Dandesun

Todd was tortured in that storyline. We actually saw it happen (as much as they can show electrocution) -- he was being interrogated, Baker left the room when he didn't get the answers they wanted and then watched through the slat of the window as lights flashed, zzzZZZzzzt noises were heard and Todd was screaming. That happened and his torture was mentioned fairly frequently so I sincerely doubt it was an adlib on Howarth's part. I'm already looking forward to hearing about Jason's horrible tenure at Cassadine Clinic. They bounced back and forth heavily regarding Todd's eight years of torture (was he tortured daily for eight years? Or was he catatonic for most of those eight years to the point where he thought it was 2003 when he came out of it? It shifted quite a bit depending on what they were going for that day, it seemed.) Was Jason completely unaware of his surroundings until Robin brought him back? Or did they torment him with news of his wife and child moving on without him blah blah blah? Sidenote: I'm still bitter that the Dock Roll didn't take. Still the best. death. ever. Ron also thought it was totally acceptable to have Blair throw over the love of her life for the guy who was responsible for handing him over to the people who kept him prisoner for eight years on OLTL. This is not a lesson that Ron can't seem to learn on GH. It predates GH. I don't know why he can't understand this very simple equation and his heavy handedness about glossing over gigantic, important beats like that is ridiculous. (It didn't help on OLTL that Blair lit up like a fucking Roman candle whenever she was in Todd's presence and then looked awkward and uncomfortable around the other dude and then Ron insisted that she had legit feelings for him after the nasty truth came out. Riiiiight.) By the same token, I never understood why they would show Robin fighting, being tied down with bite guards shoved into her mouth and then be all "No! You have to love this treacly Princess Sabrina story with Patrick as her Prince! It's magical!" No actual Disney movie is that fucked up, people. I mean the way they had Robin leave last time was bullshit but they also made it pretty clear that she was being threatened and if wasn't clear enough... chained to a God damned wall!! But, nope, she's totes there on her own accord... lookit how sparkly Patrick/Sam are! And the thing is, I totally get the concept of Patrick and Sam drawing together in all of this. That should have been the story all along! Two people who thought they were widowed coming together to help each other through the ordeal, not even realizing the feelings that were growing and all of that. It didn't even have to be romantic in the first go round, that should have happened after Robin 'left' again while Patrick struggled with the whys and wherefores but also keeping the knowledge that Jason might actually be saved from Sam. That should have been the tale... not to mention that Robin and Jason have their own history. Instead, they threw Patrick/Sabrina and Sam/Silas at the wall hoping it would stick for some reason. So many fails. That's what Ron's good at... so many fails.

Wolverine sex fantasies aside (God I fucking hate Wolverine... they've decided to kill him off in the comics and it's taking forever. Every stinking month for a year now '8 Months to Die' '6 Months to Die' until they write a whole mini series about him finally getting killed off. I hope he stays dead as long as Jean Grey has. Her I want around. Logan can go fuck off.) I thought Greg Vaughn looked hella sexy yesterday. His hair seemed a bit wilder than normal and even though Salem is weirdly Puritan in some aspects (and then weirdly totally okay with rape for some reason) I kind of see it as Eric loving Nicole even though he feels totally and completely betrayed by her and, thus, he's wildly angry at himself for still wanting her. That's rather normal when it comes down to it... although I do think he's right in NOT just grabbing her and throwing her down for some animal sex because, man, she's already up his ass 24/7 as it is. Her confession yesterday about how much she missed him started off well and then nose-dived deep into pathetic territory. Walking by the Brady pub every day to see him? Buying his photos because it's all she has of him? I mean... it's heartbreaking as all get out. I understand the underlying desperate yearning for that One True Love but, Nicole, sweetheart... you've put it all out there, now's the time to back the fuck off. And Eric needs to just be... alone with his fantasies of her sparkly earrings. A friend of mine said that Nicole should have taken that job in New Mexico because Eric would have been on the next plane out to drag her ass back... Eric will always choose Nicole, it's just that Nicole doesn't GET that... which is sad in and of itself. But at this point, Eric needs to process more than just the whole priest thing... he's got to process that he's given up his only chance at justice for the sake of his family... Eric's so bloody self-sacrificing that he really needs to do something selfish; something totally for him; and it can't be Nicole right now because neither one of them are even prepared for that. If they got together now it would still be Nicole professing her undying love and how she does 'everything' for him and Eric would be constantly assuring her that he loves her or whatever and who the fuck wants to see that?! I saw that with Ben and Abby the other day when they were arguing over who wasn't good enough for the other until I was just like "SHUT UP!!!!!!" Two fucking martyrs who don't deserve the title. Ugh. Speaking of... when Ben was on the bench with Abby after the Chad confrontation and he was all 'He will never talk like that to you again. I promise.' I literally said out loud "Fuck you." I don't get these soap writers anymore. Not just Days... this has been an on-going problem for a long time. It's like they are completely incapable of writing a truly likable character without completely fucking it up. And God forbid they attempt to write a rootable romance! If they manage, it seems to be a complete accident. And then they don't even let it settle before they go out of their way to obliterate it. Eve seems to have some wiggle room in not knowing exactly what the hookers did to JJ. On the upside, it wasn't too horrible (although, admittedly, if it had been a girl who was drugged and manhandled like that it would have squicked me out more) and it was made fairly clear that it was all for show and not actually about assaulting him... this is what happens when you involve desperate hookers into your stupid plans. And this plan is stupid. I get that Eve doesn't want Paige to be in love with JJ so she will go to Stanford but hasn't it been made clear that Paige can't go until next year? So breaking them up now is just going to give them the opportunity to patch things up by the time Stanford comes around again. It's stupid!! It's all fucking stupid!! ::breaks things:: At least Eric and Brady are on the same side again. I've got that.

I'm more than a bit ticked off that Anna didn't get to see Robin chained to a wall because more than anything Robin's mother needs to be aware that Patrick's side of the story is not the only side. Robin's mother needs to know that Robin didn't 'choose' anything over her daughter and husband. She needs to clue into the fact that none of this was about Robin just running off ten minutes after she had been reunited with her family after two years. And then maybe the next time Patrick goes to Anna for positive reinforcement about his decision to divorce the wife that's being blackmailed, threatened and chained to a wall, Anna can kick him in the face.

I didn't think it was, either. I'm not sure exactly what the plan was but it was stressed several times over that crossing certain legal lines was not welcomed. At least that how it came off to me.

I never watched this show when Jack was on but I find myself deeply offended whenever I see Daniel playing 'father figure' to JJ. And I also think that JJ is in for a world of hurt if Daniel the Ever-Holy is the one dispensing advice on how to live.

Ron seems to have divided up all women to fall into the following categories: 1. Before sexual maturation hits: inappropriate romantic pursuits 2. When sexual maturation hits: rape victims - stupid foils for 'troubled yet compelling' men - eggs/uterus/incubators (preferably with rape connotations attached) - gone 3. Once the all important baby making plumbing has dried up: Dorothy Parker/Margo Channing That's it.

Usagi's super power is definitely her friend making skills. We've seen all of the girls be isolated for various reasons, Ami feeling that the only thing she knows how to do is study and her focus on grades to be a doctor, Rei's visions, Makoto and the rumors that surrounded her when she arrived at school... Usagi just found each one of them worth pursuing as friends and it's definitely the strength of her characters. I liked how they gave Jupiter the 'Flower Hurricane' attack. I recall that the manga did give her powers that were aligned with wood/flowers as well as lightning -- her earrings were always a nod to that from the start but I don't recall the original anime giving those powers to her.

I was wondering if Marlena had even met Ben before and then just figured she had force grown him in a lab. That made sense to me.

So... Jordon grew up on the set of Hee-Haw?

I'm not a fan by any means and this movie came out right in the midst of Leo-Mania but Leonardo DiCaprio in Man in the Iron Mask really impressed the shit out of me. I watched that movie because of my never ending love for Gabriel Byrne, Jeremy Irons and John Malkovitch but Leo just impressed me. You could tell which twin he was in moments just by the way his eyes would move. I had to give it up to him in that one. (This movie also has the unintentionally hilarious moment of 'Magnificent valor!' when the Musketeers make their charge. Seriously, the guy who says it seems like he's coming in his pants at the sight of the Musketeers and their valorous charge.)

Why does Carly act like Joss 'coming around' on Franco actually matters? It's not like she's not going to keep insisting she loves the guy if Joss keeps this up. It doesn't matter what Michael thinks, what Morgan thinks, what Joss thinks... none of that matters to her in regards to fucking Franco and it's never mattered. It will never matter. And seriously, I'm not watching but I know that Howarth Woobie Face. He used it with great effect as Todd for many a year. As Franco... it's just bullshit. And I also understand that Ron has busted out with the 'I don't have any friends' mantra that he seems to love writing for Howarth as well. Oh, do poor Nina and Franco have no friends? Is that supposed to be a sad thing? Like a real travesty of justice for their wounded souls who want not but to love?

Everyone in my office. It's not that unusual. It's a tool rather than the main thing to do the books with, though.

Phew! I'm so relieved! Abby's really needed someone to be there for her. She's been through so much turmoil and stuff. (The above was brought to you by so much sarcasm that it can't be carried over some bridges.)

I've never been a fan of squish names either... unless they're actually clever or funny (ie: Soily on GH for Sonny/Emily because it was that fucking gross; or McDeadtome on OLTL for John/Evangeline -- Evangeline had already become 'Deadtome' for her inexplicably turning on RJ and then she and John became rather insufferable together.) For me, the biggest issue I have is that the pairing becomes all the characters can ever be about, especially to the fans, rather than being characters and individuals in their own right. I think the phenomenon lends itself to minimalizing actual characterization and storytelling for the need to make [squish name] the most important thing ever to the characters involved and the fans that latch onto them. Anyway... to yesterday... Look, I'm not even going to pretend. Brady apologizing to Eric made me tear up. Maybe I'm just that happy to have beats of a story make actual human sense but I have to say that all of the threads in that scene worked for me. You had Brady re-evaluating his entire life after the John Bash (thanks Theresa!) and Eric is on the cusp of seeing Kristen pay when Marlena comes at him with the worst ever request in the world. Lady Sinister, I'm deeply disappointed in you! (Except for the part where Eric was all 'have you been crying?!' and we see Marlena who bears absolutely no evidence of exhibiting such human emotions. That was hilarious.) Marlena asking Eric to drop the charges was all about Marlena and despite some platitudes of 'what a horrible thing I'm asking of you!' it really was all about 'You need to save John for me... screw everything else.' It's times like this that I wish they could swear on soaps so Father Eric could drop a big old 'FUCK YOU!' on Marlena. Despite the clumsiness of the one person who actually has the legal right to make decisions about John being kept completely out of the loop by everyone so that Eric could think that he was about to get the strong arm plea again but, instead, got a real legitimate apology I did rather like the way it played out. Brady said the right things. He specifically said 'I'm sorry for how I treated you' as opposed to the usual soap bullshit non-apology of 'I'm sorry if you were hurt.' He explained why he acted the way he did, told Eric he'd been a good brother to him and said that he missed him. It warmed the cockles of my heart, people, what can I tell you? This, coupled with the adorable Sami/Eric scenes from the previous day... yeah, I love those Brady/Black sibs. I think, at this point in my Days watching career, they are my absolute favorite thing about the show. Although I did love it that Sami referred to Eric as 'Mom's favorite' right before Mom asked her favorite to let the evil creature that drugged and raped him walk. And when it comes down to it, I found it realistic that Eric would take Brady's honest apology... the apology that comes with no strings attached because Brady doesn't know otherwise... as the possible reason he would agree to let things drop with Kristen. Presuming that's what happens today. Now, if I were writing this, it would lead to the absolute ultimate end for Brady and Kristen... because when he finds out that Kristen used his comatose father as a means of blackmailing his brother to let her go free for what she did to him, that would be The End and Brady's disgust and rage at what she did would be visceral. Of course, there's also the Theresa angle... because the DiMera witch doctor who has this magical formula that will bring John out of his coma means that, at some point, Theresa is going to be found out. THAT means that when Brady discovers that Theresa has been using Kristen as an excuse to be close to him again but that she is also the one responsible for John's coma which means she's also responsible for John being the catalyst for Kristen to blackmail Eric into not testifying... I mean, that shit is for REAL! There's so much potential here... there really is. Not that I expect the writers to carry it out (they never do anymore) but, ooo, the possibilities are delicious. Now I just want to call them Hodor. [/Game of Thrones nerd]

I've enjoyed every Sami/Eric scene I've watched. (Granted, it's not been long but still.) I love soap sibs. I really do. What's more, I am waiting to see Eric and Brady make amends. For awhile there it seemed that Brady blamed Eric for the stuff with Kristen... maybe thought that Eric slept with her willingly? They haven't delved into it while I've been watching but that's the impression I got... that Brady maybe knew that Eric wouldn't do that but, at the same time, loved this woman and wanted to believe that she wouldn't do that to his sorta-brother? It's a very tangled web, definitely, and Brady clearly had seriously conflicting emotions about it all. However, in his most recent confrontation with Kristen he called her out for what she did to Eric so it would seem that he does believe that Eric was the victim after all. So I want to see Eric and Brady make up, dammit!

Odin's Ravens... He's John McBain. Complete with carrying around his own filth and the inexplicable love of the entire town. This explains so much.

I found the Marlena/Kristen showdown to be rather entertaining. They were both so low key that it was a lot of barely above whispering at each other. Honestly, the one thing that could have improved it is if they were both wearing vagina hats and drinking tea. So Kristen got Brady all hot and bothered so he went home and screwed Theresa. Okay... I can absolutely buy a pregnancy happening there since it might be the only thing that keeps her and Brady dealing with each other when John finally wakes the hell up. OR it will be one of those things where Brady and Theresa are actually happy together for five whole minutes and then it all comes tumbling down. Hard to say... But I still don't think these two are written in any way that makes sense. To go from having fun to wanting something more is a natural progression but that's when it all fell apart (thanks Writers!!) because once they got married you had Theresa acting like Brady was just something she wanted to be attached to for the money and was willing to leave him if it meant she got a pay off and then the John bash and now... what? And while I can understand Brady being uncomfortable, his acting like she has leprosy when HE was the one who wanted to pursue a serious relationship didn't make as much sense. So now, she's wailing about walk in closets... seriously, I don't get how this girl grew up! It doesn't make one iota of sense! It's like... I can understand Eve not being wealthy but I do not understand the concept of Shane not setting up some sort of college fund for Paige. I can understand Theresa being cut off but I can't buy this idea that she was somehow raised in poverty where having a walk-in closet is a fucking dream. And I actually like Theresa and Brady, they've got a good vibe but the story makes no god damn sense! Then there's Nicole. I would like her so much better if, when she's called out for doing exactly what she's doing, just goes 'Fine! Yes! I wanted you to think I was leaving town! I wanted to see if it would matter to you at all, okay?!' This current bullshit where she hangs around waiting for Eric to return so she can fling her job offer in front of him and then when he realizes what she's doing does that bullshit wide-eyed 'What? Meeee?!' affronted expression that she's been wearing for what feels like a year around him. This is the thing that drives me up the wall with her. I get that she loves Eric. I get that she was desperate to be with him. I get all of that... but shredding the papers was a full on shitty thing to do and she honestly doesn't seem like she's remotely sorry about that so much as upset that people, mostly Eric and also, weirdly, Daniel, remain ticked off about it and then the lies she told to cover them up. I feel that Eric has a right to be pissed off. He's allowed to not trust her until such time as those feelings die down and he can be rational about them. But she is constantly in his face asking him where he's going, what he's doing, why he keeps looking at her like he does... she is not giving him any room to breathe. If she got over his accusing her of raping him, that's fine, but it doesn't mean that he's obligated to automatically forgive her in return, that's just now how it works. Now her stuff with Daniel goes back and forth. There are times he bitches at her and I'm totally on his side (which is disconcerting) but yesterday I was on hers. He was a douche and a half and I rather loved her burn at him about how she doesn't abandon the people she cares about. I like her friendship with Brady right now, I like that she knows and cares about him (although I'm not looking forward to the next time she runs into Theresa and lays into her... even if Theresa deserves it) but whatever... Nicole needs to back the hell off of Eric or, at the very least, honestly apologize to him for what she did and THEN back off. Seriously... how obvious do you have to be about something when ERIC can pick up on it?!

I bought the concept of an underground city. I thought it was weird but I bought it. (It was a little harder to buy the fact that everyone just wore the Eterna jumpsuits the entire time but I was young.) That being said, I was also young during the spaceship to heaven AND the time travel storylines and thought both were absolutely ludicrous. And, let's be real, the whole Two Todds story was idiotic. I accepted it because that's how desperate I was to have Todd Manning back in a form I recognized (not necessarily Howarth but as a man who was legitimately connected to the people he was supposed to love) and to have a lot of Ron's bullshit wiped out. (The 'paddling away from happiness' crap as well as the Grossening. Sometimes, it's not so much if a story is written well than it is what I really really really want. Some things mattered more than others, no question. "Todd" throwing Starr down the stairs led to the complete destruction of a character I loved in spite of knowing better and Howarth's return wiped all of that away and I was thrilled for it even though Ron wasted way too much time on Tea shrieking that Victor loved her in ways Todd never could and Blair outright disappearing for large chunks of time. Not to mention that so much of that tale contradicted what had been established early on in it. And I've never been happy with Irene getting completely dismantled... she was no angel but she loved her children and I couldn't really buy the whole story they tried to tell there. I was totally able to over look the fact that they gave Max a complete overhaul with his face with a storyline as to why and then erased it when they got JDP back because I loved JDP so much that I didn't care... I was just glad to see him again. (And don't even get me started on what they ended up doing to Max Holden. And the Holden family in general. It's why it's so easy for me to say 'Gabrielle survived and she and Max are happy in Argentina.' Because that's what I want!!) I'll accept a lot to get what I want. The spaceship to heaven though... I still can't with that one.

Days did have that serial killer storyline where they were killing off EVERYONE and then it seemed like Marlena was the killer but then it was just that everyone was on an island somewhere... It was very weird. But is it weirder than a spaceship to heaven or an undergound city or time travel back to the Old West?

Seriously!! I wish she had called Mr. Shin right there in front of Sami because that shit could have been played out so great... Abigail makes a big show of 'tanking' Sami to this guy while Sami watches... maybe Sami even tosses in a worried look here and there to egg Abby on. Then, after Abby "triumphantly" leaves, Sami calls Mr. Shin, recites specific lines verbatim to him to show that she was there listening to Abby 'really try to rub it in.' "She's angry," Sami should have said. "She was a little sidepiece who didn't get the man to leave his wife and family after all and now she's trying to get revenge. She just didn't measure up. My husband made an egregious error... he let his brief dalliance blind him to what was important, in business and in life. He didn't see any of this coming due to his... distraction. But this little creature is nothing for the company to worry about. Aside from her shoving her way into my home to demand I be nice to her, I really can't be bothered with her anymore." The jilted mistress would have been the most obvious card to play. She went after a taken man, he regretted the dalliance, she's angry and lashing out. Turn the tables! THAT would have been fun.

All of the Daniel/Kristen interactions this go-round have had Unresolved Sexual Tension written all over them. They appeared to me to be consistently on the verge of fucking the entire time they were tying each other up and getting in each other's faces. It's been a prolonged game of bondage and S&M play for these two from jump. Didn't Richie leave the show to become a journalist? (You know Richie would have never sold out Mrs. C!)

Abby admitting her wrong-doing gets immediately wiped out when the writers have the entire freaking town jump to her defense no matter what every single time. Her admissions don't result in anything... no long dark tea time of the soul, no askance looks from those she admires who once admired her... plus, this isn't the first time she's gone in this direction so it's a very definite pattern from her that she hasn't altered. That being the case, the insistence to coddle and excuse her from everyone else in town makes even less sense. Sami has reacted to all of this in a rather human way. Meaning that I don't feel as though she's gone overboard at all. Sure, she's flapped her gums about 'just getting started' or whatever but hasn't really done anything particularly outlandish. Did she fuck with Abby a bit before the wedding? Sure. So what? I consider that more than turnabout being fair play after Sami was the one holding Abby's hand throughout her pregnancy scare. Isn't it rather odd that Jen is still the only one who seems to know about that? There's no real sense of justice here and that's what soaps all across the board have lacked for a long time now. No one is infallible, not even the 'heroic' types. I love good guys as much as I love bad guys as long as they're written well and Abby is most definitely NOT. I just find myself wondering what in the hell the conversations among the writers are like. I'm curious as hell as to what results in this bizarre one-sided white-washing mess.

I smell Franco's demise! (Here's hoping anyway.)

If this deadly poison doesn't turn out to be iocaine powder I'm going to be bitterly disappointed.

One thing I have to say... Eric's Nicole fantasies where she's wearing something sparkly, usually seriously sparkling earrings, has gotten me to a place where I just think that Eric has a fetish for sparkly things... rather like a magpie... more than anything else. I get that the fantasies are supposed to show us that Eric remains conflicted regarding his feelings for Nicole but given his also very real anger issues with her and her apparent confusion as to why (seriously, what the fuck?) they come off as more fetishized than anything. I'd much rather those two take a long break from staring at each other and then possibly revisit them at a later date. Whatever is going on now is just not working for me at all.