Monica should really consider putting a warning sign for pregnant women at the bottom of her staircase, urging them to proceed with caution. In fact, doctors all over Port Charles should ban expectant mothers from going near stairs altogether because no good has ever come of a pregnant mama and a staircase in that town. Ever.
That said, I doubt that Nelle will lose the baby -- not while Maxie is still walking around swollen with child. I refuse to believe that it's mere coincidence that both Maxie and Nelle are expecting and that both babies are due around the same time. Also, neither mother knows the gender of the baby. I'm certain that these things are significant.
However, back to Nelle's baby shower from hell. Let's rewind a bit to earlier in the week when Nelle (whom I'm starting to think of as Heather 2.0) gave Ava a glimmer of her true colors by strong-arming Ava into attending the baby shower with Avery. Ava warned Nelle not to let any of Nelle's shenanigans affect Avery, but I'm not certain why Ava accepted the assurance of a woman who was capable of turning on her only ally. To me, that's a sign that Nelle is way past the point of no return -- and rational thinking.
If there was any doubt that no one likes Nelle, her guest list for the shower underscored it. Basically, there were six guests, and only two of them considered Nelle a friend. One was a teenage girl, and the other I'm certain is being scammed by the guest of honor. The Quartermaines are practically royalty in Port Charles, and Olivia is married to the mayor, so where were all the fancy friends and one-percenters?
There were so many things strange about the baby shower, but the things that stood out the most were Nelle's crazy eyes and the maniacal grin she was sporting throughout the party. How did anyone not notice? At times, it was like Nelle was auditioning for Jack Nicholson's role in The Shining.
I also found Josslyn's defense of Nelle somewhat baffling because it's so clear that Nelle is constantly baiting Carly. I don't understand Josslyn's lack of loyalty toward her mother. True, Nelle gave Josslyn a kidney, but Carly gave Joss life. How can she not see Nelle's cruelty in offering to name her child after the son whose death Nelle exploited? Also, Michael made it clear that he was not keen on the idea. Instead of defending Nelle, Josslyn should be asking why Nelle keeps raising the issue.
Josslyn truly is her mother's daughter because she hears and sees what she wants to, whether it's based in reality or not. In Nelle's case, nothing she says is based in reality.
I have no doubt that, come Monday, Nelle will do her best to paint Carly as a homicidal lunatic. It won't be difficult because several witnessed Carly lashing out at Nelle during the party, and everyone had a front row seat to Carly flipping her lid when she saw the penguin mobile. No one, except Ava, realized that Carly had played right into Nelle's hand, but that might be moot because Nelle might have overplayed her hand with the baby blanket.
Nelle might have been able to pass the blanket off as a coincidence if she had bought it, but since it was handmade and an exact replica of Morgan's baby blanket, it will be enough to give Carly's accusations that Nelle has been gaslighting her some credence. After all, Nelle worked as Carly's assistant, so she had ample opportunity to make a copy of Carly's office keys. Additionally, Nelle was well aware of the lack of security cameras around Carly's office. Now that Jason knows who to look for, I'm quite sure he will find security footage to prove that Nelle was at the hotel around the time that Carly found the scarf and the menu with the disappearing message.
Nelle also made the fatal mistake of showing her weakness to Carly when she mentioned that she resented how Carly had thrown Nelle's nervous breakdown in her face. Mark my words, Carly will use that nugget to her advantage. The closer Nelle gets to her due date, the more tenuous her grip on sanity becomes, so it's only a matter of time before everything blows up in her face. I can't wait. I haven't despised someone with this much relish since Claudia Zacchara.
Moving on, Drew and Sam sat down to make some decisions about their marriage. Not surprisingly, they opted to end it, since it's clear that Sam is no longer in love with Drew. Later, Drew ran into Jason at Volonino's, and they had a civil discussion. And by that, I mean that it didn't end up in a bloody fistfight, which is progress. Meanwhile, Sam threw on a bright blue dress then embarked on uncovering the truth about Peter August.
At first, I was impressed with everyone's maturity then I remembered that I'm watching a soap opera, and I became annoyed.
Where's Drew's hurt over what Sam did? Why isn't he concerned about Scout being exposed to mom's new boyfriend, the mob enforcer? And don't get me started on Sam sending the kids home with Alexis to embark on a fun little caper with Jason and Spinelli. How can Drew not call Sam out on her whack priorities?
I'm disappointed that Drew and Sam ended with a fizzle and a whimper. I've lost so much respect for Sam because she put Drew and her children through so much unnecessary pain then doesn't pay any price for it. At the very least, Sam should be focused on helping her children adjust to a new normal rather than chasing after Peter's past.
The only reason that Sam is interested in Peter is because she thinks he might be connected Henrik, which will help Jason. And just like that, Jason's ride-or-die chick is back in action.
Will Sam find Henrik before Anna? I hope not, because I don't want Jasam (Jason and Sam) hijacking Anna's story and it being used as a vehicle to reunite them. I want the focus to be on Anna, Peter/Henrik -- and the role that Valentin played in Peter's fate. Did he truly give a child to a nut like Faison to raise?
If so, I have to imagine that Valentin has deep regrets. I've seen a twinkle of genuine affection for Peter in Valentin's eyes, so I refuse to believe that he isn't haunted by Peter's childhood. It's time for answers, so I hope there's significant movement in this storyline now that Anna has reached out to Peter and warned him not to trust Valentin. Did Anna suspect that Valentin was in contact with Henrik when she spoke to him at Metro Court? Why else warn Henrik?
Valentin is a like a hamster on the wheel, running ever faster, trying to get ahead of everything, yet going absolutely nowhere. He's lying to everyone and risking everything to keep his secrets. He has to know that it's a losing battle because a secret is only a secret as long as no one else knows. In Henrik's case, everyone knows of his existence, and nothing short of finding him is going to stop the hordes of people from hunting him down.
Drugging and stashing the current head of the WSB is only buying Valentin time, and not very much at that because Robert will be missed sooner rather than later.
If I was a betting woman, I'd say the 2018 Nurses Ball is gearing up to be quite eventful this year.
Across town, Sonny got the shock of his life when Mike overheard Sonny and Max chatting about the body that Sonny buried decades earlier. Mike suddenly recalled that he'd heard of a construction project slated to break ground right where Sonny buried a guy he'd offed, along with the incriminating murder weapon. When Sonny shared his predicament with Jason, Jason suggested a road trip.
And so began Sonny & Jason's Excellent Adventure. The two best buds raced to the killing field, cut some fence wire, and went to work shoveling. After a few feet of digging, they took a short break to reminisce about the past, gaze up at the stars, and discuss their hopes and dreams (truthful hyperbole) then resumed their grisly task, only to discover that the body was gone, and all that had been left behind was a large tacky money clip.
Who moved the body? I think it was Mike. Perhaps Mike got wind of what Sonny was about to do, arrived too late to stop him, then followed his son to the field. Maybe hearing about the construction project triggered the first part of Mike's memory, but the rest remains lost in the fog, along with the memories of how Mike knew other deeply personal things about Sonny's life that Sonny had never realized.
It's unlikely that an enemy would be responsible for the body's disappearance because any evidence recovered from the grave couldn't be used against Sonny at this juncture. Diane could easily argue that the evidence had been planted by whoever dug up the body.
Sonny isn't the only son having issues with his father. Finn, we've recently learned, also had a strained relationship with his pops. The nature of the estrangement remains unclear. Even Chase is in the dark about why Finn wants nothing to do with their father or their family.
My first guess was that it had something to do with Chase's mother. Finn doesn't strike me as the type to be so shallow as to harbor a decades-long grudge because his dad moved on too quickly after Finn's mother died, so it has to be something deeper than that. We know that there's a considerable age gap between Finn and Chase, which made me wonder if perhaps Finn might have harbored feelings for his stepmother. However, I can't see Finn not forgiving his father, especially after Finn met and fell in love with Reiko.
Plus, Finn also fell in love with Hayden, and he's currently half in love with Anna and having a fling with Alexis. Clearly, he's over whatever torch he might have been carrying for his stepmother, which means whatever happened between Finn and his father likely stems from Finn's mother's death.
I admit, I'm intrigued.
Is Alexis the right person for Finn to share his secrets with? I'm not sure. I know she means well, but she is a recovering addict like Finn. What if one of the reasons that Finn preferred his addictive treatment was connected to why he left home and refuses to speak to his father? If that's the case, then it stands to reason that Finn's sobriety might be in jeopardy, which means that Alexis might be out of her depth as his friend, lover, and sponsor. She can't be all three, especially if what he needs most is a sponsor with objectivity.
I'm surprised that Alexis didn't urge Finn to talk to a professional about his father. She should be reminding him that an important component of continued sobriety is good mental health. Finn's past isn't going to go away as long as Chase lives in Port Charles and is eager to have a relationship with his brother. And obviously whatever caused the rift between Finn and his father is deeply troubling because it's affecting Finn's relationship with his own brother.
That brings me to Griffin and his deteriorating relationship with Ava.
Griffin is in a snit because Ava was willing to use Mike's situation to secure a reasonable custody arrangement that finally gives her time with Avery. Griffin understands Ava's motivation, but he can't get over the fact that Ava was prepared to send a man with Alzheimer's to prison for "an accident."
I'm shocked that everyone acts like Mike didn't do anything wrong just because Avery was found safe and sound. What if Avery had been stomped to death by one of the horses when she and Mike had spent the night in the stall? What if Mike forgot that she was with him and she had wandered into the street and been hit by a car? What if Mike had lost her and a predator had found her? Would they all still feel that Mike wandering off with Avery had been an accident?
Ava had every right to be furious. Doubly so because no one else seemed to appreciate the severity of Mike's actions, Griffin's argument that Ava was willing to sacrifice Mike's freedom doesn't hold water for two reasons. First, Sonny would never have let Mike go to jail. Second, Ava knew that.
I suspect that Griffin's feelings for Ava are waning because part of what drew him to Ava was her need for salvation. Now that she's healed, no longer in the mob, and running a successful and legitimate gallery, she no longer needs to be saved.
Mind you, I don't think this makes Griffin a bad guy. He's not. He's just someone who lacks experience with women and relationships because he was raised by a religious fanatic and took refuge in the church at a very young age. Griffin and Ava helped each other through difficult transitional periods, but I think they are fundamentally too different to go the distance.
Does anyone else find it odd that Carly takes a drink then pops a pill instead of the other way around? She did it repeatedly like that. I would choke to death if I tried to take a pill that way.
Speaking of drinks, nothing about the coffee drinks that Julian and Kim were sipping on at the hospital looked appealing. At least top it off with some whipped cream, cinnamon, and a fancy lid. Remember, calories don't exist in soap opera land.
My favorite line this week was Maxie announcing that she was not afraid of Erica Kane. The AMC fangirl in me squealed with joy. I would love to see Erica Kane make an appearance on GH.
Funniest moment this week was when Bobbie gave Nelle a map at the baby shower, so the baby would always know how to find great-grandma Bobbie. Best. Gift. Ever. I'm still laughing.
The whole Sonny and Ava is obnoxiously old. Everyone forgets how many people have been shot or murdered by Sonny, but remember that one time Ava shot someone? News flash, they're both criminals whose loved ones suffered all the time because of their selfishness. Sonny is just as bad as Ava. -- Meghan Patricia
When Michael was talking to Nelle about Ava, he said a mouthful that goes a long way toward explaining how his screwed-up childhood as the son of a pathological liar, and the stepson of a sociopathic, bipolar mob boss has totally skewed his perspective on morality, and twisted his perception of what is right, and what is wrong. Michael: "My view of Ava is that she's a criminal and a killer, but I know that someone can be both those things, and still want the best for their child." -- Scrimmage
Here's the thing -- Sam did not change because Drew asked her to, when he "thought" he was Jason he did everything because it was what Sam wanted, or at least inferred that she wanted. Yes, he bought Aurora, but it was as a means to appease her after she had her cat crap disease [Toxoplasmosis] & tried to kill Sonny. This is a major problem that I have with this storyline. -- Sybil Walton
Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. I love hearing from readers, so please feel free to email me or leave a comment below.
Take care and happy viewing,
Liz Masters
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