Tag Archives: nighttime drama

September 6, 2024 – There For a Payday Not Romance, Last Dream, New Series, Fancy Move, For Lease, Heavy Edit, Mob Slam, WWDD Et Al, Be Quiet, Chinchilla Rock, Just Past 10 Quotes & Song

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What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Brook listens at the living room door and says, nothing. Olivia says, no rains in Spains falling down the plains or whatever? and Ned says, falling mainly on the plain. Olivia says she doesn’t care. This whole thing is ridiculous. Brook says she can’t believe granny would hire some elitist drill instructor to fix ma’s speech, and Olivia says she’s going to kick that fancy pants nutjob out on her butt. Ned says, Lois ultimately agreed to a lesson, and Olivia says, she was coerced. Tracy comes by and asks if they’ve been lurking here this whole time. She’s getting a speech lesson, not being debriefed after an alien abduction. Robin opens the door and says, they can hear them. Come in. They’re finished for today. Brook asks Lois, how’d it go?

Jordan asks a CSI guy what he thinks, and he says, she’s right. Something to do with that tattoo might identify their John Doe. She says, that’s great news. Can he forward the photos to her too? With Commissioner Devane’s permission of course (🍷). He says, will do, and leaves. She goes into Isaiah’s room, and Sidwell’s thug peeks out from around the corner.

Dante joins Jordan, and she tells him, the photographer was just here taking photos of the tattoo. Dante says he saw. Maybe that will get them something. Did she reach the WSB? She says she’s waiting to hear from Brennan. What’s he doing back here? Shouldn’t he be upstairs with Lulu? He says, if he sits around, he’s going to lose his mind. He knows she’d want him to keep her in the loop. She asks if that means he found something. Is he closer to identifying this man?

A guard brings Holly to where Lucky is, and Lucky says, Sidwell’s not here. Holly tells the guard that she’ll be fine with this one, and the guard leaves, closing the door. She asks if Lucky is all right. She heard he was stabbed. He says he’s fine. What is she doing here? She says, don’t worry. Jenz is out inspecting the mine. He won’t find them here together. He asks why she’s at this compound. Does she need help escaping? She says she’s perfectly safe, and he says, so she’s here with Sidwell? What the hell is she doing? She says she couldn’t resist. The heart wants what it wants.

Josslyn slams into her apartment, and two seconds later, Carly says, let her in. She bangs on the door and tells Josslyn to open it. Josslyn knows she’s not going to leave. Open this door now. She’s not going anywhere. Josslyn opens the door and asks if Carly spent the night with Sonny last night. Carly says, yes, and Josslyn tells her, then there’s nothing more to say. She starts to close the door, but Carly stops her. She says, don’t shut her out. She’s not going to let her.

Elizabeth takes Ric to her office and says, they’ll have some privacy in here. He tells her, there’s not much to say. When John Cates was shot and killed last night, they saw Alexis drop a gun off the bridge into the water off of Blackstone Canyon. She was obviously trying to destroy evidence. It’s pretty simple. They need to tell the police what they saw. She says, they don’t know what they saw because it was dark, and they were kind of far away. She’s not even sure it was a gun. Alexis said it was her phone. He says, she didn’t believe that then, and she doesn’t believe it now. She even said it was a gun. She says, because that was her first impression, but right now, she’s not so sure. He says he doesn’t believe it. He never thought he’d see the day when Elizabeth Webber refused to do the right thing.

Chase asks Dex how it feels to be part of Port Charles’s finest, and Dex says, pumped, proud, nervous. Chase says, he’s got this, and Dex says, during graduation, he thought about how good it felt to be a part of something bigger, something important. Just like it felt when he joined the service. Anna comes in and asks if it’s Dex’s first shift, and he says, yes, ma’am. He’ll leave them both to it. Anna says, why doesn’t he stick around? She might need him. Chase asks, what’s up? and she says, a development in the homicide of Agent Cates.

At the penthouse, Jason says, so Sonny is missing a gun, and Sonny asks if Jason took one of his 9 millimeters. Jason says, no. Who has the combination to the lockbox? Sonny says, no one that he knows of, and Jason asks, when was the last time it was opened? Sonny says, a couple of weeks ago. He was off his medication, and he was making sure the guns were safely locked. Jason asks why he opened it now, and Sonny says, because the door where he keeps the lockbox was ajar. That’s not a priority. This is. Sonny unwraps a gun in a bandana, and Jason says, he heard about Jagger. Sonny says, that bastard isn’t going to mess with his family again. This is the only thing tying him to the murder. Get rid of it.

Tracy says, would you repeat that please? and using standard American speech, Lois says, the lesson went very well. It was really quite enlightening. Robin says she’s never had such a diligent student, and tells Lois, it was a pleasure. Lois says, the pleasure was all mine, and Tracy says, amazing. Olivia says, put her back, and Robin says, I beg your pardon? Olivia tells her to wave her wand and do her little magic voodoo witchcraft and do whatever she does. This is not the Lois Cerullo that she loves. Change her back. Lois says she’s fine. Doesn’t she sound like everyone who’s on the news? She really didn’t think she could do it, but she must have a knack or something. Olivia tells Tracy, this time you‘ve gone too far.

Carly says she knows Josslyn is upset, and Josslyn says, upset doesn’t even begin to cover it. How can Carly be so stupid and clueless? What happened to her self-respect? Is she really that desperate? Carly says, knock it off. Josslyn gets to be angry and disappointed, but doesn’t get to disrespect her. Josslyn (who can’t buy a clue) says she has to respect Carly when Carly clearly doesn’t respect herself?  Maybe just go. Carly says she’s not going anywhere. She might remind Josslyn that she’s a grown woman and makes her own choices, like she’s allowed Josslyn to do. Josslyn says, right. Like Carly would have allowed her to go back and forth with an abusive, toxic man, and she’d just sit back and watch that happen. Carly says, she’s right, but they’d talk about it. Not yell, scream, and slam doors. Josslyn says she can see Carly yelling and slamming the door or ten. Carly says, maybe, but then she would hear Josslyn out. Is Josslyn going to let her do the same?

Elizabeth says, first of all, it’s Elizabeth Baldwin, not Webber, and Ric says, slip of the tongue. She says, no. Just a sign of how long it’s been since he actually lived in Port Charles. He thinks he knows her, but he doesn’t. He asks if she’s turned to a life of crime now, and she says she’s been through a lot. She made some questionable choices that she’s had to own. She’s also learned that everything is not black and white. She’s pretty sure Ric knows that too. He says he went into some areas of grey, and she says, maybe it’s just been too long for him to know her or Alexis. Maybe he’s making assumptions off of past grievances. Alexis would never kill anyone. That much she knows. So she can’t swear that Alexis was destroying evidence. He says, maybe she doesn’t know Alexis as well as she thinks she does or maybe he knows sides of Alexis that others don’t. She says, that’s exactly her point. He hasn’t seen sides of her or Alexis in over a decade. He says, they’ll agree to disagree, and she says, what about Molly? How’s Molly going to feel when her mother gets arrested based on something her father said? He says, Molly would want to know the truth, no matter what it was, and she says, agree to disagree. He says, bottom line, a federal agent is dead and he’s an officer of the court. And he’s obligated to report any pertinent information whatsoever in regard to any kind of murder… She laughs and says, give her a break.

Dante tells Jordan that he found a cellphone on the side of the road near the site of the hit and run. It was smashed up, but the fingerprints pulled match the John Doe. It leads him to believe it’s his phone. She asks if he thinks IT can access any of the phone’s data, but he says he doesn’t know. It was pretty smashed up, so he’s not holding out much hope. She says, it would be easier if this guy would just wake up and tell us who he is.

Lucky says, Holly expects him to believe she’s actually attracted to Sidwell, and she says, why not? She’s always had a thing for bad boys. As he well knows. He says his father never strip mined the resources of a war-torn country, and she says, true. Luke was never in the same league as the darling Mr. Sidwell. But his father was a scoundrel. One of a kind. Lucky was missed at the memorial Tracy held in Amsterdam. He says he was on his way, but help was needed in the Sudan… She says, he’s so like his father, and he says, and like him, he can smell a con a mile away. Dad always said she was the best con artist he ever knew. She says, such a flatterer, and he asks her to be straight with him. This is about a payday, not a romance. It must be a pretty big score, huh? She says, yes. So it would be a pity if he blew her cover before the goods were in her pocket.

Anna says she checked the firearms registry and there are 178 nine millimeters registered to Port Charles residents, and Chase says, that’s quite a list. and Dex says, that doesn’t include the unregistered ones, and Anna says, very good point, but one of those registered ones just so happens to belong to Sonny Corinthos. Chase asks if it’s enough for a search warrant, and Anna says she’s going to try and convince Judge Windsor that it is. Dex says, if she doesn’t mind him saying, the sooner she does that, the better. If Sonny hasn’t gotten rid of the gun already, it’s only a matter of time until he does.

Jason asks if it’s unregistered, and Sonny says, there’s no way to trace it back to him, but he wants it destroyed just in case. Jason puts the gun in the back of his waistband, and Sonny says, and these too, handing him the bullet casings. Jason says, consider it done, and puts them in his pocket. Any other problems he should be aware of? Is Sonny sure nobody saw him going to the boathouse? Sonny says, no one saw him going, but there was a witness. Michael. Right after he killed Jagger, Michael was there. He’s not going to say anything. Michael let Sonny get to the main house, then he found the body. Jason says, Michael covered for him. Okay, so what’s his alibi? Sonny says, Carly. She swore she was with him. Jason says, Carly, and Sonny says, yeah. Jason asks why they didn’t call him last night, and Sonny says, it was at the Quartermaines. They needed an alibi. She didn’t know why she needed it at the time. Jason says, he didn’t tell her about Cates? and Sonny says, there was a lot going on, but she gets it. Jason says, okay. So their immediate problem is the missing gun. Sonny says, fully registered, completely legit, waiting to implicate him if it’s in the wrong hands. They’ve go to find it and they’ve got to find it fast.

Elizabeth says, Ric’s feeble excuse and shocked expression doesn’t play with her, and he says, she hasn’t lost her directness. She says, the main reason for him doing his civic duty is to stick it to Alexis. And the only reason he needs her to back him is because his take on things is a little suspect, considering how toxic his relationship is with her. He says, she’s right. He doesn’t like Alexis. Maybe they even hate each other, but you know who else Alexis hated? John Cates. Elizabeth as a mother would do nearly anything to protect her child. She says, nearly. He’s accusing Alexis of murder. He says he’s merely suggesting they go to the police and tell them what they saw, and she says, they don’t know what they saw. He says, fine. Let’s say you’re right. Alexis didn’t kill Cates. What’s the harm in coming forward and putting it on the record? She says, maybe implicating an innocent woman in a crime she had nothing to do with? and he says, if she’s so positive Alexis is innocent, why doesn’t she put her money where her mouth is. Tell the truth and let that be that.

Carly asks what Josslyn was doing at Sonny’s this morning, and Josslyn says she’d just heard Carly and Sonny had sex in Tracy’s bed. And of course (🍷) she never believed that Carly… Anyway, Carly wasn’t answering her phone and Pilar said she didn’t come home last night. Carly says, so she’s done some checking around, and Josslyn says she went to Sonny’s to prove to herself that Carly wouldn’t be there. It was like a punch in the stomach when she saw Carly coming out of that apartment. After everything Sonny did to her and their family, and the horrible ways he treated Carly, how does she go back to him?

Jason says, let’s go over it again. It had to be somebody who has access to the penthouse. Who’s been in the penthouse lately? Sonny says, Dante, Lois, Brook Lynn… There was Natalia, Pilar with Avery, but they don’t know where the lockbox is, much less the combination. Jason says, what about Ava? and Sonny says, she might have seen him use the combination once when she was living with him. As a matter of fact, Diane told him that Ava recanted her statement that Kristina tried to kill her. Does Jason know anything about that? Jason says he’ll give Sonny the short version. He saved Ava’s life last night.

Lucky says, Isaiah’s returning with back-up, and he’d advise Holly not to be here when that happens. She thanks him and says, but she’s going to finish what she started. It’s just taking her a bit longer than she’d hoped to get the combination to Jenz’s safe. Lucky asks, what’s in it? and she says, nothing he needs to concern himself with. He says, doesn’t sound sketchy at all, and she says, her plans for tonight should give Jenz the incentive that he needs. He says, but the clock’s ticking. Isaiah has probably contacted the WSB by now.

Dante looks at his phone and says, nothing on the tattoo, and Jordan says, these are his clothes, right? She takes the bag of Isaiah’s things and says, what about the labels? Can they pin down where he got them? He says, look at this. Working together again, huh? Is she getting tired of sitting on the sidelines? She says, at first. Then she gets caught up in the projects. Right now, it just feels good to be able to help somebody. He says, with everything happening with Molly, TJ, Kristina, and now Lulu, he doesn’t feel like he’s doing a whole lot to help anybody. He feels especially helpless when he’s sitting with Lulu. She says, still no change? and he says, nope. It’s not looking good either. Laura is looking for Lucky. He’s the best chance they have at a donor match. She says, knowing Laura, she will move heaven and earth, and he says, but what she has to move is in Africa and she’s got to find Lucky fast or they’re not going to be able to save Lulu.

Olivia says, Robin broke her best friend, and Lois says she’s fine, but please continue. Olivia says, Lois lives in a house with this sanctimonious snob. She’s going to tell Monica to kick Tracy out on her bloomin’ arse. Tracy says she’ll triple Robin’s fee if she can fix that one too.

Holly asks, when was the last time Lucky was back in Port Charles and saw Laura and Aiden? and he says, it’s been a while. There’s no shortage of places that need the help. She says, and only he can solve their problems, and he asks if his mother sent her here to guilt trip him. She laughs, and says, no. She just figured it must be hard for him, being away from his family for so long. He says he’s sure they’re getting along just fine without him, when they hear footsteps. Holly says, someone’s coming.

Carly says, first of all, she’s not back with Sonny. Last night was a one-time thing and she’s annoyed with herself because she let it get as far as she did. But she and Sonny understand what it was and they’re able to move on because ultimately, they mutually respect and understand each other. Josslyn says, all Sonny has done is hurt Carly over and over again, and Carly says she knows that. She and Sonny have been through a lot. They’ve survived things she prays Josslyn never has to experience. They have children together. They’re a family. It’s an unbreakable bond. Josslyn says, so she’s getting back with him, but Carly says she’s not. She just told Josslyn. She’s not getting back together with Sonny. It was a one-time thing. And she’s trying to make Josslyn understand because she wants Josslyn to know that she knows what she’s doing. She’s not trying to justify her actions, and she certainly doesn’t need Josslyn’s approval here. (No, she doesn’t, and Josslyn needs to keep her opinion to herself.) Josslyn says, Carly knows who he is and what he does, and she was finally free of all of that. She doesn’t understand. Carly says she knows, and Josslyn says, he’s a dangerous man. Carly says she knows, and Josslyn says, with a dangerous lifestyle. He attacked Dex. He would have killed Dex if Jason hadn’t stopped it. And Jagger Cates was killed here last night at the boathouse. Carly says she’s aware, and Josslyn asks if she was there when it happened. Carly says, yes. She was with Sonny. Josslyn says, oh my God, and Carly says, whatever she’s thinking, stop. Josslyn asks, did she sleep with Sonny last night or did she give him an alibi for murder?

Jason says, so once they got Ava to the police station, she admitted that Cates forced her to sign a false statement against Kristina. Sonny says he warned her not to go with him, and Jason says, Boyle came clean too. She said that Cates blackmailed her and made a deal with her to kill Ava. Sonny says, slimy piece of work. Thank God Kristina is free of him. He tried to break her. He tried to end Sonny’s family. And he failed. I won. He thanks Jason for everything, and Jason nod and says he’ll get rid of the gun and casings. Then they’re done with Jagger. There’s a knock at the door, and Jason opens it. Anna is there with Dex and another officer, and Sonny asks what brings her by. She says, warrant to search the premises, and Sonny says, for what? She says, among other things, she needs to see Sonny’s weapons.

On the phone, Sidwell’s thug says, not yet… He’ll take care of Gannon. No problem… He just needs to wait until no one is in his room. (Well, yeah. You’d think that would be a given.)

Dante says, all right. They made the serial number of John Doe’s phone. That means if they can figure out where it was purchased, they can figure out where he comes from. Jordan says, or at least where he’s been.

Josslyn says, no. She doesn’t want to know. And she doesn’t know what’s worse. Carly falling for Sonny again, or her helping him get away with murder. Carly says, she has to know… but Josslyn says she doesn’t want to hear it. Because a week ago, Carly was telling her how horrible she felt facing prison because she made a terrible choice, and how that risky last-minute decision almost cost her kids, her job, her freedom. And if that evidence against her hadn’t miraculously disappeared… Carly says she knows, but Josslyn says, she doesn’t know. Because here she is again, a few weeks later, doing it again. So whatever this is, however she’s let Sonny back in her life, she’s back to risking everything for him.

Anna says, they’ll start with the main bedroom, then go to the office. She asks if Kristina or Avery are here, and Sonny asks if they can make sure not to mess up Avery’s room because she’s just a kid. Anna tells them, go easy on the kid’s room. She doubts Sonny would stash a smoking gun in her room. Sonny asks what smoking gun she’s talking about, and she says, the one used to kill Agent Cates. Sonny says, she’s wasting her time, and Anna asks why he doesn’t make it easier for everyone and produce his registered 9-millimeter gun. Just for laughs. He says, because he doesn’t want to make it easier, and Dex says he knows where Sonny keeps his lockbox. Sonny laughs, and Anna thanks Dex. Dex walks over to the credenza, and Sonny suggests Jason go. He doesn’t want to see this play out. They’ll keep in touch. Anna says, just a minute.

At the station, Ric introduces himself to Chase, and says, we were told you’re in charge of the John Cates murder investigation. Chase says, we? when Elizabeth joins Ric and says, hi. Chase asks what this is about, and Ric says, good. They know one another. He forgot what a small community Port Charles is. Chase asks if he has information regarding the Cates investigation, and Ric says, yes, but Elizabeth says, maybe. She’s not sure… Ric says he and Elizabeth were walking in Blackstone Canyon last night and they saw something suspicious. Elizabeth says, more like odd, and Ric says, semantics. Chase asks what they saw, and Ric says, when they got to the bridge, they noticed a woman at the railing, and she had a gun, and she dropped it into the water. Chase asks if they can describe the woman, and Ric looks at Elizabeth. She says, it was Alexis Davis.

Brook asks if Lois is really into this. Does she like the way she sounds? Lois says she’s still getting used to it. It’s fun. It’s like she’s pretending to be somebody else. Now she understands why Meryl Streep always picks the roles where she has to learn accents. Robin says, yes. Meryl Streep is a wonderful role model. Emulate her by all means. Brook says, they’re talking here, and tells Lois that she doesn’t want her to feel like this is something she has to do just because of some hateful comments on Home & Heart. Lois says, that’s not the only reason, and Brook says, there are a lot of idiots who hide behind the anonymity of social media and their presumed superiority. (Truth!) She loves Lois just the way she is, and so does everybody else. Lois thanks her and they hug. Tracy tells Robin that she’s stunned by Lois’s transformation after just one lesson. Does she have a magic wand or is she just that good? Robin says, the latter. Lois is an exceptional student. She has a virtuosic ear and an aptitude for linguistic convergence. She thanks Tracy for bringing Lois to her. Tracy says, what about the other one? Bensonhurst to the bone. Robin says, anyone can overcome their beginnings. Take Tracy for example. Tracy says, come again? and Robin says, she lived abroad for many years, did she not? In Amsterdam? Tracy says, amazing. She really knows her stuff. Robin says, Tracy’s upstate New York accent has almost been completely replaced by a mid-Atlantic or transatlantic one. She can still hear traces of… New Jersey. Hoboken perhaps. Tracy says, get out, and Robin says her work here is done. She tells Lois that they’ll be in touch, and flounces out.

Sidwell comes in and Holly says she was bored without him. He says, so she came here to amuse herself while he was away, and she says, he piqued her curiosity about this one’s poker skills, so she thought she’d test them out for herself. He says, and? and she says, lost every hand, which is worse than being bored, but now he’s back. She gets up and says she’s going to get ready for their special night. Is he coming? She might need some help with her zipper. He says he’ll be there soon. He and Lucky have yet to play a hand today. He has to win his rights to keep breathing.

As Chase records the statements, he says, so when they encountered Alexis Davis, she was out for a walk? Ric says, yes, at night, and Elizabeth says, so were they. Chase says, and she told them that she just dropped her phone, and Elizabeth tells him, she said her phone had been acting up. It wasn’t taking or receiving calls, and she got frustrated, so she just dropped it in the river. Ric says, as anyone would with a phone if they can’t make phone calls, and Chase says, but they believe it was a gun? Ric says, yes, most definitely, and Chase looks at Elizabeth. He asks if she’d like to speak somewhere privately, but she says, no. Last night, she got the impression that Alexis was holding a gun. But she’d like to go on record and say that she doesn’t believe for a second that Alexis had anything to do with the death of John Cates.

Carly sits next to Josslyn on the sofa and says she’s sorry to worry her. About what happened between her and Sonny, at the time, she wasn’t thinking about long term ramifications. She just truly thought she was doing what was best for her and Sonny. Josslyn says, no, she didn’t. She put Sonny ahead of herself, again, and ahead of everybody else. Carly says, what happened was consensual. Two consenting adults. Josslyn says, right, adults. Not two teens in the back of a movie theater. She knows Carly and knows what she’s doing. Carly says, and Josslyn knows there are people in her life that she won’t give up on. People she loves, and Sonny’s one of them. With that love comes loyalty. Josslyn says, nobody who truly loves Carly would ever ask her to sacrifice herself for them. Carly says she’s not sacrificing herself for Sonny, but Josslyn says, yes, she is. If she is his alibi and he did kill Jagger Cates, then she’s an accessory to murder. Murder. She can’t lose Carly. She’s scared. She just faced this. She can’t keep doing this with Carly. She can’t keep picturing living her life without her again. Carly says, she doesn’t have to do that. She’s going to be okay. She promises. She reaches to hug Josslyn, but Josslyn pulls away. She says, Carly can’t promise her that.

Anna says she assumes Jason’s presence here means he’s back working for Sonny, and he says he and Sonny are partners in Corinthos Coffee. That’s never changed. She says she enjoyed working with him. She can see that’s over now. He says he’s the same person he always was, and she says, he needs to stay out of her way from now on. She has a job to do. He says he was actually on his way out, and she says she would think as Sonny’s righthand man, he’d want to stay. Dex brings out the lockbox and puts it on the table. Anna thanks him and asks if Sonny wants to open this or give her the combination. He says he’ll open it, and she thanks him for his cooperation. He opens the box, and she says, he appears to be missing a gun.

Tracy says, that’s done. Good riddance. Lois says, good riddance, changing Tracy’s pronunciation. Riddance. Shall they decamp to the dining room? Brook says, excellent idea, and Olivia says, indubitably. They leave, and Ned and Tracy are left alone. Ned says, hoisted by her own petard springs to mind, and follows. (I love that phrase.)

Ric and Elizabeth sign their statements, and Chase says he appreciates them both for coming down. Elizabeth says she’s sure there’s a perfectly innocent explanation for Alexis’s actions, and Ric says, they’ve done their civic duty. Now whatever happens is up to the PCPD. They leave, and in the squad room, Ric says, that wasn’t too painful. She says, then why does she feel nauseous? and he says, sorry. He thinks he left his pen in the room. It’s expensive. She says she has to get back to the hospital, and he says he’ll catch up with her later. She leaves, and Chase comes out holding Ric’s pen. He says, looking for this? and Ric says, yes. Thank you. He takes the pen and says he just… never mind. Chase asks if there’s something he wants to add, and Ric says, it’s been bothering him. Alexis was so angry about Agent Cates trying to railroad Kristina. Chase says, and? and Ric says he knows Alexis would do anything to protect her daughters. Chase says, that’s right. He’s Molly’s father. Ric says he and Alexis go way back. That’s why this is so upsetting, considering that she’s killed before… He’s sorry. He thought Chase knew. It’s in her record. Chase asks if there’s anything else he’d like to add, and Ric says, no. It’s just such a shame, especially since she just put her life back together. She got her law license back. Chase says nothing, and Ric leaves. (Oh ho, so Ric is afraid of competition too. I’m wondering if Chase is already onto Ric really wanting to stick it to Alexis.)

Carly says her actions aren’t going to affect Josslyn. She’ll make sure of that. She promises. She needs Josslyn to trust her. Josslyn says, she’s making that very hard, and Carly says she knows. There’s one more thing. She would appreciate if Josslyn didn’t share this with Dex. The last thing they need is him getting the wrong idea and bringing Josslyn in for questioning. That would not be good for either one of them. Josslyn says she’s not going to tell Dex anything. She doesn’t want him involved. He just got on the force. Carly says, good. The bottom line is, it’s her personal choice. It’s not his business or anybody else’s. Josslyn says, the sleeping with Sonny part, and Carly says, yes. She loves Josslyn and she’s going to be okay. Josslyn says she loves Carly too. It’s Carly’s loyalty to Sonny that she doesn’t love. Carly says she knows, and Josslyn says she’s scared that one day Sonny is going to ask Carly for a favor and it’s going to cost her life. Carly says, that’s not going to happen, and Josslyn says, what if it already has happened? What if this is that favor?

Anna says, they understand Sonny has a registered 9-millimeter, and Sonny says, it should be right there. She says, he hasn’t reported it missing? and he says he didn’t know it was gone until right now. She says, that’s very interesting. Agent Cates was killed with a 9-millimeter last night. Sonny says, and now it’s missing. Should he call his lawyer? She says, it’s up to him really. Everyone knows he had reason to want Cates dead. He says, it’s a good thing he has an alibi, and she says she heard. Some kind of tryst with Carly. It’s really a coincidence that he’d reconnect with her just around the time of the murder even though she insisted the two of them were over. He says, she’s going to have to talk to Carly about that, and she asks if anyone other than his ex-wife saw him around the time Cates was killed, but he says he doesn’t think there was an audience. She says, that’s a shame, because unless he can produce this registered 9-millimeter of his and they can run tests on it, there’s no way to prove that it wasn’t involved in the homicide of Agent Cates.

Back at the station, Dante comes out with a folder, and Jordan says, anything? He says, IT traced the serial number of the damaged phone. It was purchased at the airport in Nairobi. She says, that’s where Laura and Doc went to look for Lucky, and he says, that’s correct. She says, this can’t be a coincidence, and he says he agrees. That’s why they have to figure out how their John Doe is connected to Lucky.  

Sidwell shuffles the cards and says, Holly is quite the woman, isn’t she? Lucky says, she is. A poker player, she ain’t. Sidwell says he’ll try and give Lucky a bit more of a challenge, and Lucky says, bring it. Sidwell says he knows Lucky has been biding his time, waiting for his friend to arrive with help. He hates to be the bearer of bad news, but it’s not going to happen.

Sidwell’s thug quietly goes into Isaiah’s room. He walks to the bed and takes a syringe out of his pocket.

On Monday, TJ tells Ric that if he lets his anger out at Kristina right now, he’s afraid of what he’s going to do; Curtis asks if Portia is sure she wants to put her life on hold for that woman; Jordan asks what someone is doing (probably Sidwell’s thug); and Anna tells Jason that he has to come with her.

💼 Gone But Hardly Forgotten…

Sounds like he had a tough last few days. I remember Ilene Kristen talking about what a pain out of sync filming is when I went to a soap workshop.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/adam-j-harrington-opens-up-about-his-last-days-at-gh

🎬 Living His Dream…

The best Nikolas of all the Nikolases has a new gig.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/ghs-adam-huss-to-begin-work-on-a-new-dream-series

🍊 Please Don’t Go…

I wouldn’t put it past Fancy Pants to have a house in both places just so she could do both shows. And I hate to admit it, but I’d be interested in seeing that.

💎 It’s Avi’s Fault…

If it’s by appointment, that means you can’t afford it.

🧂 Tuning Up…

She looks like she could be related to Beyoncé. Sign me up.

👠 Fuggedaboud Those Housewives…

No receipts, proof, timelines, or screenshots for Renee. Another confession, I loved Mob Wives.

⚰️ Dead and Company…

The latest on the Daryl Dixon front.

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/the-walking-dead-daryl-dixon-season-3-changes-location-and-adds-new-cast-members-01j6yeyfw9yf

This time, the focus is not on GH’s ex-Spencer.

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/walking-dead-s-dallas-roberts-jason-butler-harner-in-monsters-the-lyle-and-erik-menendez-story-01j6dn2xsgqt

The busiest man in Dead business.

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/colman-domingo-shares-first-look-photos-of-his-new-series-the-madness-01j6kbadbrrf

🛸 Yeah, There Will Be Spoilers…

I watched this last weekend, and it wasn’t what I expected, but that wasn’t a bad thing. I love films that take place in NYC because it’s familiar territory, and you also get to see a lot of the creatures this time around. Definitely one to watch.

https://screenrant.com/a-quiet-place-day-one-leave-new-york-time/

🐹 Bringing Joy To the People…

Who doesn’t love a chinchilla wearing a crown?

https://people.com/hilarious-chinchillas-rock-tiktok-exclusive-8700508

🏹 Quotes of the Week

Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten. David Ogden Stiers

Aggressive is protecting your rights, but hurting others. Assertive is protecting your rights and not hurting others.Dr. Phil McGraw

That’s the trouble with your whole MTV, microwave dinner generation. You want it all now. You think you deserve it just because you want it? It doesn’t work like that. You have to earn it, you have to take it, you have to make it yours. but before you do that, Guy, you need to decide what it is you really want. – Buddy Ackerman (Kevin Spacey), Swimming with Sharks

Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful. – Joshua J. Marine

Hand me my bird. – Mina (Hannah Dargan), The Watchers

You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else. – Albert Einstein (The first guy to figure out Survivor.)

Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest steppingstones to success. – Dale Carnegie

Don’t worry about being worried. You’re heading out on an adventure, and you can always change your mind along the way and try something else. – Tracy Kidder

Live your vision and demand your success. – Steve Maraboli

Our thoughts and actions should express our mind of compassion, even if the other person says and does things that are not easy to accept. We must practice this way until we see clearly that our love is not contingent upon the other person being lovable. – Thich Nhat Hanh

When life gives you lemons, just say, f*** the lemons, and bail. – Chuck (Paul Rudd), Forgetting Sarah Marshall

🍁 Waiting For Fall To Fall…

Have a glorious, or at least above average weekend. Then circle back on Monday for soap and what’s stewing on Deck. Until then, stay safe, stay using the strength of your feelings to change your situation, and stay not reading your mom the riot act if you don’t like her choice of a one-night stand.

August 29, 2024 – Sonny Tells Cates He’ll Confess, Traitor In the OC, He’s Served, WWDD, He Owns It, Jurassic Look, Find That Gator & Sealed

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What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Chase asks why they have to get dressed up, and Brook says, because Monica asked them to. She missed Drew’s event and wants to have a dinner. Violet comes downstairs and asks if she can dress up too. Brook says, absolutely. She can do something special with Violet’s hair. Violet says, it’s fine, and Brook asks how she’s doing. Violet says, it’s better in the daytime. She didn’t mean to bother them. It won’t happen again.

From a podium outside, Drew says, no one embodied being a representative more than Larry McConkey. He’s been fighting for equality, fairness, and economic stability and growth for all the people of this country. He’s honored and humbled that a man of such integrity has asked him to follow in his footsteps. McConkey has been his mentor and friend, and it will be an honor to carry on his legacy. He thanks Laura and Jordan for their endorsements, and his family for their support, especially Willow Corinthos, who is his biggest cheerleader. He thanks Michael, who’s part of his family and his business partner and had the good sense to marry Willow. He looks forward to stepping into McConkey’s shoes and becoming their Representative in every sense of the word. Michael wonders where McConkey is, and Willow says, he’s supposed to be here.

On the phone, Portia asks the lab to get back to her when they get Heather’s results. Curtis asks why she’s checking on Heather.

On the phone in the nook, Dante tells Rocco that they can go see his mom if he wants, but his mom would want him to have a good time while he’s there. Olivia asks, how’s Rocco? and Dante says, good, all things considered. She says she thinks baseball camp was a good idea. It’s a good distraction. How about him? How is he doing? He says he just wants to protect Rocco. Nikolas can’t do the transplant, and no one knows where Lucky is. Olivia says, Laura and Doc will track him down. He says he wishes he could go, but he doesn’t want to leave Rocco, and she says she thinks Lulu will be okay. He says he wishes he’d stayed with Lulu while he had the chance. (Where is all this coming from?)

At the penthouse, Donna tells Sonny that he can’t see the surprise she and Avery have been working on. He tells her to let him know when they’re ready, and she says she misses him. She’s glad mommy brought her and Avery over. He says he misses her too, and she runs off. He thanks Carly for bringing them.

At the station, Kristina says she can’t talk to John without her lawyer present and doesn’t know why she’s here again. She’s already been charged. He says he’s adding an additional charge. She’s being charged with manslaughter in the death of Irene Davis Ashford.

Carly asks how Sonny is feeling, and he says he’s pretty solid. She senses there’s a but, and he says, his meds are straight and now he can see what everyone else was seeing, the paranoia. He accused her of keeping Donna from him. She says she wasn’t trying to punish him. She was protecting Donna. He says, and him. He wouldn’t be able to forgive himself if he frightened or hurt one of his kids. She says, neither would she.

Brook says, Violet is never a bother, and Chase says, never ever. Brook asks why she said that, and Violet says she loves visiting here, but never thought she would stay this long. Does Chase know when her dad is going to be back? He says he’s sorry. He doesn’t know, but her dad loves her more than anything and he’s working to get better. Violet wonders what’s taking so long, and Brook says, he’s sick and his disease can’t be cured with medication. Chase says, it takes a lot of effort and willpower. In the meantime, they’re lucky she’s living with them. Brook says she especially loves game night, and Violet says, even when she loses? Brook says, even then.

Michael addresses Drew as their next congressman and tells Drew that he can’t stay. He has to take Monica to the doctor for a routine checkup. He congratulates Drew and leaves. Drew and Willow look at each other.

Olivia says, Dante didn’t leave because he wanted, and he says he was going undercover, but he didn’t know he’d be gone 9 months, get captured, and be rescued. Then he left again. She asks what he was afraid would happen, and he says, that he would hurt Lulu. She says, he didn’t abandon his wife and son. He was protecting them. He says he never would have gotten PTSD had he not gone undercover, and she says, maybe it wasn’t his justice to get, but he did what was right and necessary. He might have gotten in over his head, but it happens to the best of them. He fought to get back to the people who love him, twice. As desperately as she wanted him back, she understood that he had to be away for treatment. He chose to come home healthy and whole. He says, by then it was too late. Lulu moved on and rightly so. He always talked about how important family was, and he left her alone. He’s worried that he won’t be able to tell her how much he regrets it.

Kristina says, Ava killed her baby when Ava pushed her out the window, but John tells her, Ava says different. Alexis runs into the station and asks where her daughter is, and Dex tells her, in the interrogation room. She goes in, and Kristina says, Cates is saying that she killed her baby. Alexis tells her, not another word, and tells John, Kristina did not kill her baby. Kristina knows that, she knows that, and more important, he knows that. He needs to better explain why he’s torturing her daughter. John says, they have new evidence and he’s charging Kristina with manslaughter. She says, cut the crap. This has nothing to do with Kristina and everything to do with Sonny.

Willow thanks Drew for what he said, and he says, it’s true. He made the decision after she encouraged him. She made him realize how much he wanted it. She says she thought McConkey would be here, and he says, so did he. Willow asks if McConkey didn’t contact him, and he says, no, and he didn’t leave a message. That’s not like him. He usually shows up when he says he will. He hopes nothing is wrong.

Portia tells Curtis that Heather is at the hospital and she has a new lawyer. It’s someone they both know. Curtis says, it can’t be Alexis or Diane, so who? and she says, Molly’s father, Ric Lansing. Scotty gave him the case. Curtis says, maybe it’s a non-starter. They know Scotty wouldn’t turn down a big payday. She says she did some research, and Ric is an excellent lawyer, and he asks if she thinks he’s encouraging Heather to move forward with this frivolous lawsuit. She says she does, when Drew comes by. He thanks them for their support in being here, and Curtis says, it was a great speech, but Drew says he’s never been more nervous. He thanks Curtis for taking on the extra work. Curtis says, it’s a challenge, but he loves it, and Drew says, it shows. He’s amazed at what Curtis has accomplished, but not surprised. He knew Curtis was the right man.

Alexis tells John, it’s absurd. In what universe is this a federal crime? He says, Kristina was charged with the attempted murder of a federal witness, and it can be attached to the original charges. Alexis says, Kristina almost died when Ava pushed her out a window, and he says, Ava was defending herself from Kristina’s attack. Kristina says, that’s not what happened… and Alexis stops her. She says, John is out of his jurisdiction and out of his mind. He’s also threatening the well-being of her client with this abuse. He says, if she’s so concerned, they both know a way she can make this go away, and Alexis says she has to take care of something. She’ll be back. She tells Kristina, say nothing, and tells John, don’t dare ask Kristina anything else without her being present, and she leaves.

Alexis asks tells the desk sergeant that she’s making an official request that Dex stay with her daughter. And under no circumstances is Cates to be alone with her.

Carly asks if Sonny has spoken to or seen Dante, and Sonny says he knew Lulu was being transferred to GH, but doesn’t know what’s wrong. Does she know anything? Carly says, Lulu needs a liver transplant, and he says, Nikolas was a match when Lulu was a baby. That, and being Spencer’s father are the only two good things he’s done in his life. Carly says, Laura went to see him. He’d love to do it, but he’s no longer a viable donor. She’s not a match either. Sonny says he’ll get tested and asks if anyone has reached out to Lucky. She says, Laura is tracking him down. She’s surprised Dante hasn’t reached out to Sonny, but he says, they haven’t talked since he was off his meds. Carly says, Dante can’t hold that against him, and he says, Dante was focused on Lulu, and he was focused on Kristina, so they didn’t touch base. Carly says, it’s clearly bothering him, and he says, he hasn’t exactly been great to his kids, and he wants to do whatever he can to fix it. She says, speaking of his kids, Ava called Avery and said she couldn’t see her for a while. Does he know what that’s about? He says, Jagger took Ava into protective custody, and she says, from what? He says, him, and she says, that’s ridiculous. Ava knows if she even gets a papercut, the PCPD will show up at his door. He says, Jagger has always had a vendetta, an agenda, and Jagger’s agenda is to take him down.

Chase asks if Violet wants to join the other kids, and Violet asks if Avery and Donna are coming over. Brook says, that’s the plan. Violet is part of a family now. Violet asks when the family is getting bigger. When are Brook and Chase having a baby?

Olivia asks if Dante regrets his life with Sam, but he says he loves Sam and he loves the life they’ve built. She asks, then what’s the problem? and he says, Lulu can’t build a life. She was in love with Dustin, and he was a good guy. He made her happy. Olivia says, it’s not doing Lulu any good for him to feel guilty, and he says he knows that, but if she doesn’t make it… She says, they’re not counting Lulu out again, and he says, she beat the odds before. She will again.

Portia asks if Curtis wants to get going, and he asks if she’s in hurry. She says, there’s nothing that can’t wait, and he says he thinks Aurora can do without him for a bit. She says, neither one of them need to be at work. Does he know what that means? He says, they’re both forgetting something important or another Seal of the Apocalypse was broken, and she says she doesn’t care if she gets fired or the world ends. She just cares about them in the moment. He says, amen to that, and they kiss.

Willow asks Drew, what’s wrong? and he says he just got off the phone with Hazel McConkey. She told him that Larry… died this morning. He’s gone. She says she’s so sorry, and he says, him too. She asks if Hazel said what happened, and he wonders if they can talk somewhere else. She says, of course (🍷).

Sonny looks at a piece of construction paper that says, we love you daddy, in glitter. There’s a knock at the door and he opens it to Alexis. He says, she sounded upset on the phone, and she says she needs to know how he is mentally, emotionally, and physically. How are his meds? He says he’s doing okay, and she says, good. She’s about to say something that’s going to make him really, really angry. She just got back from the PCPD. Cates has dragged their daughter in once again. He asks what that son of a bitch wants with Kristina, and she says, he wants to charge Kristina with manslaughter in the baby’s death. He says, that makes no sense, but she says, he’s saying she tried to kill Ava and the baby’s death was a result. He asks, how’s Kristina? and she says, one harsh word away from losing it. She’s glad he’s thinking clearly and rationally. He needs to see reason and do something he’s not going to like. Cates is willing to destroy Kristina unless he gets to Sonny. Sonny has to stop that from happening and give Cates what he wants.

Carly finds Olivia in the nook and says she didn’t expect to see Dante. He says, Maxie and Felicia are with Lulu. Does she think he’d leave Lulu alone? Carly says, no. She heard Laura went to East Africa to find Lucky. Olivia says, she’s hoping Lucky can be a donor. She needs to check in with Sasha about dinner. Is Carly staying? Carly says, Monica insisted. She’s sure it’s to spite Tracy. Olivia leaves, and Carly says she just left Sonny. She told him about the liver transplant and he’s going to get tested also. Elizabeth told her that they think Lulu’s liver failure was the result of her medication. Dante asks if she thinks he should have realized something was wrong, and she says, no. He says, despite what everyone thinks, he didn’t abandon Lulu.

Drew and Willow go to his office, and he tells Willow, Hazel said, just this morning, Larry was excited about coming. But on their way to the airport, he collapsed. He was rushed to the hospital and the doctors did everything they could, but he passed away. She was with him at the end. It’s amazing that she took the time to call. Willow says, she knew how much he and Larry hit it off. Obviously, their relationship meant a lot to him. Drew says he hopes so. Larry was relieved he was picking up the mantle. She asks, what happens now? and he says, Hazel will make a statement and there will probably be a special election. He might have to head to DC. He wants to finish what Larry started. He just wishes Larry was around to see it.

Portia says, Curtis can’t fool her. He loves what he’s doing. He says, it’s a challenge to build a division from the ground up. He sees the way Drew runs Aurora and can already see how improvements can be made. Portia says she’s glad to see him so happy, and he says, that makes one of us. Unless she’s just having a rough day. She says, all the days at the hospital are tough, but then there are Heather days. It makes her crazy that Laura doesn’t care what Heather’s done. Besides that, she loves her job. She just wishes they were able to spend more time with each other. He says, they’ll make time. They always do. She says, it will be less and less the closer it gets to election day. Drew said he’s doing a great job, and if her opinion matters, she thinks he’s doing terrific. He says, it does. It’s the only one that matters.

Sonny says, Alexis wants him to turn himself in and confess, and she says, if that’s what it takes for Cates to back off Kristina. Sonny says he can’t do anything from prison, but she says, Kristina is losing it. She can’t handle it. Her spirit is broken. He says, Kristina is stronger than she knows, and Alexis says, if her sister wasn’t blaming her for the baby’s death and she wasn’t being charged for it. He says, no jury is going to take it seriously, but she says, it’s not the jury she’s worried about. If the charges aren’t dismissed, the hearing will cause Kristina irreparable damage, and she won’t recover. If Sonny can’t save her, they’re going to lose her.

Kristina tells Dex that she knows she’s not supposed to talk anyone, but she didn’t kill her baby. She needs someone to believe her. John comes in with an officer and tells Dex to get out. Dex says he’s under orders to stay, and John asks, whose orders? Dex says, the desk sergeant, and John says he understands Dex is a cadet, so maybe he doesn’t know an FBI agent outranks a desk sergeant, and he’s asking Dex to leave. Reluctantly, Dex leaves, and John sits down. He says he knows it might not seem this way, but he’s sorry she has to go through this. She says, then let her go home, but he says he’s not the one keeping her here. Her father is. Sonny destroys people and her loyalty led to her baby’s death. Her baby is gone because of Sonny. What made her think protecting Sonny was more important than protecting her child? Sonny is the reason her child died. She says, Ava attacked her, but he says, Ava claims Kristina came at her. He’s sorry for her pain. She says, he’s the one causing it, but he says, Sonny is, and she says, leave her alone. Please. She starts to sob, and he says, if she knows anything about Sonny’s crimes, his illegal business dealings, and the violence he’s entailed, it might help mitigate the charges. He’s offering her a chance to help herself. She says, he’s got it backwards. He’s trying to accuse her of killing her baby so he can bring charges against her father, but the only criminal she sees is him.

Chase says, great question, and Brook says, it sure is. Violet asks, what’s the answer? When are they having a baby? Chase says, they just got married, and Brook says, it’s been so busy. Violet asks if they don’t want a baby, and Chase looks at Brook. She says, yes, they do.

Dante says, Carly is sounding like Tracy. She laid into him for abandoning Lulu. Carly tells him she didn’t say that, and he says, she was thinking it. She says she wasn’t. It’s normal to lash out… He tells her, don’t do that. Don’t pretend like she gives a damn. She says, of course (🍷) she does, and he says, don’t act concerned that he’s hurt Lulu when she paid Brook to try and break them up.

John says, be careful how she talks to a federal agent, but Kristina says, all she sees is a bully with a badge, and Jagger, a punk with a grudge. He’s obsessed with taking down her father. He can’t make a case, so he’s using Sonny’s dead grandchild as a prop to beat her up. A stellar example of law enforcement. He suggests she exercise her right to remain silent (ha-ha – he’s probably sorry he started this), but she says, whatever he thought he was going to accomplish here is not working. You will not use me against my father, you son of a bitch. (Woot! You go, Sonny’s daughter.)

Sonny tells Alexis that they can’t give in. Jagger is using Kristina as leverage against him. She says she understands that, but needs him to understand that by the time this game of chicken is over, Kristina won’t recover. He says he has faith that she and Diane will get Kristina out of this, but she says, it needs to happen now. Unless he’s willing to sacrifice Kristina. He says he’s not willing to sacrifice anything, and Alexis says, Kristina needs to be saved and she’s asking him to save her.

Kristina says, Ava was the one who threatened her, and John says, she really is her father’s daughter. Alexis walks into the station and asks Dex why he’s here and not in there. He says he was ordered to leave, and she goes in. Kristina asks if John is feeling like a big man now that he’s handcuffed her. Her lawyer is here. Get her arraigned. She can’t wait to get in front of a judge. He says he advises her to calm down, and she says she’s going to swear on a stack of Bibles that he used her daughter’s death to coerce her into testifying against her father. What do you say, Jagger? Cates’s phone rings, and Alexis tells him, better get that. He leaves, and Alexis asks the officer why he’s still here. He wisely makes himself scarce, and Alexis says, Kristina seems to be in a better mood. Kristina says she is and there’s no way in hell she’s going to let Jagger break her down.

Curtis says, McConkey died. It’s all over the news. Portia says, that’s terrible. That must be why Drew left so quickly. Curtis tries to call Drew, but gets voicemail. Portia says, he probably needs time to himself. It makes her wonder. With McConkey passing so quickly, what is Drew going to do about Aurora? Curtis says he thinks the timetable was just sped up. Drew didn’t appoint an interim CEO. She asks if it isn’t obvious. Drew is going to have him run Aurora.

Drew says, the last time he saw McConkey, he was saying he was going to take a vacation with his wife and grandkids. They were going on a fishing trip. He hated fishing, but his wife loved it. They were going to rent a boat. She was going to take some of the grandkids on the boat, and he was staying behind with some of them to eat and listen to baseball. Willow says, it sounds like a wonderful time, and he says, McConkey was a great grandfather. (The writers should have chosen a different adjective.) He’s sorry. He doesn’t want to hold her up from dinner. She says, he’s going too, right? but he says he’s not up for it. He’s going to stay here. She says she’ll tell Michael not to expect them. She wants to make sure he’s okay, and he says he is, but she says she’s not leaving until she believes it. Anyone could see how hard this is hitting him. (Oh brother.)

Carly can’t believe Dante is throwing this in her face. It was years ago. He says, it doesn’t matter. She still did it. She says she did, and it didn’t work, thank God. He and Lulu stayed together. She realized how wrong she was and moved on. She thought they all had. He says, it takes a special person to take a sledgehammer to other people’s lives and walk away. Brook comes near the door, but hears them and doesn’t go in. Dante asks if Carly has any idea what she did to Brook.

Alexis asks, what happened? and Kristina says, Cates was trying to use her baby’s death to make her betray her father. She’s not going to let that bastard hurt anyone else.

On the phone, Sonny tells John that he’s going to give him what he wants. He’ll confess to all the crimes, but first, John has to drop the charges. John says he’ll be at the penthouse in a half hour to formally arrest Sonny, but Sonny says his sons are at the Quartermaines. He needs to say his goodbyes, then he’ll go to the station. John says he’ll save Sonny a trip. He’ll meet Sonny at the Quartermaines and arrest him there.

I have the funny feeling that’s not what’s going to happen.

Tomorrow, Lois asks if Sonny is sneaking out without seeing her; Boyle tells Ava that her life is in Agent Cates’s hands; and Lucky tells Sidwell (I think) that it wouldn’t have been his first choice.

🍊 An Orange Walks Into The Quiet Woman…

Tonight, the women played a game of Traitor, and Teddi was the host – the one who chooses who the traitor is. She began with, welcome Housewives, and Vicki, which obviously did not go over well with Vicki. Surprisingly, Fancy Pants Heather wasn’t pleased either. At one point in the game, they had to reach in a box and take out a paper, which would show whether they lived or were murdered by the traitor. For whatever reason, the box also contained live crickets. You would have thought it was a homicidal Bengal tiger the way this bunch reacted, starting with Gina, who came short of jumping onto her chair. Emily feared not, letting a handful of them jump around her palm, stating she was from Ohio. Me too, originally, and I kind of get what she means, since I liked to give roly-poly bugs rides in my Matchbox cars. I also worked in one NYC office where a teeny tiny mouse dared show his/her face and it was like a bomb went off – women screeching and dashing everywhere. I was more than happy to try and get it into a cup to let it loose outside (if I didn’t give it a name, put a ribbon on it, and make it a pet), but that poor thing was in Chicago after the first scream. But I digress. Tamra ate a cricket, which should be a surprise to no one, since she probably bites the heads off of bats and chickens on a regular basis. I guessed the traitor early on from her speech patterns. Even though her voice was distorted, there was no hiding the cadence.

While we’re on the subject, I dunno. It’s not like Tamra invented digging into someone’s past and the last thing I’ve ever felt is empowered to judge because Tamra is a nasty piece of work. Besides, they would have gotten there sooner or later.

📮 Serving Up Some Drama…

This had to hurt. Awful meet awful.

⚰️ Moving Right Along

We’re not even at Season 2 yet.

https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/the-walking-dead-daryl-dixon-season-3-filming-spain-norman-reedus-melissa-mcbride/

Premiering September 29th.

https://www.tvinsider.com/gallery/the-walking-dead-daryl-dixon-season-2-photos-trailer/

🗽 He’ll Take Manhattan…

I loved Ryan on Million Dollar Listing. I love living vicariously through him and I’m not jealous one bit. He works hard for his money. I haven’t seen this yet, but I’m sure there will be a binge in my future.

🦕 Jurassic Park Part 6,012…

The plot is immaterial next to the main reason for watching – dinosaurs! (Yes, I know. I’m a child.)

https://ew.com/jurassic-world-4-rebirth-first-look-plot-details-revealed-8703944

🐊 Don’t Let Him Get Away…

Really? People thought this was real? Even if it had been, it’s a little small to be frightened of. But of course, I’m from Ohio.

https://people.com/animal-control-officers-called-for-alligator-find-toy-8704234

🌞 Grabbing the Final Rays…

Join me tomorrow for a big bar of soap and a variety of entertainment. Until then, stay safe, stay avoiding assumptions, and stay never letting a bully with a badge or a punk with a grudge break you down.

August 28, 2024 – Laura Calls In a Favor, A Petition, Powerful, This Week In LA, Test Flirt, Her Date, Rails Residue, Post Deck, New Apes, Where’d He Go & Sadness

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What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Alexis tells Sonny what happened at Irene’s funeral; how Molly tore into Kristina and Kristina ended up falling on the grave. Everyone was hysterical. Sonny asks what Molly was thinking, and Kristina walks in.

In a hotel room somewhere, Ava says she knows John is headed back to Port Charles and asks when he’ll be back. He says he won’t be gone long, but she says she doesn’t feel safe without him. He says, she’ll be fine, when there’s a knock at the door. He says, Agent Boyle will watch over her, and Boyle walks in.

At the hospital, Anna says, Tracy looks pale. Is she all right? Tracy says she’s not, and Anna asks if she can get Tracy something. Tracy says, it’s not her. It’s Lulu. She needs a miracle.

Laura tells Doc that Nikolas was crushed. That leaves Lucky. She’s got to find him. He travels a lot doing humanitarian work, but she hasn’t heard from him in months. She’s waiting to hear back from the place he last worked. She’s also going through some back channels. Her phone rings, and she asks if Robert has an update.

Gerard (a guard who has a name) says, they’re going in five minutes, and leaves. Lucky says, they did it. It worked. Isaiah says, it played out just like Lucky said, and Lucky tells him that they’re getting out today.

Kristina says she keeps wishing she hadn’t gotten so angry and stormed into Ava’s suite. Sonny says she didn’t know how Ava was going to react. She can’t blame herself. She says, not according to Molly. Molly said she chose to protect Sonny instead of her child and that she was selfish. Alexis says, Molly doesn’t mean that. She was lashing out. Trying to make sense of something that doesn’t make sense. She’s grieving too, and Kristina was the easiest person to blame. Kristina says, Molly thinks she was going to steal her baby after it was born, but you can’t steal what belongs to you. She was never more certain than at the funeral. When Adela was lowered into the ground, a part of her died too.

Ava says, John told her that he’d keep her safe, and he says he’s held up his end of the bargain so far, but she says she needs to know about the future. When is he bringing Avery? Are they going to be put in the witness protection program? He asks if that’s what she wants, living in some backwater town trying to fit in, and she says she wants to survive. Isn’t that the best option? John says he’s doing what he can. If the plan goes right, she’ll be able to go back, and Sonny will never threaten her or Avery again. She asks if she can give Avery a call, but John says, she’s having a wonderful time with the nanny. If Ava calls, it will just make Avery miss her. She asks if she can at least have her phone, but he says, it’s too risky. Her location could be compromised. Ava says she’s feeling cut off, and he says, that’s the whole point. It’s keeping her safe. Everything is going according to plan. Be patient. Does she trust him? She says, of course (🍷), and he says he’ll see her soon. He leaves with his suitcases.

Anna says, if Nikolas isn’t an option, what happens next? and Tracy says, they have to find Lucky. Anna says, it won’t be easy, but Tracy says, it has to happen unless some donor was overlooked. Anna asks if they have to share DNA or just the same blood type, and Tracy says, they don’t have to share the same DNA, but it’s the best chance for a match. Time is of the essence. If it doesn’t happen soon…. She says she has to take care of something, and leaves.

Robert says, the WSB said Lucky was participating in humanitarian efforts. He saved several doctors and patients in an area under siege. The organization decided to relocate to a more friendly part of the world, and Lucky found himself an area where his talents could be used. Laura asks if the WSB knows where he is, and Robert says, they believe he was headed toward East Africa, to a refugee camp. But it was months ago and nearly impossible to get a message to him. She asks if they have the location of the camp, but he says, the camp is always in flux and isolated. He’ll let her know if he can do more. Keep him in the loop. Doc says he’s sorry, and Laura says, it’s a setback. She’s not giving up. She thinks it’s time to call in a favor.

Isaiah says, Sidwell is complaining of stomach pain. He’s known toddlers who whine less. It’s just indigestion, but he told Sidwell that he needed to get a full panel of tests that require equipment they don’t have, so they’re leaving. Lucky says, all they need to do is make it off the compound. Once they lose the guards, he can get ahold of his contact, and they’ll be on their way. It’s not going to be easy, but it will work. It has to.

Anna goes to Portia’s office and says she learned from Tracy that Lulu’s condition is declining, and she needs a liver transplant. Is that true? Portia says she can’t discuss a patient’s condition without permission of the patient or family, and Anna says, of course (🍷). She doesn’t need information about Lulu’s condition, but needs information about the donor search. Portia says, the potential donor needs to be in good physical and psychological condition. They need to be a non-smoker for six weeks prior, understand the risks of the procedure, and have a compatible blood type. Anna says, what about age? Can they be a minor? Portia says, it’s rare. They prefer it be an adult, but in special circumstances, it’s possible. Anna says, that’s all she needed to hear, and leaves.

Laura goes to Jack’s office, and he asks, to what does he owe the honor? She says she needs his help, and he invites her in. She says her daughter was badly injured in an explosion and has been in a coma ever since. Her health has taken a sudden turn for the worse and she needs a liver transplant in order to survive. He says he’s sorry, but she says she’s not here for sympathy. She’s here for information. He asks what he could possibly know that would help, and she says, he’s a very high-ranking member of the WSB and she’s here to ask him to help her find her son.

Lucky says, Isaiah knows the plan. Wait for his signal, then move. Gerard comes back and says, let’s go. They pick up their bags, and Gerard says, just the doctor. Lucky is staying.

Kristina says she falls asleep and dreams about Adela, and Sonny says, she named the baby after his mother? She says, it’s not what TJ and Molly would have named her, but if she’d lived, that’s what she would have named her. Sonny says, it’s beautiful, and thanks her, and she says, in her dreams, Adela is so beautiful, so tiny, and so sweet. Kristina cries and says she’s so full of joy. She holds Adela and she’s laughing and kissing her face. Then she wakes up and remembers Adela is gone all over again. It’s like a knife to her heart and she can’t breathe. That’s why she’s not sleeping. When she sleeps, she can be with Adela, but when she wakes up, she remembers again that Adela has been taken away from her. There’s a knock at the door, and Alexis says she’ll get rid of them. She opens the door and asks what John is doing here again. He says he’s sorry to intrude, but he has a few more questions for Kristina.

Laura tells Jack that Lucky has been away from Port Charles for several years doing humanitarian work. He’s been providing security for aid workers in East Africa, and it isn’t easy getting in touch in an emergency. Jack says, it’s a chaotic part of the world, and Laura says she needs to bring him back. A donor that’s a full sibling is the best chance for a match. Can he help? He says he’ll do what he can, but he doesn’t want to lie. Finding Lucky will be a challenge. Laura says she realizes that, but he has more resources than she does, and he says, the WSB isn’t popular in that area. Inquiries will have to be made under the radar. Otherwise, it will be considered interference. She says she expects the WSB is expert in covert operations. She’s asking him to give her daughter a chance at life and to locate her son. He says, if it’s in his power to help, he will. He gets up, and she thanks him for his time. Before she goes out the door, she says, her family has done more than their share of favors for the WSB. When they had the power to help, they did. It’s time the WSB repaid the favor. Good day. She leaves.

Isaiah says, Lucky needs to come. They need protection. They’ll be transporting expensive equipment. If it’s stolen, is Gerard going to tell Sidwell it’s gone? Gerard hears something, and he tells Isaiah to be ready by the time he gets back. He leaves, and Isaiah asks what they do now.

Alexis says, no way in hell is John speaking to her daughter, but Kristina says, maybe she should just answer the questions. She has nothing to hide. Alexis says, as her attorney, she’s advising Kristina that it’s a bad idea. As her mother, she forbids it. John can’t come here without scheduling it in advance, and when he does, she’ll be present as Kristina’s attorney. Sonny says, John didn’t come to talk to their daughter. All John has to do is ask him. He’ll talk to John. John says he does have a few questions for Sonny, and Sonny tells him to come to his office tomorrow, but John says, Sonny doesn’t get to pick the time and place. The PC Grill in 20 minutes. Don’t keep him waiting or he’ll come back and take Kristina into custody. (Ugh. His schtick is getting so very old.) He leaves, and Kristina says, he’s just trying to get Sonny to say something. It’s a trap. Sonny says he can deal with it. He knows how to handle Agent Cates.

Ava asks how long Boyle has been with the Bureau, and Boyle says, five years. Ava asks if she’s been working with John, and Boyle says, some of the time. Ava says, John is high up, and asks if he has a lot of power, but Boyle says, they don’t divulge those things to the public. Ava says, nice shoes. She would wear them. Cartullo? Boyle says, good eye. She got them at a sample sale. Ava says, they still must have cost a lot. You can usually tell a cop or a Fed by their shoes. Those are chic. Boyle asks if she needs anything, and Ava says she’d like to have her phone, but Boyles says she meant to eat or drink. Ava says, that depends on how long they’re going to be here, and Boyle says she doesn’t think that long.  

On the phone, Alexis says she’ll be right there. She tells Kristina that the hospital has a problem with her insurance. She’ll be as quick as possible. Will she be okay? Kristina says, yes, but she’s worried about dad. Alexis says, Sonny can take care of himself, but Kristina says she’s upset that she’s the reason John has leverage over him. Alexis says, she has nothing to do with it. John would use any excuse to go after Sonny. When she gets back, they’ll have a snack watch harmless movie. She leaves, and Kristina makes a call. She asks if they can come over. She needs their help.

Lucky tells Isaiah to take the gun. If he gets a chance to stop the guards, run to the airfield and meet his contact. He’ll get Isaiah to Mogadishu. Isaiah says he’s not leaving with Lucky, but Lucky says, unless they shoot their way out, that’s not happening. If he had the chance to get out, he’d leave Isaiah in a heartbeat. Go save himself to save him.

Tracy goes to Laura’s apartment, and Laura asks what she can do for her. Tracy says she wants to help Lulu.

Kristina says she didn’t know who to call, and Jason says, Sonny kept him updated, but it’s good to see her. How is she feeling? She says, physically, she’s healing. She’s just scared. Cates came looking for her and her mom stood up to him. She knows Cates is working with Ava, who’s lying and making up everything. Ava is blaming her, but that’s not accurate. Jason says, it’s hard to be accused of a crime you didn’t commit. She has to fight the impulse to do something. Cates wants her to react and make a mistake so he can find something to charge her with that sticks. Please do not give him that chance. Kristina says, she can’t sit around and wait. She has to do something, but she can’t do it alone. She knows it’s a lot to ask, but he has to help her stop Cates and find a way to make Ava pay.

Ava says she knows a little bit about guns and the one Agent Boyle has, isn’t what Feds typically carry. Boyle says, female agents have their choice of weapons now, and Ava says she could use a coffee. She’ll run down and get one. Boyle says, you never know who’s out there. She’ll go. Ava says she’d like a macchiato, and Boyle says she’ll go to the coffee shop lobby. Sit tight. She leaves, and Ava picks up Boyle’s bag. She says, all right. Who are you?

Sonny meets John at the PC Grill and John says, Kristina seemed upset. How is she doing? Sonny says, John doesn’t care about Kristina or the fake crimes he’s charging her with. Stop playing around and tell him what he wants. John says, Kristina’s not looking too good. She probably won’t make it through the trial, let alone a 20-year sentence. Sonny says, it’s not going to come to that, and John says, Sonny can make his daughter’s troubles go away. Sonny asks, how? and John says, he’s going to confess.

Anna goes to Jack’s office (I’m starting to feel sorry for him), and he says, what an unexpected pleasure. What can he do for her? She tells him to stop playing games. She needs to know Valentin’s location. He says, the WSB doesn’t currently have it, but if he learns anything, she’ll be his first call. She says, he’s lying. She’s conducted run arounds herself. He asks if she’s rethinking letting Valentin escape. Browbeating him won’t help her find him any quicker. She says she needs to find his daughter for Lulu. His phone rings, and he tells them to send him the information immediately. Anna says, he knows Lulu is dying and Charlotte might help save her mother’s life. He needs to give her the courtesy of his full attention to discuss it. He says, she always sees him in the worst possible light, and she says she has reason to. He says, she can badger him or save Lulu. That’s what the phone call was about.

Tracy says she knows Laura is looking for Lucky, and she can use any of the Quartermaines’ resources to help bring him home. Laura thanks her for her generosity, but she’s waiting to hear from the WSB. She spoke to Jack Brennan, the station chief in Port Charles. Tracy says, they should be able to find Lucky, and Laura says, he told her that it was a chaotic part of the world, when her phone rings. It’s Jack, and she says she’s putting him on speakerphone. He says he has good news. He has a location for Lucky. She thanks him, and he says, Lucky was last seen at refugee camps in Somalia and Ethiopia a week ago. She asks if he’s there now, but Jack says he’s not sure. His contact doesn’t currently have eyes on Lucky and he can’t get satellite information for 48 hours. By then, it will be a long shot, since they move frequently. She asks if she can get a message to him to let him know it’s urgent, but he says, communication is sketchy to non-existent. Her best bet is to send someone, but whoever she sends needs to be prepared for the substantial risk. It’s a dangerous part of the world.

Alexis thanks Portia for helping with the insurance, and Portia says, no problem. She knows Alexis has a lot on her plate. How is Kristina doing? Alexis says, she slept last night, so there’s that. She’s got a long road ahead of her. Portia says, she’s a strong woman and clearly has a lot of support. It’s not easy, but she will get through it. Alexis says she takes it Portia heard about the scene between Kristina and Molly after the funeral, and Portia says she thinks they’re in a lot of pain. She imagines Alexis is too. As a mother, she truly feels for Alexis. It’s a terrible position to be in. She’d do anything for Trina, and she just has one daughter. Alexis is stuck in the middle, having to choose. She doesn’t know what she’d do.

Jason says he totally gets where Kristina is coming from, but it’s not her fight. If Cates hadn’t used her, he would find another way. Ava is a means to an end. He’s using Kristina, so don’t give him anything else he can hold over her head. He’s obsessed with getting Sonny. Being obsessed makes him crazy and it makes him dangerous. It also makes him weak. He has tunnel vision. He wants revenge for something that happened decades ago and will risk everything to get it. At some point, he’s going to make a mistake and leave himself open. Sonny knows when to make a move and Cates will never see it coming.

Sonny asks what he’s supposed to confess to, and John says, everything last thing. On the record of course (🍷). No trial, witnesses, or plea bargain. He’ll confess to the smuggling, money laundering, counterfeiting, and murder. Last but not least, he’ll tell them how he groomed an innocent underage girl and put her to work as a stripper. Sonny says, that’s a pretty big swing John’s taking. What if John misses? John says he won’t, and Sonny says, all he’s got is a phony statement from Ava that any lawyer can poke holes in. John asks if he wants to test that theory. If he’s wrong, Kristina will go to prison for a long, long time. It’s her freedom or his.

Isaiah says he’s not leaving Lucky in this mess, and Lucky says he came to rescue Isaiah. Isaiah says he didn’t ask, and Lucky says, he’s asking Isaiah to rescue them both. They’re out of their league and Isaiah needs to get out of here, get back to the states, and bring backup of the three letter kind. Isaiah says, don’t say the CIA, and Lucky says, no. Never go near them. But the WSB owes his family a favor.

Anna tells Jack, time is of the essence. She doesn’t know why they’re pinning their hope on Lucky when there’s another viable donor out there. He says, for the last time, he doesn’t know where Valentin and Charlotte are, but she says she doesn’t believe him. Jack is robbing Charlotte of the chance to save her own mother’s life and putting his efforts into a desperate search for a single man in a strife torn part of the world. When this fails, he’ll have to face the fact that he chose to protect the WSB rather than save the life of an innocent woman. She leaves and Jack ponders.

Tracy tells Laura that they can hire a mercenary or an extraction team. There are security contractors. Laura says, no. She doesn’t want a stranger to find her son. She can do it herself. Tracy says, it’s too dangerous, but Laura says she’s aware of the risks. She has a contact, the man who runs the last organization Lucky was working for. Tracy says she understands the impulse for Laura to go herself, but professionals would be better qualified. Laura says she doesn’t agree. Blood is thicker than water. Tracy asks if Doc is okay with this, and Doc says he knows better than to argue… because he’s going with her. Tracy says, fabulous. The mayor and her psychiatrist husband. What could possibly go wrong? Laura says she appreciates Laura’s concern, but they’ll be okay. Tracy says she hopes so, and Laura says, there is something Tracy can do to help. Look after Ace. Tracy wonders if he shouldn’t be with a family like Elizabeth’s. She has a child who’s Ace’s cousin. Laura says she thought Ace would be more comfortable with Tracy’s family. Don’t they have a nanny on staff? Tracy says, two, and Laura says she hopes throwing Ace into the mix won’t be overwhelming. Tracy says, Ace is welcome to come stay at Monica’s house, and Laura says she couldn’t do this without knowing he was safe. She trusts Tracy. Tracy says she’ll make sure Laura’s grandson has excellent care, and Larua says, then it’s settled. Let’s go find Lucky.  

Kristina says, so Jason isn’t going to stop Cates? but he says, something will be done. He can’t talk about it. She thanks him and says she knew he’d come through.

Sonny says, John has a lot riding on Ava. If she finds a better offer, she’ll recant her statement, and his case will fall apart. John says he’s not worried. Ava is in no position to recant – ever.  

Ava looks in Boyle’s bag. She takes out a pair of sunglasses and says, these cost a fortune. You can’t afford them on a government salary. She takes out a phone, thinks a moment, then puts it back. She finds a wad of cash and says, this is not right. She flashes back to Sonny telling her that John wants her dead and will try to frame him for her murder. The only thing John wants is her dead. Ava puts the bag back and opens the door. Boyle is there with the coffee and says, going somewhere?

Tomorrow, Violet asks when Chase and Brook are having a baby; Willow tells Drew that she’s so sorry; and John tells Kristina that she has a way to make this go away.

📋 Don’t Let Her Go…

You never know. Could work.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/general-hospital-fans-rally-to-save-kelly-monaco

Here’s the petition. I signed and commented.

https://www.change.org/p/retain-kelly-monaco-in-the-cast-of-general-hospital

🎭 No Drama Outside the Lines…

Kudos to them for the tough scenes they’ve been doing so well.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/kate-mansi-opens-up-about-the-powerful-drama-on-gh

💰 Fancy Crossover….

JoshA showed Fancy Pants Heather from the OC a mansion. In his interview, he explained that the Dubrows moved fast and didn’t mess around. That made them his kind of people. The house on a hill had 8 acres and amazing views of pretty much everything, and it was priced at $20 million. A steal Heather couldn’t resist.

There was trouble in his paradise between JoshA and his Heather. HeatherA was being spread too thin between work and family, especially now that the office had expanded to include Orange County.

JoshF went to Fashion Week in Paris, which left Tracy to handle their co-listing. In an odd twist, she showed it to a couple who were JoshF’s clients, meaning she might have to negotiate against Josh, which she said would be fun… for her.

Next time, a 20-car garage and doody on the curtains.

🐩 Looking For a Fabulous Match…

While I think a dog park is a great place to meet a potential date, it was weird when a guy asked if he could buy Whitney and her friend a drink. Are there bars in dog parks now? She finally made the smart move to use a matchmaker.

https://parade.com/news/my-big-fat-fabulous-lifes-whitney-thore-hones-flirting-skills-dog-park-exclusive-clip

🥂 Two Firsts In One Night…

I have to admit, it surprised me that Olivia spent the night with her first ever date. No judgement at all. As a matter of fact, good for her. I just didn’t expect it. If she doesn’t cut out that nervous laughing though, she might not get a second date.

https://people.com/welcome-to-plathville-recap-olivia-plath-spent-night-on-first-date-post-divorce-8702802

👠 Down the Not Quite Shore…

Melissa says she’s done with the drama.

https://www.nj.com/entertainment/2024/08/longtime-rhonj-star-promises-to-leave-if-castmate-stays-on-show.html

And Danielle is putting on her big girl pants.

🛟 After the Deck Is Over…

We need Chef Ben to come back and save the Med.

🦧 Their Kingdom…

I watched this last weekend. Nice plot twists and phenomenal effects. The story wasn’t bad, but I didn’t exactly come for the drama. It did not disappoint on the action/FX front.

Behind the curtain.

https://ew.com/kingdom-of-the-planet-of-the-apes-side-by-side-raw-cut-with-unfinished-vfx-clip-exclusive-8697941

🦍 Find the Chimp…

Coincidentally, I started watching Chimp Crazy too. The takeaway point being, don’t keep wild animals as pets. It’s abusive to the animal and it could backfire on you.

https://people.com/where-is-tonka-from-chimp-crazy-now-all-about-florida-sanctuary-8703367

🚓 Giving Summer a Speeding Ticket…

Join me tomorrow for soap and a seat in the OC shade. Until then, stay safe, stay keeping an emergency vehicle kit in your car, and stay not trying to make sense of something that doesn’t make sense.

August 27, 2024 – Heather Gets a New Lawyer, Soap Suds, No Stanbury Drama In Dubai, Slammed, Guilty, She Filed, Coming Up, Troubled Reality, Gilded Girl, They Do & Turns

Standard

What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Alexis is on the phone when there’s a knock at the door. She says she’ll call them back, and opens the door to Ric.

Dex sees Molly sitting near the park and asks if she’s out for a run. She says, that was the original idea, but he can see how far she’s gotten, and he says he’ll leave her alone if she prefers. He just wanted to make sure she’s okay. She says she is… That’s a lie. She’s not okay at all.

At the hospital, Elizabeth says she thought Portia would be with the family after the funeral. She was sorry to hear about the baby. Portia says, it’s been a difficult day all around.

Tracy sits in the chapel, and Dante asks if she minds if he joins her.

Deanna says she hopes Portia can decompress, when Carly and Jossln walk in. Portia says, it’s not likely, and goes over to them. Elizabeth asks Deanna to cover for her and leaves. Carly asks if Portia can tell them anything about Lulu, and Josslyn says, they’re family. Carly says, no one sticks together the way the Spencers do

Laura waits in the visiting room at Flatland Prison. Nicolas is brought in, and they hug.

Elizabeth asks Heather, what seems to be the problem? and Heather says, nothing her little Lizzie Beth can’t fix. Elizabeth asks what she’s doing at the hospital, and Heather says, she’s getting a blood test, and she missed chow time at Pentenville. She requested dinner, but they forgot the Jello and got huffy when she asked. Elizabeth says, it’s not a hotel with room service, and Heather says, they don’t have Jello at Pentenville, or pudding, or anything that jiggles, except things that shouldn’t. Elizabeth says she’ll get Heather something special if she takes it easy on the staff, and Heather says, of course (🍷). The last thing she wants is to make trouble for Elizabeth or herself. God forbid she should jeopardize… Can Elizabeth keep a secret? Soon she’ll have access to all the Jello she wants. She’s fixing to go free.

Portia explains to Carly and Josslyn that Lulu’s status has changed. A blood test showed that her liver was compromised, likely due to her medication. She has cirrhosis and needs a liver transplant to live. Josslyn says, test her.

Laura asks how Nikolas is, and he says he’s in one peace. How’s Ace? She says she brought pictures, and shows him her phone. He laughs and Laura says, Ace is a happy kid and hitting all his milestones with flying colors. He’s learned the word no in three languages because his babysitter is a language major. Nikolas says, he’s going to be cosmopolitan, and she says, like his father. Nikolas says, and like his big brother… How is she? She says, they have a problem, which is why she needs him to toe the line in here for his sister’s sake. She needs him.  

Tracy asks, to what does she owe this visit? and Dante says he just wanted company. She says, hers? and he laughs. He thanks her for being here. It helps him knowing she’s here for Lulu. She says she’s not here to make things easier for him, but he says, it still does. She stepped up for Lulu a lot of times and knew when to step aside. It’s impressive. She helped shape Lulu, then cut her loose on the world. Tracy says, Lulu became someone she doesn’t recognize.

Dex asks if Molly needs a ride, but she says she’s not ready to go anywhere. She doesn’t want to face her family. The funeral was taxing in ways she didn’t anticipate. He sits down, and she says she blew up at her mom and sister. She said awful things. He says he’s been there. There were a lot of fights before he took off. She says, he doesn’t talk to his family at all? and he says, it doesn’t have to be that way for her. She can patch things up. She says, suck it up and apologize when she’s not sorry and suppress her feelings because her sister is a walking disaster, and her mom has no time for anything else? That would be status quo, and she’d rather have nothing.

Ric says he can’t stay because he has an appointment, and Alexis says, with Satan? She tells him that Kristina is upstairs, so she suggests he keep his voice down. He says he’s glad she’s taking care of Sonny’s offspring. Molly is hurting. She’s upset with the way Alexis is treating her like an afterthought. She’s in pain and holds Alexis accountable for part of it. He suggests Alexis seize the chance to change, because she’s not getting another one.

Molly says, run, literally, while he can, but Dex says he’s absorbing it. It seems like she and her mom have a great relationship. She says, they get along well and can talk about almost anything. They have mutual respect and by many measures, Alexis defines a good mother. He asks, what about the other measures? and she says she knows some people have it worse and knows her mother loves her to the extent circumstances allow. She raised a family on her own, which is commendable, but any one individual has only so much time and energy to go around. So when one family member can’t stand on their own feet, they need more love and understanding, and the rest of them learn to live with what’s left.

Ric tells Alexis to try listening, and she says, to his absentee daddy parental advice? He says, don’t let that be an excuse not to make it right with Molly. She was crying for hours and he reassured her that Alexis would reach out and try to fix it, but she didn’t call. Alexis says she was too busy dealing with her post-op, postpartum, post arrest daughter who is on the verge of a nervous breakdown, but he says, Molly needs her just as much. All she needs to do is let Molly know that she’s on Alexis’s mind and heart. Alexis says, Molly knows that, but he says, she doesn’t feel it.

Elizabeth tells Heather that there’s no doctor/patient confidentiality. She can’t keep quiet about an escape attempt. Heather laughs and says, no. She’s Heather 2.0 and doing things the right way, the legal way. Scotty took her case and said it’s a slam dunk. They’re supposed to meet here. Has she seen him? Elizabeth says, no. No one has seen Scotty. He’s gone.

Nikolas asks if Laura is flexing her mayoral muscles by bringing her own lab tech, but she says, time is of the essence. All they need is to arrange for him to be moved back to Port Charles if the blood test proves that his liver is healthy and functioning. He says he’s already a match, and she says, they’ll fly him home within the hour, but it’s not without risk. He says he’d do anything for Lulu, and she says she hopes it’s enough. He says, it was last time.

Dante says, Lulu is the same person she was when she went into the coma, and Tracy says she’s surprised he doesn’t see it. What does he remember when he and Lulu first met? He says, she was a handful. Fiery and mischievous, always up to something. She says, Lulu was confident and didn’t take any crap, and Dante says, she kicked ass. Tracy says, then she changed. She became insecure and cautious with a conservative approach to life. Dante says, maybe he’s not so grateful she’s here, and Tracy says, he doesn’t like it when she’s holding up a mirror and showing him what he did. Lulu had spirit, determination, and courage, and he robbed her of it.

Alexis says, however Molly feels, she knows that’s untrue, and Ric says, then tell her. She says, he saw Kristina at the funeral. She was about to lose it. She almost died, the baby die, she’s recovering from surgery and postpartum, and living with the threat she might lose her freedom. She needs help navigating it. He says, Molly doesn’t? and she says, yes. Doesn’t he think she wants to spend every minute with both her daughters? One person can’t be both places at the same time. They’ve had a profound loss, and the one more equipped to handle it is Molly.

Dex asks if Molly thinks her mom would agree, and she says, no, but there’s no denying Kristina is a mess. She always has been and always will be. (I think this is unfair. Kristina is a mess off and on, like everyone else in Port Charles, except maybe Molly, who’s been a mess since she met her first real life problem, infertility. Kristina had actually been doing very well before this whole mess.) She tells Dex that Kristina couldn’t function without their mom’s oversight. She figured this out when she was young, so she learned to be strong and independent, a problem solver. It might sound vain, but she learned to be excellent. She knew if she asked for more, her mom would kill herself trying to give it to her and her sister would suffer as a result. He says, it’s the one thing she can’t talk to her mom about, and she asks about his family. He says his dad hurt the whole family, and his brothers hurt people as a result. His mom got it the worst. She asks if his mom ever thought of leaving, and he says he doesn’t know. She may have thought that’s what love was. She says she bets his mom wanted to leave, and he says, if she left, she had no one to go with her. He wishes he’d asked her on the side, but he took off instead and never looked back. Molly says she never asked for more because she assumed her mother couldn’t give it, but he says, maybe she didn’t give it because Molly never asked.

Tracy says, so Dante walked away. He’s good at that. He says he was sick. He had PTSD. She says she understands, but he sought help alone. He says he didn’t want to drag Lulu down with him, and she says, Lulu vowed to stay by his side when he was at his most vulnerable, despite the fact he slept with her cousin. But he turned her away. He says he didn’t want to, but she says, it doesn’t matter what he wanted. He shattered Lulu’s confidence. She was a shadow of herself. If she dies without reclaiming the spark she inherited from her father, Tracy will never forgive him. He says he can live the rest of his life without her forgiveness. Why doesn’t she keep it for herself?  

Nicolas says he remembers the first time he saw Lulu after the operation. He still has a mark on his back. Laura says, from the bone marrow, and he says he couldn’t wait to make sure she was okay. She says, he brought Lulu flowers, and he says, to a toddler. It’s the thought that counts. He saw a little girl who needed protection and care and told her that he was going to do that. He said that to his boys… He starts to cry and asks, is it too late for him? Will he ever be able to atone for destroying his family?

Josslyn says she knows Nikolas is a match, but she’d like to be tested. Portia asks if she isn’t already an organ donor recipient, and Carly says, she had childhood kidney cancer. Portia says, that makes her ineligible. They’d be surprised how many factors come into play. Carly asks if she can be tested, and Portia says she’ll get the ball rolling. She asks Deanna to draw Carly’s blood, and Deanna says, as soon as she’s done relieving Elizabeth. She’s sure it won’t be much longer. Portia looks toward Heather’s room, and Deanna says she can draw blood at the same time. She’ll multitask.

Heather asks what Elizabeth means, and Elizabeth says, Scotty is out of town indefinitely. She thinks it’s some big, possibly lucrative, case. Heather says she has a big, lucrative case and he’s supposed to represent her. He told her that he’d get her out of that hellhole, and she could be with her grandson. She has plans. Portia comes in and tells her, you know what they say about plans. God laughs, and so do I.

Dex sits in the MetroCourt and looks at his phone. He sees calls from his mother.

Portia asks, what brings Heather here? and Heather says, a court order. Her lawyer pushed it through. Elizabeth says, he arranged for a blood test, and Portia says she’ll be more than happy to take Heather’s blood.

Ric says, Alexis’s reasoning doesn’t change the fact that Molly thinks she’s choosing Kristina over her, but Alexis says she never has and never did. Ric asks, what about the document? and she says, it was misunderstood. He says, her and Molly’s relationship is in jeopardy, and she says she’s been in a relationship with her daughter since the day she was born. No breaks. His relationship with her is long distance phone calls and she thinks she knows better. Now he shows up with his flashy righteous arguments. Kristina needs her more and Molly understands. He says, what if she doesn’t? when Molly walks in. Ric says he prays Alexis is right, greets Molly, and leaves. Molly tells Alexis, whatever he said, she wishes he didn’t. She can fight her own battles. Alexis says she thought Molly was here to work things out with her sister, and Molly says, not with Kristina. With you.

Laura says she believes in Nikolas, and he says, that makes one of us. She says, he turned himself in and saved Ace from a life on the run. It was a selfless choice, like he did with Lulu and he’s about to do again. He says, it’s so hard to hold on to that in here, and she say she gets that he’s struggling, but he can survive that. He asks, how? and she says, serve his sentence, come home, and be a good father. The technician comes in, and she tells him to go save his sister.

Tracy says, before Dante delves into it, she’s lived too long and experienced too much to waste time dwelling on her past mistakes. He says, what about her promise to Laura that Lulu would get the best care possible? She probably promised Luke the same thing. Maybe she promised Luke that Lulu would always get top notch treatment. Or maybe she told him that she could wake Lulu up with her money and resources and treat Lulu like her own daughter. Maybe Luke thought about that when his life flashed before his eyes and found comfort in knowing she’d look after his little girl. She kept almost all of her promises, but Lulu has nothing to show for it.

Laura looks at a paper and says, Nikolas can’t do it. He can’t help Lulu.

Josslyn comes up behind Dex and puts her hands over his eyes. She says, guess who? and he says he’d recognize those hands anywhere.

Dante says, Tracy is right. Lulu wanted to stick it out and told him that if he left, it was the end, there was no coming back. That terrified him, but the alternative was worse. He was more afraid if he stayed, so he left. He knows it was wrong, but it’s done. Lulu is fading away and there’s nothing he can do about it.

Nikolas says, it must be a mistake. Lulu has his bone marrow. Laura says, it’s not that. The test shows his liver function doesn’t meet the criteria. He says he’s not sick and he’s not drinking in here, and she says, his liver is fine for him, but not fine for donation.

Elizabeth says she heard Carly got tested, and Carly says, yes. She’d also like to add herself to the registry. Maybe one day she can give someone a gift like Josslyn received. Elizabeth says she remembers how sick Josslyn was and how hard it was for Carly. Carly says, it was hard for Elizabeth too, and Elizabeth says, if someone had told her back then that they’d be friends… Carly says, they wouldn’t have believed it, and Elizabeth says, too bad so many things that tie them together are so awful. Carly says, here comes one of those things now, and they see Ric.

Heather says, Portia has a nice bedside manner when she wants to, and Portia says, Heather didn’t think she was going to hurt her. Heather says she thinks Portia was tempted, and Portia says she might have been, but she doesn’t give in to every temptation. She also took her oath seriously and wants to live up to it. Heather says she was regarding Portia as a mother, not a doctor, and Portia says, pain as vengeance isn’t her style. Heather says, it was never her goal, and Portia asks if it was just a pesky biproduct of faulty hip. Heather says, in her mind, she thought she was protecting her daughter, and Portia says, that might be something they have in common. She would go to great lengths to protect her daughter, and so would Heather.

Molly tells Alexis that Kristina is a lost cause. There’s no mending fences unless they’re both willing to put in the work, which means Kristina has to acknowledge that she’s done anything wrong and offer a sincere apology. That’s not going happen, and she has no illusions about her sister. She’s not expecting more, but she’s hopeful for more from Alexis. Alexis asks, what more does she want? and Molly says, understanding, acknowledgment of what she’s navigating. Alexis says she knows Molly is navigating hell and wants her to know she’d do anything to get her to the other side of it. Molly asks if Alexis will tell her the truth, and Alexis says, always. Molly says, if Irene had lived, would she have helped Kristina take Irene away from her and TJ?  

Josslyn tells Dex that it was too late to see Lulu and her mom kicked her out. There was nothing left for her to do, and her mom said she should go live her life. Dex says, remind him to thank her. It’s hard to turn off the worry. She says, there’s a chance Lulu will be okay. She’s trying to be optimistic, but bad things can happen, and she doesn’t want another thing to be added to the list. He says, they can pray it won’t be.

Alexis tells Molly that Kristina came to her with the document and asked her legal opinion. She told Kristina what she’s told all of them all along. If Kristina asserted herself in court, it would probably go her way, but she would not get involved at all. If she’d given Kristina a hard no, in Kristina’s condition, she would have lost her. Like she’s losing Molly now. She loves her three daughters more than anything, equally. As imperfectly perfect as they are, she can’t bear to lose any of them ever. Molly says, Alexis hasn’t lost her, and they hug.

Carly says, look what the cat dragged in, and Ric says he’s in town for an infant’s funeral. Is attacking him necessary? Carly asks if chaining her to a wall was necessary, and Elizabeth says she’s sorry for Molly and TJ’s loss. How are they dealing with it? Carly asks what he’s doing at the hospital, and he says he has business here. Carly says, the memorial service is over, and suggests he go back to whatever hole he crawled out of. Ric says, it’s good to see her. He hopes he and Elizabeth have the opportunity to catch up. He leaves and Elizabeth says, that can’t be good.

Heather says she’s not a threat anymore and Portia doesn’t need to be protective. Portia says, Scotty’s gone, and Heather is too toxic for another lawyer to take on. She’s going to spend the rest of her days at Pentenville where she belongs. Rick walks in, and Portia says, he can’t be here. He says, is she Heather Webber? and Heather says she is. He says, then he’s in the right place. Scotty sent him. He’s Ric Lansing, her new attorney. He’d like a word alone with his client. Portia leaves, and Heather asks if this is really happening. He tells her, let’s get you out of prison and make the bastards pay.

Portia fingers the vial of Heather’s blood and looks at the computer. (The wheels turning in her head tell me that she’s not so ethical after all.)

Tracy tells Dante that she shouldn’t have said what she said, and he says, apology accepted. She says she didn’t apologize. She stands by what she said, but her timing could use work. Beating him up now accomplishes nothing. Dante says he can take it. He knows she doesn’t have a whole lot of use for him and he’s not itching to be best friends, but she’s important to Lulu, which makes her important to him. She got Lulu through more than a few tough times and hopes she has one more left in her. Lulu needs her now more than ever. She almost starts to cry, but catches herself and says, Lulu needs both of them. Dante puts his hand on her shoulder.

Laura says, it will be okay. Just because Nikolas can’t help doesn’t mean no one else can. Lulu has other relatives. He says, including her mother who would do anything to save her. Laura has to find him for Lesley Lu. Find Lucky and bring him home. She nods and they hug.

Tomorrow, Laura says, it’s time the WSB repays the favor; Lucky tells Isaiah to wait for his signal, then they’ll move; and John tells Alexis that she can make her daughter’s troubles go away.

🧼 All the Soap News Fit To Print…

I’m thinking about getting in on this. Obviously, the dress would be too small for me, but it would be a unique autograph book to have.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/win-jophielle-loves-emmy-dress-autographed-by-gh-stars

What. The. Blip? It says, storyline dictated. Translation: another casualty of new writers. It will open the door to Lulu going back with Dante. Kind of lazy writing if you ask me.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/kelly-monaco-out-at-general-hospital

Not sure if anyone cares, but he felt the need to give us this information.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/ghs-rick-hearst-reveals-where-ric-lansing-has-been

Extra innings.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/watch-ghs-nicholas-chavez-in-the-first-trailer-for-monsters

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/cameron-mathison-christmas-movie-update

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/exclusive-ghs-ryan-carnes-previews-his-heart-wrenching-new-movie

Losses.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/abc/general-hospital-phil-brewer-martin-west-dead-82-174370

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/abc/one-life-to-live-pamela-payton-wright-dead-78-174330

🐪 A Camel Went Through a Needle’s Eye…

This episode went from one rich person event to another, from an over-the-top Bar Mitzvah to a golf game where Chanel wore a tutu and did not do badly. I often think, being rich must be exhausting. Or at least that’s what I tell myself, so I won’t cry into my coffee. Stanbury told Sergio that it was the first time she wasn’t involved with the drama, and she enjoyed it. She also found out through a hypnotherapist that boarding school isn’t her fondest memory, but keeping a stiff upper lip, she told us in her interview, that’s what rich people in England do. She explained that the family name before the war was Steinberg, Caroline’s father being Jewish, hence the Bar Mitzvah. There was a couple’s dinner where they played one of those question games, which are always about sex and other things I don’t want to know. Several of the women (not Stanbury) are consistently bitchy in regard to one another’s businesses. It’s beyond me why you’d be bitchy about anything when you’ve got millions in the bank. Chanel was confused as to what some of the conflict was about, and she’s not alone. Next time, the finale.

🍊 There’s the Door…

So far, she’s no prize and way too heavy on the Johnny J. defense.

https://okmagazine.com/p/vicki-gunvalson-emily-simpson-slam-alexis-bellino-rhoc-return/

💎 No Big Shock…

For those who are still interested in this guy or doubted the outcome.

🍼 Nothing To See Here…

This is certainly no surprise to anyone.

https://okmagazine.com/p/brittany-cartwright-jax-taylor-divorce-filed/

📺 Next Up On Bravo…

Something to look forward to. Or avoid.

📉 Predictable Outcome…

I don’t care what his wife wanted. This is bad timing to the point of being unsavory. He’s the last guy who should be doing a reality show and doesn’t seem like he even wants to, yet he brought production to court? Not a good look. No surprise.

🪭 Crossing Over and Back In Time…

I was bummed when she died on TWD, but I’m glad she found new life here. I love The Gilded Age. Maybe even more than Downton Abbey.

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/walking-dead-s-merritt-wever-joins-hbo-s-historical-drama-the-gilded-age-01j58q56zdxw

💍 Do You Take This Dog…

Shades of Giggy and Grandma Wrinkles.

https://people.com/dogs-who-fell-in-love-at-senior-community-get-married-8700654

⛅️ There Goes the Sun…

Join me tomorrow for soap and LA Millions. Until then, stay safe, stay not spreading out on public transport, and stay being confident and not taking any crap.

August 23, 2024 – A Meltdown At the Cemetery, So Lucky, Temp Sam, New Guy, Rejection, In the OC, Dead Book, Finishing Last, Behind the Dragon, Good Romance, Very Funny, Decagonal Quotes & Cake

Standard

What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Kristina asks what Molly said, and Molly says, Kristina heard her. She had a choice. Protect her baby or Kristina’s father, and she chose Sonny. The truth is right here. Her sweet, innocent baby is buried right here because of Kristina.

Chase calls Brook from the station, and she says she only has a minute. He says, that’s fine. He just wanted to see how her mom’s segment is going. Caller Myrna says she thought Lois was supposed to entice viewers, not send them diving for the mute button. Lois’s accent is so distracting, she can’t focus on the products. Brook says she’s got to go, and Haven asks if Myrna perhaps had a bad experience with someone from the lovely borough of Brooklyn, or is she just having a bad day period? Dante walks in, and Maxie asks what he’s doing here. He says he’s looking for her. It’s Lulu. She’s been moved to General Hospital.

Elizabeth briefly takes Lulu’s hand, then sees Laura coming into the room. Laura asks, how’s Lulu?

We see a crude prison cell. A prisoner with leg irons is shoved into it.

Maxie asks what Dante means, and Dante says, the doctors are worried about Lulu, but she says she doesn’t know what that means. What did the doctors say exactly? He says he’s getting this information from Laura, but he guesses she’s had a setback, so the doctors want her moved to GH so they can handle her medical needs better. Maxie says she doesn’t like the way that sounds. It seems like there’s something wrong. He says he wishes he had more information, but he doesn’t. He just thought she’d like to know as soon as possible. She says, he was right, thanks him, and goes back to work.

Lois says she understands her accent takes a little getting used to, and Myrna says, a little? Haven says she was raised that it’s bad manners to critique the way someone speaks, and anyone with even a basic modicum of knowledge about etiquette would know it’s very rude to offer unsolicited advice on someone’s physical attributes. She’s sure Myrna has a lot of things to do today, and thanks her for calling. Lois says, the good news is, that Deception’s new Deceiver serum plumps and rejuvenates your skin no matter what your accent. Brook and Tracy watch, and Brook smiles. Haven says, exactly. And here at Home & Heart, we encourage everyone to use their voice and use Deception’s skin care products. Their skin will thank them.

Elizabeth suggests she and Laura talk outside, and they go to the waiting area. Laura asks if there’s been a change, and Elizabeth says, Lulu is stable, but her liver function is still declining. Laura says she doesn’t understand this. She has been on the same protocol for years. Why the sudden change? Elizabeth says, they don’t know why this is happening. They’ve already run additional tests. She knows it’s hard, but they just have to wait for them to come through. In the meantime, she’s doing everything she can to keep Lulu comfortable. Laura thanks her for doing that, and Elizabeth says, it was smart to bring her here. No offense to the long-term facility, but she can get better, more comprehensive testing and treatment here at GH. She’s in good hands. Laura says, especially hers, and Elizabeth says, Port Charles is Lulu’s home. Now she’s surrounded by people who love her. Laura starts to cry, and Elizabeth says, doctors and nurses included. They’re going to get her through this. Laura thanks her.

Molly says, Kristina is looking for absolution, for people to tell her this isn’t her fault. She wants to blame Ava, but this is on her. Nobody dragged her to Ava’s hotel room. She went there on her own and she picked a fight. (I can’t imagine talking like this to my sister, no matter what happened.) Kristina says she went there to protect her family, and Molly says, couldn’t she have waited, waited the few weeks her baby needed to be born? TJ tries to get her to stop, but Molly continues to yell. Molly says she knew she shouldn’t have trusted Kristina. She’s so selfish and self-absorbed. Alexis says, please stop it. Not now, please. Molly says, and there it is. Right on time. Mom swoops in to protect Kristina. You could basically set your watch by it. Alexis says, that’s not what it is, but Molly says, of course (🍷) it is. Because it’s impossible to imagine a world where Kristina has to take responsibility for her own actions without Alexis running in to defend her. Is that why she was so eager to get her law license back? So she could help Kristina steal thier baby? Alexis cries and covers her face with her hands.

Sam says, they know Molly is devastated, but this isn’t helping. Molly says she doesn’t care, and Ric says, let him and TJ take her home. Molly asks if they think she’s just making this up. That she’s just imagining mom was going to help Kristina steal her baby. Alexis says, that’s not what happened, and Molly takes a paper out of her bag. She says she found this in Alexis’s briefcase this morning, an affidavit written by Kristina saying she planned to file for custody of her baby. Alexis says, that’s not what happened, and Molly says, all those times she defended Kristina to TJ. She told him that he was wrong about her. It turns out she was wrong. Kristina was never going to give her the baby, and Alexis was just holding on to this for her, waiting to file it. Was she going to file this before her baby was born, or was she going to rip the baby from her hands and hand her to Kristina right in front of her? Alexis repeats, that’s not what happened, and Molly asks when she was planning to file this document. She did it for Kristina because Kristina was never going to give her the baby. Kristina says, no, she wasn’t.

Laura takes Elizabeth’s hand and says she’s never given up hope that Lulu would wake up. She knows that, right? Elizabeth says, of course (🍷), and Laura says she knows what people are thinking. She can see it in their eyes whenever Lulu is brought up. They know she’s been in a coma for three and a half years and they think that it’s hopeless. Elizabeth says, no one thinks that, but Laura says, yes, they do. They absolutely do. They think she should let Lulu go. That she’s being unfair, going through procedure after procedure, but they don’t know her daughter the way she does. And she knows Lulu is a fighter and she is in there and she’s trying to come back. They need to give her every opportunity to do that.

Dante comes into the station, and Chase asks, how was the funeral? (What a question. How does he think it was at a funeral?) Dante says, it was terrible. Kristina’s a mess. She’s completely devastated. Chase says he’s sorry. He knows how hard it is to see a sibling in that much pain. Dante says, you want to say or do something to help them, but there’s just nothing. He sits down, and Chase says, don’t take this the wrong way, but why did he come in today? He should be with his family. Dante says he got some unexpected news at the funeral and wanted to bury himself in some work and process it properly. He didn’t really want to talk to his family about it at the funeral. They’re dealing with enough as it is. Chase says he’s here. If Dante wants to talk about it, he’s happy to listen. Dante says, it’s Lulu. They moved her to GH. She’s taken a turn for the worse.

Going over to Elizabeth at the hospital, Maxie says Dante told her that Lulu had been transferred here. How’s she doing? Elizabeth says, they don’t know yet. The doctor is running labs and doing an MRI, hoping to get a clearer picture of what she’s dealing with. Maxie says, so she’s hanging in there? and Elizabeth says, she’s stable… for now. Maxie asks if the doctors are with her right now or Laura or anybody? She wants to see her, but she doesn’t want to get in the way. Elizabeth says, the doctor is finished, and Laura went to call the rest of the family. Maxie asks if it’s okay for her to see Lulu, and Elizabeth says, absolutely. They encourage friends and family to visit and talk to coma patients. Some people who come out of a coma actually remember what was said to them while they were under, and she suspects that’s exactly what Lulu needs. Her room is right over there. Maxie thanks her, and Elizabeth says, take all the time she needs. Maxie goes into Lulu’s room.

Back home, Curtis says, that was a lot harder than he thought it would be, and Marshall says, there’s always some sadness at a funeral, but there’s something about a funeral for a baby. Stella asks how Jordan is holding up, and Jordan says she’s okay. It’s difficult seeing TJ suffer this much. She just wants to wrap her arms around him and make it better. Stella thinks they could all use a pick-me-up. There’s plenty of food here. She’ll go heat some up. Marshall asks if she needs help, and she says, absolutely. They go to the kitchen, and Portia asks if any of them happen to know anything about Molly’s father. There certainly didn’t seem to be any love lost between him and Molly’s family. You could practically feel the chill in the air. Jordan says, Ric Lansing certainly won’t win any popularity contests in Port Charles. He operates in what she can call a grey area. But this isn’t the time or place to discuss his would-be transgressions, so let’s just say he’s not very well liked in this town. But Ric and Molly have a decent relationship. He does try to stay far from Port Charles for a reason. He’s estranged from his brother Sonny, and he and Alexis can’t be in the same room without butting heads. Ric’s made his fair share of enemies in Port Charles, so she’s sure he prefers to stay as far away as possible most of the time. Portia says she had no idea, but that explains a lot, and Curtis says, they all know how complicated family relationships can be. But no matter what he’s done, Ric is Molly’s father, and she clearly loves him. He’s really glad Ric showed up when Molly needed him, and it’s very important they do the same for TJ.

Molly says, Kristina was never going to honor their agreement. She was planning on keeping Molly’s baby. Kristina says, she was a part of me. I nurtured her. Molly says, Kristina killed her, and Kristina says she never would have put her intentionally in harm. Never. She was her mother for eight months and nothing Molly can say or do will ever erase that. Molly says, mothers look out for their children and protect them. They keep them safe at all costs. Kristina has zero maternal instinct. She’s selfish. She’s impulsive. She makes the same mistakes over and over. She’s a total trainwreck. Sam tries to get her to dial it down, but Molly says, Kristina got up in that church and presented herself as this grieving mother, all the while pretending she’s not to blame for her baby’s death. Kristina says she loved her. She loved her more than anything in this whole world. Molly says, love? Kristina doesn’t know the meaning of that word. Look at this grave. Her daughter is buried here. Kristina did not protect her. She did not keep her safe. She put her at risk, and she died. Say it. Admit that she killed Molly’s baby. Kristina falls to her knees and sobs.

Chase says, that’s not what he was expecting Dante to say. Lulu never occurred to him. Dante says, him either. It was a total shock. He got used to the status quo, as terrible as that sounds. He just wasn’t expecting this. Chase asks if Rocco knows, and Dante says, yeah. He told Rocco. Chase asks how he took it, and Dante says, how does he think? He’s a kid. They’re talking about his mom. Rocco had hope that she’s going to wake up soon and he’s telling Rocco that she’s getting worse. She might not make it. This is tough. Chase says, Rocco has Dante, he has Sam, and a huge family around him to lift him back up. Hopefully, that’s enough. Dante says he hopes Chase is right, and Chase says he feels for Rocco, but it’s got to be affecting Dante. How is he doing, knowing that Lulu could be slipping away?

Haven thanks the viewers for tuning in today to see what the amazing Deceiver serum can do. The results are indisputable. But don’t take her word for it. Try it for themselves. She promises they won’t be disappointed. Lois says, we can’t wait to hear how it changes your lives, and Tracy and Brook smile. Lois says, until then, stay beautiful, and Haven thanks her for coming. It’s great to see her. And now she’s proud to take this moment to introduce their newest addition to the Home & Heart family. Please meet their new program host, Pearl. Pearl thanks Haven and says, today, she has an incredible line of vegan handbags by Kay Carol. Whether it’s work or travel, fashion or function, we’ve got something that’s going to fit your life. Stay tuned for this exclusive deal. The director says, they’re clear. Let’s move to Stage 14. Nice going. Brook says, wow. These handbags are beautiful. Especially this one. She picks up a bag and says she just needs to have it. As soon as she’s done here, she’ll come see Pearl on Stage 14. Pearl says, don’t wait too long. These handbags are going to sell out fast. Haven tells Lois, that was great. She was fantastic. Not everybody is cut out for this kind of thing, but she’s a natural. Brook says, and a hit. These numbers are amazing. They just keep going up. Lois says, really? And Brook says, absolutely. (WOTD) This was Deception’s best segment yet. She sold the most units of Home & Heart’s entire quarter. Haven says she knows what she’s talking about. Lois is a natural. She knows greatness when she sees it. Lois says, wow. Who knew? Brook says she did, and Tracy says she’s got to hand it to Lois. She really pulled it off. She did a terrific job.

Kristina continues to weep and says, Molly’s wrong. She does know what love is. She loved her. She did. She loved her. She knows what love is. She loved her. She did… She did. TJ bends down and says something I can’t hear, and Molly flashes back to Kristina asking Molly to let her help. Let her carry that baby for her and TJ. Molly flashes back to Molly saying that she was disappointed and bitter to know Kristina could carry a child and she couldn’t, then asking Kristina to be their surrogate. She remembers telling Alexis that the bond between her and Kristina is stronger than all the legal protections in the world, and them being excited when Kristina finds out she’s pregnant. She remembers TJ saying, Kristina is more than a surrogate. She’s biologically and emotionally invested. Molly tells him that she’s still choosing to be hopeful. She flashes back to telling TJ that Kristina wants their baby to be her baby and thanks to the interview, the whole world thinks it is. She remembers trying to get Kristina to terminate her parental rights, and Kristina saying she wonders if she and Allie couldn’t provide a more stable home for this baby right now. She flashes back to TJ telling her about the accident, visiting Kristina afterward, and Kristina telling her that their precious little girl is gone. Ric says, they have to get her home, but Molly says she’s not leaving without TJ. TJ goes over to her and says, let’s get out of here. They walk out hand in hand. Kristina continues to sob and says, she did. She loved her. Sam glares at Ric, and Alexis holds Kristina.

Maxie paints Lulu’s nails and says she’s sorry she missed their visit last week. Lulu knows she considers it their standing date, but James was missing, and they were looking for him. Don’t worry. He turned up. A little worse for the wear, but boy, does she have a crazy story to tell Lulu when she wakes up about who he went to see. You know why she loves painting Lulu’s nails? She believes just because you’re stuck in a bed doesn’t mean you don’t deserve to be pampered. And painting Lulu’s nails reminds her of their Crimson days. When they’d get so excited about any free samples they’d receive. Well, it was thrilling for her, and she loved Lulu so much for going along and pretending. Maxie misses her and knows it’s probably driving her crazy to be stuck in this bed being forced to listen to her ramble, so please wake up and tell her to be quiet. She promises she won’t even get offended. Does Lulu know how she knows she’s going to pull through this? There are so many people who still need her. Her mom, Charlotte and Rocco… her. And even though Lulu is stuck in this bed with perfect nails right now, none of them have given up on her. She promises.

The prisoner is pushed into a chair, and we see he has a sack over his head.

Outside the house, Molly tells TJ, this should have been their first step toward healing, and she turned it into something ugly. She’s sorry. She hopes he can forgive her. He says, there’s nothing to forgive. Irene was their daughter. They loved her so much from the moment they knew she was coming. As much as they like to think they can control their emotions, they’re bound to get away from them in certain situations. She says, that’s exactly how she felt. They were just spilling out of her. He says he completely understands. They never got the opportunity to meet Irene, but they’ll always be her parents. In all this messy, horrific, complicated grief, they’ll figure it out together. They hug.

Dante says he doesn’t know how he feels about Lulu. Does he even have a right to feel? Chase says, he’s entitled to have any feelings he has, but he should be honest with himself about that. Dante says he can tell Chase one thing for certain. He loves Sam. He loves the life they’ve created, the family they’ve built. She’s like a miracle for him. Chase says he knows how great Dante and Sam are together, and how much they adore each other, but that doesn’t mean he can’t have complicated feelings for Lulu. She was Dante’s wife. They have a kid together. Dante says, they were already divorced when she got hurt. They were over. She was starting a new life with someone else, and she was happy. But every time he takes Rocco in there to see her in that bed, does he love her? Does he care for her? Does he want her to wake up? Of course (🍷), all those things. But he knows Lulu put him behind her. She’s not lying in that bed dreaming about him.

Maxie says she’ll tell Lulu a secret. She thinks Dante still needs her too. He tracked her down today, at work, just to let her know Lulu had been moved here. After Lulu got hurt, she never told Dante that Lulu was planning on telling him that she still loved him. She did think about it, but it didn’t seem fair. She thought Lulu would want for him to move on, be happy, and he is happy. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t need her too. So if that counts for anything, please fight her way back for him too, okay?

Stella says, almost ready, and Marshall asks if he can help her with anything else. She says, no. Everything’s taken care of, but thank you. He says he appreciated what she said at the church. He likes to think that both of their Irenes are up there in heaven, watching over them and taking care of each other. She says she always thought it was Irene who brought him back to them after they lost him for so long. And with both Irenes together, she’s sure they’ll be raining down blessings on them. He says he certainly hopes so.

TJ tells Jordan that Kristina was never going to give up their baby. She had an affidavit all prepared, saying she was the mother and wanted to retain custody. And the kicker is that Alexis was helping her.

Marshall says, TJ needs the blessing the most. He lost a child. That’s the kind of pain nobody can bear and he can’t shoulder that pain alone. He’s going to need them.

Brook asks Lois, what’s wrong? but Lois says, nothing. She’s fine. Brook says, she did a fantastic job. Everybody loves her, so why does she look like somebody just told her that she can only wear pale pink nail polish for the rest of her life? Lois takes Brook’s hands and says she needs Brook to be honest with her. Is her accent unbearable?

Portia tells Curtis that she’s sorry she can’t stay longer for TJ and Molly, but she’s needed at the hospital. He says, that’s okay. He’s sure they understand, and they’ll feel her love and support. Go save lives and they’ll take it from here. She says she loves him so much and he says he loves her too. She says she’ll see him tonight, and she’s about to leave, when there’s a knock at the door. She opens it to Ric, and says, they haven’t officially met. She introduces herself, and he does the same. He says, it’s nice to meet her, and she says her too. She has to leave for the hospital, but she’s so sorry for his loss. He thanks her and says he was very much looking forward to meeting his first grandchild. She tells him, please make himself at home, and leaves. Curtis introduces himself, and they shake hands. Curtis says he’s really glad Ric is here to support Molly, and Ric says him too. Molly comes out and he hugs her. He asks how she’s feeling, and she says she and her dad are just going to step outside. Curtis says, let him know if they need anything, and they go out to the patio. Curtis tells TJ that he knows it’s been hard on him in a million different ways. Is he hanging in there? TJ says he doesn’t have a choice. He just keeps reminding himself that it’s not always going to hurt this much. Time heals all wounds, even the ones that seem like they’ll be raw forever. Curtis says, that’s what he and TJ’s mother are here to remind him of as well, and Jordan says, that goes for everyone else too. They’re all here to lift him and Molly up and get them through this as fast as they can. TJ says he knows. They’ve all been amazing and he’s incredibly grateful for his family right now. Curtis says, good. Because he’s stuck with them. TJ says he’s going to see if Aunt Stella and granddad need anything, and leaves. Curtis asks how Jordan is doing. It must be tough watching her son go through all this. She says her pain can wait. TJ is her primary concern right now. He just filled her in on what took place at Irene’s gravesite after they left the church. He asks what she means, and she says, Kristina and Alexis were planning on stealing her son’s child.

Molly thanks Ric for coming. She knows he doesn’t love being in Port Charles, but it means so much to have him here. He says, of course (🍷) he came. He’s always going to be there for her when she needs him. How is she doing? Honestly. She says she’s completely drained. She feels like she just fought a war. Alone. He says, if it’s any comfort, she won, but she says she doesn’t think there’s any victors today. Her relationship with Kristina is in pieces and it looks like mom is taking Kristina’s side. She’s honestly sick to her stomach about everything. He says he’s proud of her. She stood up for herself and she stood up for her child. (Is that what we’re calling it?) Not everybody would have that kind of strength, especially when you’re being pressured to kind of go along and play nice. She’s a complete marvel. (Ugh.)

Brook asks if Lois is crazy. They talk the way they talk. Lois says, but they don’t talk the same. Their accents and their speech patterns are different. Brook says, maybe a little bit, but who cares? She can’t believe Lois is worried about this. Numbers don’t lie and she was a huge hit. Haven says, yes, she was. She agrees. The people on social media can’t get enough of her, and neither can she. Lois says, that’s very nice of her to say. She knows it was dicey at first, and thanks Haven so much for helping push her through that rocky start. Haven says, once they got her over that hump, they were off to the races. And they won. She can’t wait to book Lois’s next appearance. They need to make this a regular thing. Tracy joins them and says, all right. They don’t need to inflate Lois’s ego more than it already is. They’ll be in touch to book their next segment on Home & Heart. Until then, shall they decamp for home? Brook says, absolutely. Lead the way. As they walk, Brook asks if Haven can believe these numbers. Lois tries to say, decamp for home, the way Tracy did, but then says, forget it, and follows them.

Jordan says, Alexis had a custody affidavit all drawn up and ready to file. Molly found it in Alexis’s briefcase. Curtis says, wow. He had no idea. She says, this is so infuriating. They all knew that Kristina had rights as the baby’s biological mother. TJ’s been worried about that for months. But this baby was conceived because TJ and Molly so desperately wanted to be parents. Kristina never would have even thought of having a baby if it wasn’t for them. So for Kristina to go back on her word and betray her sister and TJ by deciding to keep the baby, it’s unforgivable. And for Alexis to help Kristina, knowing what it would do to Molly and TJ… That baby was his biological child. Curtis says, and what should have been the happiest moments of Molly and TJ’s lives would have quickly devolved into a custody battle. She says she promises him, if that precious little baby had survived, Kristina and Alexis would have been in for the fight of their lives if they thought they could take that grandchild away from her. (Oh, so now it’s her baby.)

Alexis asks how Kristina’s stitches feel. Does she need another pain pill? Kristina says, who cares about her stitches? Her baby is dead, and her sister is blaming her. Alexis says, her sister is in pain too, and she’s lashing out. And as cliché as it sounds, sometimes the people we love the most are the most capable of hurting us. Kristina says, none of that excuses Molly’s behavior, and Alexis says she thinks this is an opportune time to remind Kristina that she’s named after Alexis’s sister Kristina, who she loved very much. They didn’t always get along, but she loved her fiercely and was devastated at her death. And she misses her and would give just about anything to be able to talk to her again. Kristina and Molly are still here and they’re at odds, and she gets how critical this is, but they’re going to have to find a way to repair their relationship. Kristina says, Molly is blaming her for her baby’s death. She will never forgive her.

Molly says, funny thing is, she knows how this is all going to end. Mom and Sam will plead Kristina’s case to her. They’ll say, she’s emotional and fragile right now, and they’ll say, you’re sisters. You’re Davis girls. That should always come first. They’ll probably encourage her to suck it up, be the bigger person, apologize to Kristina, say all the right things to make her feel better. And who knows? Maybe they’ll catch her at a weak moment, and she’ll even do it. Ric says, but she doesn’t want to, and she says, no. She will never forgive Kristina. Every time she visits her daughter’s grave or walks past the room that should have been her nursery, she’ll know it’s Kristina’s fault her baby is dead.

Maxie says she knows it’s a Spencer tradition to pull off a win at the eleventh hour, because Lulu used to love doing that. Then Lulu would give her this smug smile that drove her crazy. But she admired it. She admired Lulu. Anyway, they’re approaching the eleventh hour, so Lulu needs to pull out that win. Come back to them. For Rocco and Charlotte – Dante opens the door – for her, for Dante.

Elizabeth tells Laura that when she was first getting to know Lucky, he told her how Lulu had aplastic anemia when she was a toddler. And he told her how strong Laura was for her and that she never gave up on her. She needs that strength now and Elizabeth knows Laura is going to give it to her. Laura thanks her for saying that. Boy, does she miss Lucky. She wishes to God she knew where he was so she could bring him home.

The prisoner is shoved into the wall, and the guard turns him around. He takes the sack off the prisoner’s head and – big surprise, not – it’s Lucky.

On Monday, Chase tells Brook that he’s afraid it’s not good news; Carly wonders what Jack Brennan wants with Jason; and Laura asks Portia, how the doctors could miss this?

🍀 A Lucky Break…

Wow. Laura wishes and Lucky appears.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/jonathan-jackson-previews-his-return-to-general-hospital

🧴 Just For a Minute…

But if they come up with a new character for her, who would play temp Sam?

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/lindsay-hartley-on-playing-sam-on-gh-again

🛸 Beam Me Up To Port Charles…

This made me wonder what happened to Zeke. I liked him and he totally disappeared. Maybe he’s polishing his skis.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/sawandi-wilson-cast-as-isaiah-on-general-hospital

🚫 She Said No…

Can you blame her? And just curious. What is Dorinda doing in that photo?

🍊 Follow the Bouncing Orange…

In vino veritas and all that, but it’s not that she just speaks her truth. She screeches, rants and raves, gets two inches from people’s faces, and flails around while she’s doing it.

But maybe I can forgive.

So was Alexis at liberty to tell Katie? I’m not saying it didn’t happen, but I’m confused.

Well, just think how we feel.

⚰️ Reading Carol…

Coming to a small screen near you September 29th.

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/new-promo-for-twd-daryl-dixon-the-book-of-carol-season-2-01j5x6s1mq33

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/amc-exclusive-content-for-season-2-of-daryl-dixon-the-book-of-carol-in-september-01j5zkmxmeza

You need to be an AMC+ subscriber to actually watch the beginning of the premiere, but this has a pretty long trailer and it looks good. Real good.

https://undeadwalking.com/posts/watch-the-first-11-minutes-of-the-season-2-premiere-of-daryl-dixon-the-book-of-carol-01j41x8z1qsd

🌁 That’s a Wrap…

So can’t they edit any faster?

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/last-us-season-2-wrapped-095338207.html

https://winteriscoming.net/posts/the-last-of-us-season-2-held-a-wrap-party-end-of-filming-seems-imminent-01j5xeshf86a

Might be some spoilers here.

https://screenrant.com/alien-romulus-last-of-us-season-2-isabela-merced-dina-casting-perfect/

🐉 How To Make Your Dragon…

Don’t try this at home.

https://winteriscoming.net/posts/watch-how-house-of-the-dragon-s-gorgeous-dragons-were-made-in-new-visual-effects-reel-01j5tv9k3kjr

🐶 Gaga For Frenchies…

Those ears!

https://people.com/lady-gaga-new-french-bulldog-after-dognapping-case-8700159

🥊 More Than a Quote…

Muhammad Ali: I’m defeating America’s so-called threats and enemies. And the flag is going dun-dun-dun-dun. I’m standing so proud. And I’d have whooped the world for America. I took my gold medal, thought I’d invented something. I said, Man, I know I’m going to get my people freedom. I’m the champion of the whole world. Olympic champion. I know I can eat downtown now. And I went downtown that day, had my big gold medal on, and went in a restaurant. And at that time, things weren’t integrated. Black folks couldn’t eat downtown. And I went downtown, I sat down, and I said, A cup of coffee, a hotdog. The lady said, We don’t serve Negroes. I was so mad, I said, I don’t eat them either, just give me a cup of coffee and a hamburger.

🏌️‍♂️ Quotes of the Week

Today stretches ahead of you waiting to be shaped. You are the sculptor who gets to do the shaping. What today will be like is up to you. – Steve Maraboli

A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is the prerogative of the brave. – Mahatma Gandhi

I think the only answer is to live life to the fullest while you can and collect memories like fools collect money. Because in the end, that’s all you have – happy memories. – Sarah Strohmeyer

Immature love says, I love you because I need you. Mature love says, I need you because I love you. – Erich Fromm

We need to give each other space so that we may both give and receive such beautiful things as ideas, openness, dignity, joy, healing and inclusion. – Max de Pree

If you fuel your journey on the opinions of others, you are going to run out of gas. – Steve Maraboli

Dance above the surface of the world. Let your thoughts lift you into creativity that is not hampered by opinion. – Red Haircrow

Sometimes we have to be the change we didn’t see coming. – Jacqueline Grace Lopez

Walmart dumped Paula Deen, but continued to sell AR-15 assault rifles after Sandy Hook—interesting ethical credo.Piers Morgan

It’s not easy having a good time. Even smiling makes my face ache. – Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry), The Rocky Horror Picture Show

🍈 One In a Melon…

Come back on Monday for soap and a mess on the Med. Until then, stay safe, stay putting things back where you found them, and stay never offering unsolicited advice on someone’s physical attributes.

⚠️Caution: Might contain bad words

August 16, 2024 – Jason Confronts Clement, Backstage, Next, Vacation, She Was Served, Jersey Tawk, Yes Or No, Dead Spins, New Scare, Dogues, Precisely 10 Quotes & Glory

Standard

What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Cody says, James went for a swim, eh? and James says he didn’t mean to. Cody says he knows. Everything is going to be okay. Mac asks if James is all right, and James says, Cody saved him. Mac says he can see that.

Laura’s office phone rings and she says, send her right in. And when her other guest arrives, send him right in too. Anna comes in, and Laura thanks her for taking the time to meet. Anna says, of course (🍷). It sounded important. Laura says, it is. They’re meeting with the new WSB station chief. Anna says, Jack Brennan. No grass grows under his feet.

At the hospital, Alexis says, Kristina’s room is all ready. She’s welcome to stay as long as she wants, and Alexis will try not to smother her, although she thinks a little smothering would be okay. They’ll call it pampering. Kristina says she’s sorry, and Alexis asks, what for? Kristina says she’s just not in a good mood. Alexis says, she’s allowed to be in whatever mood she wants to be in, and Kristina says she guesses she thought she’d be happy or at least relieved to leave the hospital. But she’s just realizing that when she walks out that door, that’s when her life starts over. Everything starts over again now, only without her baby.

In the hospital breakroom on the phone, Curtis says, talk to me before you make any moves… Okay. Sounds good. Stella pours some coffee, and he says, sorry, but she says, don’t apologize. He says, things are crazy at Aurora, especially with Drew on the campaign trail. Let’s just say, my plate is overflowing. She says she has every confidence he can handle it, and he thanks her for walking them through this administrative paperwork. Planning a funeral, any funeral, is already hard enough, but a baby’s… She says, seems unnatural, doesn’t it? and he says, completely. She says she’s happy to help TJ and Molly any way she can. He asks what they’re looking at, and she says she’s got a jump on most of it. It’s really just the birth certificate that needs their attention now. TJ comes in and says, Molly’s not here? Curtis says, no, not yet. He’s sure she’s on her way. TJ says he told her that they had a small window for this, but Stella says, it’s okay. Don’t worry. She’s not in a rush. TJ says, she can catch up. Let’s get started.

Scotty tells Clement, don’t worry. He’s on his side. Clement asks if he’s with the FBI too, but Scotty says, not exactly. The guy whose meds Clement messed with, Sonny Corinthos, is mad as a hornet. His strong suit is murder, so if Clement wants to get out alive… Clement says he does, and Scotty says, okay. Then hide. He’s Clement’s only hope, and he’ll help.

Ava says, John thinks the surveillance photos could actually help her case, and he says, absolutely. Sonny, and the corrupt cops in his pocket, are trying to spin one narrative, but those photos can tell any story they want, especially when the victim in them is a federal witness. (Will somebody call his boss already? Anna did it once before for a way lesser infraction.)

Sonny tells Jason, who knows how much further Jagger is going to go? They can’t take that risk. Jason says, if Sonny takes out Cates, he’s eliminating an FBI agent. There’s no coming back from that. Sonny says, if Jagger forces his hand, he won’t have a choice.

Maxie shows up at the boathouse with Sasha and Felicia and says she’s so glad James is okay. Come here. She hugs him and says, he cannot keep doing this. He says he’s never fallen into the lake before, but she says she’s not talking about that. She means running away. There are only so many heart attacks she can survive. She asks Felicia to text Spinelli and let him know James was found, and Felicia says, on it. James says he wasn’t trying to scare anyone, and Maxie says she knows he didn’t, but they were all really worried. They’ll talk about this at home. Cody says, let’s cool it on the escape attempts, and James says he wouldn’t have to escape if he was allowed to see Cody. Why can’t he take riding lessons with Cody? Maxie says, now is not the time to tell him this, but he can take riding lessons from Cody, but not because of any of this. No ice cream or video games for two weeks. James says he doesn’t care what she takes away, as long as he can be here. Why did she change her mind? She says, he knows how they talk about owning their mistakes and how it’s really important. Kind of like how he’s going to own this one? She made a huge mistake and agreed he couldn’t take riding lessons with Cody anymore. Mac says, it wasn’t his mom’s mistake. It was his.

Laura asks if Anna didn’t just arrest a Jack Brennan, and Anna says, uh-huh. Laura says, and now they’re going to work with him, and Anna says she was informed of his posting. He’s a fully accredited agent, but the previous activities that took place here in Port Charles were part of a classified operation. Laura asks if that’s all the explanation they’re going to get, and Anna says, apparently. There’s a knock at the door and Jack comes in. He says, Laura’s assistant said he could come in, and Laura says, welcome, Mr. Brennan. He tells her to call him Jack, and they shake hands.

Alexis says she almost forgot, and holds out a key to Kristina. Kristina says she already has a key, but Alexis says, it’s not for her. It’s for Blaze. She figured Blaze would be visiting and she wants Blaze to come and go as she pleases. Kristina says, that’s really very thoughtful of her, but it’s unnecessary because she and Allie broke up. Alexis says, when? and Kristina says, yesterday. Alexis asks, what happened? She thought they were okay. Kristina says, they were, but Allie got this really incredible touring opportunity, and she couldn’t turn it down. Alexis says, she couldn’t, or Kristina wouldn’t let her? Kristina says she couldn’t be the reason Allie stayed. She’s been working toward this her entire life. Alexis says, maybe it was her choice to make. Maybe she wanted to stay and support Kristina. Kristina says, it’s not just about Allie’s career. It’s about her too. She doesn’t even recognize herself right now. Without the baby, she can’t be anything to anyone. Alexis says, for the record, Kristina is something pretty big to her, when Dr. Navarro walks in. She asks if it’s a good time, and Alexis says, of course (🍷). The doctor says she has the results of Kristina’s discharge examination.

Stella says, as TJ can see, most of the information has been filled out, and he thanks her. She says, but there’s still the issue of the baby’s name, and Curtis asks if TJ and Molly ever talked about that. TJ says, they batted ideas around, but they never landed on one specific name, and Stella says, it’s okay. They’ll just use the last name, Lansing-Ashford. And once he and Molly have a chance to talk, they’ll update the certificate. Molly comes in and says, sorry she’s late. She had a meeting with DA Scorpio. TJ says, she couldn’t tell him that she had to leave? and she says, he’s her boss. She got here as fast as she could.

Scotty says he’s got to see a guy about a boat and get some supplies. What kind of snacks does Clement like? They’re going to Spoon Island and there may not be any power over there, so nothing perishable. Clement just looks at him, and Scotty says he’ll just get them some glazed donuts and coffee, so sit tight. He’ll be back. He leaves.

Ava tells John, only one party in those photos went crashing through a window. She thinks it might be a bit of a stretch to paint her as a victim. He says, not if she uses her imagination. She’s a federal witness agreeing to testify against Sonny Corinthos. She says, is she though? and he says, for the sake of this exercise and keeping her out of prison, yeah. Now the picture of her with her hand on Kristina’s arm, that was self-defense, to protect herself from Kristina attacking her. She says, yes, and he says, the look on Kristina’s face was pure rage. She was clearly out of control. So Ava is a federal witness participating in a RICO investigation against Sonny Corinthos. Sonny’s daughter comes to her hotel suite, violent and threatening, intending to shut her up permanently. That is criminal conspiracy and falls within the FBI’s jurisdiction. It also happens to be attempted murder.

Jason suggests they be smart about it and cover every base, and Sonny says, the consequences are too severe not to. Jason says, okay, but if they mess up, they’re talking about a federal agent, a federal crime, life in prison, or worse. Sonny says, Cates won’t stop coming at him. Jason knows that. Jason says he knows, but be clear on what he’s doing, and Sonny says he’s clear on one thing. Cates will not stop going through the people that he loves to get to him. He’s not just going to sit around and wait for Cates to make the next move.

Dr. Navarro says, as Kristina knows, there were concerns after her hemorrhaging about damage to the uterus or her ovaries or both. But she’s happy to report all looks good on those fronts. Alexis says, great. So Kristina will be able to conceive and carry a child in the future. The doctor says, they’ll have to monitor her going forward, but she sees nothing to suggest otherwise. Kristina should be able to make a complete recovery. Kristina thanks her, and Dr. Navarro says, any time. She should be ready for discharge shortly. Alexis thanks her and she leaves. Kristina says, full recovery, and Alexis says, that means her body will heal. Kristina says, what about the rest of her? and Alexis says, that may take a little more time and require a little more work. But Kristina’s heart will get better too. She promises.

Molly asks what she needs to catch up on, and TJ says, everything. Stella says, they were just going over the birth certificate, and TJ says, they just have to give a name to their little girl. Curtis tells her, but like Aunt Stella said, it doesn’t have to be done today, and Stella says, Baby Lansing-Ashford is just fine for right now. TJ says, but they can’t put it off forever, and Stella says, no. The two of them are in a storm. There’s no getting around it. His Grandmother Irene had a knack for being the calm within the storm. She hopes she picked that up from her sister. TJ says, she did, and Curtis says, she’s always been their rock. He kisses her forehead, and she says, Irene was her rock. So she feels like she’s speaking for her when she says, the hardest thing to reconcile during times like this is that life goes on, even during the most horrific tragedy. You want it all to stop. Give you space to process and grieve, but there’s still stuff going on all around you, pulling you in different directions. That’s why it’s so important, especially for couples going through something this profound, that they hold onto each other, to be the anchor through this godawful, wretched storm. She tells Curtis that she’s going to stretch her legs for a bit. She thinks these two need a moment alone. Curtis says, that sounds good, and they leave.

Sonny says he has no intention of being reckless, but that’s what they’re counting on. Jason’s phone rings, and he says, Brick. Any update?… All right. Text him the address. Thanks. He tells Sonny, as soon as Scott Baldwin left the gallery, Brick’s guys tracked him to a part of town he has no business hanging out in. Sonny says, he got to the pharmacist, and Jason says, seems like it. Sonny says, seems like they’re desperate. They have to involve Scotty. Jason says, Cates and Ava both know the walls are closing in, and Sonny says, find Scotty and bring that pharmacist to him. Jason asks if he’s heading to GH, and Sonny says, Kristina’s being discharged today. Keep him posted. Jason says he will, and leaves.

Jack says, it’s quite an honor, and Laura invites him to sit down. She says, since the WSB has decided to open a field office right here in Port Charles and he’s the field chief, she thought it was important they all meet because they have several common interests. Anna says she already informed the mayor that his arrest in December and his incarceration in Pentenville was all part of this covert WSB op. He says, with this op successfully completed, he’s been returned to desk duty, which he much prefers over being in a prison cell. Laura says she’s sure. She takes it that Anna and Jack have worked together previously. Jack says, all the way back to their WSB training days, and Anna says, all the way back. Laura says, then they must have developed sort of a shorthand. Jack says, in a sense, and Laura says, it should help, right? Make communicating a little bit more effective. Jack says, one can only hope, and Laura asks if she may cut to the chase. Anna says, please, and Laura says she thinks they have a unique opportunity here with a WSB outpost here in Port Charles and their shared history and skillsets. Anna asks what kind of an opportunity she’s talking about exactly, and Jack says, it sounds like she has a task in mind. Laura says she wants them to find Valentin Cassadine.

Mac tells James that his feelings were hurt, and he took it out on Cody. Which he regrets, in and of itself, but that it ended up hurting James is the part he hates the most. He hopes James can forgive him. James says, Mac told him that family always forgives each other, and Mac says, that’s right. They do. James asks if he’s mad at Cody, and he says he was, but not anymore. James asks why he was mad at Cody in the first place, and Mac says, because Cody is his son.

James says, Mac is Cody’s dad? and Mac says, that’s right. James says, does that make Cody his uncle? and Cody says, it sure does, buddy. James says, this is so cool, and tells Maxie that Cody is her brother. Maxie says, he is, and James says he does have a question. Why does Cody being Mac’s son make him mad? Mac says, because he just found out and he was angry about all the time they didn’t get to spend together. But it reminded him of a lesson he hopes James can take to heart. Not only does family forgive each other, but they’re the ones who love, no matter what, even when they run away or get mad at us like he did with Cody. So they love each other how? James says, no matter what, and Mac says, no matter what, and hugs James.

TJ says, Aunt Stella’s right, and Molly says, she usually is. He says, they have to hold each other right now, and she says she knows, but if she stands still for even a moment, she’ll be swallowed whole. So she keeps burying herself in work. He asks if that helps, but she says, no. Nothing helps. Not even facing off against Ava. He says, she saw Ava? and she says she went to see Ava in her jail cell in the hopes that she’d confess. Yeah, right. He asks what she said, and Molly says, nothing. It was excuse after excuse. Not there’s anything Ava could actually say that would make this better. That’s the worst part. No matter who they want to blame, their baby is still gone.

Alexis looks at her phone and says she was still hoping Molly had called. They could have Molly and Sam over this week and have Davis Girls night. Kristina says she doesn’t think she or Molly will be in the mood for that, and Alexis asks if she’s spoken to Molly in the last few days. Kristina says, Molly came to see her. She told Molly about how she went to Ava’s and what happened. How she went to Ava’s asking her to lift the subpoena and she refused. And she told Molly how Ava started going in on her family and insulting Alexis and Sonny, and she told Ava that if Ava forced her to testify, she’d tell how Ava murdered Connie and helped kill Morgan. Alexis asks how Molly responded, and Kristina says, she was appalled, especially after she showed Molly the pictures. Molly is as furious as she is.

Anna says, the FBI is already handling this. They’re in pursuit of Valentin now. As far as she’s concerned, that case is beyond her scope as Commissioner. Jack says, the WSB tries not to entangle itself in FBI interests, when it’s at all possible, and Laura says, while she can appreciate both stances, she still thinks they have a unique situation here. And it’s personal for her. Valentin has her granddaughter. Anna says she doesn’t think Laura should be worried about her. With all his faults, Valentin is an excellent father. He would never let any harm come to Charlotte. Laura says, he may not be able to stop it, when her office phone rings. She apologizes and answers it. She says she forgot. She’ll be right out. She says she’s sorry. There’s something she forgot that she has to take care of. It will just take a moment. She hopes they don’t mind waiting. Jack says, not at all, and Anna says, they’ll be right here. Laura leaves, and Anna says, Jack knows damn well where Valentin is. He’s hiding him. Jack says, she has no proof of that. If she’d like to confess and let this anxious grandmother know that she helped orchestrate Valentin’s escape, don’t let him stop her. She says, that’s not going to happen. He’d really like that though, wouldn’t he? Laura comes back and says, sorry to keep them waiting. What did she miss? Jack and Anna look at each other.

Jason bangs on the door where Clement is, and around the corner with groceries, Scotty sees him and jets. Jason opens the door, and Clement backs away. We see the bag of groceries Scotty was carrying on the hallway floor.

Sonny goes to Kristina’s hospital room and hugs her. He asks how she’s feeling. Is she ready to get out of here? She says she guesses, and Alexis says, it will be nice for her to have a mattress she can sleep on and sheets with thread counts. Kristina asks if Alexis can grab her a seltzer, but Sonny says he’ll get it. Kristina says, he just got here. Mom can do it. Alexis says, fine. She got the hint. Does Kristina want plain or flavored? Kristina says, surprise her, and Alexis says she’ll check on Kristina’s discharge papers on the way out. She leaves, and Sonny says, Kristina didn’t answer his first question. How is she feeling? She says she’s feeling anxious for an update about Ava.

Jason closes the door, and Clement asks if he’s with the FBI. Jason says he works for Sonny Corinthos, and Clement says, whatever Jason needs him to do, he’ll do it. Please. He’s got a family. Jason says, so does Sonny, but that didn’t stop Clement from tampering with his medication. Clement says he didn’t know what else to do. He didn’t want trouble. Jason says, he’s got trouble now, and Clement says, please. He just wants to live. Jason says he doesn’t want to kill Clement. He just wants the truth. Who paid him to tamper with Sonny’s meds?

Jack says he and the Commish were just catching up. And some playful ribbing about jurisdiction and whatnot. Anna says, of which he has none in Port Charles. Jurisdiction, not whatnot. Jack laughs and says he must be going. It was a pleasure meeting Laura. Laura says, likewise, and he says, her reputation precedes her. He’s sure she has some fascinating stories to tell. He’d like to hear them sometime. She says, they’ll have to make that happen, and he says, excellent. He says goodbye to Anna and leaves. Laura says, he’s quite charming, isn’t he? (yes!) and Anna says, he can be. Laura says, that concerns her.

James hugs Cody and says, welcome to the family. Cody thanks him and says he’s happy to be a part of it. Maxie says, Cody knows how she feels, and Cody says he does. Maxie says she’s proud of Mac and hugs him. She says, it’s time to get James home. What does he have to say to Cody? James says, see you soon, and Cody says he’s looking forward to it. Maxie asks what else he has to say, and James says, thanks for saving him. Cody says, hopefully, it’s a first and last time, and Maxie says, agreed, and thanks him. She leaves with James, and Mac says, if Cody hadn’t found James when he did… Felicia says she can’t even think about it, and Mac says his gratitude knows no bounds. Cody says, he sounds like Spinelli, and Mac says, Spinelli must be rubbing off on him. Cody says, the son Mac never had, and Mac says, except he does have a son, and he’s looking right at him. Cody says, and he has a dad, and they hug.

Curtis says, Stella did good back there, and she says, how so? He says, TJ and Molly are clearly drifting apart, but she helped nudge them back together. She says she hopes it sticks. She sees this all the time in her work. We all process grief differently, and sometimes our way doesn’t align with our loved ones. He says, couples have certainly fallen apart over less, and she says she just prays TJ and Molly remember their why. Why they fell in love in the first place and why they stayed together all these years. He says he’s sure they will, and she says she hopes so. Because when they can learn to lean on each other and support each other, that’s when the real healing begins.

Alexis runs into Molly coming out of the elevator and hugs her. Alexis says, good timing. Kristina is just getting released. Molly says she actually came to see TJ and Stella. They’re processing the baby’s birth certificate. Alexis says she’s sorry, but Molly says, it’s okay. Alexis says, none of this is okay. It must have been so difficult for her. Molly says, what isn’t these days? She’s on her way back to the office. Alexis asks if she doesn’t want to say hi to Kristina before she goes, but Molly says she doesn’t think that’s such a good idea.

Ava says, John’s federal witness idea is certainly inspired, but isn’t he concerned it will escalate things when the goal is to calm them down? He says, the goal is to wipe Sonny off the map entirely, when his phone rings. He asks Scotty, what’s up?… What? When?… No. He’ll deal with it. Ava asks, what happened? and John says, Jason has Clement Moore, who you can bet is spilling his guts as we speak. She says, Clement is their only leverage, and he says, now he’s a liability. She says, this is not good. She’s going to be Sonny’s next stop. He knows that, right? He says, not if he has anything to say about it. Stay here. He leaves, and she calls out, where is he going?

Back at the stables, Sasha says, Cody is still soaked, and he says he’ll get some dry clothes on. She asks if he’s okay, but he says he doesn’t know how he feels. He just keeps thinking about, what if he hadn’t gotten to the boathouse in time? He doesn’t know what he would have done if something happened to James. She says, but he got there. He saved that little boy’s life. And even more. Something beautiful came out of it. He says he has a father, and she says, he has a whole family. They hug.

Ava finds TJ standing in the gallery and asks if she can help him. He says he thought it was time they spoke, and she says she prefers to handle any communication through her lawyer. She’s already been on the receiving end of one interrogation. He says, by Molly, and she says she’d like to avoid another. He says he’s not here as a prosecutor. He’s here as a grieving father. He needs to know what happened in that hotel suite, and not just the story Kristina tells. He needs to hear from Ava why his child died.

Alexis asks, what’s going on? She knows Molly and Kristina talked about what happened the day Kristina fell. Molly says she’s sure Kristina said everything’s just fine between them. Because why wouldn’t it be? And everything has to be fine because Kristina has to be coddled at all times no matter what anyone else is going through. Alexis says, her sister almost died, and Molly says, her baby did die. Because Kristina just had to confront Ava. Why? Why couldn’t she just stay away?

Clement says, FBI Agent Cates brought him here for his protection, and Jason asks if he was operating under John Cates’s orders. Clement says, no, and Jason says, Ava Jerome’s. Clement says he did have some interactions with her, and Jason asks, what kind of interactions? Clement says, when Miss Jerome approached him, she knew Mr. Corinthos wasn’t taking his full dose of medication. Jason says, so he was taking less, and Clement says, Mr. Corinthos was being given a quarter of both his lithium and his mood stabilizer. Jason asks how Ava knew this, but Clement says he doesn’t know. It’s the God’s honest truth. He thought she’d go to the authorities, but she didn’t. Instead, Miss Jerome came back and ordered him to reduce Mr. Corinthos’s prescription to zero. Jason says, that’s when he started giving Sonny placebos, and Clement says, yes. Jason says, because Ava Jerome told him to, and Clement says, yes.

Sonny says he can’t tell Kristina what she wants to hear, and Kristina says, so Ava’s still alive then? He says, yes, and Ava’s going to stay that way. She asks, why? and he says, her mom knows she wants Ava dead, so it’s not worth it. She says, it’s very worth it to her, and he asks if she thinks eliminating Ava is the right way to balance the scales. She says she does, and he says, there are other ways. She says, like what? and he says, she’s going to have to trust him. He doesn’t want Ava’s death on her heart or her conscience.

Molly says, Kristina was about to give birth. Was it really necessary to confront Ava like that? She just coached Kristina through the entire subpoena. They wouldn’t be here. Kristina would be fine and her baby would be alive if Kristina had just shown a little restraint. Alexis says she gets when tragedy happens – especially one as gut-wrenching as this – it’s just human nature. You want to blame something or someone. You want to know why. She takes Molly’s hand and says, sometimes there just aren’t answers. There aren’t answers as to why things happen, and you can’t logic your way out of it. You just have to feel the grief. Molly says, trust her. She’s feeling it. Alexis says she wishes there were answers. She wishes there was something Molly could hold onto that makes sense of this. She’s so sorry Molly lost her baby. She’s so sorry she’s gone. Molly says, it’s not fair, and Alexis says, no, it’s not fair. But don’t throw that grief at the person who’s feeling exactly the way she is. Molly says, Kristina, and Alexis says, Kristina.

Laura says, maybe Brennan already has intel about where Valentin is located, when her cellphone rings. She says, yes, it’s Laura Collins… When did that happen?… She understands, yes. She’ll be there right away. Thank you. Anna asks if everything is all right, and Laura says, it’s Lulu.

Jason asks if Clement is on Ava’s payroll, and Clement says, Ava never gave him any money. She just made threats. Jason says, and she approached him after Sonny’s medication had been lowered, and Clement says, to a quarter dosage, yes. Jason asks, who hired him originally? but Clement hesitates. Jason says, they can do this the easy way and Clement can answer him, or they can take another route. He guarantees Clement isn’t going to like the other route. So who hired him? Clement says, Valentin Cassadine.

Sasha asks how it feels to receive all of that love at once, and Cody says, it’s like nothing he’s felt before. She says, nothing? and he says, until now. They kiss.

Felicia puts her arms around Mac and says, he has a son. He says, looks like it, and she asks if he’s happy. He says he is. She was right. She says she’s always right, and he kisses her.

Ava says, first and foremost, what happened to TJ’s baby was a horrible, tragic accident. She’s so sorry for his loss. He asks, what did happen? and she says, it won’t bring him comfort, but he says, tell him anyway. She says, Kristina showed up at her hotel suite, enraged that she’d been subpoenaed to testify against her father. Kristina was ranting and raving and threatening her. Kristina said if she didn’t withdraw the subpoena, she’d be sorry. She tried not to engage, especially because of Kristina’s pregnancy, but Kristina just kept coming at her… Everything happened so fast. He says, so what she’s telling him is, Kristina falling was her own fault.

Alexis says, Kristina and Molly are suffering, the both of them, so much. If they could just maybe figure out a way to go through this together. Just be open to that. Sonny wheels Kristina out of the elevator, when John walks up with a guard. He says, Kristina Corinthos-Davis, you are under arrest.

Please. Somebody. Call John’s boss.

On Monday, Molly tells Jordan that Kristina falling might not have been Ava’s fault; Laura tells Dante that something’s not right with Lulu; and John says he’s got the FBI behind him. What’s Sonny got? (Sanity?)

🛟 Behind the Save…

Looks like it was a lot of fun!

https://www.soapsindepth.com/gallery/general-hospital/go-behind-the-scenes-of-james-rescue-on-gh

📖 Turning the Page…

At first, I thought he was leaving the show. Blaze was such a shock, I don’t know what to expect.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/cameron-mathison-is-ready-for-his-next-chapter

🏰 Better Than Yours…

So Tony Geary basically had a staycation.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/gallery/cbs/stars-share-their-summer-vacation-photos

👑 Serving the Countess…

Minister Mason waiting on you is quite the coup.

🕺🏻 Meanwhile, Somewhere In Jersey…

This is a great idea. Chances are, there will be more butt cracks shown than angry leaps across the table.

Another point in his favor. He is a one of the Housewives.

This explains why I don’t remember her in the other room.

Frank is right. Even though Teresa is problematic on her own, Luis added fuel to the fire. He’s not doing her any favors.

🍑 Voting No…

Although once again, she is good TV.

⚰️ Walk This Way…

Hush. We’re not supposed to think about these things.

https://screenrant.com/daryl-dixon-spinoff-timeline-walking-dead-ending-pointless/

Another one we have to wait until 2025 for.

https://www.cbr.com/twd-dead-city-season-2-everything-we-know/

🎬 The Latest In Murphy…

This is the show Nicholas Chavez is in, but Travis Kelce? What?

https://ew.com/grotesquerie-first-look-teaser-niecy-nash-betts-travis-kelce-ryan-murphy-horror-drama-8695829

🐕 Here a Dogue, There a Dogue…

This is from 2021, but he’s also a Dogue cover star.

https://people.com/pets/billie-eilish-celebrates-dog-shark-1st-birthday/

The whole Dogue, and nothing but the Dogue.

https://www.vogue.com/tag/misc/dogue

🎋 Quotes of the Week

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did. – Mark Twain

The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us.Voltaire

Bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life. I can choose to sit in perpetual sadness, immobilized by the gravity of my loss, or I can choose to rise from the pain and treasure the most precious gift I have – life itself.Walter Anderson

Ideas do not reach perfection in a day, no matter how much study is put upon them.Alexander Graham Bell

You are not called to be a canary in a cage. You are called to be an eagle, and to fly sun to sun, over continents. – Henry Ward Beecher

The truth is, everyone is going to hurt you. You just got to find the ones worth suffering for. – Bob Marley

Apologizing does not always mean that you’re wrong and the other person is right. It just means that you value your relationship more than your ego. – Unknown

Sometimes you make the right decision, and sometimes you have to make the decision right. – Dr. Phil McGraw

That very hurt. – kid after falling off his bike, Neighborhood Wars

A person’s a person, no matter how small. – Dr. Suess, Horton Hears a Who!

🌚 Ain’t No Cure…

Grab what the weekend holds for you by the tail, then swing back again on Monday for soap and what’s on Deck. Until then, stay safe; stay loving people and using things, not the other way around; and stay remembering that sometimes there just aren’t answers as to why things happen, and you can’t logic your way out of it. You just have to feel the grief.

August 14, 2024 – James Disappears From the Park, Oh No, Two For Tea, This Week In LA, NYC Comeback, Next Squid, Witchy, No Cameo, Cover Girl & Goes

Standard

What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Mac and Spinelli play frisbee in the park. James wanders off, and Mac wonders what he did.

At the stables, Cody flashes back to Sasha kissing him. Tracy comes by, and he asks if she wants him to prep Hades, but she says she’s planning on taking him for a ride. So buckle up.

Sasha flashes back to Cody saying he loves James, when Willow comes in and tells her that Cody left his hat. She suggests Sasha take it back to him, but Sasha says she has to be on a call with the caterers. Willow says, Olivia isn’t here. She must have forgotten. Sasha says, it’s not with Olivia. It’s with Drew and he’s MIA.

Drew wakes up next to Nina and asks, what time is it? She says, too early to get up, but he says he’s got a call he can’t miss with Sasha and the caterers. It’s for the campaign. Nina tells him to skip it, but he says, it’s too late to bail. She says, Sasha can handle it, but he says, she can’t make decisions without him. Nina kisses him.

Brook, Lois, and Gio eat on the patio, and Lois asks if Blaze got off okay. Brook says, she got on the plane, and Gio says he has to get going. Lois says, pretty soon, he’ll be focusing on concerts, but he says, there might not be as many as he thought. He was counting on the gallery concert for exposure, but who’s going to go to a gallery owned by a murderer?  

On the phone, Sonny says he needs to find Clement. He opens the door and Natalia is there. She says she came to say goodbye. She’s going home to Puerto Rico.

Tracy says she plans on testing Cody’s mind, not his body, and Cody says, fair warning. He has a finite set of skills. She says she’ll go easy on him, and he says, it doesn’t sound like fun. She asks if he can count and differentiate between black and white, and he says he can. She says, then he can play backgammon.

Lois tells Gio that she’s sure the show will go on in spite of Ava, and Brook says, it might bring more people out of curiosity. Lois says, artists would jump at the chance to attach themselves to Ava’s notoriety. He’s too good and has too many positive things in his life to play background music for the upper-class bourgeoisie. He says he doesn’t care what people think about him, but there are a few people whose opinions matter. Like Uncle Sonny.

Natalia tells Sonny about Blaze’s tour, and says, she and Kristina broke up. Sonny says, Kristina didn’t tell him, and Natalia says, it was difficult for both of them. Maybe Kristina is still processing. She saw Blaze off, but they didn’t part on good terms. Sonny says he’s been there. It’s not easy, but they love each other and he’s sure it will work out. Natalia says, hopefully, but their potential reconciliation won’t take place here. Sonny says, so it’s a permanent move, and she says, that’s the plan. Alison doesn’t want her on tour, and she came here be with her, so she has no reason to stick around. He says, what if he gave her one.

Drew says, it’s a great way to start the day, and Nina says, it was a great way to spend the night. He says he thinks they set a new record. It’s been 10 hours, and they haven’t said anything nasty to each other. Now his would-be constituents await. She says, duty calls.

Michael asks if Willow has seen Drew, and she flashes back to her and Drew being in the elevator. She says, not since last night, and he asks if she’d mind calling him. He’s sure Drew will pick up for his star fundraiser. She says she doesn’t know where he is and doesn’t want to call. They hardly cross paths, and from now on, they won’t see each other at the foundation at all. Michael asks what that means.

Spinelli finds James sitting under a tree and asks if James wants to play frisbee, but James says, no, and asks how long they’re going to stay. Spinelli says, they just got here, but James says he’s bored. Spinelli asks what he wants to do. It will just be between them. James says he wants to ride horses with Cody, but Grandpa Mac said no.

Mac tells Felicia and Maxie, Two Trees is amazing, but Maxie says, there’s no Cody. She knows Mac has his own issues with Cody, but forbidding James to see him wasn’t Mac’s call. Felicia says, they discussed this at home, and Mac says, summer is almost over. James will be back in school before he knows it and he’ll forget about Cody. Maxie says she doubts it and asks if he doesn’t think he’s punished Cody long enough. She leaves, and Felicia says, Mac messed up big. She hopes he plans on fixing it, since she’s not doing it for him.

Maxie meets Nina as she walks into the park, and Nina thanks her for texting. It’s a lovely day. Maxie says, Nina is in a good mood. Did she have her teeth whitened? Nina says, no, and Maxie asks if she did her hair. Something is definitely different. Lucy would say her aura is glowing. Lucy would say, when Scott… Did she sleep with Drew again?

Drew comes in and tells Sasha that they’ll have to reschedule. His campaign strategy session went late and he overslept. She tells him, no problem, and Drew apologizes for barging in. Michael tells him that he and Willow were talking about her work at the Institute, and Willow says she’s come to a decision. She’s decided to go back to nursing. She’s resigning.

Tracy says, Cody gets the first roll, and Cody says, she must have been playing for a long time; she’s so knowledgeable. She says she played with her boys when they were young, then picked it back up when she was in the hospital for a while. He asks what she was in the hospital for, and she says, that’s a little forward. He says, she brought up, and she says she was infected with parasitic brain worms on a tropical vacation from a treat fed to her by Ned’s con artist father, Larry Ashton. Cody says, sounds scary, and she says, it was. He says, there are worse ways to spend time in the hospital than playing backgammon, and she says she remembers it fondly. He says, because she got to be the center of attention, but she says, because she made a friend. (I went through a backgammon phase years ago, so I get why Tracy loves it. It can be addicting.)

Brook says she thinks Sonny would respect Gio for sticking to his word, and Lois says, he has to do what’s best for him. Sonny isn’t his keeper. He’s his own man. Gio says he doesn’t want to let Sonny down, and what’s best for him right now is to get to work. He leaves, and Brook says, Lois is usually Sonny’s biggest defender, but she’s telling Gio not to care what Sonny thinks. What’s going on?

Sonny asks if Natalia wants to stay in Port Charles, and she says, it has its charms, but in her current situation, she lacks the income to sustain a bicoastal life. He says, this is where he can help, but she says, the only thing she knows about coffee is that she’s useless in the morning without it. (Same.) He says, she knows numbers, and he calls Brook. He says he was wondering if she could come over. He’s got a proposition for her. Brook asks, what kind of proposition?

Willow tells Drew and Michael that she agonized about it for weeks. She missed nursing. It fulfilled her and she feels she has a purpose as a nurse more than doing PSAs. Michael says he would have understood, and she says she wanted to be sure. She didn’t want to disappoint anyone. Nina has been helpful, and they won’t be working together anymore. Neither will she and Drew, and he’s been so supportive. Drew says he’ll always believe in her. She’s got his faith and support whether she works at the Institute or GH. He and Michael feel the same way. She should do what makes her happy. Willow says she appreciates him making it easy. She has to get the beach stuff together. She’ll meet Michael back here. She and Drew leave in opposite directions, and Sasha says, Michael rolled with Willow’s decision, but he says, what choice did he have?

Nina says she thought Drew would ditch his plans. They had an amazing time. Maxie says she knows. They had great sex. There were fireworks. Drew spending the night was unexpected. Nina says, it’s not like they’re in love. They’re two consenting adults enjoying each other. The more Drew sees it as enjoyable, the less he’ll intrude on her daughter’s marriage.

Spinelli tells James that he knows it seems unfair, but disagreements happen sometimes. Like how he has fights with his friends. James says, they usually make up, and Spinelli says he’s sure Mac and Cody will too, but it will take time.  

Mac says he’s not apologizing to make it easier on Cody. He’s a liar and a sneak. He doesn’t need or want Cody in his life. Felicia says she’s not convinced Cody shouldn’t get a second chance, but it’s Mac’s decision and she’s good with whatever he decides. He says, thanks, and she says, but don’t drag their grandson into it. The longer he keeps James and Cody apart with no explanation, the worse his and James’s relationship will be. Is that a price he’s willing to pay?

Tracy tells Cody that she was not a model patient. Her doctor weathered her ill humor with grace and got to know her. He was gentle and kind, but he was tough. And don’t get her started on how prickly he could be. Cody says, he sounds like an interesting fellow, and she says she clicks with few people the way she did with him. He says he’s glad the doctor was there for her, and she says, her too. Finn is one of a kind. He says, she misses him, and she says, very much.

James sneaks around and watches the others from behind a tree. Spinelli asks if Nina and Maxie want to play frisbee.  

As they sit on a bench, Mac tells Felicia that he’s trying to shield James from disappointment, but sooner or later, he’ll realize Cody is not the hero he pretends to be. She says, what if he’s wrong? What if Cody lives up to James’s expectations? Sometimes people can be better if they know someone believes in them.

James slips behind another tree and watches Mac and Felicia.

Lois and Brook go to the penthouse, and Sonny says he didn’t know Lois was going to show up. Lois says she was with Brook when he called and it piqued her curiosity, so she thought she’d come along. She and Brook greet Natalia, and Lois asks, what’s the idea he’s got them so eager to hear? Sonny says he was investing in a new record label, and Brook says, don’t get her wrong. She’s happy that Blaze is living her dream on tour, but she’s disappointed their idea got shelved. Sonny says, the money he set aside is still there, and he thought of a better use for it than it sitting in a bank collecting interest. Brook asks what he has in mind, and he says he’d like to invest in Deception.

Drew goes to the boathouse where Willow is getting the beach stuff together and asks if Willow needs some help. She says, thanks, but no thanks, then slips moving a box and falls on her behind. He holds out his hand, but she says she’s got it. She gathers what she needs and says she doesn’t want to keep Michael waiting. Drew says he doesn’t want her to make a big mistake.

Sasha says she knows Michael was excited about Willow’s job at the Institute, but he says, only because Willow was. If he’s learned anything from her, it’s that time is precious, and he doesn’t want her wasting it being unhappy. He doesn’t have to tell Sasha how precious time is with the person you love. He’s sorry. He wasn’t thinking. She says she’s made as much peace as she’s going to with Brando’s death. Now she smiles most of the time, rather than cries, when she thinks about him. She doesn’t think she could survive another heartbreak. He says she’s stronger than she thinks. Life doesn’t come with guarantees. You can wonder if you missed out on something great or risk being hurt.

Cody asks if Tracy has heard much from Finn, and she says she thinks he’s been concentrating on his recovery. He says it sounds like they have a special relationship, and he’s sure they’ll be happy to see each other when Finn comes home. She says she doesn’t know how happy Finn will be to see her, and he asks, why not? She says she may have been too hard on him. He hugged her when he left, but she hasn’t heard from him. He says he’s had friends go through rehab, and when Finn is thinking clearly, he’ll understand. She says she hopes so. Her only goal was to help him. He says, it sounds like underneath that tough shell, she’s pretty warm, fuzzy, and compassionate. Did he just win? She says, what? How? He says, beginner’s luck.

Sonny says, Deception has been struggling since last summer. He thinks the cash will take them over the hump and they’ll expand their audience. He’ll structure the deal, but be a silent partner. Brook says, this could be a game changer, and he says, on one condition. They hire Natalia.

Maxie brings Nina over to the group, and Nina says she wanted to come by to see them and James. Mac says, if James is still hellbent on taking riding lessons with Cody, he won’t stand in his way, and Maxie says, finally. She calls to James, but there’s no answer. She wonders where he is and yells, answer me right now!

Sonny says he wants to invest a lot of cash in Deception without taking an active role, but he wants a representative to handle his interests. Natalia is great with finances and negotiating. Brook says, Natalia’s haggling over Blaze’s contract kept Lucy awake at night, but Lois says, the music business is different than a cosmetics company. Brook says, she and Lucy lean more toward the creative side rather than financial, and Sonny says, Natalia knows numbers and will work in his best interest. Lois says, what about when his best interests don’t align with Deception’s? and Natalia says, that’s a fair question. Deception’s best interests are identical to Sonny’s. If he succeeds, then they do. Brook says she needs to discuss it with her partners. She’ll start with Tracy.  She suggests Natalia come along, since she thinks Natalia is her own best advocate, and Natalia says she’d love to. Brook thanks Sonny and says she’ll be in touch, and Natalia tells him, what she said. They leave, and Sonny asks Lois to stick around. He has a few words to say to her. She says she has a dictionary she’d like to break over his head, and he tells her that he just wants to say he’s sorry.

Spinelli suggests they split up to search for James, and Nina says, he’s a smart kid. Maxie says, too smart for his own good, and Spinelli says, it’s the first time he’s taken off like that. Maxie says she thinks she knows where to find him, and leaves, when Nina gets a call from Michael. She asks if everything is all right, and he says, everything’s fine, but he needs to talk to her about Willow.

At the boathouse, Willow tells Drew that her role isn’t what she expected. She’s not feeling fulfilled. He says, then they’ll make her feel fulfilled, but she says, they can’t. Being there at all is the problem. He says he had no indication, and she says she didn’t realize until she visited Kristina. When she was helping Kristina, she remembered why she fell in love with nursing and realized she missed the work. He says, she’s so good. He’s seen the numbers and she’s driving up donor registration. She says she’ll keep doing it until the Institute finds a replacement, but she can’t commit to anything else. She’s going back to GH. He says he’s happy for her, but wants to make sure her motivation is honest. Does her resignation have anything to do with him?

Tracy says, Cody cheated, but he says, how could he? She was watching him the whole time. She says, he’s not a beginner, and he says he never told her that he was. She assumed. It’s only hustling if you’re playing for money. She says she could have won if she hadn’t been distracted by his questions about Finn, and he says he wanted to know more about her. If he happened to win in the meantime, good. She says, next time, she won’t be so benevolent, and he says he expects nothing less. Sasha comes in and says she doesn’t want to interrupt, but Tracy says she arrived just in time. She was about to beat Cody senseless. Rematch? He says he looks forward to it, when Tracy’s phone rings. She walks out while talking to Brook, and Cody tells Sasha, backgammon is a bloodsport around here. She says she found this, and hands him his hat. He puts it on, and she says she found something else – her senses. He asks what she means, and she says she’s tired of being scared and playing it safe. Life is short. She thinks they should do this. He says, do what? and she kisses him.

Mac says he saw James and Spinelli with their heads together. What were they talking about? Spinelli says, James is distressed about Mac’s antipathy toward Cody, and Felicia says, this isn’t the way she wanted to be proved right.

Sasha asks if Cody can take a break, and he says he can take the whole day. He has to shower too. She says, he doesn’t smell bad. They can get dirtier together. They start to get busy, when Maxie walks in. She says she’s sorry. She doesn’t need to see this. Congratulations. She’ll let them both get back to it, but she has a question. Have they seen James anywhere?  

Nina asks Michael, what’s wrong? and Michael tells her that she and Willow won’t be collaborating on the New Tomorrow Institute anymore. Willow is resigning and returning to GH. He’ll let Willow be the one to tell her why. Nina says she can probably guess.  

Drew says, Willow’s work at the Institute is important to them and she’s changing lives. Don’t give up because he made it complicated. She says, it’s the only way to make it better. She loves Michael, and she’s committed to him and her family. But she can’t stop thinking about Drew. It’s wrong, and she wants as much distance put between them as possible before she does anything else she regrets. She takes the beach stuff and leaves.

Sonny says he found out that his meds had been off for a while, and Lois says, that’s a big deal. Is he okay? Did they fix the dosage? He says he’s back on track. He wants her to know she means the world to him. She always has and always will. Lois says, he means the world to her too, and thanks him for telling her. She saw he was off. Now she knows why. He asks if they’re friends again. Are they square? She says, they’re always friends. Square, not so much. He asks what she means, and she says, the infusion of money to Deception. Where is it coming from? (Didn’t they have this conversation? It’s the same money.) He says, every dime is legit. She can call his accountant. She says she believes him, but even the appearance of impropriety will be more damaging than maleficence. He asks what’s worrying her, and she says she loves him, and his personal life is his own, but she doesn’t want the business under federal scrutiny because he’s trying to impress a woman.

Brook tells Tracy, it’s a large infusion of capital that could fund Research and Development for five years. They can finally break ground on that. Tracy asks what Natalia thinks her title should be, and Natalia says she thinks CFO is appropriate. Tracy says she’s surprised the financial institution didn’t contact her, and Brook says, it’s a small bank, but the money is vetted and secured. Tracy asks, what’s the name of the bank? and Brook says, the Bank of Sonny. Tracy says, over my dead body

Tomorrow, Lucy says she thinks it’s a great idea; John tells Ava that he’s got Sonny where he wants him; Maxie says, nobody is going to find James unless he wants them to; and Cody dives into the water, presumably looking for James.

🍽 Eating My Words…

I have no words. Actually, I do, but this blog is rated PG-13.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/jacqueline-grace-lopez-says-goodbye-to-general-hospital-2

🫖 Striving For Elegance…

Love these two together.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/ghs-jophielle-love-on-violet-and-tracys-tea-party

💰 Hard Times In Listings…

Not only does the market still stink, buyers are also pulling out of deals; JoshA saying the fallout was around 25%. He came close to getting a new house for JoshF, going so far as to forego his commission, but JoshF wasn’t willing to come up even another $200K. I always figure, when you’re talking millions, what’s another couple hundred thousand? Tracy, playing the role of JoshF’s broker, had already agreed to no commission since JoshF had done the same for her. Since they were at an impasse, Tracy suggested they finish the tequila and call it a night. JoshF then began to lean toward rebuilding his gutted dreamhouse. In an interesting panty twist, Tracy found a pair of satin undies amongst the rubble and threw them over the fence. Nice. She’s going to be exiled to Summer House if she’s not careful.

🗽 Returning To New York…

That pigeon décor is pretty impressive.

https://extratv.com/2024/08/13/watch-erin-lichy-confront-husband-abe-about-lying-in-rhony-season-15-trailer/

🐙 Your Post Christmas Present…

A new Game is coming December 26th.

https://comicbook.com/anime/news/squid-game-season-2-new-players-trailer/

🧹 Channeling Those Before…

Instead of WandaVision’s sitcom approach, Agatha will be using the witches of yore to tell her story.  

https://ew.com/agatha-all-along-trailer-kathryn-hahn-joe-locke-d23-8693175

🦸 Not Done Yet…

The ones who didn’t make it.

https://ew.com/halle-berry-says-ryan-reynolds-never-asked-me-to-cameo-in-deadpool-and-wolverine-8695666

https://people.com/robert-downey-iron-man-cameo-deadpool-wolverine-8693208

🐶 What a Dogue…

Pilaf deserves her own magazine cover. She’s an unbelievably cute little nugget of pup.

https://people.com/demi-moore-tiny-dog-pilaf-gets-her-own-vogue-cover-8695515

🍫 Love You S’more…

Join me tomorrow for soap and the OC in LaQuinta. Until then, stay safe, stay understanding that integrity and character are what really matter, and stay not wasting time being unhappy. Time is precious.

August 8, 2024 – Ava Has More Visitors, Other Side, First Look, New Team, In the OC, Go Already, A Return, House Finale, Next Knight, Furry Influencers & Day

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What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Kristina holds her baby, and says, so perfect. Ready to take on the world. She’s a Davis girl through and through. She knew it was going to be a girl, and she’s glad she’s finally here. She kisses the baby’s head, then wakes up. She feels her stomach and cries. She says, my baby.

Portia says she’s glad Trina came to see her. They’ll finish their conversation later. Trina heads for the elevator, and Heather is wheeled out. Heather says, she’s so… when Portia runs in between them, and says, no. Stay away from her daughter.

In Donna’s hospital room, Carly asks if she’s feeling okay, and Donna says her throat hurts. Sonny asks if she knows what helps a sore throat, and Donna says, popsicles. She wonders if she’s in trouble for eating daddy’s vitamins.

Ava yells that she needs to make a phone call to the FBI. She knows the guard can hear her. She needs to speak to Agent John Cates immediately.

John goes to Anna’s office and says he doesn’t appreciate being summoned. She says, the sooner they do this, the better, and he asks what she wants. She says, the truth would be nice. What is the nature of his relationship with Ava Jerome?

Heather says she just wanted to apologize, but Portia says, her daughter is completely off limits. Heather says she’s just here for a follow-up, and Portia says, that doesn’t change the fact that she’s a killer, and Portia will do whatever she has to in order to protect her daughter and keep Heather off the streets. She tells the guard to get Heather out of her sight, and he wheels Heather away. Trina asks, what the hell was that?

Sonny says, Donna isn’t in trouble. They’re just happy she’s okay. Carly says, but she needs to know she can’t take other people’s medicine. Don’t take a pill or swallow anything unless there’s an adult there. Sonny says, medication is good for you, but it’s dangerous unless a doctor gives it to you, and Donna asks if she can go home. Carly says, as soon as the doctor says it’s okay. Daddy will stay here with her. Sonny says he’s going to check in on Kristina, and Donna says, tell Kristina that she hopes she feels better. Maybe get her two popsicles, one for her and one for the baby. (Ouch. Another knife to the heart of the viewers.)

Kristina struggles to sit up, but Alexis says, she can’t get up. Is she in pain? Kristina says she was holding the baby in her arms. She was so beautiful, and she was gone. Alexis says, she was dreaming. She has to try and relax. Her body has been through a lot. Kristina cries and says she was holding her and when she woke up, she was gone. In real life, that’s how it’s always going to be. She was pregnant for eight and a half months and will never get to hold or see the baby except in her dreams, forever. Alexis takes her hand, kisses it, and smooths her hair.

John says, Ava is a friend, and Anna says, just a friend? He says his personal life is his business, and she says, unless it connects him to a crime. His luggage was found in Ava’s room. Does he care to explain? He says, absolutely not, and she says, Ava is in custody. She pushed Kristina Corinthos-Davis, and she fell from a third story window. Ava is being charged with assault, attempted murder, and manslaughter. Kristina was eight and a half months pregnant, and the baby didn’t make it. Would he like to shed some light regarding his and Ava’s relationship? John tells her that he has nothing more to say, and she asks if he doesn’t care that an innocent life was lost before it had a chance to be born. Or doesn’t it matter because it’s Sonny’s grandchild? He says, of course (🍷) it matters. It’s a tragedy. She asks him again to shed light on his relationship with Ava, and he says, one last time, no. Anna says, then she can only speculate. He thinks Ava is an ally against Sonny or maybe a vehicle to bring Sonny down, but that’s a mistake. He’s spent his life dedicated to law enforcement. Don’t let his hatred destroy his career and him. He needs to distance himself from Ava. He says, like she distanced herself from Valentin? and she says, it’s a slippery slope and the bottom is ugly. He accuses her of being an apologist for Sonny. It’s the only way Sonny has lasted this long. She asks if he knows how many professionals wrecked themselves to get Sonny. It’s a long list, and he’s about to add his name. John tells her to stay out of his way. Nothing is going to stop him from taking Sonny down. He leaves.

Portia asks if Trina is worried that she embarrassed herself. She doesn’t care. Her only concern is to protect her daughter. Trina says, Heather is handcuffed and has a guard with her, but Portia says, she’s escaped from the hospital before. Trina says, Portia is Co-Chief of Staff. She can’t afford to lose it on a patient even if it’s Heather.

Scotty goes to Heather’s room and shows the guard his ID. He says he needs to speak to his client, but the guard says, she’s here for a check-up, not a legal conference. Scotty says he has every right to see her, and if he doesn’t, he’ll sue the guard, the hospital, Pentenville, and everybody. The guard steps aside, and he goes in. Heather says, it’s always a treat to see him, but they both know he’s not her attorney. He says, not yet.

Felicia goes to Kristina’s room and says she wanted to check in. She’s so sorry about what happened and for Kristina’s loss. Her entire family has her in their thoughts and will do whatever they can to help. Kristina stays turned away and silent, but Alexis thanks her. Felicia says, on a professional note, she’s a patient advocate, and one of the things she does is ensure that patients take full advantage of the hospital resources, including counseling, therapy, and grief support. Whatever she needs. Alexis says, they’ll take that into consideration, and Felicia says, feel free to reach out with any questions or anything. She knows from experience there’s no timeline or standard of how to handle grief, but she knows it helps to lean on family. If Kristina needs the support of a friend, she’s here. She leaves, and Alexis spoons Kristina in the bed. She asks what she can do, and Kristina asks why this happened.  

John goes to Ava’s cell, and Ava says she told them that she wanted to call him, but they wouldn’t let her. How did he find her? He says, the Police Commissioner said she was arrested. He asks if she’s responsible for Kristina going through the window, but she says, absolutely not. It was an accident. She tripped and fell, but it won’t matter. It’s her word against Kristina’s. If Kristina doesn’t make it, Sonny is going to blame her. John says, Kristina is expected to recover, but the baby died, and she says, they’re blaming her and charging her with manslaughter. She’s not likely to live long enough to go to trial. Sonny is coming after her and probably him. Kristina tripped over his duffel bag and she hid it, but the police found it. He asks what she told them, and she says, nothing, but Sonny will find out. It’s only going to get worse when he realizes his pills are placebos.  

Jason comes into the hospital and sees Donna with Sonny and Carly. He asks if everything is okay, and Donna says, she’s going home – and she gets two popsicles. Jason says he took Josslyn to her Ride Share, so he can take Carly and Donna home, but Carly says she wants him to stay with Sonny. Keep her posted about Kristina and what’s going on with the meds. She and Donna leave, and Jason says he’s glad Donna is okay. Sonny says, it was too close for comfort. For Donna’s sake, he’s glad they were placebos, but it took him a long time to recognize it. He was all over the place. Jason and Carly knew, and he should have listened. Jason says, they can’t go back and change anything, but ultimately, Sonny did the right thing seeing Doc. His instincts kicked in and he’s glad Sonny trusted them. Sonny says he feels better knowing what’s going on. Now he wants to know who switched his medication for placebos in the first place.

Scotty says he did some research after the article in The Invader, and Heather says, it upset a lot of people. He says he’s intrigued, and she asks, why? He says, cobalt poisoning is a real thing, and she got a bum sentence. She’s done wild things, but she’s not movie slasher crazy. She says, they all were a little wild back in the day if she recalls, and he says, those were different times with different standards. They’re dealing with right now. She left a wake of death and terror, but it’s not her fault. She didn’t give herself cobalt poisoning like she gave herself LSD. She wasn’t in her right mind, but it’s not her fault her judgment was gaflute. Let him help her. She asks why he wants to, and he says, they’re family a little bit. They share Franco. She says, he did not just use the dead son card. What’s in this for him?

Portia tells Trina that she’s aware of her position, but she’s not apologizing for protecting her child. She’ll tell the board if they have a problem with it. Trina says she understands, but Portia says, she doesn’t. It’s nice that Laura backed off, but the damage was done. She won’t have a lawyer make a name for themselves putting Heather back on the street. Trina says she’s not worried about Heather; she’s worried about Portia. Don’t let her hatred consume her. She’s got to let this go. Portia says, if Trina wants to put her mind at ease, stay away from Heather.

John asks what makes Ava think Sonny is going to find out, and she says, he’s getting treatment. Doc came to see her, and she heard him on a phone call. John asks if Doc noticed there was a problem, and she says, of course (🍷) he would. Sonny was undermedicated for months. She’s terrified about the fallout. John asks if she’ll be blamed, and she says, of course (🍷), but she didn’t do it. It was the GH pharmacist, Clement. Somebody paid or coerced him into switching the meds. John says, it’s only a matter of time before Sonny confronts him unless he can get to him first. Ava tells him, go to GH and find Clement. Tell him to run. Do whatever he can to keep alive. John says, he’s hardly innocent, but she says she went to Clement’s office. Sonny is going to think she put him up to it. At the very least, he’ll know that she knew. John says he won’t let that happen, and she asks how he’s going to stop it. He says, don’t worry. Sonny’s days of trampling over people are about to come to an end.

Jason shows Sonny the photos on the phone and says, Brick had a guy posted opposite Ava’s room. Sonny says, Ava had her hands on Kristina and pushed her? and Jason says, looks that way. Sonny says, it all leads to Ava. The baby’s death, Kristina falling, and his medication. She did it to Morgan. She switched his lithium with a placebo and made him think he was losing his mind when he was fine. If she could do that to his son, she could do it to him. Jason asks what Sonny wants him to do, and Sonny says he wants her to pay. He thinks for a moment, and says, do him a favor and pay Ava a visit. See if she has anything to say. Jason says, copy that, and leaves.

Kristina asks Alexis how she’s supposed to do this. How can she be here when her baby is gone? My baby. She’s said those words so many times, but it’s the first time she let herself feel them. She was Kristina’s baby. She was a part of Kristina, and Kristina was a part of her. Now that she’s gone, Kristina is acknowledging that she was her mother. Alexis says, sometimes questions don’t have answers. Sometimes terrible things happen for no reason. Kristina says, she was her baby and grew in her body. She’s the only one who truly knew her. She knew what every kick meant. She knew when the baby was happy, excited, or hungry, when she liked or didn’t like something. Every day for the last eight and a half months, it was just the two of them. She felt her and knew she was real. She was hers. She cries and says, she was my baby.  

Scotty tells Heather that the company that manufactured the defective implant has deep pockets, and they can sue the pants off them. Heather says, even if she wins, what good is it to her in prison? and he tells her, who said she was going to stay in prison if they appeal and get a new trial? She says, it’s a big if, and he says, they can use the cobalt poisoning as a defense. She says, people are still dead, and he says, it’s tragic, but she’s not responsible for killing them. She was literally not in her right mind. If she’s acquitted, she’ll be free and have big fat cat bank account. She has life left in her, right? She says she hopes so, and he asks if she wants to spend it with her grandchild or punching out license plates. The manufacturer stole her life. They don’t care about the little people, only profit. They went after her. She’s the victim. She asks if he isn’t laying it on a little thick, and he says he’s practicing his opening statement. He sees she’s interested. Let him get her out of here and they’ll go after a piece of the big corporate pie.

Alexis comes out and Sonny asks if Kristina is all right, but she says, no. Kristina is shattered and devastated, and she has no idea how they’ll get her through. He says, whatever she needs, they’ll give it to her, and she says, they have to be at their best. He says he’s getting help and she says she’s glad to hear it. He says he’s not going to go in and scare Kristina, and she says, they have to keep it together. She needs them more than ever. Sonny says, they’re in this together. He has to tell her something. Ava is responsible for everything that happened, and he has proof.

Portia tells the desk nurse that she wants to get Heather discharged as quickly as possible. No coddling or special treatment. It’s not a day spa for her. Felicia says she doesn’t want to overstep, but she’s not sure rushing a patient is giving them the best care possible.

The guard tells Heather that someone insists on speaking with her, and she says, tell her attorney that she’ll get back to him, but Trina walks in.

Carly calls Anna and asks her to come over. She needs to report a crime.  

Ava hears footsteps, and Jason walks in. She asks what he wants.

Heather says she didn’t expect it to be Trina, especially considering the warm reception she got from Trina’s mother. Trina says, her mother doesn’t speak for her. She’s an adult and wants to hear Heather say whatever she has to say. Heather thanks Trina for letting her and says she’s so sorry. She realizes that changes nothing, that people are dead and there’s no replacing them. It was like waking up from a nightmare to find herself in a worse one. Now she knows what she did, and she’ll regret it for the rest of her life.  

Portia tells Felicia that she’s maintained to her staff and law enforcement that they don’t have to like every patient, but have to provide everyone with the best medical care. Heather is receiving the same care as every other patient, and yes, Felicia is overstepping. Felicia says she’s a patient advocate and her job is to ensure all patients receive the full scope of the hospital’s resources, including those who are criminals and in jail. Portia says, like Ryan Chamberlain? She doesn’t recall Felicia advocating for him. (Felicia wasn’t a patient advocate then. Ugh, Portia.) She does appreciate Felicia’s passion for patient care, but reminds Felicia that she’s Co-Chief of Staff. She walks away.

Sonny tells Alexis that Ava intentionally pushed their daughter out a window, and she asks how he knows. He says he has surveillance pictures of her putting her hands on Kristina. It was no accident. She says, that hateful, evil, obscene woman, and he says he’s sorry to tell her. She says, take care of Kristina. She needs some air. She leaves and he looks at Kristina through the window.

Carly thanks Anna for coming by. She just settled Donna in after she’d been in the hospital. She had her stomach pumped. Anna asks if she’s all right, and Carly says, she’s got a popsicle. Anna asks, what happened? and Carly says, she swallowed some of Sonny’s lithium. She thought they were vitamins. But it turns out they went through all that for nothing. The pills were placebos. Anna asks if Sonny knows, and Carly says, he was there. Anna asks how long Carly thinks that’s been going on, and Carly says she’s guessing since New Year’s Eve. They did a blood test on Sonny and there was no medication in his bloodstream. Anna says, that explains his reckless behavior. It’s not an excuse, but it gives some perspective. Carly says she’s more concerned about who tampered with the medication, and Anna asks if she has any idea. Carly says she does. Ava Jerome. (Ava is still the answer to every question.)

Ava asks why Jason is here. Did Sonny send him? Is he back working for Sonny? Jason says nothing, and she calls for the guard. She says, they’ll be making their rounds soon, but Jason shakes his head and says, no one is coming for her. She says, whatever he was told or whatever he thinks he knows about what happened, it was an accident. It’s an accusation Sonny cooked up. He’s too volatile. Not that long ago, he wanted Jason dead. Jason says, the baby died, and she says, it was an accident. Why would she do anything to intentionally harm Kristina, let alone push her out a window? Jason says he’s given up thinking about why people do what they do. They have proof. She says, photos can be manipulated. Sonny would do anything to get rid of her. He’s violent and erratic. He says, now they know why. She switched his medication for placebos like she did with Morgan.

Scotty sees Alexis in the hallway and says he heard about Kristina. How is she doing? She asks, who wants to know? Him or his murderous client? Scotty says he heard there was an accident, and Alexis says, Kristina had an abrupted placenta after being pitched three stories down. The baby died, so she is not okay. Scotty says he doesn’t want to upset Alexis. Can he get her some coffee? She says she just needs some air, and he asks if she’s got a minute so they can put their heads together. She says, no, and he says he understands she had a theory about how Heather’s case could be overturned. He’s taken her on as a client and thought Alexis might want to be second chair. Alexis says, he’s insane to ask right now. No. No way in hell will she ever help Heather.

Trina says she heard Heather’s apology and she’s glad Heather’s not homicidal. She hopes it sticks. She starts to leave, but Heather says, wait. She’s truly sorry for everything she did to Trina and the people around her. And one more thing. She’s sorry for what Esme did to Trina too. She was manipulated by her father. Trina knows how evil Ryan was and how jealous Esme was about how much Spencer loved Trina. Ryan exploited that because he knew the worst thing about being in love… Trina says, Esme was not in love with Spencer. She used Spencer. Don’t apologize for her. She won’t forgive Heather or Esme. Heather says, okay. She understands. Why did Trina come to see her? Trina says she’s not going to be trapped by her fear and hatred. She’s not going to let Heather or Esme have that power over her, but she wants Heather to have her day in court. She prays justice is served in the end, whatever that means. She prays no one is hurt by Heather again. Heather says, and she prays she never hurts anyone again, ever, and Trina says, good, a tear running down her cheek. They all deserve some peace. She leaves, and Heather cries.

Anna asks if Carly is accusing Ava of tampering with Sonny’s medication, and Carly says, she did the same to Morgan. She pushed him to a manic episode that led to his death. Anna says, the legal record doesn’t reflect that, and it’s not proof she did the same to Sonny. Carly says, Ava has motive and opportunity. She was living in the penthouse and Sonny turned her into his watchdog. She was there when Dante got shot. Anna says, Ava did seem protective of Sonny, and Carly says, she was trying to control him. She isolated him and kept him unmedicated. It worked for a while. He pushed everyone away. Anna says, it’s not easy to prove, and Carly asks if she isn’t Police Commissioner. Isn’t it a crime? Anna says, it is. How much does Sonny know? Right now, the only life at stake could be Ava’s.

Jason wonders who else could have done it, since Ava was living at the penthouse, but Ava says she didn’t switch the medication. She found out by accident and made it her business to follow up. Sonny has a dangerous enemy. He tells her to give him a name, but she says, they both know how this works. If she tells him, she’s expendable. The only thing keeping her alive is what she knows that Sonny doesn’t.

John goes to Clement’s office and shows his ID. He says he’s going to need Clement to come with him.

Sonny kisses Kristina’s forehead, and she turns to him. He says he didn’t mean to wake her. When she was a little girl, he would kiss her booboo to make it better. She says she’s glad he’s here and takes his hand. He asks if he can get her anything, and she says, he needs make Ava pay for what she did to her baby.

I’m in.

Tomorrow, Drew says he’s got good news for someone; Doc tells Alexis that she can’t do it alone; Michael wants to show his appreciation to Nina for everything she’s done for Willow; and Kristina asks Sonny when Ava is finally going to pay for everything she’s done.

🔦 What They Do In the Shadows…

I visited the One Life To Live set once, and the rooms are side by side, almost like in a good furniture store. And the lights are hot. So hot. There’s also a lot of hurry up and wait. I was so impressed by both the actors and production in how they’re able to make it seem so real.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/steve-burton-shows-fans-a-side-of-gh-never-seen-before

🍀 We’re All Lucky…

Laura is going to go out of her mind with joy.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/gh-shares-a-first-look-at-jonathan-jacksons-return

📝 Flipping the Script…

It always seems to go the same way. There are casualties – Finn – and the story gets amped up, along with a few big twists – the whole baby/Ava/Sonny’s meds storylines.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/general-hospital-names-new-headwriting-team

🍊 Meanwhile, In the County Of Oranges…

We saw that clearly, Gina had encouraged Katie to call Heather out on the old paparazzi thing, then later, told Katie that she shouldn’t have said anything. I guess she thought better about stirring Heather’s pot, but it was too late. Heather was annoyed and confused, but I’m not sure why she gives a flying. She’s already won by having the most toys. The worst, most cringeworthy thing was Tamra berating Shannon – no surprise, in public at a brunch – about drinking and calling her an alcoholic. I’m not a Shannon fan, but I felt badly for her once again. It’s not bad enough she has to share the stage with Johnny’s new squeeze, now she has to endure the wrath of Tamra for something that Tamra obviously knows nothing about. I don’t know if Shannon is an alcoholic, or her drinking is just problematic – there’s a difference – but only Shannon can make that call. On Watch What Happens Live, Andy read a post from a viewer who called it tough love, but I don’t think it’s that at all. I think it’s just Tamra being her screechy, bitchy self, and not being helpful at all. Shannon left the table and Alexis brought up the lawsuit, producing actual receipts for Shannon’s facelift. There was a side conversation about how good Shannon looked, so there’s always an upside. In keeping with the immaturity of the situation, Alexis said, liar face better shush it. What are we? Ten? Sadly, Vicki was the voice of reason, but Tamra called her an enabler, which made me wonder. If Tamra is so concerned about Shannon’s drinking, why doesn’t she not drink in comradery? TBH, neither one of them should be drinking since it always leads to screaming and yelling. There were some amusing flashbacks of Vicki screaming at various people, although some of them were actually warranted.

👠 Bye, Jersey, Bye…

I’m actually watching this right now and agreed. The episode itself comes across as final.

https://ew.com/the-real-housewives-of-new-jersey-andy-cohen-think-cast-is-done-8691427

https://www.eonline.com/news/1405670/why-rhonjs-season-14-last-supper-proves-the-current-cast-is-done-for-good

Yeah Delores, we all wish we could go back in time.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1405670/why-rhonjs-season-14-last-supper-proves-the-current-cast-is-done-for-good

Too bad. All that plastic surgery for nothing.

🍑 Just Peachy…

Like Colleen Hoover said on Watch What Happens Live, she’s good TV.

https://people.com/phaedra-parks-joins-real-housewives-of-atlanta-season-16-8685417

🐉 Here There Be Dragons…

Warning: probably a million spoilers if you haven’t watched the finale.

https://ew.com/daeron-house-of-the-dragon-explained-season-2-finale-teaser-8687123

https://ew.com/house-of-the-dragon-season-2-ending-explained-where-war-goes-from-here-8687671

https://ew.com/house-of-the-dragon-battle-of-rooks-rest-rhaenys-death-cast-interviews-exclusive-8674281

My takeaway point: Aww! Baby dragon!

https://ew.com/house-of-the-dragon-why-jon-snow-not-in-season-2-finale-creator-ryan-condal-8690570

⚔️ What Comes Next…

But will they know something? I’m unfamiliar with these books, but they sound intriguing. I loved the A Song of Ice and Fire series. It’s not even my jam to read, but I was hooked immediately.

https://ew.com/game-of-thrones-spinoff-a-knight-of-the-seven-kingdoms-first-footage-8690112

https://ew.com/knight-of-the-seven-kingdoms-casts-its-own-daeron-targaryen-8692527

Game of Thrones: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Spinoff Announces New Cast Members

🐕 Will Work For Treats…

Feeling influenced by cuteness already.

☔️ Checking Ark Blueprints…

Join me tomorrow for soap, insights into entertainment, words to think about, and a song to set the mood by. Until then, stay safe, stay donating those clothes you haven’t worn in eons, and stay never being trapped by fear and hatred.

August 2, 2024 – Dante Questions Ava, Exclusive, Happy Anniversary, She’s Got Texts, Future Plans, Done, VanderDish, New Reality, Big Baby, Excellent, Pool Noodles, Stripes X 4, Pickle, Quote Tenner & Take

Standard

What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Ava says she’s so looking forward to sitting in that courtroom while Kristina testifies that her father is a violent brutal thug who doesn’t belong anywhere near their daughter. Kristina says, if Ava forces her to get on that stand, she’ll tell them that Ava messed with Morgan’s bipolar meds. She replaced them with placebos and caused him to have a mental breakdown. She won’t stop there either. She’ll also share that Ava murdered Connie Falconari. If Ava forces her to tell the truth about her father, she can be damn sure Kristina will tell the truth about her too. Ava grabs Kristina’s arm, and Kristina says, don’t you touch me. She takes a step back and trips over John’s bag, stumbling backward and crashing through the window. She falls down several stories into the pool, screaming all the way. Everyone is horrified. (The looks on their faces makes me want to burst into tears.)

Sonny says, Lois is one of his dearest friends and he loves her, but his is not a good time. Can they table this conversation for another time? She says, no. They cannot table it when it affects her daughter’s future.

TJ tells Alexis that he and Molly have done the research. When the biological parents aren’t married to each other, courts tend to favor the mother in terms of physical custody which gives Kristina a definite advantage. Alexis says, he’s getting way ahead of himself, but he says he disagrees. Their baby is almost here. It’s time to know where they all stand. Alexis says she doesn’t know what Kristina is going to do. She doesn’t have control over her. She’s an adult. He says, this is his child they’re talking about. He wants to know if he’s going to spend the first few months or years of their life in family court. She says, again, he’s asking her to respond to a hypothetical situation that they don’t know will happen, and he asks if that isn’t what lawyers do. Weigh every possible angle so they can prepare their client for every possible contingency. She says, he’s not her client, and he says, no, he’s not. He’s her daughter’s partner. He’s family. She says, he is family, and so are her three daughters, two of which are in an impossible situation right now. He tells her, she just said it. She’s Molly and Kristina’s mom, and they’re both going to look to her. What is she going to do when Kristina tries to take their baby?

Kristina floats face down in the pool, threads of blood coming from her nose and mouth, and Josslyn tells everyone to stay back. She tells Brook to call 911, and Brook says she’s on it. Gio asks what he can do, and she tells him to get the backboard. Ava looks down from the smashed-out window, and Josslyn turns Kristina over. Blaze yells, Kristina! and now, everyone is doubly freaked out.

Blaze tries to run toward the pool, but Natalia holds her back and tells her to let Josslyn do her job. Help is on the way. Trina looks up and says, Ava? and Ava quickly closes the curtains. On the phone, Brook says, they need help. She fell from one of the upper windows into the pool. She’s unconscious… She doesn’t know. Just tell the paramedics to hurry. She’s pregnant.

In her room, Ava tells herself to think and picks up her phone.

Josslyn tells Kristina, hang in there. Help is on the way.

Ava leaves a message for Scotty. She needs him like she’s never needed him before.

Lois asks, is the money Sonny is going to invest in this record company legit? Yes or no? Sonny says, yes, and she says, fine. Then she wants to see proof. She wants to see the financials. She wants to see where the money originated and the taxes he paid on it. She’s not trying to offend him, but as much as she loves him, she’s a mother first, and has to make sure Brook is protected. He says he’ll call his accountant, and Lois can talk to him. She can ask him anything she wants. She says, don’t push her off on his accountant, but he says, it’s not a good time. She asks if he’s mad at her, but he says he’s not. He just has a lot going on. She says, fine, but Brook’s involvement in this record company depends on her seeing the proof, and he says, fine. She says she’s sorry. She hates leaving things like this between them, but she guesses for now this is how it’s got to be. He gives her the number, and she leaves.

Natalia continues to hold Blaze back, when Gio returns with the board. Josslyn says she’s going to need his help to get Kristina out of the water, and he asks what she needs him to do. She says, he has to get the backboard under her, but he has to be very careful. She doesn’t know if Kristina injured her back or her spine. He’s going to turn the board on its side and turn it back very swiftly when it’s in the water. Then get it under Kristina as it floats back up…. Very good. Now they have to get her head stable, so she can get Kristina to the stairs. Place one hand firmly under her chin… Very good. Now place his other hand under the backboard. Now they have to get her strapped in.

Alexis tells TJ that she hopes to God it doesn’t happen, but she can’t be put in the middle. She can’t be put in a position where she has to choose between her daughters. He says he wishes she didn’t have to. He knows what a terrible position this is for her to be in, but it’s time. She says, her girls have done without a lot, but they’ve never done without her, and they count on that. Again, she can’t be put in a position where she has to choose one daughter at the expense of another. He says, that’s just where they are now, but she says, not if he and Molly don’t force the issue. He says, Kristina says she and Blaze, who she’s known less than a year, would make better parents than him and Molly. She’s testing the water. Alexis is the one who told them about the law surrounding this before they ever agreed to the surrogacy. Who has the strongest claim to the baby? She says, Kristina, and he says, if Kristina decides to exercise that claim and keep the baby, then he and Molly have already lost. Is she going to say, the law is the law? She says, the law is the law and there’s nothing she can do about it, and he says, so in other words, she’s a coward. He walks away.

Josslyn asks if Kristina can hear her. Can she open her eyes? She listens for a heartbeat, and Trina brings over towels. Trina asks if anyone has called Kristina’s parents, but Gio says he doesn’t know. She says, shouldn’t they? when the paramedics come in. Josslyn tells them that Kristina fell out of that window and into the pool. She’s been unconscious since they got to her. They tried to be careful. She doesn’t know what injuries Kristina has. A paramedic says, they’ll take it from here, and they get to work.

Dante and Chase arrive at the scene with some officers, and Dante tells an officer to clear everyone away from the pool and clear this whole area. Brook goes over to them, and Chase asks, what’s wrong? Brook says, it’s Kristina, and Dante goes over to Kristina and says, it’s me. He’s here, okay? She’s going to be all right. They’re taking her to the hospital and they’re going to take care of her. She’s just got to hang in there. Chase tells the officers that the entire place needs to be locked down immediately. He doesn’t want anyone leaving here without his okay. They have no idea what they’re dealing with. He asks if Brook saw what happened, but she says, not really. She was here meeting with Blaze and Natalia. Everything was completely normal, and literally out of the clear blue sky, this. The paramedic says, they’re ready to go, and Dante tells Kristina that he loves her. She’s going to be fine. Blaze says, she’s coming with them, and the paramedic asks if she’s family. Josslyn says she’s Kristina’s sister. She’ll go and they’ll meet Blaze there. Crying, Blaze asks her to hold Kristina’s hand for her. She just doesn’t want Kristina to feel like she’s alone. Josslyn says she will, and they leave. Natalia tells Blaze that she’ll drive and they follow. Chase asks if Brook is okay, but she says, not really. Such an awful thing to see. Her hands are still shaking. Would it be okay if she just went to the ladies room to splash some cold water on her face? He says, sure, and she leaves. Dante calls Sonny.

Ava leaves another message for Scotty asking, where the hell is he? She needs him and she needs him right now. She looks at John’s bag and flashes back to Kristina threatening to tell the truth about her and Kristina’s subsequent fall. She says, everything is falling apart, and peeks out through the curtains. Please. She needs him. Come to her room at the MetroCourt as soon as he can. She flashes back to Kristina tripping over the bag and out the window, and says, everything’s going to be all right. She didn’t mean for that to happen. It was an accident. She remembers touching Kristina, and Kristina backing away before she tripped. She says, but no one’s going to believe it… unless she helps them believe it.

Alexis says she knows TJ is under a lot of stress. She just doesn’t know what he wants her to do. She doesn’t know what she can do. He says, so she’ll say nothing and do nothing, and doing nothing about the situation is the exact same thing as choosing Kristina. If she does nothing, Molly is going to interpret that as her supporting what Kristina is doing and that’s going to devastate her. Alexis says, and if she supports Molly and doesn’t support Kristina, Kristina will be devastated. She warned everyone from the very beginning. This was her biggest fear. It’s an unwinnable situation. He says, the only reason Kristina is even pregnant is because he and Molly wanted to have a baby. If she changes her mind, that’s wrong. It’s theft. That’s something Sonny would do, so he guesses she’s her father’s daughter, right? Alexis says she told everyone from the beginning that the law is on Kristina’s side, and he says, she’s not powerless. Her hands are not tied. She asks what he’d have her do. Seriously, tell her what she’s supposed to do. He says, talk to Kristina. He thinks Kristina will listen to her. Explain to her that if she decides to keep their baby, that will destroy her relationship with Molly. It will decimate it. Talk to her. Kristina will listen to her. She can get through to Kristina and might be the only one who can.

In the ambulance, the paramedic reads Kristina’s vitals, and Josslyn says, oh God. Her blood pressure’s dropping. He asks, how far along is her pregnancy? and Josslyn says, eight months. Why? Kristina’s eyes flutter open, and Josslyn says, it’s her. They’re on their way to GH. Kristina asks if the baby will be okay.

Sonny’s phone rings, and he says, what? Gio says, Uncle Sonny? and Sonny asks, what’s up? Gio says, Dante’s been trying to call him, and Sonny says he’s been busy. What does he need? Gio says, it’s not… He’s at work at the pool at the MetroCourt. Something’s happened. Sonny asks, what’s wrong? and Gio says, there was an accident. At least he thinks it was an accident. She fell out of a window and into the pool. She’s hurt. Sonny says, who? and Gio says, Kristina.

Chase asks how Dante is doing, and he says he’s fine. Seeing his sister on that gurney… She looked pretty terrible. Chase says, Kristina’s a fighter, just like Dante. She’s going to be okay. He can take it from here. Dante should go to the hospital. Dante asks if he’s sure. They don’t even know what this is. Chase says he can handle it. It’s more important for Dante to be there for his sister and his family right now. Gio says, sorry to interrupt. He got through to Sonny. Dante thanks him for doing that, and Gio says, of course (🍷). He steps away, and Dante says, his dad can make sure Kristina is taken care of. He needs to figure out what happened to Kristina, if she fell out of that window. If she didn’t fall out, that means a crime was committed. He has to find out what it was either way. Chase says, okay. Let’s get to work. Dante asks how many witnesses they have, and Chase says, they’re still collecting them, but from the people he’s talked to, they don’t know much. They were focused on the pool and only saw Kristina after she fell. Dante says, they’ve got to talk to security. They have footage and they have to get their hands on that. They have to get inside that room. Kristina fell out of the window with the curtains closed. Wouldn’t she have grabbed onto them and wouldn’t a curtain be following her down to the pool? Chase says, he’s right. Someone must have closed them after she fell. Kristina wasn’t alone in that room. Trina walks over to them, and Dante says, what is it? Does she know something?

TJ tells Alexis, Sonny is going to back Kristina no matter what. They can’t count on him to be the voice of reason, but Kristina knows Alexis will say the truth to her even if it’s hard to hear. Please help guide her to doing the right thing. Be her parent. Alexis says, being a parent is a lot harder than he thinks. He’s going to find that out soon enough. He says he may never get that chance if Kristina gets her way. He may not have the years of parenting experience Alexis does, but if he gets that chance, he’ll make sure his child knows family is to be cherished above all else and is the only thing that can be counted on, which he’s sure Kristina knows, given that she’s had Molly’s unwavering support for her whole life. Alexis says, it’s true, she has, and he says he’ll make sure his child understands the ramifications of taking family for granted. She says, understood, and he asks if she understands if she takes Kristina’s side over Molly’s, that will not just cause a rift between the sister, she could lose Molly, and that could shatter her entire family. She says she did try to prevent this. She warned everyone that this could happen. He says, so that’s the best she’s got; I told you so.

Brook takes a breather in the ladies’ room and flashes back to seeing Kristina crash through the window and into the pool. Lois comes in and runs to Brook and hugs her. She says, Chase told her that Brook was in here. He didn’t have time to tell her what was going on, so she asked an attendant. They said, someone fell out of a window and into the pool, and that Brook saw everything. Is she okay? Brook says, not just someone. It’s Kristina.

Kristina looks around, and Josslyn says she’s right here. Kristina asks where she is, and Josslyn says, she’s in the ambulance on the way to GH. Kristina asks, why? What happened? Josslyn says, she fell through a window and into the pool, but she’s going to be okay. Kristina says she’s scared, and Josslyn says she knows, but the paramedics already alerted the doctors at GH. They know what’s happened and they’re ready to treat her and the baby. She’s in the best possible hands. Kristina says she wants her dad and mom, and Josslyn says she thinks they’re already on their way. She’s going to see them soon. Just try to hang on, for her and for the baby. Kristina says she’s so scared, and slips into unconsciousness again.

TJ thanks Alexis for clarifying, but she says, instead of blaming her, sit down with Molly and talk. They’ll get through it. He says, they’ve already talked. Actually, they’re in perfect agreement. The baby is theirs. That’s been the expectation and the agreement for the last eight months until Kristina decided it wasn’t. So now it’s all on her. She has all the power. She thinks it’s her kid to do whatever she wants with; him and Molly be damned. Kristina is wheeled in, and the paramedic tells Dr. Park that she’s pregnant and fell through a glass window. She’s been in and out of consciousness. He gives the doctor her vitals and says, her abdomen is very firm. She may be abrupting. TJ and Alexis realize it’s Kristina.

Trina sits with Gio and says, he should be proud of himself. He says, for what? and she says, he doesn’t have any medical training, does he? He says, not really, and she says, but he still jumped up and helped Joss. He says he was kind of just going on autopilot. He just did what she told him to. He should have known to go straight for the backboard without her having to say it. She says, he can’t beat himself up. He didn’t have any training. He says, still, and she says, if it’s on him, then it’s on all of them. None of them knew what to do. They just froze, so thank God for Joss. He says, she was amazing. He just doesn’t get it. How could something like this happen? How can you just fall out of a window? Did she see the fall? She says, no. She just looked up after. It’s Ava’s room. She saw Ava standing at the window. He says, Ava her boss? and Trina says, Ava’s not just her boss. Ava’s her friend. He asks how well she really knows Ava, and she says she’s not sure. Maybe she doesn’t really know her at all.

Kristina is wheeled into one of the rooms, and Dr. Park says, they’re going to do everything they can. She’s in great hands. TJ says, Kristina is carrying his child. He can help. Where is he needed? Dr. Park says, don’t worry. They’ve got this. Just stay here with the family. Alexis asks, what happened? and Josslyn says, she fell out of a window in the MetroCourt and into the pool. Alexis says, what? and Josslyn says she doesn’t know what happened. She gave Kristina first aid until the paramedics got there. That’s all she knows. TJ says, the paramedics said the placenta is separating from the uterus, and Alexis says she doesn’t know what that means. How is the baby? He says, Kristina’s hanging in there. The baby has to be hanging in there, right? Alexis says, how the hell did it happen?

Ava ditches John’s bags in the bedroom, then takes an ice bucket full of ice out of the credenza. She dumps it all over the floor, throws down a water pitcher, and drops her shoes in front of the window. She says, Kristina did this to herself, when there’s a knock at the door. She opens it and Dante is there.

Josslyn says she doesn’t know how it happened. All she knows is, Kristina fell from the window and into the pool. It happened very quickly. TJ wonders what she was even doing at the MetroCourt, and Josslyn says she doesn’t know, but she’s going to give them a minute. Blaze comes in with Natalia, and Blaze says she’s so glad Alexis is here. Where is Kristina? Alexis says, they’re working on her, and Natalia says, any word on her condition or the baby? TJ says, they don’t know anything yet, and Blaze asks, where’s Molly? TJ says, in court. He hasn’t called her yet. Everything happened so fast. He doesn’t know how to tell her. Blaze says, that’s okay. She’ll help him. They leave, and Natalia asks if she can get Alexis coffee or water or something, but Alexis shakes her head, trying not to cry. Sonny comes in and they hug.

Ava says, thank God Dante is here. She knew the police would show up eventually, so she didn’t dare leave. How is Kristina? He says he’s not here to answer questions; he’s here to ask them. He takes out his notebook and says, why doesn’t she tell him what happened? She says, Kristina showed up here about forty-five minutes ago. She wasn’t expecting her, but thought Kristina was here to help with her custody case. He says, she thought Kristina was going to help her take Avery away from her father? and she says she was under the impression Kristina had witnessed enough of Sonny’s irrational behavior to know he’s unstable right now. She’d hoped Kristina knew that Avery isn’t safe with him. He says, that’s what she believed? and she says, yes, but she was wrong. He says, why doesn’t she tell him why Kristina was really here, and checks out the curtains. She says, because she thought Kristina was willing to help her. Her attorney, Scott Baldwin, subpoenaed Kristina to get her deposition. She thought Kristina would be willing to talk to him, but she wasn’t. She was irate about the subpoena. He says, so she didn’t ask Kristina to testify first. She just served her with the subpoena? She says she misjudged Kristina, and he says, clearly. She says, Kristina demanded that she recall the subpoena. She told Kristina that she didn’t think she could do that, that things had already been set in motion, and that just made her angrier. He says, she’s eight and a half months pregnant. Ava is trying to turn her against her father. Of course (🍷) she’s going to be angry. She says, this was not about being pregnant. This was a lot more. Kristina lost it. Kristina was trying to attack her. She went for Ava’s throat. He says, that just doesn’t sound like Kristina, and Ava says she knows. That’s why she was so shocked. She didn’t want Kristina to hurt her, but she didn’t want Kristina to hurt herself. She moved away. She was trying to get some distance between them, but Kristina kept coming at her. He says, why doesn’t she tell him how Kristina went out the window, and she says, Kristina lunged at her. She moved out of the way and Kristina tripped over her shoes. She fell into the glass, then to Ava’s horror, she fell through it. He says, let him get this straight. Kristina showed up here so irate that Ava was trying to turn her against Sonny, that she came at Ava physically. Ava evaded her and she trips, flies through the curtains, and into the window and down to the pool below. Ava says, that’s right, and he says, the curtains were open. A witness saw her standing at the window after Kristina fell through. They saw her close the curtains. Does she want to revise that part of her story? She says, now that he mentions it, yes. She did close the curtains. She was so horrified by what happened, she was afraid to look down. He says, so she closed the curtains, then she opened them, then she closed them again? and she says she thinks that’s correct. He says, and there’s no sign that Kristina went through the curtains or tried to grab at them to stop herself from falling, and she says she doesn’t know. It was such a blur. He says, or she’s lying through her damn teeth about the entire thing.

Lois says, Kristina? Sonny’s daughter? That’s who fell? Brook says, it was horrible. At first, everything was completely normal, and all of a sudden, there was this loud noise of glass breaking and a woman screaming and then Kristina in the pool just not moving. Lois says, but she’s pregnant. She’s in her last trimester. Brook says she knows. And yeah, the fall was horrible and shocking, but she didn’t know who it was until Josslyn turned her over. It’s not just Kristina. It’s the baby too. They fell at least three stories. Lois asks if they know how badly she’s hurt, and Brook says, there was no way to tell. Josslyn was terrific and Gio helped her. Josslyn was holding Kristina up in the pool, when Gio went to get the backboard. Then they maneuvered her out of the pool. She wanted to help, but all she could do was call 911. Lois says, that was the best thing she could have done, and Brook says, Blaze was going out of her mind. Her mother had to hold her back. Then the paramedics came, and they were preparing Kristina for transport. Josslyn rode with her in the ambulance. Kristina was still unconscious when they left. Lois says, poor Sonny. He said he wasn’t in a good place. When he gets this news, he’ll be out of his mind. Brook asks, what happened with her and Sonny? but Lois says, that doesn’t matter now. Brook says, Lois just told her that Sonny said he wasn’t in a good place, which implies, A, she was with him, and B, they were having a relatively serious conversation. Lois says, they were, and Brook says, about? Lois tells her that she and Sonny are old friends. They talk about all kinds of things. Brook says, Lois is doing backflips not to give her a straight answer, which leads her to believe that Lois and Uncle Sonny were talking about her, weren’t they?

Sonny says, Gio called him and said Kristina was in some kind of accident. What happened? Alexis says, Josslyn was there, and Natalia says, Josslyn saved her life. Kristina fell out of a window from several stories up. She fell into the pool and Josslyn jumped in right after her and put her on a backboard to stabilize her spine in case she had injuries, then stayed with her until the paramedics came. (I wonder why Natalia is answering for Josslyn.) Alexis thanks Josslyn and says, they’re very grateful. Josslyn says she’s just happy she was able to help in any way. But she rode in the ambulance with Kristina. She woke up for a second and asked about the baby and asked for them. She just told Kristina that they were on their way to the hospital, and that the doctors would help her and the baby, and that they’d be here. She just tried to ease Kristina’s mind as best she could. Dr. Park comes out, and Sonny asks, how’s our daughter?

Trina tells Gio that Ava’s always been a good friend to her. Ava is her mentor. Working at her gallery is the reason she got the invitation to study at the Sorbonne. (And we all know how that turned out.) He says, that’s a big deal, and she says she knows Ava isn’t a saint. Ava can be pretty tough, and she’s done some bad things, and she’s not excusing any of that. He says, but she sees a different side to her, and Trina says, yeah. They’ve been through some pretty difficult things and Ava’s always had her back. Ava’s always been there for her. She’s had her doubts about Ava, but sticks up for her because she feels that Ava is more than the mistakes she’s made in the past. He says, but now… and she says, but now – she looks up at the window – maybe she was right to doubt Ava. Maybe she’s everything everybody says she is… or worse.

Ava says, this is preposterous. What does it matter if the curtains were open or closed? Dantes says, it means she’s lying about something. It means she’s trying to hide something. She asks what exactly he’s accusing her of, and he says, she can figure it out, can’t she? She says, everything happened just the way she said it did. This is her hotel suite. Kristina showed up here to confront her. She was angry. She was out of control. He says, that’s one of the parts where she loses him. She’s talking about someone who doesn’t have a violent bone in her body coming at her and attacking her, putting herself and her unborn child in jeopardy. She tells him that she didn’t say it was rational. Kristina was unhinged. Just like her father. He goes over to the shoes and says, this is what she tripped over, huh? and Ava says, yeah. He says, she’s telling him that Kristina flew out this window with such force, breaking a hotel window, from a pair of shoes? He’s not buying it. She says she doesn’t know what to tell him. Like he said, Kristina is very pregnant. Maybe she’s not so light on her feet. Kristina came rushing at her and she tripped. She did not touch Kristina. In fact, everything that happened here is of Kristina’s own doing. He says he guesses that’s one possibility. The other is that she assaulted Kristina. He takes out his handcuffs and says, now she’s lying about it. She says she did no such thing. He’s arresting her? He puts the cuffs on her and asks what it looks like. She says, this is ridiculous. She’s innocent. He says, she’d better hope Kristina and her baby make it alive or she’s going to be facing two murder charges. That’s if she makes it that far. She’s under arrest. She has the right to remain silent… etc., etc., etc.

Lois says she had questions about the origin of the money Sonny plans to invest in the record company, and Brook says, questions. Lois says, more like concerns. She’s not privy to the details, nor does she want to be, but suffice it to say not all of Sonny’s income comes from legitimate sources. Brook says, she actually thinks Uncle Sonny would use mob money to invest in the record label he wants her to run? Lois says she doesn’t know, but she had to be sure, and Brook says, excuse her, but that’s not Lois’s call to make. She’s an adult. She’s a businesswoman and if she has questions about the source of the money Uncle Sonny gives to her or any other investment, she will ask those questions. Lois says, okay, but Brook has a blind spot where Sonny is concerned, and that is her fault. She adores Sonny and raised Brook to adore her Uncle Sonny, and they give him all the benefits of every single doubt. But when it comes to his finances and the compliance with federal law, as much as she wants to trust, she’s got to verify. Brook says, then bring those concerns to her instead of going behind her back to Uncle Sonny, but Lois says she doesn’t see it as going behind Brook’s back. Brook says, be honest. Put herself in Brook’s place. If Grandma Gloria did to her when Lois just did, how would she feel? Lois says she would feel like Gloria went behind her back, but she’d know she did it with love. Brook says, no question, but then she would set appropriate boundaries, would she not? Lois says, yes, and Brook thanks her and says, that’s all she’s asking, for Lois to respect her and her judgment as a businesswoman. Lois says, understood, but as much as Brook is an adult, she wants Brook to respect the fact that she’s always going to be her little girl and she’s always going to look out for Brook’s best interests. Brooks says she knows Lois will. She knows Kristina is probably feeling… If anything happens to Kristina and that baby… Lois suggests they not jump to any conclusions. Kristina is a very strong woman and she’s sure the baby is strong as well. Brook says, she didn’t see how pale and still Kristina was. She’s been carrying that baby for nearly nine months. It would be cruel for something to go wrong now. Lois says, let’s pray that it doesn’t, okay? and they hug.

Dr. Park tells Sonny that his daughter suffered multiple internal injuries from the fall, causing severe hemorrhaging. Kristina has gone into hypovolemic shock. The baby is in fetal distress and the placenta is separating from the uterus, which is the baby’s lifeline. We see them prepping Kristina, and Dr. Park says, they’re going to take her to the OR for an emergency C-section. We see Kristina hooked up to machines and wearing an oxygen mask.

On Monday, TJ tells Jordan, whatever happens, it’s her fault; Josslyn tells Dex, that second could have made all the difference; Anna asks if Trina noticed anything after Kristina fell; and Sonny says, they will pay.

🏨 Showdown At the MetroCourt…

Excellent scene and spectacular fall.

💐 And Many More…

I love Scotty, and he’s so funny IRL too. I only wish GH would recognize what a gem of a couple they have in him and Obrecht.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/kin-shriners-special-anniversary-message-to-fans

🍊 Shannon’s Shade Is Leaking…

I wonder who the disgusting friend is. There are so many choices.

💰 Jumping On Josh’s Coattails…

She could do worse. I’d actually love to see this.

⚔️ A House Divided Must Reboot…

Now On Display is going to be stuck in my head for God only knows how long.

🦄 And a Black Swan In a Rosé Tree…

Of course she’s nice. Was there ever any question?

🐦‍🔥 Complicated Things…

Loved her first reality show and I’m hoping this one has the same outlook. It left you feeling good instead of like you wanted to punch someone.

🦌 Reindeer Games Continue…

This is just stupid. And like she’s really making her case for being a sane person who’s done no wrong. She’s literally scary.

https://ew.com/baby-reindeer-richard-gadd-responds-fiona-harvey-lawsuit-8686363

https://ew.com/netflix-concedes-alleged-baby-reindeer-real-life-martha-not-convicted-stalker-8687694

🎭 Next Stop For the Telephone Booth…

I’d love to see this. I saw John Glover in Waiting for Godot years ago. Too bad Broadway is so damn expensive. And don’t get me started on the cost of transportation.

https://ew.com/bill-and-ted-stars-keanu-reeves-and-alex-winter-reunite-broadway-8687596

🦸🏻‍♂️ Blowing Collective Minds…

I’m going to see it this weekend. I can’t wait!

https://ew.com/deadpool-wolverine-elektra-blade-gambit-x-23-action-scene-breakdown-exclusive-8687405

If you’re a superhero supernerd and need all the background.

https://ew.com/how-to-watch-x-men-movies-in-order-8683590

Best variants ever.

https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/dogpool-catpool-mousepool-infinity-comics-marvel-unlimited

🦓 Quadruple the Stripes…

A precious quartet.

https://people.com/disney-world-welcomes-4-baby-zebras-animal-kingdom-park-8683181

🥒 And If He Plays Ball…

Love, love, love the name. It goes without saying he’s cute.

https://people.com/demi-lovato-new-dog-pickle-with-fiance-jutes-instagram-photos-8685696

🥁 Quotes of the Week

Darth Vader polling higher than all potential 2016 candidates. – The Washington Post, analyzing polls on what Americans thought of their options for the next president in 2016.

Take your camera and your selfie stick and your dog and get the f*** out of here. – Rita, Neighborhood Wars

Always forgive your enemies. Nothing annoys them so intensely. – Percy Colson

A lifetime isn’t forever, so take the first chance, don’t wait for the second one! Because sometimes, there aren’t second chances! And if it turns out to be a mistake? So what! This is life! A whole bunch of mistakes! But if you never get a second chance at something you didn’t take a first chance at? That’s true failure. – C. JoyBell C.

To handle yourself use your head; to handle others, use your heart. – Eleanor Roosevelt

No individual has any right to come into the world and go out of it without leaving behind him distinct and legitimate reasons for having passed through it. – George Washington Carver

I’ve learned to never say never because when you say never, it happens. – Olivia Plath, Welcome to Plathville (Truth! This has happened to me more than once.)

Our most significant opportunities will be found in times of greatest difficulty. – Thomas S. Monson

We are all ordinary. We are all boring. We are all spectacular. We are all shy. We are all bold. We are all heroes. We are all helpless. It just depends on the day. – Brad Meltzer

Sh*t doesn’t get real until it’s real, and it’s real. – Gina Kirschenheiter, Real Housewives of Orange County

⛺️ Sing Around the Campfire…

Enjoy what life holds for you over the weekend – be it rowing down the stream or streaming – and join me on Monday for soap and Med antics. Until then, stay safe, stay practicing wildfire prevention, and stay not going behind someone’s back, even if it’s with love.

July 18, 2024 – Sonny Offers Brook a Deal, Happy Birthday, Jen Is a Deadbeat, Mystery Kiss, VanderMuddle, Yuck, DeadFlix, Driven By Fête & Candy

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What I Watched Today

(rambling, random thoughts, recaps, and the whole GH enchilada on Fridays)

General Hospital

Jason and Carly go to the footbridge, Jason carrying a six-pack (beer, not his abs), and Carly says she loves this place. He cracks open two beers and hands her one, and she says, now that everything is done, she feels like all of him is here with her. From now on, they’re not holding back and not keeping anything from one another. Jason says, until or unless something more important is in play. He doesn’t like lying, especially to her.

Tracy shows up at the stables and tells Cody that she saw the light on. He asks if she needs him to kill a bug or something… He’s assuming a big, giant, scary bug. She says, there’s no bug, but it’s good to know he’s available should one appear. She was wondering if he’d mind company. He says, if she doesn’t mind his company, but fair warning. Comet is asleep if she’d rather hang out with him. She says, wouldn’t anybody? and he says he’s getting used to it. She says she couldn’t sleep, and he says he was going to grab a beer. Does she want one? She says, beer me, and he says, coming right up.

Dex brings Chase some dinner at the station, and Chase asks what he’s doing today. Dex says, non-lethal weapons drills and taser practice, and Chase says, he’d be surprised how many people taser themselves. Dex is also about to go on a five second ride that consists of people hitting him with bats. It will be the longest five seconds of his life, and like his entire body is having the worst Charley horse ever. The good news is, he’ll fall down, but won’t lose consciousness. And don’t forget the rule of three: don’t go hungry, don’t get wet, and get home safe.  

Brook arrives at the penthouse and sees Natalia is there. She says she thought it would just be her and Sonny, and Sonny says he knows she has issues with Natalia. Brook says she has nothing to say about Natalia, but a lot to say about Blaze’s career. She’s assuming the reason she’s here is to make a plan to salvage it. Blaze’s career might be over because of Natalia’s idiotic words, so spare her Natalia’s childhood woes and let’s get to work.

Kristina knocks at Nina’s office door and asks if she can bug Nina for a minute. Nina says, of course (🍷). What’s up? Blaze walks in and stands next to Kristina.  

Cody asks if he heard Tracy right. Beer me? She says she heard it on a commercial and it sounded apt. He laughs and she says, experts say if you drink alone there’s a problem, and she doesn’t want to contribute to anybody’s problem. He says, since when? and she says, if somebody she cares about has a problem, she wants to fix it. If somebody she doesn’t like has a problem, she doesn’t just want to contribute to it, she wants to be the sole cause. He says, makes sense, and they clink bottles.

Chase says he owes Dante everything, and Dex asks, what’s different here from where Chase worked before? Chase says, personalities. You need to study the community and get a feel for it. But that wasn’t his biggest challenge. Dex asks, what was? and Chase says, not being able to talk about his beloved Red Sox. There are nothing but Yankees fans here. Dex says he’s a Dodgers guy, and Chase suggests he keep it to himself. That’s something you don’t come back from. He knows Dex having Sonny on his resumé isn’t easy. He has to earn respect and it may take time. There’s nothing but admiration for Dante. His integrity was never questioned. Dex wonders if it’s better to be Sonny’s son than work for him, but Chase says, it doesn’t matter. Dex is here now and needs to prove himself every day. Dex says, that’s the plan, and Chase says he just heard himself. He sounds exactly like his dad.

Carly tells Jason that since they’re putting it out there, ever since she found out about the FBI recording and that she could be arrested, it’s been weighing on her. Jason says, that’s why he didn’t tell her, and she says she hates it, but she gets it. Now that the terms of the deal have been met, they’re off the hook. The weight has been lifted and she feels freer. He says, that’s how it should be, and she says, he’s free too. What’s going on? What is she missing? He says he just spent almost three years being pressured. Now the pressure is gone, but he’s just not sure he remembers how to be free or just live his life. She says, here’s to remembering, and they clink bottles.

Brook says, her first thought was to sue the record label for breach of contract, but Scotty says, they’ll just invoke the morals clause. Sonny says, there’s nothing immoral about Kristina and Blaze loving each other, but Brook says, they’ll just change language, and it won’t end well. If they’re provoked, they’ll say Blaze breached by having a negative impact on their reputation. Sonny says, that’s why they came up with a plan, but it all depends on Brook. Brook says she’s listening, and Natalia says, they want Blaze to be able to put out her own music on her own indie label. Sonny is going to finance it. Sonny says, on one condition. That Brook run the label. Natalia says, Brook is already fighting on Blaze’s behalf. So are they going into business? Brook says, yeah… no.  

Nina says she’s glad Kristina and Blaze are here. She wants to apologize for the deplorable role The Invader played in their misery. Nothing like that should ever happen to anyone. She picks up her desk phone and says she wants someone down in her office now… She doesn’t care. Just get here. She tells Blaze and Kristina that she had no idea her new Editor-in-Chief transcribed and posted the recording. The only thing he cares about is clicks, no matter what was said or who got hurt. Kristina says she knows that’s not true about Nina, and Nina says, she can’t deny her part in it. There are no words to describe how terrible she feels, but she’s going to make it right.

Cody asks, what’s going on up at the house that got Tracy awake? and she says, the incessant humming of the air conditioning. She can feel it in her molars. Is she wrong for thinking a fan is more civilized? He says he thinks the horses would agree. Air conditioning would drive them buts, but they’ll stand in front of a fan all day. She says, not to mention the thousands of children running in and out who leave the door open. They’re cooling the outdoors. He asks, which parent is she channeling? (I’m dying laughing because I used to hear that as a kid too) and she says, her father. Her mother was too nice. If he yelled that they were cooling the outdoors, she’d think if there was one bug made more comfortable, they should do it. He says, she sounds special, and Tracy says, she was. Much to the chagrin of most people, including herself, she takes after her father. He asks how her father slept, and she says, upside down with his arms crossed across his chest in a rafter. They had their differences, but she loved him. Maybe her not sleeping well will just be how it is. He says, maybe she needs to wear herself out. She can take a ride anytime or he could put her to work. She says, thanks, but her insomnia isn’t so bad that she’s willing to start shoveling. It used to be, when her head hit the pillow, she was out. Or she would ruminate about how to get even with the people who wronged her, and within minutes, dreamland. Cody says, those were the days.

Chase says he wanted to play pro ball and was on a traveling team, but they shut him out. They’d all played together before, and he’s surprised they didn’t try to sabotage him. His dad was sympathetic, but wouldn’t let him quit. His dad said they couldn’t take something away from him that he wanted. He needed to practice hard and out hustle them, and they’d have to accept him. Once they did, then they would like him. He can hear his dad saying, you can do this. I know you can. Dex says, he sounds like a great dad. He did an amazing job at Chase’s wedding. Dex was choked up, and he could tell how much Chase’s dad loved him and Brook. Chase says, he had principles and lived them. What did Dex’s dad think about him becoming a cop?

Brook asks what kind of involvement she’d have, and Sonny says, she’ll have all the financing she needs creatively. Natalia says, within reason, but Brook says she’s not sure if they have the same definition of that. All the print and media management will be hers alone. Natalia will have no press presence or influence and will do no interviews unless she authorizes it. She’ll say where Blaze performs and how she’s presented. Natalia says she wants to talk to Blaze, and Brook says, that makes one of you. Natalia can agree or the label will never get off the ground, and when she leaves, her offer goes away.

Blaze says she appreciates Nina’s apology, but it was Ava that caused the problems. Nina says, Ava edited the conversation with the intent to cause as much harm as possible. All her reasons are self-serving and unbelievable to anyone who isn’t a sociopathic narcissist. Kristina says she’s happy Ava is away from her dad, and Nina says her too. Her hateful, spiteful editor decided to give a boost to the paper and himself and comes in second to Ava in awfulness. Adrian comes in, and she says, here’s the second runner-up now. She introduces Blaze and Kristina and says she thought he’d want to face the women whose careers and reputations he treated with such callousness. She also thinks it’s a good time to apologize and suggests he start at grovel and when he hits rock bottom, keep going.

Cody asks if Tracy thinks she can’t sleep because no one has wronged her and she can’t plot, but she says she doesn’t plot. She makes lists. He asks if plots aren’t lists gone to the dark side, and she says she never thought of it that way. She likes itemizing things that have to get done, won’t get done, are already done and need a follow-up. (Same.) It’s soothing. She makes lists of her lists. He says, it sounds stressful, but she says, a list is a gift you give yourself. Anyone can eat an elephant if it’s made into bite sized pieces. He says, she paints a disgusting picture, but maybe she’s right. He wouldn’t be able to eat an elephant if it was broken down to atoms. He wouldn’t see the elephant to begin with, even if it was charging at him. He ignores any disaster coming at him. He used to brag that he was a guy who doesn’t worry. Tracy asks when he realized that wasn’t something to brag about, and he says, recently. He pretends things aren’t happening and before he knows it, the gas fire has turned into an inferno. The elephant gets mad and rampages, and the countryside is wiped out.

Adrian says he’s truly sorry. He had no idea how big it would be. Kristina asks if they didn’t deserve their feelings and just living their lives, and he says, some – not him – believe that keeping their relationship under wraps was hypocritical. Kristina asks if they can’t live their lives in private, and he says, of course (🍷) they can. He didn’t think this would happen. She asks what he thought would happen. He yelled fire and now he’s shocked that people got trampled. Does he even believe his own apology? Nina says she thought he liked the hard-hitting questions. She’s curious about his answer too. Adrian says he hasn’t been in his position long and wanted to prove he could deliver a big scoop. He didn’t think past that, and he should have. He’s truly sorry. Kristina says she doesn’t forgive him, and Adrian says he doesn’t blame her. He’s under orders from Nina and his conscience to turn this around and they have his unqualified support. Nina says, he’s gone now. Go. He leaves, and she says she’s sorry. They came for a reason, and she put her own agenda ahead of it. What can she do for them? Blaze says, Nina actually brought it up. The reason they’re here… Kristina says, they’re planning a response and would love her help.

Natalia says she can’t be cut out completely. She’s the reason Blaze got this far. Brook says, she’s the reason Blaze has to start over, and Natalia says she made one mistake. Brook says, it was a hell of a mistake. She’s sorry. She’s not trying to punish Natalia. She was a good manager, but the maternal authority is over. No more guilt trips or coercion. The only one who didn’t see her sabotage was her.

Carly says, now that Jason is done, Cates can go back to Virginia or whatever circle of hell he’s from, and Jason gets to do what he wants. What is it? Jason says he hasn’t thought that far ahead, and Carly says she knows a great hotel where the co-owner will give him free towels all day. He says, she wants him to lounge around the pool all day? and she says, nothing would make her happier, but he says he’s not good at lounging. His boys are his priority. Jake is leaving. He got accepted to an art academy in Barcelona. Carly says, Jake is leaving just as Jason is free to spend time with him, and Jason says, he’ll miss Jake, but he’s happy for him. She says, he can visit Jake, but until then, they can go hiking and camping, and he and Danny can spend tons of time together. She wants him to promise her something. Wherever he goes and whatever he does, don’t disappear again.

Tracy asks what part of the gas fire Cody is avoiding, or is it already an inferno? Cody says, it’s not out of control, but the countryside will never be the same. She asks, what happened? and he says, remember how he told her that he found his father, but didn’t know how his father would take it? Now he knows and it’s out in the open. Tracy asks who the proud papa is, and he says, Mac Scorpio. She says, wow, and he says he wouldn’t call Mac proud. She says, he didn’t take it well? and he says he’s glad he told Mac on Independence Day since it looks like he’s going to be independent forever.

Kristina says, Nina is the most media savvy person they know, and they’d like her to coach them and give them advice. Blaze says, they need to get it right, and Kristina says, they have so much riding on it, but Brook thinks it will make a big difference. Blaze says, one mistake, and the revival of her career is gone.

Brook says, Natalia made the calls. Now let her and Blaze forge a new path that lets Blaze be seen and heard. Sonny says he trusts her, and Natalia says, Linc Brown taught her one hell of a lesson. She made a promise never to let a third-party control Blaze’s career again. It didn’t matter how great the were. The business is cutthroat and there’s only one person you can trust – yourself.

Jason tells Carly that when he first came back, it wasn’t like he was coming home. He was a military contractor in town to do a job under orders. She says, now he gets to be himself and pick up the life he had, but he says he made that mistake before. Not again. When he was gone before and came back, he couldn’t see it at the time. He couldn’t go back to his old life any more than he could go back in time. He got back together with Sam, and it wasn’t fair to her, Scout, and Danny. All he did was put them through a breakup. Sam had changed and so had he.

Chase tells Dex that his dad was an academic. He liked the law as a concept, but had zero interest in enforcing it. Dex asks how he felt about Chase becoming a cop, and Chase says, he was all for it and told Chase that he’d be a good cop. Dex says, he was right, and Chase says, his dad encouraged him to figure out what he wanted, and he was supportive and comforting, not smothering. Now that he doesn’t have his dad… Sorry. Dex says, he has nothing to be sorry for, and Chase says he knew he’d be sad, but not like this. Dex says, Chase’s father hasn’t been gone that long. Grieving takes time. Give himself some. Chase says, he had nothing but respect for his dad, and Dex says he wishes he felt that way about anyone in his family. Chase asks why he doesn’t.

Tracy says she’s sorry it didn’t go as Cody had hoped. What happens now that he ignored the gas fire and the inferno swept through the countryside and is smoldering? He says, normally, he’d pull up stakes, move on, and not look back, but he promised Maxie and Sasha that he wouldn’t. They’ve been good to him. So has she. She says, she’s not just his friend. She’s his employer and she’s going to share one of her famous lists with him. No severance, no health insurance, and no recommendation if he dares leave without giving her a 30-day notice.

Nina says she’d be happy to help, and Kristina says, Blaze has done interviews before, but not like this. They were micromanaged by her mother. Nina suggests they take some deep breaths. All they have to do is be themselves. They’re wonderful, and need to show the public, like they did Adrian, that they’re human beings. Blaze says, it’s not that simple, and Nina says, nothing is, especially family. They’re imperfect and difficult. This is a chance to show everyone that they’re doing the best they can, just like everyone else.

Natalia says she trusted her own instincts and created a media disaster. She doesn’t completely trust Brook, but she and Sonny have done more to earn her respect than anyone else in this town. It’s time she trusted her daughter, so if Allison agrees to the terms, they have a deal.

Carly says, Sam’s been hard on Jason, but he says he doesn’t blame her. He’s disappeared twice. They have a son together, and nothing has worked out the way Sam expected. That’s why it was so easy with Britt; she had no expectations. Carly says she was so jealous of Britt. She knew Jason was falling in love with her and didn’t want him to love anyone but her. (Ugh. The part of Carly that I hate.) He says, it was different, but she says she still didn’t like it. Then Britt died saving Josslyn’s life. He says he heard that, and she says, now when she thinks of Britt Westbourne, she’s forever grateful.

Dex tells Chase that he wasn’t close with his family. If his father had a dream for him, he had no intention of fulfilling it. Not having a close family, he had no one to look up to or emulate, and no one to rebel against. He wanted to get away and create a life opposite of what he had growing up. He went into the military, and it felt right, like he was finally doing what he was supposed to. Chase asks if he’s sorry he left the army, and Dex says, not anymore. Since joining the force, it feels right again. It feels like home. Chase says, he’s going to be a good cop, and they leave together.

Nina tells Blaze and Kristina, you can be a superstar, but no one has the right to treat you like an object. She won’t let them be a casualty of that kind of thinking. Their media training starts tomorrow… She sees their faces, and says, or she can offer them tea and coffee from room service, and they can start now.  

Tracy says, it never occurred to her to run, although she should have numerous times at the altar. Cody tells her that she should try it sometime. It’s freeing. She says, it’s avoiding, and he should break the habit. He doesn’t look like he’s excited about being free. Every time something calamitous happens in her life, she comes home, and as soon as she gets here, she starts complaining. It just makes her feel that family is more comfortable. He says, maybe he’ll give it a shot, and she asks if his answer is yes. He says he’ll definitely try it her way… if he ever has a family and home to come back to. She asks, what makes him think he doesn’t? and he says, on paper he has one, but Mac doesn’t want anything to do with him. Tracy looks toward the door and says, oh no. Cody says, what are you doing here?

Sonny says, it’s going to be great. While they deal with the music, he’ll make sure Ava gets what’s coming to her. Brook, Sonny, and Natalia clink glasses, but Brook looks worried.

Carly says, if Jason isn’t going back to his old life, what does his new life look like? and he says he doesn’t know. She says he could run security for her hotel, but he says he doesn’t need a job. He has the coffee business. She says, Sonny owns other half and turned his back on Jason. Jason says, because he doesn’t know what happened. Now he can tell Sonny. She asks, what if he won’t listen? and he says, there’s got to be a way to get through to Sonny. He’s in more trouble than he knows.

Tomorrow, James tells Maxie that something weird is going on; Sasha tells Cody not to overreact; and Jason tells Carly that he has to get Sonny to let him back in.

🌻 Opening Up…

She’s a trail blazer and definitely deserves to have her birthday wishes come true.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/ghs-cassandra-james-opens-up-on-her-birthday

🍊 Orange You Glad They’re Back…

Gina put on her realtor hat and vouched for Jen so Jen could rent a place, but oops, bad idea. Jen skated on the rent and got evicted. Worse still, Jen couldn’t see why this was an issue for Gina. WTF? over and over.

A focus on dos amigas.

https://people.com/rhoc-recap-tamra-judge-says-shannon-beador-not-a-good-person-after-dui-arrest-8680557

💎 Because He Got High…

So I guess this means it’s really over? I feel badly for the kids, but this is what can happen if you get married when you’re a kid. I don’t think it had anything to do with the show. I’m not sure he even knew they were on one.

🍸 VanderBoot…

Looks like Sandoval has put the final nail in the VanderCoffin. There’s no going back now.

Speaking of lawsuits. Their no good very bad day.

🎈 VanderFringes…

All I can say is, ewwwwww!

⚰️ Coming To a Stream Near You…

Netflix will be absorbing a lot of Dead.

https://www.msn.com/en-my/tv/news/interview-with-the-vampire-the-walking-dead-spinoffs-head-to-netflix-in-branded-amc-deal/ar-BB1q6iE9

🐩 Inspired By Fame…

This might be a bit of old news, but it’s not every day you see a Chinese Crested dressed as Colman Domingo.

👖 Traveling With My Pants…

Start your weekend tomorrow with some soap, both useless and useful knowledge, and a song. Until then, stay safe, stay coloring inside and outside the lines, and stay having principles and living them.