Episode Discussion II: The TFGH

[ffwbe]

22 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

Judging from the previews, tomorrow will be the first episode shot since the pandemic. The clues were in the hair. Michaels is much longer while I think Willow’s is a bit shorter. And Nelle’s face looks a bit fuller. I don’t suppose There’s  any Chance of a time jump while they’re at it? Just a few months would do the trick. It’s ridiculous that after a 5-month hiatus, they just picked up exactly where They left off.

I think today was a mixture. We had recast Sam with Alexis and Jason.

[dubbel zout]

I do think it was bad that Nina decided not to support Nelle when Nina testified, but nothing she told Nelle was inaccurate.

[Kiki777]

2 hours ago, Linny said:

Lindsay Hartley was more energized in her first five minutes on the show than Kelly Monaco has been in the last five years. And in that brief conversation with Jason she showed actual feelings. Can we keep her? 

Agree x 1 million! Yes KeMo set the bar pretty low but Ms. Hartley is far more animated, and has great chemistry with NLG.  I’d love this as a permanent change.  Maybe TPTB will notice as well.

I was trying to guess which scenes were filmed pre- or post-pandemic.  All of NuSam’s scenes definitely post, as well as Sonny’s kitchen (Hi Moss!  Missed you!) but not the Q’s house or MetroCourt.  Nina’s office... hard to tell.  Nell did get right up in Nina’s face so maybe pre.

[Cheyanne11]

3 hours ago, Linny said:

Carly as power of attorney makes sense based on their super-duper extra-special bond, but like...Robin. That's all.

I can just imagine Carly keeping a comatose, braindead Jason on life support for decades so she could go and yammer on to him without having him tell her her plan is outrageous.  But you keep on plugging that extra special bond they have, show.

Also, am I supposed to be cheering on Sonny for saying he wants Mike to have a feeding tube?  it's beyond selfish. 

[dubbel zout]

22 minutes ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Also, am I supposed to be cheering on Sonny for saying he wants Mike to have a feeding tube?  it's beyond selfish. 

Typical Sonny. He's not ready to let Mike go, so Mike has to hang on until he is. UGH.

I had to laugh (ruefully) when Sonny said that when he asked Mike what he wanted, Mike didn't say anything, so Sonny took that to mean he wanted to live. Even when no one says anything, Sonny hears what he wants to hear.

[TeeVee329]

Lindsay Hartley!  I wish you were in Port Charles because Cara Castillo came to town to smack her ex David Hayward and then accidentally have hot sex with him, but hey, you got me to pay attention to a Sam scene.

I agree she was a little too big and broad with the anger when she first came barreling in to Alexis', but I thought she was great once she settled down, and had a nice rapport with Nancy Lee Grahan.  With Steve Burton, eh, she can only do so much, but at least she showed us through face and tone that Sam was irritated by this nonsense about Carly being Jason's POA.

In other news, I really enjoyed Alexis, while literally sipping tea, thinking about the Julian/Nelle sitch for like five seconds and being, "Oh, he's being blackmailed, definitely."  But what was up with her wrist, am I forgetting something from the before times?

Edited August 6, 2020 by TeeVee329

[xfuse]

7 minutes ago, TeeVee329 said:

But what was up with her wrist, am I forgetting something from the before times?

Setup for her becoming addicted to drugs? (She said she fell a few weeks and hurt it)

[jsbt]

I've been big on Lindsay Hartley since AMC, when she made me respect her chops after spending years toiling on Passions. (Brook Kerr has also apparently proven she can act here - her and that girl playing her daughter seem alright.) I don't dislike Kelly but I can count on my hands the times I remember her being awake and engaged. I don't think either of them deserves to be stuck playing Sam, but if you make me pick one it's Hartley.

Edited August 5, 2020 by jsbt

[ulkis]

5 hours ago, perkie1968 said:

Nothing against KeMo but wow, Lindsay was amazing.  I usually don't like replacements, no matter how short the stint but she was super good and so much a complete opposite then what were used to seeing.  I actually couldn't picture KeMo's Sam in those scenes with Alexis because she would have just been snark/whisper/sleeping.    I wonder if Nancy felt the difference.   

I'm pretty sure she did. She said "I'll go make you some tea!!" very hyper. I wouldn't say LH was amazing but I thought she did well. 

Edited August 5, 2020 by ulkis

[jsbt]

Please tell me these Nelle/Nina scenes were filmed before lockdown. I don't even like Hartley and NLG sharing part of a couch.

 

[Kiki777]

10 minutes ago, jsbt said:

Please tell me these Nelle/Nina scenes were filmed before lockdown. I don't even like Hartley and NLG sharing part of a couch.

 

Nina/Nelle seems pre-pandemic, they were standing pretty close and yelling in each other’s faces.  Alexis/NuSam seemed post, they were sitting noticeably far apart on the couch, though at times they seemed to be standing about 3 feet apart.  Maybe they break social distancing on occasion?  I noticed at the Corinthos kitchen, Sonny walked right past Carly as he exited.

[YaddaYadda]

27 minutes ago, jsbt said:

Please tell me these Nelle/Nina scenes were filmed before lockdown. I don't even like Hartley and NLG sharing part of a couch.

Pretty sure it's pre-pandemic. The scenes with Carly and SaSon were post-pandemic. They did a lot of close-ups in those scenes too. 

Someone should put masks on moss. 

 

[TVbitch]

Um, Sonny might want to read "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" to the baby instead of unloading on the baby about his father's end of life issues. 

I do enjoy a sweaty shaggy Al Pacino Dog Day Afternoon lookin' Dante. I hope he is coming back. 

So, the only thing that happened during the break was that Olivia became totally unreasonable? Really? "It's just a company?" Ned is supposed to toss it to the curb and devote himself to your Dante pain. 

Edited August 5, 2020 by TVbitch

[TeeVee329]

On 8/4/2020 at 8:20 PM, jsbt said:

I've been big on Lindsay Hartley since AMC, when she made me respect her chops after spending years toiling on Passions. (Brook Kerr has also apparently proven she can act here - her and that girl playing her daughter seem alright.) I don't dislike Kelly but I can count on my hands the times I remember her being awake and engaged. I don't think either of them deserves to be stuck playing Sam, but if you make me pick one it's Hartley.

I assume those "awake and engaged" performances were on "Port Charles"? 😉

I wasn't a "Passions" watcher so, though I knew who Lindsay Hartley was, it was her playing Cara on "All My Children" that's my reference point for her.  Cara was a real shot in the arm for that last year.  Cara and Tad's fake-marriage-maybe-turning-into-something-more was really sweet - surprising given how unlikable Tad had gotten - and then it was a shock how hot and sparky it was when she got bumped over to David when Dixie returned.

Edited August 6, 2020 by TeeVee329

[ByaNose]

I will say that I could at least understand Lindsay Hartley. Kelly Monaco sounds drowsy half the time. She is very monotone. I doubt they would can KM at this point but it was a fresh of breath of fresh air with a temporary Sam. Also, she has amazing hair. Lots of hair. 

[ffwbe]

3 hours ago, TVbitch said:

Um, Sonny might want to read "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" to the baby instead of unloading on the baby about his father's end of life issues. 

I do enjoy a sweaty shaggy Al Pacino Dog Day Afternoon lookin' Dante. I hope he is coming back. 

So, the only thing that happened during the break was that Olivia became totally unreasonable? Really? "It's just a company?" Ned is supposed to toss it to the curb and devote himself to your Dante pain. 

I’m trying to remember but I don’t think Ned was ever running ELQ in the time that he and Olivia were together. 

[30 Helens]

I just watched Monday’s episode, the first time I’d seen GH since the shutdown (I didn’t watch any reruns). My two questions were:

1. Was it always this bad? and

2. Why am I watching, again?

I mean, I knew it was bad, but it was even more cringeworthy than I remembered. I think I had become numb. But I’ll have to keep watching, if only to see how they manage social distancing and love scenes with blowup dolls.  

3 hours ago, YaddaYadda said:

Someone should put masks on moss. 

Yes! This is the one character I have actually missed. 

[bannana]

4 hours ago, Kiki777 said:

I noticed at the Corinthos kitchen, Sonny walked right past Carly as he exited.

Walking past someone will not spread the covid. Although, if someone could do it, it would be Sonny.

It is being in the same space for many minutes and talking.  So this is a big concern on set.  They should be six metres apart.

[jsbt]

Yeah, I did not like how they kept having Sam advance on Alexis. They were too close. I don't care how many tests someone's run, that space could be a free for all for germs very shortly.

[Gam2]

I had to laugh when Sam was pouring the “tea” for Alexis and herself. It was nothing but hot water! Someone forgot to put the tea in the pot!

[sunnyface]

 

10 hours ago, TVbitch said:

I do enjoy a sweaty shaggy Al Pacino Dog Day Afternoon lookin' Dante.

He is a cutie and puts in an effort but it would have been more enjoyable to watch him return in a new role - as a doctor (either Matt or Stephen or a new one).  

[Liddy52]

1 hour ago, Gam2 said:

I had to laugh when Sam was pouring the “tea” for Alexis and herself. It was nothing but hot water! Someone forgot to put the tea in the pot!

I noticed the same thing and it really distracted me. I started looking to see if there were tea bags in the cups but I couldn't see any. They never seemed to stir the tea or whatever you do with the tea bags. Then as they were holding the cups, I was more interested in whether they were going to gulp hot water and how that would taste/feel. So I missed out on some of the dialogue.  Not what the director had in mind, I am sure.

[dubbel zout]

12 hours ago, Kiki777 said:

Alexis/NuSam seemed post

Definitely post because of the recast. The rest of this week will probably still be a mix of pre and post, with more post as the week goes on. 

8 hours ago, ffwbe said:

I’m trying to remember but I don’t think Ned was ever running ELQ in the time that he and Olivia were together. 

He was still involved as a Q with board meetings and stuff, just not the day-to-day the way he is now. I get Olivia's feelings here, but if she's been feeling unsupported, maybe she should have spoken up earlier. And what exactly is Ned supposed to do, ignore the trouble at ELQ and let it all go to hell?

[Sake614]

24 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

And what exactly is Ned supposed to do, ignore the trouble at ELQ and let it all go to hell?

Well yes of course. Because what Olivia wants is ALL that matters. So maybe she and sonny belong together after all. 🙄

[GHScorpiosRule]

3 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

He was still involved as a Q with board meetings and stuff, just not the day-to-day the way he is now. I get Olivia's feelings here, but if she's been feeling unsupported, maybe she should have spoken up earlier. And what exactly is Ned supposed to do, ignore the trouble at ELQ and let it all go to hell?

The way she was acting and what she was saying? That's it in a nutshell. Because AAALLLL that matters is FAMILY! ELQ is not a PERSON. So what if it's taken over? They'll all still be rich. I guess she's forgetting or overlooking that she's also benefiting from that wealth.

I also understand Olivia's feelings. To a point. But she's acting as if Dante is DEAD, and that no one cares that she's grieving. My irked side is thinking that Dante knows how cloying Olivia can be, so that's why he returned all her letters unopened.

I really can't rah rah Laura's or Monica's words to Cyrus regarding not wanting his money for the hospital. Especially since that murdering "mob" king, Mooby donated a wing in Stone's memory, and continues to put his money in. Oh, wait. I forgot. Mooby is a "GOOOOOD" criminal.

[Katy M]

15 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I really can't rah rah Laura's or Monica's words to Cyrus regarding not wanting his money for the hospital. Especially since that murdering "mob" king, Mooby donated a wing in Stone's memory, and continues to put his money in. Oh, wait. I forgot. Mooby is a "GOOOOOD" criminal.

I haven't seen the epi yet, but money is money. As long as it's coming 'no strings attached' take it from anyone.  If he's attaching strings that's another story.  Even Sonny had the ward named after Stone, not himself.

[dubbel zout]

8 minutes ago, Katy M said:

As long as it's coming 'no strings attached' take it from anyone.  

That’s exactly how unsavory money gets legitimized, though. A million bucks from a pedophile is fine as long as he doesn’t tell you how to spend it? No, thanks.

[Annifran]

5 hours ago, Gam2 said:

I had to laugh when Sam was pouring the “tea” for Alexis and herself. It was nothing but hot water! Someone forgot to put the tea in the pot!

I don't think it was even "hot" water since both Sam and Alexis held the cup itself rather than just the handle.  This happens "all the time" on soaps.  IRL no one holds a ceramic cup in their hand without using the handle because of the hotness of the cup.  Another fake thing on soaps in regard to beverages is the use of paper coffee cups that are obviously empty.  

[Katy M]

11 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

That’s exactly how unsavory money gets legitimized, though. A million bucks from a pedophile is fine as long as he doesn’t tell you how to spend it? No, thanks.

Yeah, let the kids (or whoever) die instead.  Good choice. 

[Melgaypet]

59 minutes ago, Katy M said:

Yeah, let the kids (or whoever) die instead.  Good choice. 

True, it's best to take money that requires other people to die, or suffer horribly. Who cares if taking that money helps shield and legitimize the criminal, making it that much easier for him to continue making money by selling guns, or drugs, or kids into sex slavery? Good, moral people don't need to think about that sort of thing, not when cash is right in front of them.

[statsgirl]

It's a problem the show created for themselves by taking Sonny's money for the new wing and publicly praising him every Nurses' Ball what a wonderful, generous guy he is. Mob money is mob money.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I'm wondering though, if Chloe will be back/has returned to filming. I recall reading how she tested positive for COVID-19 back in April? May? Didn't hear or read anything since that announcement, though.

1 hour ago, Katy M said:

Yeah, let the kids (or whoever) die instead.  Good choice. 

By this logic, that's just letting all criminals launder their money and not pay for it, because it's all for a good cause. Sorry, I respectfully disagree.

I was just calling out Laura and Monica's hypocrisy in telling Cyrus no way in Hell, or rather "When Hell Freezes Over" will they take his money, when they had no problem taking Mooby's money.

[perkie1968]

Some things today looked like it was taped post, with people suitably apart (Michael and Willow at opposite ends of the couch), then all of a sudden they're standing beside each other (Willow and Michael on the stairs) and I got confused as to the timing of things.  

[YaddaYadda]

29 minutes ago, perkie1968 said:

Some things today looked like it was taped post, with people suitably apart (Michael and Willow at opposite ends of the couch), then all of a sudden they're standing beside each other (Willow and Michael on the stairs) and I got confused as to the timing of things.  

I like how we are all preoccupied by social distancing measures that this is where my energy has gone into over the past two episodes. I think some of it could be CGIed, but I wouldn't bet on it.

Sonny finally got it through his dumb dumb head that what's going on with Mike is not about him. Praised be whatever. 

Let's hope Sam has some integrity left and that she will tell Valentin where to go, but who am I kidding. 

[Katy M]

48 minutes ago, Melgaypet said:

Who cares if taking that money helps shield and legitimize the criminal, making it that much easier for him to continue making money by selling guns, or drugs, or kids into sex slavery? 

How, though?  How does it do that?

[jsbt]

GH is doing well with some angles and such, much better than B&B, but is taking too many risks IMO. Certain actors are getting too close, and there's no need for background actors. Write crowd scenes out for the time being. Some folks, like Nelle with Valentin and poor Chad* perched precariously on the arm of a couch, are clearly taking zero chances lol. But no one needs to share a couch or keep advancing on each other, which happened with Sam and Alexis yesterday. I feel like Frank is overconfident, but also I just don't feel these shows should be filming at all. The miserable creative quality aside it's just not safe. A spread will happen.

* - speaking of, I like his COVID hair idk why people hate it. Sure, he should probably be recast at this point but the hair is cute. No, I still don't know which girl he was with 

Who is this hermit dude and why is Alexis in a random affair with the Trivago guy? ("You can tell he smokes")

Edited August 5, 2020 by jsbt

[Katy M]

44 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

By this logic, that's just letting all criminals launder their money and not pay for it, because it's all for a good cause. Sorry, I respectfully disagree.

It's not laundering their money.  Laundering their money would be a criminal giving your legitimate business $1 million and you filtering them back $500K so that they can report it on their taxes and look like they're on the up and up.  Obviously that's wrong.  If they donate it to charity, it's just gone.  Sure, they can deduct that from whatever ways they found to letigimize their income, but a charity taking money in no way cleans the money for the criminal.

[ffwbe]

Is Alexis’ wrist injury part of an actual storyline or did NLG hurt herself and they wrote it in? Seems random.

I can’t bring myself to care about her and Neil. I thought they were cute when he first came on and I saw chemistry but their relationship, or whatever it is, moves at a snail’s pace. They keep having the same conversations over and over again and are always changing their stances. There really aren’t any obstacles between them anymore and they still aren’t together. Unless the actor is leaving the show, I’m sure they’ll turn up in a couple weeks again and have the same conversation they did today. 

[ulkis]

edit.

 

Edited August 12, 2020 by ulkis

[jsbt]

At this point if they're not going to reunite him and LW's Carly (Wright's best pairing IMO, and an evolution for the character), I'd just put Jax with Alexis like they wanted to decades ago and call it a day. These nobodies they keep foisting Alexis off on are even worse than the time Guza contemptuously tossed her poor Uncle Mac. At least Mac got his proper OTP with Felicia. Now that she's left deVry behind, Alexis only gets Pervy Dr. Max Holden and now Trivago Man, the recurring shemps.

I didn't realize Molly Burnett had done a second stint as Maxie. She was very good. They could easily solve their casting problems with Maxie, Michael and Sam with either recasts or just going back to Drew Garrett. If KM (hypothetically) refuses to adhere to distancing protocols she should be fired immediately and they should let Hartley take the role. I'd just as soon kill Jason, but that's not ever going to happen. And Carly, well, I'd still take SJB back but I don't think that'll ever happen either. I'm fine with LW when story is good, but I can't take her and Sonny together. Emme and poor Kirsten should've been gone long ago one way or another.

[dubbel zout]

BH was so good in her scenes with Sonny, and for once the writing didn’t fail her. I’m surprised the doctor didn’t talk about complications earlier, but I can hand wave it for Sonny’s long-overdue realization that he has to think about Mike’s comfort, not his own.

 I like the length of CD’s pandemic hair but not the style.

 I’m hyper aware of distancing, and for the most part the show isn’t much different, LOL. But I agree they shouldn’t be shooting in the first place. I hope the actor feel safe enough to say something if they’re uncomfortable.

[Melgaypet]

1 hour ago, Katy M said:

How, though?  How does it do that?

The statement seemed pretty self-explanatory to me, but okay: it's corruption. If the hospital accepts - and comes to rely on - regular "donations" from the local crime boss, he has leverage against the hospital board ("Without Mr. Corinthos' contributions, the hospital might have to shut down the Stone Cates AIDS Wing, or shut down altogether!"), leverage against local government ("Voters won't be happy if they're stuck with those butchers at Mercy!"), which in turn is leverage against law enforcement ("It's in the best interest of the community for you to look the other way, Commissioner. By the way, your employment contract is up for renewal this year, isn't it?") It is now in the self-interest of several people in power to keep Mr. Corinthos free and committing crimes. That, and the good PR of being Sonny Corinthos, Philanthropist means a lessening of public pressure to lock him up, either.

Edited August 5, 2020 by Melgaypet

[dubbel zout]

A reputable recipient accepting tainted money legitimizes that money because people will think, “If [charity/nonprofit] acceptes the money, maybe that person isn’t as bad as I thought.”

[Katy M]

29 minutes ago, Melgaypet said:

The statement seemed pretty self-explanatory to me, but okay: it's corruption. If the hospital accepts - and comes to rely on - regular "donations" from the local crime boss, he has leverage against the hospital board ("Without Mr. Corinthos' contributions, the hospital might have to shut down the Stone Cates AIDS Wing, or shut down altogether!")

Those would be strings that he would be attaching. I specifically said only if no strings were attached.  As for your parenthetical remarks, then what difference would it make.  If they're going to have to close, they're going to have to close I guess.

 

30 minutes ago, Melgaypet said:

It is now in the self-interest of several people in power to keep Mr. Corinthos free and committing crimes. That, and the good PR of being Sonny Corinthos, Philanthropist means a lessening of public pressure to lock him up, either.

What kind of crazy people would use that kind of thinking?

[Cheyanne11]

49 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

BH was so good in her scenes with Sonny, and for once the writing didn’t fail her.

She really was.  The scenes triggered me in a lot of ways, taking me back to when my sister was dying, but I can't say they weren't realistic.

Re: social distancing.  The one big WHAT ARE THEY DOING! moment for me today was Neal and Diane shaking hands.

[Melgaypet]

17 minutes ago, Katy M said:

Those would be strings that he would be attaching. I specifically said only if no strings were attached.  As for your parenthetical remarks, then what difference would it make.  If they're going to have to close, they're going to have to close I guess.

 

What kind of crazy people would use that kind of thinking?

The strings are implied. Sonny doesn't have to even hint at them for them to be there, or for people taking his money to perceive them. These are not anonymous donations he's making.

As for "crazy people", I honestly can't tell if you're mocking me or not, but @dubbel zout explained the PR angle quite succinctly.

 

Edited August 5, 2020 by Melgaypet

[Katy M]

Just now, Melgaypet said:

The strings are implied. Sonny doesn't have to even hint at them for them to be there, or for people taking his money to perceive them. These are not anonymous donations he's making.

As for "crazy people", I honestly can't tell if you're mocking me or not, but @dubbel zout explained the PR angle quite succinctly.

 

So take the money and then when he wants something refuse to do it.  What's he gonna do about it?

[Melgaypet]

5 minutes ago, Katy M said:

So take the money and then when he wants something refuse to do it.  What's he gonna do about it?

Again, the very act of taking the money in the first place is corrupt. He doesn't have to ask for anything at all.

I'm honestly baffled to be explaining that taking blood money is a bad idea.

[Katy M]

35 minutes ago, Melgaypet said:

Again, the very act of taking the money in the first place is corrupt. He doesn't have to ask for anything at all.

I'm honestly baffled to be explaining that taking blood money is a bad idea.

I'd rather the money go into something positive than get reinvested into the business. To save lives instead of to take more.  Is the grocery store corrupt if they sell a steak to bad guys?

[Melgaypet]

49 minutes ago, Katy M said:

Is the grocery store corrupt if they sell a steak to bad guys?

What an odd comparison. No, the grocery store is not corrupt for selling steak to bad guys, any more than a hospital is corrupt for providing medical care to bad guys. Now, if the store were to accept a "donation" of illegally obtained beef, then, yes, they are corrupt.

And I am done with this conversation. I wondered before if I was being baited, for some inexplicable reason, but dismissed it, because inexplicable. But this moving-the-goalposts argument is quite obvious bad faith. My apologies, everyone, for the thread derailment.