Tag Archives: The Mamas and the Papas

Nov17

November 16, 2022 – Leo Finds Dex’s Phone, Damn Shame, Dramatic Reading, Mirror Image, Sanity Speaks, Awards Coming Up & Mister

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Carly knocks on Brick’s hotel room door, and when he opens it, he says, Carly Corinthos. He tells her that she looks more gorgeous every time he sees her, and she says, it’s Carly Spencer now. And he’s looking so dapper as usual. She thanks him for coming through for her, and he says, she knows he’ll always be there for her. Come on in. She goes inside, and Nina comes out from around the corner in the hallway, wearing her nosy face. She wonders what Drew would think of this.

Drew tells Willow, if he’s overstepping, tell him, but if she really wants to know the full story of her biological parents, he thinks he can help. She thanks him, and says, he’s not overstepping; he’s being incredibly generous. Michael says, nothing’s more important than family, and Drew agrees. Both the family Willow has here, and the unknown one somewhere out there.

Elizabeth asks what Jeff is doing in Finn’s office, and he says he had to see her. She says, of course (🍷) he did, because why do things on her terms? Finn says he heard she was admitted to GH last night, and Jeff asks if she’s okay. She says she’s not the one with the busted lip, and tells Finn that she’s okay. She’ll talk to him about it later, but is he okay? He says, yeah; it’s been interesting. Elizabeth tells Jeff, he should leave now before he makes everything worse.

Nikolas tosses Esme a bag, and tells her to pack up. He tells Demetrius to load up the jet, and notify the airstrip. Demetrius says, right away, and Nikolas says, make sure the house is stocked and ready for guests. Demetrius leaves, and Esme asks where they’re going. Nikolas says, someplace no one will ever find her.

Dex wakes up, breathing heavily, and Josslyn tells him, take it easy. She feels his arm, and says, God, he’s hot. He says, so is she, and she says, with fever. She puts a wet cloth on his forehead, and he says, that feels nice. She tells him, just try to rest. Her mom should be here soon with the antibiotics.

Nina comes back to the table, and Sonny asks if everything is okay with the guests. The hostess said she was having a problem with some customer service issue. Nina says she managed to put out that fire, and inadvertently walked into another one, and he asks, what happened? She says, nothing, and he says, just tell him. She says, he told her Brick used to flirt with Carly? and he says, all in good fun. Why? She says she has a habit of getting things wrong, but he says, she needs to tell him what’s going on here, and she says, okay. She saw Carly go into Brick’s room. He asks if they saw her, but she says, no; she was out in the hallway. He asks if she heard anything, and she tells him, she heard Brick say he’d always be there for Carly; that she gets more gorgeous every time he sees her. She’s sure there’s a simple explanation.

Michael tells Leo that his mom called. Time for dinner. Leo asks if Michael knows how to unlock a phone, showing him the phone he found. Michael asks if it’s his, but Leo says he found it when he was looking for leaves. Michael looks at it, and says, it’s dead. They have to hook it up to a charger. Leo says, then can he have it? but Michael says, no. It doesn’t belong to Leo. They have to return it, as soon as they figure out to who.

Willow tells Drew, so the issue of her parents first became a thing when Michael wanted to take her to Paris. She needed her birth certificate to get a passport, only Harmony didn’t have one, so she got one forged. Drew says, right, and Harmony told Carly before she died that she wasn’t Willow’s biological mother. Willow says, if only she’d told Carly who her biological mother was, but he says, the way he sees it, there’s a real birth certificate out there. He’ll get an investigative reporter on the trail. She asks, how? Harmony lied about so many things. Is her birth name really Callie? Is her birthday real or fake? He says, they locate some of the people who used to live in the Denver commune with Harmony and her husband, but she says, if the only way to find her biological parents is by talking to Harmony’s commune friends, she can save him the time and trouble, because that’s going to be a dead end.

Josslyn tells Dex to open his mouth, and puts a thermometer in it. She says, now he can’t talk. It’s her turn. The night they met, when Sonny ordered him to attack that paparazzi, she recorded the whole thing and threatened to take it to the cops. Sonny took off, and just left him there. Then Sonny decides, with zero evidence, that Dex is the one going around attacking people with a hook. He ties Dex up, leaves him in a freezer, and has some freak threaten to torture Dex with knives. Then he orders Dex to do something – God knows what – and Dex gets shot in the process. Dex can’t even call him for help. There’s no way Sonny is paying him enough to go through all of that. She’d accuse him of being blindly, stupidly loyal, but she knows he’s not stupid. So tell her – she takes the thermometer out – what is it? Why has he been risking so much for Sonny? He flashes back to Michael saying, Josslyn can’t know Dex works for him, and says, all he can tell her is, he has his reasons. She looks at the thermometer, and says, his temperature is 104. If her mom isn’t back soon with the antibiotics, she’ll have to take him to the hospital.

Jeff says he’s sorry Elizabeth feels that way, calling her Lizzy, and she says, her name is Elizabeth. And she’s only stating true facts. He wreaks havoc on everybody’s lives. He cheated on her mom more than once; Hayden is living proof. He’s the reason Reiko betrayed Finn; he’s the reason Elizabeth argued with Reiko at the top of those stairs. If Jeff hadn’t met Reiko, she’d probably still be alive. And she and Finn might still be married, and Elizabeth wouldn’t have spent years repressing the memory of her. Jeff says, she’s right. He can’t dispute anything she just said. Finn’s phone dings, and he says he’s wanted in the lab… unless Elizabeth wants him to stay. She says, it’s okay. Her dad won’t be here long. Jeff says, before Finn goes, he’s sorry for what happened to Reiko. Finn says nothing, and leaves, closing the door behind him. Elizabeth asks if Jeff came here to absolve his guilt, but he says he had no idea he’d run into Finn, and he knows what he did was unforgivable. She says, why show up at all? and he says, he took a chance. There was so much left unsaid. She says, really? Like what?

Esme says she’s not going anywhere with Nikolas, and he says, yet she was so eager to leave last night. She asks how she knows he won’t throw her into the ocean from the plane, and he says, that would be the simplest solution; ridding the world of her forever. But she’s carrying his child. He always wanted more children. He’d hoped to have them with a woman he truly cared about, and instead, it’s with her, but the end result is to keep her safe… at least for now. She says, he can’t leave Port Charles. Doesn’t he still love Ava? Or Spence. He should be getting out of Pentenville soon. Doesn’t Nikolas want to be around here for that? His mom… He says, they’re wasting time, and she asks, where’s her suitcase? The one she was packing before his whacked out wife threw her off the parapet. He says, Ava didn’t throw her; she fell from her own momentum. Esme suggests they tell that story to the police and see what they think, but he says he’s sure they’ll be more interested in charging her for the hook attacks. She says, not this again, and he says, as for her luggage, when she went missing, there was no reason to keep it, so it went up in smoke, so to speak. She says, like his plan to keep her here? and he says he’s establishing new house rules. Rule number one; no more lies. She asks, what’s rule number two? and he says, never make him repeat himself. She has five minutes to pack her meager belongings for their journey. He walks to the door, and she doubles over. She says, Nikolas, wait. It’s the baby. Something’s happening. He asks, what hurts? and she says, it’s a sharp pain. He says, she’ll have to do better than that, but she says she’s serious. Demetrius knocks, and says, the helicopter will be here in 30 minutes. Esme yells for Demetrius to help her, but Nikolas opens the door, and says, there’s nothing to worry about. Their guest is just violating rule number one about lying. Esme says, someone help her to the bed please, and Nikolas says, it’s just an act. Esme screams in pain, and Demetrius hustles over, asking if Nikolas is sure. Nikolas says, absolutely. Esme is conveniently getting cramps right before they’re going to travel to a location where it will be impossible for her to escape. Demetrius doesn’t know what a formidable liar she is. Esme says, and Nikolas doesn’t know what it’s like to carry a child inside him, much less lose one… but he’s about to.

Elizabeth says, sending her away as a teenager to live without her parents says it all, and Jeff says, he and her mother didn’t feel they had any other choice. She says, right. Because they were just trying to – quote, unquote – protect her. She guesses it was just an added bonus that they no longer had to parent their wayward daughter; the one who exposed his affair, and killed his mistress. He tells her, stop it. He won’t let her talk that way. She says, let her? He walked out of her life 25 years ago. He doesn’t get to be her dad now. Or is the real issue that she called him out? He says, she’s created this narrative where he and her mother were relieved to get rid of her. She wasn’t wayward; those are her words, not his. And she wasn’t responsible for Reiko’s death. She says, but she still wasn’t perfect either, was she? Like Sarah. He says, Sarah wasn’t perfect either; there’s no such thing. All he and Carolyn ever wanted was for both of their daughters to be healthy and happy. She says, really? Because they didn’t have to drug Sarah to be either. He says he’s not saying they didn’t make mistakes, because they did. But one of the few things they got right was to finally admit the truth to her in Monterey. Even if it means she’ll never forgive them.

Drew wonders why Willow is so certain the people who lived with Harmony in the commune wouldn’t know who her birth mother might be, and she says, in her experience, people who live in communes frequently change their names. They consider themselves to be free spirits with a firm distrust of outsiders. He says he gets that. People that used to live in that community have a fundamental distrust of law enforcement and government in general, but he’s not a cop, and doesn’t work for the government. He’ll show up with a reporter from Aurora, and they’ll frame the questions as part of a human interest story. Then they’ll use the company’s publications to get the story out there. Somebody gave birth to her, and the odds are they had help. Somebody’s got to know something. She says, he almost makes her feel like this could actually happen. Almost. He says, every riddle has an answer. It’s about being thorough and reaching as many people as they can. She says, hopefully, as soon as possible.

Nina asks if Sonny still wants dinner. What is he in the mood for? He says, whatever she wants is fine with him, and she says she ruined tonight. He asks why she says that, and she tells him, she keeps putting her foot in her mouth, with Willow, and Michael, and TJ, and now Carly. She’s going to have a new resolution; stay out of everyone’s damn business. He says, he is her business, and she knew he’d want to know, so she did the right thing. She says, wait until Carly finds out. Carly is going to want her dead. He says, she’s got to let it go. Let’s just enjoy the evening. She says she’d love to… and he says, but? She says she can’t help but wonder if it matters to him because Brick is a trusted associate friend, or because Carly is his ex-wife.  

Dex asks why Josslyn keeps sticking her neck out for a total stranger, but she says, they’re not strangers. He came dumpster diving with her to help her find Avery’s bracelet. And she happens to know his life ambition is to learn how to surf. He says, he knows she already knows how to surf, and she’s an engaged, considerate big sister, but he doesn’t know a lot else. She says, like what? and he says, like what kind of music she listens to; what shows does she binge? She says, him first. Is he into sports? He says he loves watching football, and she asks, what’s is favorite team? He says, college? Georgia Bulldogs. She asks, why? and he says, there was a guy in his unit who loved the Dawgs. He talked non-stop, had the whole roster memorized. It was infections. He got so excited every game day, you couldn’t help but cheer them on too. She asks if they stayed in touch, but Dex says, he died; KIA. She says, killed in action. She’s sorry. He says, him too. He still roots for the Bulldogs. He’s not around to cheer them on anymore, so Dex does it for him. He wants to go to a game in person someday. His buddy always said the game days were incredible. The stadium is packed, and when the team runs out, they play Baba O’Riley. That’s the weirdest name for a song. She says, he needs to hydrate. He needs to sit up and drink this for her. She sees he’s struggling, and says, or he’s going to need her help. She puts her arm around him to help him sit up, and there’s a knock at the door.

Jeff says he doesn’t expect Elizabeth to forgive them. He doesn’t even expect her to understand what they did. Although he’d be incredibly grateful if she did. Please believe him. Every choice they made, as flawed and misguided as they were, were based on unconditional love for her. She’s a parent now. She loves each of her sons in a unique way. Just like he loved her and Sarah with all his heart, but honestly, the child he felt the most kinship with was her. She says, why? Because she’s screwed up like him? He says, because she goes her own way. She’s not afraid to take chances. She says, the way she sees it, she’s nothing like him, but he says, she was when she was younger. She says, he knew her as a child, barely as a teenager. She’s not the same person he sent away. He says he hopes she’ll allow him to learn who she’s become. He already knows he loves Elizabeth as much as he loves Lizzy. Another chance would mean the world to him – her phone rings – but he won’t push; he won’t invade her space. Her phone keeps ringing, and he goes to the door. He says, from the little he’s encountered of Finn, he seems like a good man. He hopes he hasn’t ruined things.

On the phone, Nikolas says he needs someone. Please get to Windymere as soon as they can. He’ll be very grateful to them. Esme wails that it hurts so bad, and asks Demetrius to please hold her hand.

Carly says, it’s mom, and Josslyn lets her in. She says, Dex’s temperature is really high. Does she have the antibiotics? Carly gives them to her, and she gives some to Dex. Dex thanks Carly, and she says, if he wants to thank her, get some rest. The sooner his fever breaks, the better for all of them. Dex drifts off again, and Josslyn tells Carly, he’s had a really high fever for over a day now. How long does she think until it breaks? Carly tells her, they’re strong antibiotics. Her guess is, his fever will break in the morning. Josslyn hopes she’s right.

Drew says, it seems like Willow wants to find her biological parents quickly, and Willow says, of course (🍷). She hopes it’s sooner than later. He says he gets that, but to be clear, these things take time. She says she’s just a little anxious to finally know the truth. Harmony wasn’t perfect, but there was still some comfort in knowing Harmony was her mom. Now that she knows Harmony wasn’t, she feels a bit unmoored. Michael comes in with Leo, and she says she thought Leo had to be back at the main house for dinner. Michael says he called Olivia and told her that Leo would be delayed. Leo found a cellphone, but it’s dead, so they have to charge it, and find out who it belongs to. Leo wanted to stay around until the mystery was solved. He asks, if Leo were a charger, where would he be? and Leo says, he’d be made of aluminum and silicone… maybe upstairs. He runs up, and Michael follows. Willow tells Drew that she’s sorry if she seems overzealous. She went back and forth, deciding if she wanted to find her biological family. Now that she’s made up her mind… He says, stop right there. He knows exactly why she’s in such a hurry.

Sonny says, the only thing between him and Carly is Donna, and Nina says she knows. Would it be awkward if Carly started dating someone he knows? Brick walks in, and Sonny tells her to do him a favor and order for him. He wants a big steak.

Sonny goes over to Brick, and asks if Brick got everything taken care of. Brick says, it’s all good, and Sonny says he’s glad to hear it. He wouldn’t want Brick to leave his ex-wife unsatisfied.  

Drew says, his and Willow’s situations aren’t identical, but they’re similar enough. There was a time when he didn’t know who his family was, and when you make that decision to find out, you need to know right now. She says, then he knows how she’s feeling, and he says, absolutely. The Quartermaines embraced him as one of their own, and he hopes it’s the same in her case. She says, that would be ideal, but she knows her biological relatives may not be as welcoming as the Quartermaines, and that’s okay. She doesn’t have to like them. He asks why she says that, when Leo comes back down. Willow asks if he found the charger, and Leo tells her, it’s where he thought silicone would be. He’s hungry now. Bye. He jets, and Drew says, that’s what makes family everything; Scout, Leo, Rocco, Wiley… She says, they’re all characters; funny, smart, precocious. He says, imagine in ten years when they’re teenagers. Won’t it be fun to see who they turn out to be?

We see Elizabeth has a voicemail, and Finn comes back. He asks if she’s okay, and she says, her father won’t come around uninvited again. He asks, what happened last night that got her checked in here? and she says, she ran into Esme Prince on Pier 55. He asks if Esme attacked her, but she says, no. She went to call 9-1-1, Esme tried to grab her phone, and she fell and hit her head. She was brought in for observation, and they said she had a mild concussion, but she thinks they were being overly cautious. He says, better safe than sorry, and she says she’s the last person to defend Esme – she thinks Esme is a maniac – but she doesn’t think Esme meant for her to fall. He says he’s glad she wasn’t hurt, and she says she wishes Reiko hadn’t been. He says, him too, and she says she hates that her dad showed up without warning. The last thing she wanted was for him to cause Finn more pain. He says, it’s okay. It woudn’t have been his first choice to talk to her dad this morning, but in a strange way, it may have helped. Her phone rings again, and she turns it off. She asks if it felt good to punch her father in the face, and he says, maybe. Not now but… She says, what about her role in what happened with Reiko? The last time they saw each other, he seemed like he needed space to think about things. Has he? He says he has, a lot, and she says, he can’t be with her anymore, can he? She doesn’t blame him.

Carly asks what Josslyn is doing. Dex was shot, and she doesn’t know if someone is coming after him. What she does know is, he’s working for Sonny, so whatever he’s doing is dangerous. Josslyn says, it’s not like she planned this; it just happened. One thing led to another, and it snowballed. Once he’s better, she’ll show him the door. Carly says, okay, but it’s a lot to risk for a guy she barely knows.

Brick says, it’s not what Sonny thinks. Nothing inappropriate happened between him and Sonny’s ex-wife. He would never. Sonny says, he can’t imagine Brick would, but he likes flirting with Carly. Brick says, that’s all it is, and Sonny says, she was in his room. Brick says, briefly, and only out of necessity, and Sonny says, let’s get something clear. Brick works for him; Carly’s his ex-wife. Brick says he comprehends, and Sonny says, so tell him what was going on in that room, but Brick says he can’t do that. This has nothing to do with Sonny. Carly needed something, and asked him to help her get it. Sonny says, and Brick is the only one who can give it to her? Brick says, give it to her, no questions asked, discreet. His allegiance is with Sonny, always, forever, and Sonny knows Brick will tell him if he insists, but he’d rather not go back on his word. Sonny says, Brick’s word is his bond, and if Brick tells him nothing compromising happened, Sonny accepts his word. Brick says, but he doesn’t like it.

Carly says she knows Josslyn is compassionate, but is there any other reason she’s going this far out on a limb for Dex? Josslyn says she doesn’t know him all that well, but they’re kind of becoming friends. When she found Ava after Ava had been stabbed, and she yelled for help, Dex came running. He helped her save Ava’s life, and that bonded them. On the subject of Ava, she’s assuming the cops haven’t found Esme since she’s been back. Carly says, they haven’t, and Josslyn says, Spencer’s in jail, and Esme has no support system here. She has to be getting desperate. It’s only a matter of time, right? Things will go back to normal. Carly says, this is not a time to let her guard down. They both know how dangerous Esme is. And Esme isn’t the only threat to Josslyn’s normal. They both look at Dex, who looks like no one with a 104 fever ever looked.

Drew tells Willow a story about how Scout decided she wants to be a blonde, when Michael comes back down with the charged phone. He sees the email from Sonny’s address, and tells Willow and Drew that he has to make a call real quick. He goes outside, and calls Dex from his own phone. The mystery phone rings.

Elizabeth says, in the short amount of time she and Finn have been together, they have a pretty spotty track record. Most of it has been on her. She kept Finn at arm’s length, attacked his brother, she didn’t get help when she needed it, she lied to Finn, and now he knows Reiko fell because Reiko was having an argument with her. That’s how Reiko caught the disease that killed her, and it’s just too much for one relationship to withstand. It’s too much for him to possibly forget. He says, neither one of them will ever forget what they’ve been through, but that doesn’t mean they still have nothing to talk about. Her phone rings, and she sees it’s Nikolas. She says she’s sorry, but she has to answer this. She steps away, and says, she’s in the middle of something. Why does he keep calling?… She’s on her way. She tells Finn that she’s sorry, but she has to go, and he asks if it’s the boys. She says, no, it’s something else, and he says, something else she can’t tell him. She says she really wants to finish this conversation, and he says he really wants to believe that’s true. She grabs her stuff, says she’s so sorry, and runs out.

Nikolas tells Demetrius to go downstairs, and get the first aid kit. He leaves, and Esme says, Nikolas can’t let her have even one friend. He says, if memory serves, she makes sex tapes of her friends. Help is on the way. She says, really? and thanks him. She says she knows how much their baby means to him, even if she doesn’t mean anything. He sits, and says he knows she knows that, and that’s why she’s pretending the little one is at risk. She says she’s not pretending; she’s in pain. He says he promises her this, if she’s not really in pain now, she will be soon.

Michael wonders why Dex’s phone is here, and says, where is Dex?

Drew says he appreciates Willow entrusting him with looking for her birth parents. He’ll use every resource he has to get her some answers. She says she knows he’ll do everything he can, but she also knows this is a secret decades in the making, and she won’t blame him if he hits a blank wall. He says he’s confident he’s going to get some results, because someone out there knows the truth about who she really is.

Carly asks if Josslyn knows anything about Dex, and Josslyn says she knows he was in the military, and she knows he doesn’t talk to his siblings. And she knows he didn’t come to her for help. She found him by accident, and now she’s in this. She needs to see it through. Carly says, it’s like looking in a mirror. Josslyn is so stubborn, and Carly knows she gets it from her. She not going to waster her breath giving Josslyn more warnings, because she knows Josslyn won’t listen. Josslyn says she always listens. She just doesn’t always take Carly’s advice. Carly says, Josslyn is going to sit with him all night, isn’t she? and Josslyn says, somebody’s got to. Carly says she has to get home to Donna, or she would stay with Josslyn. Do not open the door for anyone, and call if she needs anything. They hug, and Josslyn thanks Carly for getting the antibiotics. She say she loves Carly, and they hug again. Carly says she loves Josslyn too, so much. Lock the door. She leaves, and Josslyn locks it. She sits on the bed, and watches Dex.

Brick asks Sonny if they’re good, when Nina walks up. She asks if Brick is going to join them for dinner, but Brick asks for a raincheck. Sonny says, they’ll circle back later, and Trish gives Brick a to-go bag. He tells Sonny and Nina to have a good evening, and leaves. Nina tells Sonny that she shouldn’t have said anything, but Sonny says, Carly can see who she wants whenever she wants, as long as they’re not connected to him. She’s not the only one with boundaries to be respected. Nina asks what Brick said, and Sonny tells her, he said they’re not having an affair. She asks if he believes Brick, and he says, of course (🍷) he does. Brick is his guy. He’s known Brick for years, and trusts him completely. Nina asks why she senses a but, and he says, no buts. Let’s eat.

Nikolas thanks Elizabeth for coming right over. He knows she doesn’t approve of what he’s doing. She says, keeping a young pregnant woman captive? and he says, the way he sees it, he’s keeping a murderer off the streets. She says, even worse. If Esme’s really dangerous, she belongs behind bars. He says he already explained why that can’t happen right now, not before she’s given birth. She says she doesn’t want to argue with him. Just tell her why he asked her to come here. He says, Esme is complaining about being in pain. He’s not sure she’s being honest about her symptoms, but an examination can’t hurt. He doesn’t want to take any chances where this baby is concerned. She says, he really cares about this baby, doesn’t he? and he says, more than she knows. She says she’ll do this for him, but only once. He says he knew he could count on her, and they go into Esme’s room. Esme lies unconscious (maybe) on the floor.  

Tomorrow, Britt tells Brad, tonight they’re going to raise a little hell; Laura asks if someone knows something she doesn’t; Robert tells Holly, friendship’s a serious business, and so is betrayal; and Elizabeth tells Nikolas, they need to call an ambulance.

😢 What a World…

This is just sad.

https://pagesix.com/2022/11/16/lizzy-savetsky-exits-rhony-reboot-over-anti-semitism/

🎭 Better Than the Original…

How Andy gets these people to do this stuff, I’ll never know.

https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/3444738/ralph-fiennes-dramatically-recreated-real-housewives-lisa-barlows-hot-mic-monologue-about-meredith-marks-and-it-was-hilarious

🖌 Photoshop This…

Frankly, they both look weird.

https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/6684459/rhonj-teresa-giudice-unedited-makeup-filter/

💎 Crystal Clears…

I hope she comes back. She’s the only one I’ve seen actually mature on the show.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1353533/rhobhs-crystal-kung-minkoff-addresses-her-future-on-the-bravo-series

RHOBH’s Crystal Kung-Minkoff Addresses Teddi’s Claim About 14 Friends Feud, Kathy Getting “Pissed” at Aspen Club, and Which Ex-Cast Members Should Return

🏆 Red, White and Awards…

One of my favorites, Wayne Brady will be hosting, and it sounds like a good line-up. November 20th, 8 pm, on ABC, and the next day on Hulu.

More AMAs 2022 Performers Revealed​: Dove Cameron, Anitta, Bebe Rexha, More

https://people.com/music/pink-to-perform-tribute-to-the-late-olivia-newton-john-at-the-2022-amas/

You, too, can have a vote.

https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/2022-american-music-awards-how-to-vote-1235155402/

🎸 Shake, Rattle, and Rolling On Out…

Make a pit stop here tomorrow for some soap, and raking that horrible House cast over the coals. Until then, stay safe, stay knowing, the worst is not, as long as we can say, this is the worst, and stay out of everyone’s damn business. Unless they ask.

Dec3

December 2, 2021 – Drew Catches Up With Sonny, Faux Fur On the Runway & Dreamin’

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What I Watched Today

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

General Hospital

Donna sits in her highchair, and Carly says, it’s a blessing that she’s too young to understand what’s going on. She misses him too. Sonny comes in, and asks if she’s thinking about Jason. She says she is, and he says, she shared nine months with Jason. She says she cherishes every moment with the people she loves, and hugs him. Sonny goes over to Donna, and Carly says, if it weren’t for Avery and Donna, she doesn’t know how she would have gotten out of bed this morning. He asks if she slept, and she says she must have, but she doesn’t remember. She just remembers… He says, waking up every hour. Every time he wakes up, he remembers Jason’s gone and he’s not coming back.

Sam goes to visit Alexis, and Alexis asks how she is. She thought Sam was coming by for dessert, but Sam texted her, devoid of an explanation. What kept her away?

Dante is in the shower, and flashes back to getting busy with Sam. His phone rings, and he gets out to answer it. It says the caller is Ma, but he puts the phone down.

Chase goes to the Quartermaine mansion, and Brook says, please tell her he’s been reinstated. He says, if only, and she says, it’s so wrong. He shouldn’t be punished for standing up for her. Chase says, let’s be honest. Valentin had every reason to be angry, and she says, also her fault. He says, Valentin shouldn’t have said what he did, but he shouldn’t have punched him. He is, after all, an officer of the peace. She says, when everyone finds out the truth, they’ll know he did it for a noble reason, and he says, then it will get a lot worse, because everyone will know he colluded to keep the whereabouts of a missing child from his superiors, and the investigators. She says, with the mother’s permission. He’s doing a hero’s work. She knows it, and so does Maxie. Maxie walks in, and says, actually, the more she thinks about what Chase did, the less she likes it. They need to undo it now.

Anna sees Valentin at the hospital, and he says, it’s so good to see her. She says she was told he checked himself out of the hospital against medical advice, and he says he did. It gave them no small amount of schadenfreude to see him crawling, having burst his stitches. She says, it looks like he took it on the chin, touching his bruise, and he says he thinks it’s safe to say that.

Sasha wakes, thinking she heard a baby cry. She realizes she’s all alone in her room.

Nina says, Brando was at the hospital all night? and hands him a bag, saying, eat. He says he’s starving, but can’t stand the thought of eating right now. She tells him, give it a minute, it will come, and asks, how’s the baby? He says, beautiful. He’s so strong and tiny. They’re still running tests on him, so no official diagnosis yet. The poor little guy is connected to so many tubes. She says, sorry, but he says, it’s good; he’s hanging in there. That’s what’s important, to Sasha too. She says she sees they moved Sasha; that’s a good sign, right? He says, she’s getting better physically, but not being able to see her son breaks her heart. They hear a noise from Sasha’s room, and run. We see Sasha on the floor, apparently having fallen.

Carly tells Sonny, she’s sorry she wasn’t here last night; she went to the footbridge. Jason used to always go there on Thanksgiving. He says it’s probably best she wasn’t there, and she asks, what happened? He says, that son of a – he glances at Donna in his lap – gun Cyrus Renault called to gloat about Jason. She says he has to be kidding her. That guy doesn’t know when to stop. Sonny says he figured Cyrus learned his lesson when he didn’t have him taken out of prison, and she says, he sees it as one more opportunity to come after Sonny. He says, now that Jason’s gone, he’s bolder than ever. He still has influence. She says, he really does. She and Jason were thinking Cyrus is the reason Laura is out of town. Doc is tightlipped about it, and Martin left town at the same time. They were thinking she’s in witness protection. Sonny says, because of Renault? and she says, yeah. What’s he going to do about it? Drew walks in, and says he was told to come up, if that’s okay. Carly runs to him, saying, it’s more than okay. She hugs him, and says, it’s so good to see him. Sonny says, who let him through security? It’s been a while; they were hoping he’d come by. Drew asks, who’s on Sonny’s lap? and Sonny says, this is Donna Corinthos. He introduces Donna to her Uncle Drew, adding, he’s been away for a while. Drew says, it’s such a pleasure to meet her, and tells Sonny and Carly, congratulations. You turn your back on Port Charles for a minute, and everything changes.

Sam helps Alexis clean up, and says it looks like she missed one hell of a party. Alexis says, it started off fine, with Shawn, Spencer and his girlfriend, but everyone got along. Then Valentin shows up. Sam says, Alexis and Valentin are like besties these days, and Alexis says she was just fine, but Valentin and Spencer don’t get along at all. Sam says, they hate each other, and Alexis says, then, Ava and Nikolas showed up. Sam says, that must have been awkward, and Alexis says, it gets much better. Have a seat. They sit, and Alexis says, the doorbell rings, she goes to the door, she answers the door, and risen from the ashes is her dead great uncle, Victor Cassadine. Sam says, they released him from custody? and Alexis says, she knew he was alive? Thanks for the heads up. Sam says she thought he was under lock and key, and Alexis says, he’s free. Not only that, Valentin announced Victor claims to be his father, which upset Spencer. Then Valentin wanted to leave, and Nikolas and Ava wanted to leave… Sam says, and Victor? but Alexis says, he called for peace among the family. Her Thanksgiving rivaled any Quartermaine Thanksgiving ever. Sam says she’s almost sorry she missed it, and Alexis asks, why did she miss it? Why was she at the Quartermaines? Was it for the pizza? Sam says she never made it out of her place. She has some news. Actually, she has a lot of news.

Brando runs to Sasha, and helps her up. Nina asks if she hit her head, and Sasha says she needs to see her baby. Brando says he understands, but she just got out of surgery; she’s still recovering. She says she hears him crying, or she dreamed it, and when she woke up, she wanted to check on him. Brando says, he’s fine; he saw him this morning. He’s ready to go all fifteen rounds. She says, championship bout? and Brando says, he’s going to win too, in a knockout. Nina says she’ll go find Dr. Navarro, but Amy comes in, and says she’s afraid that won’t be possible. Dr. Navarro’s in surgery.

Valentin and Anna go into a room, and Valentin says he heard about Jason. Sorry about that. She says, they had a mutual respect for each other. He asks if she’s told Robin, and she says she has. Robin is devastated, but she’s strong. She called Valentin, and he didn’t want to talk, but it seemed like he had something on his mind. He said he popped his stitches, and he has a bruise on his face. What’s going on? He says he doesn’t know where to start, and she says, it’s not Charlotte, is it? Or Bailey? Is something wrong with Bailey? He says, Bailey’s perfect. She’s not his daughter.

Brook says Maxie needs to take it easy. Second thought, third thought, whatever, there’s no way she and Chase can undo what they did. Chase asks, why the change of heart? and Maxie says, two nights of thinking about Peter calling her when he was in custody. Two nights of realizing, if Chase figured out the truth, Peter could. Two nights of remembering that Valentin had the resources to keep her daughter safe, and they don’t have those anymore. Chase says they won’t let Peter anywhere near her, and Maxie asks if he has the stomach for that, to fight as brutally as Valentin would? Because Peter won’t hesitate to kill him, and if he hesitates to kill Peter, he’s a dead man. Chase is a good and virtuous person; he will hesitate. And Brook? Brook asks if Maxie doesn’t think she’d lay down her life for that little girl, and Maxie says she knows Brook has it in her. She just doesn’t think Brook would stand a chance against Peter. Which is why they need Valentin on their side. He will take down Peter like the animal he is.

Alexis says, so Drew is alive after all this time? and Sam says, it was incredible to see him. Alexis asks what Scout did, and Sam says, she didn’t recognize him. It was a lot for her to take in, but she’ll come around. Alexis is sure she will, and Sam says, Jason is the one who saved Drew; Britt Westbourne and her mother as well. Alexis tells her, say what you will about Jason, and she has, he is reliable in a crisis. Sam says, he was able to save Drew, but he wasn’t able to save himself. Jason’s dead.

Olivia asks, what took Dante so long? then says, never mind, and hugs him. She says he’ll never believe who showed up on Thanksgiving, and he says, Drew. She says, if he knows that, he must know… He says, about Jason, and asks how Monica is doing. Olivia says, she’s coping. She has them all there to help her through. She can’t believe Jason is gone, and Dante says, his death touches a lot of lives. Olivia says, for a guy who kept his feelings locked in a vault, a lot of people are crying their eyes out today. How did he hear about this? His text was kind of cryptic. Where did he and Rocco wind up? He says, they spent the day with Sam and her kids.

Chase tells Maxie, Valentin was worried Peter would use Bailey to hurt him; that’s what Yuri was for. Brook says, now that Valentin is out of the picture, Bailey is safer. She’s off Peter’s radar, and much safer with Chase as her father. Maxie says, really? As she recalls, Peter poisoned Chase and tried to kill him. Brook says, that was an accident. Peter was targeting Chase’s brother to get back at Anna. Maxie says, Peter doesn’t care who he hurts, or who he kills. Brook says Maxie is making emotional arguments out of fear, and Maxie says she’s damn right. She made the mistake of thinking Peter was a rational human being. Now she knows better. She won’t underestimate him, and neither should Brook.

Anna asks how it’s possible Bailey isn’t his, and Valentin says, the usual way. Brook lied to him and used him, so she could take back the shares of ELQ she’d stolen from him. Anna says she sees. Do they know who the real father is? He says, Harrison Chase apparently, and she says, Brook was living with him when… So she guesses they… Valentin says, apparently. On the plus side, he’s already reacquired the shares Brook stole from him, and Chase may have offered him an opportunity to exact revenge. She says she’ll bite; how? He tells her that he may have said some cruel and cutting things to Brook, and Chase may have hit him. He’s been suspended from the force. She asks if that’s the end of the warpath for him, but he says he’s just getting started. She asks when he’s planning on dealing with what’s really at the heart of this, and he says, what’s that? Being lied to? Deceived? Humiliated? She says, the emotional trauma of losing a child.

Amy says, if it were up to her, she’d say, let’s get Sasha into a wheelchair and over to the NICU, and Nina says, let’s do it, but Amy says, unfortunately, it’s not up to her. Dr. Navarro has to sign off on it, and until she’s out of surgery… Sasha asks if she can’t go anyway, and Amy says she’s afraid Sasha has to stay put. Amy leaves, and Sasha says, Dr. Navarro could be in surgery for hours. Brando says, don’t worry. He’s going to take her to see their son. He asks if Nina wants to help.

Carly comes back from putting Donna down for her nap, and Drew says, such a blessing that one; so beautiful. Sonny says, they think so, and Drew says he can’t imagine how hard it is for them. Jason was so important to so many people, especially them. He knows he’s just a reminder of that profound loss, but Carly tells him, please don’t say that. He’s alive, and that’s a great comfort. Sonny says, don’t think they forgot everything he did for them. He survived. Drew says, the only reason he’s alive is because of Jason.

Alexis says she’s so sorry, and Sam says, she knows they were apart for almost a year, but… Alexis says, she knows how much Sam loved him, and Sam says she loved him a lot, and he was Danny’s father, so… Alexis says, poor Danny. Last night must have been hell for her. She hates that Sam had to get the news when she was all alone. Sam says she wasn’t alone. Dante was with her.

Valentin tells Anna, he’ll handle losing Bailey as best he can, but in the meantime, Brook and Chase will get what’s coming to them. Anna says, stop it. For God’s sake, that’s the man he used to be. He says, that’s the man he is, and no amount of wishing from his better angels is going to change that. She says, no. Not a chance. She knows the bookends of who he is; the man he was, and the father he’s become to Charlotte and Bailey. He says he’s not Bailey’s father, and she says he was, until he wasn’t. She saw him with that little baby, and his heart was so full. His love, or his right to love her, was taken away, and she’s very sorry for that. He says, Brook fooled him for the sake of the company, to get her hands on some shares. He moved into the Quartermaine house to be a proper father; so he could be there for the day to day, but she was not his. And if he has to hurt over and over again about everything he’s going to miss about that little girl, then Brook is going to hurt too. That’s fair, isn’t it? Anna hugs him, and he cries. I want to cry too. I’ve never seen someone look that sad.

Maxie says, once Peter hears Valentin isn’t Bailey’s father, all it’s going to take is a few little steps for him to figure out Bailey is his. Everything that led Chase to the truth, is going to lead Peter right here. Chase says, he’s a trained detective, and Maxie says, and Peter is a psychopath who is obsessed with finding this one little girl. Do they think he’s not going to figure this out? Bailey isn’t safe with Chase acting as her father. Brook asks if Maxie has a better idea.

Olivia says, so Dante spent the day with Sam and her kids? How was that? He says, it was great. The kids get along awesome. She says, they certainly ought to; they spend enough time together here. He says, they were going to come after the parade… and she says, then Drew showed up. He says, yeah, and he told them about Jason. He thought Sam needed someone there, and he wanted to be there for her. Olivia says, of course (🍷) she did, and of course (🍷) he stayed. He comforted her and helped her sort through her feelings, right? He says, something like that, and Olivia says, that is the man she raised. Hmm. He says, what? and she says, it sounds like things are getting pretty serious between him and Sam.

Alexis says she knows Sam and Drew hadn’t been together for a while before his disappearance, but she knows Sam loved him, and she loved Jason. She can’t imagine how confusing it is. Sam says, that’s the strangest part; it’s not confusing at all. If anything, clarifies things. She’s thrilled Drew is alive, and devastated that Jason is dead, but she also realizes she’s ready to move on. Alexis says, if Sam is okay, she’s okay. She just wants Sam to be happy. Sam says, she is happy. What about Alexis?

Drew tells Sonny and Carly that Peter knew how to activate his conditioning. He wanted to put on a demonstration for Jason and Britt. He had Drew hold a knife to Jason’s throat, and had him cut open his own arm. Carly says, God, and Sonny says, sick bastard. Drew says he doesn’t remember any of it, but Jason was paying attention and took full advantage. He saw how Peter put him under, and saw how Peter brought him back out. Jason was convinced they could take Peter down, but Drew wasn’t so sure, and told him, if things went sideways, he wanted Jason to stop him, no matter what. Carly says, you mean… Drew says, to kill him, if it came to that. Instead, Jason was the one who lost his life.

Amy gets an alert that the call button has been pressed in room 403, and says, what the…? She runs off, and Brando tells Sasha, the coast is clear. Let’s move. He wheels Sasha out.

Amy goes to the room, and sees Nina lying on the bed. She asks, why did Nina push the call button when she’s not a patient, and the room isn’t being used? Nina says, great question. She had an idea she wanted to talk to Amy about, but first, she had to conduct a little experiment. She wanted to see how quick the response time was. Amy says, her response time, personally? and Nina says, yes. She wants to do an article on the responsiveness of nurses. How long it takes for them to respond when the call button is used, and she’s being completely serious – Amy was amazing. Amy thanks her, and says she has to get back to her station, but Nina says, wait, and blocks the door, saying, Amy can’t go yet.

Brando says, no sign of anyone. He thinks they’re going to make it. He wheels Sasha toward the NICU, and a woman says, wait just a minute, and stands in front of them. She says, Sasha is the face of Deception who became the face of Conception. Can she get a selfie? Sasha says, just one, real quick, and the woman takes the picture. The woman says, how about an autograph? but Brando says, Miss Gilmore needs to see her baby right now. The woman says, oh, Baby Deception. Can she come? Brando says, absolutely not, and wheels Sasha away. The woman sends the photo to her social media.

Nina says she wants to do a feature on Amy in Crimson. She’s such a great nurse. They want to do a photo shoot with Amy. Amy asks if she means it, and Nina says, absolutely. Amy says, so she’d be like a model? and Nina says, a model nurse. They laugh, and Nina suggests they sit and talk about what the spread will look like.

Sasha sanitizes and puts on a gown. She says, okay, let’s do this. Let’s see our baby. Brando says he has to prepare her first, and she says, for what? He says, their baby is hooked up to a lot of equipment. He’s wrapped in a cooling blanket to give his brain a chance to heal from the lack of oxygen, but he’s peaceful, and so sweet. She thanks him, and says she’s ready.

Sonny tells Drew, Jason knew the risk, and chose to save Drew. For a man with his reputation, a reputation he earned, he valued the lives of other people he cared about more than his own. Drew says, if it wasn’t for Jason, he’d still be Peter’s puppet, and Sonny says, but he’s not, right? Not anymore? Drew says, he doesn’t know. Peter wanted him to kidnap Maxie for him. Maybe he can still flip a switch. What if Maxie is in danger because of him?

Maxie says, what if they tell Valentin that Bailey is really Louise, and they were only doing this to keep her safe from Peter? No matter how mad he is, he might just keep Yuri and the rest of his security team here. Brook says, if it’s security Maxie is worried about, they’ll hire guards, and Maxie asks how they’ll explain that. At least Valentin has the excuse that he’s on Peter’s bad side. If they bring guards here, they might as well send Peter and engraved invitation. Brook says she’s sorry, but there’s not way to change this. Valentin has already gotten his ELQ shares back, and got Chase suspended from the PCPD. Maxie says, what? How? and Chase says, last night Valentin wasn’t very nice to Brook, so he punched Valentin in the face. Maxie says, that’s great. So now he doesn’t have a service revolver, or a shield, or anything useful to keep her daughter safe?

Anna asks if Valentin has told Charlotte, but he says he hasn’t had to. She’s staying out of town with friends for Thanksgiving break. Anna says, when she comes back, and sees he’s at the MetroCourt with no Bailey, she’ll figure it out. She’s a smart kid. He’s going to have to tell her. He says he doesn’t know how he’s going to do that. He doesn’t know how he’s going to say goodbye to Bailey. Once he says those words, it’s going to become irrevocably, undeniably, and unbearably real.

Sasha looks at the baby, and says, he’s so beautiful, and Brando says, of course (🍷) he is; he looks like her. She says, no, he has that little crinkle thing with his forehead; that’s Brando. She opens the hatch, and touches the baby. She says, hi, baby boy. Did daddy tell him how much she loves him? Brando says, he did, all the time. She says she loved him the moment she knew he was on the way. Now he’s here, he’s real, he’s him. She loves him so much. They need to give him a name; a name that says exactly who he is. He’s a fighter, like Brando. Brando says, he’s a soldier; she’s a fighter. Their baby is strong, that’s for sure. She says, they need to give him a name that tells the world who he is. Brando asks if they still want Mike as a middle name, and she says, absolutely. It’s important they honor Brando’s cousin, especially since he was so good to Brando when he was a boy. He asks, what goes with Mike? and she says she was throwing around silly names when she was in labor, but since then, she’s been unfocused. What about him? He says, he may have looked up a few between here and her bedside last night. He did find one he really liked. It means strong willed warrior.

Alexis tells Sam, she’s out of prison, happy; freedom, happy. Sam asks, what’s better than freedom? The world is her oyster. Alexis can do anything. What’s her passion? Alexis says, other than the law? and Sam says, legal system adjacent then. Alexis says, she’s been a lawyer and a convict; what’s the happy medium? Sam says, she’s looking at it, and Alexis says she doesn’t follow. Sam wonders how to say it. Alexis is a meddler, she likes to stick her nose in other people’s business, get to the truth and do something about it, which is what Sam does, and she gets hired for criminal cases all the time. Alexis says, Sam wants her to be a private investigator? and Sam says, Curtis opened a nightclub, so she’s down a partner, and it would be a huge help to have someone who knows the ins and outs of the legal system. And who knows that better than Alexis? Alexis says Sam is just trying to cheer her up. Sam wants to work with her mother? Sam says she does. Work together for truth and justice. What does she say?

Maxie says she knows Peter. Now that he’s back in Port Charles, he will find Louise or die trying. Chase says he’ll give up his life before he lets Peter anywhere near that little girl, and Brook says, he’s no match for them. Maxie said it herself; she’s not afraid of him anymore. So don’t be afraid. Be the fierce person Brook knows she is. Maxie says, maybe what she needs is to confront Peter in person, and Brook says, he’ll be locked up and helpless. He’ll see he has no power over Maxie and her daughter anymore. Maxie says she just needs a minute, and leaves. Brook says, Chase really is a good guy, and he says, thanks, but he thinks a lot of what Maxie said was true.

Drew says he’s sorry; he didn’t mean to go there. Carly asked, who else can he go to but his friends? That hasn’t changed just because he’s been gone. Sonny tells him, if he needs anything, just say the word, and Drew thanks him, and says, right now, he just wants to get to know his daughter again. Carly asks how Scout reacted when she saw him, and Drew says, she was a little shy. She only knows him from pictures. Sonny says, she’s a kid; they adapt fast. Drew says, speaking of kids, congratulations again; Donna’s so beautiful. How are their other girls? How’s Josslyn? Carly says, in college, and Drew says, that’s not possible. She says, it is possible, as much as she hates to believe it. Drew asks how Avery is, and Sonny says, smart, sweet, and just beautiful. Drew says, they’re so lucky to have their daughters, and Sonny says, absolutely. Drew says he has to get going. He just wanted to say thank you for everything. Carly hugs him, and tells him, don’t be a stranger. Drew leaves, and Carly says, poor Drew. What a burden, surviving when Jason didn’t. Sonny says, at least he has his family and his daughter, and she says, they have their kids too. Even though they’re grieving, they need to count their blessings. Sonny says, and take care of the people who love them, and Carly says, that’s why they need to get to the hospital. They need to support Brando and Sasha.  

Amy asks if she’ll have to wear scrubs for the photo shoot, and Nina says, she can wear scrubs to show what she’s like at work. Then she can then wear street clothes to show what she’s like when she’s not at work, but what’s important is showing Amy at the hospital, because Nina truly believes nurses are the heart to any hospital. She wants to show the world how truly noble the profession is.

Sasha says, welcome to the world, Liam, and Brando says, Liam Mike. With a big strong name like that, he’ll be out of here in no time. She says, then they’ll take him home, and give him the best life any baby ever had in whole wide world.

Olivia tells Dante that it means a lot to her for him to be happy, and he says he is. He’s got to get to work, and she says, her too, especially since Carly isn’t coming in. She tells him to check on his dad, and he says he will. She says, that’s her boy, and they hug. He says he loves her, and she says she loves him too, and he leaves.

Sam says Alexis doesn’t have to decide now; she can think about it. Alexis says she’ll do that, and Sam says, good. She thinks they’d make a great team. Alexis says, the Davis-McCall Agency, and Sam says, McCall-Davis, but Alexis says, nah. Davis comes before McCall alphabetically. Sam says she’s already established in the field, but if it’s a deal breaker, she’ll think about it. This could be a great second act for Alexis. Alexis says, if they partner up, she’s worried Sam will get sick of her, and Sam says, they definitely will get sick of each other and butt heads, but it’s going to be great. Alexis says, can they not do that? and Sam says, they can try. Just think, somebody could discover them, and they could have their own reality show; Mother Daughter P.I. Agency. Alexis says, good luck with that.

Back at the Quartermaine’s, Drew gets some coffee, and Maxie comes in for some water. She stops when she sees him.

Brook says, they’re in this thing now; they have to see it through. Chase says he doesn’t know. Maxie made some strong points. Brook says, she did, but they’re committed, which means they have to deal with it, especially now that Valentin is furious with her. There’s no telling what else he might do. The doorbell rings, and Brook opens the door to see Valentin.

Back in Sasha’s room, Brando thanks Nina for the assist, and asks how she did it. Nina says, just some old school flattery, which turned into a great idea for a feature. How’s the baby? Sasha says, amazing. They named him. Liam. It means strong willed warrior. Brando says, with a name like that, he has to pull through. Nina says, now that they’re back, she’s going to check in with her office. She leaves, and Brando tells Sasha, just when he thought she couldn’t be more beautiful, he saw her with Liam. What can he say? He was wrong. They kiss.  

Nina goes to the desk, as Sonny and Carly come out of the elevator. She and Carly look at one another.

Amy comes back while Brando and Sasha are still kissing, and says she’s sorry to interrupt. Dr. Fleming’s on her way here now. There’s news about their baby.

Tomorrow, Valentin says Brook won’t let him see Bailey, Peter says sometimes fate needs a helping hand, Austin asks if that’s a threat, and Carly says Nina knows nothing about her and Jason.

Project Runway

Christian introduced the designers bolts of fabulous faux fur that was plant based, and could be recycled. Only Aaron had worked with faux fur before. He’d just made 16 monkey costumes for The Wizard of Oz. In Prajje’s interview, he said he hated fur. It was annoying because it got everywhere. Christian said, faux fur could be elegant, campy, or sophisticated, and it was going to be the basis for their avant-garde challenge. They had two days to create and avant-garde piece, and in Bones’s interview, he said he took this to mean exaggerated, weird, and/or quirky, but still high fashion. They were to create innovative designs that highlighted the faux fur, and were put in teams of two. They would create one outfit, but be critiqued on their individual contributions. Since Kristina had won last week’s challenge, she got to pick her teammate – Shantall – and they also got first pick of the fur. The rest of the designers got random matches by choosing buttons from a box, and that shook out as follows: Bones and Aaron, Anna and Octavio, Zayden and Coral, and Prajje and Chasity. In Shantall’s interview, she said, since Kristina had immunity, if they ended up on the bottom, she was screwed. Yep.

The designers were given 30 minutes, and a $500 budget at Mood. Christian warned them that making a bunch of faux fur coats wasn’t the challenge. Octavio thought it was his and Anna’s moment, since they both leaned that way anyway. Chasity worried about Prajje buying so much paint, and not getting any supplemental fabric.

On way back, the van they were in took a corner, and scaffolding busted through the window. Anna ended up bleeding, and went to the hospital in an ambulance to be checked out. I envisioned several lawsuits. Christian told the designers that he thought they needed a moment, and told them to take the rest of the day off. You’d think they would have still been given two days, but they were now doing the entire challenge in one day. Nothing like adding stress to your downtime. In Anna’s interview, she said she was lucky; she’d only had some tiny cuts, but she was still processing everything. Aaron said the tricky thing about fur was that some was pliable, but some didn’t move at all. He’d wanted the faux coyote, since it held shape better. Bones felt like Aaron wanted him to do the busy work. Chasity said there was so much fur everywhere, she was inhaling it, and likely to cough up a furball.

Prajje said art had been his escape growing up, and it was the celebration of art that keeps us alive. Chasity said she loved his artwork, but that wasn’t the challenge. In Shantall’s interview, she said, growing up, she’d gone to bed to the sound of the sewing machine, and woke up to one. Her mom didn’t want her to go into fashion, but Shantall wanted to show her that it could be a celebration. Bones and Aaron, mostly Aaron, were making a piece that had a stand up collar, like the Wicked Queen in Snow White, but bigger. There were ongoing problems with getting it to stand up, and Bones said if the collar was flapping, it wouldn’t be avant-garde, but avant-garbage. Bones was frustrated at not being listened to, and thought Aaron was stuck in his ways. He kept suggesting they use paint stirrers to prop up the collar, but Aaron wasn’t having it, for no reason other than he’d never done it that way. Bones said he’d been a physics major, and knew what he was talking about. Aaron thought Bones was trying to reinvent the wheel. He got pissed off, and left 15 minutes early, which doesn’t sound like much, but it is if you’ve only got a day and a few hours.

The group unwound with drinks at a rooftop bar, and Bones and Aaron argued. Aaron said Bones had no clue, and Bones said he wasn’t even giving Aaron time for that. In Anna’s interview, she said things couldn’t be solved in a battle way. They just needed to have conversation and communication. Bones finally told Aaron, get it out now, and tomorrow, let it be good. Aaron walked out, because apparently that’s his go-to.

Zayden called his mom, and said it felt like his talent wasn’t being seen. In his interview, he said people didn’t understand him because it took time for him to open up and trust them. His mom said she was so proud of him, as she should be.  

The next morning, they had 3 hours to finish, and Christian told them, it’s runway day fur real, and made a bunch of other fur jokes or puns or whatever. Aaron apologized to Bones, they squashed their beef, and Aaron finally consented to the paint stirrers in the collar. In Bones’s interview, he said, the whole thing could have been avoided if Aaron had listened, but at the end of the day, he was glad the collar was standing up. He didn’t want to say, I told you so, but…

Brandon was at his brother’s wedding, so designer Esteban Cortazar subbed for him. Billy Porter, King of Avant-Garde, was the guest judge. I stink at describing the clothes, but I’ll do my best. Chasity and Prajje had a gown where the top was fur, and the skirt was painted fabric. They married the two mediums by having points of fur go into the mermaid skirt. In her interview, Chasity said both their backgrounds had come together in the beauty of partnership. At one point, the model stopped, and almost did a backbend, which was quite impressive. Coral and Zayden, made a corset dress with a head cage accessory. It was actually pretty cool. It looked like something Lady Gaga would like. Kristina and Shantall made some sort of weird thing where a fur coat with patchwork on the back, opened up to an attached quilted pink dress that looked like it was made out of a duvet cover. I might add, Coral and Zayden listened to Christian; Kristina and Shantall only partly listened. Anna and Octavio… I don’t know what the hell it was, a dress made out of cheetah fur and a black garbage bag, with huge sleeves that were put on like arm warmers. No, just no. Aaron and Bones’s creation was worth the argument; it was very Game of Thrones, like something a queen would wear to a spectacular event. Aaron was at peace with whatever happened, and Bones said he actually thought they had a chance to be at the top, but you never knew what the judges were thinking. Elaine said they definitely took go big or go home to heart, and Billy said it was exciting beautiful stuff.

Next was the deliberation, and giving the good/bad news. Elaine said Shantall and Kristina had one of the lowest scores. It wasn’t boring, but less would have been more in this case. Nina said it seemed clunky. Esteban thought the dress part should be lighter to balance out the coat, and I was like, yes – that’s it! Billy said where it went awry for him was the quilting, which got another yes. On the high scoring end were Zayden and Coral. Billy said there was freedom in the  piece, but still structure. Elaine said, it was functional, wearable art. Bones and Aaron had also been a favorite, and got one of Billy’s highest scores. It was like an arctic bride, walking the tundra. Elaine said she did think there were one too many things going on, and asked them to remove the model’s necklace. Esteban noted that seeing the neckline changed everything, and I agreed it looked better exposed. Octavio and Anna got a low score, and Elaine said she was surprised that dress was their love child. It looked sloppy. Billy said he liked some of it, but was confused; there were a lot of ideas going on. Esteban said it gave him the vibe of a glamorous Flintstones villain. I could see that. Also in the high score group were Prajje and Chasity, no surprise. Chasity said it had been a complete marriage of their mediums, and Esteban said it was full-on couture. Billy said he loved it, but wondered if the model could walk normally in it. She demonstrated, and yes, she could. He told them to have it in his dressing room, and  I could definitely envision him wearing it.

The big winner/loser was discussed, and Elaine said picking the winner was challenging. She thought Zayden and Coral’s piece was more commercial; Chasity and Prajje’s piece was art in motion. In talking about who was out, Billy said Octavio and Anna’s dress had playful elements he liked, and Elaine said, it felt like they had a bad day. Well, yeah, they’d been in a car accident, and Anna ended up in the hospital. Elaine said a catsuit would have been better under Kristina and Shantall’s cocoon coat. Agreed. Kristina having immunity didn’t make things any easier.

The winning team was Chasity and Prajje with their brilliant, over-the-top structure, which was difficult to execute. The judges thought the dress was wonderful. The overall winner was Chasity, who said her knees were buckling. Esteban said the incredible structure was out of faux fur, and that had been the challenge, which was why she was chosen, but they were both winners. Chasity said her partner was an amazing designer and artist, and in her interview, she said she was the first two-time winner. She felt like it was difficult to be taken seriously as a designer, and for them both to be Black and win, there was no better feeling.

Nina told Kristina, it was lucky she had immunity. Nina knew they were both good designers, so it was painful having them up there. Sadly, Shantall’s fears came true, and she was out. Shantall was gracious, and said she’d learned God brings the best decision for you, and she was glad she’d had the chance to inspire Latina designers. Esteban said she’d do great, and I wondered, where was the Siriano Save…  

In Shantall’s interview, she said it was a dream to have the opportunity, although it wasn’t fair that she couldn’t show the judges the things she wanted to. She told the group it had been a pleasure to meet everyone, and said she knew Kristina did her best. She wasn’t angry; it was just the way things went. The moment didn’t define her as a designer or a human being. And then it came. The reward for her good attitude. The Siriano Save. I almost cried. Christian said Shantall had a business she was trying to save, and they would save it, but she needed to work hard and not let him down. In her non-exit interview, she said she was touched that Christian gave her a second chance. She came to stay, and she was still there.

Next time, taking a comfy look out on the town, Season 18 winner Jeffrey Mac, and Cyndi Lauper.

🌪 Twistin’ the Night Away…

Join me tomorrow for soap, tea, and Quotes of the Week. Until then, stay safe, stay going the extra mile, and stay taking care of the people who love you.

Oct7

October 6, 2019 – Fire In the Sky, a Little Talk, a New Superhero, Shrinking Reality & That Monday Feeling

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What I Watched Today

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

 

The Walking Dead

Training Day. A Russian space capsule lands in the water. A zombie gets out, walks to shore, and gets a machete in the head for his trouble. It’s wielded by Judith. On the beach, everyone marches in formation. Daryl watches as Ezekiel and Jerry bang on the side of an old ship stuck on shore. They open the door, a few zombies come out, looking mighty slimy and weak, and they close it again. Aaron leads everyone forward. The first line of defense holds spiked shields. They part and the second line shoots the zombies down with arrows. They march toward the ship. Jerry and Ezekiel open the door again, and let out more. The first line stands firm, and the zombies walk into their spikes. A spear hurtles into a zombie’s head. Another zombie group is let out, more of them than previously. The ranks open, and Michonne, Luke, and Daryl get up close and personal, with Michonne slicing the tops off of zombie heads, and the others using the smashing heads method.

Ezekiel and Jerry are having a hard time keeping the door closed, and finally give up, stepping away from the ship. The door falls, and takes part of the ship’s side with it. Michonne tells everyone, stay in formation. Remember your training. Daryl slices and dices, Judith pikes one, and Magna stabs zombie heads. Yumiko shoots arrows.

Back at camp, fish is prepared. Luke talks to Jules, as they undo a fishing net for rope. He asks if she’s flirting with him. She says she is, and he says, cool. Michonne tells Daryl, it was tiring, but worth the trip. He says they did good. Rick would have been proud. She hopes so. He says they should bring the kids next time. Rick would have loved it.

Judith and some of the kids dump out shells. While going through them, Judith uncovers a face buried in the sand.

Aaron thinks they should put Alexandria on lockdown, just in case. Michonne says, everyone is still on alert. She appreciates his caution, but they don’t need to start a panic. Cyndie says, it washed up on shore, with lots of other stuff. Aaron tells Michonne, the mask signifies they’re still out there. They need to be sure. Michonne suggests they get a group  together. She tells Daryl to make sure Lydia knows not to leave again without saying goodbye.

The group rides into the woods.

Off their horses, Aaron asks what Michonne thinks. She says she thinks a lot of things, and he says maybe they’re the villains of someone else’s story. They’re a threat to their survival. So dangerous, they’re threatened with being wiped out. It makes him wonder sometimes. She doesn’t give a sh*t about the Whisperers or where they stand. He says he’s not talking about the Whisperers.

Michonne says they might not find the answer. Aaron says, the Whisperers cover their tracks. If a mask was found, there’s a reason. He sees some zombies near a trashed car, and rides toward them. She warns him that he’s near a border, but he dismounts, and kicks some zombie ass. One gets the better of him, and another reaches out from under the car, and grabs his ankle. Michonne machetes the first one, and he pikes the ankle biter. She tells him, that was stupid. They agreed not to cross the border. They don’t want to start anything without a reason. If had been the Whisperers, they could have died. It wasn’t them, and they could have died, and for what? Aaron says acting like this isn’t normal. Holding their breath for months isn’t normal. Michonne says they have to keep cool or they win. Aaron says he’s always been the nice guy. The good Samaritan. Eric is dead. Jesus is dead. He’s sick of being nice. Michonne says good and nice never got her anywhere, but smart did. The Whisperers have nuclear weapons; they don’t. It’s not about being nice, but keeping people alive. They’re not going to die over nothing. She hates it too. Aaron says they should go, and Michonne radios the others that they’re circling back.

They ride to where Luke and some of the others have found the remnants of a camp. Magna shows Yumiko a skeleton, and some dead bodies. Aaron wonders if the campers were fighting the walkers. Luke says maybe they’re not connected. They see another body, naked and face down. Michonne says it looks like they’ve been there a while. The keep walking, and Magna shows them a skin. Aaron picks it up on stick, and says, at least one was there at some point. Yumiko wonders, when, and what the hell happened?

They ride to Oceanside, and Michonne tells Aaron, fear can be dangerous. It can drive them apart. They need to squash it before it starts. Aaron says, fear can keep you safe too, but Michonne says, be smart, not afraid. She was thinking about what he said; who they’ve become and who they are. The truth is they are the good guys. She knows who Rick and Carl were… and Eric, and Jesus too. They have to choose to be the good guys, even when it’s hard. The minute they start to question that, they lose sight of it. And when the answer to that question starts to change, they’ll be scarier than any skin mask. Aaron walks away.

Michonne hears Judith talking to RJ, telling him the kid version of Rick’s story. She says, the brave man couldn’t let the walkers hurt his friends, so he blew up the bridge. RJ asks if the brave man went with his friends, but she says he died and went to heaven. Michonne smiles sadly. Judith tells RJ that Rick is in their hearts, and Michonne hugs him. Judith joins in the hug, and RJ says he didn’t like it when the brave man died. Why? Michonne says, some people you love so much, you’d do anything for them, like she would for them. RJ says, and his dad, and they hug again. They hear an explosion, and look up. A trail of fire shoots through the sky, and Judith asks if it’s a meteor. Eugene comes in on the radio, and says he needs to talk to her now.

Bird Wisdom. Aaron asks Michonne if this means they’re back, and she says, not necessarily, but they need to stay on alert. Eugene, who has a bunch of charts hanging up to record everything about the baby, changes diapers. Rosita works out with a punching bag. She feeds the baby, and then Eugene burps the baby. Success! Eugene tries to work, and turns off the music, which causes the baby to wail, Rosita turns it back on, and boxes some more. Gabriel comes by, and Eugene gives him some statistics on the baby. Rosita says the baby isn’t an experiment, and he can’t boil it down to charts and graphs. Siddiq arrives.

In the classroom, Lydia gets frustrated with learning to read. She says she’s gone her whole life without it, but the teacher says, it will open the world to her. Gabriel comes in, followed by some of the others. He says they need the room, and Yumiko asks if Lydia should be there.

Lydia practices with a pokey stick (which I learn later from Talking Dead, is called a Bo staff, but I’m staying with pokey stick). Negan tends the vegetable garden, and asks if everything is okay. Lydia says, it’s the same as ten minutes ago, and he asks why folks are giving her the side-eye. She says they’re eyeing him too, but he says it’s because of what he’s done in past years. A dude tells Negan to get back to work, and says Lydia is supposed to keep her distance. She tells Negan, someone found a skin, and Negan says she needs to watch her back. He winks at her. Eugene and Gabriel walk by, and Negan says, hey boss, but no one talks to him.

Siddiq kisses the baby, who laughs as he puts it in the crib. A mobile of origami paper cranes hangs above. Siddiq flashes back to Alpha. He splashes some water on his face. He sees a big spider, and remembers seeing one in the Whisperers camp. Dante pokes his head in, and Siddiq asks what he’s doing there. Dante says he could hear the baby screaming all the way to where he was. He wanted to make sure everything was cool. Siddiq picks the baby up, and says he was just doing household tasks. Dante says he’s been reorganizing the meds, and tells Siddiq, they’re like gods in the apocalypse. Dante wonders what’s with the yellow alert business, and the Whisperers. Siddiq thinks back again, and Dante wonders what’s up with him. Siddiq says he needs get his kid to sleep, and thanks Dante for checking on him. When Dante leaves, he thinks about Alpha.

Gabriel finds Negan back in his cell. Gabriel is surprised that Negan knocked off early. He thought Negan couldn’t get enough of the great outdoors. Negan says, it’s starting, and Gabriel says, if he wants to say something, say just say it. Negan says let him regurgitate some baby bird wisdom into Gabriel’s pretty mouth. People tend to get mixed up about who they hate. Yesterday, he was public enemy number one, now he’s the guy who tends vegetables and takes out the trash. He’s keeping his head down until this thing passes, in case his category gets moved to them. Gabriel says, that’s not what’s happening, and Negan tells him, he didn’t say that. He said, it will be. The boogey man stuck his mask out of the closet door, and people are putting their sh*tting pants back on. Pants sh*tting is definitely happening. The alert sh*t makes them feel insecure, even if it’s just for show. There’s a guy following him with a spear, like he might brain someone with a tomato. Gabriel says, so his advice is to lie? That’s his regurgitated bird wisdom? Negan says, strategic omission. Not misleading, just using the truth to manipulate things. If it’s what keeps people alive, what’s the harm?

Gabriel tells Michonne they should lock the gates for the night, and double the security. They see another streak of fire in the sky. Eugene radios Oceanside, and gets Rachel. Michonne says she needs to communicate leadership. Something of importance is about to happen.

Sea Dogs. At the beach, Aaron says, the river carried it down, and Gabriel asks if the Whisperers are back. Daryl arrives with Dog. Magna’s group pulls something out of the water with a net. Connie signs to Kelly, what’s going on? Kelly signs back, nothing, and Connie asks if it’s getting worse. Kelly signs that she’s fine. It’s just when there are a lot of voices and sounds, she can’t make out if someone is talking to her, and she  can’t predict when it’s going to happen. They hug, and Connie signs, it’ll be okay. Keep practicing to make sure she’s ready. Kelly signs, who will take care of Connie? Who will interpret? Connie signs, we got this. Them together. Being deaf isn’t a disability; it’s a damn superpower. Daryl joins them.

Ezekiel and Daryl meet on the bridge. Ezekiel asks if Daryl ever wonders why bird sh*t is called guano, but Daryl says he just calls it bird sh*t, and Ezekiel says, him too. When he worked in a zoo, birds scared the hell out of him. Lions and tigers were no problem, but an ostrich will disembowel you if you look sideways at it. Daryl says Ezekiel should eat more birds. Show them who’s boss. Ezekiel wonders what seagull tastes like, and Daryl says, not like chicken. Connie brings Dog to Daryl, and shows him her notepad. He reads, I think you lost something, and signs to Connie that he thinks Dog just likes her better. I love Dog, and I don’t want to, because this show always takes the things you love from you. Connie writes, not bad. You sign with a Southern accent.

A boat comes in. Daryl waves and whistles. Carol waves from the bow, and they dock. Ezekiel helps her off. She says it’s good to see him, and he says it’s good to see her too. They hug, but it’s all awkward. Carol goes over to Daryl, and asks if he missed her. He says, not really, and she says she’ll take that.

Daryl asks Carol, how was it? and she says, you work until you feel like your back will break, then work some more. Then sleep like the dead on deck under the stars. Daryl asks if it’s what she was looking for, and she says there was nothing at Oceanside. He says it’s been a while since he’s heard from her, and she says, fishing is hard. He says that’s not what he means. Is Carol looking for her? Carol says, no. She’s trying to forget what happened. If they’re lucky, they’ll never think about that skin freak again. Daryl says they found a mask today. They took a group out to look for signs. Does she want to join them? She says, no, and he asks what she wants to do.

Carol rides on the back of Daryl’s bike on a path through the woods. Daryl says they just cleared it out. Carol tells him, faster, and he says, hang on.

Walking again, Daryl and Carol encounter a zombie. Daryl shoots it in the head with an arrow. More pop out, and they stab the zombies in the head. I wonder if they think it’s like old times.

New Mexico. Daryl tries to shoot a deer but it gets away. He and Carol come across some wrecked cars in a ravine. The deer falls over, and Carol starts to move forward, but Daryl says, it’s one of their borders. She says they can still get the deer, but zombies are already on their way to it. Carol asks, why respect borders they didn’t agree to? The zombies fall on the deer, and feed. Carly says, that deer could have fed 200 people. I say, apparently, now it’s feeding five zombies. Daryl says, sorry he pissed her off. She is too. He says there’s no reason to start sh*t they don’t have to. She says maybe it’s just as well she left, and he says he’s been thinking about that. Why doesn’t she go home now? She sits on the ground next to him, and tells him, get off her ass before she puts him on his. Before she goes to live her life on a boat, she thinks they should have matching friendship bracelets. They can decorate them with seashells. What’s his favorite color? He’s got an idea. Eat, not talk. He shares some snacks with her, and she starts to make a bracelet out of dried grass. She asks if they should make a matching collar for Dog, and he laughs. Carol asks if he ever wonders if this is all there is. Running into people; killing each other. Sometimes she thinks they’re just surviving. Daryl says there’s got to be people out there like them. Who get what they’re doing. He asks if she wants to runaway together, and she says they can be pirates together. He says a little cabin isn’t for him, and Carly says, screw the boat. They’ll take the bike. He says, New Mexico, and she asks, what’s there? He says, people who need bracelets. No more fighting. They’ll get on the bike, and go see what’s left. It sounds good to her. She ties the bracelet. They hear and explosion, and look up.

Lines We Cross. Aaron says, it’s war, and Carol says they have to go now. Everyone runs into the woods. There are patches of fire everywhere, and they see a crashed USSR space capsule. They try to put out the fires. Earl says, it’s going to be a long, hot night. Elsewhere, another group digs a trench. Michonne tells them, keep digging. They have to get done before fire jumps the line. She hacks the head off of a zombie. Michonne and Daryl work on keeping the fires at bey while the others keep digging. The firefighting group passes buckets to each other. Ezekiel starts to cough, and doubles over. Jerry tells him, take a break. Carol says they’re out of water, and now zombies are starting to come out of the forest. Daryl, Michonne, and some of the others take up weapons. They dispatch the zombies, but more come out behind them. Then even more. Michonne gets out her machete. There’s a small herd at this point, and Daryl is like, wtf?

Embers. They just keep coming. Tons of them. Aaron says, there are says too many, but they’re stuck between the zombies and the fire. In a slow motion, the group takes out the zombies, with all kinds of blades and arrows. Eugene and some others continue to douse the fire, while zombies are slaughtered around them. Carol cuts a zombie’s throat, and blood gushes out. So much, that it puts out the fire on another downed zombie. I try not to think too hard about the fact that there probably wouldn’t be that much blood inside a zombie. Eugene tells them to steer clear, a flaming tree is going to fall. A group of burning zombies toddles toward them, and Daryl throws an ax at the tree, toppling it onto the zombies. Although this is a miniscule move in the grand scheme of zombie things, since these zombies are endless and relentless.

There’s lots of smoke, but looks like the fire is out as daylight happens. Michonne tells everyone to pack up and move. Eugene is examining the capsule, and asks if he can have twenty minutes. Michonne says he gets no minutes, and he says, ten. He thinks investigating the capsule could be useful, but uses a million words to say it. Michonne tells him, five minutes and he’s out. Luke says, hey, Eugenius, and asks what about radiation? But Eugene says, radiation is all around them. They’re already infected with whatever they’re going to get. Luke says he understands; no superpowers today. Aaron tells Michonne, they made the right choice, and it benefitted Oceanside too. Michonne tells him not to push his luck. They helped their people, and it’s all she cares about.

Carol and Daryl look out from a cliff. Daryl asks if she still wants to run away together. She says, a year from tomorrow, and he says he needs her to stay. She says she’ll think about it, and he says, otherwise, he’d have to punch holes in all them boats. He leaves Carol on the cliff, and she looks at a slate wall on the other side. She sees Alpha come out, and they lock eyes. Alpha puts her hands on her hips. Rut-roh.

Next time, Beta shaves Alpha’s head; Beta says, it’s time the pack returns; and Alpha says, there’s clarity in chaos.

🔉 On Talking Dead, Chris Hardwick said he wondered what show he was watching when it first started. Me too! the scene with the space capsule made it look like it was a different show. I also found out that Daryl (Norman Reedus, who was a guest) really did hit that tree with the ax. He said he couldn’t do it again if he tried.

🌠 Super Connie…

Like dolls, kids want to see superheroes just like them.

https://www.hearinglikeme.com/lauren-ridloff-first-deaf-superhero-marvels-the-eternals/

🔎 Reality Therapy…

It’s no wonder a cast member would need it, especially on Hoarders. I loved what Matt Paxton had to say. He always seemed like a compassionate guy.

https://www.eonline.com/news/1079840/keep-talking-how-reality-tv-shows-tend-to-their-contestants-mental-health?source=email&medium=emn-content-2&cmpid=evening&content=emn-news

And it has the added benefit of helping the audience.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/reality-tv-normalizing-therapy_l_5d77d4e5e4b075210233f4f9?ncid=newsltushpmglifestyle__Lifestyle__091619

😔 Universal and Timeless…

When it comes to how humankind feels about Mondays, not much has changed. Hopefully, these harmonies will make it a little easier on you.