Years ago, before I quit work to stay home with my children, I was employed at a successful food broker in the accounting department. We had two lunch shifts and always commandeered the conference room rather than the eat-in kitchen because the conference room had a television. The early lunch shift would go at noon and watch a half hour of local news followed by Loving, which was later replaced by The City. The second lunch shift would watch All My Children.
As a newbie, I was assigned the early lunch shift, so I watched Loving. At the time, my life was all about juggling marriage and a career with a newborn son, so the Internet was the furthest thing from my mind. Subsequently, I was completely spoiler-free. I had heard that Loving was going to be replaced with The City, but beyond that I knew nothing, so you can imagine my surprise when I sat down one afternoon to nibble on my sandwich in the conference room and saw a main character of a soap that I had grown to love suddenly and inexplicably killed off with a powder puff of all things.
My coworkers and I were instantly riveted, especially as the weeks unfolded and key characters continued to fall like dominos. Word spread like wildfire around the office, and slowly people started taking lunch earlier and earlier. Everyone was desperate to know who the Corinth killer was.
Fast-forward eighteen years to Holly Sutton picking up a picture of Gwyneth Alden in a dusty abandoned house as Holly and Luke talked about Corinth and the Loving Murders. It was a completely unexpected trip down memory lane, rather like finding a long-forgotten photo album hidden in the back of your closet. For those of you who might not know, Gwyneth Alden was the long-suffering matriarch of a wealthy family who had ultimately killed her entire family and a slew of friends in a twisted desire to spare them additional emotional pain. The pictures that we saw on the bookcase were of Cabot Alden and Gwyneth's daughter, Trisha.
What makes this twist truly interesting is that it isn't just a cheap stunt to give Loving a shout-out. Cesar does indeed have ties to Corinth because he lived in the sleepy little town in 1993 during the time that he had been presumed killed in the boat explosion that had also supposedly killed Anna and Robert.
As an aside, Tracy also has a connection to Corinth, although it's tenuous. Tracy moved into the SoHo apartment building where several ex-Corinth residents had migrated after they left Corinth. It was during this time that Tracy married Gino Soleito and used his money to replenish ELQ's coffers.
I love Ron's nod to the history of General Hospital's characters but also to soaps as a whole. He really is a fan, and it shows.
Naturally, Liesl Obrecht immediately scurried to Cesar's go-to hideout in Corinth when Anna closed in on her. Too bad for Liesl that Luke and Holly had tracked Jerry to the Alden mansion, so Luke and Holly were waiting when Liesl arrived.
Liesl denied that she had the cure and she lied about Jerry Jacks being dead since earlier in the week she had muttered to herself that Jerry had Robin.
It's highly unlikely that Jerry or Robin will be hidden in that secret passageway because that would be way too easy, so my money is on Laura. We haven't heard a peep from her since she set out to search for Luke. However, Liesl Westbourne-Obrecht's cryptic remark that some doors shouldn't be opened does give me pause. What if it's Helena? It's a well- known fact that Cassadines are hard to kill.
Another person who is hard to kill is Duke. It took nearly losing him again for Anna to realize that she really does love Duke, more than ever. And why not? Duke is not only patient, understanding, and downright sweet and charming, but there's also an edge of the forbidden to him. Plus, he tangos like a pro. It's a combination that makes him completely irresistible to a woman like Anna who thrives on danger and lives for adventure and excitement.
Anna is on a mission to find the evil Dr. Obrecht, and nothing will stop Anna, not even a woman who's so pregnant that it wouldn't surprise me if she gave birth on the ride to the police station.
I concede that they've made an attempt to paint Britt in a more sympathetic light, but Spinelli made an excellent point this week when he reminded Felix that having rotten parents doesn't mean it's okay for someone to do terrible things. Britt knew right from wrong when she made the choices she made.
I appreciate that Britt loves her mother and wants to protect Mommy Dearest, but I haven't forgotten that Britt did a lot of horrible things that she hasn't come even close to making amends for. In fact, she's still lying to Patrick about the baby by allowing him to fall in love with a child that isn't his. Then there is Emma.
I know Emma isn't thrilled about the baby and has been a brat to Britt, but Emma is a little girl. A very smart little girl. She sees Britt for who she is, so I really don't have a problem with Emma being disrespectful to Britt. Emma is a sweet little girl to everyone else, so clearly it's Britt, not Emma. As for how Emma feels about a sibling, I get that too. My son cried when we brought his newborn sister home because she wasn't a boy. I don't think he truly accepted his sister until she was old enough play with him.
Back to Anna, I love seeing Anna in action and doing what she does best. For the longest time, the Port Charles police were so inept that they were a step below the Keystone Kops. I don't like seeing law enforcement made to look like idiots because in real life these men and women valiantly put their lives on the line every day to protect us. I'm happy that the balance has been restored and that the Port Charles police actually solve crimes and catch bad guys.
Speaking of bad guys, Richard Simmons returned to Port Charles and promptly crashed Mac and Felicia's wedding, which was held at the Floating Rib because apparently the garden at the Noodle Buddha was booked. Richard claimed that he had lost his mind when Demi Moore persuaded him to go on a liquid fast, but a stint in rehab had set him straight.
I'm pretty sure that Richard's heartfelt apology was the first step to wheedling his way into working for Deception when Lucy and Laura launch their new business, but Richard's ulterior motives aside, I was happy that his interruption didn't stop Mac and Felicia from getting married.
Meanwhile, Sonny's relationship with Connie is in crisis because he can't get over Connie's betrayal. He doesn't care that she did it to save her career or that it was completely wrong of him to help one son deceive another. All Sonny sees is Connie's betrayal and Olivia's steadfast loyalty.
As I listened to Sonny's endless tirades about Connie's selfishness and backstabbing ways, I started to wonder why Sonny gets to put his career first, but no one else is allowed to do the same. Women have paid with their lives to be a part of Sonny's world, and their children have been hurt, maimed, and worse. What exactly has Sonny given up for his family? Nothing.
Olivia is a perfect example of how women twist themselves into pretzels to fit into Sonny's life. She threw herself at the altar of Sonny by lamenting over how foolish she had been to step aside for Connie instead of fighting for Sonny. It just completely turned me off. It's not because I'm invested in Sonny and Connie, because I'm not. I know that Kelly Sullivan is leaving the show, so it's pointless to expect Sonny and Connie to have a happily ever after. However, I don't want Sonny and Olivia to end up together at the expense of Connie.
The heavy-handed writing for Sonny and Olivia is making everything feel a bit forced and slightly desperate. I don't know why it's suddenly necessary to suggest that Olivia is the only person who has ever truly known Sonny, who recognizes the look in his dark glittering eyes, and who is someone who would never betray him.
Sonny asked Connie to make a sacrifice that he would have never made himself. It's as if he had set her up to fail because he didn't have the courage to admit that he had moved on with Olivia. Love doesn't always have to be this end-all and be-all explosion of passion. Sometimes love comes softly. That's what I wanted for Sonny and Olivia. It started out that way, but then took an ugly turn a few weeks ago.
Another ugly turn was Michael discovering that Kiki had married Morgan. I really hope Michael is ready to wash that Kiki right out of his hair because that girl doesn't deserve him or Morgan.
I loathe Morgan, so I don't really care if he gets his heart broken, but it doesn't mean that it's okay for Kiki to marry a guy she obviously doesn't love, especially when she's in love with that guy's brother. Yes, Morgan lied to her, but she lied to Morgan, too, so they are equally guilty.
Michael's hands aren't clean either, because he went to the courthouse to stop his brother's wedding, not because he suspected that Morgan had lied to Kiki but because he wanted Kiki to know that they were free to be together, since that pesky cousin thing was no longer an issue.
Hopefully, Michael will focus his energies on ELQ business because I have a feeling that things are about to hit the fan now that Tracy has unwittingly thrown the doors wide open for organized crime to get a foothold in Edward's legacy. Poor Tracy is going to have a whole lot of egg on her face very soon, so she better make nice with her nephews if she knows what's good for her.
I'm still on the fence about Julian, but I confess that my crush on William deVry is growing by leaps and bounds. I know Julian is supposed to be a bad guy, but there's something about him that seems almost vulnerable and kind. His decision to be tested as a possible bone marrow donor for Danny is a perfect example.
Several readers emailed to remind me that Julian not only has a daughter, Sam, but also a son, Lucas, who was adopted by Bobbie Spencer. I realized that this would be the perfect opportunity to reintroduce Lucas, but then it hit me that poor Lucas might get caught in a tug of war between his sisters, Carly and Sam, so he's probably better off right where he is.
A few things that tickled my fancy
(During Mac and Felicia's party, Lucy describes Dr. Obrecht to Anna)
Lucy: "This -- this kind of strange woman with blonde hair. She was wearing tinted glasses and she was singing that depressing, kind of inappropriate, dark song."
(Dr. Obrecht suggests that Britt name the baby after Cesar)
Britt: "Cesar? Are you kidding? You want me to call my son Cesar?"
Dr. Obrecht: "I insist. It's a marvelous tribute to your father."
(Maxie overhears Felix and Spinelli talking about Britt and destiny)
Maxie: "What are you guys talking about?"
Spinelli: "Just discussing..."
Felix: "Spinelli's last fortune cookie."
Spinelli: "It was most insightful."
Maxie: "You guys were talking about Game of Thrones again, weren't you? Am I the only one not watching that nerd-fest?"
(Holly and Luke discuss the secret door they found behind a bookcase)
Luke: "Somebody went to great pains to hide that spider hole."
Holly: "I wonder who?"
Luke: "My guess is Jerry Jacks, in the conservatory, with the cure."
(Maxie is furious when Richard Simmons crashes Mac and Felicia's wedding)
Maxie: "That's it. You and your tragic accessories will not be ruining my parents' wedding."
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Until next time, dear readers, take care.
Liz Masters
