Tag Archives: Teddi Mellencamp

July 29, 2021 – Dead Or Alive, Nixon Falls Debunk, She Doesn’t Care, Bad Week In BH, Jill’s Battle, New Miami, a Joke, It’s Over, Another Story, Renewed, Nominated, Goodbye Ron & Somewhere

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Cameron opens the door to Josslyn, and invites her in, saying he’s just got to get his keys. They start to kiss, when Elizabeth walks in. She says, sorry. She didn’t mean to interrupt.

Ava and Trina go to the pool (🍷), and Trina says this is their second time working remotely. Is Ava sure she can keep the gallery closed this much? Ava says, if someone needs her, they can call her. Besides, before she knows it, Trina is going to be off at PCU. She should take every opportunity to enjoy this time with friends. Spencer appears, and says he couldn’t agree more.

Sam sits down with Nikolas at the MetroCourt, and says her mom told her that he came to visit at Spring Ridge. What did he think? He says, it’s not bad for a minimum security prison. The facilities are imminently better than Pentenville. They focus less on incarceration and more on rehabilitation. On the whole, he thinks it’s better for Alexis. She says, but…? and he says, Ryan Chamberlain is currently being housed there.

Olivia asks who’s going to help her decorate, and Brook says, Valentin can’t. He’s missing Bailey’s feeding for an important meeting. Valentin says he thought she’d enjoy spending time alone with their daughter. He finds his phone in the couch cushions, and asks if it wouldn’t be too much trouble for Wiley not to play with it. Brook says, ask Michael or Willow; not her kid, not her problem. He rushes to the door, and Olivia asks if they can expect him for Wiley’s birthday party. He says he wouldn’t miss it for the world. He tells Bailey not to miss daddy too much, and jets.

In the foyer, a wrapped gift tumbles off of Chase’s lap. Valentin picks it up, and says, please tell him this isn’t another toy for Wiley. Between Olivia, Michael, and Willow, they have that area covered. Chase says, Willow told him to only bring himself, but Wiley’s his stepson; he didn’t want to show up empty handed. Valentin says he owes Chase an apology.

Anna looks at a picture of her and Finn on her phone, when there’s a knock at the door. She lets Dante in, and he asks why she’s holding out on him. She says she’s not, but he says he thought they were sharing their information into Peter’s disappearance. What changed?

Chase asks what Valentin has to apologize for, and Valentin says he’s the reason Peter was raised by his father, Cesar Faison. He turned a blind eye to Peter’s worst traits, and was slow to react. He didn’t do anything until it was too late. Chase says, there’s a lot Valentin should be sorry for, but putting him in this chair isn’t one of them. Only Peter is responsible for Peter. Valentin says Chase is a kind man, and thanks Chase for his willingness to let him off the hook. Chase says, almost dying had its good points. It sped up his relationship with Willow. Valentin says, that’s amazing, and congratulates Chase on his marriage. Chase thanks him, and says he’s just waiting until he can get out of this chair and be Willow’s husband in every sense of the word. Valentin tells him, they say attitude is everything. He has no doubt Chase’s positive attitude will work wonders in his life. Just know that he deeply regrets his part in the collateral damage left in Peter’s wake. He leaves.

Anna says she just saw Dante yesterday. If she found out anything more, she would have told him. He says, just like she told him that she and Finn were going to be in the subbasement? She says, it was a spur of the moment thing. It was a long shot. She didn’t know when they went down there that it was a legitimate lead. Did he hear anything from forensics? He says, they’ve been working through the night, picking up partial prints. Mostly unusable. She asks if there are any fingerprints or DNA that will help them identify Peter’s companion, and he says, blood mostly, in the corridors and elevator. (So no one noticed that on their way down?) All belonging to Peter. She asks if it’s a droplet or smear pattern, and he says, droplets. She says, that means Peter wasn’t dragged, and he says, it means Peter was carried out of there, or walked out under his own power. Either way, it means Peter is still out there.

Elizabeth tells Josslyn, good morning, and Josslyn returns the greeting, saying she’ll meet Cameron at the pool (🍷). She leaves, and Cameron says, so he and Josslyn are kind of together. Elizabeth says, kind of? They looked pretty together to her. He asks if she’s mad, and she laughs, saying, no. Josslyn’s a sweet girl. She’s been a good friend to him, and they’ve known each other forever. She’s glad they have each other. He says, him too. He’s sorry about not telling her sooner. He wasn’t intentionally keeping it from her. He guesses he’s kind of used to going to Franco with these kinds of things. Elizabeth hugs him.

Brook says, once again, Olivia is criticizing her mothering skills, but Olivia says, once again, Brook is getting defensive over nothing. She’s giving Brook a compliment. Brook is always putting down her own mothering skills, and she’s trying to tell Brook the opposite. She’s a amazing; she’s a natural. It reminded her that she trusted Brook with Leo as a newborn. She’d forgotten how good Brook was with babies. Brook says she guesses she keeps forgetting too, and Olivia says she knows firsthand that Brook has this amazing love and selflessness. Now with her own baby, she thinks Brook is being generous with Valentin because she’s afraid to let herself feel that overpowering mother love. Brook guesses she never thought of it that way. Valentin is so good with the baby, she figured why wouldn’t she support that? Olivia says, it’s okay to be vulnerable. To let herself love this baby. That tough shell of hers, the baby already cracked it.

Spencer says he’s a firm believer in friends enjoying themselves, and Trina says, old friends or new? He says, it’s always more interesting hanging out with new friends, don’t you think? Ava says she wasn’t aware that Trina and Spencer knew each other. Until the other day when Spencer exposed Trina trying to get her and Nikolas back together. Parent Trapping, she thinks he called it. Trina says she shouldn’t have gotten involved, and Spencer says it was his fault too. He and Trina learned a valuable lesson – to stay out of other people’s business. Ava says she hopes he means that, and he says he does. He’s sorry she didn’t bring Avery with her; he would have loved to say hello. Oh, he’s sorry. Is she still living with Aunt Carly? Ava tells Trina to order whatever she wants from the bar, as long as it’s non-alcoholic; her treat. She’s going to order herself a very bloody Mary. Have fun. Trina thanks her, and Ava leaves. Spencer says, that was generous of Ava, and Trina says he seems surprised. Ava’s actually been a good friend to her, and she thinks she knows how to be one to Ava. He asks, how? and she says, by finding out who’s been stalking her and Nikolas.

Sam says her mother didn’t tell her that she was in the same facility as Ryan, and Nikolas says she probably didn’t want to worry Sam. She says, but he did? and he says, there’s nothing to worry about. Ryan can’t move, he can’t talk. He’s not a danger to Alexis or anyone else. She says she’s not buying anything about that raging psychopath, and Nikolas says he parked Ryan in a corner, literally, and he couldn’t so much as twitch in protest. All he could do was blink. She tells him, she’s sorry to say this, but she thinks Ryan is capable of fooling anyone, including Nikolas and his doctors. He says, whether it’s Ryan or not, he and Ava are getting divorced, since it’s what the stalker seems to want. She says, but getting a divorce wouldn’t be his first choice? and he says, it’s not his choice. The stalker proved he could get to Avery, and that was it for Ava. It’s a line she won’t cross. How can he blame her? Enough about him. What’s going on with her? She says she’s working a case, and it’s kind of a secret that Shawn didn’t shoot Hayden. He hired her to find out who did, and that’s why she tracked him to the MetroCourt. Because Nikolas is going to help her find him.

Brook says, listen, kid, you’re cute, but she thinks it’s better if they keep their arrangement strictly professional. She knows Bailey can’t do that with her daddy, since he doesn’t know she’s not really his. Does she feel guilty about it? Yes, because Valentin turned out to be a really good father. He’s a pretty decent guy too, but no. She’s sorry to be the one to tell Bailey this, but her biological father is a wall-crawling psycho. So it’s actually much healthier for her to bond with Valentin. He’ll protect her regardless, but it doesn’t hurt that he absolutely adores her. She places Bailey in the bassinette, and says between the two of them, she thinks it’s better if neither one of them gets too comfortable. So save her adoring eyes for her real mother. Chase wheels in, and says, real mother? What does she mean by that?

Elizabeth says she’s sorry Cameron doesn’t have Franco to talk to anymore, but he’d be thrilled that Cameron and Josslyn are together. He always just wanted to see Cameron happy. Cameron thinks so too, and She says, it’s tough, isn’t it? Getting used to not having him around. Sometimes when she has a difficult day at work, she comes home and thinks she can’t wait to tell Franco about it. Cameron says she can always talk to him, and she says he can always talk to her. He thanks her and says he’ll see her later. Before he leaves, he tells her that Franco would want them all to be happy. Elizabeth flashes back to walking in the park with Finn, and telling him, the last thing she wants is for him to turn himself in to protect her, and him saying, the last thing he wants is for her to be implicated. She tells Cameron that she has some things to work through first; nothing he needs to worry about. She promises she’ll be as happy as Franco would want her to be. He says, good, and leaves.

Dante asks if Anna is expecting someone. She seemed surprised to see him. She says, Valentin. He wants to bring Peter in as much as they do. He guesses who she decides to collaborate with, is up to her, and she says, yes, it is. He says, Valentin doesn’t have the most assuring track record, but she says she thinks he’s changed. He says, people don’t change. Valentin is out for himself, no matter who gets in the way. She says she’ll take it under advisement, and Dante opens the door. Valentin is there, and asks if Dante has found Peter. Dante says, not yet; has he? Valentin says, not yet, and Dante leaves. Valentin asks Anna if they were exchanging information, and she says, not over this.

Sam tells Nikolas, Hayden visited Shawn while he was in prison, and indicated she might know the identity of her shooter, but she left Port Charles before Shawn could press her for any information. He says, the first time she left? Months after the shooting? Sam says, correct, and he says, then he can’t help her. She says he was married to Hayden, and he says, operative word being was. Their relationship was complicated to put it mildly. Technically, they were still married when he was presumed dead. She says, is that what he’s calling it? He says, how about when Valentin tried to kill him, he chose to go into hiding? and she says, for three years. He says, then he decided to take back his life. He contacted Hayden, and she and Jax worked with him to reclaim what was rightfully his, and he intended on cutting her in on a share of the proceeds, but she took off because she was afraid of Valentin. She says, leaving Violet with Finn. Finn told her that Hayden hasn’t been in contact with Violet at all. Nikolas says he tried to track Hayden down, but it was like she disappeared in a black hole. Sam says they tried to contact Hayden’s mother, Naomi Dreyfuss, hoping she could steer them in the right direction, but they hit a wall there. Can he do her a favor, and if he can find out any information on Hayden, will he let her know? He says, of course (🍷). He sees Ava go to the bar, and says, just remember, Hayden made toxic friends and questionable choices. His advice to Sam and Shawn is, stop looking for her, unless Sam wants trouble on her doorstep. Now if she’ll excuse him…

Trina reads a magazine, and Spencer clears his throat to get her attention. She says, he’s still here? and he asks if he may join her. She says, it’s a free country, and he gets on the lounge chair next to hers. He wonders what they should charge to Ava’s tab first. Does a virgin pina colada sound good? How about a Mai Tai minus the rum? She says she doesn’t think he was included in her tab. Besides, can’t Cassadines buy their own drinks? He says, a Cassadine cannot only buy his own drinks, he can supply them, along with a castle and a state of the art sound system. She asks if that’s an invitation, and he asks if she’s accepting. Josslyn comes by, and says, accepting what? Trina says Spencer if offering to throw them a party. Spencer looks pretty surprised.

Nikolas tells the bartender to put Ava’s drink on his tab. He asks if she shouldn’t be swimming in the pool (🍷) instead of a bloody Mary, and she says, the pool (🍷) bar doesn’t serve booze before noon. He shouldn’t be seen with her; their stalker could be watching. He asks if that’s what has her so upset, and she says she was just reminded she can’t be with her daughter until they’re divorced. He says he’s sorry. Does it help that he saw Ryan? She says, when? and he says, he visited Alexis in Spring Ridge. Ryan is staying in the same facility. She asks why he didn’t tell her sooner, and he says, because there was nothing to tell. Ryan’s condition is unchanged; he’s completely locked in. Nikolas doesn’t see how Ryan could be stalking anyone, or even communicating to anyone to carry out his orders. She says, if that’s true, it really just makes things worse. They have no idea who’s terrorizing them, just that they’re as sick as Ryan, and their anonymity makes them even more dangerous.

Josslyn says it’s so nice of Spencer to throw them a party, and Trina asks if they’re going to have a photo booth. Josslyn adds, a DJ and a full-lighting package. He says, slow down, he hasn’t agreed to anything, and Trina says, so much for making it up to her. Cameron joins them, and asks what Spencer has to make up for now. Trina says, first he sabotages her plan to get Ava and Nikolas back together, then he offers to throw a party to make amends. Now he’s backing out of that party. Cameron says, dude, you’ve got to throw that party. He thought Spencer was the guy with no limits. Didn’t he rent that yacht that time in I-biza. Spencer says, first, it’s pronounced I-bi-za, and Cameron says, sorry, he doesn’t know what he was thinking, and Spencer says, second, he’s not backing out of anything. Whatever the lady wants, the lady gets.

Olivia opens the door to Dante, holding a bottle of glitter. He says, that’s a lot of glitter. She has glitter in her hair too. (Take care of kids long enough, you’ll grow to hate glitter. And Play-Doh.) She lets him in, saying, Charlotte thought it would be a good idea to make Wiley a birthday card out of glitter. Rocco may have thought it would be a better idea to throw glitter all over the backyard. He says, and all over her? and she says she’s glad the boys are good friends. They’re very happy. Charlotte, not so much. Rocco told her that Dante is taking him to see Lulu in the next couple days. Dante says, that’s the plan, and she says, that’s good. Rocco should be seeing his mom. He says, why does he get the feeling she’s going to tell him something he doesn’t want to hear?

Brook says Chase could give a girl a heart attack, sneaking up on her like that, and he asks why she’s telling her daughter that she’s not her real mother? She says because she doesn’t feel like Bailey’s real mother, and he says he’s no expert on babies, but he thinks she’s selling herself short. He thinks she is a real mother to Bailey. He was her roommate. He’s seen firsthand how fiercely devoted she is to the people she cares about.

Valentin asks if Anna’s seen Finn, and she says she did. He says, and? and she says, it was him. He was on the roof with Peter. He says he’s so sorry, and she says, it is what it is. She just has to figure out a way to protect him. He asks why Finn needs protecting. What’s going on? What happened on that roof? She says, Finn pushed Peter, and he fell down the stairs. Finn is convinced he’s dead.

Elizabeth opens the door, and says, well, this is a surprise. Sam walks in, and Elizabeth asks if she brought more of Jason’s stuff to burn. She thinks they both needed to blow off some steam after hearing Jason and Carly were engaged, and asks if Dante is giving Sam a hard time. Sam flashes back to Dante kissing her, and says, it turned out all right at the end. Elizabeth asks what brings Sam by, and Sam says she needs to find Elizabeth’s sister Hayden.

Anna tells Valentin, Finn confronted Peter on the roof when Peter was waiting for the helicopter. He begged Peter for the antidote, but Peter refused, and chose to toss the vial off the roof, which infuriated Finn. Finn lost it, and shoved Peter, who fell down the stairs, smashing his head open in the process. By the time Finn got to him on the landing, he checked for a pulse, but there wasn’t one. At that point, it was more important for him to save Chase, so he took Peter’s body and deposited it in an abandoned lab in the subbasement. Valentin says, Helena’s lab, and she says, yes. He put Peter’s body in a freezer. Valentin says, by himself? and she says, he was vague about that. Valentin says, meaning he had help, and she says, possibly… probably, but he refuses to admit it. But listen, this is the important part. He put Peter’s body in the freezer because he couldn’t figure out a safe way to move it. Finn took her there yesterday to show her the body, but the body’s gone. There was no sign of Peter. Valentin says, dead or alive, and she says, that’s the million dollar question. The PCPD found traces of Peter’s blood in the lab, the elevator, and the access corridors, but it’s not clear if the body was carried out there. He says, or Peter walked out. Does Dante know? She says, just that Peter’s missing and hurt. He found a lot of blood. Obviously, the PCPD doesn’t know about Finn’s connection to any of this. Jordan said she wants to put most of her attention on the other person on the roof with Peter, which is concerning. All they’ve proven is, dead or alive, Peter was removed from the freezer.

Brook tells Chase, this whole baby thing has her rattled. She was fine when Olivia gave her Leo to take care of. Here, she feels like she’s under a microscope. He says, lots of people under one roof, telling her how to raise her baby? and she says, and not enough space to get this mothering thing right. Although, shock of all shocks, Olivia told her that she’s doing a good job. He says, if anyone can sense someone going through the motions, it’s Olivia. He wishes he could say the same for himself. She asks what he’s talking about, and he says, going through the motions. He feels like he’s putting on a front for Willow. It’s like he’s this optimistic guy who thinks he’s going to jump out of the chair any day. She says, he will, and he says he’s trying. He’s grateful to the Quartermaines for asking him back to stay in the house. She says, they’re putting up Valentin; you’re easy-peasy. He says, it’s the perfect situation for him. The house has wheelchair access because of Lila, and Willow is just down the driveway. What more could he ask for? She says, to walk, and he says, yeah, that. It’s like he’s faking it or bluffing, until one day he miraculously wakes up and feels like Willow’s husband. Brook says, meanwhile, thanks to Nelle and her scissors of doom, she can’t even sing Bailey a lullaby. He says, maybe he can help with that. Can he hold Bailey? She says, of course (🍷), and gives the baby to Chase. He tells Bailey that when his mom wanted him to sleep, she’d sing him this son. He sings Lullaby and Goodnight, and I die laughing because Bailey makes a ton of faces, like she might cry, but then this is cool, then, no it’s not. I think we might have another Wiley on our hands.   

Olivia says every time Dante sees Lulu in that facility, it costs him. Don’t get her wrong. She’s thrilled that he’s back at the PCPD, being a detective, but a job does not equal a life. He says, Lulu was his life. Now he barely has a legal right to see. Thankfully, Laura allows him too. Olivia says, of course (🍷) she does, and he says, the point is, he’s the one who wanted the divorce. She says, and he’s been beating himself up about it for months, but it seemed like he’d been lightening up lately, cutting himself some slack. She wonders if it has something to do with Sam.

Elisabeth tells Sam, so Shawn was framed for Hayden’s shooting. The judge who sentenced him is being investigated for racial bias, and now Shawn’s been released, and the governor commuted his sentence to time served. Sam says, that’s pretty much it, and now that the truth is out, whoever framed Shawn could pose a danger to Hayden. She knows Elizabeth and Hayden weren’t friends at the time… Elizabeth says, they didn’t even know they were sisters, and Sam says, but they eventually became closer. If maybe there’s some information Hayden told her that she didn’t think was important at the time, but is now. Anything that could help them figure out who shot her sister. Elizabeth remembers asking someone if they were behind it.  

Spencer asks if Trina wants something to drink or eat. He’ll put it on the Cassadine tab. She can save Ava’s offer for another time. She says she’s good, thanks, and he gets up. She follows and calls to him, and he asks if she changed her mind. She says, yes, about the party at Windymere. If he thinks his dad won’t approve, don’t have it. She and Josslyn kind of forced him anyway. He thanks her, and she says she knows things are just getting back on track with him and his dad. She doesn’t want to spoil that. He tells her, just get ready, and she says, for what? He says, for the biggest rager Port Charles has ever seen.

Ava walks to a private area with Nikolas, and says, until they figure out who the stalker is threatening them and Avery, there’s no future for them. He tells her, don’t say that, please, and she says, don’t make this more difficult. He says he didn’t mean to. Doesn’t she know, there’s nothing he wants to do more than make her feel safe, and she says she does know that, but she hates to see him hurting too. He hugs her, and she hugs back.

Valentin says they’ve got to find Peter before the PCPD does, and before he hurts anyone else. She says, but they don’t know if he’s alive or dead. Finn is convinced he’s dead. Valentin tells her that he’s saying this as delicately as he can. He’s not emotionally attached to Finn like she is. He doesn’t have to give him the benefit of the doubt. She asks where they go from there. She’s lying by omission to Dante and Jordan. He says, there are two possible scenarios. Peter is dead, and somebody moved the body, or he’s alive. And he’s hiding. And we’ve got problems. And he thinks it’s more likely Peter’s alive.

Brook says, Bailey is sleeping like, well, a baby, and Chase says his singing put her to sleep. Would she mind telling Willow that? He can’t help but feel this version of him isn’t enough for Willow. She says, any woman would be lucky to have him, and he says, Bailey is lucky to have her as a mom. He sees the way Bailey looks at her, and the way she looks at Bailey. He knows he’s not a parent, but going all in on loving your child, that’s half the battle.

Dante says he and Olivia talked about this. He and Sam are just friends. And barely that after she threw them both in the harbor on the 4th. She says, you see? This is what she’s talking about; that spark. He says he doesn’t know what she’s talking about, and calls for Rocco. She says he’s smiling, and he’s laughing. He even made spontaneous brags about the Yankees. He’s got such an amazing capacity to embrace life. Maybe it has something to do with Sam, maybe not, but she knows if Lulu was there, she would want him to stop moping around. She’d want him to live his life. He says he’s trying to be in the present moment as much as he can, but it’s really tough. Maybe he does have to start thinking about letting go of Lulu. Olivia says, so she’s right? and he says, as much as it pains him to say it, she is.  

Sam asks if Elizabeth can think of anything Hayden told her that could be relevant, but Elizabeth says, no. She can’t think of anything. She’s just trying to process what Sam told her. Sam says, Shawn seemed convinced Hayden knew who was behind her attempted murder, and Elizabeth says, Hayden didn’t talk to her about that, but there were a lot of things they didn’t talk about. She changed a lot when she became a mother. Everything she did was for Violet. She was loving and committed. That’s why it still doesn’t make sense that she’d disappear leave Violet behind. Sam says, maybe she disappeared to protect Violet, and Elizabeth says, or something happened, and she can’t come back.

Josslyn asks if Trina and Spencer were finalizing the details of the party. She and Cameron sit down, and Trina says she let Spencer off the hook, but he’s not having it. He swears it’s going to be an epic party. Cameron says, don’t get your hopes too high. Sometimes Spencer doesn’t deliver what he promises. Trina asks if Cameron is saying Spencer is a liar, and Josslyn says, more of a compulsive exaggerator. Spencer is capable of incredible things, but he thinks he needs to be all incredible all the time. Sometimes to the point of being obnoxious. Trina asks if they’re warning her away from Spencer.

Ava says she misses Nikolas, and she misses Avery. We see Spencer slipping around to watch them, and Nikolas says, him too.

Alone again with the baby, Brook tells Bailey that she’s trying not to get attached. Bailey is Maxie’s daughter, not hers. But Bailey is growing on her. Who wouldn’t fall in love with a face like hers? Already a ham, Bailey faces the camera instead of Brook.

Dante runs out of the house, yelling to Rocco, no glitter on your person. Get it off before he gets in the car. He gives Olivia a kiss on the cheek, and she tells him, come back if he needs advice. He says he knows where to go if he wants to talk, but he’s good for now. He only has one thing to say about Sam – butt out. He leaves, and Olivia smiles.  

Sam tells Elizabeth that she’s sorry if this dredged up painful memories for her. If she learns where Hayden is, Elizabeth will be her first call. Elizabeth thanks her, and Sam says, of course (🍷). As soon as Elizabeth closes the door, she gets out her phone, and calls Nikolas. She tells him that he needs to come over right away. They need to talk about Hayden. He says, what about her? and Elizabeth says, about what he did to her.

Josslyn says she’s not warning Trina away from Spencer, and Cameron says, although it actually might be a good idea. Josslyn says, she has a non-interference clause when it comes to getting involved in other people’s relationships, or lack thereof. If Trina wants to be with Spencer, or Victor, or someone else, or nobody at all, she’s there to support not judge. Trina thanks her, and Cameron says, besides, he and Josslyn are still figuring things out for themselves. Trina asks what there is to figure out, and Josslyn says, for one thing, Cameron’s mom walked in on them, and Trina says, embarrassing. Cameron says, very, but his mom was actually pretty chill about it. Trina says, lucky him. She would sink through the floor if her mother caught her kissing a guy.

Spencer sees Ava drying her tears, and asks if everything is okay. She asks what he wants, and he says he guesses he deserves her suspicion. He wasn’t very subtle in his anger toward her. She says she knows he has his reasons. She knows he needed her to testify to help him with Valentin. And when his father came home, she practically blackmailed him into marrying her. He says, no one’s perfect, and she says, certainly neither of them. He says, since he’s been home, he’s seen how much his father loves her, and she loves him. Does she think they can put the past behind them, and start fresh? Isi t possible for them to declare a truce? He holds out his hand.

Anna asks why Valentin believes Peter survived, and he says, who made off with the body? What’s the point? Unless Finn has some unknown ally ready to cover for him. This is Peter they’re talking about. He’s not the first dead man to get up and walk away in Port Charles (ha-ha!). And now he’s had weeks to go underground and cover his tracks. She says, that makes sense. She can’t help hoping he’s dead. He says he knows, and she says it would just be a relief to know she’s not the one who had to kill him. Valentin says, that’s how they’re different. He’s ready to kill Peter himself. He wants Peter dead, and buried, and no longer a threat to anyone he loves.

Tomorrow, Brook tells Valentin to back off, Elizabeth says Nikolas had Hayden shot, and Austin asks Chase if he needs to watch his back.

🏡 No Break Needed…

The mobster with a heart of gold, and faulty memory, sets the record straight.

👠 Zero F***s…

Erika doesn’t care who believes her, but if you call her a liar, she’ll come for you. A woman of contradictions.

https://pagesix.com/2021/07/22/erika-jayne-i-dont-care-if-rhobh-co-stars-believe-me/

Erika’s recap of Tom’s accident.

https://pagesix.com/2021/07/21/erika-jayne-says-tom-girardi-was-unconscious-after-car-crash/

🐝 Instant Karma…

Is it just bad luck, or is what came around, going around?

https://people.com/tv/rhobh-kyle-richards-hospitalized-bee-stings-teddi-mellencamp-vertigo-injuries/

💰 Mall Of Shame…

One step further from her dream of being the friend of a friend of a friend of one of The Real Housewives of NYC.

https://pagesix.com/2021/07/21/jill-zarin-in-hideously-unglamorous-court-battle-over-a-midwestern-rite-aid/

🌴 Miami, Here We Come…

They’re back, and filming in the Hamptons.

https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/the-real-housewives-of-miami-filming-montauk

https://pagesix.com/2021/07/15/real-housewives-of-miami-seen-filming-with-new-faces/

🗽 Sooo Funny…

Although now that she mentions it, I think they should do a season where some of the Wives switch places.

https://pagesix.com/2021/07/13/rhod-star-tiffany-moon-jokes-about-replacing-ramona-singer/

🍗 But I Liked Him…

Apparently, Metul wasn’t all he was cracked up to be. I’m so disappointed. He introduced me to butter chicken.

https://screenrant.com/southern-charm-naomie-olindo-ex-boyfriend-metul-shah/

🤡 Love To Hate Him…

John Carroll Lynch talks about his latest AHS spin-off role.

https://ew.com/tv/john-carroll-lynch-american-horror-stories-drive-in-interview/

🦌 Sweet Renewal…

I loved the first season of this show, and was hoping for another.

https://comicbook.com/news/netflix-sweet-tooth-renewed-season-2/

🏆 Nominations To Love…

This was a great show, and definitely deserving. What a shame HBO didn’t give them a season two.

https://www.purewow.com/entertainment/lovecraft-country-emmy-awards

⚙️ But Wait, There’s No More…

The grandaddy of infomercials has gone to that great Bass-O-Matic in the sky.

https://nypost.com/2021/07/28/ron-popeil-set-it-and-forget-it-infomercial-star-dead-at-86/

🌜 TGIAlmostF…

Due to Million Dollar Listing New York only being shown at 8 tonight (why? who knows? ), I’ll post it tomorrow. Until then, stay safe, stay peculiar in a good way, and stay enjoying time with friends, both old and new.

October 28, 2020 – Dante Gives Michael a Brotherly Lecture, Shannon Has a Party, Elizabeth Rechristened, Charm’s Here, News Of the South, Not All In, a Picture Show To Remember & Big Bad

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

At the vending machine, Franco apologizes to Epiphany, saying, he didn’t realize she was waiting. He had a hard time making a decision. She looks at the machine, and says, did he just take the last chocolate bar? He says, did he? and she says she’s just spent the last solid eight hours in pencil pushing hell. The only thing that made it bearable was knowing there was a chocolate bar waiting, and he seized the last one. He asks if she wants half, and she says she wants satisfaction. She wants justice. She wants her old job back. Cyrus appears, and says that’s not all she’ll get with that attitude.

Chase finds Brook at The Floating Rib, and he says he’s been looking for her. She congratulates him, adding, he found her. She’s alone; no Valentin. She’ll be out of his hair soon, and he can go back to his awesome life. He says, clearly, she’s never looked in his underwear drawer. She asks why she would do that, and he says she’d see there aren’t any G-strings.  

Michael punches the heavy bag, and thinks about Willow. Dante asks what he’s angry about, but Michael says he’s just letting off steam. Dante says he thought Michael was going to town on the bag because he couldn’t stand the thought of losing Willow.

Elizabeth runs into Willow at the hospital, and says, it’s been a while. Willow says she was given time off for the custody hearing, and Elizabeth tells her, congratulations. She asks if Willow is back at work, but Willow says, actually, she was notified that they don’t need a full-time teacher, so she’s looking at her next step. She shows Elizabeth a booklet, and Elizabeth says she’s applying for the nurse’s training program. Willow says she’s fortunate to have the option. It’s one way her life has never been better. Mostly. Things are going so well, she and Michael are getting an annulment.

Carly is hugging Jax, when Nina and Sasha walk in. Carly tells Nina, just the person she needed to see. Nina says she’s surprised to see Carly, and tells Jax that she’s sorry she had to abandon him, but glad to see he has company. He asks how it went with Curtis, and she says Curtis has a new lead, and she’s a step closer to finding her child. Jax says, congratulations, and Carly says she didn’t know the search was back on. Nina says she didn’t broadcast it. Sasha says Nina has company, and it’s been a helluva day. She’s going to take off. Nina says she’s not, since she’s not feeling well.   

Ava sees a romantic table set, and smells a rose. There’s a storm going on, and Nikolas is on the terrace. She joins him, and he says he sees she got his message. She says, it’s lovely, and stormy. Tell her why he lured her out there. We see Ava has a knife behind her back, and Nikolas says he didn’t lure her out. He invited her. She says he’s not the first person to invite her out there. She’s sure he remembers what happened; he witnessed it firsthand. He says, he did. Then he saved her life. She says, then hours later, they were married. It was a whirlwind. He says, that’s one word, and she says, any regrets? He says, hundreds. Her? She says, the same, and he asks what she’s holding behind her back. She says, insurance, and he asks if she thinks he’d go through all this trouble to toss her back in the harbor. She says she thinks it would be a permanent solution to their situation, but he says, believe it or not, he doesn’t want her dead. She says he just wants the family fortune all to himself, and he says, it is his family’s fortune. She says, not to mention Elizabeth.

Brook says Chase wouldn’t know what to do with a G-string if he had a fistful of singles. He says he’s trying to charm her after being a jerk, but she says she gets enough of that from her father. Just because she’s staying with Chase, doesn’t give him the right to weigh in on her life. He says he knows that, and if she’d stop talking, she could hear him. He’s saying he’s sorry.

Nina tells Sasha where the shower is, and says there’s a fluffy robe with her name on it. Take all the time she needs. Sasha says, it sounds great, but… Nina insists, and Sasha goes to the bathroom. Jax asks, what’s wrong with Sasha? and Carly says, she doesn’t look good. Nina says it’s not her place to say, but trust her. She wouldn’t have brought Sasha back if she didn’t think it was absolutely necessary.

Willow tells Elizabeth, she and Michael got married to protect Wiley from Nelle. Nelle isn’t a threat now, so staying married isn’t necessary. Elizabeth asks if Willow will still be a part of Wiley’s life, and Willow says, absolutely. Elizabeth says, if that’s what Willow feels is best, she’s happy for her. It’s no one’s business but theirs. Although sometimes people who have to craziest reasons for getting married, and the marriages you think will crash and burn, are the ones that last.

Michael tells Dante, he’s not losing Willow. They’re going to stay together until the annulment is finalized, and afterwards, they’re going to be co-parents. Dante says it sounds like they have it sorted out, and Michael says they made the decision together. Dante has one question. Did Michael say what he said to Willow because it’s what he wanted, or was it what he thought she wanted to hear?

Cyrus says he’s sorry it took so long to make Franco’s acquaintance, and introduces himself. Franco says he knows who Cyrus is; he saw his picture in the company newsletter. Epiphany adds, and on the news. Franco says Cyrus is a busy fella, and Epiphany says, he is. Firing half the staff and alienating the rest. Cyrus is sorry to hear about the low morale, and promises to bring it up to Britt. Franco says, everyone just wants to be heard, and Cyrus says he has a few minutes if Franco wants to meet with him, but Franco says tonight, some of them go to The Floating Rib. It’s karaoke night. Cyrus says, it sounds fun; he won’t keep Franco from it, but the door is open. He starts to walk away, but Franco says, hold on. How’s his singing voice? Want to be Simon to his Garfunkel?

Nikolas asks where Ava is getting the idea about him and Elizabeth, and she asks if she’s wrong. There must be at least a little something to it. He flashes back to kissing Elizabeth, and he says, in this case something is nothing. She says she knew it, and he says, fine. What he and Elizabeth have goes beyond friendship. In his darkest moments, he’s reached out to her, but it’s because they share a history; not because he wants to be with her. Ava says, that’s the most eloquent rationalization she’s ever heard. He says, look him in the eye, and tell him that she’s never sought out something she’s not getting from their marriage. She thinks back to kissing Franco, and he says he thought so. She tells him, she didn’t say anything, and he says she’s not as good a poker player as she thinks. She says he begged her, trapping her into what she thought was a fairytale romance. He says she asked him to talk about things, and he told her about his feelings. She says, so? What are words? Hot air without the action to back them up. To prove he wants her… He says he has to divorce her. Done.

Cyrus thanks Franco for the kind invitation, but he doesn’t want to infringe on the staff’s private event. Franco says it’s not like they close the place; everyone is welcome. Cyrus says, in that case, he has work to finish up. Perhaps he’ll see them later. He leaves, and Epiphany looks at Franco. He says, what? and she says he’d better run. Run.

Chase tells Brook, sorry for coming on too strong, but she says she’s actually impressed. He almost turned her around. He says, it’s working for him then, and she ask what’s the rest. As long as he’s not going to tell her that he’s kicking her out on the street.

Jax asks if Sasha needs a doctor, but Nina tells him not to push it. It was all she could do to get Sasha there. Carly says she’ll talk to Sasha, and Nina tries to stop her, but she keeps going. Nina tells Jax, even when Carly means well, she’s impossible. He says, she did bring wine, and Nina says, red wine. He says, Carly wanted to apologize for the scene she caused in the cemetery, and Nina says, when she accidentally pushed over Nelle’s gravestone? The only thing Carly is sorry about is Nina caught her

Sasha goes into the bathroom, and takes out her baggie of coke. Carly knocks on the door, and Sasha says she just needs a minute. Carly says, let her in, but Sasha keeps trying to get a hit of coke together using her Amex card. Her hands shake.

Dante says Michael doesn’t want an annulment? and Michael says, if it was up to him, they’d find a way to stay together, and make the marriage real. Make a life together, for Wiley’s sake, but also for themselves. Dante asks if Michael said this to her, and Michael says, of course (🍷) not. Dante says Michael wants to set Willow free from her obligation. He’s an idiot.

Willow tells Elizabeth, after Chase, she can’t think of starting something new. Michael has so much to give that’s going to waste in their so-called marriage. Elizabeth says she’s known Michael a long time. He’s a decent guy. Willow says, for the past few months, she’s been lucky to see that every day; how he is with Wiley and his family. Michael is honorable and kind, and sees the best in people. He should be able to share that with someone. Elizabeth says, it sounds like he already is.

Brook asks Chase to just give her more time, and he says he will. Eventually, she’ll have to find another place though. Brook says, don’t tell her to go back to her father, and Chase tells her not to worry. He was recently reminded that bringing families together by force of will isn’t in his skill set. She thanks him, and says she’ll definitely find a new situation. Not tonight though. She has other plans. He asks what they are, so he can disapprove of them, and I laugh. She shows him a flyer that says, Karaoke Night.   

Dante tells Michael, don’t make life altering decisions based on what you think another person wants. It’s stupid, or at least a disappointment and a regret. It’s not fair to Willow either. Michael asks what he should do, and Dante says, be honest. Tell her how he feels, and let her decide. Don’t think the only decent thing is to separate. Michael says Willow deserves someone to be in love with, and they’re not in love. Dante asks how he knows, and Willow walks in. She asks if she’s interrupting.   

Carly tells Sasha, open up; she’s worried. Sasha pops out, and says, all hers, but Carly says, nice try, and turns Sasha around. She tells Sasha to look in the mirror. Does she really want to go out looking like that? What’s a nice girl like her doing with a face like that? Sasha says she’s not that nice, and Carly says, really? Is she coming down with a cold? Sasha says she’s fine, but Carly says she doesn’t look fine.

Jax tells Nina, he knows how it looks, but he and Carly talked. She had no intention of knocking over Nelle’s headstone. She says he doesn’t have to lobby for Carly anymore. It’s nice that Carly came over with wine – red wine – and she apologized. They never have to speak about Nelle again. Jax is sorry it came to this. It will be a while before Carly stops looking over her shoulder. Nina doesn’t doubt it, and says it’s great Carly has him in her corner. Carly is Josslyn’s mother, and other people might not understand their relationship, but she does. He asks, what other people?

Back at the table, Ava asks what Nikolas is doing. He says, divorcing her. It’s what she said she needs for him to prove he’s not playing her. He lifts a dish cover, and underneath is a rolled up document. He says, voila! takes it off the plate, and tells her, the pages are flagged where she needs to sign. He’s following the conditions of the post-nup to the letter, and relinquishing 90% of the estate to her. Ava asks, what’s the catch? and he says, no catch. She says, of course (🍷) there is. She wonders if it’s some kind of trap, and he says, there is a price. She says, here it comes, and he says she can have everything she asked for – money, property, material things – but she can’t have him.

At The Floating Rib, Franco tells Epiphany that he did a good thing. She says, inviting the devil himself to their safe space? He says, even the devil gets lonely, and Elizabeth suggests he buy them round. She steers Epiphany to a table, and asks, what’s going on with her? Epiphany says, nothing; certainly nothing she wants to bring up at karaoke. Elizabeth asks how much they’ve been through, and how many times they’ve had each other’s backs, and Epiphany says, more times than she can count. Elizabeth says, then tell her, and Epiphany starts cry. She says she and Milo are breaking up, and I make a sad face.

Jax asks Nina what she means by other people. Did someone say something? She says, it’s not important. She wishes they were the only people in the relationship, but Carly will always be a part of his life. When co-parents get along… people talk. He says, all it is, is talk. They’re just two people trying to do the best for their daughter.   

Sasha thanks Carly for her concern, but it doesn’t matter if she’s fine. Carly says she’s wrong, and doesn’t think Michael would agree. Sasha says she went out of her way to make sure her life is none of Michael’s business. Carly says she did it to protect Wiley from Nelle. If Michael knew what she did, the sacrifices she made, and that she was still hurting, he’d have something say. Sasha says, he won’t. Michael finally has Wiley, and Wiley has Michael, and they both have Willow. They’re a family now, and she can’t take that away from them. Even if she could, she wouldn’t, and neither should Carly. She walks out, leaving Carly with her mouth hanging open.

Michael tells Willow that he was in the middle of a brotherly lecture. Dante says he hopes Michael sees the benefit in his wisdom, and takes his advice. Willow says, if it came from Dante, it must be worthwhile, and Dante tells Michael, his wife is a wise woman. Willow says her class is about to start. She took a Ride Share there, and was hoping to go home with him. He says he’s still got to work out, so he can wait. She says she’ll see him later, and leaves. Dante says he rests his case.

Chase says, Brook is going to sing? He thought the doctors said she couldn’t. She says, they told her it was unlikely, not impossible. He says, so she’s going to get up there and see what happens? She says, it can’t hurt to try.

Franco stands at the bar, and Cyrus comes in. He tells Franco, this round is on him.

Elizabeth tells Epiphany that she’s sorry. What happened with Milo? Epiphany says, Milo has been away, traveling and opening gyms for the franchise across the country. They haven’t seen each other in months. Meanwhile, she’s become a paper pusher. Elizabeth says, Milo adores her. She can’t imagine they can’t make it work. Epiphany tells her, he said he’d come back, and Elizabeth says, great, but Epiphany says she told him no. It’s not the same anymore. As much as she hates to admit it, they’ve grown apart. Elizabeth asks how she can help, and Epiphany says, first, she doesn’t want a fuss made. Elizabeth says Epiphany can’t keep it inside; she has to let it out. Brook takes the stage, and Epiphany says, not another word about it. I note that Brook doesn’t have much of a scar. She tries to sing, but struggles. She says, wrong key, puts the mic down, and runs out. Chase goes after her. This is driving me nuts, since I’ve sung most of my life, and Brook is supposed to be a professional. I doubt she would have just gotten up there without even attempting to practice first, or even warm up, and she sure gave up easy. Instead of saying, wrong key, she should have said, too soon. It’s not like everyone doesn’t know what happened. This is frustrating the hell out of me.

Ava asks what Nikolas is trying to pull, and he asks if she thinks he wants to sign the papers. Of course (🍷) he doesn’t. He had them drawn up to force her hand; get her to move forward with the marriage or end it. She says, it’s an elaborate ultimatum, and he says, it’s a gamble that their night in the cabin wasn’t a one-off. Tell him she feels the same way. He thought instead of signing the papers, they’d burn them together. Ava says, there are certain considerations. There are people who will be affected if they end the marriage. He says he took a leap and owned up to his feelings. Do the same, or he’ll have to admit he’s a jackass. She says, of course (🍷) she has feelings, but it complicates things. He says it’s simple, they’ll stay married, but she says certain people may be made to pay if they remain married. Let her think things through; she needs a minute. She walks away, her back to him, and he says, once and for all, decide now. She doesn’t realize how close he is to her, and when she turns around, she stabs him accidentally, her knife going into his abdomen. I gasp out loud. I was not expecting that.

Sasha comes back out, and Nina asks if she found everything okay. The guest room is down the hall. Sasha says she’s not staying, but Nina says she should. They can have breakfast tomorrow. Sasha says it’s kind of Nina to bring her there, despite everything. She just needed a moment to catch her breath. Don’t give her another thought. She jets, and Carly comes out. In the hallway, Sasha makes a call. She says she needs a refill. She’ll be there in 15.   

Michael does crunches in the ring, and Willow walks back in. He asks if her class was canceled, but she says she blew it off. Curiosity got the best of her. She wanted to hear Dante’s advice in person. Michael says, Dante left, but she says he can tell her. He says, Dante thinks they should stay together. Those weren’t his exact words, but it was the overall idea. She says the closer they get to the annulment, the more fans they have. He says he was thinking the same thing. He says he’ll get cleaned up, and she says, her too – even though she didn’t have a class. She says she’ll meet him back there, and gives a lingering look to his back before she walks out.

Chase finds Brook outside and asks her to come back. They can sing a duet. She’ll sound like an angel in comparison. Highly doubtful, since I still remember him singing Feel It Still for the Nurses Ball, and he rocked. He says maybe she jumped in too soon. Now that she has that out of the way, he knows she has another performance in her. She says, that wasn’t a performance; it was her swan song. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard.

Franco brings Cyrus over to the table, and says, look who made it. Epiphany tells Elizabeth, she’s back in hell again, and Cyrus asks if anyone has seen the songbook. Elizabeth hands it to him, and Franco jokes that he’s probably a fan of Miley Cyrus. What does he want? Gilbert and Sullivan? Sammy Hagar? Cyrus says, the 70s, and Franco tells him, pull up a chair. Epiphany says, not today, Satan, and gets up to sing. Franco says, she’s having a bad day. Epiphany sings. I give up trying to find out the titles, but it’s something about waiting, and debating if her love will come back to her.

As Epiphany sings, we see Michael in the shower, pondering. He turns around, and Willow is there in a towel. She lets the towel fall, and I’m not sure I’m on board with this. He drops his towel, and they move closer. Okay, now I’m guessing this isn’t real because they keep switching to them being alone.

Ava takes out the knife, and tells Nikolas, he’s bleeding. He says, yeah; he’s been stabbed. She drops the knife, and takes off his shirt. Is this some kind of weird foreplay? They kiss…

Afterwards (we assume), Nikolas says, well…? and Ava says they’re going to have to do something about these, and picks up the divorce papers. He says, it doesn’t matter; they’re not real. He wasn’t going to risk anything. She’s too proud to admit she’s crazy about him. Now he’s sure. She calls him an arrogant SOB, and he asks, is it arrogant if he’s right? She takes the papers, and opens the door. He asks where she’s going, and she says, to find the cyanide. She leaves, and he smiles. He says, she likes me. She really likes me.

Chase tells Brook, it’s going to be okay. She says, it will be something, but it will never be okay. If she can’t do the one thing that gives her purpose, what purpose does she have?

Everyone applauds for Epiphany. Cyrus says he can’t imagine how anyone can follow her, and Franco says, if anyone could, it’s the Chairman with Sinatra. Cyrus says he could be persuaded. His phone dings, and he says, however, he’ll have to take a raincheck. Epiphany says, convenient, and he promises to revisit. I’m very disappointed.

Carly says she tried talking to Sasha, but Sasha wouldn’t hear her. Nina says, maybe Sasha heard, but didn’t agree. Carly says, Sasha needs help, but Nina says she can’t keep Sasha against her will. She did the best she could, at least for tonight. Carly says she can do better, like it’s a competition, and leaves.    

Willow meets Michael, and they leave the gym together.

In an alleyway on the phone, Sasha asks, where the hell are you? Don’t leave me hanging. The dealer hangs up, and she throws her phone, saying, dammit. Cyrus comes along, and says, there are cheaper ways to channel her frustration. What’s the trouble, and how can he help? 

Elizabeth says she’ll be right back, and Franco tells Epiphany that she sounded great. Epiphany thanks him, and says she’s decided he can have the chocolate bar. He says, good, because he already ate it. He’ll get her next time. She says he can get another round, and she’ll call it even. He gets up, and she says she hopes he knows how good he has it with Elizabeth. He says, doorknob. She tells him, say that again? and he keels over.

Tomorrow, it’s Halloween in Port Charles, Valentin thinks Peter has a Spinelli problem, Ava hopes Nikolas can forgive her, Nikolas says he’ll save Julian’s sorry ass, Cyrus tells Sasha that they can have a mutually beneficial friendship, and Carly tells Sonny that she thinks Sasha is a drugs.

The Real Housewives of Orange County

Shannon talked to John about her concern that Emily was dismissive with her. John told her she didn’t have to be best friends with Emily; just be okay. Elizabeth and Kelly met Gina at Farmhouse for dinner. Elizabeth said there was a gag order over her divorce details, but she was going to have a great party afterward, where she’d spill everything. Gina didn’t understand how Elizabeth was not having sex with Jimmy, and in her interview, Kelly thought that he had to be getting something done. Elizabeth said she liked Shannon, and Gina said Shannon had kicked her under the bus, saying her house was sad and depressing. In her interview, Gina said don’t bring her 9 lemons in an f-ing bowl, then say sh*t about her. She felt Shannon wasn’t authentic. Kelly said Emily had tried with Shannon too, but it wasn’t easy. They talked about how much better 2020 was going to be than 2019, and I laaaaughed.

Braunwyn said she was a basket case, either being so happy or so miserable that she wanted to jump out of her skin. In her interview, she said the only thing that might be bigger than her problem with alcohol was her love for her kids. She told Sean that she hadn’t been as present as she should have been, and realized she wasn’t a good mom. She didn’t know how she let it get so bad so fast. It was the one thing she wanted to be good at, and she wasn’t. He told her it was going to be okay. Lots of okay stuff today, both on GH and this.

Kelly took possession of her new house, which looked huge, especially with nothing in it. She told us it was 4500 square feet, with a pool and spa, but it’s suburbia. She met with her interior designer, and in her interview, she said the moms there were buttoned up, prim and proper, and cooking with aprons on. It was a Beaver Cleaver neighborhood. She said Shannon was a Stepford Wife, and she was scared she was going to turn into that. Rick had lived in NYC forever, and was ready to settle down, but she was mostly doing it for Jolie, who wanted to be in a family community. She wanted Jolie to have the best childhood possible, and see what a good relationship was like. She said it goes by fast. Truth!

Braunwyn picked up Shannon to go see Dr. Moon, and told Shannon about going to her first AA meeting. Braunwyn admitted that she’d told Emily about Shannon saying Gina’s house was sad. In Shannon’s interview, she insisted she hadn’t said that, and told Braunwyn that she had to set the record straight. Shannon said her fear was that Dr. Moon was getting older. She wondered what she was going to do when he retired. Braunwyn told Dr. Moon that her life had become unmanageable (part of the first step in the twelve), and she’d been drinking and hiding it. His solution was to stick a needle in the middle of her ear, which he said was for addiction. In her interview, Braunwyn said she was more grateful for Shannon’s support. Shannon made the usual loud noises when Dr. Moon needled her in the back of the neck for a sacroiliac problem. (I’ll have you know, I spelled that right on the first try.) In her interview, Shannon said she was trying to help Braunwyn, who was making her look bad and putting words in her mouth. It was the ultimate betrayal. I dunno about that. I could probably think of worse things.

Emily said she’d never had relationship or friendship with Shannon, and was going to her housewarming party. On a side note, we found out Shannon’s kids aren’t allowed to swear until they’re 18. Shannon gave her house a once-over, which I totally understood. I should have done that when I discovered a pair of underwear thrown on a chair after a party, and I don’t mean by a guest who had too good of a time. They were my underwear. I was mortified. In her interview, Braunwyn said she hadn’t figured out how to navigate her bedroom yet, but she was going to a party. She wanted a drink badly, but couldn’t say anything, or she’d be that weird alcoholic girl. I dunno about that either, but her friends would definitely not want to drink in front of her. At least if they’re decent people. Oh yeah. I forgot, we’re talking Housewives here. Someone would probably yell at her, and then put her under a microscope, while they guzzled pinot in front of her the whole time.  

When Gina saw Shannon’s house, she said she could see why Shannon would say hers was sad. Her home could fit inside Shannon’s home. It was like a Polly Pocket home. Gina jumped on Shannon the second she got there, but Shannon insisted Braunwyn was the only one talking smack about Gina’s house. Moving whichever way the wind is blowing, Gina said she didn’t trust Braunwyn. In Shannon’s interview, she said she was grateful Gina believed her, but she was angry that Braunwyn put words in her mouth. Yeah, yeah, the ultimate betrayal. Shannon told Gina that she was a renter, but Gina was an owner, and there was nothing sad about Gina’s life right now.

In her interview, Emily said part of her would like to imagine Shannon wanted her at the party, but she knows Shannon doesn’t. Shannon’s dad Gene arrived with his young girlfriend, and when Kelly was introduced, she called him big d*ck daddy from Cincinnati. In Shannon’s interview, she said she’d never call someone’s father that, but I say, it depends on the father. FYI, not this guy. Shannon didn’t waste time taking Braunwyn aside, and told Braunwyn that she was hearing wrong. She hadn’t called Gina’s place sad. That wasn’t even in her vocabulary. Braunwyn stuck by her memory, saying she’d been totally sober, while Shannon had a couple of drinks, but Shannon insisted she was wrong. Braunwyn said either Shannon was lying or she didn’t remember, and Shannon said Braunwyn crossed the line. Shannon ended the conversation by saying how dare Braunwyn do this at her party, and I had to laugh when Braunwyn said she wasn’t the one who brought it up. Another truth! Shannon made a beeline for Emily, telling her that she never said Gina’s house was sad. In Braunwyn’s interview, she said every time she’s tried to be nice to Gina, it’s gotten thrown back in her face. We flashed back to all the times Gina has shut Braunwyn down, and it looks to me that Gina just plain doesn’t like Braunwyn. And I don’t think anything is going to change her mind. Braunwyn told Sean she didn’t know where to go from here.

Shannon made it sound like Braunwyn had accused her of being drunk, and in her interview, said Braunwyn was now using her sobriety as a weapon. Like always, they played telephone, and by the time Gina repeated what Shannon had said, Braunwyn claimed Shannon was so wasted. Gina brought up the text from Sean, and Emily thought it wasn’t unreasonable that she found it creepy, in context of his and Braunwyn’s lifestyle. A love shack! A sex apartment! Threesomes! In Elizabeth’s interview, she said she’d never seen women act like this, and Braunwyn was just as big of a nut. Shannon, who’d told Braunwyn earlier that she’d never do two against one, attacked Sean and Braunwyn with Emily, Gina, and Kelly in attendance. Emily thought Braunwyn was pretentious, and Shannon told Sean, maybe they should start being authentic. Gina said Braunwyn looks down on her because she doesn’t have as much money as they do. We flashed back to some instances where Braunwyn said something Gina didn’t like, and I see it as Gina being the one who feels defensive about not having money. Gina got in Braunwyn’s face, screeching that Braunwyn was a sloppy chihuahua, and wasted all the time. She told Braunwyn to go get wasted again, which is really nice, and Braunwyn said she was 30 days sober today, bitch. Braunwyn ran off, telling Gina, f*** you!

Next time, the party continues, Braunwyn never wants see them again, Kelly thinks Braunwyn is better when she drinks, Braunwyn insists Shannon isn’t telling the truth, and Shannon says she doesn’t move on when people call her a liar. Great. We’ll be on this for the rest of the season.

👀 Elizabeth and Gina were guests tonight on Watch What Happens Live. I really like Elizabeth. She kind of reminds me of Garcelle on RHOBH. She stays above the fray, and laughs a lot. She said she was surprised she’d been chosen to become a Real Housewife, especially with the pandemic going on. Her divorce had been finalized, and we found out she and Jimmy finally had sex. Or as she put it, she’d been officially rechristened. I tried to ignore Gina, since she’s on a par with Teddi for me. She’s a follower, and an a-hole. Both the guests and audience were remote, and it was actually kind of fun. The Countess made a guest appearance, and sang Viva la Diva, while the audience danced in their Zoom boxes. Under normal circumstances, you rarely see the audience, so it had a different vibe. The sound people also made LuAnn sound a lot better than she really does, unless she’s been taking lessons. I want those people for karaoke. If I ever see karaoke again. I miss singing… and bourbon… sniff…

🍹 Don’t forget – The new season of Southern Charm begins tomorrow – i.e. Thursday.

👩🏽‍🏫 Brush Up On Your Charm…

New cast member and first woman of color on the show. She looks a lot like Lily Ghalichi from Shahs of Sunset.

Might Shep finally be settling down? Omg, he’s 40. He should probably pick a lane now.

Kathryn co-parents up close and personal.

One of the few really decent people in reality TV.

https://extratv.com/2020/10/15/reality-stars-eliza-limehouse-and-mark-struthers-mcbride-jr-expecting-first-child-weeks-after-their-wedding/

🍋 The Stirrer Gets Stirred…

I wouldn’t last two seconds in this program. I’d be All Out.

https://www.refinery29.com/en-ca/2020/09/10030895/all-in-by-teddi-mellencamp-diet-business-scam-twitter

👠 Because It’s That Time Of Year…

And because I was the first one to throw something. True story.

https://nypost.com/2020/09/25/how-rocky-horror-went-from-tiny-musical-to-filthy-phenom/

⏰ The Clock Is Ticking…

It’s almost Halloween, and also almost time to change the clocks. Don’t forget to fall behind an hour this weekend. Yay! I’ll finally get some sleep. No I won’t. And also don’t forget to stay safe, stay truthful, and stay not being the one who takes the last chocolate bar from the vending machine. Especially if Epiphany is behind you.

September 29, 2020 – Duo Programmus Interruptus, Kate Watches, VanderReveal, Get Off My Spice, Go Away Already, Throne News, Boys Spin, BonnaMove, New Race, Something Relaxing & Slow

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

️ General Hospital turned into baseball today when MLB took over.

💬 There was also no The Haves and The Have Nots. It will be back with a new episode next week.

🛥 Bravo had nothing new, sort of. There were a couple of episodes of Watch with Kate Chastain: Below Deck Mediterranean. This was probably the best way to watch that show this season. Kate knows how to make a snarky comment, and after viewing Tom’s first meltdown, said she felt like she’d watched 40 episodes. She gave the best quote of the night after Malia asked Tom to meet with Captain Sandy, and he said he wasn’t fully prepared to cook. She pointed out the majority of the Below Deck chefs weren’t, and said, You know how to make nachos? You’re hired.

👶 It’s a B…aby…

In case you hadn’t heard, Lala and Randell have made their reveal.

https://www.etonline.com/lala-kent-reveals-the-sex-of-her-and-randell-emmetts-first-child-together-153329

🧂 No Spice For You…

While I admit to a certain amount of schadenfreude when karma befalls a Bravolebrity, like Teddi getting the ax from RHOBH, there’s no reason to pick on someone just because they’re more rich, famous, and more talented than you. I saw The Spice Girls – all five, twice – in 2000 when they had a reunion tour. I don’t care what anybody says; they were amazing. There was dancing in the aisles.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1192741/spice-girls-melanie-c-recalls-cruel-and-heartless-tabloid-treatment-in-revealing-essay

🗡 Swift Karma…

Speaking of the aforementioned schadenfreude.

https://extratv.com/2020/09/22/teddi-mellencamp-confirms-rhobh-exit-it-feels-like-a-breakup/

🐉 Write Faster, George…

The prequel is coming! The prequel is coming!

https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/game-of-thrones-prequel-house-of-the-dragon-2022-casting-hbo/

And while we’re on the subject.

https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/game-of-thrones-george-r-r-martin-names-his-least-favorite-scene-in-the-entire-show/

🦸🏽‍♂️ Spin This Off…

I haven’t had a chance to see The Boys yet, but I’m intrigued, and they’re already spinning off.

https://www.tvguide.com/news/the-boys-spin-off-college-for-supes-in-development-amazon/

🎸 Musical Move…

Bonnaroo has been rescheduled.

https://jambands.com/news/2020/09/29/bonnaroo-reschedules-to-labor-day-weekend-2021/

🚴 The Race Is On…

The new season of The Amazing Race will premiere on Wednesday, October 14th, at 9 pm.

https://parade.com/932146/mikebloom/amazing-race-season-32/

🐟 The City That Never Sleeps…

Enjoy several sealife cams.

https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/ocean-voyager/

⛹️‍♀️ A Break In the Action…

It looks like this week is mostly full of repeats and rehashes, and Friday’s GH remains uncertain. Soap Digest said yes, but the digital guide says no. Magic Eightball says… keep some mystery in life, so we’ll see. Sunday starts the week hot and heavy with the finale of The Walking Dead’s season 10, and the premiere of The Walking Dead: World Beyond. Gone are my date nights with 90 Day Fiance: Whatever show is on in the franchise right now, and a bag of cookies. Nothing lasts forever. As we fumble through the TV week, stay safe, stay ready for anything, and stay clapping back at the haters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As5_xq78VRA

September 23, 2020 – A Demand To Meet At the Pier, Beverly Hills Reveals Nothing, More Than You Need To Know About Emmy, a Baby, Bye Fenicia, Silent Spin, a Feud, Good Riddance To Bad Stirrer, We Loved Him Too & Some Cake

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

Chase comes home, and Brook says, back so soon from solving crimes? He says he’s taking a shower, then going back out. Brook is painting her toenails, and asks if he could get her some fresh coffee.

Ned sees Julian at the MetroCourt, and Julian asks what he can do for him. Ned says, not for him; for Julian’s son Leo. Leo is wondering when Julian’s next visit will be. Julian says, tell Leo, soon, and Ned says, that sounds vague. Doesn’t he normally schedule it with Olivia? Julian says he does; he’ll give her a call. Ned asks when was the last time Julian heard from Olivia? and Julian asks if she’s missing. Ned says, no, she’s in Geneva to visit Dante. Julian asks Ned to wish her luck, and tell her that he hopes it goes well. Ned says he can do that, or Julian could call. Julian says he’s not sure what’s going on, and doesn’t care, but if Ned wants to know how Olivia is, he should speak to her. Ned says, if only it was that simple, and Julian asks what he means. Ned tells him, never mind, and Julian says he’s as helpful as ever.

Sitting outside Kelly’s, TJ tells Molly, he forgot about Neil’s death. It was so sudden, it knocked everyone for a loop. She says, especially her mom; he died in her bed, and she didn’t even know he had a drug problem. She’s not going to be able to host their commitment ceremony. They’ll need a new venue. He says they might have to postpone it, and she says, it seems inevitable. Stella approaches and says, the problem with their generation is they give in too easy. If they want a ceremony, she’ll get the job done.

Lulu tells Nikolas, she could be wrong, but it sounds like he’s falling for his wife. His phone dings, and he sees the photo of him kissing Elizabeth. Underneath, it says, I know what you did, and he says, what the hell? She asks if it’s bad news, and he reads, Meet me at the docks ASAP. It’s going to cost you big.

Nina says, Ava is falling for Nikolas. Ava’s phone dings, and she sees the photo of her and Franco kissing. Underneath, it says, I know what you did. Nina asks if she’s okay. What did the message say? Ava reads, Meet me at the docks in an hour. It’s going to cost you big.

At a booth in The Floating Rib, Bobbie and Scotty sit with martinis, while Scotty concentrates on shelling nuts. Bobbie tells him, the hardest part is physically being away from the building. She knows details will be missed, or not taken care of as good as they could be. It’s not like the nurses won’t do their jobs without her, but they won’t do it as well. You’d think she’d enjoy her time off. She has ten different household projects she’s been dreaming about, but it doesn’t give her the same sense of fulfillment she had at GH. She sees he’s not paying attention, and says maybe she’ll go back to her old job of giving the girlfriend experience (i.e. – being a hooker). At least she’ll get companionship out of it. She says he hasn’t been listening to a word she said. He says she just told him she’s going back to her former profession, and she tells him that she was pushed to desperate measures. Tell her why he’s so preoccupied.

Sonny asks if Avery is okay, and she says she’s hungry. Sonny suggests they go get a snack. He sees the half-heart necklace on the ground, and picks it up. He says she dropped this, and she says it’s hers. He asks if mommy gave it to her, and she says she thought she’d keep it for good luck. He says, now what? It’s not good?

Carly tells Jax, she hopes anything incriminating stays gone, along with Nelle. Jason comes in, and she says she’s glad he’s there. Sonny is on the back patio talking to Avery about Mike, and Jax came to check on Josslyn. Jason asks how she’s doing, and Jax says she’s sad about Mike, but she’s doing okay. Carly says Josslyn is shopping for a homecoming dress as they speak. Jax says he and Carly will talk later. Just keep in mind what he said before. He says goodbye to Jason, and leaves. Carly tells Jason, she did something he’s not going to like.

Chase asks if Brook has given any more thought as to what she might do. She says, about what? and he says he has a one-bedroom, one bathroom apartment. She can’t be comfortable. She says she can see moving some furniture around to make more space, and he says, maybe there’s someone else she could stay with. She says he’s kicking her out, but he tells her that he didn’t say that. She says he strongly hinted, and in case he forgot, he invited her. Sorry for the inconvenience; she’ll go. He says he didn’t ask her to leave, but she says she doesn’t stay where she’s not wanted. That’s how she ended up there in the first place. He says he’s not kicking her out, but it was supposed to be temporary. They barely know one another. She says, aside from three arrests. He asks if there isn’t a close friend or family member she’d rather live with, and she says she’d rather live under a rock than crawl back to her family.

Julian asks how Brook is, and Ned says, her spirit is unbroken. Julian asks, how about her vocal chords? and Ned says she’s not using them to speak to him. Julian understands, and says he hopes it works out. For what it’s worth, he’s sorry Brook crossed paths with Nelle. Ned says they’re all sorry for the chaos Nelle left in her wake. Julian says, for sure; now she’s a fugitive on the run. Ned thinks it would be a good time to sever ties, and Julian says he plans on it.

Lulu asks Nikolas if it’s something about Spencer, but he says it’s just a business situation he needs to handle. She ask if he’s sure it’s not more about Ava than business. The way he’s acting, it seems like it. He says, a little bit of both, and tells her that they’ll talk later.

Ava says, you know that kiss she told Nina about? and shows Nina the picture. Somebody saw her, and she wonders how it happened. Nina says someone has been following her, but Ava says she was at the gallery. It’s not like she and Franco were making spectacles of themselves. No one was there. At least that’s what she thought. Nina says she was preoccupied with Franco, but Ava says, just for a moment. It wasn’t like her and Nikolas at the cabin.

TJ wonders how Stella manages to show up when she’s needed most. She’s like one of the Avengers; the psychic social worker. Stella says, too much flying. He says with Mike passing, he knows the family was grateful to her. She says she was glad to be there; Mike was a good man. She heard about their commitment ceremony, and Molly says she’ll let TJ fill Stella in, while she grabs a half ice tea, half lemonade. She knows it’s Stella’s favorite. Stella tells TJ to hang onto Molly.

Sonny tells Avery, he thinks the necklace is still good luck. Like how her grandpa is with her always in her heart. She says, but it’s only half, and he says, maybe the other half is out there somewhere. Even if it isn’t, it’s still pretty. He tells her, let’s get a snack, and they go inside.

Scotty tells Bobbie, for cryin’ out loud, he’s not preoccupied; calm down. He’s just thinking about the payoff she’ll get from the hospital for wrongful termination. Bobbie says she doesn’t want a payoff; she wants her job back. But it’s not going to happen as long as Cyrus is Chairman of the Board. Scotty says, okay then, find another job. Bobbie says she had some interest from Mercy, but he laughs and says, that rusty old hospital? The future is in telemedicine. A start-up company would love an experienced nurse. She can get in on the bottom floor, get equity, and when it becomes an IPO, the sky’s the limit. She says, it’s something to explore, and Scotty’s phone dings. He says, ugh. He has to work.

Jason asks Carly if what she needs to tell him is time sensitive. Does he need to do something? She says, no; it already happened. She’s doing potential damage control. He asks if it involves Jax, and she says it does. He says, and Jax doesn’t want him to know? She says Jax doesn’t want him or Sonny to know.

Brook tells Chase to go ahead and call her dramatic, and he says, isn’t she? She asks if it isn’t the ultimate betrayal, being abandoned by her family. They threw her into the street. He says he saw her dad’s face outside her hospital room, and Monica and Michael’s. No family is perfect, but it’s clear her family loves her and wants to help. She says she knows they love her. Staying there isn’t about what they did to her, but what she did to them.

TJ sees Stella looking at him, and says, what? and Stella says she’s just checking his beautiful face. When Curtis said he’d been beaten, it nearly killed her. How is he doing, really? He says, a few more PT sessions, and he’ll be good as new. She says she was sure he was off licking his wounds after Molly turned down his proposal, but that wasn’t the case. No one expected him to be abducted, least of all him. A person doesn’t go through hell and not carry some of it back with them. How is he really? The truth.

Carly says she knows what Jason is thinking. She didn’t sleep with Jax. He says he didn’t think so, but what’s going on? The doorbell rings, and she tells him, wait. He says he’s not going anywhere. It’s Lulu, and Carly invites her in. Carly says she’s sorry. She’s been meaning to call and thank Lulu and her mother for the donation to Alzheimer’s research. It was generous of them. Lulu says she was thinking about how Mike lent a sympathetic ear when she was a teen. Sonny joins them, and Lulu says she wanted to tell him how sorry she was, and see how he’s doing. He says Mike’s passing was peaceful, but he couldn’t have done it without the support of the family. She says she’s sorry Dante wasn’t there. She knows he’d love the chance to be supportive as well.

Nina wonders if Nikolas took the picture, but Ava says he went to the cabin to catch her cheating. There would have been no point if he’d taken it. And there was nothing going on with her and Franco, contrary to the proof. She asks how she could be so sloppy, and Nina asks what she’s going to do. Ava says they want big money, but she doesn’t have that yet. It could put her fidelity in question, and it’s the ammunition Nikolas needs to divorce her without her getting a dime.

Nikolas goes to the pier, and says, whatever Ava paid to get them to take the picture, he’ll pay much more. He looks up the stairs and says, you’ve got to be kidding.

Brook tells Chase, believe it or not, she gets why her dad threw her out. From his perspective, she betrayed the family when she sold her stock; never mind the other Quartermaines who did. She should have known better, and should have said something. That’s on her. Chase says, none of that mattered when she was fighting for her life and almost died. She asks if he thinks bygones should be bygones. If she didn’t have the power now, her dad wouldn’t be begging her to come home. He traded anger for pity. He’s not sorry; he feels sorry for her. It’s the one thing she can’t bear to live with. She tells Chase, it’s his space, and he wants her gone, and she will be, but she’s not going home. Chase’s phone rings, and he asks if they’re sure. He’s on his way. Brook asks if it’s a killing spree, a bank robbery, or another one of Lulu’s epic pouts. He says he understands where she’s coming from, but he thinks she’s underestimating her family. She can stay there as long as she needs to. He opens the door, and Ned is there. He says he understands his daughter is there, and Chase says, she’s all his. He leaves, and Ned comes in. He says, Brook, sweetheart, we need to talk. She says, we absolutely do not.

TJ asks if Stella can’t just enjoy the visit, and not have to use her social worker superpowers on him. She tells him, start talking, and he says, yes. The abduction was terrifying and painful; all of it. He doesn’t know who they were or what they wanted. The police have no leads, and all he can do is focus on his career and his life with Molly. She says she wants what’s best for him, and wants him to grab what he can from life, but there are no shortcuts to healing. He says he wakes up from the nightmares, and feels like he’s still tied up. He doesn’t know if he’s going to live or die. The thing that got him through it was thinking of Molly, and knowing she was waiting. Molly listens from the doorway.

Nina asks if Ava has any idea who would blackmail her like that. Ava says, in general, she can think of plenty of people, but this? No one who would care. It’s not like Nikolas has a lot of people rooting for him. Nina says, maybe Nikolas hired a P.I., and Ava says, maybe a P.I. wants to shake her down. Even if she’s right, that doesn’t solve the problem of the picture. Whoever took it has proof of her indiscretion with Franco, and she has to decide what to do about it.

Nikolas tells the mystery person that he’s not handing over that kind of money. He needs 24 hours. If they do anything with the photo before then, they’re done.

On the patio, Lulu and Sonny look at pictures. Lulu says, Mike with Ruby, were they a thing? Sonny says his dad only wished. She was immune to Mike’s flirting. Lulu says, she must have had an iron will. She doesn’t know how Ruby resisted his charms. Sonny says, Mike was everyone confidant and friend. Everyone adored Mike, except him.

Carly says she’ll tell Jason what happened, and he can tell her what he thinks. Something serious happened. Jason says, and Jax knows, and doesn’t want her to tell Sonny. She says she couldn’t, and she doesn’t feel she can tell him now. I tell her, well, for God’s sake, tell Jason before he has apoplexy. He looks like his head is going to explode.

Molly tells Stella, you’d think a dining room table is the last thing they’d need, but you’d be wrong. They’re students, and spend half their lives there. TJ’s phone rings, and he steps away to take the call. Stella says she’s glad she and Molly can spend some time alone. So much has happened. How is Molly holding up? Molly says, okay. TJ was the worst of it. Stella says, Lord knows it must have gone through her mind that TJ walked out on their commitment, especially after she refused his proposal. Molly says, he wasn’t taking her calls, and Jordan told her that he didn’t want to talk to her; that she should be responsible for her own actions. She got more and more desperate, until she finally… Stella says, what? but Molly says she doesn’t want to say. Stella says she thinks she understands. She’ll say it for Molly. She finally lost faith in TJ.

Ava says she’ll tell Nina one thing, she’s not losing her claim for one picture of her and Franco. She gets up, and Nina says she’s not thinking of going by herself? Why don’t she and Jax go with her? Ava says she can handle it, and jets. Jax comes over, and asks, what’s going on with Ava? Does he want to know? Nina says, no. It’s just a reminder of how glad she is to have a relationship with him. No games and no secrets.

Carly tells Jason, Sonny just lost Mike. Like he doesn’t know. She says, he needs time to grieve. She can’t put it on him unless Jason thinks she should. He says, obviously she’s trying to protect Sonny, and she says, that’s all she’s doing. She just wants to protect Sonny.

Sonny tells Lulu, he held on to so much anger, and couldn’t let it go. She says, he had a right to his anger. However wonderful Mike was to the rest of them, he left Sonny when he was a little boy. She wouldn’t want that for Rocco, hating Dante. It’s not the same struggle, but Sonny made peace with Mike’s gambling being a disease. Once he understood that, is when he started to forgive. It happened the way it was supposed to.

Bobbie signs the receipt, and Scotty returns to the table. He says his clients think his time has no value. Where were they? She says, nowhere, and he asks if she’s mad. She says she’s mad and disappointed. Scotty says she’s right, and he’ll make it up to her, but she says she’s not mad and disappointed at him. He suggests they enjoy their cocktails then. She says he’s being who he is – himself, a self-absorbed schemer. He has good intentions, but a terrible follow-through. He says, that’s harsh, and she says she adores him. He’s the sweetest guy when he gets out of his own way, which is never. He’s a good friend, but a lousy boyfriend. The person she’s mad and disappointed at is herself, for going down the same road again, knowing how it ends again. What scares her is one day she’ll lose his friendship, and it will break her heart. For both their sakes, she’s calling it quits. Aww.

Ava waits for the elevator, and Nikolas comes out of it. She says he’s not following her or having her followed, is he? He says he didn’t know where she was. She says she hopes not. They both saw how his jealousy ended last night. He says he thinks they need to talk – about us.

Brook asks Ned if something is the matter, and he says, it’s a nice apartment… She says, but… and he says this can’t be how she wants to live, sleeping on a couch in someone else’s living room. She says, you don’t know until you’ve tried it, and he says doesn’t she want to go home? They can work through their issues. She says, why do that? and he says she’s been through a trauma. Not just the attack, but how he treated her, his daughter. She’ll always be his daughter, and he wants to take care of her. She says, that never works out. No matter how good the intentions, they inevitably disappear. They get angry, and end up hurting each other, like they always do. He says, it doesn’t have to be that way. They can be better. She says, even if that’s true, it’s not a good time to try it. Doesn’t he have a big enough mess to clean up?

Scotty says, don’t do this, but Bobbie says, it’s already done. He says they can undo it. They can talk about anything she wants. She thanks him for teaching her a valuable lesson. The next time she has a setback, she’ll face it, and not fall back on a sort of romance to feel safe. It’s good – he makes her laugh a lot – until she finds out he’s cheating. He says he doesn’t always, and she says he can’t if they’re not together. Good luck with his client. He thanks her for the drink, and she says she put it on his tab. He looks at the tab, and does a spit-take, and Bobbie says, the next time they meet for drinks as friends, he’ll know not to keep her hanging.

Stella says, how would Molly know? It’s not like she’s had experience. She never had a serious relationship other than TJ, and no history with other men. She’s not trying to embarrass Molly; she’s putting herself in Molly’s shoes. She might have questioned the relationship, if she’d thought he walked out after their first disagreement. Molly says, Stella doesn’t blame her? and Stella says, for doubting? If Molly had said she never wavered, Stella would have known Molly was lying to her and herself. She’s glad she’s come to know and love Molly. It’s no sin to doubt. Better to doubt than to deceive.

Ava tells Nikolas, they should stick to the plan. They’ll rendezvous at Windymere, and see what happens. She gets in the elevator.

Nina asks Jax how Josslyn is, and he says, okay. She’s sad about Mike, of course (🍷), but she’s carrying on. He felt it had less to do with that, than a lesson of the heart. Sometimes he just has to listen. Nina says, do her a favor, and share some of his parental wisdom. She wants to be that kind of a parent if she finds her child one day.

Lulu says, when Mike was diagnosed, Sonny brought Mike home to live with him. Think of what’s happened in the two and a half years Mike has been there. Sonny recreated Luke’s Club; it was a gift. Even though Mike’s memory was fading he could feel it in his heart. Sonny never failed be present. All Mike wanted was to find his way back to Sonny, and Sonny gave that to him. He gave Mike the one thing that made him happy – a family.

Carly says she wants to tell Sonny, and Jason says, do what she needs, but it’s not fair. She should give Sonny a chance to be there for her. She’d hate if Sonny did that to her. She says he’s right. She needs to tell him. She needs to tell them both.

Ned says Brook can’t expect him to walk away, and leave things the way they are. She says, why not? She’s still the same daughter, and it’s not enough for him. He could give her all the I’m sorries in the world right now. He says it’s not too late, and she tells him not to hold his breath. He says there’s unfinished business between them. Fighting with his daughter, another Quartermain trait they’d be better off without. She says, it’s a shame that’s who they are.

Lulu and Sonny come in, and Lulu says Jason should have seen the pictures her mom sent. There’s one of Jason and Mike, when Jason was a valet at the club. Carly says she’d like to see that. Sonny says he’ll walk Lulu out. At the door, he says her mom did a world of good, sending the pictures. She thanks him for sharing them with her. She’s keeping him in her prayers, and Mike too. I don’t think Mike looked like he needed prayers when he went off with Courtney, but okay; it’s nice of Lulu. Sonny thanks her, and goes back to join Carly and Jason. He says, what? and Carly says, something happened and she needs to tell them both. Jason’s phone rings, and he says, it could be important.

TJ comes back, and Stella says Molly was giving her pearls of wisdom on their not-married commitment ceremony. TJ says, all that matters is he’s sharing his life with Molly. He hopes Stella isn’t disappointed. She says, two of her favorite people, vowing to cherish and love each other; it’s icing on the cake. There will be cake, right?

Ava goes to the pier, and says, all right she’s there. Where are they? She feels someone behind her, and turns around, pointing a gun at them.

Nikolas looks at the picture of him and Elizabeth. He deletes it.

Jax says he doesn’t know how big Mike’s funeral might be. He’ll ask Carly if he should go. Nina asks if he thinks Nelle might show up. Forget she said that. Nelle is probably halfway across the country by now. Has Carly heard anything from the police; do they have any leads? He says, no more than he does, and he doesn’t know any more

Jason thanks the caller. He tells Sonny, it’s an update from their guy at the PCPD. They can confirm Nelle is dead. They’ve found the body.

Tomorrow, Chase tells Jason that he’s come on police business, Willow asks Sasha if she’s still in love with Michael, Ava asks if she’s being blackmailed, and Carly says she didn’t lie; she just didn’t tell them everything.

💎 Shortest RHOBH Recap Yet…

Even though Kyle said, the Secrets Revealed show was, the sh*t you thought you got away with, there were neither any secrets nor any revelations. Except for one. I finally found out that Dorit’s Gucci ice cubes were ice cubes shaped like the Gucci logo. As I’ve said, it’s either nice, peaceful stuff that didn’t make the cut since it was too low-key, or stuff that was a real snooze.

There were some nice moments between Garcelle and Denise, where they talked about acting and family life. We saw a little more of their NYC trip, and Erika told us, New York City in the 80s is where it was at. We agree on this. However, when getting a hot dog, not one of them knew what sauerkraut was. Since Teddi is supposed to know about nutrition (see more on that in links below), I’m surprised she doesn’t know it’s fermented cabbage. And WTF? A Nathan’s hot dog without sauerkraut from the hot dog cart? Go back to Beverly Hills, the lot of you. There was also ax throwing and drinking canned wine at a dive bar. In her interview, Denise remarked that the women were a little out of place. Okay, Denise can stay.

Kyle told us that she wants Farrah engaged to boyfriend Alex asap, because she wants to be a young grandmother. Her mom had five grandchildren by her age. In one of the things I would have liked to see during the season, Kyle had discovered a picture online of a women wearing one of the rings she’d had stolen. (Some time back, there was a break-in at Kyle’s house, where all her bags and jewelry were taken.) She and Teddi played amateur detective, and went on a hunt to find the woman, who was a psychic with very distinctive nails.

Garcelle’s new house just missed the fires, and she managed to move in before quarantine.

The secret behind Bravo, Bravo, Bravo – which is no secret if you’ve watched Bravo, Bravo, Bravo for any length of time, time, time – was that if the phrase was said, the footage wouldn’t be aired. Apparently, this information came from Kyle, who said, it was a misunderstanding of an old joke. LisaR, who couldn’t stand being left out, said the information probably came from her.

In another scene I would have liked to have seen, we attended Sutton’s 48th birthday party, where the cake was displayed inside a giant birdcage adorned with flowers. It was also on a swing, which Sutton sat on after the cake was removed. I think. She was a bit tipsy. Jennifer Tilly was a guest, and we found out that instead of a tiara that year, Dolce and Gabbana sent Sutton a toaster. TBH, it was a pretty cool toaster.

They ended the show with a clip from the reunion, where Sutton said, quarantine was so bad, she’d go to Rome with them again tomorrow.

🏆 Better Late Than Never…

A rundown on the Emmys. Schitt’s Creek gets a paddle.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1188087/2020-emmys-winners-the-complete-list

Who wore it best.

https://www.eonline.com/photos/31482/emmys-2020-best-dressed-stars

And not.

https://www.tvguide.com/news/emmys-2019-worst-dressed-red-carpet/

The ups. The downs. The WTFs.

https://www.tvguide.com/news/emmys-awards-2020-best-and-worst-moments/

Mrs. Maisel and her dog.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1189911/rachel-brosnahan-and-dog-winston-are-color-coordinated-for-the-2020-emmys-and-for-a-marvelous-cause

More celebs with their dogs.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/these-celebs-brought-their-dogs-as-dates-to-the-virtual-2020-emmys/ar-BB19eVNp

The night’s biggest mistake. Maybe.

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/emmys-accidentally-gave-award-jason-223600470.html

👶🏻 They Didn’t Start the Fire…

Lala and Randall make an announcement.

https://pagesix.com/2020/09/19/lala-kent-and-randall-emmett-reveal-gender-of-their-first-child-together/

✌🏽 It’s Double Official…

NeNe is bye-bye.

https://www.essence.com/entertainment/nene-leakes-real-housewives-of-atlanta-season-13/

🏍 The Spin On Carol and Daryl…

The scripts must be mighty thin, since neither one of them talks very much.

https://www.tvguide.com/news/everything-we-know-about-the-walking-dead-carol-daryl-spin-off/

🤼 Rivalry At the WWE…

I loved Roddy Piper.

https://comicbook.com/wwe/news/wwe-edge-wanted-john-cena-rivlary-hulk-hogan-roddy-piper-wwe-untold/

🙋🏽‍♀️ Best News All Week…

Teddi is out at RHOBH, but not for being a full-fledged mean girl after being merely a follower last season. She’s finally had to take accountability for her lousy fitness program.

https://pagesix.com/2020/09/22/teddi-mellencamp-confirms-rhobh-exit/

🏈 He Was Third…

And he wanted us to love Brian Piccolo. Show of hands who didn’t cry at the end of Brian’s Song? Yeah. I didn’t think so.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/29951448/chicago-bears-hall-fame-running-back-gale-sayers-dies-age-77

🌃 Bonsoir…

Can it be? Can I truly get to bed before almost sunrise? I’m going to do my best, and you do yours by making it your business to stay safe, stay progressing, and stay being the icing on the cake.

⚠️ Warning: Bleeped Bad Words Ahead

September 16, 2020 – Mike Begins His Transition, Butterflies, So Far, Good Riddance Season 10, a Little More, Jimmy Speaks & Gonna Swing

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

Jason asks Carly how Mike is. She says, his breathing is rough, and they’re giving him morphine. He asks if Sonny is with Mike, and she says, he won’t leave Mike’s side.

Michael sits outside at Turning Woods, and Willow comes by. She says she was on her way inside, and saw him sitting. She thought he could use some company, but if he’d rather be alone… He says that’s the last thing wants, and asks her to sit. She says, before he asks, Wiley is at home. She gave him his dinner and bath, and when she left, he was playing toy cars with the nanny. He didn’t even notice her leaving. He says she’s amazing, and she says so is he. He tells her, his mom and dad are looking after Mike, and she says she knows it’s not easy waiting. He says his dad is usually so strong, and now he’s losing his father. He honestly wishes… She says, what? but he says, nothing. She says, tell her. Nothing he could say would ever make her think less of him. He says he wishes this was over.

Sonny tells Mike that he wishes he knew how to make it easier. He knows Mike is ready. One of the last things he said to Sonny was that he’s ready. Stella comes to the door, and asks, how’s Mike? Sonny says, the same, and she says she just talked to Mike’s caregiver Dr. Knox. It’s good they’re giving Mike morphine; it’s the right thing to do. Sonny asks if she doesn’t think it’s extreme, but she says it’s standard. It will prevent Mike from gasping for air or feeling pain as his body shuts down. He asks if  that’s what’s causing Mike’s low blood pressure, and she says, it’s part of the process. She also saw that he was getting anti-anxiety medication. It will keep him from panicking. Believe her, his father is very comfortable right now. He thanks her, and says Mike seems to be holding on, waiting for something. Stella says, knowing Mike, she’s not surprised. She thinks the thing he’s waiting for is permission to let go. I’m not so sure, since Sonny already gave him that.

Michael tells Willow, he knows it’s terrible to want his grandfather gone, and for it to be over. She says he wants Mike to stop hurting; there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. He says his dad hasn’t left Mike’s side, saying it’s all the time he’s going to get. Waiting and watching every breath. He wants his dad’s pain to be over too.

Jason hopes it’s helping Mike for Sonny to be with him, and Carly says she knows it’s helping Sonny to be there. Some people say it’s magical thinking, believing a loved one at the end of life can feel the presence and take comfort in those around them, but she thinks it’s think true. Josslyn arrives, and says, so does she. Carly asks why Josslyn didn’t tell her that she was coming back. Josslyn says she made Tony drive her. She feels like she should be close. She thinks her grandpa knows more than they realize. He heard everything she said this afternoon, and even gave her a thumbs up. Jason says, sounds like Mike, and Josslyn says, she feels even now some part of him is still the person they love. She and Carly hug.

Stella tells Sonny, at the end of life, patients often straddle this world and the next. Telling Mike how much they’ll miss him and the outpouring of love is a good thing. In his mind’s eye, he’s transitioning to what’s waiting for him after he takes his last breath. He’s torn between staying there with his loved ones and going to that magical place where he’ll see all the people he loved and lost, and where he’ll be whole again, and where something bigger than any of us could ever know waits. Sonny says she sounds convinced it’s true, and she says she’s heard too many stories and testimonies, and believes it’s God’s honest truth. Sonny wonders what the doctors think, and she says, it depends on the doctor. Some call it sensory changes and illusions, but that’s the practical side talking. Sonny says, science, and Stella says she likes to think from the spiritual perspective, which is that Mike is ready to take his journey to the other side. He needs Sonny to let him go, and make his peace. Has he done that yet?

Sonny says he appreciates everything Stella has done, and Stella says, but he needs time with his dad. He says he knew she’d understand. Before she leaves, she’ll give him some tips on how to make Mike more comfortable. She tells Mike that she’s there. She was there this morning, and talked about his sharp hat. They’re going to make him more comfortable. She lowers the lights, saying, he doesn’t need that bright light in his face. She tells him that Felix will be by to take the gear off him, and asks Sonny to put on some nice music, which he does. She says, this will help him feel better too, and picks up a cup. She tells Sonny when his lips get dry, dab some water on them. Sonny does that, and she says that should make Mike feel better. She asks Mike if he’s doing okay; is he cold? Sonny says Mike’s hands are freezing, and she says, that’s expected. Mike’s body is shutting down. The blood is all going to his heart to keep it beating, so his extremities get cold. She gives Sonny a blanket, saying, it will make Mike feel better. Sonny puts the blanket over Mike.

Willow tells Michael that she thinks his dad is lucky, or maybe the word is blessed. He has a chance to say goodbye, knowing Mike has all this love to take with him when he passes on to the other side. He asks if she really believes that, and she says, absolutely. She also believes those Mike loved who have passed on will be waiting. She can’t think of anything better. He says, that’s a good way to look at it, and thanks her. She says, for what? and he says, for being there and letting him vent. He knows it’s not what she signed up for. They got married for Wiley, not so she could take care of him. She says, if that’s what he thinks, forget it. That’s not how marriage works.

Stella tells Mike, Sonny is there, and going to stay with him. If he needs anything, let Sonny know. It’s been an honor knowing him, and calling him her friend. Do what he needs to do. It’s going to be one of those times that will stay in both their hearts forever. God bless him. She hugs Sonny, and he thanks her, going back to sit next to Mike’s bed. Sonny tells Mike, Stella is something else. She’s the most practical down to earth woman he’s known. She has  a woo-woo vibe about the afterlife, but who knows?

Josslyn asks how Mike is, and Carly says, he was peaceful when she was there. Jason asks if he should check on Sonny, and Carly says, he would love that, and it might help him. Josslyn asks what about Carly? and Carly says she’s okay. She’s sad – she’s going to miss Mike – but it’s hard watching Sonny go through this. It’s going to be hard on him, but she’s glad he and Mike are going through it together. There was a lot of anger between them a long time ago. If Mike had died while they were still estranged, it would have broken Sonny’s heart. Now he gets to be by Mike’s side, and tell Mike how much he loves him, and that’s a gift. Truly a gift.

Sonny tells Mike, Stella said he needs to know that Sonny has made peace with his passing, but they both know that’s not it. Mike needs to hear and know they’ve made peace with what went wrong when he was a kid. Mike couldn’t help himself, but Sonny’s mom and him couldn’t understand. Gambling is an addiction. Now he knows how much Mike struggled. He’s a good man, who fell victim to something he couldn’t help. There’s no need for regret anymore. He forgave Mike a long time ago. He just wants Mike to go in peace. He’ll also go with love.

Willow tells Michael, she needs to be clear. When they got married, taking care of each other was part of the deal. When one is hurting, the other tries to help. He’s already done that for her, so of course (🍷), she wants to do that for him. They got married for Wiley’s sake, but he was her friend before that. They agreed when they took their vows, to share their lives with Wiley, which means sharing a life together. Got it? He says he does. He tells her that he should get back and be with his family. Willow is part of that family now, and she’s coming with him.

Jason watches Sonny with Mike, but doesn’t go in the room. In the hallway, Carly asks if he went in, and he says, no. Sonny is with Mike, and he didn’t want to intrude. She feels the same way. She wants to help, but Sonny has to do it on his own, and find a way to let go of Mike. Jason says Sonny has the courage to face reality and accept it, no matter how bad it hurts. When the time comes, he’ll do the right thing. He always does.

Josslyn works at a jigsaw puzzle, when Michael comes in with Willow. She and Michael hug, and he asks when she got there. She says, a little while ago. Jason is there too. He says, they’re all together; good. She asks how he’s holding up, and he says, better, thanks to Willow. He was starting to brood, and she gave him a talking to. Josslyn says, good for her, and Willow says, he’s exaggerating. Michael says he’s not, and Josslyn asks what Willow said. Willow tells her, the people Mike loves are waiting and happy to be with him. That was her experience with her own father. She never said goodbye, but she knows he’s in a better place, watching over her. Josslyn asks how she can be sure.

Sonny says, it’s not like he wants Mike to die. He did drag Mike to New York City for a drug trial, which probably wouldn’t have worked anyway. That’s how desperate he wanted Mike back. When Mike stopped eating, he wanted to shove a feeding tube down Mike’s throat, and would have kept him on machines, but that wasn’t right. He tells Mike, Stella says there’s somewhere much better out there for him, and he believes Mike feels the same way. Mike clears his throat, and Sonny says, hey, dad. When he was a kid, mom forced him to confess, so he went to church, and Mike was coming out of the confessional. He sat down, and they saw him pray. Mike didn’t know they were in the back, and they saw the guilt and pain on his face, even though he’d just confessed and wiped his soul clean. Sonny suddenly says, why didn’t he think of that before?

Carly tells Jason, she had the best dream. She was talking to Mike, and he was kind and loving, like a father. She’s never going to know that man again because of this damn disease. Sonny comes out, and Jason asks if there’s something he can do. Sonny says he needs both their help to do something for his dad.

Willow says she never told anyone before, but when she was giving birth to her baby, she felt her father’s presence so strongly. She knew he was there with her, and he told her she’d be all right, to stay strong; she was strong. She felt it so strongly. It was real. Josslyn says she gets that. She felt that with Oscar. In the past year, she’s thought about it a lot, and now with her grandpa. They knew the end was coming. Willow says, Oscar had her and her love; it made it easier for him. Josslyn says, one time, she and Oscar were looking at the stars, and Oscar said he’d be a part of them; part of the universe. It’s how he’d live on. Willow says, amazing, and Josslyn says, she thinks about it when she sees the sky on a clear night. She waves, and says hi, and tells him how much she misses him. Michael takes Josslyn’s hand, but she says, she’s fine. She really wishes there was some more immediate way to know Oscar was around. Brando walks in, and asks if she sees butterflies. It’s a sign a loved one is near, and watching over you. He heard about Mike, and came to pay his respects. He hopes it’s okay. Michael says, he’s their cousin, which means he’s family. He asks Brando to join them.

Michael asks if Brando is okay, and Brando says he’s getting back to normal. Josslyn asks, what happened? He looks like he got hit by a bus. Brando says, working in a garage and not being careful, let’s just say bad things can happen. Josslyn asks if Dev knows, but Brando says he hasn’t told him. Mike is more important. Sonny sent him a text. He asks if it’s true Mike doesn’t have much longer. Michael says, yeah, and Brando says he’s sorry. In Bridgeport, Mike was always around and would stop by. One time he came by when Brando and his mom had been fighting about something stupid. She’d sent him to his room, which he’d thought was totally unfair at the time. Mike saw him stuffing clothes into a bag; he was determined to run away. Mike said he could take off from his mom, but he’d take his anger with him, and whatever problems he had. He’d never get rid of them until he tackled them head on. Mike had a sad smile on his face, and said he’d run away himself, and was still dealing with his problems. Brando says he thinks about Mike’s words all the time. That’s why he’s still there. He’s getting to know his family, and putting down roots. Josslyn asks if Mike is the one who told him about the butterflies, and what they mean. What does it have to do with the afterlife? Carly comes in, and Josslyn asks how her grandpa is. Carly says, the same, and thanks Brando for being there. He says he doesn’t want to intrude, but she says, it means a lot to Sonny and Mike. She tells Michael and Josslyn that their father has come up with the idea to hopefully make Mike more comfortable and peaceful, and she’d like them to be a part of it.

Sonny tells Mike, they’re bringing someone there to help him. There’s a knock at the door, and Father Reyes joins them. He tells Sonny that he conducts mass there on Saturdays, and Mike usually showed up, although sometimes Mike called him Father Quinn. Sonny says that was the name of their parish priest in Brooklyn, and Father Reyes says he figured it was something like that. Sonny says it’s near the end, and he’d love to get a blessing for Mike. Father Reyes says he’d be honored. He puts a crucifix on Mike’s chest, and anoints parts of Mike’s body with oil. He asks that Mike be pardoned for the sins he’d committed by sight… by hearing… by smelling… by tasting… by touching… and by walking. He puts his hand on the Bible, and asks that Mike be forgiven all sins, and that God set Mike above all, choosing to see him face to face, with no division between him and God forever. He puts Mike’s hand on the Bible, and asks that he may be wrapped up in God’s love, and found deep in his everlasting wings, carried and kept safe and cherished. May the healing power of Christ breathe across his being now. He prays the Lord’s Prayer, and Carly, Sonny, Josslyn, and Michael pray with him. He blesses Mike, and they all make the sign of the cross.

In the waiting area, Michael wonders if this is the last time he’ll see his grandfather alive. Josslyn asks if what Mike has done is really gone, and how they know the afterlife is true? Stella says they just have to seek faith, because if there was nothing after death… Willow says, the alternative is too grim to think about. Brando says he was messed up after he came back from Iraq. Seeing his buddies gone. It seemed pointless, and he became self-destructive. Josslyn asks, what changed? and he says, he realized he wanted to live.

Carly thanks Father Reyes. The priest tells her that Mike had said how proud he was of them. He’s sure it’s a comfort that they’re with him.

Sonny says he’s been thinking about Morgan, and Jason says, him too. Sonny says, too bad Mike never got a chance to know Morgan before he died. Maybe Morgan is waiting for him. Sonny laughs, and Jason says he thinks Morgan is. Sonny says he wants to believe it. It makes it a lot easier, but at least Mike had the chance to see Dante, and have a good time. Dante is gone too; another loss. He asks if Jason thinks that’s why Mike doesn’t want to leave. He doesn’t want Sonny to have another loss. Jason says, maybe. Or maybe it’s something else. Sonny says, like what? and Jason says, if Sonny wants to take a break, he can stay there, but Sonny wants to stay. Mike might need him. He wonders what Jason isn’t telling him, but Jason says, it’s nothing. Sonny will figure it out. Jason goes over to Mike, and tells him, just do what he needs to do, okay? He’s there for Sonny. He leaves, and Sonny sits down. He says, all right, dad. He doesn’t have to feel bad or be afraid. There are people who want to see him, and he needs to see them. He doesn’t have to worry about Sonny; he’s not a little boy anymore. He believes Mike knows what’s going on, and says, listen, dad. Remember when he was a little boy, and Mike and his mom were fighting? They thought he was asleep, but he wasn’t. He heard them fighting the night Mike left. Mike was walking out, and his mom said he couldn’t walk out unless he said goodbye to Sonny, and he didn’t. Sonny starts to cry, and says Mike left, and his mom didn’t give Mike another chance. She divorced him, but it’s okay. Sonny understands now. He knows Mike loved him. He thinks maybe too much.

Tomorrow, Olivia says Winston won’t know what hit his casino, Alexis asks if Diane thinks she’s going to relapse, and Mike says, I know you.

Oscar’s exit was good, but this is phenomenal. I have no idea how these actors got through this without bawling their eyes out every second. Anyone who thinks soaps don’t deserve the same respect any other programming does, is out of their damn mind.

🦋 About Those Butterflies…

I wish they’d finished that conversation.

https://butterflywebsite.com/DISCOVER/bfliesandrainbows.cfm

✨ IRL…

Soap roll call of the dead for the year so far.

https://soaps.sheknows.com/gallery/soap-opera-actors-passed-away-2020/

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills

We jump right in. Andy asks, what’s the worst thing Denise has said about Teddi? and Denise says she told Teddi to her face; she’s a sh*t stirrer. Teddi says Denise told Brandi that she said worse things. Denise says, according to who? Brandi? and Erika says, according to Denise. We flash back to Denise’s interview, where she did say that. D’oh! Although I’m sure whatever it was, it was warranted. Teddi is a poser, follower, and sh*t stirrer. Denise says Teddi is the daughter of a famous father, and the fact that she’d bring up gossip at a group dinner is really sh*tty. We flash back to Teddi saying she won’t torture Denise anymore, when really, she was just getting started. LisaR says, Brandi brought it up on camera, and Denise tells her to be quiet. Like this has ever been an option for LisaR. LisaR says she won’t be quiet, and she won’t be sorry. Denise says, stop. Brandi wasn’t at the dinner, but Teddi was. LisaR says it was already out the in the world, which is like the 50th time she’s used that expression. Denise says Brandi talked about a lot of them, and Teddi says, if Denise had no relationship with Brandi, how does she know what Brandi said? Denise says when she and Brandi met through their mutual agent, Brandi had diarrhea of the mouth, but she never repeated any of it. There’s more babbling about this, and Denise says Brandi called and asked out of the blue if she could come with her and Aaron to Kyle’s event. Aaron said, no effing way, as we all would, and Denise says, Aaron doesn’t like Brandi. She’s a train wreck, and not stable; she drinks a lot. This actually does sound like Brandi, since she’s continually tried to worm her way into places she’s not wanted. I would feel bad for her if she wasn’t so detestable. Andy asks when was the last time Denise saw Brandi, and Denise says when Brandi asked her to do the podcast. Aaron was there, and met her. Andy says Brandi was so specific, even about the hotel room, and we flash back to Brandi saying, blah-blah-blah poor me. Denise says Brandi knocked on the door, and she let Brandi in while she was getting her stuff. Aaron was there the whole time, and they don’t have an open marriage. If they did, she would say so. Kyle says it would be easier and better if she said it was between her and Brandi, and she didn’t want to talk about it. She hasn’t been honest. That was a pattern, and then she stopped showing up. Denise says, it was between them based on what Brandi claimed. Everyone starts babbling at once, and Andy says, one at a time.

Making a new paragraph, and inserting my opinion. For argument’s sake, even if Denise had said what Kyle just suggested, there’s no way they would have left her alone. They would have said nothing is private since she’s on a reality show, and LisaR would have screeched about owning it. Denise says she had a fever and she was sick, when she FaceTimed with Dorit and Garcelle. Kyle says Denise said she was coming to her housewarming, but turned her phone off. Be honest. Like any one of them knows what that is. Denise says she owned up with Garcelle. What’s it to Kyle? <snort> Sutton says she didn’t know Denise at all 2018, heard a rumor one person removed from Brandi. Either Brandi is lying (hello? has she been paying attention?) or Denise is. LisaR talks, but all I hear is, wah-wah-wah, like Charlie Brown’s teacher. Dorit suggests she let Sutton finish, but apparently Sutton thinks better of it, and says she is finished. Andy asks if Denise didn’t say the texts were made up or engineered, and Denise says her text thread is very different. LisaR pulls out this humongous stack of papers, and says she has a print out. Garcelle says, wow, and LisaR asks if Denise wants to go through it. Denise tells her to be careful, although no one else seems to care a whole lot. They’re probably bored with this sh*t, and want to move on to talking about Fendi or Fenty or whatever. LisaR asks if Denise is threatening her, and Denise says she’s telling the truth. If LisaR wants to play this game, she’ll do it. LisaR asks again if Denise is threatening her, and Kyle says she thinks it’s a promise. Huh? I have no idea what that means, but I want to see these texts. Denise says she’s willing to show they don’t match up, but is LisaR willing to let her show texts between the two of them? At least she’s asking. LisaR suddenly refuses to own it, saying, those are private. Denise says it’s about her, and all of them. I WANT TO SEE!!! LisaR says she’s being muzzled. Something else I’d love to see. She says Denise sent a cease and desist letter. Her lawyer threatened Bravo, telling them to cease production. Denise says she sent one to Brandi, hoping to make her tell the truth. LisaR asks if a cease and desist (which I’m already tired of typing) is to make someone tell the truth or to silence them. Erika says it means, quit it. Kyle says she’s been there, and it was hurtful to her family. She says something about LVP that I don’t catch, and I’m sure was just bullsh*t anyway. Andy asks if LisaR doesn’t feel there are things that are off limits, and LisaR says she dealt with it. She certainly did, and we flash back to her going ballistic, smashing a wine glass on the table and screaming, don’t touch the husband, when Kim asked, what about the husband? in Amsterdam. (#WhatDidHarryDo) LisaR says she faced Kim then, and faced her at the reunion. Of course she did, it’s screen time. She’d never walk away with the camera rolling. Although she did get her bunny thrown back at her for her trouble. She says she didn’t run, and Garcelle says, not everyone deals with things the same way. Why does she care? LisaR says they’va been having to deal with it for the last six months. Um… Only because they insisted on dealing with it. Andy tells her, let’s say something did happen, and maybe Denise would be trying to protect her family and marriage. What would LisaR say? LisaR thinks if a good friend came to her and said they needed help, she’d do it. Garcelle says, all she did was attack Denise, when they’d been friends for 20 years. LisaR insists she wasn’t attacking, and Kyle says, moving forward means having honest relationships. She doesn’t care what someone did. Andy says, Kyle is saying the way to move forward is to be honest, but Denise is saying the truth is that she didn’t sleep with Brandi. Denise says they’re not accepting that, so she doesn’t know where they go from here. Kyle says she doesn’t want to see anyone feel bad, and I choke on the vanilla wafers I just shoved in my mouth. She says they’ve all gone through difficult times in their lives, but things like this have repercussions. Andy asks what it looks like for Denise moving forward, and she says, sometimes the women don’t accept honesty. They think she’s lying, and that’s what’s hurtful. Andy wants to take a break, and I want to knock LisaR’s chair out from under her.

Sutton says Garcelle’s boobs make hers look sad, and Garcelle says she like to keep it real. She uses tape. Andy welcomes us back, even though, once again, we’re not the ones who went anywhere. He says, from go-go cage to the Broadway stage, Erika pulled back the curtain to new layers in her life that we’ve never seen before. We flash back to her nostalgic trip to Shakers, and her getting Roxie in Chicago. Viewer Tabatha from Arkansas says it was great that Erika did what she needed to survive, and asks if she was ever propositioned. Erika says she was, but never took them up on it. Another viewer points out that LisaR said her daughters would never work in a strip club, but they pose half-nude. What’s the difference? LisaR guesses there is no difference, and Erika says, more money. Andy says he saw her in Chicago, and was amazed at how packed the house was, and they were there for her. Erika says it was a surreal moment she’ll take to her grave. Andy says Janet Jackson and Marc Jacobs were there, and asks what Tom thought. She says he wasn’t able to come. He was going to be there the last week, but Covid happened. I try like hell not to think, karma is a bitch. Andy says Garcelle called LisaR out for stealing Erika’s thunder, and Garcelle says, she felt it was Erika’s time to shine, and she it was repetitive (as is everything with Lisa Own It Rinna), and LisaR says she went to see Erika, but Garcelle didn’t. Garcelle says it had nothing to do with not supporting Erika; don’t even try it. Erika knows Garcelle was there for her. Just because she didn’t go to New York, doesn’t mean she wasn’t supportive.  Erika says she didn’t feel that LisaR was stealing her shine or butting in. She relied on LisaR, and asked questions. It was a big project for her, and she was glad to have someone at her fingertips who had done it. She thanks LisaR, and thanks everyone who showed up. They’d finished shooting, and left their lives and families, and traveled to NYC. Whoa. Wait. Why did we see it on camera if they weren’t shooting? Was that a mirage? She says the left their lives and families, and traveled. It made her cry. She thanks Sutton for chartering the plane. It might sound corny, but she thanks them for being on the journey (ugh) with her. Teddi says Garcelle and Denise kept saying they should lift each other up and not be petty, but they weren’t there when no cameras were rolling. Garcelle asks if Denise wants to go first, and Denise says she wasn’t invited until the night before when Sutton realized she wasn’t on the list for the plane. She didn’t even know they were going. Andy asks if at the time she was suing them, and she says she wasn’t suing anybody. She sent a cease and desist (gritting my teeth) to Brandi, and a letter to Bravo asking if they would remove the footage. She sent nothing to any cast member, and that’s the extent of it. Garcelle says she constantly texted Erika about how proud she was of her, and asking how rehearsals were going. She’s deathly afraid of small planes. When she was a model, a lot of scary things happened. LisaR says Teddi and Dorit flew commercial, and Garcelle says just because she couldn’t make it doesn’t mean she’s not supportive. Sutton says, good point, and LisaR demands to know why Garcelle wasn’t there, since the plane wasn’t small. Garcelle says she had to work, and she had the kids. Her husband wouldn’t change the schedule, and she had prior commitments to fulfill. Erika says so it wasn’t the plane, and Garcelle says, that’s the truth, and she’s sticking to it. I stuff another cookie in my mouth because I hate LisaR’s stupid effing face-making so much. She’s a disgusting human being – if I’d even call her human. She’s like a mean blow-up doll.

Speaking of which, Jane from Mississippi asks if it’s true that The Bold and the Beautiful is using blow-up dolls and spouses for love scenes. Denise says, if anything is closer than eight feet, they use a mannequin to step in, and the other actor is off-camera. We see a clip of her talking to a mannequin, and she says she’s doing her first love scene with her husband tomorrow. Andy bets the rehearsal process is intense, and she says, well, you know. He asks if Aaron was defending Denise or mansplaining at Kyle’s barbecue, and we revisit him telling Teddi there’s no issue and they’re being ridiculous. We flash back to Teddi’s interview where she asked if he thought it was sexy when he put women down, and called him an a-hole. We see clips from the shoe party where Denise made the mistake of leaving him alone with the women, and Erika accused him of talking down to them. We also see Denise apologizing for him, and also saying in her interview that, after what they did to her in Rome, fat chance they’d get an apology from him. Andy says they invited Aaron to the reunion, but he didn’t want to come, and Denise says no one else’s husband is there, and it would have been a no win situation. Andy says, when PK came, he and Erika talked through what happened, and their relationship is good now. Erika says they squashed their beef, and we flash back to that. Dorit says it didn’t happen overnight, but they were able to start from scratch. Andy asks how Denise feels about how Aaron spoke to the women, but she doesn’t think it was offensive. He liked the women, she thinks he was trying to diffuse the situation. She should have brought him to the bathroom with her. Erika says when Denise left, she thought, at least Denise wouldn’t whisk him away, and Denise says don’t ask her husband questions if they don’t want him involved. Erika says they did want him involved. I’m just confused. They’ve gone on and on about how he basically shouldn’t talk to women like he would a man, so they want everyone to behave honestly except him? And I could swear in Rome, they said he shouldn’t have gotten involved. These idiots need to make up their minds. Andy asks what their reaction is to Denise not wanting Aaron around them, and Erika says, he’s a grown man, which Kyle parrots. Erika says, they’re six women, not six Mike Tysons. Give her a break. Andy asks why Aaron hasn’t apologized, and she says he hasn’t even seen them. Teddi says he had the opportunity, but doubled down. She was uncomfortable with the way he spoke to them and to Denise. Viewer Rachel from Santa Monica says she rewound and watched Aaron and Denise leaving the barbecue four times to catch what Aaron said to Denise. We watch the clip with subtitles, and he says he’s going to crush her hand. At the time, I’d actually thought he said she was crushing his hand. Denise says he didn’t even know what he’d said either until she played it for him, and then he told her that he didn’t know why he said that since he’s afraid of her. Andy asks why he’s afraid of her, and she has to explain that he was joking. Sutton says she has zero tolerance for that, and Garcelle says she saw it on social media and was worried. Omg. I honestly don’t think it was a real threat. It’s like none of them has ever said something like, I’m going to kill you.

Andy says, with these women, glam isn’t a fashion statement, it’s a competition. Black rompers and ragamuffins need not apply. We flash back, and normally I enjoy the fashion stuff, but msot of them are disgusting me tonight, and I just want this to be over. Garcelle asks if Sutton knows who Fenty is now, and she says, hell yes. A new collection just came out. Andy asks if Sutton got a lot of crap for that, and Sutton says she didn’t want to leave the house. Dorit shows off the back of her head, which is a conglomeration of braids. Andy outs Kyle spending $10K in Rome when she was on probation, and she tells him, thanks for putting that on blast. She admits to being just as excited to shop at Home Goods as Fendi in Rome. Switching gears, Andy says LisaR and Denise have been friends for years, and this was the ultimate test. If they were giving grades, their friendship would get an FU. We flash back to Denise talking to LisaR about having been friends for 28-30 years, and in her interview saying she’s starting to feel betrayed; maybe they’re not as good of friends as she thought. We see LisaR saying, own it, own it, own it, and this fake bitch crying about how she should have warned Denise, and that Denise would have done that for her. Denise looks sad, and LisaR makes stupid-ass faces. Andy says they both claimed the other had changed, and asks Denise how LisaR has changed. She says she needs to eat something before she answers, and I completely identify, since I need to eat something before I hear it. Like my feelings. LisaR says she’d like to know the answer, but Denise disappears. LisaR makes a stupid face, and everyone babbles about Denise walking off, when she probably just went to get her bag of vanilla wafers.

Denise comes back, and says she has to go to work in the morning, and has 48 pages. LisaR says if she’s unhappy, don’t do the show. Just do B&B. Denise says she’s not unhappy. She enjoyed doing the show, and getting know the women. Andy says Denise had told them LisaR was someone she trusted to go to for advice, and asks how she feels now. Denise says, very different. LisaR turned on her while on the show. LisaR lies, saying she doesn’t turn on people, but Denise hasn’t been open and honest. Denise says she’s an open book, and of all people, LisaR should know that. LisaR gripes about all the times Denise has run, and Denise says, not cool. We see her leaving several events, but I don’t see any reason why anyone should stick around if they’re being abused. Viewer Maya from Spokane wonders why LisaR didn’t just pull Denise aside, instead of calling her a hypocrite about the kids. LisaR says Denise talked about hookers so many times, and Denise says, one time she talked about inviting one in for Thanksgiving. She was wearing sweats, and it’s not like she was dressed for the street. Her mother would have done the same thing. Shame on LisaR, when she was just telling the woman to come in for a square meal. Kyle says they were on a group trip together, so it was an open conversation in the group. They keep saying this is a reality show, but in reality, no one says everything to everybody in a group.

Andy wants to finish, and so do I. He says the turning point was not being honest, and LisaR says, when she sees a year and a half worth of text messages, and Denise says she’s only seen Brandi three times, she can’t reconcile it. Denise says, moving forward, she should remember those words, and LisaR asks if Denise is threatening her again, because she’s gone completely insane. Denise says, no, but LisaR has told her a lot of stuff about Brandi. LisaR says she doesn’t like Brandi, and Denise asks if Brandi knows that. LisaR says she’s been nice to Brandi lately because Brandi is just trying to get back on the show tell her side. Denise says so much has been said about her family, and her kids are at an age when they hear stuff. How would LisaR feel? LisaR says she would get on the phone and say, stop it, f***er. Denise says, Brandi isn’t a friend, or even a cast member. If it was one of them, she would have, but she barely knows her. Andy says if LisaR was allowed to do it over, would she have given Denise a heads up? LisaR says she wouldn’t have had Denise come on the show, like she does the hiring. Denise rolls her eyes, and Garcelle says, damn. Andy says they’d agreed to try and work on it, but has the stress of the show airing and social media come between them? LisaR says they haven’t spoken or texted in six months. He wonders if they can go back to being friends, and LisaR says, like Denise was friends with Heather Locklear. Denise says Heather wasn’t her friend; she was friends with Denise’s ex-husband. LisaR is grasping at straws. LisaR says, maybe, and Andy says he doesn’t understand the reference. LisaR says Denise is insinuating she’s a bad friend. Denise says she isn’t, and Andy what’s to know what’s up with the Heather Locklear thing. He’s kind of interested. Denise says LisaR is being low. Not owning it in the least, LisaR says, google it. So I do. See below. Andy says Dorit defended Denise, and Dorit says, everything that’s happening hurts her. She’s grown to have a friendship with LisaR and Denise. She respects Denise and doesn’t like to see them go at it. She doesn’t like to see a 20 year friendship gone like that. She cares about them, and it’s hard. She wonders if, with time, they can find their way past it. She cares about both of them. Andy talks about how LisaR was so excited about Denise coming on the show, and said everybody would love her. Denise asks, what changed? No one says anything, and Andy asks where they go from here. LisaR says she doesn’t know, and Denise shrugs. Andy says they’ll leave it there, and Denise dabs at her eyes.

It’s time for Sutton to say goodbye, and she thanks them for having her. Andy says, it’s an unforgettable way to end a momentous season, and asks what went through Denise’s mind. She laughs, saying she came there to resolve things, but feels like that some of them didn’t want to do that. He asks if she’s going to move forward, and be friends again. She says, with some of them, and he asks Garcelle what surprised her the most. She says that the show wasn’t scripted. She came in open-hearted; ready to play and make new friends. She’s optimistic about the future. He asks how it was for Teddi being pregnant, and she says it was like being the narrator, being really present. It was harder, but good things happened. He asks for Erika’s takeaway, and she says, it was a great year. She had a lifetime achievement in Chicago, and feels good. She hates discord and conflict, but sh*t happens. If you’re willing, you can have a friendship. Andy says there have been years that ended in a bad way, but amazing friendships developed. He asks LisaR what she’d change about the season, and she says, nothing. She’s a truth teller. If she needs to say it, she’s going to say it, whether she’s known someone two or twenty years. He asks about her friendship with Denise, and she says it’s not where she’d like it to be. She’s sad about that, and it’s too bad they’re where they are. In the six years she’s been on the show, she’s been through it. She and Dorit moved forward. Dorit gave her a chance, and she’s grateful. Andy says, Kyle has been on the show ten years; how does she think they can move forward? She says, being honest and open, maybe one on one conversations. You have to be honest and open (omg, is that tattooed on her?) enough to give it a chance. She doesn’t think anything is irreparable. If I were Denise, I would never be friends with LisaR again for sure. It’s one thing siding with what you know to be true, but this showing up with a stack of texts from someone who’s a known liar (sorry, dumbass Kyle, but Brandi is) is ridiculous. Kyle says she’s glad she and Garcelle got to know each other. Andy says Dorit has been in the middle of drama, and she says she’s had issues with some of the women, but they’re good friends now. As bad as it gets, she thinks you can truly move on from something if both parties want to.

Andy tells them to raise a glass to season 10. It’s the first time Teddi has been able to drink. Dorit tells us that she has Gucci ice cubes in a Gucci glass. Um… maybe she used a Gucci ice cube tray, but I think the actual ice is courtesy of the city of Beverly Hills or wherever her sink is. She toasts, may the only pain in your life be champagne, and Kyle says, to moving forward and healing, even though nobody asked her. Andy says he can’t wait to see them in person, but at least there will be no L.A. traffic waiting.

Next time, RHOBH Secrets Revealed. This is code for crap they either couldn’t squeeze into the show, or that wasn’t worth airing.

💎 Extra Diamond Drama…

What happened with Heather.

https://people.com/tv/rhobh-season-10-finale-what-happened-between-denise-richards-and-heather-locklear/

Teddi’s All In program sounds deeply disturbing.

https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/09/10028744/all-in-by-teddi-mellencamp-diet-business-scam-twitter

📺 The New Emmy…

Jimmy Kimmel gives you the skinny.

https://abc.com/shows/emmy-awards/video/most-recent/vdka20111302?cid=email_ABC_20200913

🍸 One Two Three…

Another late night. Pretty soon, I won’t need to drink to swing from a chandelier. Hopefully, you’re soundly sleeping as I type this, but when you wake, stay safe, stay original, and stay looking for butterflies.

August 21, 2020 – Julian Pushes Back, 3rd Time’s the Charm, Volunteer Carpet, Sam Returns, Parker’s Lifetime, Snake Talk, Bryan’s Next Move, Peeking At Charlie, Teddi’s Mansion, Virally Filmed, 29th Dance, Lilly’s Latest, Dead News, Three For the Show, 12+1 Quotes & Roll

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What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

😳 Oops. My bad. After the insane week I’ve had, I had a hard time reading my own shorthand yesterday and attributed Nelle and Brook’s final words backward. Sorry about that. I did question myself at the time, and should have known Brook would never back down to Nelle. The correct version is in today’s post. Moving forward…

Lucy welcomes us back, and says, once again, the 2020 General Hospital Nurses Ball telethon, a spectacular event to raise money for frontline workers’ special safety equipment. It’s a great honor to introduce everyone’s favorite nurse at GH, Epiphany Johnson. Epiphany comes out, and explains that hospitals are a collaboration. They aren’t made up of just doctors and nurses, but orderlies, lab technicians, cleaners and other workers. Together they provide essential services. These are incredibly stressful jobs, and take their toll on service providers and their families. The viewer donations let them know that the community they support, supports them back. Lucy says the telethon is a way to say thank you to all the medical personnel and first responders, who are heroes, along with their families, and who do so much for them. While the viewers are making donations, they’ll be entertained with amazing acts still to come.

In the bathroom, Ava tells Nina, the Cassadine men do have a way of getting under their skin. Nina says, which brings her back to Nikolas. Is he trying to make Ava jealous by making a fuss over Elizabeth? Even if they’re married in name only, flirting, especially with a married woman, is just tacky. Ava says, and also profitable. If Nikolas sleeps with another woman, he’ll break the infidelity clause, and she’ll wind up with 90% of the Cassadine estate. Nikolas can shower tributes on Elizabeth to his heart’s content, and if he woos her into bed, Ava gets the payoff she deserves. Inside one of the stalls, Elizabeth listens.

Carly tells Jax that Josslyn called. He wonders if there’s something wrong, but she says she thinks Josslyn was just checking in. She might be looking for a congratulatory present. Jax asks if Carly knows Josslyn has been angling for a car, and Carly says she does. She’ll let him handle that. Before he leaves, Jax tells Nikolas, the scholarship for the nursing students in Elizabeth’s name was generous, but maybe he should have thought about it a little more. Franco says, Jax has a point. Next time a wave of generosity washes over him, he may want to shower it onto his wife.

Michael explains the Quartermaine relationships to Willow, telling her, Tracy married Luke. Michael thought it was a fraudulent marriage, but he can’t keep track. They definitely turned out to be life partners though. She asks if unconventional marriages are a thing for the Quartermaines, and he says they wouldn’t have it any other way.

Monica sits back down on the couch, and says, still sleeping; disaster averted. Julian comes up behind her, and chloroforms her, knocking her out. Wiley sleeps peacefully with Mr. Hopsicle.

Brook tells Nelle that she can’t wait until Nelle is hauled off in handcuffs in front of everyone there, and all the people viewing at home. Nelle says the police won’t believe Brook; they’ll say she’s harassing Nelle. Brook says, she’ll call Michael, and he can call the police, but Nelle smacks the phone out of Brook’s hand. Brook says, no worries. Mac is there; he can arrest her himself. Brook heads for the door, and Nelle says she’s sorry. She picks up the shears, and asks Brook to pretend that she didn’t see or hear anything. Brook turns around, and stupidly walks back to Nelle, and says she messed with her last Quartermaine. Nelle slashes at Brook, and we see blood on the shears. Why? Why do they always do that? Like Tuco said in The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, if you’re going to shoot, shoot; don’t talk.

Michael sees that Brook called, but didn’t leave a message. Willow says maybe Brook wanted to make peace with him, but he say she doesn’t need to. He didn’t like the idea that she sold her shares, but so did other members of his family. At least she didn’t know she sold them to Valentin. She says he’s less worried than Ned seems to be, and he says he hates the idea of Valentin being in charge, and intends to force him out eventually, but in the short term, Valentin is a smart businessman. He doesn’t think ELQ will suffer. Willow says he doesn’t think of it as a betrayal, so maybe he should tell Brook. He tries calling.

Nelle stands over an unconscious Brook, and says she should have been nicer, more sympathetic. Her mistake. Now Nelle’s plan to have Wiley vanish has gone south. She needs to go. Brook lies on the floor in a pool of blood, next to her ringing phone. Nelle slips out.

Monica is knocked out, and Julian says, sorry. He turns off the TV, and his phone dings. He sees a text from Nelle that says, the timetable has been moved up. We need to move now. Is it done? He closes the doors to the living room, and trots up the stairs.

Michael gives Willow a bottle of water, and raises his own, saying, to Wiley, and his amazing new life. He’s safe from Nelle because of her. Willow says, because of us, and Diane. He says, to Wiley and Diane. Carly watches, and smiles. Michael smiles at Willow, and little hearts start to pop out of his eyes.

Lucy asks Amy if she’s found Jordan. Maybe she’s warming up, since she’s the next act. Amy says she couldn’t find Jordan, so she asked Curtis, who said she was called away on a case. Lucy says, no; that doesn’t work. Jordan is the Police Commissioner. She doesn’t have to solve every case. She can delegate to other police people. Lucy can’t delegate an act. Amy says she called the PCPD and the hospital, but no one has seen her. Lucy will have to cut her number. Lucy says it can’t just be her out there; she needs acts. Acts and asking for money. They need alternate activities. It’s like the NFL draft, but she doesn’t have an act to draft. Amy tells Lucy not to panic; she can panic later. She asks if Lucy wants to shut the Ball down, and Lucy asks if Amy is losing her mind. She tells Amy to find Epiphany and Deanna, and warm up. She’ll stall. She’ll do a tap dance. She doesn’t know how to tap dance. She hates tap dancing. She’ll just stall.

Anna tells Valentin that his song was beautiful, and he says, at least someone appreciates it. She says false modesty doesn’t look good on him. It was wonderful, and he knows it, as was his pledge. He asks if she’s going to chastise him for burnishing his public image. She says, isn’t he? and he says, that’s part of it. He hears congratulations are in order. She must be thrilled for Peter and Maxie. Being a parent changes everything. It makes you better. It did with him and Charlotte, and her and Robin. Maybe it will with Peter. She says, of course (🍷) it will. He hopes so, and says, some mistakes are impossible to fix.

Nina tells Ava, Franco is her friend. She hopes Ava isn’t playing with his marriage. Ava says she’s doing no such thing. She’s heard rumors that under that angelic façade, Elizabeth is chronically unfaithful. If she chooses to break her vows to her husband, Franco should know the truth. Nina sees one flaw in Ava’s big plan. The way she and Nikolas were looking at each other, either she’s getting good at pretending to love him, or something changed in the last few days. Ava says Nina is projecting her issues with Valentin onto her. They leave, and Elizabeth comes out.

Michael tells Willow, they’re supposed to take a tally, and give Lucy the paperwork. What if after that, they sneak out? She says, abandon their post? He says they’ve done more than enough. They can go home, and check on Wiley. She says he’s making her an offer she can’t refuse. She glances at Sonny, and says, did she really just say that? They leave to finish up.

Lucy says hello to all their gorgeous, generous, amazing donors. They’re doing a great job, and she hopes they realize how important it is to the frontline workers who help them every day. When they work together, they do something more than raising money. They’re building a community, and showing the medical personnel and first responders that they support them. Any amount is great. Keep pitching in, and they’ll keep entertaining. They’re in for a special treat.

Nelle dashes through the corridors in the MetroCourt, and around runs outside. Julian sends a text that says, it’s done.

As Monica sleeps, Julian comes downstairs with Wiley, and leaves with him.

Michael and Willow arrive home, and Michael says, sorry the evening crashed and burned. She says, it didn’t. She had a good time. He says, until Chase and Sasha. She says, they were fantastic (I guess we don’t get to see that), and he says, someday it won’t hurt so much. Until then, they can make some popcorn, and watch the funniest movie ever made. She says he doesn’t have to cheer her up, and he says he’s cheering himself up. They sit on the stairs.

Sonny says, Michael and Willow aren’t coming back? and Carly says, they probably went to check on Wiley; they’re such good parents. Sonny says he’s glad it wasn’t her idea; Chase and Sasha pretending to be involved so Michael and Willow would get married. Face it. It’s exactly the kind of plan that’s up her alley. She says, back in the day, 100%. She’d be seeing all of their hearts breaking and feel guilty. Instead, she’s grateful Michael and Willow got custody of Wiley, and Wiley got the best stepmother on the planet. Sonny says he knows there’s too much going on, and Carly asks if he wants to check in with Turning Woods, but he says, no. They’ll call if there’s any change. The best thing he can do for his dad is to stay and support the people who have given him such amazing care.

Olivia tells Ned, she’s trying to call Brook, but there’s no answer. He says, his problem daughter? No surprise. He tells Olivia to save the lecture for now, but she says she’s just expressing her opinion. He says, on this topic, they’re one and the same, and she says he’s scaring the hell of her. She’s heard stories about his grandfather, and his intentions were good, but his methods were toxic. She says this with love, but he’s turning more into Edward every day. He says, that’s not true, and she says, prove it. Find his daughter, and talk to her.

We see Brook lying on the floor, unconscious.

Ned asks if Dustin and Lulu have seen Brook, but Dusting says, not for a while. She might be warming up. They’ll go check. Ned thanks them.

Robert asks Olivia if she’s got a minute, and she asks if he’s okay. He says he has good news. The commissioner at the Bureau said he can get her in to see Dante. Olivia gets super excited, and asks, when? Where is he? Robert says, he’s at a facility in Geneva. No civilians are allowed, so he’ll go with her. The supervisor is waiting for his boss to return, and there’s a narrow window. They have to hurry. He’d like to leave now if they could. She throws her arms around him, and thanks him. Ned watches.

Willow says, popcorn and the funniest movie ever? and Michael says, if only to cheer him up. Feel free not be cheered, since it’s only about him. He asks what she’d like to see, and she asks him, promise not to laugh, but he says, that’s the point. She says it’s a kid movie, with silly humor, and he tells her, cue it up, and he’ll check on Wiley. They go into the living room, and see Monica asleep. Michael tries to wake her, but she stays out.

Julian waits at the pier, and says, sorry, Wiley; you deserve better than this. Unfortunately, your crazy birth mother has other plans. Why is he going along with it? He’s the world’s biggest coward. He should have told Sonny that he knew all along, but Sonny can kill someone. He’s run out of options. He flashes back to telling Ava, go ahead. Tell him what an idiot he is for getting mixed up with Nelle. Ava asks what on earth was he thinking, and why hasn’t he killed her yet? He says he wouldn’t be there if she didn’t have him over a barrel. Ava says if he thinks Nelle will release him when it’s over, he’s a damn fool. On the pier, Julian says, maybe not.

Lulu says, if she’s not backstage, Brook probably bailed, but Dustin says, she might have stage fright, but she wouldn’t run away. They go into the makeshift dressing room, and see Brook on the floor. Dustin runs to check her pulse, and Lulu says, oh my God. Dustin tells her, call 911, and tells Brook to wake up.

Lucy tells the viewers that the Nurses Ball is still so passionately committed to HIV and AIDS. Sonny and Nikolas’s generous donations will be going to those charities. She wants to introduce a woman committed to both causes, and welcomes Anna. Anna thanks the viewers for their donations. She’s been answering the phones, and got to speak to some of them; they’ve been lovely. She’s grateful for their generosity. The Nurses Ball has a special place in her heart, and not just because she received a lovely marriage proposal on this very stage a year ago from Dr. Hamilton Finn (I always forget he has a first name). She says, it’s special because so many lives have been touched by HIV and AIDS. She’s the mother of an HIV survivor. She was diagnosed at a time when the prognosis wasn’t as optimistic; a time when prejudice and fear were more rampant. Her daughter Robin, and countless others, are alive today because of medical research. Perhaps that’s why Robin became a doctor herself. This leads her to tell them how important the telethon is. She served as Police Commissioner, and saw how closely first responders and medical staff work together. Their work is vitally important. The police, doctors, the ambulance crew, the hospital cleaners; no one does their job alone. They need each other, and we desperately need them. So give what you can. Any donation, whatever size. I have a friend who was diagnosed with HIV many years ago, like Robin, and he’s doing fine today.

Elizabeth tells Franco, Nikolas isn’t the problem, Ava is. She’s playing emotional chess with Nikolas, and they’re the pawns.

Robert tells Olivia he has to go back inside. Anna is going to have a fit because he wasn’t there during her speech. Olivia says, tell her the truth. He found a way for her to see her son; Anna will understand. He says he’ll be waiting, and she says she doesn’t know how  to thank him. He leaves, and Ned comes out. He says, amazing. They have a fight and she runs to Robert because he says the right things. Olivia says it has nothing to do with their marriage. Robert found a way for her to see Dante. Ned says, that’s great news, and Olivia says, he’s at a facility in Geneva. Robert knows the guy in charge. Ned says he’ll change his schedule, and they’ll go, but Olivia says Robert has to sneak her in as it is. Only one person can go. Ned says, okay, and Lulu comes running in. She says, Brook has been attacked.  

Michael begs Monica to please wake up. Monica opens her eyes, and asks if everything is all right. He says she scared him half to death. Is she okay? She says she must have dozed off, and Michael says she was sleeping pretty heavily. Where’s Wiley? She says she doesn’t remember. The phone rang, and she’d left it in the foyer. She came back in, and heard Wiley. Michael asks if Wiley was downstairs or did she hear him on the monitor? Willow says she’ll check the nursery.

Nelle goes to meet Julian, and asks where Wiley is. He says Wiley is safe in his car, and she asks if he’s saying he’s giving her a set of wheels. That’s totally nice, but unnecessary. Just put Wiley in her car, and they can get going.

Elizabeth tells Franco, Ava is encouraging Nikolas to cheat, so she can get the Cassadine fortune. Franco says she has it backward. Nikolas is the one who’s playing them.

Lucy thanks everyone, saying the Nurses Ball was a resounding success; just amazing. She’d like to thank the volunteers who jumped in at the last minute, and gave generously of their time, and  the amazing performers backstage who pitched in and made this happen. She thanks her rack of gowns on stage with her, and goes behind the rack, coming out in a volunteer T-shirt and jeans. She says the most deserving of all is their amazing audience. It’s her great pleasure to introduce the intrepid nurses of GH. Epiphany, Amy, Deanna, and an unidentified flying nurse sing. I’ve had zero luck with finding the titles of songs I don’t recognize, but if I can find a list, I’ll post them. They sing in front of a grid with candles everywhere on it, and I think, that’s impressive for something done on the fly.

Backstage, Lucy smiles at her success.

Brook is taken out on a stretcher, while Mac gathers evidence. He asks if Dustin and Lulu saw anybody. Did anyone look like they were fleeing the scene? Lulu says, they didn’t see anyone. Ned tells Brook to hang in there. He won’t leave her side. He’ll be right there. They leave, and Finn goes with them. Mac tells Lulu and Dustin, if they remember any detail, no matter how small, call him.

Michael asks what Monica was doing before she fell sleep. Was Wiley downstairs, or in the nursery? She says she doesn’t remember, and Willow runs down the stairs. She tells them, Wiley’s not in his room, and Monica says, what?

Nelle says, all right, hubby; it’s been fun, but it’s time go. Julian says, sorry, but she’s not going anywhere. She asks what he’s talking about, and he says she pushed him too far. Now he’s pushing back. He takes out a gun.

To be continued…

On Monday, Portia has an update on Brook, Nina tells Jax not to hate her for what she’s going to say, Julian tells Nelle that someone has to stop her, and Sonny says someone is going to tell him right now.

🚔 Even He Was Surprised…

The skinny on Taggert’s return from the dead.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/real-andrews-reveals-secrets-of-taggert-return

👕 Hey, You’re Wearing My Shirt…

Not too much diversity in Nurses Ball fashion this year.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/gallery/general-hospital/nurses-ball-2020-red-carpet-photos

👢 Back and Badass As Ever…

That was quick. I barely noticed she was gone.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/kelly-monaco-opens-up-about-her-return-to-general-hospital

📺 Gig Of a Lifetime…

GH’s Parker returns to the small screen.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/ashley-jones-alicia-leigh-willis-star-in-double-kidnapped

🛥 The Deck You Say…

Hannah has the final word. And a prescription.

https://people.com/tv/below-deck-med-hannah-ferrier-speaks-out-fired-over-valium/

🦍 Breaking Ivan…

Bryan Cranston does it all.

https://film.avclub.com/bryan-cranston-on-working-with-a-cgi-gorilla-and-20-yea-1844756037

🧛🏻 Chrismasland Be Damned…

A sneak peek at what’s next for Charlie Manx.

https://www.bbcamerica.com/shows/nos4a2/video-extras/nos4a2-finale-sneak-peek-christmasland-is-crumbling

🛕 Stepping Out From Daddy’s Shadow…

Apparently cushy jobs accountability coaching pays off.

https://realityblurb.com/2020/08/17/photos-rhobhs-teddi-mellencamp-buys-6-49-million-home-in-encino-see-inside-the-massive-mansion-plus-its-over-the-top-movie-theater-and-backyard-oasis/

https://realityblurb.com/2020/08/20/photos-teddi-mellencamp-enlists-mauricio-umansky-to-sell-her-5-9-million-hollywood-hills-home-see-inside-the-rhobh-stars-modern-estate/

🖥 Pandemically Filming…

Andy talks about the new Housewife normal.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1179839/andy-cohen-reveals-what-its-like-filming-real-housewives-amid-coronavirus

💃🏾 Dancing Into Season 29…

All you need to know about DWTS.

https://people.com/tv/dancing-with-the-stars-reveals-season-29-premiere-date-and-competing-pro-dancers/

💋 Remember Her…?

I tried to forget.

https://extratv.com/2020/08/11/lilly-ghalichi-and-dara-mir-headed-for-divorce-again-after-reconciliation/

⚰️ Beyond Dead…

Sunday August 30th, starting at 6 pm, AMC will also be showing the first episode of each season of The Walking Dead. I still think the very first episode was the best one. Rick’s WTF? face can’t be topped.

https://www.nme.com/blogs/tv-blogs/walking-dead-world-beyond-release-date-cast-everything-know-far-2540839

🏩 Throupling…

I’ll bet she talked through the whole thing.

https://extratv.com/2020/08/21/scheana-shay-says-she-was-in-a-throuple-with-john-mayer-and-another-reality-star/

📯 Quotes of the Week

I didn’t know you could scream that loud after smoking cigarettes. – Cynthia Decker, Pillow Talk: 90 Day Fiancé, referring to Angela screaming at Michael

Tough times never last. Tough people do. – Robert Schuller

Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance and none can say why some fields will blossom while others lay brown beneath the August sun.Kent Nerburn

How to sell books in 2020: Put them near the toilet paper. – NY Times

An invisible thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break. May you be open to each thread that comes into your life – the golden ones and the coarse ones – and may you weave them into a brilliant and beautiful life.Unknown

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

Do one thing every day that scares you. – Eleanor Roosevelt

The noisiest thing in the world is someone trying to be quiet. – me

People tend to be generous when sharing their nonsense, fear, and ignorance. And while they seem quite eager to feed you their negativity, please remember that sometimes the diet we need to be on is a spiritual and emotional one. Be cautious with what you feed your mind and soul. Fuel yourself with positivity and let that fuel propel you into positive action. – Steve Maraboli

Luckily for me, I have all my best ideas drunk. – Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Birds of Prey

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.Confucius

Immature love says: ‘I love you because I need you.’ Mature love says ‘I need you because I love you.’Erich Fromm

Do not fear failure but rather fear not trying. – Roy T. Bennett

🏍 Moving Forward…

Next week has to be better, right? Right? Enjoy your weekend, or pretend it’s the weekend, depending. Until Monday, stay safe, stay supportive of the front line, and stay away from psychopaths with fabric shears.

August 3, 2020 – Finally Nina Testifies, Kiko Packs His Knives and Goes, What To Expect, Another Departure, Resilient Dove, Anxious For Reality, Kevin’s Decade, Free To Be Mindful, Historical Heroes & Shaking

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

At the WSB facility in Geneva, Switzerland, Dante tosses and turns. He yells, don’t pull the trigger! He wakes, breathing heavily, and says he didn’t kill him. Ned tells Olivia that he may not always know the right words to say, but he loves and cares about her. He’s there for her if she wants to talk more about Dante. She has better idea, and asks if he’d care to join her upstairs. They kiss, and his phone rings. He says the deal he’s been working on just came through, but he definitely has time for a break. Olivia asks if that means squeezing her in before he runs back to ELQ. At the hospital, Portia asks what Cyrus is doing there, and he says he was just asking about her daughter. She tells him to stay away from Trina; don’t even mention her name. Laura approaches, and asks if everything is okay. Brook tells Valentin they’ve never formally met, but she remembers him being there when she hit Lulu with the champagne. He tells her it was a miscarriage justice, and he’s been there. She asks if he’d been completely innocent, and he admits he wasn’t. She says it’s nice to meet him. In court, Nelle clutches the half-heart necklace. Nina has taken the stand, and Martin says Nina is Nelle’s employer; how is she doing? Nina says Nelle is still learning the ropes, but she’s a quick study. She’s competent and a hard worker. Martin asks if that’s why Nina hired her, and Nina says she believed Nelle deserved a second chance. Nelle smiles.

Ned tells Olivia, he’s completely blindsided, and Olivia says she saw him quickly checking the phone while he was pretending to apologize. He says his apology was sincere. He’s been working hard on the Mertin Tech deal, and today it’s a go. He could be at the office. Olivia wonders if she’s an afterthought, and he asks if he’s made her feel like that. She congratulates him on his big deal, and starts to walk out, but he says they’re going to talk about this. He heard her with Robert, and she’d said Robert made her feel better. Before Robert came over, they’d been talking about Dante. She says, she was talking about Dante. They never do. For everyone else, Dante has ceased to exist, but not for her. Lulu has moved on with her life and a new man, and Rocco’s memories are fading. He’s a little boy, and can’t put his life on hold until Dante comes back. Neither can she. Her son is out there, and she may never see him again. Robert is going through something similar with Holly, and maybe they’re both in denial, but Robert made her feel better and not so alone. Ned says she’s not alone. She’s with him.

Dante is in a small locked room with a few furnishings – a bed, a desk, a chair, and a night table. He drinks some water, and throws the plastic cup on the floor. He holds his head, and says, damn headache. He says he has to find a distraction, and tells himself, don’t give in to it. He looks at a pencil and pad of paper on the desk.

Cyrus says it’s good see Laura, and she says he’s always at the hospital. Does he have a health issue? He thanks her for her concern, but he’s healthy except for allergies. He doesn’t mind though. He’s glad to be breathing the Port Charles air, instead of the stale prison air. She’s sure the air is just as exhilarating out west, and he says he’s never seen a mayor so concerned about their constituents. Port Charles is lucky to have her. He says he has an appointment, and leaves. Maybe. Portia says, that man is so disgusting. He made a point of bringing up Trina. She wanted to slap him in his smug face. Laura doesn’t like how he’s flaunting his freedom, and Portia says he’s a known drug trafficker, and Taggert is dead, with his name being dragged through the mud. How is this justice? Laura says she understands.

Martin says Nelle was also nanny to Nina’s stepdaughter, and he’s sure she vetted Nelle carefully. Diane wonders if there’s a relevant question or is he trying to bond with the witness, and Judge Lowe tells him, get on with it. Martin says Nina lost a child. Is it fair to say the loss was difficult? Nina says the loss affected her deeply, and Martin asks if it also created a kinship between mothers. Nina says, it’s a pain no mother should have to bear. It colored her perception. He says she’s worked with Nelle for several weeks. She must have formulated an opinion. Not just about Nelle as an employee, but the kind of mother she’d be. Nina says in the time Nelle has worked for her, Nelle confirmed her initial impression. I lean closer to the TV, and Nina says, Nelle is a compulsive liar. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I knew it.

Brook says she’s flattered Valentin wants to join her, but he says he doesn’t think so. He thinks she’s trying to disarm a worthy opponent, but he doesn’t want her as an opponent. They have things in common. She says, like ELQ. She knows he used Linc to buy her shares.

Laura says she thought Taggert was a good cop, and Portia says, he was. He was devoted to his work. Life wasn’t always easy, but they parted on good terms, and co-parented Trina. Laura asks how Trina is doing in the wake of Taggert’s death, and Portia says, her emotions are all over the place. Sorrow, fear, anger; mostly sorrow. Trina is taking her father’s death hard. Most people don’t know what to say. Or they think Portia is embarrassed that Taggert conspired to frame Cyrus. She’s not embarrassed. He tried to find a legal way, but Cyrus was too smart and slick, so Taggert went by his own code of ethics to put a criminal behind bars. She explained to Trina that he took a stand for what he believed in. Laura says, Trina was lucky to have a father like him.

Nina says, Nelle can’t help herself. She lies about everything, and just uses people. She sees the custody case as a contest she’ll do anything to win. She married Julian… Martin objects, and Diane says, he’s objecting to his own witness. Martin asks for permission to treat the witness as hostile, and Nina says she’s not hostile; he wanted the truth. He tells her to please just answer the questions he asks her. He asks if she’s currently seeing a psychiatrist, and she says, no. He asks if she wasn’t committed to Shadybrook, and Diane objects, saying Nina isn’t on trial. The judge says, sustained, telling martin, that’s quite enough. Martin has no further questions. Diane asks what Nina was going to say before she was so rudely interrupted, and Nina tells her, what she was going to say was that Nelle married Julian to shore up her custody case. She found out Michael had married Willow, and wanted to be on equal footing. Nelle doesn’t love Julian; she’s using him. Martin objects, asking how she can know what’s in his client’s heart, and Nina says she knows because it was clear Nelle blackmailed Julian into marrying her. Carly smiles, and I laugh. My bad day just got better.

Brook asks what Valentin’s angle is, and he asks Brook to tell him. She says he doesn’t want a little piece of a big company. He wants to acquire a major block, but it won’t work. Quartermaines take care of their own, and when she tells her father, no one will even look in his direction, let alone sell to him. Valentin says he’ll make the shareholders much richer, and revive her stalled career.

Nelle says Nina is lying, and asks if Carly threatened her. Judge Lowe tells Martin to control his client, and Diane asks if Nelle actually said she blackmailed Julian. Nina says, not those exact words, but she said she’d resorted to desperate measures, and would do whatever it took. She said Julian valued his life too much not to play by her rules. Diane says, those were her exact words? and Nina says, yes. Nelle jumps up, and says, you double-crossing bitch. She knew she was crazy for trusting a baby stealer. Nina is so starved for attention, she blew up her own wedding to get back at the groom. Now she waited until the 11th hour to make up a story. Was she talking to Carly? What’s her angle? Martin begs her, please be quiet, but she just gets louder. She says Michael resorted to desperate measures and forced Willow to marry him, or she’d sleep with the fishes like everyone else who gets in Sonny’s way. The judge calls for order, and Nelle says Nina is just like everyone else here. Maybe she’s jealous because Nelle’s child is alive, and she’s helping Carly take her baby away. She yells that Carly will never take her baby away. Wiley is hers. Martin says, for God’s sake, stop, and Nelle suddenly clutches her chest and gasps for air, acting like she’s having a heart attack. This is too funny.

After the commercial, Martin thanks Judge Lowe for the brief medical recess. His client was overcome, and apologizes for her outburst. Her need to protect her son is so strong, she lashed out. Diane recalls Willow to the stand, and asks if she was coerced into marrying Michael. Willow says, absolutely not. No one threatened her, or sent her a dead fish or anything. Diane asks if she received financial compensation, and she says, no. Diane says, Michael is a wealthy man. Now she is too. Willow says she’s a credited teacher. She has a good job and values her independence. She doesn’t need Michael’s money. Diane asks why she married Michael, and she says, because he’s a decent man. She knows that doesn’t sound like much, but decency is the foundation of trust, and trust is how you build a life. Michael isn’t perfect, but he’s fair, compassionate, and sees the value in compromise. He doesn’t assume that because he’s richer, he’s better. He’s known grief and loss and injustice, but it hasn’t made him bitter. It’s given him empathy. Her greatest wish is that Wiley will grow up to be a man like his father. That’s why she married him. She wants them to raise Wiley together as a family.

Dante plays with the pencil for a while. He puts it down, then picks it back up. He starts to write.

Olivia says she’s not trying to make Ned feel like he’s being insensitive. He’s the man she loves, and he couldn’t be a better father, but he’s been focused on ELQ at the expense of everything else. Ned says he needs to protect his family, which she and Leo are a part of. She says, but not Dante. She can’t see the family as a corporation; they’re people who love one another, and Dante is one of those people. Ned says she’s right. The family isn’t a corporation, but this family owns one, and his job is to keep it going strong. She says, Michael is the CEO; he doesn’t have to do this by himself. He says Michael has been trying to keep his son away from a madwoman, and even before, he was preoccupied with Wiley for months. She says, so he’s doing this out of the goodness of his heart; choosing not to tell Michael that an outsider is buying up the shares to consolidate power. Ned’s title as CEO is temporary. He says he’s not leading a coup against Michael. He’s trying to manage a crisis. If the outsider acquires enough shares, ELQ risks a hostile takeover.

Brook asks Valentin, who said her career is stalled? He says she’s an excellent singer, but so is every back-up singer in New York. She says she’s not a back-up singer, and he says, no, she’s not. She’s a lead singer, but no one is beating a path to her door, and she blew off her agent. She says Linc is a sleazeball, but he asks if someone else will take a risk with a troublemaker? He can fix it. She asks, how? and he says he can give her visibility and momentum. He can find a producer to work with her, but first she has to work with him.

Judge Lowe says, court is adjourned. He’s going to take everything into consideration. Nelle asks Martin why he didn’t stop Nina, and Julian says, how? Nina was telling the truth. Michael is a decent guy, and Nelle lost her own damn case. She says she proved she was passionate about her child. In her office, Nina looks out the window. Jax comes in, and asks if she’s okay. She says she is. She was just thinking about what happened. She’ll never live down her crazy past. No matter who she is, it’s a sure fire way to discredit her. Jax says, that’s not true, but she says he doesn’t know who she was. She was weak and vindictive…  He tells her, stop. He knows she had a difficult past, but the woman she says she was isn’t who he’s looking at. She proved that in court. She helped an innocent child, and helped the court to see who Nelle is. Nelle showed her true colors, and he’s proud of Nina.

Cyrus thanks board member Tom for his interest, and says he looks forward to hearing from him. When Cyrus is gone, Laura says she saw Tom talking to Cyrus. What did he say? Tom says, they were discussing the future of the hospital. Cyrus listens from around the corner. Laura tells Tom he should think twice about involving himself with Cyrus, but Tom says Cyrus was wrongly accused. Laura says, his sentence was vacated; that doesn’t mean he’s innocent. He tells her that he has to run, and she tries to follow him, saying she’d like to discuss this, but he keeps going. Cyrus asks if there are problems, and she asks why he’s always around. What’s his real interest in the hospital? He says he’s a businessman, and the hospital is having a fiscal crisis. GH is the heart of Port Charles, and it would be a shame if they had to curtail services, or worse, shutter. He might be in a position to provide assistance. She says, his assistance isn’t necessary. The people who have helped close the gap in the past, will in the future. Cyrus says the hospital’s pending litigation might be discouraging to potential donors, but she says they’re a strong community, and take care of their own. He says he admires that. It’s why he wants to give back, and he’s established the Cyrus Renault Foundation for Social Justice. She tells him, GH doesn’t need his money. The Quartermaines have been patrons for generations, and ELQ will step up again to give the hospital support.

Ned tells Olivia that he’s not sounding the alarm, but ELQ could be in jeopardy if this isn’t stopped. She says maybe it’s not the time for him to be CEO, but he says, Michael was asleep at the switch; it started happening on his watch. He’d thought she was on board. She says she was, but now is the time to circle the wagons, and shoot at the enemy, not inward. What good is a family business if it drives the family apart? She thought he would have learned that from past experience, but she guesses he hasn’t. He says he’s trying to keep the family safe, but she says, no. He’s trying keep himself and ELQ powerful. It’s not the same.

Valentin says he’s heard Brook sing, and seen her online videos. She has talent and can make it, but needs the right venue and the right people. She asks if he’s suddenly a music mogul, and he says his interests are varied, and he loves music. He’s a partner in Deception, and wants to use her music for their relaunch at the Nurses Ball… if she’s ready for that level of spotlight. She asks, what’s the catch? and he says she can’t tell her family that he’s accumulating shares. She says, in other words, he’s paying her off. He says, no; those are the words. Her silence for his connections. She says she has to go, and he says he’s enjoyed talking to her, and he’ll see her again.

Nina tells Jax that she initially hired Nelle to spy on her, and get dirt for Michael’s custody hearing. Jax asks if Nelle didn’t solicit the job from Nina. Nina didn’t lure her into a trap. Nelle wanted to use Nina to make herself look good. She says, maybe, but her point is that she started to believe Nelle’s love was sincere, and that she only needed encouragement, and someone to believe in her, like Nina had. Jax says Nina’s trauma was real, and she can’t compare them. Nelle thinks the world owes her. Nina says she saw herself in Nelle. Sometimes the life she has now feels like a dream. Jax says she deserves all the happiness in the world. This is real, and what they have isn’t going anywhere. He hugs her.

Carly tells Diane that she was amazing, but Diane says, don’t thank her yet. She thinks it’s a slam dunk, but the judge is going to deliberate on the testimonies and documents. Carly says Willow was amazing, and Willow says she only spoke from her heart. Diane says Nelle’s only sincere moment was when she went ballistic. In the hallway, Nelle asks if it would have killed Julian to hold her hand or something, and he says, what Nina said was the truth. She says if Nina cost her the case, she’ll never make Nina stop paying. Julian says Nelle cost herself the case. Martin might have been able to spin it, but when she got on her feet, the whole thing was over. He tells her that he’s out of there, and call him when the verdict comes in, and he’ll meet her back at court.

Martin goes to the MetroCourt for a drink, and Valentin says, rough day in court? Martin says Valentin’s ex torpedoed his entire custody case. Valentin says he told Martin not to underestimate Nina. Martin says Valentin mentioned Brook in his text. Did he have an altercation with her? Valentin says she knows he used Linc to get her shares. Martin says Valentin’s ELQ takeover is finished if Brook warns her father, but Valentin says he doesn’t think she will.

Ned tells Olivia, the Quartermaines are tied to ELQ. If he company prospers, so do they. They can be shrewd and ruthless, but if they’re not, someone will swoop in and take advantage. The world isn’t about peace, love, and messages from the great beyond. Olivia says she and Ned might not see eye to eye on psychics, but that’s no reason to be condescending. He says he wasn’t; he was being real. She says so was she. She’s feeling real pain, and her son is real. If he can’t respect those things, he can’t respect her. Brook comes in, and says she got some career advice that she wants to run by Ned.

Dante writes. I miss you, mom. I miss my life, but it’s more important to keep you safe from me. That’s why I’ll never send this letter. He puts the pencil down, folds the paper into a small square, and puts it under his mattress. I assume they don’t change the sheets too often there. He looks out the door window, but there’s a shade covering it. He flips the pencil around.

Cyrus tells Laura, they might not be able to rely on the people who’ve bailed them out in the past. GH might need a new savior. She says he’s not their savior, and he’s not getting anywhere near GH. She has close friends on the board, and there’s no way he’s using the hospital to launder his drug money. He says, she’s formidable, but be careful about false accusations. Don’t underestimate him. He goes into the elevator, and Laura looks shook.

Jax tells Nina that her testimony was truthful. She has nothing to apologize for. She said she’s sorry for buying into Nelle’s charade, but her eyes are open now. He tells her that they’re lovely eyes. He’s meeting his daughter, and asks if she wants to join them, but she says she doesn’t want to intrude on daddy/daughter time. Besides, she has a lot of work. He says he’ll call her later.

Carly tells Michael that she’s heading home. She doesn’t expect they’ll hear from the judge today, but if they do… Michael says she’ll be their first call. She thanks Willow for what she said about Michael, and Willow says she meant every word. Carly says she knows, and leaves. Michael says they have to believe they made the strongest case. He’d suggest a celebratory dinner, but he doesn’t want… They say, to jinx it, together. He says, why don’t they go home and be with Wiley? and she says, sounds great.

Nina looks at her half of the necklace, when Nelle bursts in. Nelle says, how could she? You betrayed me, bitch. The necklace falls to the floor.

Tomorrow, Ned says it’s time they learned who they’re dealing with, Sonny has a terrible decision to make, and Nina suggests Nelle get her facts straight.

Absolutely. Worth the. Wait.

Below Deck Mediterranean

Captain Sandy tells Kiko, just get through the charter, and Kiko says, then leave. She nods, and she tells him, do your food. In the captain’s interview, she says she feels like she’s hammering at the guy. He continues to pour his heart into the food, but it’s off. You can like someone a lot, but if they’re not trained properly, they have to be let go. Kiko says he’s a failure, but she says he’s not. He doesn’t want to talk about it, and he’s worried he’ll be the reason they make less money. One of the guests says they’re done with fried food for the rest of the charter, and primary Sean says, speak for himself. Kiko tells Hannah that Captain Sandy said he’s not capable. The guests complained that it looked like kid food. He’s never been to Vegas, and didn’t know what to do. Hannah cries on deck, and says she hates this effing job. In her interview, she says she feels like she let Kiko down. She suggested the menu, and she’s shaken to her core. Kiko says he wasn’t prepared for this kind of charter, took a risk, and screwed up. He’s the most sad ever. Bugs tells Malia that she feels sorry for him, but he wanted honesty. Malia says, he’s the sweetest person ever. Hannah tells the deckhands that they’re doing the strip club thing now. In her interview, Bugs says, it’s heartbreaking but this is yachting. The show must go on. A guest says, this is Vegas. Whatever happens here, stays here, the deckhands and Bugs get ready. The guys dress in black pants with suspenders and no shirts.

The crew comes out, and Malia does a handstand. They all run around the table, gathering dollar bills in their waistbands. Kiko cries in his bunk. Captain Sandy sees Hannah in the galley, and asks why she’s shaking. Is she upset about Kiko? Hannah says, yeah, but not much else; she just keeps working. Alex plays dealer for the guests’ poker game, and Bugs clears the dinner table. Jess gives Hannah a hug, and Hannah checks on Kiko. She says she effing likes him, and if he’s in pain, she’s in pain as well. He says he doesn’t have the mind or energy to cook, and she tells him that she’ll get up and help with breakfast. She hugs him, and he says they have real love. She’s a good person. She says he is too, and they vow to be friends forever. The guests go to bed, and Rob asks Jess for a quick kiss. In Rob’s interview, he says he feels deeply saddened. Kiko is a beautiful person. He tells Kiko that he’s sorry.

Hannah wakes up at 4 am, breathing heavy. She gets up, and goes into the bathroom. Malia asks if she’s okay, and she says she thinks it’s a panic attack. She needs a valium, and thinks it will pass. Malia asks if she has a prescription, and gives her a hug. She asks again if Hannah is okay. Hannah says she will be, and Malia goes back to bed. Hannah gets her phone, and gets back in her bunk. I assume she took a valium.

Third day of charter. Jess sets the breakfast table, making the napkins look super cool. Captain Sandy goes to the galley, and tries to make conversation with Kiko. She thanks him, and in her interview, she says, as captain, it’s hard to fire people. She hired her nephew once, and her first officer said he was terrible. She had to say, sorry, dude. You have to go. It’s not about liking someone; it’s about if a person can do the job. She tells Jess, good job, and she’s not just saying that; she’s honest. Kiko tells Jess, he just can’t do it. He doesn’t have the energy for this anymore. In his interview, he says he just wants to leave. After preparing some fruit plates, he packs his knives, and prepares to go. He tells Jess that he’s leaving, and Bugs asks if he’s doing actual breakfast, but he gets back in his bunk. Alex tells Malia, it’s a shame; everyone likes him. Captain Sandy wonders where the chef is, and Bugs says, in his cabin. Sandy knocks, and asks to talk to him. He tells her that his head is f***ed up, and she asks him to leave his emotions in his cabin, and do the job. Please. Let’s finish this together. They just have one more night, and he can do this. Do his food. He brings his knives back out.

Kiko tells Hannah that his food is emotional, and he feels sad. Hannah says she’ll help with breakfast. Captain Sandy tells Malia, ready when she is, and they pull out of port. Hannah makes reservations under the boat’s name for the guests’ land excursion. The captain says it’s a beautiful day, and they need it after last night. Malia tells Captain Sandy that Hannah is freaked out, and feels bad. The captain says, it’s sad, and Malia says it all comes back to her, and the standards she allows on the boat. The captain says, that’s why she’s in that seat.

The boat goes to Valldemossa, and drops anchor. Hannah tells Jess and Rob, they’re going on an excursion. There will be a taxi waiting on shore, and they can drop the guests off for lunch. Any decisions they make, she doesn’t care. Rob says it’s their first date, and Bugs jokes that she remembers her first date with Alex; it was romantic. Hannah asks the guests if they’re ready to rock and roll, and the guests board the tender. Captain Sandy asks to speak with Hannah in the office, and asks, what’s wrong besides Kiko? Hannah says, when someone is really emotional, it’s infectious. The captain says she wants to finish strong. She told Kiko to do his food. She wants to lift him back up. She says Hannah can always talk to her, and she just wanted to make sure Hannah was okay. Hannah says she just wanted to help Kiko, and thinks it’s good the guests are off the boat for lunch. Captain Sandy thanks her for talking. I love Captain Sandy. She’s the boss we all would love to have.

Rob tells Jess, she’s the voice of the operation, and the guests dub them JOB – Jess and Rob. Crystal says they can hold hands; no one cares. Captain Sandy makes a call for a chef. She knows it’s crazy busy, but send what they can. Jess gives a tour, reading from a pamphlet, and pronounces Chopin like choppin’. In her interview, she says the city is beautiful, but she keeps staring at Rob. They kiss, and the guests take a picture. They deposit the guests at the restaurant, and the guests toast to JOB. Rob asks Jess how her finger is, and she says, a lot better.

Alex massages Bugs’s shoulders while she washes dishes. In her interview, Bugs says Alex is too young for her, but she prides herself on being a bit of a cougar. Rob and Jess hang out on a restaurant terrace. In Rob’s interview, he says he and his mother understood each other, and it was the last time he felt seen. With Jess, he feels seen – and heard, which is nice. Sean says, everyone in the crew has good energy, and another guest says it takes a lot to deal with him. Rob tells Jess that he loves her, and asks if that’s crazy. She says, kind of, and he apologizes for scaring her. In his interview, he says, she didn’t say it back. He doesn’t know if she’s just holding back. He can’t tell, but he doesn’t want to hold back.

Malia calls her boyfriend Tom, and tells him they’re down a person; the chef. He’s been crying, but he needs more practice. In her interview, Malia says Tom has been there too, since he’s a chef. The first time he worked on a 16 meter, he said he would never do it again. It’s a hard position to do. Hannah tells Kiko to talk to the captain. She thinks it would be disrespectful to the clients and captain if he leaves now. He says he was going to finish dinner, and cut stuff up for the morning, but he’ll finish the job. In his interview, he says, at least he’s not a quitter. Malia volunteers her rapping skills for the 90s party, and works on some rhymes. Jess calls Bugs, and says they’re on their way back. When they return, Bugs welcomes the guests.

Bugs radios Malia, telling her, two of the guests want to jet ski. Malia says, be careful; it’s pretty choppy. Malia radios Rob to come and keep eyes on them. She tells Captain Sandy, the conditions are rough. The guests are very good, and Malia says she’s loving it. Rob is with Jess in her cabin, and taking his time. Rob says there’s too much going on, and Jess isn’t communicating. Now he’s in his head. Jess says she’s scared to fall in love and get hurt. He says he doesn’t want to get hurt either. Malia radios again, and in her interview, she says, after what happened two days ago, they all need to watch. There’s two people out there, and she can’t save them both. Jess tells Rob that she wanted to say it, and felt it, but part of her has fear. In her interview, she says it’s hard for her to trust. She gets it from both parents. They divorced when she was two, and her mother stayed in Florida, while her dad moved to California. They wanted to stay as far away from each other as possible. The guests come back in, and Malia says, thank God they knew what they were doing.  

Ron finally shows up, and Malia asks where he was. He says, in the bathroom, and she tells him to let her know if he has to run somewhere, or she’ll wonder where he disappeared to. In Kiko’s interview, he says he wishes he could stay, but he knows he’s got no second chance. It’s hard for him to get chances in the first place, and he prefers to stick with his style and kill it. He’ll do that for dinner, then he’ll be finished. He tears up again. Hannah asks if the guests are excited about the 90s party, and Captain Sandy tells Pete to get pizza. She’s not asking Kiko to make crew food. The guests toast to living life to the fullest. Malia tells Kiko that her boyfriend has a soft spot for him. He’s been there, and was completely broken, but now he has a huge career. It’s not the end for him. Guest Richard gives Hannah a ring to put in the dessert for his wife Karen’s birthday. Pete is going to pick up the pizza, and Hannah tells him to stop at a patisserie. He doesn’t know what that is, so she says, a bakery.

Bugs comes out wearing crazy tights. The deck is decorated with streamers, lots of neon, and glow sticks. Captain Sandy thinks the décor is cool. Pete asks the pizza guy if they have cakes, and gets something to bring back. The captain asks Kiko if he’s doing dinner Kiko style, and he says he is. The guests are dressed like recording artists from the 90s, bringing parental advisory signs with them. They’re happy with the décor. In her interview, Hannah is praying Kiko serves a good meal, so they can leave on a high. Please. The entrée is spinach mash and grilled sea bass, and they say it’s delicious and perfect, and ask if Kiko will come out. Bugs asks Kiko to see the guests, and he reluctantly goes upstairs. They chant his name, and he tells them, enjoy. In Kiko’s interview, he says, the night feels good. He’s making everybody happy, and it’s just cool. He cries some more. Bugs says she heard them cheering; well done. Kiko and Hannah hug, and he says he’ll miss her. Hannah says she doesn’t want to stay on the stupid boat without him. What is she going to do? She puts the ring on a slice of chocolate cake. The desserts are brought up, and one guest says, Kiko is a pro at desserts. Hannah tells Karen that she heard it was her birthday. Karen sees the ring, and is obviously thrilled. She starts to cry, and hugs Richard.

Malia says she has zero dignity, and Hannah introduces her as their 90s throwback. Alex and Bugs back her up as she raps about the crew, and the guests are drunk enough to appreciate it. Jess hugs Rob, and says, they’re crazy tonight. They kiss. The guests dance. Alex says they’re his favorite charter, and Crystal says they’re her favorite crew. Malia texts Tom that she can’t wait to see him.

Final day of charter. Kiko makes breakfast, and Captain Sandy tells Jess, great job with the table. She tells Malia to start hauling anchor. Jess says she wants to sleep this afternoon. Kiko says, so does he, but he wants to have six beers first. In his interview, he says it’s been good, bad, and good again. He got the job because he took a risk. He takes chances and risks, and has both good and bad in his life because of that. The anchor is in the pocket, and Bugs tells the guests, good morning. In the galley, she asks if Jess has been writing down the breakfast orders for the chef, and Jess says, no. Hannah tells her to start doing that, or she’ll get a rude awakening when they get a new chef. In Hannah’s interview, she says, Kiko has been a breath of fresh air in the galley, compared to other chefs, and we flash back to some of those. She says she wishes he could stay. Bugs says, the 90s party wiped the guests out. Malia tells Captain Sandy about Tom coming to visit. He’s on the way to see his family, and stopping by. The captain asks if he’s currently employed, and Bugs says she was thinking the same thing. Malia says he does freelance, and Captain Sandy tells Malia to have Tom come see her, if she’s comfortable with that. Malia says, it would be amazing. The crew gets in their whites.

Malia tells Crystal that docking is the most critical moment. Crystal tells her that she looks pretty doing it, and Malia’s interview, she says she’d rather be told she’s a pretty powerful person. The boat docks, and the crew lines up to say goodbye. Sean says, nice work; it was the best one yet. In Kiko’s interview, he says he doesn’t want the captain’s opinion, and to hear what he already knows. He’s just leaving. Sean says they’re going to make a U-turn and come back. Kiko tells them that he cooked with love. Crystal says, it was an incredible experience. Their every need was catered to, and she’s so happy, she’s crying. Sean gives Captain Sandy the tip envelope. In Hannah’s interview, she says, it’s ironic. The guests had an amazing, memorable time, and say they made nine new friends, but one friend was fired in the middle of dinner service. The captain tells them to gather in the main salon for the tip meeting. Kiko says goodbye to everyone, and Malia tells him that he’ll be all right.

Kiko and Hannah sit on the dock, and Kiko says they’ve known each other for a short time, but they’ll be friends forever. He tells her how much he loves her, and says, it’s not bullsh*t. She says she doesn’t want him to leave, and he tells her, don’t cry. She says she’s not, but she is. In Kiko’s interview, he says it was the best experience of his life. He cried and he laughed. He likes to cook, and had good and bad moments. There were jokes made, and he made friends. He’s learned to try not to effing care what people think too much, and he’s going to follow what he learned. He’s going to follow what he loves, be himself, and spread love to the world, and it will be a better world. Hannah calls out that she loves him. Bugs says there were a lot of changes in a short space of time, with a new second stew and chef. Hanna tells Rob, it shouldn’t have gone down like that.

Next time, the crew parties, Bugs comes on to Alex, the owner arranges a day off for the crew, Jess says she and Rob went from PG to rated R, Tom arrives, and Captain Sandy says it’s been brought to her attention that someone has drugs on board.

🏥 It’s Ba-a-ack…

What to expect from your favorite hospital.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/frank-valentini-previews-what-to-expect-from-new-episodes

👴🏻 A Curmudgeon Since He Was 30…

He might have been 85, but he’s looked 85 ever since I can remember.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/wilford-brimley-dead-cocoon-actor-937941

🕊 Dove Flies Through Surgery…

As much as I don’t like Teddi, I’m glad her new daughter is doing well.

https://people.com/parents/teddi-mellencamp-calls-5-month-old-daughter-dove-resillient-after-neurosurgery/

😬 Real Anxiety…

Sounds like Four Weddings.

https://greatist.com/live/reality-tv-show-social-anxiety

🌫 Silent Bob Reflects…

Kevin Smith recalls the last decade.

https://comicbook.com/movies/news/kevin-smith-reflects-on-the-last-decade-for-50th-birthday/

🧎🏽‍♀️ Free Contemplation…

I can’t empty my mind, but maybe you can.

https://rubinmuseum.org/events/series/mindfulness-meditation?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIm9DE5tqA6wIVi4TICh1j7QdGEAAYASAAEgII4PD_BwE

🦸🏾‍♂️ Heroes You Should Know…

This might be a site for kids, but it’s good for adults too.

https://redtri.com/black-history-figures/

🎀 Tying It Up…

It looks like it’s going to be another one of them there weeks. I hope yours is off to a better start, and you stay safe, stay strong-minded, and stay determined to make this a better world. Like Kiko.

July 14, 2020 – When Finn Told Chase Fix It, Slippers For Everybody, Reunited, Where’s Alice, Dancing Switch, a Tease, Leave Lisa Alone, Teddi Update, Quite a Legacy, Of Course, a Teaching Moment, Don’t Do It & Up

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

Okay, now it’s personal. The guide said May 7th, 2020, but in reality, this GH Flashback is from April, 29th, 2020. Here’s the short version, but you can find the whole thing here if you need total refreshment:

https://tvwiththeresa.wordpress.com/2020/04/30/april-29-2020-finn-says-chase-made-a-mistake-lisars-game-goes-south-hills-newbie-gg-is-a-mom-culture-backlash-best-bromance-ever-staying/

Finn asked Chase why he’d pretended he was sleeping with Sasha, and Chase said if Nelle got custody, Willow would never forgive herself. In the eyes of family court, Nelle and Michael were on almost equal footing, so Michael needed a wife who was equally devoted to Wiley, and Sasha had a problematic past. Finn said there was no body count, and no one was perfect, but Chase said Willow was close. However, when he broached the subject, Willow wouldn’t consider it. Finn said it was because Willow loved Chase, and he was doing her a disservice. Chase said, they were adults; Wiley was a defenseless child and needed protection. Sasha called Michael to let him know her things were out of the house, and she’d left the key. She guessed this was goodbye. He told her, goodbye, and Sasha flashed back to telling Chase they’d made a mistake, and should tell Michael and Willow the truth. They were the best thing to happen to her and Chase, and they could have the people they loved back. Chase said that would be awesome for them, but asked if she honestly thought Michael and Willow would be happier with them, or together with Wiley. Carly told Michael that his goodbye sounded final, and he said he and Sasha were over. At the MetroCourt, Willow got on the phone with Lucy to find a new place to live. Nelle appeared and said the rumor must be true; Chase broke another heart. Kristina told Molly to consider her options, but Molly said she needed to be completely honest and tell TJ everything. Sam told Brando that Molly and TJ were about to make it official, and if he made trouble for Molly, he’d be in a world of trouble with her. He asked if Molly knew she was getting involved, and she asked if he was going to run and tattle on her. He said he thought Molly would prefer to fight her own battles, and Sam said he was in no position to tell her about her sister. He said he got it, and she told him, stay away from Molly. If my sister got all up in my business like that, I’d be furious. Lulu ran into Crimson, asking where Charlotte was, and Nina asked her to give Valentin a chance to make it right. In Nina’s office, Charlotte asked if Valentin still loved her, and he said with all his heart, but it wasn’t that simple. She said they could run away right now, and no one could stop them.

Nelle said Chase had thrown Willow away, like he did with her and other women. He was a liar, a user, an expert manipulator, and seduced vulnerable women. Michael told Carly about finding Sasha and Chase together, saying that they’d felt jealous about Michael and Willow spending so much time together with Wiley. He said Carly had been right, but Carly thought she shouldn’t have gotten involved. Brando told Sam that TJ wasn’t going to hear anything from him. Sam said Molly thought she was single, and was heartbroken. Otherwise, she’d never have slept with someone like him. Ouch. She said he’d hurt Kristina’s feelings, saying people who joined cults were stupid. He said he’d apologized, and suggested she not butt into her sister’s business, since Molly was an adult. Sam said she’d always protect Molly, and he said, even if Molly didn’t want her to? Molly told Kristina that telling TJ was the right thing; they’re relationship was bult on honesty. Kristina thought Molly just wanted to make herself feel better at TJ’s expense. Valentin told Charlotte that she wouldn’t see him for a while, and Charlotte wondered if it was because she was bad, but he said, no; she was a good girl. She wanted things to be like they were when she was little, and it was just the two of them, back when he loved her. He said he’d always love her, and she asked why he wouldn’t fight for her. Valentin flashed back to Charlotte saying it wasn’t his fault; it was everyone else’s for lying, even Lulu’s, since she didn’t want him to be happy with Nina. He remembered Charlotte insisting that he’d find a way to get Windymere and Nina back, so they could live happily ever after. Nina asked Lulu why Charlotte was so upset, and Lulu said she thought Charlotte overheard her talking with Laura about Valentin not choosing to fight for custody. Laura thought Valentin was sincere, but Lulu didn’t trust him. Valentin came out with Charlotte, and Lulu told her that she couldn’t run off like that. Charlotte said she couldn’t let her papa leave. She knows he’d do anything for her, and she had to show him that she would too.

Willow said Nelle was trying to manipulate her, and she could go to hell. She knew who Nelle was, and if Brad was telling the truth about anything, it was that Nelle gave him the baby. Nelle didn’t want Michael to have him, and used Willow’s dead child like a prop to convince Michael their baby was dead. Nelle said Sasha was more Chase’s type anyway, and Willow said, goodbye. Finn asked Chase why he thought Willow and Michael would marry, and Chase said once the road was cleared, Willow would follow her heart to Wiley. Finn said he believed Chase’s intentions were honorable, and Chase said Sasha had been stand-up about it. She wasn’t happy either, but agreed that Wiley’s safety came first. Finn said Chase wasn’t going to like what he had to say. His intentions were good, but his methods stunk. He made a huge mistake. Valentin told Charlotte there was a right and wrong way to keep a family together, and they had to figure out the right way. They’d always be family, even if she didn’t see him. She kept his heart beating. Charlotte said Valentin kept her heart beating too. Lulu asked to speak to Charlotte alone, and they went into Nina’s office. She told Charlotte to be totally honest, promising that she wouldn’t be in trouble. Did she overhear Lulu and her grandma? Valentin thanked Nina, and she said she was sorry Charlotte was going through this. He said he wasn’t fighting Lulu for full custody, and Nina said she never thought he’d give up on his daughter. Sam told Brando that Molly saw the best in people, but she was more realistic. She said Brando had been locked up, and he said that made two of them, but he was free and Sam was on parole. It wasn’t about Molly. It was about Sam and Jason. Kristina asked Molly, if TJ had communicated with her, would she have slept with Brando? Molly said, of course (🍷) not, but TJ hadn’t ghosted her; he’d been taken against his will. Kristina said Molly had no way of knowing that, and asked if she slept with Brando to get back at TJ. Molly said, no. She’d been tired of feeling frustrated and angry, and Brando made her laugh; it felt good. Kristina said that was her point. It had nothing to do with TJ, and Molly had no reason to tell him. In that perfect soap moment that sometimes happens, TJ walked in, and said, tell him what?

Kristina told TJ that Molly had been telling her about their upcoming domestic partnership. TJ told Molly that he’d wanted to surprise her, and picked up her car. He wanted to prove to her that he’d do anything for them to stay together. Sam said she and Jason were none of Brando’s business, and he said like he and Molly were none of her business. How about if they both just minded their own business? Sam said he couldn’t dismiss her; she wasn’t done. He said they were done. Valentin told Nina that she knew he would never give up on his daughter, and she said, then fight stay to stay in Charlotte’s life. He said he was trying to do the right thing. He’d been a bad influence on Charlotte, and wanted to keep his distance. Nina said he could do that, or be a better man. Lulu asked why Charlotte didn’t speak to her first, and Charlotte said Lulu never wanted to talk about her papa to her; she always changed the subject. Michael told Carly that he loved Sasha, and had thought it was real. Carly said she thought it was too, but didn’t think Sasha was the woman Michael needed. Michael said Wiley had blindsided them, and Sasha wasn’t ready for an instant family. Either consciously or subconsciously, she got out. Carly swore Michael would get custody and find the woman he deserved.

Molly told TJ that Sam was picking up her car, but he said he’d seen Sam there. Molly said she had to run some errands, but he should stay at Charlie’s and eat. They declared their love for each other, and she left. Brando told Sam that he wasn’t there to cause trouble; it was the opposite. He was covering for Dev because Sonny wanted him to. She wondered if he had an ulterior motive, and he said if she was happy with her mechanic, they never had to cross paths again. Nina told Valentin to be a better man, and be the positive influence Charlotte needed, instead of proving you should walk away when the going got tough. Charlotte wasn’t going to see it the same way he did. He said he’d lived a life fueled by resentment, but she said he was capable of great love. He wasn’t so sure, and she said Charlotte would love him unconditionally for the rest of his life. The right thing he thought he was doing was just wrong. He said, of course (🍷) she was right. He’d tried being noble, and screwed it up. In Nina’s office, Charlotte said she’d heard Lulu say her papa was walking away from her for her own good, and said she was glad. Lulu said Charlotte heard part of a grown-up conversation that she didn’t understand. She wished Charlotte had  talked to her, but Charlotte said Lulu didn’t care how she felt. Michael told Carly that he couldn’t afford to make any more mistakes. Wiley’s custody was in limbo, and Nelle was unpredictable. Carly suggested he go for a run, and flashed back to giving Sasha a second chance, and telling her there were no third chances where her children were concerned. Chase told Finn, get out. It was hard enough for him. He loved Willow, and had to break her heart, tearing his own to shreds in the process, but it had to be done. Finn said it was a bad move to lie. Willow would have made up her own mind, and made her own choice. Chase said it was too late, but Finn told him to come clean, and there would be a chance to save his relationship. There was only one way to find out. He told Chase to let Willow decide how to help Wiley. It wasn’t fair that her decision should be based on a lie. Find her and fix it.

At the park, Michael flashed back to better times with Sasha. Sasha went to the MetroCourt bar, and Nelle zeroed in on her, saying Carly would destroy her for cheating on Michael. She said her lawyer wanted to talk to Sasha about being a character witness against Michael, and Sasha said she couldn’t believe what bitch Nelle warned. Nelle said she thought Sasha had been warned, and called her a backstabbing boyfriend stealing slut. On her way out, Nelle saw Carly, and said they’d have to talk soon. Valentin told Nina that it killed him to think Charlotte believed he was abandoning her. Nina told him to be the Valentin she knew he could be. Lulu and Charlotte came out of the office, and Lulu told Valentin they needed to talk. Molly showed up at the garage, and asked why Sam was there. Sam wondered why Molly was there, and Molly said she decided not tell TJ. Brando said he’d told her before that he wouldn’t say anything, and Molly told Sam to go on ahead. She wanted to talk to Brando.

Nina tried to distract Charlotte, who thought her parents were taking too long. Nina said whatever they decided, it was because they loved Charlotte. Charlotte said she understood, but didn’t have to like it. Nina said, no matter what, she’d be there for Charlotte. Lulu and Valentin came out, and Lulu said it was time to go home. Valentin said he’d pick Charlotte up tomorrow; he wasn’t going away – ever. Lulu said she and Valentin were going to be better. Charlotte deserved to be loved by both parents. TJ asked Kristina how Molly seemed. He thought she seemed a little shaky. Kristina said Molly had been heartbroken thinking TJ had ghosted her. She thought she’d lost him forever. He said good thing he got kidnapped, and Kristina said they had their whole lives ahead of them. She suggested they put the past behind them, and TJ said they had their whole future to look forward to. Molly apologized for Sam, but Brando said family was supposed to look out for each other. Brando said he’d told Molly that he wasn’t going to say anything, and Molly said she’d made her own choices. He didn’t take advantage, but it could never happen again. He said nothing happened between them, and she thanked him, adding she was sorry. He said nice knowing her.

Carly told Sasha that Michael blamed himself, but she blamed Sasha. Michael ran into Nelle, who asked if he was having a bad day. Chase contemplated finding Willow and fixing it, when Willow showed up. She said she was there to pick up her stuff. She breezed past him, and he said her name.

Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles

JoshA came by JoshF’s messy office to discuss the Razor house. JoshA said he’d gotten and offer, but the buyer was very well-known, and the caveat was that he’d represent them. In his interview, he said he’d had to sign an NDA. The buyer was a big deal, and it was the perfect property for them. This left JoshF with representing the buyer. JoshA said he was a little sad, but both buyer and seller needed equal representation. JoshA told JoshF to get his beauty sleep; they were going to negotiate tomorrow, and hopefully close the deal. JoshF said JoshA was dead to him, and it was a nice run while they had it. David James was showing homes to Brittnie and Jeremy, who were having their first child and in a time crunch, but still being very picky. James said that if you could get between your home and office in 30 minutes, that was heaven, and the couple owned a successful weed cannabis company in Venice. The buyer’s agent, Santiago, showed them a 4200 square foot, 6 bedroom, 5 bath house, priced at $3.795 million. Brittnie said she wasn’t sure it was their vibe; it was too traditional. James said at their price point, it was hard to find a modern home.

Scott Gillen had given Tracy a listing portfolio of 13 residences, between $60 and $100 million each. She’d told her team they had to pull something elegant together to pull in people, and had a week to do it. In her interview, Tracy said Scott was so anal about keeping his house clean, she was surprised he was allowing her to throw an event there. She told assistant Eleanor that, at the bare minimum, she would have 30 to 40 brokers. If it hit 100 to 150, she’d have a nervous breakdown. There would be a shoe check-in, where everyone would be given slippers. On the deck, they’d have incredible food and beautiful drinks, and she wanted delicate, nice touches. They wouldn’t be able to use the bathrooms either. In Tracy’s interview, she said she’d heard rumors on how difficult Scott was, and how most people didn’t last long. Everyone had discouraged her, but she was doing it. She’d worked her entire career to land a listing like this. It was a tight timeline with a challenging client.

David James showed Brittnie and Jeremy another house in Pacific Palisades, north of Santa Monica. He said it was a tight community in an iconic neighborhood, often used as a backdrop for TV shows. The house was partially staged, since they had been in escrow, but the buyer dropped out. I didn’t catch the square footage, but it was big, with 6 bedrooms, 7 baths, and a smart system. I thought of those people on Dr. Phil, who had been threatened through their own security camera, and I’m not so sure I want a smart anything. The kitchen was fabulous, as always, and I cried inside once again over my postage stamp sized what-passes-as-a-kitchen. James said it was the epitome of a modern, new construction, but not so kid friendly. In his interview, he said he didn’t think they realized how much baby proofing they would need to do. I loved the dual master closets (which you know she’ll take both of), but I cringed at the dual sink in the master bath. I’ve never been close enough to anyone to want to brush our teeth together. And that includes my husband. We have a dual sink in our upstairs bathroom, and all it does is take up too much space. James pointed out the canyon view, and said no one would ever block it. In his interview, James said his clients had no effing clue what comes next. He’d had his daughter at 26, and couldn’t look after himself, much less a baby. He said, Brittnie and Jeremy had an established business, and had no effing idea what was happening. He told them it wasn’t a ridiculous price, and the seller was willing to negotiate.

JoshF tried to convince assistant Wilie that he should change his name to Wilie Coyote. JoshA visited Tracy’s office, looking for booze. He was there late, preparing for his negotiation with JoshF about the Razor house. He figured Tracy was always good for some liquor. She told him that he’d better have a plan, and a backup plan if he was negotiating with JoshF. JoshA said he’d retire if he lost to JoshF. Tracy said she’d never had a client send back an event invite 32 times, but Scott had done it. In her interview, Tracy said he called all hours of night, and texted her at 10 pm, asking her to call him. JoshA told her that he’d had the listing two years ago for 10 days. It was going to destroy her. In Josh’s interview, he said Tracy could hold her own with anybody in any room, but his experience – the non-stop calls, impossible demands, and Scott being an ass in general – was unbearable. There was no light at the end of the tunnel. The tunnel didn’t end. Tracy said she expected him to cancel the event at the last minute. Josh asked if he was invited, and she said her last list had been rejected, so she’d put him on the next one. In her interview, she said there were difficult people and bad people, and she hoped she wasn’t spending tens of thousands just for Scott’s ego.

The Joshes met at Canter’s, oldest Jewish deli in L.A. In his interview, JoshF said, they were two Jewish guys. Where else would they go to negotiate a deal? He said he’d found out JoshA’s buyer was Alicia Keys, and wasn’t going to go easy on him. JoshF told him, all cash and a quick close at $20 million. He’d tried to comp it, but it wasn’t easy. I understand this, since my house has been difficult to comp in the past. JoshF laughed, and said, give him something work with. JoshA said trophy houses went from $1800 to $4000 a foot, and it was a decent start. JoshF brought up that they’d been asking for more the last time around, but JoshA said, no matter what they’d been asking, that didn’t mean it was worth it. I get this too, since I have an eBay store, and everyone thinks their stuff is worth tons of money. It’s not. JoshF got on the phone with the seller, who said the house was one of a kind, but Josh said the seller was paying him a lot of money, and they had to show they were ready to negotiate, and had to be realistic. The seller told him, get it done. JoshA said he wasn’t messing around, and he’d gone straight to his client’s maximum. In JoshA’s interview, he said his client trusted him to get the best deal, and even though he could go to $23 million, he wasn’t leaving until he squeezed more out of JoshF. In JoshF’s interview, he said he knew he could squeeze more out of JoshA. JoshF told JoshA, $20.8 million; tell her to write another song. JoshA said they had a deal. In his interview, JoshA said he was apprehensive at first, but the more he and JoshF worked together, the more he liked it. They had good times and weird times, and maybe he’d miss JoshF a little bit, but he wasn’t getting carried away. They hugged, and JoshF left, sticking JoshA with the check.

In his interview, David James said Brittnie was due in one week, and they needed to close on the Palisades house yesterday. He and David met with broker Alex, and made an offer of $6.4 million (the asking price was $6.785). Alex said they had a higher offer before, but David said, it wasn’t real, and James said he was giving them a deal on a platter. The developer had three other houses going on the market, and in James’s interview, he said the seller would be a fool not to take the deal and run. James got the buyers to come up to $6.650 million with a 14 day close, but they also wanted the audio visual equipment included, and for the seller to install blackout shades in several rooms. They had a deal, and in his interview, James said, it wasn’t a moment too soon. A few days after they closed, Brittnie had a boy named Tiger. They showed a picture, and I thought it was a good name for him.

Tracy brought a port-a-potty to the New Castle, and in her interview, said she’d gone above and beyond for the launch, and spent $15K. She told the team, no food or drinks in the house, slippers for everybody, and no delivery trucks in the driveway. Party planner Michelle worked like a maniac, and Tracy said it needed to be perfect. Scott was watching everything. She told Michelle to have two golf carts in place at either end of the driveway, to make sure no one was ever waiting, and to make sure the guests got gift bags. Scott arrived, and griped about shoes being everywhere. While Tracy dealt with the hand-rolled sushi bar, Scott bitched about equipment being on his stucco. Tracy said they needed to plug in somewhere, and Scott said he wasn’t talking to her; he didn’t want to ruin her day. In Tracy’s interview, she said, as impossible as it felt to create the event, she did it. She told one of her team that it had to function like a normal effing event, or she was going to lose it. She only got one shot. She wanted to make sure the brokers’ clients got a digital key with all the information on a flashdrive. In her interview, she said the digital key was major. It was the only way for the brokers to deliver the material to their clients. Who knew if they’d ever be able to get in again? The Chairman of Douglas Elliman, along with his CEO, showed up, and Tracy said Chairman Howard was the only person she cared about seeing the house. She wanted him to be impressed, since he was connected to the richest people, and her greatest asset. We saw a clip of Tracy consulting Howard when she wanted to take a leap with her business. He told her if she was good at what she did, she’d be good at it no matter what. James and David arrived, and were told not to touch or lean on anything. David James said he’d heard of neurotic, but this took it to a whole new level. Then they discovered the Saran wrapped toilet, and he said there was particular, OCD, and completely effing nuts. He told Tracy the price was an ambitious number, and she’d need a very specific buyer. JoshA and brother Matt got there just as Scott was pulling out to leave.

Josh said they wanted a personal tour from Scott. In his interview, Josh said the last time he was there, he’d told Scott the house was outrageously priced, and a giant waste of his time and money. They’d told each other to f*** off. Scott said he wasn’t doing a tour, and Josh said he thought Scott was going to break the record for days on the market with a house. Inside, Tracy saw Josh talking with Scott, and James said he’d never seen her look nervous before. Matt argued with Scott about his price, and Josh asked how many times he offered to fire Tracy this week. Scott said, three, and Josh said he was getting soft, but he put agents through the ringer. Tracy couldn’t get outside fast enough, and JoshA said they were there to support their girl. He told her that they were proud of her for dealing with this sh*t. In Tracy’s interview, she said she was shocked Scott hadn’t kicked everyone out, and she was keeping her mouth shut. Scott left without further incident, and JoshA told David and James that he’d lasted a week with Scott. David James said some clients just weren’t worth it. Tracy said she separated her personal feelings about the client’s personality from the business deal. In her interview, she said it had been a roller coaster, but outside of JoshA and Matt, most of the people enjoyed the house. James David said he’d needed to pee for the last two hours.

Next time, a house that’s like a resort, JoshF hires some airplane advertising, Tracy has a party, and JoshA argues price with a client.

🏡 A Family Reunites…

Don’t miss OLTL’s Rappaport reunion on Thursday, July 16th.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/one-life-to-live/rappaport-family-reunion

🧹 Go Ask Alice…

Alice was the best, but somehow, she just faded from the GH canvas. I would love to know how she got on the jury for Michael’s trial though.

https://www.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital/alice-gunderson

👠 Smize This…

Looks like Tom is out and Tyra is dancing in. While I find the work impressive, I never really watched DWTS except for when Melanie Brown (Scary Spice) was a contestant. I left when she did.

https://deadline.com/2020/07/dancing-with-the-stars-tyra-banks-host-exec-produce-1202985914/

🎃 You Can’t Keep a Good Boogieman Down…

Unfortunately, there’s not much to it, and you’ll have to wait a year to see the whole movie.

https://comicbook.com/movies/news/halloween-kills-trailer-teaser-2021/

💋 Leave My LVP Alone…

How dare anyone pick on Giggy’s mom, She Who Can Do No Wrong?

https://realityblurb.com/2020/07/11/lisa-rinna-trolls-lisa-vanderpump-over-restaurant-closing-plus-see-how-the-rhobh-star-is-responding-to-sarah-paulsons-recent-lvp-shade/

And it’s not the first time.

https://www.realitytea.com/2020/04/17/lisa-rinna-shades-lisa-vandermpump-on-instagram/

👶 Hang On, Baby…

I might not be a fan of Teddi’s, but I’m still hoping for the best.

https://extratv.com/2020/07/07/teddi-mellencamp-reveals-baby-daughter-needs-neurosurgery/

❤️ He Loved New York…

Oh wow. Someone who died under normal circumstances.

https://nypost.com/2020/06/27/milton-glaser-designer-of-i-%E2%99%A5%E2%80%8A-ny-logo-dead-at-91/amp/

👨🏻‍⚖️ I Was Framed, I Tell Ya…

Wow, what a shock that he pleaded not guilty.

https://pagesix.com/2020/07/09/ex-of-rhonj-star-dina-manzo-pleads-not-guilty-to-assault/

👩🏾‍🏫 A Gentle Correction…

Great article for when someone doesn’t grasp Black Lives Matter. The house metaphor is excellent.

https://www.purewow.com/wellness/how-to-respond-when-someone-says-all-lives-matter

🙅🏼 You Don’t Got ‘Splainin’ To Do…

I hate when someone tells me, it’s not that bad, so I can’t even imagine.

https://everydayfeminism.com/2016/02/how-people-whitesplain-racism/

👩‍👩‍👦 Stuck In the Middle…

Here we are, midweek again, or it’s the next day, depending on your viewpoint. Try not to let the whiplash of phases get you down. Stay safe, stay well-balanced, and stay keeping your head held high.

August 16, 2019 – Call Him Franco One More Time, Pride For GH, Some Carrrlos, Crossover Guest, Oh Brad, a Celebration, Endless Wedding, Life Reflections, Teddi’s Heartbreak, Three Squared Quotes & Weekend Shantay

Standard

What I Watched Today

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

 

General Hospital

Sonny’s doorbell rings, and Carly says it must be family, since no one called on the house phone. It’s Sam, who says she knows she should have called, but she’s got good news and bad news.

Josslyn and Dev walk into Charlie’s. Josslyn says, it’s better than the library. Dev says, it would be better without books, but she says he’s got to get caught up for the fall. They can grab something to eat while they work. He says he worked all day at his coffee job. She tells him, that’s just a summer job. He has to be ready for school. He needs good grades and good test scores to get into a good college. He needs college to survive. He says, it’s a waste of time. He’s going to prove himself to Sonny, and be a truly valued member of Sonny’s organization.

At the hospital. Monica asks Drew if he’s seen Kim. She made an appointment to talk to Monica, but never showed up. It’s not like her. Drew says, a lot of people aren’t acting like themselves. Monica asks, what’s going on? and he asks if she has time to talk private

Hayden sees Finn at the reception desk. She hopes he knows she didn’t mean it when she didn’t want to see him again. He says they’ve probably both said things they don’t mean. She says, probably. He tells her that he wants to talk to her about her sister Elizabeth, and Hayden says, what about her?

Elizabeth goes home. She sits on the couch and looks at her ring. Cameron comes downstairs, and says, Franco’s not here? Is he still at the hospital? Is he going to be okay?

Franco says, Jason Quartermaine. Jason says he’s half right. Jason Morgan. He’s Drew’s twin.

Sonny says, the bad news must be about that bastard Shiloh. Carly says Jason told them what he tried to do to Cameron. Sam says, everything? and Carly says Shiloh kidnapped Cameron, and planned to use the flashdrive to imprint Drew’s memories on him, but Franco showed up and took his place. Sonny says, it’s a helluva story. Sam says Robert told them. She’s happy Cameron is okay; that’s the good news. Sonny asks what the bad news is, and Sam says, the procedure worked. Franco woke up with Drew’s memories, and thinks he’s Drew.

In her office, Monica says she knows Franco was admitted for trauma, and that the episode involved Shiloh and an unscrupulous doctor. She didn’t know Franco was subjected to a memory transfer. Who benefits from that? Drew says Cabot wanted to continue his life’s work. He’s a misunderstood genius. Shiloh wanted information; probably something Drew learned in Afghanistan. Monica is glad Franco took Cameron’s place, but it must be devastating to Elizabeth. He says, she’s broken up about it, and Monica says, what about him? Drew says it looks like Franco remembers his life before 2012, but he’s not only remembering. Franco thinks he’s Drew. Even seeing his own face didn’t shake his belief. Monica asks if Drew isn’t a bit upset, and he says, that doesn’t begin to cover it. He’s mad as hell. His memories and his life have been stolen twice.

Finn says, it’s a long story, and Hayden says her head hurts thinking about it. He says, his too, but he thought she should know, for her sister’s sake. She says she appreciates it. If Franco has Drew’s memories, and doesn’t remember his real life, then he knows nothing of his life with Elizabeth or the boys.

Elizabeth tells Cameron that she’s glad it’s just them. She wouldn’t know how to explain it to the boys. He asks if Franco will ever get better, and Elizabeth says, he needs to time to come to terms with his new reality. Once that happens, they can figure out a way to reverse it, and he can come back to them. Cameron says she’s talking like it can happen with the snap of a finger, but they both know it’s not like that. If it was, Drew would have done it long ago. Elizabeth says, it’s not easy, but the doctors are already looking at Franco’s tests. They’ll figure out a way. GH has the best doctors. Cameron says, don’t treat him like a kid. He knows it’s bad; he was there. It could have been him. Where is Franco? Maybe he can talk to him. Elizabeth says she doesn’t know. Cameron says Franco needed to get away from them? and Elizabeth says, he’s confused right now. He thinks he needs to get away from everybody who’s telling him who he is, when he’s insisting he’s someone else. Drew said the best thing to do is fight for him. Try to get him to remember the life he had. The one waiting there for him. Cameron says, sounds good. He’s willing do that too, but how do they do it if Franco won’t come home?

Franco tells Jason that someone showed him his own face, and he didn’t look like himself, but Jason does. He didn’t know Jason even existed until he saw Jason’s photo in a newspaper. It was the state champion soccer team, and there he was; MVP. A rich kid with his face.

At a nearby table, Willow tells Chase that she has a lead on a job that’s teaching related. She has no problem with waiting tables, but… Chase is staring at Franco and Jason. She says, the job really is 24/7. Even when he’s off-duty, he’s not off-duty. Chase asks, where’s this coming from?

Franco says he did research at the library. It wasn’t difficult, since the Quartermaines are a prominent family. He learned about their father Alan, and their mother Susan, his mistress. She died and he dumped Drew, but kept Jason and raised him. Jason says, no; that’s not what happened

Sonny asks if Sam has spoken to Drew. She says she ran into him at the hospital. He was trying to console Elizabeth. Carly asks how Elizabeth is feeling, since Franco is running around with Drew’s memories? Sam says, optimistic. Drew is telling Elizabeth that Franco will come around when he remembers their love. Carly says, it’s a romantic scenario, but not likely. Drew still has Jason’s memories. They haven’t faded or worn off. What are the chances it will be different with Franco?

Josslyn tells Dev that he needs to work hard this summer, and not in the warehouse. He needs to hit the books if he wants to navigate American high school. Dev says they should discuss what classes he needs to take, and she says, American history. The teacher is big on the Civil war. He says she must want them to read The Civil War Diaries. He cites some other books, and she says he knows those authors? He’s read them? He says, of course (🍷). Hasn’t everyone?

Hayden says, if a doctor did it, can’t another doctor undo it? Finn would like to think so, but it’s complicated. To start, they’d have to convince Franco that he’s not Drew. She says, it’s a horrible mess, and he says it’s not the mess he needed to speak to her about. She mentioned she’s working at Aurora. Has she been in the Crimson office? She asks, why? but he’s not sure how to say it. She may have been exposed to a serious contagion.

Monica says the flashdrive had Drew’s memories on it? and Drew says, yeah. He’d all but forgotten he had it – there was so much going on – except when Shiloh asked him about it. Monica asks if Drew wanted nothing to do with it, and he says using it would have meant losing the memories he’s made since he came to Port Charles. He’d have no memories of his children, and he couldn’t make that sacrifice to learn about himself. Monica gets it, and thinks Drew made a good choice. What she doesn’t get, is why he’d hang onto it. He says he thought it was in a safe place. He wasn’t even thinking about it, but in the back of his mind, he thought maybe one day his memories could be replanted without him losing his recent ones. He never dreamed Shiloh would steal it, and plant his memories in someone else. Monica is glad Shiloh is locked away, but Drew says, it doesn’t do Franco and Elizabeth any good. They were just beginning their life, and it was ripped away. To make it even harder, Franco doesn’t realize what he lost. Elizabeth does.

Elizabeth tells Cameron that she has no idea where Franco is. Cameron asks if she wants him to talk to the boys, but she says, no. She wants them to know as little as possible. He asks, what if they read it on the internet, or hear it from their friends? She says she’s going to tell them Franco has a medical problem, and the doctors are working to solve it. Cameron asks how they can convince Franco he belongs there, if he doesn’t remember who they are? Cameron takes out his phone, and Elizabeth asks who he’s calling. He tells her, Sonny, but she asks him not to call. She says she appreciates that he wants to fix things for her and his brothers. Cameron tells her, Franco said he wouldn’t quit on their family, so they can’t quit on him, even if doesn’t know it.

Jason says the family didn’t know about Drew. He was given away to a woman named Betsey Frank, and Alan was never told he had twins. Their parents never knew, or he and Drew would have grown up with them, but that has nothing to do with him.

Willow tells Chase, Lulu was candid about what it’s like… Chase says, to put up with a cop? She says, no; to love one. She felt awkward, discussing it with Lulu, considering what happened with her and Dante, but Lulu wanted to talk. Chase takes it Lulu was illuminating. What did she learn? She says, nothing she didn’t know. Loving someone who puts their life on the line is difficult, sometimes terrifying. Like when he texted her that he was at the hospital, and she rushed there thinking he was hurt in the line of duty. She had a sudden surge of terror that she might lose him. He asks if it scared her off. Is his job too much for her? She says she’s right there, isn’t she?

Carly tells Sonny that if she’s learned anything after what happened to Drew, it’s that there’s no way to force someone to see the truth. Not at first. Sonny says, Franco will come to terms with it on his own, and seek help – if there is any. She says, what if there isn’t? Will Franco spend the rest of his life thinking he’s Drew? And are they supposed to treat him like a version of Drew? Do Elizabeth and the kids spend their lives with a stranger?

Hayden tells Finn that she thought it was the flu, not a serious contagion. Finn says it’s a flu strain, but he doesn’t know if it requires isolation. Until he figures it out, he needs to test everyone who was in close proximity of Sasha. Hayden asks, is it fatal? Could she have it and not know, and have passed it to someone else? He says he didn’t mean to alarm her. It’s mostly precaution. She seems fine. She has no symptoms, and minimal contact with Sasha. She says she’s been places that Sasha frequents; most recently, Windymere. She was there the night of the storm. Alcohol made her say a lot of things, but she doesn’t think it was the flu talking.

Drew tells Monica, even if Franco agreed to a reversal, it could seriously backfire. Andre made it clear that there could be put into a permanent coma. Monica says maybe Franco is better off living the rest of his life with Drew’s memories. He says, what about Elizabeth and the boys? They’re grieving a husband and stepfather. Franco is alive, but he’s dead to them. Monica says, as devastating as it is, there’s a silver lining. Drew loves the optimism, but isn’t sure he follows. Who would benefit from it besides Shiloh? She says, how about him?

Elizabeth tells Cameron that Franco truly loves them. If there’s an inkling of memory left somewhere, he’ll grab ahold of it, and ride it back to them. Cameron says Franco risked everything for him. He put it all on the line for him. The only way Cameron can repay him is to bring him back somehow. She says, remind him of the life he shared with them. No matter how Franco feels or doesn’t feel, it doesn’t change how they feel. They’ll go on believing in him, caring for him… Cameron says, and go on loving him, right? They hug.

Jason says his your name is Franco, and his wife’s name is Elizabeth. Franco says he’s never even met anyone named Franco, and he just met Elizabeth. If everything goes according to plan, he’ll never lay eyes on her again.

Willow tells Chase, Lulu said, Dante and Nathan were two of a kind. They were strong, and needed to make the world a better place. Lulu recognized that about Chase too. Chase says he’s honored to be in the same category. Willow guesses that’s why she relates so well to him. It’s why she became a teacher. Not that wrangling third graders compares. He says he’d rather do what he does. She’s seriously brave to face down eight-year-olds. He thinks teachers are heroes. One in particular inspired him to make a difference in becoming cop. Willow asks, who? and he says, his dad.

Franco says the solution for everyone’s problems is for him to just leave Port Charles. Jason asks if he’s sure he wants to do that, and Franco says, yes. Why? Is Jason going to try and stop him?

Carly asks how Sam is doing after her ordeal with Shiloh. Sam says there’s nothing like being locked in a nasty freezer to make you appreciate life. You think it’s your last breath, and appreciate life a lot more. Sonny says he had a reminder at his dad’s wedding. Sam apologizes, saying she forgot. Carly says it was so sweet. She especially enjoyed the minister. Sam thought it was in name only, and Carly says, he was a minister of convenience. Mike was having an episode, and thought Sonny was the pastor. Sonny says he started out with dearly beloved, they said their own vows, and professed their love. Then he and Carly decided to renew their vows.

Josslyn asks Dev, who is he? Dev says, Sonny’s cousin from Bridgeport. Josslyn wonders what a street kid from Turkey knows about literature, and Dev says he knows a lot of stuff. He picked it up from tourists. She says, a lot kids grow up on the street, but few of them turn in it into education. What makes him different?

Finn tells Hayden, if her contact was minimal, he has no reason to believe she’s infected. She asks if he thinks it’s okay to be around children, like Elizabeth’s kids. Finn thinks the more time she spends with Elizabeth and her family, the better. They’re going to need support until Franco comes home; assuming he’s coming home. Hayden says maybe there’s a brilliant doctor who’s not afraid to take risks. Finn says neurology isn’t his specialty. She says he saved her life, in more ways than one. Don’t sell himself short.

Cameron tells Elizabeth that he’s sorry it took all this for him to see the guy she saw all along. She says Josslyn is at the library with her cousin, and they’re going to Charlie’s afterward. Does he want to meet up with them? He says he’d like to stay there tonight, if it’s okay with her. She says, it’s more than okay.

Franco asks if Jason is still rich. Jason says he does okay. Franco says, give him some money. Float him a loan, and he’ll take the next bus out of town. Jason says how about if he finds Franco a room for tonight, and tomorrow, Jason can take him to some people who can help him. Franco says he doesn’t need a doctor or a shrink. He’s comfortable with who he is.

Chase tells Willow that his dad loved to teach, and he was good at it. He made his students come alive and want to learn. That’s how he inspired Chase to make a difference. His dad instilled it in him and Finn, and they each chose their way of making a difference. The problem is, you can’t always turn it off when it’s inconvenient. Willow says she’s beginning to understand.

Franco tells Jason, on second thought, keep his money. And as long as he’s stuck there, until he figures a way out, stay the hell away from him. Jason says, like it or not, he’s connected to a lot of people in this there. He can’t just disappear. Jason calls him Franco, and Franco says that’s the last time he’s going to let anyone call him that today. Chase watches.

Sam tells Carly and Sonny, it’s so exciting. Congratulations. She asks if it will be a church wedding, and says it probably depends on the season. And Avery can be the flower girl. Carly interrupts, saying they’re not that far, and Sonny says, it will be a simple, family celebration. Carly says, it’s not a wedding redo. They’ll speak their hearts surrounded by the people they love, including their newest family member. She touches her baby bump. Sonny says they’ll appreciate what they have with the people closest to them.

Dev tells Josslyn, the greatest treasure isn’t gold or diamonds, but education. His mom told him that. She had big plans for him. Josslyn says, she sounds like a good woman. He says he couldn’t let her down, so he decided to continue his education, whether or not it was in a classroom. Josslyn thinks she would be proud. She asks him to tell her more about his parents. There’s so much she doesn’t know. He says, there’s nothing to tell.

Drew tells Monica that he never imagined someone would be forced to end up with his past; especially someone he cares about. He can’t see a silver lining. Monica says he hasn’t thought it through. He doesn’t have to choose. He can keep the memories he has, and Franco can tells him about the man he used to be. Drew says Franco could fill him in at the expense of Elizabeth. Monica says, it’s Shiloh’s doing. She hopes it can be undone, but doesn’t he want to know more? She thinks she does. Drew says, the twin Alan didn’t claim, and she says, the twin he never knew existed. They missed out on Drew’s childhood, and his youth. It would be a chance to fill in the blanks. For the family too. The more they know about him, the closer they can become. Doesn’t he want that too?

Finn says he recalls he and Hayden saved each other. She says, he wins. He still reached out after she embarrassed herself at dinner. He could have just left her a message. He says she’s fun to tease. He’s not keeping score, and hopes she isn’t. He says he could never hate her. He was in love with her, and it hurt when she left, but he learned a long time ago that life is too short to keep grudges. Hayden is glad he told her what’s going on with her sister. She has to figure out how to get Elizabeth through this. Does he have a suggestion? He thinks she already knows what to do.

Elizabeth tells Cameron, go upstairs and get ready for bed; she’ll straighten up down there. He hesitates, but then goes. She looks at her ring, and flashes back to Franco in the jail, saying he’s down for more loving, cherishing, and honoring. He says, I love you, Elizabeth Imogene Webber. Till death do us part. Elizabeth wipes the tears from her cheeks.

Jason says he’s not going to fight Franco. Franco says if Jason calls him Franco one more time, he might not have a choice. Chase asks them if everything is okay. Franco says no one is talking to him. Chase calls him Franco, and Franco punches him in the face.

Sam says she assumes she and Jason will be invited, and Carly says they’ll be at the tippy top of the list. Sam says she can help, but she’s not good at that kind of thing. Sonny says they’re keeping it small. Sam says, good luck, and leaves. Sonny says if Carly wants a big, splashy wedding, he can rent a place, but she says she loves keeping it small. They could do it on the terrace. Sonny says that would make him happy, having it at home. When they’re apart, this is just a place to live in, but when they’re together, it’s a home. Because of her. She’s his whole life. Carly says, right back at him.

Josslyn tells Dev that she didn’t mean to offend or pry. He knows all about her family. She’s just curious to know more about his real family. He says she does. He’s a Corbin.

Elizabeth’s phone rings. It’s Finn, and she asks if he’s had any word about Franco. He was hoping she had some, but she says, nothing. He’s sorry. He wishes there was something he could do. For what it’s worth, he’ll talk to Monica, and tell her Elizabeth needs some time off. It’s a difficult situation, and she has the kids. It won’t do anyone any good if she runs herself into the ground. She says, good advice. She might take it. Her doorbell rings. I know we were all hoping for Franco, but it’s Hayden. She tells Elizabeth, don’t just stand there. Help her get settled. She’s moving in, and won’t take no for an answer. They hug. On the other end of the phone, Finn smiles.

Drew tells Monica, sorry. It strikes at his core. He knows exactly were Franco is; he’s been there himself. He can’t take advantage. Monica says, the memories are his, and Drew says, technically, they are, but Franco believes they’re his. Frankly, he doesn’t think Franco would share them if he asked. Monica tells him, think about it. Something good could come of this yet.

Jason tells Franco, settle, and Chase says he just hit a police officer. Franco asks how he was supposed to know that. Chase isn’t wearing a uniform. Jason tells Franco, do himself a favor – shut up. Chase says he’ll take it from there, and arrests Franco. He asks if Franco understands his rights.

On Monday, Julian tells Sam he was hoping to say a proper goodbye, Shiloh has information someone might find interesting, Scotty wants to see his son, and Lulu tells Olivia that Dante isn’t coming home.

🏥 Now If She Can Just Get a Storyline…

I love Terry, and wish she had more screen time.

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-cassandra-james-pride-month-171389

🎨 Remember Him?

It’s Carrrlos! The man of many talents, who also taught Don Draper how to be Zen.

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-jeffery-vincent-parise-birthday-reflections-171539

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-jeffrey-vincent-parise-the-magicians-171920

👠 Sashay Shantay…

A crossdressing crossover.

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-manila-luzon-171995

🎉 A Milestone…

Brad reaches his 200th episode.

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-parry-shen-200-episode-172026

🎂 Happy Birthday To Obrecht…

Fun will be had!

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-kathleen-gati-birthday-wishes-172106

👰 No GH Talk Is Complete Without It…

The longest wedding celebration in history.

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/general-hospital-luke-and-laura-wedding-of-the-century-171786

📺 A Trip Down Llanview Memory Lane…

Great photos!

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/one-life-to-live-anniversary-171600

https://www.abc.soapsindepth.com/posts/one-life-to-live-stars-where-are-they-now-171963

✋ Raise Your Hand If You Identify…

Hollywood should be ashamed of itself. And she looked far from fat.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1065641/teddi-mellencamp-recalls-feeling-heartbroken-when-told-to-lose-20-lbs-for-a-role

🙊 Quotes of the Week 

War is like love; it always finds a way.Bertolt Brecht

Never let a cat in. It’s really a person who’s reincarnated, and it will bring in all the bad Jews. – Sophie (Jennifer Coolidge), 2 Broke GIrls

Men are like floors. If you lay them right the first time, you can walk all over them for the rest of your life. – Kathy, s’Mothered

It’s discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit. – Noel Coward

Much of what was said did not matter, and that much of what mattered could not be said. – Katherine Boo

I love being a woman … But I wanted to have a man’s life in a woman’s body, and I did that very early on. I want every woman to have that.Diane von Furstenberg, NY Post interview, Page Six

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. – Albert Einstein

I’m like Rumpelstiltskin. Everything I touch turns to gold. – delusional guest on Dr. Phil – just in case you’re not up on your fairytales, it was King Midas who turned everything to gold.

You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. – Unknown

💃 Sashaying Away…

Until there are dead to fear, the weekend is my oyster. Or at least a clam shell.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vw9LOrHU8JI