dubbel zout

"I'm a patient man." Yes, Sonny, you were so patient not to kill AJ. Oh, wait. I LOLed with Olivia's "I don't want to speak ill of your father." Dante and Sonny didn't meet until they were adults; I think Dante can handle some snark directed at his father. It's not as if Olivia is saying anything Dante hasn't already thought himself. Un-bloody-likely. I'm annoyed that Lulu's surgery was successful. Your child is your child no matter how he comes into the world. I hate that they write Lulu as obsessed with carrying that stupid embryo. I liked Delia pushing back a bit with Ava. Of course she's going to help her—otherwise there'd be no (plot) point for her to be there—but at least she didn't fold immediately. STFU, Lauren. My GOD, she's obnoxious. I loved Morgan asking Levi to name one person who's being displaced by the brownstone. That "protest" is laughable. Doesn't Nathan have the key to his own set of handcuffs? It shouldn't matter he's in the other cuff. JD certainly got a workout looking up at the sky and closing his eyes. It also showed he has a rather weak chin. Ned's back tomorrow!

As long as there's oil to be had, the US can stomach dictators and monarchies.

That's likely where the most out-of-towners will be. She's an idiot to go back to the same hotel bar, but I think a hotel is the best place for her to hook.

Ask SCOTUS, now that it's ruled on the Hobby Lobby case.

She hates AJ more than she loves Michael. Once again, Carly puts Carly before anyone else. For what, returning home from being held hostage and wanting her family back? If anyone deserves a punch in the face, it's Patrick for being such a passive jerk about the situation.

AJ never got the benefit of the doubt—"Eh, it's AJ" was always the reaction in PC. It was a shabby way to treat a legacy character. But it was all to prop Jason the Golden Hitman. Sonny and Carly will always be connected—through their children. Even though they're divorced, Carly will cling to that so that any power Sonny has is invested in her. She still plays the "I was Mrs. Sonny Corinthos" card when she thinks it will help her. It's pathetic.

The ob/gyn couldn't get to the hospital in time (of course), so TJ had to add another specialty to his list (of course).

Israel.

Of course she does, since Ron can't bring in characters on their own merit. At least they won't be related.

Abby's death by crane rivaled Ford's death by chandelier on OLTL. Both were richly deserved and highly suitable ways to go out.

Hate to break it to you, Levi, but according SCOTUS, corporations are people. Choke on that, hippie agitator. LOL at Maxie standing sheepishly behind Levi while he blusters to Morgan and Lauren, of all people. Yeah, they're the ones in charge. *rme* STFU, Levi. STFU, Lauren. Sam isn't exactly Kalinda, is she. The crash was all over the news. The front page of the paper was about Gabriel's burial. Why didn't she lead with that? I know it's the PCPD, but I find it unbelievable they couldn't find the knocked over guardrail and the paint. Rafe's apology was pretty heartfelt, I thought, and I liked how Molly didn't excuse his behavior but forgave him all the same.

Is it confirmed that next Thursday and Friday are repeat eps/preempted?

I know what you meant, Bringonthedrama. I couldn't resist the opportunity to snark. It's inevitable that there will be, at minimum, Significant Looks between Morgan and Lauren, since Michael is too busy at ELQ to listen to them.

Kari Wuhrer.

Nausea? Disgust? Anger?

Carly came to town as Carly Roberts; her real last name was Benson. Carly Roberts is from the high school friend who died in a car crash (though Carly is a decent nickname for Caroline).

Jamal's son looked something of a dullard, so I guess that's why Barry is acting as regent, as it were? There was a lot of ground to cover in the pilot, but we got nothing on the nephew except he's "a good guy," which in the show's context could mean only that he doesn't rape women and cut off fingers. I'm kind of interested to see if there will be a power struggle between him and Barry, or if he's more than happy to let Barry deal with all the politics.

The photo backdrop was so obvious in certain shots.

Did Michael get Sam's old apartment? I assume he got money from Allison's estate after she died, though technically it would be held in trust for him by his guardian until Rafe turns 18 (or whatever the terms of the will are). But I can also fanwank that Silas feels guilty enough about Rafe's situation that Silas is pretty free with the cash. As for Lauren, she might have some poker winnings still. That's how she was introduced, remember? And I'm sure she has no problem hating Ava while at the same time accepting money from her. I also wouldn't be surprised if Silas throws some dough her way. He lives pretty simply, and he's supposed to be a world-class oncologist.

Yes, but my point was they deliberately look for a Starbucks in a foreign country and are upset when they can't find one. Go to a local café! Experience the country you're visiting! It's one thing for locals to go to the Paris KFC; it's another for Americans. If you're only going to eat at American chains, why travel in the first place?

That plot was dropped like a hot potato, wasn't it? I'm not crying over not seeing Milo (shirtless or not, I never liked him), but it is a shame Lucy didn't get a story. It could still be written, with Laura as the European rep for Deception, sourcing new products or whatever. But Ron clearly doesn't want to give stories to anyone but his pets.

Fixed that for you. it's the only way she can be in the frame with someone taller than Sonny. Heh.

Is this supposed to be a "Psych! I'm not dead!" reveal? Sigh. Ron just can't leave well enough alone, can he.

That might have been part of it. Were the sister-in-law's shoulders covered at the hospital? I don't remember her dress in detail. It cracked me up that Jamal drove through the streets with Aerosmith blasting on the stereo. Shouldn't it have been something more current? I guess the music budget isn't that big. Unfortunately, a lot of us are. I know too many people who have traveled outside the States and complained they couldn't find a Starbucks or whatever. And look at all the surveys that show a large number of people can't even find their own state on a map, let alone Iran or other foreign countries. You'd think that Bassam's family, though, would be slightly more aware of things because of his background. As you wrote, xyzzy, the daughter seems the only one besides Bassam who has any clue. I can handwave the son being dazzled, but the mom's idiocy? Good grief.

I was kind of surprised the paper's headline really did say that Gabriel was buried. I was hoping it would be a manifestation of Rafe's guilty conscience, like Sam's phone yesterday was of her insecurities. (I thought that was clever, btw.) Shut up, Lauren. I really liked the Alexis/Molly scenes. They weren't overdone. Yes, Sam is a genius for figuring out that someone who damaged his car would want to get it fixed. That's thinking outside the box.