Franko

Forty years ago this weekend. Discuss.

If we could trust today's soaps to do it right, an Amy Tyler type of character is badly needed.

Week 21, Part III -- Conclusion Alan: "How dare you bring (Sean) into this house, Monica." Monica: "Ala .. it is my house, Alan!" Alan: "That I gave you!" Sean Swindles the Quartermaines: I can't possibly top the appraisal from GH fan Pxlbarrel. "Man, Stuart's got that crazed mad man look down pat." Alan's scary screaming at Monica and Sean reminded me of his Fourth of July outburst back in 1980. I imagine that Monica thought of that, the attic roof collapse, and Alan nearly shooting her and Rick dead when she told Sean about Alan looking like he could have killed them both. Prior to this scene, which really should have concluded Friday's episode instead of the usual Laurelton junk, none of the adult Quartermaines have that great of a day. A.J. and Jason have just been sent to camp before Alan got to say goodbye to them. Jimmy Lee's occupied with Buzz. Monica files for divorce from Alan. Alan, Edward, and Lila, plus Stella, take that as their cue to exit. Throughout this storyline, I've had the most sympathy for Monica. She's dealing with the impact from and consequences of losing her family. It's genuinely heartbreaking watching Monica beg Lila not to leave. I'm torn between whether it was effective to have that moment and the later one of Monica alone in her living room be as brief as they were, or if the show should have lingered with both. Edward, on Kelly's: "It certainly is, uh, rustic." Lila: "Edward's a great fan of local color." Ruby: "Well, we're just wallowing in local color." Edward: "Yes, wallowing is the right word." We'll see how I feel as the weeks go by, but right now, I'm fond of having the Qs and Stella at Kelly's. As funny as David Lewis is on Friday, Norma Connolly did the better job in selling the comedy. Watch Ruby's evolution from disbelief to delight in having four ex-mansion residents as her boarders. It helps that Ruby's not snide about the reversal of fortune. And hooray for Edward, finally getting some good coffee. Actually, it's more than good. It's "the most fabulous cup of coffee in the world." Alan: "I never realized that being thrown out of my own home would entail me sleeping in the same room with you." Edward: "... Well, at least you don't have to worry about me divorcing you." Back at the mansion, Sean's attempt to gift Monica some furs and jewelry goes over like a lead balloon. Monica refuses to just blindly accept the loot and Sean's lies about it. He may say the Qs are just too greedy for their own good, but ... Monica: "You draw the line at how much money you make, not how you make it, right?" It's a race between the milk in my fridge and this relationship as to which one's going to expire first. Honeymoon roleplaying isn't going to stop the inevitable.

Week 21, Part II Mike: "Mom ... Is this the way it's gonna be all the time, you being sarcastic because my dad just bought a mansion and he's gonna have stables an indoor-outdoor swimming pool, and he's gonna buy scuba gear for me, for me to practice? Are you gonna say no to all that?" -- This line cracked me up. It's Mike's version of Navin Johnson's letter home. Mike's Parentage: It's nice of GH to spare part of a day, Wednesday, for Chris, Judith, David, Mark, and Shelley. Actually, thanks to Buzz Gets Brained, Chris and Shelley get to appear in Thursday's episode, too. Anyway, Derek, Lorena, and Mike return from Atlantic City, and Lorena manages to keep Mike from immediately getting resettled. There's so much that needs to be done at Derek and Lorena's new place. Over at GH, Derek shuts Amanda down when she mentions his illegitimate son. "My son. Period ..." Amanda's not okay with Lorena marrying into the Barringtons, and I wish I was versed enough in Port Charles to get an idea of how the next nearly 20 years played out offscreen among Amanda, Derek, Lorena, Mike, and Alison's family. I have a similar curiosity about the Port Charles Quartermaines vs. the Southampton Quartermaines, but at least that one will be explored in 1987. I looked ahead and saw that Monica and Lorena will have at least one more head-to-head before the latter is gone for good. Before that, Monica lets anyone who will listen (Amanda, Rick, and Bobbie) know that she disavows Lorena. Back at the Webbers', Ginny babysits Robin. Unless I'm wrong, this marks the first and possibly last time that Kimberly McCullough and David Mendenhall will share screen time together. I bring it up for two reasons. A while back, I imagined what would have happened if GH hadn't over-SORASed A.J. and instead had him fight with Mike over Robin, as a redo of Alan/Monica/Rick. The second thing is that back when Jeff was around, Mike claimed Anna was best friends with Rick and Ginny. That line seemed odd then, and it seems odd now. I guess it would have happened thanks to Anna being close to Buzz. Anyway, the clock's ticking for all of the players in this storyline. Lorena's got less than three weeks left, Mike won't be that far behind her, Derek's gone by Labor Day, and Rick & Ginny are out around Thanksgiving. Buzz Gets Brained: Rick and Tony notice that Buzz seems to be dependent on his painkillers. Jimmy Lee, then Buzz, are defensive over this. Jimmy Lee also lets Lorena know that Derek was tricked into buying his new mansion, and that he (JL) is still single. There's no mention this week of Sandy. If I had to estimate, this all took up maybe a fifth of Thursday's episode. Spare thoughts: -- There's a little bit of Hospital Happenings this week. Like I mentioned earlier, Tuesday's episode includes Bryan taking heat from an offscreen Steve over the incident of Lucy being caught getting a call from Kevin. Rewatching the scene, I also see that Bryan referred to himself as a doctor, which I think was a typo or a continuity error. Either that, or Bryan has a doctorate in social work. I still think Bryan should be the hospital administrator, leading board meetings with the likes of Edward and Amanda. Speaking of Edward, he wraps up the HH portion on Wednesday by complaining about the Laurelton-related, barely a staff shortage. -- I got a kick out of that slightly modified Pepsi can Mike's drinking from, and an even bigger one from Robin mentioning how Anna and Filomena would take her to Fire Island. Atlantic City pales in comparison! I'll wrap things up in a little bit with Sean Swindles the Quartermaines.

Well, don't mind if I do! (And thank you!) The Decline and Fall of the Monty Empire Week 21 (May 19-23, 1986) -- Part I Felicia: "Lucy, I know how much you love Kevin. And I just want to let you know I love Frisco just as much. So you can get some idea of how worried I am." Lucy: "Well, get used to being worried, Felicia. That's the price you have to pay for being in love with one of The Hardy Boys." Laurelton: I'm going to try something different this week, at least with this portion of the commentary. What I Like, What I Dislike, and What I'm Okay With. I Dislike how blatant the stalling is. The first half of Monday's episode has plenty of filler until Kevin and Frisco have their underwater fight. Unless you think it's important to see Frisco be served his first chili dog. Friday's episode isn't much better. I began audibly groaning over the plausible yet downright trolling reasons why Anna and Jake couldn't catch up to the O'Connors. It wasn't enough that Terry, Kevin and Patrick had already checked out of their hotel, took a ferry to the mainland, and then took a plane to Seaview Sanitarium, which nobody but the trio knows they're going to. We also have Anna and Jake getting a flat tire, along with Santa Catalina's police chief coming from the other side of the island to reach them. I Liked Felicia learning about Kevin's true nature from Bobbie. Felicia's still testing my patience -- I also groaned when after nearly an episode of thinking Frisco up and left without a note to her, Felicia found his message -- but I do appreciate GH not glossing over how two of Kevin's strongest defenders were wrong. Pump that contrition into my veins! Felicia: "... I believed him." Bobbie: "Everybody believed him. He's a baby-faced murderer and everybody believed him, but it's absolutely true. You don't know what I went through, to try and get Jake to defend him." Felicia: "How can Anna be so sure about this?" Bobbie: "Felicia, it's true. Believe me." I'm Okay With the scuba sequences. I don't doubt that GH paid a pretty penny for them, and they're certainly pretty to look at. But they and the location shoot as a whole are in service of a storyline I've lost my patience with. I also think it they could have made it a little more clear that Kevin slammed Frisco into that rock, giving him a gash. Until it was confirmed that's what happened, I thought Frisco spent Tuesday trying to recover from decompression sickness. I'm Okay With Patrick being fooled by Kevin, who did a reasonably believable job in making it seem like Terry was trying to kill him and later, herself. I already know that Patrick's going to be back in Port Charles during this storyline's conclusion, which is a shame. It would be nice to get a final say on the brothers' relationship. I keep wondering if Kevin would have dared to eventually prey on Patrick. I Like Felicia not being hostile towards Samantha, and being hostile with Lucy. It was also funny how the blondes immediately clocked that Lucy was subtly flirting with an unresponsive Eric. Speaking of which, I'm just now clocking that Eric is played by Martin Hewitt from Endless Love. I'm Okay With the Santa Catalina Island folks not being deliberately obstructive to Frisco, Anna and Jake. They're only so helpful, but it's still a refreshing change of pace from the hicks in Laurelton. I'm not going to hold the scuba store clerk sending Anna and Jake on a wild goose chase against him. That was a combination of Kevin's trickery and Anna not immediately playing her police card. I HATE Terry not questioning how she could have killed Jennifer. I know that Terry's under a lot of mental strain, and she's being drugged, and Kevin's supposedly so effective as a trickster, but let's look at some facts. And GH, this is your fault for bringing up St. Patrick's Day last week, which made me remember things related to Jennifer's death. If Terry killed Jennifer, she would have had to have either done it before Jennifer went to the airport (which contradicts Red Flynn's account of having seen her there) or have gone to the airport herself to take care of Jennifer (and surely Red would have mentioned seeing Terry there; he could see her more clearly at the trial than when he was going off his memory of what Lucy looked like from behind). How would Terry have either gotten to the airport vicinity with a corpse, or from the airport with Jennifer, without having a car? Did Terry change out of her nightgown? If she didn't, she did a fine, fine job keeping her clothes clean while managing to stuff a dead body in a culvert. Driving while sleepwalking is possible, but at such a distance? My point is, I'm beyond ready for Terry to no longer buy Kevin's bull. I realized that last week was the last hurrah for Laurelton's town without pity schtick, and when I watched Thursday's episode, I hoped it would be the last time I'll see Terry freaking out. I Liked Frisco asking for Felicia once he regained consciousness. See, Princess, he does love you. I'm Okay With Sean using his WSB connections to help locate the O'Connors. Whatever gets this story to the finish line. Stray thoughts: -- Kudos to Jack Wagner for continuing the scene after what was clearly an unscripted fall in Monday's episode. -- Why is Felicia's student supplies store opening in late May? They might as well have had her operating GH's gift shop. -- Repeating myself, but they couldn't have given Guy Mack a slightly longer pair of swim trunks? -- Aside from Patrick and Terry, everyone at the Brownstone knows about Kevin. Tania finds out on Monday and Tony learns offscreen prior to Wednesday's episode. -- It's interesting that they chose "A View to a Kill" for what was on the radio when Kevin found out about Frisco surviving. The song was a year old. "Notorious" wouldn't come out until the fall of '86. -- It's not GH's fault, but seeing Terry write "I am a murderer, please help me!" in lipstick on the bathroom mirror just makes me think of Drag Race. Coming soon, thoughts on Sean Swindles the Qs, Mike's Parentage, and a little of Buzz Gets Brained. There wasn't anything else this week.

The uploads have jumped ahead of me. Luckily, I'm intending this week's commentary to be concise (famous last words). I'll have it up early tomorrow. If I had my way, the finale would have ... Happened in Laurelton Included Terry pursuing Kevin down Main Street Included Patrick Still culminated in Kevin falling to his death, but at the Purity Water plant

In lieu of the actual Bob and Jennifer scene, here's an excerpt from @saynotoursoap's synopsis. (Read the whole thing, it's wonderful, and a significant reason why I started hanging around these parts.) After their horrific argument, Bob was frantic to find Jen. He drove around the streets of Oakdale, and finally realizing she might have gone to Kim’s, he headed in that direction. Driving toward Kim’s, he spotted Jen in the distance walking alongside the street. He pulled over and ran after her. Catching up with her, they resumed their quarrel from earlier, with Jen becoming even more hysterical. She accused him of not loving her because of the baby. It had always been about the baby. He saw her as fat and ugly because of the life she was carrying inside of her and did not want her. She pulled away from him and ran out into the street directly in front of an oncoming car. This was actually a location sequence done outside the studio. Bob ran after her and shoved her out of the way only be struck by the car himself.

I still want them to do "He Plays the Violin" from 1776 at some point.

Heh ... I'll share a couple spare thoughts from my notes. I still need to see Thursday and Friday's episodes. Monica spends Wednesday's episode disavowing Lorena to Rick and Bobbie, and also Amanda. It's both sad that Monica and Lorena are estranged, and won't get the happily ever after that Jimmy Lee, Alan, and Edward get at the end of the year, and also pretty funny that Monica's so adamant about cutting her losses. The main GH thread's discussion about how the show hasn't done right by its black characters makes me wish Bryan had more to do. I think he's a patients advocate. Tuesday's episode has Bryan taking some heat from an offscreen Steve over the apparent scene caused when Lucy was caught getting that payphone call from Kevin. Nothing against Dan Rooney, but I started wishing Bryan was the new hospital administrator. Guy Mack is handsome, but I feel embarrassed on his behalf. Holy tan lines, Batman!

@slick jones, if you didn't already have this info., I'm 90% sure the Monday, May 19, 1986 episode of General Hospital has Pat Crawford Brown (Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, Sister Act, Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion) as the indignant Catalina Island tourist who briefly delays Frisco's investigation. I didn't recognize the actors playing the LAX counter guy, the sporting goods clerk, or the tourist office clerk.

Week 20 -- Part III -- Conclusion Frisco, to Robin: "Now, even though you know what your Mommie should do, she has to make up her own mind about it." Buzz Gets Brained: With Anna off searching for Kevin and Terry and Buzz on the mend, Robin takes the lead in keeping alive the pipe dream of an Anna-Buzz marriage. In Robin's defense, it's easy to misunderstand Anna's promise to Buzz, that once she returns to Port Charles, she'll never leave him. Robin asking Buzz if it's okay to call him "Daddy" triggers him. Buzz gets upset over his own little girl, and Jimmy Lee's surprised to know such a person exists. Later in Thursday's episode, after Robin's unintentionally laid a guilt trip on Anna, she gets her own feelings hurt when Frisco (non-harshly) points out that Anna's under a lot of pressure and now is not the time to talk about things like that. Robin and Frisco make up at Buzz's bedside with that sweet Jack & Kimberly scene, and Robin (thankfully) dials it down. Meanwhile, Jimmy Lee wants to know more about Buzz's daughter. I know that the character of Sandy Stryker won't matter in the long run, but she's certainly getting a good buildup. To his credit, Jimmy Lee takes Lorena and Derek's marriage (see below) in stride. Edward: "Now I know what King Lear went through. Only I'm not such a big fool. After all, Monica's only my daughter-in-law." Sean Swindles the Quartermaines: I cheated and saw that the Qs moving into Kelly's happens on Friday, May 23. This week, we've got Edward tricking Monica into thinking that Alan making her his insurance beneficiary is part of a scheme. (It is, but not in the way Edward and Monica think.) Monica takes the bait, gets mad, and keeps her lunch date with Sean in the sex den. Luckily for the lovers, it takes a while for Alan, Edward, and private eye Chuck Morrison to listen in, and the bug planted by Sean's caterer/Chuck's friend is hard to miss. Monica and Sean, who were having the G-rated fun of looking at vacation photos before they even knew they had an audience, get even more dull with an impromptu discussion on European architecture. Prior to this, Monica's still suspicious about how Sean can afford a fancy lunch while his business is at a supposed low ebb. Sean's also yet again not on the same page with Monica. Monica: "A-ha! So that's what I am. A dalliance. I'm an afternoon's delight when business is slow." Mike's Parentage: In other ill-conceived relationship news, Derek proposes to Lorena. Derek's honest: he likes Lorena, but is not in love with her. Mike's crazy about Lorena, though, and Derek wants to settle down and raise his son. Man, GH is ready to be done with Shelley Taylor Morgan. Lorena doesn't even get to have a scene to think things over. She quickly accepts the proposal and goes all-in on a whirlwind new family vacation to Atlantic City. "I'm not interested in the size of the ceremony, Derek. It's the results that count." I'm skeptical that Derek and Lorena managed to make it work -- Oh, if only Erika Slezak had played Lorena, who possessed Quartermaine family ties and a "Whatever happened to?" factor -- but in Barrington's defense, Rick and Ginny had a marriage, then love experience. Anyway, the time saved by Lorena quickly agreeing to marry Derek is eaten up by Rick and Ginny's initial refusal to let Mike go on the vacation. The Webbers cave, even after Lorena gives the game away about her and Derek's plans to woo Mike. Robin: "Have you ever been married?" Bobbie, in an exaggeratedly dismissive tone that made me laugh: "Yeah." Domestic/Relationship Roundup: Bobbie and Jake: While Jake's off with Anna, Bobbie babysits Robin, keeps Tony & Tania in the dark about what's going on, and considers her future. On Monday, Tony suggests that Bobbie and Jake eventually adopt. Bobbie loves the idea, but she's waiting for Jake to propose. Tony then suggests that Bobbie be the one to propose. She's thought about it, but she's not just maternal, she's sentimental. Bobbie wants Jake to get down on one knee. But if he doesn't do it, Bobbie will. This is all the more sweeter once you know what Tony's going to do three years later, and all the more bittersweet once you remember that the '90s have in store for Tony, Bobbie, and Robin. Tony and Tania: Aside from the above scene, plus Tania continuing speech therapy with Buzz, they don't have much to do this week. Still, I suppose it's better to be there as a source of strength and professionalism, like how Burt is leading the PCPD in the Frisco and Lucy scenes. Bryan and Claudia: Their storyline's mostly ignored this week, but Bryan and Debbie do contribute to the Lucy storyline. He's part of the scheme to keep Lucy at GH while Frisco searches her apartment, and Debbie's among the hospital people Lucy answers to. Bryan takes a call Tuesday from an offscreen Claudia, then asks Rick for advice about the possibly sick twins. Frisco and Felicia: More of the same. She's planning the wedding and he's distracted. Other notes: -- As an ex-rural newsman, I'm amused at the Laurelton paper having it both ways about the town hall demolition story. It's considered the "end of an era," but the story is relegated to below the fold and on the side. I guess any "real" excitement would come from the demo itself. -- Derek, Lorena and Mike will stay at a four-room suite in the Madison. Well, at least it wasn't Trump Plaza. -- We haven't seen Jade & Yank in a few weeks. These episodes originally aired the week that included what ended up being Tia Carrere's lone appearance on The A-Team. Things were more accomdating in 1987-88, when Lynn Herring, Finola Hughes, and Sam Behrens all appeared on L.A. Law.

Thanks, @slick jones. I had no idea Lynn Herring sported the buttoned-up librarian garb at least one more time post-1992. Also, I never realized until now that Bert Remsen has a slight resemblance to Jim O'Heir. If Adam Scott was still doing Greatest Events in Television History, he could do the original It's a Living intro.

Week 20 -- Part II Frisco, to Lucy: "Do you have any idea ... what happens to a pretty girl like you in prison?" Laurelton, the Frisco and Lucy stuff: That crude line aside, Jack Wagner is this week's MVP. It's mostly on the strength of his interactions opposite Lynn Herring, but Jack also has a nice scene with Kimberly McCullough. Anyway, Frisco's blinders are off after he finds Lucy's spare pair of sexy stockings. Wednesday through Friday is largely devoted to Frisco realizing that Terry and Kevin are on Santa Catalina Island, and along the way, we're presumably seeing a genuine version of Lucy being broken down by repeated questioning. I still don't believe everything Lucy told Frisco on Wednesday is true, but here's the highlights: Kevin used to come to the library all the time and talk to Lucy, who said he was the only one who ever seemed to notice her. "He, um, he made me feel attractive." Lucy claims Kevin was the first man she'd ever been in love with. Her love poetry was her own invention before Kevin folded it into his scheme. Kevin seduced Lucy, who was a virgin. Hands down, this is the item I disbelieve the most, but it's also worth remembering that in-universe, Lucy is only supposed to be roughly 23 years old. Kevin and Lucy having sex happened before he married Terry. Lucy didn't know that Kevin was planning to kill Jennifer, and only found out after it happened. This one's crucial, because if Lucy did know in advance, it would have been a lot tougher to keep her around. On March 16, Kevin called Lucy late at night (it makes sense; he and the other Brownstone folks spent hours waiting for Jennifer and Terry to show up at the Port Charles Hotel) and told her to wear her racy clothing the next morning at the airport. Lucy was really excited about this, thinking Kevin was going to take her away. At the airport, Kevin directed Lucy to tell Jennifer that Terry was ill and that Jennifer needed to immediately reach her. Kevin also switched cars with Lucy, who believed she was taking part in a practical joke. Once Lucy learned about Jennifer's body being found, she panicked and wanted to get away. According to Lucy, Kevin threatened to kill her if she didn't follow his orders. This doesn't jibe with how they interacted on May 1, when Lucy was the confident one and Kevin had anxiety. Lucy also says she only briefly believed Kevin's murder threat. Kevin claimed he had to kill Jennifer so that he and Lucy would have enough money to go away together. Frisco wonders if Kevin indicated how he was going to get rid of Terry. Lucy assumed it would be with a divorce. Thursday's episode ends with Frisco busting Lucy when she gets a payphone call from Kevin, and Friday ends with him off to California. I've said it before, but I'm curious how Frisco and Lucy will interact after this storyline ends. Later this weekend, Sean Swindles the Quartermaines, the lead-up to Sandy Stryker, more fire for Mike's Parentage, and what will turn out to be retroactive Tony-Bobbie shipping.

The Decline and Fall of the Monty Empire Week 20 (May 12-16, 1986) -- Part I Jake: "You know, the real evil is Laurelton. ... A secret, brooding town, filled with horrible alliances." Anna: "Unholy alliances." Jake: "Even if Terry's not with Kevin, I worry about her being in the clutches of that town." Laurelton, the Kevin and Terry stuff: It's a little late in the game to play the Laurelton is evil, not necessarily its townsfolk, card. I'll be honest, though. I might have had more tolerance for this storyline if if was more consistent and apparent that we're dealing with an ersatz Collinsport. Kevin's behavior this week, along with his parents and others' inability to think logically, only seems to make sense if there's some possession and bewitching going on. And that tattletale hotel waitress, reprising her trick of letting Sheriff Broder know Anna's in town, is clearly a disguised demon if ever I've seen one. I know I keep harping on over how things played out when Kevin killed Earl, but I want to go over how things apparently happened: Patrick was last seen at his and Terry's motel room. I don't recall the show explaining what he did after calling for her to come back inside. You would think Patrick would maybe have gotten dressed and tried to stop her sobbing, naked traveling to town hall. At town hall's meeting room, a relatively small, open space, there was a meeting of the Purity Water board. People in attendance included Earl, Jennifer, Ted, Tim and Kathleen, Sheriff Broder, Sarah, and Kevin. It appears that Kevin was secretly there, as none of the older folks mentioned seeing him. The meeting was interrupted by the lights going out. Either directly before or after that, there was an argument between two people, presumably Kevin and Earl. This is what Terry heard when she was at town hall's doors. It's unclear whether anyone else heard this specific argument. You would think they would be able to recognize two very distinct voices, especially if one was coming from the only teenage guy in the vicinity. Everyone except for Kevin and Earl remained seated, despite there being a power situation to take care of, someone coming in from outside, and a murder going on. There's no indication that the bystanders were impaired aside from the lights being out. No hypnosis, paralysis, etc. Kevin killed Earl, doing so in plain view of Terry, then apparently got the hell out of there. Before the lights were back on, Jennifer was the first one to find the corpse and her granddaughter. Whether or not she believed Terry committed murder, Jennifer's immediate priority was to get the body out of there before Terry fully came to. Jennifer and company, now all milling about, took Earl's corpse. It was buried in burlap in an unmarked grave. Terry got banished from Laurelton on Feb. 15, 1983. Patrick would soon be punished for his role in Terry's drunken experience. Jennifer wouldn't allow an investigation into the murder. Along with the lurid and not fully explained situation of Terry's naked traveling, misinformation became accepted as fact, regardless of whether it was logically sound. I was initially hard on Tim telling Kathleen that they'll never, ever know who killed Earl, and later Kevin claiming that a stranger did it, but I guess it makes sense if you figure that his parents didn't know Kevin was there. When you write it all down, it really illustrates how much this storyline depended on everyone holding the idiot ball. I want to be impressed by the four-minute sequence in Monday's episode where Kevin convinces Terry that she hallucinated her memory, and later on Friday, when he convinces her that she's the murderer and her hallucinations have been coming from a guilty conscience. But I can't see it as a matter of Kevin being clever or persuasive. Rather, it's Terry being a moron. Anna and Jake spent the week so close to yet so far from Kevin and Terry. Monday ends with the pairs literally just missing one another at separate airport gates. After that, Kevin Bernhardt and Robyn Bernard get a few days off while Finola Hughes and Sam Behrens do some investigation acting. It's things like insisting their flight's got to take off, looking at passenger lists, etc. I'm glad GH isn't ignoring the steps these professionals need to take, but it's boring compared to Frisco and Lucy's scenes back in Port Charles. By Friday, Kevin is drugging Terry (who would know the difference?), gotten her to sign a confession of Earl's murder, and has lured Patrick to Santa Catalina Island. Frisco, Anna, and Jake are also on the way. And we've got two more weeks until Kevin finally bites the dust. I forgot to add this exchange, which made me laugh: Kevin: "Okay, honey. You're all set. Write your confession. 'I am the killer.'" Terry, dazed: "Am I really?"

I agree. There's definitely a greater emphasis on the vibe as opposed to telling a logical storyline. I'm also wondering if there was some unfortunate last-minute rewriting or at least scrambling. I'll keep complaining about the dumb decision to have Earl Moody's murder take place more or less in front of several witnesses, which only ends up making me wonder why the mystery wasn't resolved immediately. Anna being solidified as GH's leading lady, plus Lucy's debut and Frisco's maturity, are the only things this story has going for it.

Thank you very much. Better late than never. If you have any questions or want to share some insight of your own, I'm all ears. Laurelton hasn't completely broken me, but I'm awful close to the edge. I'm glad I've only got two more weeks left, but annoyed that it's two more weeks. Buzz has been one of the big surprises in my viewing. Talk about a character who could have flourished during the Labine era. And yes, even though I grew up with Mary the good fairy-era Lila, I adore her when she's got bite. I wish GH had done more with Mrs. McCormack's death, but it was mostly there to further Laurelton and Sean/Monica/Alan. I guess the show will return to the topic of journalistic ethics next year with the Duke/Carmelia story. "Here" in 1986, I'm assuming the hospital won their lawsuit.

Much appreciated, @DRW50! The Gwyneth-focused promo at 25:40 is to die for!

A while back, I wondered how the story would have worked it if was about Bobbie's past, and that would still be my choice, but I can also see it working okay for Felicia. Having Mariah instead of Jennifer is just a no-brainer.

I'll give my usual exhaustive recap this weekend, but I need to vent for a moment. I've tried to keep an open mind with the Laurelton story. I've tried to either comprehend the story's logic or provide some of my own so that there's some sense to what's going on. What's got me throwing up my hands in exasperation is that Kevin killed Earl in a room with multiple people, all of whom were in close proximity to the murderer and his victim and none of whom were unconscious, hypnotized, or whatever, just unable to see when the lights went out. And yet none of these bozos will consider the logical solution that Kevin did it. They were willing to believe Terry did it while strung out, but then during the week of May 12, 1986, Tim O'Connor tells Kathleen that it must have been the work of a stranger who came in and quickly left. I could go along with this if the Laurelton folks had doubt, but they just don't. They cannot see what is right in front of them. The lead-up to Terry accidentally gassing herself was Robyn Bernard at her absolute limits as an actress. Kevin managing to convince Terry that her memory of him committing murder was just a hallucination is Kevin Bernhardt at his absolute limit. He's not outright terrible, but just doesn't have the necessary spark for someone who needs to convince you not to believe your own eyes.

Week 19, Part II -- Conclusion Monica, to Sean: "Well, the look on your face says (what you're happy about) has to either be something to do with finances, or adventure, or both." Sean Swindles the Quartermaines: It's two steps forward and three steps back for the Qs this week. On the plus side, Lila, Stella and Alan pull off the con of getting Derek to pay full price for the house that Alan shouldn't have bought. And on double coupon day, no less. Monica also agrees to Alan's request that she not kick him and his parents out until after A.J. and Jason leave for summer camp. The conversation also includes Alan letting Monica know that he's upped his insurance, you know, in case something happens to him ... Monica's setback is that Sean's not interested in marrying her. Sure, he couched it by reminding Monica of her reminders about Alan's violent temper, and how she needs to get custody of A.J., but the look on Monica's face says it all. Nevertheless, Monica still rides out Hurricane Annie with Sean in his office's sex den. They're having the party Bobbie wanted, minus the whole adultery thing. The Quartermaine men's setbacks include the medical ship that they partnered with Sean on getting bombed and sunk by terrorists. The SOD recap from this time indicates this was an attempt at ripped from the headlines drama. Anyway, the Qs have lost another fortune, Sean claims he's hurting, too, and Jimmy Lee has a hilariously awkward phone conversation with an offscreen Grant. I like to imagine that right after Grant got off with Jimmy Lee, he immediately invited Celia to Cairo. For their part, Alan and Jimmy Lee go get drunk, initially reflecting on what it's like when you lose the wealth you've had for a lifetime vs. the wealth you've only had for a while. Jimmy Lee: "Rich is definitely better." Not gonna lie, I wouldn't have minded more time spent with the half-brothers' talk about the shared childhood they never had, Alan's unhealthy competition with Edward, how likely Buzz will have a normal, fully-recovered life, and Alan wanting to die. Here's the introspection I've been wanting. It's likely that Alan's despair is just him laying the foundation for his summertime scheme, but similar to some of Lucy and Kevin's recent dialogue, there's ambiguity about its honesty. As for Edward, who wasn't around for the medical ship news and Alan's pity party, Friday includes Monica refusing to give him a loan. Shortly after, Lila and Stella come back soaked from house-hunting. They apparently had a full day of checking out unaffordable places, and with all that entering and exiting, plus how intense the rain is, it's no wonder the ladies got so wet. Pissed off Lila is the best. She really lets Edward have it on Friday. It's played for comedy, but the seeds were there if they wanted to do a serious story about older people coming to terms with his no longer being an assured provider. Lila: "Oh, Edward, please don't patronize me by, by smugly suggesting that I simply trust you." Buzz Gets Brained: After such a buildup, his surgery is confined to the first half of Monday's episode. Up until Anna's plugged back into Laurelton, she, Jimmy Lee and various other characters spend varying amounts of time thinking about what's next for Buzz. Anna reiterates that she doesn't love him. Buzz regains consciousness on Thursday, and his pain is treated with morphine, setting things up for the upcoming addiction storyline. Meanwhile, Jimmy Lee wants to know more about Buzz's life before they met. Relationship Roundup: Frisco & Felicia: She's got another new job lined up, this time running a school supplies business at PCU. Apparently, one doesn't already exist. Whatever, this is all just killing time until Felicia gets involved in the Duke storyline. As the week goes on, Felicia tries to suppress her jealousy and concern over Frisco's police work and/or Lucy, gives her notice to Sean, and sports her own pair of black lace stockings with embroidery. Tony & Tania: They don't want to know the gender of her baby in advance. Also, Tania agrees to be Felicia's maid of honor. Rick & Ginny: They have even less to do than Tony & Tania. Both couples and Felicia have dinner together on Monday. I already know that next week has some progress with the Mike storyline. Derek & Lorena: Thursday's episode is structured uniquely. The first half happens at night, with the second half taking place the following morning. Derek drops by the spa to let Lorena know he's bought his mansion. The power goes out, but that doesn't stop the two from hooking up (offscreen) in a sauna. The next morning, Lorena calls Claudia, asking her again about taking full ownership of the spa. Bryan & Claudia: They argue about whether Claudia should own the spa. That's it, just a few minutes of filler late in Thursday's episode. For all I know, the Bryan & Claudia "story" could drag all the way to the end of 1986. Nobody at GH is in any rush with it.

I thought of another moment that didn't live up to expectations: Mary getting hit with the falling C on Santa Barbara. To be fair, there was only so much that could do with a daytime budget, and all five actors involved (Harley, Jon, Nancy, Lane, and Jed) did their jobs just fine in the leadup and aftermath.

This inspired me to look up celebrities born between 1966-67. Picture it: Jason Staham is Matlock! (In all seriousness, though, Harry Connick Jr. is right there.)

These last few posts have been excellent, @Vee! Really insightful. I also very much agree with you about the important of soaps making Christmas and New Year's Eve count. To use a retro analogy, they're practically a "free preview weekend" for potential new viewers.

It's strangely appropriate that Betty Broderick died on Mother's Day weekend. ABC 10 News San Diego KGTVConvicted killer Betty Broderick dead at 78Betty Broderick, one of San Diego's most notorious killers, died Friday morning from natural causes, ABC10 News confirmed with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Peter and Christine divorced the following year.