Tag Archives: The Real Housewives of New Jersey

Jul11

July 10, 2016 – Sunset Shahs Return from Belize & NJ Teresa Returns from Prison

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What I Watched Today
(rambling, random thoughts & annoyingly detailed recaps from real time TV watching)

Shahs of Sunset

Still in Belize, everyone is reeling from Mike’s confession. Well, probably not, but that sounded good. Asa and Reza talk about the stages Mike went through before he finally decided to be honest. Asa says Mike sees his marriage as a landmark test in his life that he failed. She hopes he can be honest with Jessica. She talks about how she and GG went clubbing until 4 am and Reza wonders how someone as sick as GG claims to be can manage that.

Reza tells Mike there’s no judgment, and it took a big man to admit he was wrong. He says no matter what the outcome, they’re there for Mike.

MJ says Tommy showing up is the most romantic thing he’s ever done and she basks in the afterglow. I like Tommy. He’s a little crude, but he seems like a regular guy and I believe he really loves her.

The group goes horseback riding. It’s a first for MJ and she says it’s pretty high up. Yes, it is, especially if you’re short. They ride into the woods and park the horses at some Mayan ruins. Damn, that’s a lot of stairs. If MJ thought the horse was up there, wait til she gets a load of this. GG doesn’t think she can make the climb because of her knees. I get tired just looking at it. And doesn’t GG have a hangover? Reza thinks she should be laid out after boozing it up and thinks she’s lagging behind because of her late night. The ruins are pretty amazing, but Reza voices my thoughts about freaking out on the way down. There’s no banister or railing here, folks. The view is absolutely fantastic. Mike babbles about life being a journey and the universe having a plan for him.

GG is thrilled that she pushed herself to get to the top. Reza is petrified of heights, so this is really no place to be for him. They head down and I nearly get vertigo watching. They stop at a grassy area and have some water. Asa wants to include GG in her couples photo project. Reza interrupts, asking why Asa wants her included in a couples thing, which is none of his business. It looks like what he’s really doing is trying to start a fight with GG.

Reza tells GG she’s problematic and basically gets out of control considering the topic. He tells her everyone is sick of her bullsh*t and pretends to have a heart attack. Reza thinks GG is lying, talking about her illness on social media and then partying hardy. GG tells him he focuses on everyone’s problems except his own. They argue loudly. Everyone else wisely stays out of it.

Suddenly, the argument is over and they move on. Asa points out that this area is where they did sacrifices, but I don’t know if she’s being a tour guide or making a suggestion. In her interview, GG says she has a serious illness and Reza doesn’t understand. Reza texts MJ on the way back that he’s done with GG, but MJ doesn’t want to get in the middle. At the villa, Asa says “see you later” and it sounds like “coup de nãnã.”

The Shahs go to dinner. GG downs a pill during her interview. They watch some native dancing and Asa and GG join in. I’m coveting Asa’s tassel necklace. GG says it’s a been a beautiful couple of days. In her interview, MJ says GG is sinking fast and it’s noticeable that she’s taking pills along with drinking alcohol. Mike and Shervin talk about Mike’s marriage and GG says the topic is boring. Mike suggests she leave the table and Nima asks to talk to her on the side. When they’re gone, Reza says GG needs rehab. Nima tells GG she can’t do this. He says everyone loves her, but when she drinks, she loses credibility.

Fast forward to the morning. Everyone is ready to go and GG is still in bed. I guess she went back to bed, since she’s dressed. Nima tries to get her going and she kicks stuff around.

After the fastest flight ever, we’re back in LA. MJ explains to her dog that in the same way he (she?) sometimes fights with his brother, that people want different things at different times and don’t get along. She’s going to help Mike with his relationship, although I think at this point, only Mike can do that.

MJ picks up Mike. He’s decided to let her help him. Because her own marriage has gone so well. Oh, wait, she’s not married. Mike says a piece of him is missing without Jessica. They go to a flower shop and MJ says they need something special. She tells the clerk they want five dozen roses, giving a bizarre explanation as to why that number in her interview. They want the bouquet passionate and big. It’s pretty, but I wouldn’t call it special. Where is the cool vase and the tsotchkes poking out?

GG visits her parents. She tells them about visiting the ruins and how painful it was. She says she needs a new medication because she’s tired all the time and in a lot of pain. She feels it’s time to do chemo. She’s held off because her mother is not in favor of it. Her mother thinks she should go a more holistic route and try a very restrictive diet. GG says her mother doesn’t understand her level of pain, and I get the feeling her mother is also trying to tell her she parties too much. GG says she’s tired of the person she’s turned into because of the pain. Um… I hate to tell you, girlfriend, but you were always difficult.

Reza is happy with married life. He thinks Mike had a real breakthrough in Belize and he wants a breakthrough in comedy. He tries out some material on Adam. I think he’s one of those people who is naturally funny, but it doesn’t translate well to a stage act. Teeny the dog is not impressed.

Take two Reza’s stand up routine. Asa is overly enthusiastic and startles me when she screams as soon as she sees Reza. They’re having dinner first with Adam and MJ. We see snippets of the preceding acts. Reza says it might be open mic night, but these people seem prepared. Well…yeah. Reza’s delivery could be better. He sounds like he’s reading it and crickets start to chirp. It’s not good. Until he cracks an Erykah Badu joke. Then suddenly, the tides turn. I’m honestly not sure what happened there.

GG goes to the doctor. Her friend, Anita, is with her. Asa shows up while GG is getting her chemo treatment. It dawns on her that GG’s illness is serious and real. I’ve never thought it wasn’t, but I agree with Reza that her partying doesn’t help. Again, it’s his delivery.

In her interview, GG says she can’t fake chemo and she just wants positive people around her. Her parents and sister arrive. The doctor explains that if she’s going to feel badly, it will be worst on the first day. Asa asks some questions and he tells her that it’s the same as what they give cancer patients, but they use it for RA as well. Asa asks if there’s any lifestyle changes that would help and the doctor says not smoking would be a good idea. Everyone puts in their two cents and GG gets agitated. She says she didn’t just spend five hours with a needle in her arm just to hear a lecture. I can’t say as I blame her here. Timing is everything and this is not the time.

Next time, Mike’s shoe shipment is stuck in customs, Tommy talks having children, and Shervin might get a second date.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey

We start off with Teresa’s release from Danbury. There are some flashbacks from the previous season and some choice really old clips of arguments. We hear Joe say welcome home.

Joe #2 and Melissa are getting some construction done. Melissa is opening a boutique. She got her hair cut to shoulder-length this season and it looks great.

Boring Jacqueline is back again. Her son Nicholas has been making a lot of strides. He was diagnosed with autism, but is doing very well and even riding a bike. We’re already introduced to a new wife, Delores, who’s a friend of Jacqueline’s. They’re meeting other new wife, Siggy (what?) at a place called Speakeasy. Or maybe it is a speakeasy. I’m not sure.

Melissa says she invested her own money in the business. Joe #2 says he misses her. He’s “like a tiger and needs to see his meat.” Normally, I would be disgusted hearing that remark, but these two are so cute, I’m okay with it.

Siggy is having a hard time getting into the speakeasy, which is apparently behind a secret wall. She’s also just had a neck lift and has one of those wraps that goes around your face like Jacob Marley in Scrooge. Jacqueline says Siggy and Delores are non-toxic. They discuss Siggy moving back to the house she lived in when she was married and I can’t grasp the dynamics of her past love life. She talks about making it on her own like Mary Tyler Moore.

Joe #2 is coaching football, while Melissa and his dad watch the game. In her interview, Melissa says that she lost her father when she was 17 and envies the relationship that Teresa has with her father, although Melissa is also close to him. Joe #2 talks about Teresa’s release from prison before Christmas and hopes she’ll want to spend Christmas Eve with them, as they didn’t leave things on a good note. She’ll have to get permission from her parole officer to be there.

Everyone is doing Christmasy stuff. Jacqueline’s daughter, Ashley, is home for the holidays. We flash back to the tumultuous relationship between them. She’s grown now though, and has a career and boyfriend. Jacqueline’s husband, Chris, talks about how he started building a new business and they had to downsize. This will probably be their last Christmas in this house.

Joe #2 whines to Melissa about how she only sees him when she wants help with something. In her interview, she talks about Joe having an old school mentality about marital roles because that’s what he was raised with. They talk about Christmas Eve and The Seven Fishes. Joe asks Melissa how she feels about not having been on the list to visit Teresa or even hearing from her. Melissa says that Christmas is Jesus’s birthday and it’s like magic. I guess this means she’s hoping for a miracle.

It’s chaos at Joe #1‘s house with the kids. He can’t wait for Teresa to get back. No doubt there won’t be much time for her to relax before it’s back to the same old.

It’s December 22, the day before Teresa’s release, and Jacqueline and Chris are preparing for their holiday party. Jacqueline has gotten a text from Teresa, saying she’s looking forward to a new beginning. She makes fun of the text and Teresa’s accent, reminding me why I don’t like her all that much. We flash back to the fallout between them. Jacqueline wonders if Teresa’s ghost writer wrote the text

Joe #2 and Melissa are getting ready for the party. Melissa gets a call from Teresa’s lawyer that Teresa can go to their house on Christmas Eve. Going to midnight mass is iffy though. Really? You can go to a party, but not to church? Which one poses more of a flight risk? The lawyer forwards a note from Teresa saying she’s looking forward to the party and asking if she should bring sprinkle cookies, referring to an altercation a few seasons ago. I’m guessing she’s making a joke.

The guests begin to arrive. Drinks and conversation flow. Melissa and Jacqueline confer on the notes from Teresa. Jacqueline is perplexed that Teresa wrote to her. In her interview, Melissa says she’s concerned that Jacqueline is going to “spin” again, after having been blown off by Teresa and Teresa now wanting to have a connection. Melissa tells her not to stress about it or question it. I dunno. How come neither one of these two geniuses think Teresa might have had a change of heart in prison?

Teresa’s lawyer explains to Joe #1 what the procedure is going to be when Teresa gets home, and how she’ll need to have an ankle bracelet for six weeks. Her ETA is between 5 and 6 am the next day.

The party is in full swing. Siggy discusses her plastic surgery with the ladies in the kitchen. Chris talks to Joe #2 about Teresa coming home. Once upon a time wife Kathy talks about how Teresa never even got a parking ticket and the first time she gets in trouble, she goes to prison. Go big or go home, I say. Jacqueline makes a toast and gets weepy about Teresa coming home, confusing me.

Teresa’s lawyer calls from the car on the way to pick her up. He tells Joe #1 the paparazzi are everywhere and Joe says they’re all around there too, like “cock-a-roaches.” Gia comes down and waits with Joe. A video chat comes in from Teresa. No surprise, she’s extremely excited about coming home. We see the car on the highway and the paparazzi are everywhere, nearly colliding with them. How stupid is that? And if that’s the parkway, it’s dangerous under the best conditions.

Teresa arrives home, squealing over a puppy in a kennel in the garage. Welcome home present? Lots of hugs and tears with Joe #1. I’d heard she looked good, but I’m still impressed. She calls out and the girls come running. More hugs and tears. And squealing. Joe, who’s looked sedated for the past year, smiles, watching them. The girls show Teresa all the welcome home signs and she tells them they don’t have to go to school, although Gia wants to for some reason. In her interview, Teresa says she can imagine how lost they were. Me too. I don’t think it’s going to hit quite as hard when Joe goes to the slammer. Teresa also says she’s not going to be so naive again. I’ll bet.

Next time, beer pong, Melissa and Teresa talk, Teresa’s first altercations since she’s out of the pokey, and Rosie! Looks like lots of screaming and yelling this season, as well as Joe’s turn at prison.

Important information: The Bravo Awards – The Bravos – airs July 20 at 10 pm.

Oct26

October 25, 2015 — A Freed Wizard, a Zombie Herd & Checking In

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

Once Upon A Time

Old Camelot. Some knight dude has the dagger and comes across the hooded figure from the Scream movies. Okay, not quite, but that could probably happen in this show. He says something about “the destroyer” and “the only woman he ever loved,” and the hooded figure turns him into a tree. Ok, he must be Merlin.

Because Snow and David got fairy dusted or whatever last week, they tell Regina that Arthur is cool and she should give him the dagger. Emma freeze frames them and tells Regina that Arthur is bad news, and the dagger needs to go back from whence it came, and free Merlin.

In Storybrook, Guinevere wants to have a ball to lift the stuck Camelot people’s spirits. Not a good time kind of ball, but a dance kind of ball. Not that you can’t have a ball at a ball. Ha-ha! Henry also wants to ask out Violet, who has already learned texting.

Mr. Gold tells Dark Emma that he always convinced himself that he was using magic for a higher purpose, but it always leads to losing the ones you love. She tells Merida, whose heart she has stolen (literally), to take Gold out to the woods and teach him how to be a man. No, not that way. She wants him to be able to remove Excalibur. Then she starts weeping over a dreamcatcher in some room that looks like it’s decorated by The Texas Chainsaw Massacre guys. Except prettier.

Regina tells Storybrook Emma that a spell can be like venom – sometimes you need some of the poison to make the antidote. She thinks they can counteract the spell that put Merlin in the tree with another spell.

Henry and Violet are in the stables. While Violet leaves for a minute, Henry goofs around with some swords, manages to almost hurt himself and break one of the stall walls. Violet’s father, Sir Morgan, comes in and tells him he’s not good enough for his daughter.

Merida tries to teach Gold some swordsmanship, but he fails miserably. He tells her she has the wrong person for the task. She knocks him down and says she’ll have to do it herself then. She doesn’t really say that, but she might as well, considering what she has to work with.

In Storybrook, Dark Emma and Henry talk about old times. I’m not sure how many Emmas there are now. So far I’ve counted 2 dark and 1 light. Violet has lost her horse, and Henry has said he’d help find it. The horse is notorious for liking pumpkins, so they drive to Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater’s patch. Yep, he’s there.

In Camelot, Henry wants to learn how to use a sword to impress Violet and her father, but Emma tells him he’s a mysterious stranger from an exotic land, and that should be good enough.

We flash back to young Regina and her mother, Barbara Hershey. As a girl, Regina was going to run off with her first love, but her mother killed him. While remembering, when Regina starts to cry, Emma captures a teardrop to use for their anti-spell. She wonders how a mother could do such a thing to her child, and Regina says her mother thought she was doing what was best.

Henry concocts a pre-dance rendezvous for him and Violet at the diner. He pours her a soda and she thinks it’s magic, “like a carnival in a can.” Boy, is she easy to impress. Ugh! She says she just wants to be friends. I see some things always stay the same no matter what dimension you’re in. He thinks it has something to do with her father, but I think not because she looks surprised when he says that. At least she doesn’t say, it’s not you, it’s me. That’s right. Sometimes it is you.

Merida breaks into Gold’s shop and starts checking out the goods.

Hook, Belle, Regina and Robin Hood check out Excalibur. A dreamcatcher comes in the mail and Regina says they can be pretty powerful when imbued with magic.

Regina and Emma try concocting a spell using the tear, but other than a cloud of smoke, nothing happens. Emma says it’s because Regina has moved on from those days, and although she’s still heartbroken, there have been things that have eclipsed it now. In a moment of convenience, Henry comes by, and sheds a tear about Violet. Regina captures it.

Arthur arrives with a posse. He’s really pissed and wants the dagger now, but instead Emma gets that tear into the spell pronto. A load of gigantic black and white Silly String flies everywhere. Whatever she did worked, because Merlin appears. Like Hook before him, Merlin ain’t your momma’s Merlin. He’s far from an old guy with a beard in a pointy hat. Not even close.

Merlin tells Arthur he’s a disappointment and Arthur whines that Merlin ruined his life. Arthur says it’s not finished, but takes his marbles and goes home.

Instead of a ball, they’ve decided to have a carnival. Arthur says that put back together, the sword can do just about anything, but in the wrong hands, it could destroy everything. What else is new? Henry brings the horse back to Sir Morgan and Violet. Morgan changes his tune and says Henry will make a fine knight one day.

Merida says her father told her that if you want a lad to fight, you have to give him something to fight for. Apparently, she’s stolen his favorite tea cup and wants him to fight her for it. He makes a good start, but she says they have a long way to go before he can defeat Dark Emma.

Regina and Robin look into the dreamcatcher and see Violet’s memories. They see Emma take Violet’s heart, promising to bring it back once she’s broken Henry’s heart and Emma can get a tear for the spell. Unfortunately, Henry walks in while they’re eavesdropping or eaveslooking or whatever.

David says he expected Merlin to be older, and Merlin says being a tree can be good for your skin. Who knew? Merlin asks Emma if her heart is truly ready to be free from darkness.

Regina asks Dark Emma why she’s taken their memories and Mr. Gold. She tells Dark Emma that Henry saw what she did. Emma says she did it to protect Henry, and Regina says that’s what Barbra Hershey told her too, and that she’s only trying to justify being evil. Dark Emma goes off into the night.

Next week: A giant bear! A really giant bear.

The Walking Dead

Another damn alarm is going off, and half the zombies from the herd are headed for Alexandria. Rick tells Daryl to keep doing what he’s doing with his half, while the rest of them try to get the zombies moving in the right direction. One guy starts whining to Michonne that Rick is a screw up who wants them to die, and she tells him to shut up and keep moving. Oops, too late. Dude got eaten by a zombie. Michonne is more than happy to give him a sword to the head.

Rick tells Michonne and Glenn to keep going with the others, while he goes off to do…something. The group moves forward, killing zombies along the way. A couple of these guys aren’t too swift. One takes off running, which will no doubt cause a problem later. How that idiot, Nicholas, who got Noah killed last season, is still standing is beyond me.

Daryl wants to leave his zombie leading position, but Sasha and Abe tell him he’ll be putting them in bad way if he does.

Commercial break. It’s Obrecht from GH playing stewardess in Fear 462 again!

Michonne keeps a wounded dude occupied by asking about how he met his wife. He says finding her in all this has made it worth it, but I’m not so sure about that. Let’s see, zombie apocalypse or staying single for a while… They look for a car near where Noah was killed. A million cars on the street, but they can’t find one that works. Nicholas say’s “That’s Sturgis’s hat,” the guy who ran off. Oops! There’s hatless Sturgis, who is now zombie lunch Sturgis. The group enters a pet store. My first thought is, say no to puppy mills, but I guess we don’t have to worry about that now.

Glenn thinks he can distract the zombies long enough for the others to get away and set fire to a feed store. Michonne doesn’t want to leave him, but he’s insistent. For some ungodly reason, he tells Nicholas to come with him, and to lead the way. I wouldn’t trust this guy to be a movie usher and lead people to their seats, much less lead anything here.

Rick is running down an empty road and kills a couple of zombies in his way, taking a few supplies off the bodies.

Michonne wraps the wounded’s injuries. Like this is going to matter. One guy says that they should be left behind, but both Michonne and Heath are against that. Michonne asks Heath what his problem is with her. He heard Rick tell her that if anyone can’t make it, to leave them behind. She says sometimes there’s no choice and that Heath doesn’t understand that because he’s never been in that position. She asks him if he’s ever been covered in so much blood, that he doesn’t know if it’s his, the walkers’ or his friends’? That would be a no, so he finally shuts up.

Nicholas and Glenn see some have squished zombie that was a friend of Nicholas’s. Glenn has Nicholas put him out of his misery. (I mean the zombie, not Glenn.) They hear shots coming from somewhere and it’s drawing the zombies near the pet shop. Michonne says as soon as it’s clear, they’re to head to the feed store.

Rick’s running like he’s in Marathon Man, and gets in an RV. It has balloons tied on to it, so either it’s part of the plan or it’s someone’s birthday.

Back at the pet shop, a few zombies are starting to trickle in, so the group’s cover is blown. It doesn’t look too good for going outside. They go anyway, and all hell is breaking loose. The girl with them becomes a casualty. I don’t know about you, but I’ll bet I could run pretty damn fast if there was a crowd of zombies chasing me. Glenn and Nicholas get blocked by the zombie horde, while the others are trying to climb a fence. Glenn and Nicholas get trapped by zombies on both sides. Michonne and Heath make it over the fence, but wounded guy doesn’t. Does it really matter? Michonne, Heath & last other guy stand watching as wounded dude gets eaten. Hello? Either shoot him or move on. Nicholas and Glen are now trapped on top of a dumpster, surrounded by zombies. Nicholas is totally freaked and Glenn tries to get him to snap out of it. Where is Cher when you need her? Instead of doing the right thing, Nicholas shoots himself, and Glenn ends up falling into the zombies. No good deed goes unpunished.

THANKS, NICHOLAS, YOU STUPID WRETCH!

Commercial break. The host of The Talking Dead, Chris Hardwick, doesn’t know what to say and neither do I. At least Nicholas was no great loss.

Michonne, Heath and Last Dude are traveling through the woods, and see smoke in the distance. They find a creek and travel walking in it. Heath catches a glimpse of his blood-covered reflection. Some initiation.

Rick is in place in the RV, and gets on the walkie-talkie. Sasha answers him from the car, but it looks like Daryl is going off to find himself on his motorcycle. Where the gunfire is coming from, we still don’t know. A couple of armed guys bust into the RV, which wakes Daryl up from his trance and causes him to turn around. Who these guys are and what they want, we don’t know, but Rick finds a jar of baby food in one of their pockets.  Rick sees someone outside the RV and starts shooting wildly.

Great. Now the RV won’t start and zombies are coming from everywhere.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey: Teresa Checks In

The Gorgas go with Joe Giudice to his late father’s home in the Catskills.  We get the lowdown that when Joe Guidice wet his pants as a kid, his mother hit him in the head with a shoe. This might explain a lot.

Teresa calls. We get way to much information about how certain “toys” are made in prison and I can’t get Teresa off the phone fast enough.

The house has an awesome outside brick oven, and they make pizzas. Rosie and Teresa’s girls have arrived to join them. In her individual interview, Melissa says she hopes they can put the past behind them and be a family again. Teresa’s brother has finally gotten the visitation okay. Joe Giudice says it’s a real hassle. He started with only being able to visit once a month, and is now up to twice. I’m almost surprised that they let him visit, since he’ll be doing time next, but I guess they make exceptions for family.

Melissa says it feels weird without Teresa, and husband Joe says he can’t wait to see her. They hadn’t exactly been getting along that well, and he’s hoping that “the old Teresa” comes out.

Joe Giudice and the girls go to a little chapel built nearby. The younger ones have difficulty reciting The Lord’s Prayer and it makes me wonder what kind of Sunday school class they attend. Teresa hunts them down even in the chapel. She’s surprised they don’t know basic prayers and says they have to start going to church every week (are these people sure they’re Italian Catholics?). It’s kind of sweet because Teresa says she’s learned in prison that you can just talk directly to God. And as I’m typing this, I’m wondering if she realizes the youngest has been told she’s at work. Maybe they told her Teresa works in the prison doing research for her next book.

Back home, Gia snaps at Joe and they have a discussion. I have to say, Joe seems like a pretty easy-going dad considering. Joe says it’s an overwhelming situation, that they have to stay strong, and he appreciates how much Gia has stepped up. They talk about things without really talking about them and I think that’s how the family has basically functioned, even before Teresa went to prison.

The next-to-youngest is shaving Joe’s back, which I assume is normally Teresa’s job. He tells her that her working for him makes her a tax deduction. That Joe! What a card! I’d be really careful with those deductions from now on if I was him.

Joe meets Teresa’s lawyer at the restaurant where she flipped the table way back in season one. The lawyer tells him they’re “chipping away” at the restitution. Meaning that the Giudice’s paychecks are garnisheed to pay back the money they stole. When Teresa gets home, she’ll be on something called “home confinement.” It’s not the same as house arrest, but there are rules as to where she can go. The lawyer asks Joe if he’s learned anything from this experience. What is this? Will there be multiple choice questions next? Yeah, he learned not to commit fraud. My guess is that whoever steered him in that direction gave him some song and dance that “everybody does it.” He claims he didn’t really know what he was doing was wrong, and I’m not so sure I totally believe that, but I do think he believed it was no harm, no foul. And I don’t think Teresa knew what was going on at all. I think he said, “Here, sign this,” and she did. I don’t think they’re bad people, just excessively ignorant.

Joe Gorga seems totally freaked about visiting Teresa. He says his body is numb and he doesn’t know how to think or feel. It’s highly unlikely I’ll ever be visiting my sister in prison, so I’ll take his word for it. Melissa says she feels badly that she can’t get on the visitation list yet. I don’t suppose we’ll be able to go along either.

You can’t wear shorts and you can’t bring in phones. Gia tells about how somebody snuck one in the prison to take a picture of Teresa and got in a heap of trouble. Teresa’s mom says “you can’t trust nobody.” Gia says the visit is probably going to be difficult for her Uncle Joe. He says they were brought up not to cry, but he spent the first hour of the visit crying. He’s tearing up now, and I feel for him. The reality has hit him pretty hard.

Everyone is pretty bummed out in the car on the way home. Joe Gorga says that if they feel that way, imagine how she must feel.

After one last check in, we see the family photo taken at the prison. Teresa is expected to be released on December 23, and Joe will begin his sentence in March of 2016.

Oct19

October 18, 2015 — A Sword, Some Wolfs & Two Joes

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

Once Upon A Time

In old Camelot, young Arthur tells young Guinevere that Merlin (who is trapped inside a tree) gave him a prophecy that he would pull a sword from a stone and they would become king and queen.  Fast forward to Arthur as an adult. When he takes the sword from the stone, the bottom of it is gone, taken to make Dark Emma’s dagger. Arthur hides it in a sheath when he returns to the people, acting like nothing is wrong.  Arthur tells David he can re-forge the sword so that it will again be able to defeat the powers of darkness.

Rumpelstiltskin tells Emma since she’s the savior, she needs to save herself before it’s too late. Good point.

David wants to take the dagger and use it to put the sword back together. Snow doesn’t trust Arthur, and even though David thinks it will save Emma, she wants to wait. David approaches Arthur and tells him Lancelot is alive. Guinevere overhears and tells David he doesn’t know the whole story of her and Lance. David goes into his bag to get the dagger, but it’s gone.

In old Camelot, it’s Guinevere’s birthday party. Arthur is late and Lancelot dances with the queen. Guinevere has taken a magic gauntlet that she believes will help find the missing piece of the sword. Lancelot joins her in the quest and the gauntlet leads them to a weird circle that looks like a giant sewer cap with mystical symbols on it. When it opens, there’s a staircase to a place that looks kind of like a mine. All kinds of black crazy stuff comes out of nowhere and surrounds Lancelot. Guinevere makes it go away and they kiss. She says it won’t happen again, but I dunno about that.

Henry takes Emma and Hook to a stable where he wants to show them something, but they’re interrupted by Henry’s crush, Violet. Emma and Hook hide, and Henry and Violet go riding.

Lance and Gwen come to a forest where the dagger is on display. When they try to take it, they’re thrown back and Rumpel appears.  Rumpel offers them a compromise – a pinch of enchanted sand will fix the sword without the dagger. He asks for the gauntlet in exchange for a vial of it. He tells Gwen that when a woman’s heart is torn between duty and desire, it never ends well. She agrees to the exchange, and he adds that she needs to worry about a broken heart more than a broken sword.

Lance and Snow go underground and on to the forest. Snow says she’s seen this place in a vision before, and Dark Emma crushed her heart there. Arthur has followed them. He’s led David on a wild goose chase to look for Snow, and says that if Snow knows what’s good for her, she’ll hand over the dagger.

Gwen gets back to Camelot and tells Arthur about the sand that will make something broken seem whole again. Maybe she should use it on their relationship. He still wants the dagger, but she tells him that if he doesn’t get with the program, she’s leaving him for Lance. Bizarrely, Arthur takes my advice and throws some of the sand at Gwen. It makes her cool with Arthur going on his quest for the dagger, and he tosses a load of the sand out of the tower window and over the kingdom.

Arthur says he’ll kill Lance if Snow doesn’t give him the dagger and she hands it over. He says he can now command Dark Emma to put the sword back together and free Merlin. He orders her to appear and nothing happens. Snow tells him the dagger isn’t real and voila! here’s David. He says he knew something was up with Arthur who “tried to trick [him] with a catchy title and a comfy chair.” (Another Monty Python reference.)

Hook tells Emma to quit talking to Rumpel in her head and get on the horse. They ride off, but Emma is still seeing Rumpel watching them.

Arthur looks like someone took his last piece of Halloween candy, and Snow thinks he’s unusually quiet. That’s because Gwen and a whole lot of knights show up to set him free. Gwen, still under the sand’s spell, tells the knights to take Lance to the dungeon, and uses the last of the sand on Snow and David. Meanwhile, Merida from Brave shows up at Lance’s cell.

Snow and David tell Regina to bring the dagger out of hiding and give it to Arthur, as it’s their best chance to help Emma. Emma and Hook frolic in the forest, and Rumpel is nowhere to be seen, even by Emma. Nice crane shot of Hook and Emma embracing in a field of roses.

Dark Emma has Mr. Gold (Storybrook Rumpel) held prisoner. She also has Merida handcuffed to a Volkswagen. (Didn’t seem all that weird up until now, right?) Dark Emma steals Merida’s heart and tells her to take her bow and make Mr. Gold the brave guy she needs.

The Walking Dead

We begin by seeing how Enid got to Alexandra. We see her in a car, writing “JSS” on the window; escaping to a forest, where she writes “JSS” in the dirt; and then eating a turtle. I’m not kidding, I’m watching her eat a turtle right now. She makes another “JSS” out of its bones. She gets to the gate at Alexandria, writes it in the dirt on the back of her hand, someone opens the gate, and she enters. Okay, I give up already. (BTW, no turtles were harmed in the making of this episode – it didn’t just taste like chicken, it was chicken.)

Maggie wants Deanna to help plant a garden in the safe zone and finish the wall. Eugene and Tara meet the new doctor, Denise, who is really a psychiatrist and scared out of her wits. Tara says she’s been feeling dizzy, so Denise takes a look at her for an easy start to her new profession.

Carl (where’s he been?) is pushing baby Judith in a stroller. Father Gabriel interrupts his walk, telling him that he was wrong and wants to learn how to fight the zombies. Carl tells him to come by later and they’ll start with the machete.

Carol is busy cooking, and probably cooking something up in her head, when she sees Shelly having a smoke out on the lawn. Suddenly, a guy comes out of nowhere and kills Shelly with a machete. Is Carl prophetic? Maggie and Deanna see that part of the wall is on fire and someone is climbing over it to the outside. They come across a body that’s been set on fire. A load of crazies start to wreak havoc, chopping people up and writing “W” (for Wolf) on their foreheads in the blood. I don’t know what’s going on. Civil unrest or something else? A gigantic truck drives right into the church and if that truck horn doesn’t stop in about 5 seconds, I’m going out of my mind and joining the Wolfs. Thank you, Morgan, for poking that zombie in the head who’s leaning on the horn.

Chaos is everywhere in Alexandria. A guy who looks like he’s from Deliverance tries to attack Morgan with an axe, but Carol comes from behind and gets him first. She puts a “W” on her forehead too, and disguises herself as one of them.

Holly has been badly injured, but Denise is afraid to try and operate on her. Eugene tells her she doesn’t want to be a coward. And he oughtta know. Denise bucks up and asks for the supplies she needs. Ron is almost attacked by a Wolf, but Carl shoots him (the guy, not Ron). The guy acts all feeble, but when Carl gets closer, he tries to grab Carl’s gun. Bad move because Carl is a serious badass and finishes him off. A Wolf gets into Jessie’s house and knocks her down, but not out. Jessie stabs the sh*t out of her with a pair of scissors as Ron walks in. If he’s not traumatized for life and beyond by now, he never will be.

A Wolf, who obviously knows Gabriel, tries to kill him, but Morgan intervenes. Carol gets to the armory and grabs as many weapons as she can. She also finds Lydia hiding in a closet and tells her to arm herself. Just as the dude who knows Gabriel is about to explain things, Carol shoots him in the head. Thanks, Carol, since it might have been a good idea to find out what’s going on.

Some Wolfs surround Morgan and he fends every one of them off with a stick. I’d definitely want him on my team. He seems to understand more than he’s letting on. Certainly more than I do. He tells the remaining Wolf that if he keeps choosing this kind of life, he’ll end up dead, and the Wolf says he has no choice and takes off.

Commercial break. Into the Badlands looks awesome!

Carol sits on the steps, pondering a pack of cigarettes. I’m pondering if we’re ever going to find out what was up with that truckload of top-half zombies from last season. Aaron takes a pack of photos off the body of a Wolf and it looks like pictures of the Alexandria wall.

Holly flatlines. Tara tells Denise she tried, but Denise is pretty dejected. She wants everyone to leave, and Tara tells her not to forget to give Holly mercy. No, wait, that’s the other show. She tells Denise to make sure to stab Holly in the brain.

Now everyone is pondering what the blip just happened.

Enid has left Carl a note that says “just survive somehow.” JSS, which is coincidentally the name of tonight’s episode. Carol’s kitchen timer goes off and Carl takes the brownies out of the oven. Morgan seems to be on clean-up detail, and is finding straggling Wolfs who are now un-dead.  Oh no! Another Deliverance Guy is hiding and attacks Morgan He says “You can’t, can you? You should have.” Whatever that means. Apparently, he’s wrong about it though, and Morgan finishes him off. He does, however, apologize first.

Morgan and Carol pass like ships in the night. The streets are clear and quiet. Geez, Rick can’t leave these people alone for five minutes.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey: Teresa Checks In

Teresa controls the Giudice family from the inside like a mob boss, but Joe is definitely stepping up as Mr. Mom.

Melissa picks up the kids for a girl’s day out, while the two Joes get together for a guy’s day. I don’t know if it’s going to be GTL (gym, tan, laundry), but it’s definitely G.  We see the girls getting mani/pedis, while the guys work out. Melissa tells Gia that if she needs a woman to talk to about anything, she’s there for her. In her individual interview, Melissa says that Gia is most like Teresa. She also says God never gives you more than you can handle. Although sometimes I wonder about that one. Joe and Joe give us TMI about what Joe is doing at night without Teresa. ♫ LA-LA-LA! ♫

Joe has had his license suspended for two years (this guy is really bad at breaking the law), and this is a real hassle right now. Teresa’s lawyer brings her diary. Teresa wants Joe to read it, and also the girls when they’re old enough. Teresa sounds like a real broad, breaking up prison fights and such. You go, girl! If you can’t beat the system, boss it around.

Teresa’s parents, along with Melissa and Joe Gorga, come by for Teresa’s phone call. I feel badly for her parents, who are probably mortified over this whole thing and no doubt want to throttle their son-in-law. Gia says Teresa actually looks better now.  I understand she’s gotten into yoga, so that’s probably a big factor. After the call, the family sits down to dinner and discusses plans for the 4th of July. Both Melissa and Joe Gorga have applied to be visitors at the prison, but apparently, this is a pretty long process. It’s taken Joe six months, and Melissa has yet to be approved. The thought crosses my mind that maybe Teresa doesn’t want her approved.

Teresa’s lawyer (who is getting a lot of air time) comes by to discuss Joe’s possible deportation. It seems outrageous. He’s lived here for 44 years and his parents are citizens for Pete’s sake.  He does say that Teresa and the girls would go with him should that happen. I know there are plenty of people who are like, good, but IMO, that would be tremendous overkill. The Giudices might be a pair of idiots, but I certainly don’t think they’re evil, and they probably didn’t do anything a million other people haven’t. Their real crime was getting caught.

This show should be subtitled “Teresa Checks In Repeatedly.” She says that there’s more drama in prison than on The Real Housewives. She also had to change up her gym routine because low flying planes kept coming by trying to take her picture. That is seriously crazy.

The family is going “down the shore” for the 4th. The girls go in Melissa’s car and the two Joes go together. Joe Gorga asks Joe Giudice if he thinks about the time when he has to take his turn in prison. He says he just doesn’t think about that stuff because it’s not happening yet. That’s one thing I admire about him and Teresa, their ability to not think about something. I will never have this talent as long as I live.

Gia is an amazingly mature kid. She seems more like a young adult than a moody teenager. Everybody is bugging her about future dating and she’s taking it in stride. Teresa checks in yet again while they’re at the shore house, but she gets cut off because her minutes ran out. A small discussion happens between Joe and the girls about daddy having to “go to work” when mommy gets home. While Gia has said that Milania knows what’s going on, Audriana is too young yet.

Milania makes some coffee for herself, but Joe says that’s a no. Teresa checks in one more time. The girls pass the phone down, each say a little something, and when it gets to Joe, Teresa asks him to take the phone into another room. Because Gia sent out a tweet for her, Teresa’s room got shaken down. They thought she might have a cell phone and they even checked in places that most people can’t put a cell phone. Thug life!

Joe’s gotten pretty good on his bicycle. Who knows? Maybe he’ll get in shape yet. He bikes over to Angelo’s, a restaurant managed by cousin Reno. Some guy, probably another cousin, talks about going to prison himself for running numbers or something. Joe says he had that opportunity, chose not to do it, but is still going to jail. Ah, the little ironies of life. Numbers Guy talks about what it’s like on the inside. He said the hard part for him was after he got out and came home to nothing. Oh Lord. He just said the old adage that whatever doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. Then how come I’m not dead or bench pressing 500 pounds? Angelo. The guy’s name is Angelo. I guess he owns the restaurant. You could probably yell, “Hey, Angelo!” in that restaurant and half the heads would turn.

The text at the end tells us that two months later, the shore house was repossessed.

I’m not what you would call a softie, but I feel sorry for this whole family. They ripped off a bank. Banks have been ripping us off for years. I honestly think they’re being made an example of because they’re reality “stars” and it just doesn’t seem right to me. They were certainly stupid, but if stupidity were a crime, we’d all be in the slammer. I hope Teresa makes a million bucks from her book just for spite.

Oct12

October 11, 2015 — Once Upon the Dead in New Jersey

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

Once Upon A Time

The dwarfs, who are really just short guys with names like Leroy, are whistling while they work and Dark Emma steals one of their pickaxes. They report it at the police department where Prince Charming, otherwise known as David, works as sheriff.  King Arthur arrives next. Apparently his magic beans have gone missing.

Dark Emma tries to remove Excalibur from the stone by hitting it with the ax, which sounds more ridiculous than the previous paragraph. Of course it doesn’t work and Rumpelstiltskin has to explain things to her all over again.

Back in Camelot, Regina is working on some magic to release Merlin, the Wicked Witch of the West is working on being an annoyance, and Prince Charming is checking out the round table. Contrary to the original Camelot story, King Arthur got back together with Guinevere after the Lancelot scandal. David tells him that he and Snow had met Lancelot, but alas, Lance is dead. A page delivers a chest with “the eternal flame” in it, but in Storybrook, the chest has been pilfered. Captain Hook and Robin Hood are chatting in the diner. When Hook’s takeout order comes, there’s a note from Dark Emma attached to it, asking him to meet her on his ship.

Magic comes in handy, as Dark Emma sets the table for lunch in under a second. She also makes herself appear like Good Emma, so Hook is more comfortable. She tells him he can trust her, which really means he’d better keep his mouth shut about everything.

The prince and the king go to Rumpel’s pawn shop where Belle is behind the desk. Rumpel is ill and she needs one more thing for a healing spell. The prince buys a chalice left over from Doc’s birthday party and passes it off as the Chalice of Something-or-Other to the Camelot people who are stuck in Storybrook. He tells them if they drink from it, it will reveal the thief. A guy In a Red Riding Hood cape takes off like a rocket. In the real Camelot, it makes me think of Monty Python again when the prince and king have a sword fight with a couple of phantom knights.

Dark Emma says “trust me” to Hook again, so you know now he definitely shouldn’t trust her. She claims she’s a better Emma now and wants to move forward with their relationship. Hook isn’t having any, and wants to know what it is she’s really after. Dark Emma disappears, poof! in a puff of dark smoke.

David and Arthur catch up to the thief, who claims there were no magic beans in the chest. They do find a magic mushroom (no, not that kind) that Regina thinks can help Merlin. In the real Camelot, David is knighted by Arthur and given Lancelot’s old chair. It has something hanging off of it that looks like this thing we had to wear over our robes at my high school graduation. Whoops! Lancelot isn’t dead after all and approaches Snow on the castle porch. He tells her there’s a villain in town, and Snow thinks he’s talking about Dark Emma, but he tells her it’s Arthur.

Commercial break. Why does there have to be so much good TV? Blood & Oil looks great, but it’s on during The Walking Dead time slot.

Guinevere, dazzling in an incredible dress and jewelry, ponders the magic mushroom with Arthur. In Storybrook, the thief is in jail, but it turns out he was working for Arthur and there were never any magic beans. Arthur made It up to get his people stuck in Storybrook, to trust him. Although I don’t know how that was supposed to work. He gives the thief some poison to drink because he’s afraid the non-magic beans will be spilled. He says it’s for the greater good, the thief drinks it, and poof! he disappears in a puff of green smoke.

Storybrook Rumpel has vanished and is with Fantasyland Rumple and Dark Emma. She tells him he’s not dark or light; he’s nothing. Ouch! Because his heart is a “blank slate,” she says he’ll be useful and she has a job for him. I don’t suppose it’s pulling out Excalibur either.

The Walking Dead

While I’m glad to see this show back again, it’s really good of them to make it an hour and a half tonight, so that it messes up my schedule.

When we last left Rick and company, they were in Alexandria and Rick was going bonkers after questionably shooting one of the residents. Outside of the town, a zombie horde is growing in a canyon. Some of the zombies are looking mighty raggedy since they’ve been wandering around for six seasons now.

Daryl!

Morgan admits he was an idiot and that Rick was right. Rick, Daryl and Morgan make a plan to take care of the zombie horde. Apparently, in order to confuse me, half of this episode is in flashbacks and also in black and white. I thought there was something wrong with my TV.

Of all people, Eugene is guarding the gate at Alexandria. Oh, okay, he’s doing it while the real guard is taking a pee or something. A guy named Heath shows up with a group of people and says they live in Alexandria, but they’ve been away on a run. Morgan and Rick are burying the guy Rick shot last season in the woods when they get a load of the zombie horde from the top of a cliff. It’s a seriously freaking huge amount of zombies. Ron (the son of the guy they’re burying) followed them and is being chased by some zombies. Just as he’s about to run off the cliff, Rick shoves him aside and in an uncharacteristically funny moment, the zombies who were chasing him keep going and fall off the cliff. Rick tells Morgan that the reason Alexandria doesn’t have too many zombies showing up is because they’re all in this canyon.

Glenn (who looks like he had a nose job) and Heath go with another guy to a tractor supply place where there are a bunch of zombies inside

Commercial break. OMG, it’s Obrecht from GH in an ad for…I don’t know what. Dammit! The one commercial I want to see again and they’ll probably never rerun it. This was followed by the best anti-smoking commercial yet, focused on the monetary expense. I guess Better Call Saul got renewed too. I kind of lost track of it after the first few episodes, but it was a lot better, and funnier, than I expected it to be.

There’s a big meeting about how they’re going to deal with the zombies. I guess Rick is in charge now because Deanna keeps saying he’s right about everything. Father Gabriel offers to help and Rick be like, no way, padre. That gets my vote too. That guy cannot be trusted. I don’t trust Carter either, who questions everything Rick says.

Daryl leads the horde to where there’s a makeshift wall made out of metal. Maybe they won’t have to do anything since the zombies are banging their own heads against it and stepping all over each other. Kind of like Times Square on New Year’s Eve. I guess the black and white thing is to differentiate between the flashbacks and what’s happening now. I would have titled this episode “We’re Not in Kansas Anymore,” but it’s titled “First Time Again.”

Glenn, Heath and Other Guy kill all the zombies at the tractor place. Abraham, in a car with Sasha, notices some walkers who are off track and jumps out to point them in the right direction. He’s covered with blood when he gets back in the car, talking about the possibility of brains getting in his ear, and I’m wondering if he’s going to be the “surprise” guest on The Talking Dead.

Rick tells Deanna that they need to train and arm everyone inside Alexandria. I think they’d better train someone in the art of bullet making before they run out. It’s not like they can drive over to Walmart.

Carter is making plans to get rid of Rick, and Eugene overhears him. Carter is thisclose to shooting Eugene, but Rick comes in just in time. He spares Carter after giving him a mini lecture. Rick tells Morgan he wanted to kill Carter, but figures Carter is stupid enough to get killed on his own.

And he’s right! Carter gets bit in the face when he veers from the zombie horde plan. Now I figure he’s the surprise guest. Rick also gets his wish, and breaks Carter’s neck. Shouldn’t somebody shoot him in the head?

Commercial break. They showed another installment of the Obrecht ad. It’s a web series companion to Fear the Walking Dead called Flight 462. I’ll have to check that out. Jurassic World is also coming out on blue ray. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it. Just make sure to forget anything you know about real dinosaurs or science while you’re watching it.

WTF? Something that sounds like a fog horn is going off and the zombies are changing course. Carter is dead, so what idiot is doing this? Gabriel? It wouldn’t be the first time someone named Gabriel blew a horn. Ha-ha! Great. Ten billion zombies are now headed to Alexandria.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey

This episode revolves around the Guidice family and how they’re coping with Teresa in prison. Joe’s father has passed away and Gia, who is turning out to be a beautiful young lady, has a big dance coming up. The latter might not seem like a huge deal, but it’s one of those times where she’s going to miss her mom.

Teresa gets 300 minutes a month for phone calls, but can send unlimited emails. The inmates don’t have access to the internet, so I’m guessing it must go into a “waiting to be sent” file until it can be approved.

During one of Teresa’s phone calls home, her parents are there as well. I wonder how hard it is for them not to wring Joe’s neck. It’s tough for Gia to talk to her mom without crying and this upsets her grandfather greatly. The whole thing is really sad. I know Joe and Teresa aren’t the brightest or nicest bulbs in the box, and they did commit a crime (although I roll my eyes at the level of it), but I honestly think the judge wanted to make an example out of them because they’re C-list celebrities. That rubs me the wrong way. After spending so many years with them too, I feel the same way I’d feel about annoying cousins that you have to invite to Thanksgiving. You love them, but at a distance.

The youngest daughter was told that Teresa is working, which Gia says isn’t totally a lie because she’s keeping a diary that she’ll turn into a book later. I’ll definitely want to read that. What’s really funny is that Teresa is still running the show at home by giving everyone instructions. I hope she realizes that, although she doesn’t get any preferential treatment, the prison in Danbury isn’t considered all that bad. I have a friend who’s been in federal prison in New Jersey, and it’s a nasty place to be.

Joe says something about how it’s part of a father’s job to embarrass their teenage daughter and that reminds me of my father. Don’t get me wrong, he was the greatest man on the planet, but if I let him know something was embarrassing, he’d work harder at it.

Gia looks absolutely gorgeous and has almost ruined her makeup ten times because she wants to cry.

Joe and his brother visit their father’s grave site and it makes me want to cry. Despite Joe being an idiot, I know what he’s feeling.

Rosie comes over! I love Rosie. They joke about Joe getting a boyfriend in prison, but that’s not really very funny. He’s only allowed to visit Teresa every other weekend because he’s a felon. She’ll be getting out before Christmas and in March it’s his turn. Joe and Rosie laugh a lot, and I have to hand it to Joe for being able to laugh at all.

Next it’s Gia’s graduation from 8th grade and a family party afterward. In her individual interview, Melissa talks about the stupid fights they’ve all had and how this has brought them all closer together as a family. Joe Gorga says pretty much the same thing, but also that it’s humbled Joe Guidice. I think so too.

Aww, Joe sleeps on the couch because he doesn’t want to be in the bed without her.

In the preview for next week, the subject of Joe’s possible deportation comes up. I hope that doesn’t happen. It just wouldn’t be right. It’s not like he’s a serial killer and his children are American citizens. It would be awful for them to either lose their father or be forced to leave their mother country.

Oct7

October 6, 2015 — GH, Wrong Loving, a Couch & a Squall

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

General Hospital

Is it Friday yet? Sleeping Beauty Sonny wakes up, while Ava and Julian take baby Avery out to dinner to celebrate her homecoming. I have the feeling Avery is probably ready for surf ‘n’ turf or at least lo mien.

“Jake” picked up Elizabeth’s phone while she was in the bathroom and knows she got a call from Hayden. Well, it probably has Nicholas’s number, so who knows what he must be thinking.

Kiki whines to Franco that she has nothing to do and no one to do it with. He suggests she move into Silas’s apartment with him and Nina, but Nina’s not too keen on that idea and I don’t blame her. Who wants this millennial whiner around them? Let’s see, she’s gorgeous, has money (I’m sure Silas left her some and she has the apartment) and is halfway intelligent (although not much evidence of that lately). Can’t she find somewhere to go? I’ve found her annoying for a while, but it could just be that I miss Kristen Alderson. A lot. Nina also doesn’t want to live in the “death apartment.” Again, good luck finding one that isn’t in Port Charles.

“Jake” says he wasn’t snooping, but he wanted to know what call upset Elizabeth so much. Patrick and Sam show up announcing their engagement, and Elizabeth is happier than they are. Patrick and Elizabeth get called to the hospital to deal with Sonny. Sam complains a little about significant others who are doctors and nurses, and have to go to work at a moment’s notice. Sounds good to me. Maybe not so much with nurses, but marrying a doctor must be great. They’re never home and they make a lot of money. Whoa. “Jake” has an amazing memory for things other than his identity. He remembered the phone number he saw on Elizabeth’s phone and has Sam look it up on her tablet.

Laura shows up at Windermere, and is wondering what’s up with Hayden being there. Nicholas has given Hayden some baloney about how Helena told her who Jake is, but not him. Okay. Like anyone is stupid enough to believe that. Elizabeth calls Nicholas and he seems to think that Hayden doesn’t remember anything. Does this mean he’s believing Hayden or falling for her? Hayden is hip to the fact that she’s making Laura nervous, and says she’ll find somewhere else to live. Seriously? Doesn’t this house have like 110 rooms? They never even have to see each other. Laura says it’s okay and that Hayden should stay.

Kiki gives a lot of exposition for new viewers as to what’s happened up until now with Nina, under the guise of telling Nina how sorry she is. No one talks like this IRL and it always makes me laugh. I’m not crazy about Nina’s dress. I love the style, but it’s some kind of cherry blossom pattern or something that looks like streaks of blood.

Paul says the same thing that every politician says when they get in office – he got left with a mess. He and Tracy discuss how reliable information from Michael might be. It’s probably about as reliable as information from anyone on this show. Paul says he’s going to talk to Michael. Fat lot of good this will do him.

I got confused for a second when Carly tells Sonny he had a seizure when they were about to get married. I’d totally forgotten they decided to do it in the hospital. Patrick tells Sonny that anxiety is a common side effect of anesthesia. Really? I’ve only had it once and it was the best sleep I ever had. He tests Sonny’s reflexes and I wonder if those are fake feet, because Sonny doesn’t react and I don’t know if anyone is that good of an actor. It’s making me move my feet. I’m still wondering why Sonny thought “Jake” was Jason, since they really look nothing like each other. (I’d also swear “Jake” was shorter, but I’ll let that pass.) Was it something in “Jake’s” eyes, or did Sonny wake up psychic? That would be a fun plotline. He could get together with Olivia and they could start a business.

Nina is like, no way am I moving in with Kiki, but Franco wants to do the right thing, with a side benefit of bugging Ava. I love these two together because they’re more fun than corny. Roger Howarth is aging well and looking handsome. He doesn’t seem to be the type who’d get Botox or something, so good. Kiki shows up at (I guess) The Floating Rib where Julian and Ava are. Ava wants to make peace, but Kiki just wants to drink. I hear you, Kiki. How many earrings is Kiki wearing? It looks like 4 or 5. Kiki throws back the rest of her drink and storms off.

How is it that “Jake” is so damn smart, but can’t figure out even one clue as to who he really is?

Back at the ranch Silas’s apartment, Kiki is back and Nina says they’re all going to be one big happy family there, making Kiki, the audience, and probably Franco, wondering when her change of mind happened.

Nicholas tells Laura he “has feelings for” Hayden. I hate that phrase. It makes me cringe inside. Laura wonders how well it’s going to go, since he tried to have Hayden killed a few months ago. Nicholas says that a guy has the right to change his mind. Not really, but that sounded good.

Geez, Sonny isn’t awake 10 seconds before Carly is pushing for another marriage ceremony. Patrick has told him it’s too early to tell if he’ll be able to walk again, and he doesn’t want to marry her until he finds out. Way to stall.

If Loving You Is Wrong

Major flashback episode from when Alex and Brad moved into the neighborhood. Marcie and Randall welcome them and the couples get together for an evening of drinking.  They do some dancing in Alex and Brad’s living room. I always find this kind of thing a little weird, since nobody does this IRL unless it’s a party. Afterwards, after Marcie & Randall leave, Alex wants to get all lovey dovey, and ditto the other two at their house. They keep showing us the clock and I’m not sure why. Uh-oh, something went wrong at Alex and Brad’s. They’ve finished before they started and she does not look happy. OMG – Alex is looking out the window and sees the other couple. Quick like a bunny, Randall closes the curtains, but not before he sees Alex catching a glimpse. This is another thing I don’t think people do in real life, unless they’re voyeurs. Speaking for myself, I can’t think of one neighbor I’ve ever had that I’d want to catch in flagrante. Nope. Not one. And I’ve had quite a few neighbors.

Randall sees Alex outside the next morning and says, sorry, they’re used to the house being empty. I can actually relate to this. I once lived on the top floor of an apartment building in Queens. When they decided to go co-op, as renters left, they stopped renting out apartments. For over a year, it was just me and a single gay man on my floor, and I got used to doing things like taking the garbage out in my underwear. I had to be really careful to check myself when new people finally started moving in.

We jump to a few years later. Both Marcie and Brad are at work and Randall goes over to see Alex. He says he’s been hugging her a little too long at the end of the night when they double-date, adding that it seems to be reciprocal. I’m actually feeling a little sick to my stomach, since I know what the outcome is going to be. Randall says he’s seen her peeping at them when they’re going at it. Hmm…why are they still leaving the curtains open? When people moved into my apartment building, I stopped taking out the garbage half-naked. Alex wisely tells him to get lost. Obviously, we know this doesn’t last. Then he goes to kiss her good-by. Alex rebuffs him, but he’s still going on about their chemistry. One of the reasons I’ve never liked Randall is that he can’t take a hint.

For whatever reason, Randall is helping Alex paint a room. They’re getting a little too close while opening a stuck window, and her parents show up! They’re from Deliverance, which is a surprise to me. Her father isn’t happy that Brad isn’t American, and then Randall, who is African American, comes bounding down the stairs without his shirt on. OMG, he calls Randall “a darkie.” So her father is a racist from the backwoods and her mother is a doormat. They leave and good riddance. Alex goes to find Randall and I see where this is headed. They had lots of sex in the shed and that’s where Alex finds him.

Alex is mortified. They hug and, Oh my Tyler Perry!

Alex is dreaming all this and wakes up saying Randall’s name. And Brad is sitting there. Brad says he’s going to make her life hell from now on. I swear, Tyler Perry produces the best soaps ever. The episode endings are nothing short of soapticiously fabulous.

The People’s Couch

I am so glad this show is back. And for an hour this time. I honestly think it’s one of the funniest things on TV. Maybe ever. The simple, and cheap for Bravo, premise is several groups of people watching TV in their respective homes, everything from Empire (a show I would love to indulge in, but I can’t watch everything) to The Real Housewive,  and making comments to each other while they watch. That’s pretty much what I do here. Which is why I need to be on this show, even if I talk to myself.

There are a pair of sisters who are also roommates; three gay guys who are best friends; a pair of sisters who aren’t roommates; a couple and their two teenage sons; female best friends and writing partners, one is gay and one is straight (my personal favorites – and they have 3 little dogs); a dad and his three adult daughters; three older retired ladies; and another couple and their teenage son.

Each group is very funny, and are people you’d love to hang out with. I literally laugh out loud every other minute.

Oooh, we get a sneak peek Teresa’s phone call home from The Real Housewives of New Jersey.

Below Deck

Back at the schoolyard…I mean, yacht, Rocky has given Emile a note saying she just wants to be friends. Because they are both huge babies. I would hate to work with these two.

The primary guests are a brother and sister (Tracy and Mark) and their spouses. There’s another girl who I assume is someone’s daughter. Right away, in her individual interview, Connie says something snarky about the girl’s appearance. I don’t like that. Yeah, I know I do it sometimes, but I’m not getting a ten thousand dollar tip. If you’re giving me ten grand, I won’t knock your sweater.

The weather is pretty breezy and a storm is coming. A lobster fishing expedition is cut short and they head back to shore. Chef Leon is a real drag, but the gusts are happy with his dishes. The centerpiece is gorgeous too. I’m sure that’s the fun part of the job for the stews, getting to do the creative stuff. New deckhand, Dane, is on anchor watch. It’s been stressed a few times that falling asleep is a huge no-no, which makes me wonder if that’s what’s going to happen, but it doesn’t.

The next day is nicer, so the jet skis are put in the water. Immediately, the first guest out runs over a line and sucks it into the propeller, thus taking more precious time away from outdoor activities. Squalls are coming through. Dane is supposed to get the line un-entangled and is just making more of a mess. Captain Lee is losing patience with this guy quickly. At first, he seemed like a hard worker, but he’s acting more and more like Spicoli from Fast Times At Ridgemont High.

Mark has brought his own wine and wants a tasting menu to go with it. Chef Leon has ordered food from the mainland – groceries, not McDonald’s – and more time is wasted going to pick up his order. The meat is frozen solid. I guess Leon should have been more specific or planned better. Because Kate didn’t have the menu info, everything else got hung up. I understand her frustration with this. I hate when I have to wait for someone to finish their part before I can do my part and they lollygag. Even worse, as Kate has explained earlier, it’s the domino effect – if one person flounders, it goes on down the line and affects everyone.

Captain Lee is dining with the guests. He’s not impressed with Leon’s food, but hopefully, the guests are. Mark seems to have a pretty sophisticated palette. Amy and Kate are super pissed off about Leon taking his sweet time with the whole thing and not caring about them or the guests. Chef Leon makes an appearance and the guests seem happy with his work. Apparently, he should be wearing a jacket to do this and says he doesn’t give a flying. Kate finally calls him out for being the jerk that he is. He says he’ll try to let her know sooner next time, but not to hold her breath. Then he just goes on and on and on about how he doesn’t like Kate and making veiled threats. This guy is the worst. I wouldn’t want to work with him either. Rocky thinks it’s all very funny and I want to slap her.

16 large this week! And because the yacht owners have gotten good feedback about the crew, they’ve been given a freebie night at a resort. Captain Lee gives Dane a mini lecture on responsibility, but he knows it’s going in one ear and out the other. Good job whoever used the words “tax free” in regard to the tip. Shut up.

Dane gets seriously hammered while on the boat on their night off. Ugh! He’s a messy drunk too. I hate that.

Next week looks pretty good. Dane makes more of an idiot of himself and the guests aren’t happy with Chef Leon. And Eddie and Rocky hook up? I’m hoping that one is a dream.

Sep16

September 15, 2015 — Port Charles, a Mermaid & a Birthday

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 

General Hospital

I like Rick’s Clark Kent look sooo much better. I tend to forget he’s Sonny’s brother on a regular basis. Like any time he’s not mentioning it.

FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT’S HOLY, ELIZABETH, TELL HIM!

Oh great, she’s telling Jake her other secret.

Everyone is getting all lovey dovey over Sonny. Big decision happening. If they remove the bullet, he could bleed to death due to his weakened condition, but if they wait for him to get stronger, in the meantime, the bullet could move and kill him. Everyone clap if you believe in fairies Sonny.

Ha-ha! Rick suggests he and Sam get back to their “regularly scheduled animosity.” Don’t tell me Rick and Sam are going to end up putting 2 and 2 together before Elizabeth gets a conscience.

I don’t think Morgan is bi-polar. I think he’s uni-polar because I’ve only seen one mood out of him – whiny and/or angry whiny. I have to add that Bryan Allen Craig is really good in this part, but he’s probably wishing they’d give him more to work with too.

Yeah, yeah, we all have regrets, Liz. Coulda, shoulda, woulda. Why don’t you tell him??? I’ve never really liked Elizabeth, but I’ve never thought of her as stupid. Someone is going to come up with this sooner or later, and the only way for her to save herself is to tell him first. Although who knows? I never understood Jason anyway.

Commercial time. I guess a lot of the shows are starting their seasons this week. I am so glad Z Nation is back. Like Sweeny Todd’s arm, my Fridays are complete again.

Hey, I think I have that sweater/jacket that Carly is wearing. It wouldn’t be the first time. A while ago, I got the best sweater from Nasty Gal online and before I even had a chance to wear it, Britt showed up in the same one. Then I was afraid to wear it because I thought people would think I was just trying to copy her, when in reality, it was the other way around.

Maxie and Nathan – my favorite couple! Whoa. Maxie got a little close there too, with Jake’s real identify. Can Elizabeth do something with her hands other than wringing them? She’s been doing that for 2 days like she has OCD.

We end with Sonny being wheeled into surgery. And one more day that Jake doesn’t know who he is.

Below Deck

Don has decided to skip out mid-charter because he’s an engineer and would rather take his marbles and go home than admit he’s wrong. Idiot. Connie isn’t sad to see him go (me neither), but admits it leaves them short-handed.

I desperately want to get in that water. I did vacation in the Bahamas once. When I was 14 and had no appreciation for it. I only wanted to get back home to my friends. One of those sad ironies of life. I join Don in the idiot pool and wish I could have a do-over and spend a week there now.

Dean (the primary guest) wants the crew to have a “dive off” where the guests will score them and the prize is $500. If holding your nose and jumping off the boat counted, I’d be in. The crew dons costumes. Connie wears a shark tank suit and a tutu, which looks like one of my club outfits from the ‘80s. Captain Lee says, “There are no depths to which we won’t sink to get a good tip,” and I’m not sure if he’s making a pun or not. Although he does seem to have lightened up since last season.

Rocky reminds me of Audrey Landers from the original Dallas, except I like Audrey Landers. Rocky is one of those airhead girls who is desperate for attention that guys who don’t know any better will drool over and girls will roll their eyes at. We’ve all had one in our orbit at one time or another. They’re the ones who shamelessly flirt with your boyfriend and then don’t understand what they did wrong.

Kate doesn’t want to get her hair wet, so she wears a head to toe bright red…something.  She still gets an 8. Rocky is wearing a pink wig and is reminding me of Meghan Edmonds on Watch What Happens Live, making me like her even less. Everyone has a great time and it’s nice to see everyone getting along – crew and guests.

I think Kate has a crush on Dean. They’ve come a long way from that first charter. Time for the Greek party!

There’s an ad for a Cinderella movie I’ve never heard of. Helena Bonham Carter is the fairy godmother and it looks pretty good. Real Housewives of New York 100th Episode Special – this Thursday! An ad too, for Teresa “checking in” on RHONJ. That whole situation is just sad. They seem like obnoxious people – although the eldest daughter is turning out nicely – but I think the court wanted to make an example of them because they’re on TV and they were treated unfairly. I’ve watched them for so long, they’re like unbearable cousins that I have to tolerate on holidays. I don’t like them that much, but I don’t wish them ill either. Like I do you-know-who. Just kidding! Karma and all that.

OMG – Rocky has won the diving contest, although she had said she was a Junior Olympic diving champ some years ago. She also gets to be the mermaid. I’d be jealous of that – what girl hasn’t wanted to be, or at least see a mermaid? – but I don’t think I really want to wear one of those tails. It looks like it would be hot, as well as a real disadvantage when having to go to the bathroom.

Wow. The strawberry compote must be something. One of the guests is licking the glass it was served in.

Amy is trying to teach Rocky how to be a good stew. Good luck with that. Which is what I say when what I really mean is, all the luck in the world isn’t going to help you. Sure enough, Rocky sees that it’s work and can’t possibly.

The towline has become entangled in the propeller, so someone is going to have to dive down and get it off of there.  Eddie goes, because it’s kinda sorta his fault, since he should have been on top of whoever was supposed to be watching.

The tip is “20 large,” as Captain Lee puts it. Right now, everyone is glad Don skipped out. (It comes out to 2 grand each.) The Captain wants them all to stay in tonight because he wants the boat cleaned up and shipshape for the next charter. Emile asks the Captain if he and Rocky can go to dinner off the boat, and reminds me of asking my dad if I could go out on a date. Captain Lee gives them 2 hours, and says he wishes someone would take him out to dinner. I totally volunteer.

Uh-oh, Eddie is talking to his girlfriend and we all know that long distance relationships rarely work out.  It’s not good when every other word is an F-bomb and they’re not talking about doing it. Eddie ends up threatening to hang up, hangs up, and then throws the phone. Why does everyone always throw the phone? I decided to throw a plate once when I was angry, just to see what satisfaction it gives. All I got was a broken plate and a mess to clean up.

Emile gets super wasted – no nookie tonight! No eros on the Eros.

My Fab 40th

I’m watching this, but there isn’t much to say. You can’t really invest in the “characters” because it’s a one-shot deal. And it’s kind of like going to a shower. It’s great if it’s yours, but if not, they’d better have liquor.

Aug30

August 28, 2015 – GH & Bravo Bits

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What I Watched Today

(random, rambling thoughts on today’s TV)

 Ok, so I’m late.

The People’s Couch

A true dream job, being filmed watching TV with your friends and getting paid for it. What the blip happened to that show? It was so funny and I was starting to feel like I knew those people. Now they don’t call, they don’t write…

Friday’s General Hospital

Ok. Let’s take an informal poll. Who hasn’t been a visitor at the jail yet? Silas. Oh, that’s right, he’s dead. It was good of Morgan to break up with Ava “face to face,” but I’m not applauding too hard, since what was he going to do? Send her a text? Call her? Although they probably all have cell phones in that jail too.

All right, I’ll go see The Perfect Guy if they stop showing the commercial every 5 minutes. Isn’t there something they can do to rotate this stuff better? One time, a friend and I were watching The Brain That Wouldn’t Die, one of those hysterically funny because it’s bad horror films, and they showed the exact same commercials every single break through the entire movie. We almost called the station. It reminded me of the time another friend accidentally put a subway token in a bar jukebox and it played the flip side of what she’d selected (Cherchez la Femme) over and over and over, until another patron finally walked over and gave the jukebox a serious kick. Every time the song was done playing, we would stop talking, look at each other and wait. Then it would come on again and we would die laughing.

Back at the ranch Port Charles, Julian is proving that he’s totally useless. Um…once again being picky, but I’ve seen enough court shows to know that they don’t allow litigants to wander around the courtroom (Nina and several other people). This is one free-for-all of a town. I’m trying to figure out what Rick’s motive to kill Silas would be. I’m assuming, if this is the case, Silas knew about the plot to get Nina’s money, but how would Nathan come up with that? I’m waiting for Dillon to say, “I know! Let’s build a stage in the barn and put on a show!”

Oh yeah, Morgan, you need some medication — stat! Normally I wouldn’t say this, but listen to your father. Morgan makes me nervous just watching him. Sonny just said if he doesn’t take his meds, he turns into a wrecking ball who hurts everyone he loves. I’m not sure he’s the greatest example, since he’s not much better when he’s on the medication. Hey, how’d Rick the weasel get sprung? And isn’t there some kind of conflict of interest here? Not that it’s ever stopped anyone before. Too bad this is network daytime. I would have liked to see Nina give Madeline and Rick the finger on her way out of the courtroom.

Where’s young Spencer these days? He’s one of the few children I really love watching. Unlike those kids who are obviously just looking for their cues, he’s actually talented. I predict a great future in show biz for him, or at least in sales.

And I don’t know about you, but why would any woman want to have a relationship with a guy who’d hooked up with her mother? Ewww! I would never be able to get that mental picture out of my mind. Although Morgan’s haircut is now getting to the point where I want to rub his fuzzy head.

Oh ho! Now Madeline is on the suspect list. Did everyone come to visit Silas that day? Might as well throw in Alice.

Random Bravo-ity

I was flipping around here, since my town was being shown on What Would You Do? at the same time.  Tonight, Bravo had a bunch of half hour bits to promote their Real Housewives Awards, with categories like Best Supporting Agitator and Realest Reconciliation. This is a better ploy to milk the shows than saying it’s “lost footage.” I’m glad they stopped with that. “Lost” makes it sound like either they’re imbeciles who can’t keep track of their work or they think I’m stupid because I believe they suddenly found something attached to what we just saw.

While there was a little extra we hadn’t seen before, it was mostly classic clips, like The Real Housewives of Atlanta’s therapy session. I guess Nene thought Dr. Jeff was going to put her on some kind of pedestal and absolve her of all wrongdoing, and when that didn’t happen, she ran. I almost need therapy after watching her all season. She’s a true example of fame going to your head. Man, she got mean! Was her tagline really, “Why be so nasty and so rude, when I can be so fierce and so successful?” What happened? Someone send her a dictionary so she can understand what she said.

Rosie from the Jersey Wives! I love Rosie! Give her all the awards!

If they had an award for Stupidest Housewife, it would probably go to Portia. I don’t even know any children who think the Underground Railroad is an actual railroad. And her grandfather is the late civil rights activist, Hosea Williams. Not only was she not paying attention in school, she wasn’t paying attention at home either. And of course there was that reunion incident with Kenya. Stupid and violent is not a good look.

I never thought I’d see Kenya Moore become the voice of reason, so maybe I haven’t seen it all. You sort of form relationships with these people (albeit from a distance) after watching them for years, and I was proud of Kenya when she stopped playing to the camera so much, and started acting like a real human being. She was truly “Gone with the Wind fabulous” this season.  I was glad to that she got past that Apollo nonsense with Phaedra too…sort of. Although Kenya was out of line in the beginning, flirting with Apollo at the pool, she honestly doesn’t strike me as the type to go after another woman’s husband. Although I wouldn’t trust Apollo as far as I could throw him. As a result, Phaedra seemed to latch onto Kenya as a receptacle for her problems with Apollo. But we all know where he ended up.

And it ain’t the jail in Port Charles.