to make the contestants all nervous? I highly doubt Claudia is going to make anything too dry. I’d make a safe bet that she knows what she’s doing.

Commercial break. Can’t wait for Scream Queens to start, but it does throw a wrench into Tuesdays, which are difficult enough.

Of course the fish isn’t dry. I said it wouldn’t be dry. Now my leftover Chinese food is looking drabber by the second. For dessert, it’s sponge cake for Derrick, but he can’t get the cake batter out of the doodad he’s using. It’s a tense moment, but Derrick emerges victorious. Owow, this is like no sponge cake I ever ate. Claudia has made a Hibiscus poached pear. It wouldn’t be my first choice because there’s no chocolate involved, but I have to admit it looks fantastic. Derrick says he served the judges “art on a plate.” Who cares? There was chocolate around it.

Ok, here comes the hokey part where the final two try to open the doors and the one that opens is the winner. Never mind, that’s the other show, Hell’s Kitchen. I watch too much of this stuff and it’s all blending in together. Claudia wins! I picked the winner! (Out of the last two anyway.)

Little Women of LA

Why can’t they rerun Little Women of LA back to back like a lot of shows do? Now I have to make a choice between that and Rick Springfield on Watch What Happens Live. I guess I’ll DVR Rick, which means it will go into the black hole of recorded shows, never to be seen.

Tonya’s idea of a workout video for little people is brilliant. As our population grows, mo’ people equals mo’ little people, and mo’ whatever other kind of people we have. It’s both helpful to others and an untapped market.

There’s a bit too much TMI regarding Christy and Todd’s artificial insemination project, so I’ll just leave it at that.

Elena is having trouble picking out a dress for her vow renewals. She wants to have everything she didn’t the first time around. It seems like what she really wants is for her sister to be at the ceremony. Apparently, you need a damn good reason to visit the US from Russia, and her sister’s application for a Visa had been rejected a few years ago.

As much as I like them, every time Christy and Todd come on screen, I want to put my fingers in my ears and do the “la-la-la” thing. The insertion process is very painful and I’m wondering why they don’t use any type of anesthesia. I sincerely hope a pregnancy results from all this.

The girls show up for the workout taping and nothing is set up. Even worse, what they have to work with is totally unprofessional. They’re basically putting up photos and a handmade banner to the wall as a background. Brilliant idea, but not very well thought out execution. All of a sudden, the girls are questioning what they’re being paid. (Pretty much nothing.) Isn’t the time to do this before you sign up? Tonya doesn’t like anyone giving her direction. Geez, I’ll bet even Alec Baldwin takes direction. Everything is taking way too long and everyone is getting worn out. Like Don on Below Deck, Tonya decides it’s just too hard and quits.

After a pep talk in the hallway, Tonya has regrouped and decided to delegate. They’re going to have to put in another day though, and Briana isn’t happy about that. I think she’s really mad about the girls’ saying she seemed jealous of Elena’s upcoming vow renewal, which Brittney just had to let her in on.

Fastest pregnancy test ever! And I really appreciate seeing Christy’s pee in a cup. I guess I should be grateful I didn’t have to see her peeing into the cup. Ugh! The test was negative. Sadness all around.

Million Dollar Listing LA

Josh says that social media is more important to the real estate business in L.A. than anywhere else. I think that says something about L.A. Superficiality anyone? Although I do have to say, I went to L.A. for a V convention once and it wasn’t all tall skinny blondes with fake boobs. And there was the Clifton Cafeteria.

This is another one of those shows that I enjoy, but there isn’t much to say about it. It goes without saying that the homes are fabulous or they wouldn’t be on a show called Million Dollar Listing. The brokers act obnoxious for the most part, although I’m not sure how much is for the camera. If I saw two brokers going at it the way they do on these shows, I wouldn’t want to deal with either one of them. Although we do get a glimpse into their private lives, I’ve never had much investment in these guys. Perhaps a little more in the NYC group, but having spent nearly half my life there, I tend to gravitate toward any show with that background setting.

And I just love looking at amazing places I will never be able to afford in a million years and make myself miserable.

Sep10

September 9, 2015 — GH, Down to Four & LA

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

General Hospital

Show of hands. How many people think Sonny is going to die? Me neither. It’s not like this is The Walking Dead. Carly is also taking this news awfully well. I guess she’s used to it.

It seems like Sloane and Anna had some kind of relationship I wasn’t privy to off camera. Where is all this coming from? Sloane looks as confused as I feel. I’m thinking these two are just making it up as they go along. Yep, Anna made a big mistake shooting Carrrlos. Mostly because I liked Carrrlos and had hoped Sabrrrina would change her mind about him. Although it did give Jeffrey Vincent Parise an opportunity to die on live TV. If you don’t know much about this actor, Google him. He’s extremely accomplished both as an actor and an artist. He also got some play in that final episode of Mad Men.

Hmmm…maybe it was Julian behind the shooting and they fooled me by making it the obvious choice. Like General Custer’s “reverse barometer” theory in Little Big Man. “You want me to think that you don’t want me to go down there, but the subtle truth is, you really don’t want me to go down there.”

Ha-ha! How long are they going to keep trying to keep that headband on Avery’s head? These girls have all had experience with children too, and at this age, it’s off the head and into the mouth.

Sonny’s real name is Michael? How did he get the name Sonny? What a misnomer. It should have been Cloudy, Overcast or Storm-A-Brewin’.

Once again, we have an over-crowded ER, filled with people who don’t belong in there. I wonder how many patients die from being exposed to germs because no one is wearing a mask.

Sloan cares, but just not that much. I was wrong. He would do anything for love, but he won’t do that. Not if that interferes with his bank account.

For the love of Mike, why does every lullaby have to be about that freaking Mockingbird?

I know! Sonny wakes up thinking he’s married to Jake.

MasterChef

The contestants are divided into two teams. Small teams. Nick and Claudia (red), and Derrick and Stephen (blue). Three boxes are wheeled out , each with one of the judges names on it. Christina’s box is removed, and the red team gets Graham’s box, and the blue team gets Gordon’s box. Since each team is expected to make an appetizer and an entrée out of what’s in the box, it’s assumed Christina’s will be saved for dessert. They have one hour to do this. It would probably take me an hour just to figure out what to do with the ingredients.

Nick totally forgets to put the crab in the broth he suggested they make – no crab broth for you! They go for a crab cake instead. Fine by me. I’m getting hungry watching this. The blue team is makes some kind of prawn dish with avocado and pomegranate seeds. Even I know those seeds are a mistake. I love when one of the judges asks whose idea a dish was. There’s always a lot of humana-humana and quick looks at each other. Is it a good question, or a bad question?

OMG – I am loving these triangle shaped plates! My favorite bowl is square. My husband doesn’t understand this.

The crab cake gets a thumbs up from Gordon and Christina. Get that cilantro off the plate and it will get one from me too. Uh-oh. The red team has used roasted red pepper in both of their dishes. Apparently this is bad. Graham says their salmon entrée is “disgusting,” and that I know is bad. I think it was the kale that did them in. Gordon is a little more positive, saying it tastes better than it looks, but it also lacks personality. The blue team has made duck for their entrée. Not a favorite of mine, although I’d give this dish a try. Ugh! They didn’t clean the mushrooms enough. Why? Still, the blue team is safe.

The pressure test is the Christina/dessert box. They’ll be making a chocolate malted layer cake. It takes months to master this cake, Christina tells them. Now, off you go! I get up to go into the kitchen and hear the bleeps of curse words from the other room. No surprise on a Gordon Ramsey show.

M-m-m-m. Charred mini marshmallows. I’ll just have a bowl of those, please. They’re doing a chocolate glaze icing. I actually know about this. I watched someone else do it once.  60 seconds left? I’d be throwing those marshmallows on there now. Claudia’s cake is a mess. I hate when the judges start yapping about how something looks when the contestants are given an hour to make something that normally takes 2 days to make. Regardless, Christina is impressed with Claudia’s flavors. Graham takes a bite after holding it up to admire it. Like I don’t think he wants to down that whole cake at once. And just because you want darker marshmallows and more fudge, doesn’t mean you’re going to get them in an hour. Christine says Nick’s cake is beautiful, but I see a marshmallow hanging off the side. Minus 10 points. Christine does that thing where they take a bite, nod & just walk away. Ah, it’s too sweet. He says he ran out of ingredients and “didn’t think to ask for help.” Yep, he probably doesn’t ask for directions either, but this time it might cost him more than going in circles for another half hour.

Yep, it did. Claudia is going through and Nick is going bye-bye. Not that I have a dog in this fight, but I’m glad. I would hate for the deciding factor to be the visuals, especially when it came down to not asking for help and then not being able to recalculate the recipe. (See? I know a little.)

My hat’s off to the guy in the hat though.

Anyone want to take up a collection for me to go on the next MasterChef cruise?

Little Women: LA

How is it that there are no periods in the Los Angeles abbreviation? Doesn’t that make it Louisiana? I just noticed this after three seasons.

As usual, the ladies are being enterprising. Tonya is developing a workout video for little people, which is a brilliant idea. She loves working out, but obviously an average sized gym is a problem. She picks some of the other girls to be in the video with her. In Brittney’s talking head segment, she’s wearing earrings the size of basketball hoops, so maybe they’ll be including a game.

Joe and Terra are now married (Terra’s Little Family is over for now…sniff…I miss it) and are postponing their honeymoon because of baby Penny’s health issues.  Elena and husband Preston announce that they’re going to renew their vows and have a big bash. They’re excited about having their families come, because it wasn’t possible the first time. Briana gets all emotional because she “should be the next one getting married.” Except Elena and Preston are already married. What up wit dat, Briana?

There is still a lot of conflict between Briana and the girls over Matt. I’m not sure what to think. It’s kind of like Brooks and Vicki on the OC Wives. I still haven’t seen anything that’s so bad, but the friends seem skeptical. (And I’m not talking about you, Meghan. You just seem crazy.) I love Terra, and she’s no dummy, so maybe there’s something there, although I don’t think giving him the silent treatment is the answer. And if someone called me a fetishist, I might get annoyed too. Providing I wasn’t one. Ok, now she’s spilled the beans that Matt had been flirting with her online at the same time he was “engaged” to Briana, which was five minutes after they met. Maybe the problem is really just moving too fast on both their parts.

Christy and Todd’s dealings with A.I. is TMI. Enough said.

Seeing the ad for the new Rachel Zoe effort, Fashionably Late, it looks pretty good. I liked her last show better than I thought I would, so I might check this one out. (September 24 – my sister’s birthday!)

Sep3

September 2, 2015 — GH, the Rich, the Small & the Final Four

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The Haves and the Have Nots

This show is just so over-the-top cool! I love these Tyler Perry nighttime soaps because they evoke a revamped 70s/80s style. It’s like he refashioned old-fashioned. The actors must be having a great time with this stuff too.

Last night, I missed the beginning, because I just had to find out what the tip was on rerun of  Below Deck ($12,000), but apparently, the cat is out of the bag that Jim has two illegitimate children by one of his maids, and his popularity just took a nosedive. Jim says he’s “not having a good day,” and this is an understatement. He wants everyone dead.

His business partner friend knows that his wife, Veronica, is on Jim’s death wish list, and he’s having none of that. He tells Jim that if Veronica is harmed, he’ll show him “the like of an enemy [Jim] has never seen.” Them’s fightin’ words. Although I don’t get why David cares so much about her, since a couple of episodes ago, she tried to burn down the house with him in it.

Ah, love.

General Hospital

Aw, Jake. I like him. I just wish they’d get to telling him who he really is. So he can dump Elizabeth like yesterday’s trash. I don’t like her. I never quite understood why all the ladies loved Jason, but nuJason is very lovable.

Anna is back! At one I’d point hoped for a “love triangle” between her, Duke and Sloane, but Duke’s dead and Sloane is MIA, so there goes that. Oh, wait, they’re talking about Sloane, so he must still be around. He’s one good-looking guy, but please, GH, stay away from those buzzcuts. Maybe that’s where Sloane has been, busy growing out his hair.

Nice scene between Morgan and Sonny about the bi-polar issue, although you’d think Morgan would know all this already. BTW, I’m not too crazy about Michael either. “You’re not hung over cuz you’re still drunk.” HAHAHA, Sonny! Been there myself.

I kind of like Nicholas and Hayden, but I’d feel more comfortable with it if I didn’t think he was planning on killing her.

Molly and kid-whose-name-I-can-never-remember should go into the bakery business.  Carly & Sonny’s wedding cake looks fabulous. Whoops! Maybe not. It looks like there’s a group of masked men who just don’t like cake.

MasterChef

Everyone has to make magic from a single ingredient and their “staple pantry box.” Nick says the simplest things are the hardest to execute. I agree. I can’t make a sunnyside up egg for anything. I love Stephen’s goal to have a farm to table business.

Katrina is wearing a bow on her head again, albeit a lot smaller. I’m betting it grows by the end of the season.

Claudia says she had a dream about Gordon and she has a crush on him. Me too. He might act like a screaming mimi a lot of the time, but that’s not because he’s a nasty guy; he’s just passionate about what he does. And granted, maybe some of it is for the camera. He’s actually quite a kind and caring man, and possibly the hardest working man in the food industry. He has at least 4 TV shows, my favorite being BBCAmerica’s The F Word. It’s very different from the other programs like MasterChef, Hell’s Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares. It’s more of a food variety show, where you get to see where the food comes from, along with some cooking segments and a whole bunch of other stuff. There’s also a contest segment where a celebrity (not a chef) and Gordon compete in making the same dish. And Gordon is not always the winner.

I’m not a bleu cheese lover, but Derrick’s pretzels with bleu cheese look hella good. Claudia wins the first round, but I don’t think her crush has anything to do with it. Oh man, I desperately want their pantry. It has absolutely everything you’d ever need. I love when the winner gets to screw around with the other contestants. This time, Claudia gets to pick her favorite ingredients and one of the others will have to cook with them. A few old timers (winners from previous seasons) have also been invited back to make up baskets for the others. Christine is one of them and one of my favorites. She’s blind and I find her amazing. Nick, who got Claudia’s basket, is totally freaking out.

Katrina seriously screwed up. Undercooked veal. I don’t think that bow is going to save her either. Nick is safe though. For all his freaking out, he had the top dish. Yep, Katrina is going home. The top 4 are Claudia, Stephen, Derrick and Nick. Katrina gets a great consolation prize though. Gordon offers her a culinary trip to France when she’s ready. The bow lives on!

I’m still feeling that Stephen will be the winner. Although seriously, anyone who can hold their own on this show for any amount of episodes – hell, anyone who even made it onto the show – is a winner in my book.

Little Women: Los Angeles

Since MasterChef ran overtime, I missed the first 2 minutes, and tune in to see Tonya and Jasmine hugging it out. Dammit! What were the magic words that made that happen?

It’s a shame that the women aren’t accepting of Briana’s fiancé, Matt. He’s tired of getting the cold shoulder from Briana’s friends and I don’t blame him. While no doubt he has flaws, like Jasmine we’ve only seen Matt treat Briana with respect and love. Jasmine is the only one being cool about it – or not “being all, like uncool” as the Countess would say. If he’s only a fetishest, he’s hiding it pretty well. And he did put a ring on it.

Elena is working with a makeup company and the whatever-they-are seem to be skeptical of her idea of having a mini double-sided brush included in a palette. I’m a palette junkie and I think it’s a fine idea. Their argument is based on the fact that they’ve never manufactured something like that before. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think it’s a good idea to manufacture never-before-done makeup products. Who doesn’t want something new in their makeup wardrobe? This makes no sense to me whatsoever.

Barry Gordy’s son, Kerry, wants to create a hit single for Briana, Christy is going to be in a music video, and Terra’s getting married. These girls are busy! What’s so remarkable about all of them is that, watching them, you would never know the physical struggles they go through. Their challenges go way beyond being small in stature. It seems like every one of them have other physical problems as well. Briana goes to get her hair done and has to put cotton in her ears because getting any water in them can cause 5 days of pain. My admiration grows. Also my awareness of how we all complain about such insignificant things.

Brittney is a dancer, just off of Miley Cyrus’s tour (um….) and is getting an agent. Is everyone’s life more exciting than mine? Those who can’t do, write about it.

Terra’s Little Family

It’s the season finale and time for the wedding. I am so looking forward to this!  Everything is gorgeous, especially the bride. Terra’s father is deceased and I can totally understand the hole that must be in her heart, because I had no father to walk me down the aisle either. Her brother is pinch-hitting though, as my sister did for me, and everything is just beautiful, including tiny flower girl, baby Penny in her wagon, surrounded by flowers. Terra’s dress is perfect, and her pillbox hat with a short veil works well. So does the beige dress/cobalt blue shoe combo for the bridesmaids. Terra’s heel breaks on her way down the aisle, but every wedding needs at least one hitch. For their first dance, Terra has written and recorded her own song. Is there no end to the talents these little women have?

I really love these two and wish them as much happiness as they can handle. In a sea of reality nonsense, they’re a breath of fresh air, and they show us how to handle life’s complications and hardships with grace and maturity, as well as how to do it as a couple. And they literally make me laugh out loud at least twice every episode. They’re the couple you’d love to hang out with IRL. While I totally admit to enjoying the ridiculous arguments and rich people’s problems of The Real Housewives, Terra and Joe are pearls among pebbles.

Million Dollar Listing

It tends to rotate, but now Wednesday is the problematic day of the week for me. The day of the week I have to stay up all night to catch the shows I want to see. So let it suffice to say that I’m glad to see the Los Angeles guys back. My favorite is the New York bunch, but that’s because I know the city so well. But for some reason, I just could not get into the San Francisco group as much. I did get into some of the houses, which were incredible; the brokers, not so much.

Oh, this is good though. The son of the seller of a to-die-for house wants to help out by taking potential buyers on a trip down his own Memory Lane. This guy’s jaw is wired because somebody punched him in the mouth and I understand completely.

Off the watch the finale.