Episode Discussion II: The TFGH

[methodwriter85]

Hudson West is looking more and more like a teenaged Ryan Gosling to the point it's distracting. Lol

[jsbt]

I've been saying for several years running they need to put that kid on contract. They're lucky he's available.

Edited March 26 by jsbt

[ciarra]

1 hour ago, jsbt said:

At least 'the Balkan' sounded ominous!

I thought it sounded like yogurt. 

1 hour ago, Cheyanne11 said:

2 hours ago, CeChase said:

It could be Michael, I just don't know what he did to accrue Rico charges. 

Is boring someone to death a federal crime?

Maybe we could get a class action lawsuit going?

[Grinaldi]

Michael's "sorry about Spencer" to Trina was so lame and half-hearted. I'd say it was badly acted but maybe Mikey just is that big of a tool. Also why wasn't his dusty ass at his first cousin's funeral to say it then?

Honestly while I agree Jason doing this to protect Michael is the stronger thematic choice, I don't want the SLS's ego to get any bigger.

[jsbt]

They were so clearly chemistry testing Drew and Nina last week it is wild, lol. Him helping her with her computer? Drew wanted to wear her face as a mask like Leatherface two weeks ago. But I'm for it, because they definitely have some heat while trading more lighthearted, less homicidal barbs even if I have no desire to see either of them continue on the show long-term. The dialogue has already improved so much that Cam even got off a great line that almost reminded me of his early days on AMC: “It’s the Peter Principle in action! You’ve advanced to your level of incompetence.” And yes, dammit Drew is hot again now that the beard is back.

Sue me but the Laura/Heather unlikely bond kinda works for me given the family history that is easily reviewable on YouTube and now that AM has calmed down some and engages with Genie on a real level. Surely if they'd just given cobalt madness to Gentle Farmer Franco that would all have worked out! I'll give it a shot.

I'll get to the rest shortly, but for now suffice to say Willow was clearly willing to let Michael take the fall for those drugs so she could spend more time with Jason and/or Drew. I did like him talking about his prison time and the rape.

Edited March 26 by jsbt

[Grinaldi]

I'm also really liking the Laura/Heather stuff. I've recently rewatched some of that stuff and it rings true. They were never besties but they had a connection. And the cobalt poisoning is more a retcon to get out of bad/inconsistent character writing rather than what happened with Franco. Heather being reset to pre-hook levels of off-kilter chaos agent actual honors history and the character.

Franco was a character who never should have existed. He sprang out of JFP's ego and James Franco's weird need to slum it in daytime (and/or try to fuck Steve Burton.) Turning a serial killer/rapist into a long term character was a terrible idea even if Howarth did some good work with him (I said *some*) I know this has been litigated before but I'm still pissed about it. It drove me from soaps for 10 years. 

[jsbt]

7 minutes ago, Grinaldi said:

I'm also really liking the Laura/Heather stuff. I've recently rewatched some of that stuff and it rings true. They were never besties but they had a connection. And the cobalt poisoning is more a retcon to get out of bad/inconsistent character writing rather than what happened with Franco. Heather being reset to pre-hook levels of off-kilter chaos agent actual honors history and the character.

Franco was a character who never should have existed. He sprang out of JFP's ego and James Franco's weird need to slum it in daytime (and/or try to fuck Steve Burton.) Turning a serial killer/rapist into a long term character was a terrible idea even if Howarth did some good work with him (I said *some*) I know this has been litigated before but I'm still pissed about it. It drove me from soaps for 10 years. 

I thought the idea of stunt casting a major movie star as a supervillain for an arc was fun on paper. The execution got very dumb very quickly though, especially during JF's return stints. Making Roger Franco should never have happened, especially when they allegedly passed up Tom Hardy, Steve, etc. for an 'edgier' character a la Todd. He should've been killed off by Liz's boys in a suburban mystery a la David Hamilton, but here we are.

Heather is different for me because she has a long, rich history on the show well before her days of going full I Know What You Did Last Summer and was a beloved character for fans. I think the idea of her becoming Laura's kooky talk-to cousin is wild and kind of ingenious, something Laura does not have in her life. It's risky but I am willing to ride this out and I think the performances and writing are there so far.

Edited March 26 by jsbt

[Grinaldi]

I think having Howarth play Jimmy Lee's son was the better idea and if they had done that in the first place he still could have mixed it up with the Q's, been Kiki's dad and been an "edgy" character. Instead they finally got there 10 years later and made him an inconsisent milquetoast. 

Ahem

Sorry. Will never not be Big Mad about this.

Back to today. I like that they are writing realistic grief for Trina and don't seem to be rushing anything to create a lame love triangle once Spencer inevitably turns up alive.

And I have a spec on that...I know it's his middle name and all, but seeing Stefan's name on Spence's headstone plus the mystery of who bought Spoon Island has me thinking...maybe Spencer doesnt come back alone? Would Mulcahey be enough to get Steven Nichols back? 

Edited March 26 by Grinaldi

[jsbt]

5 minutes ago, Grinaldi said:

And I have a spec on that...I know it's his middle name and all, but seeing Stefan's name on Spence's headstone plus the mystery of who bought Spoon Island has me thinking...maybe Spencer doesnt come back alone? Would Mulcahey be enough to get Steven Nichols back? 

I would kill to get SN back but I think he is on contract at DAYS and I can't see Uncle Frank offering him one. I do think Ron and Frank tried it in 2013 (there were a zillion Stefan mentions in that period) but IIRC SN later said he turned it down on account of either story or money or both. I suspect they wanted him to join their massive recurring veteran corps doing nothing in C-story every 3-4 weeks, and probably do some lame love triangle stuff with Laura in the background. Genie dipped that year for the same reason.

[Asp Burger]

No matter who's writing or producing, the holy-hitman dogma never goes away. I can't help comparing the in-show reactions to Jason's return, to the reactions to Nikolas's similar 2019 return. Both guys were presumed dead for a few years, then turned up alive in Port Charles. With Nikolas, we were put on notice very early that one reaction would be "How could he stay away for years and make his loved ones suffer?" Some characters were still saying that after a period of years. But on Jason's behalf, Josslyn insists to Trina that there must have been a very good reason.

And of the two of them, Nikolas is the one who wasn't implicated in a shooting as soon as he got back. 

However:  

4 hours ago, jsbt said:

The dialogue has already improved so much

This is the biggest improvement I've noticed. Several times per episode, I react to lines as having been especially good, even in "filler" conversations. An example is Elizabeth's (to Willow) about how raising teenage boys means digging for information, sometimes lovingly and sometimes with a pickax. 

The pacing is the other big improvement, specifically the new willingness to stay in one place longer and let the scenes breathe, instead of frantically cutting between different locations every 15 seconds.

Edited March 26 by Asp Burger

[jsbt]

36 minutes ago, Asp Burger said:

No matter who's writing or producing, the holy-hitman dogma never goes away. I can't help comparing the in-show reactions to Jason's return, to the reactions to Nikolas's similar 2019 return. Both guys were presumed dead for a few years, then turned up alive in Port Charles. With Nikolas, we were put on notice very early that one reaction would be "How could he stay away for years and make his loved ones suffer?" Some characters were still saying that after a period of years. But on Jason's behalf, Josslyn insists to Trina that there must have been a very good reason.

In fairness, Jake, Sam, etc. have all asked that.

I don't expect the gospel of St. Jasus to disappear. Until Steve or Maurice quit that and the mob will be a part of the fabric of the show. I can't fault any one writing team for that after this many decades and clearly network investment in not upsetting the locals and certain segments of the audience. But it's a question of moderation and execution. Frank and Ron Carlivati arguably broke the back of the mob focus in their first year or two at the show in the early 2010s; it became largely incidental to other stories (many of them goofy stories) and while Sonny and for a time Jason were very active, the show did not revolve around them for a while. Jason in particular got marginalized for a time in 2012. Mulcahey and Korte both came up writing for Jason Morgan in his early days, when he had real dimension to character still; Korte continued as a staff writer with the show into the Fab 4 'glory days' where Jason was an unstoppable god. None of that is down to any one writer other than ultimately Bob Guza.

I expect Jason and his reasons or issues will be somewhat vindicated, because that's the arc of history with this show and that leading man. But it's enough for me for now to have characters being allowed to legitimately question him, his lifestyle and choices as a parent or a husband or a man and not be vilified for doing so. There were many many years that that did not and could not happen. And if PM can somehow add some dimension to Jason again I'll be amazed but not entirely surprised. Steve to his credit seems at least engaged so far, to me.

And yeah, for me the focus on character is also strong again along with the dialogue. They're playing uncommon family beats with parents, children, relations and friends, setting up the next generation - even stuff like Cody and Olivia (or Cody and the frickin' horse!) or the Deception shenanigans sings to me lately. Drew and Nina's chemistry is substantial and their barbs are fun and not just psycho, when I usually have zero use for either character; the BLQ/Chase and Willow/Michael material feels increasingly more adult when I usually found them snoozeworthy. The Lucy/Sasha stuff on Friday was shockingly mature. Tracy and BLQ's bond is great, Maxie feels alive. Stuff just works.

Edited March 26 by jsbt

[GHScorpiosRule]

3 hours ago, jsbt said:

I expect Jason and his reasons or issues will be somewhat vindicated, because that's the arc of history with this show and that leading man. But it's enough for me for now to have characters being allowed to legitimately question him, his lifestyle and choices as a parent or a husband or a man and not be vilified for doing so.

This is what I want to see. And I say this as someone who was a huge Jason and Robin, and then Jason and Elizabeth fan. But now I detest the gumbo on steroids block of wood. He only ever seemed to make an effort when Kimberly would return and they would share scenes. I posted this awhile back, but when he returned from the dead the last time, and learned about Sam and Patrick, he and Robin had a hilarious scene discussing their WTF? reactions and Jason saying "let's never talk about this again" and suggested they go get some lunch.

The only thing I love about Burton are his purty, purty blue eyes.

Whaat?

[Cheyanne11]

9 hours ago, Grinaldi said:

Michael's "sorry about Spencer" to Trina was so lame and half-hearted. I'd say it was badly acted but maybe Mikey just is that big of a tool. Also why wasn't his dusty ass at his first cousin's funeral to say it then?

Not me sitting here having to write it out to remember this.

[dubbel zout]

13 hours ago, CeChase said:

It could be Michael, I just don't know what he did to accrue Rico charges. 

We don't know what anyone did yet. Whatever Jason's feelings for Carly are, his feelings for Michael are stronger, and the need to protect him is always uppermost in his mind. In some ways, Carly is just along for the ride because she's Michael's mother. 

9 hours ago, jsbt said:

Surely if they'd just given cobalt madness to Gentle Farmer Franco that would all have worked out!

Instead of or along with the brain tumor they gave him?

8 hours ago, Grinaldi said:

Heather being reset to pre-hook levels of off-kilter chaos agent actual honors history and the character.

It's also a relief that she shouldn't be constantly shrieking at everyone. For that alone, I'm okay with the retcon/reset. Good lord, that was annoying.

[GHScorpiosRule]

14 minutes ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Not me sitting here having to write it out to remember this.

As Mooby's son, the SLS  is first cousin to Spencer because Spencer's Mom was SWSNBN (Mooby's sister).

It took me a minute to figure it out as well, heh.

Edited March 26 by GHScorpiosRule

[ffwbe]

33 minutes ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Not me sitting here having to write it out to remember this.

Spencer’s practically related to everyone and so is Michael when you combine his bio and adopted family but I don’t think it means much that they didn’t acknowledge that connection when they really never interacted as family. Aside from Sonny and Sonny only, Spencer didn’t really have anything to do with his mother’s side of the family with the exception of those who also were related to his father. Like when he was a kid, he called Dante uncle Dante because he was married to Lulu but doesn’t see him as his cousin. 

[ffwbe]

IA with everyone that I think the show has been better written and they are playing connections and POV that were largely being ignored before. I think Chris/Dan had a terrible habit of centering A stories around characters who we either didn’t like or were brand new and keeping characters in these tiny bubbles.

However, since I don’t care about Jason and find his return SL dull, episodes like yesterday are hard to get through because I think aside from Trina talking about Spencer, every single scene was about Jason. The previews for today doesn’t look any better. Hopefully, once we get through this story, they can stick Jason back in his bubble of Carly, Sonny, and whoever he’s paired with so the other have of the show is entertaining for me because I think the non Jason related stuff has been great. 

[KittenPokerCheater]

Love how Jason's love for Michael superseeds his love for both Danny and Jake.  Father of the year, than one.

Deep sarcasm.

[dubbel zout]

I'd love for one or both of them  to call Jason in it, but I doubt that will ever happen. Or if it does, nothing substantial will come of it.

[YaddaYadda]

I think there's some hope with Jake. 

This show has circled the drain with its worship of the holy hitman. A conflict here and there wouldn't hurt the character even if I have no expectations that Jason will show any type of growth.

[ffwbe]

20 minutes ago, YaddaYadda said:

I think there's some hope with Jake. 

This show has circled the drain with its worship of the holy hitman. A conflict here and there wouldn't hurt the character even if I have no expectations that Jason will show any type of growth.

I think Jake doesn’t see him as a hero and doesn’t worship the mob so that’s something. However, Jason being a deadbeat dad rarely gets called out and even when it does, they aren’t consistent about it so I’d be surprised by happy if either of his kids mention it. 

Kristina’s rant to Sam in 2020 about how Jason would never put her and the kids ahead of Sonny and Carly and would die for them but doesn’t want to live with them were probably my favorite scenes from that character to date. She had him pegged and tbh, I don’t think her relationship with Sam was ever the same after that. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

15 minutes ago, ffwbe said:

think Jake doesn’t see him as a hero and doesn’t worship the mob so that’s something. However, Jason being a deadbeat dad rarely gets called out and even when it does, they aren’t consistent about it so I’d be surprised by happy if either of his kids mention it. 

Oh, come on, now! Don't you remember how he played with baby Jake with...motorcycles? That's twu parental love right there!

[jsbt]

It helps the show tremendously that PM has evidently got the pull to let scenes breathe and run longer again. Many segments are not just the typical Valentini 50-90 seconds, character-based conversations are actually had, monologues are given. Like Trina's very good stuff about grief yesterday IMO both with Stella and the excellent extended segment at Spencer's grave. I frankly don't think Sydney Mikayla did anything with a fraction of the depth Ali has shown here. Whatever goes down with Chavez returning or not in spring I'll be shocked if TA doesn't get real story following this because it showed significant investment in her and her skill. Joss, Frank's preferred star, has not had an extended series of solo monologue segments like this in my recent memory at least.

It's also nice to see my earlier suspicions confirmed re: Wagger and the FBI, running Jason on a leash with Jason to infiltrate this shadow outfit and Pikeman (I still suspect Ava is in it up to her neck, recent simpering for Sonny aside - neither being OOC for her with bad men). There will be the predictable outrage at the scheming feds, etc etc. when this comes out but the point is Wagger is not a black hat. If they wanted to make Jason relatively tolerable for me going forward they'd keep him on that federal leash, though I doubt that'll happen. I've said for years Scorpio and the WSB should have drafted Jason with a deal to work for them or go to Supermax for life. A role Drew could've easily and less reluctantly filled when CM first arrived.

Edited March 26 by jsbt

[Cheyanne11]

14 minutes ago, jsbt said:

There will be the predictable outrage at the scheming feds, etc etc. when this comes out but the point is Wagger is not a black hat.

Yes, this pleased me a lot.  

[Bringonthedrama]

Jake (toward Elizabeth and Aiden) has had the best reaction to Jason's return/suspected crime so far. HW played anger toward Jason and shame (at being a killer's son) really well.

Today, my reaction is maannn Jason's tears over finding out about Britt is more emotion than he's shown over Sam in a long time. Maybe he was falling in love with her in 2021?

Carly's hostility at learning John/Jagger knew Jason Quartermaine before she knew Jason Morgan was hilarious. I'm surprised she knew anything of the Jason/Karen past. I don't recall Jagger and Jason being friends in high school; I remember Jagger had a fling with Brenda while being in love with Karen, Jason's girlfriend. I could have sworn Jagger worked a little bit for Jason/the Qs.

Ava can be quite the smooth manipulator, lol. Although it helps that Sonny isn't so bright.

The Curtis and Laura friendship is one of the very few times I find Curtis tolerable.

 Damn, so much drama in the preview with Danny punching his brother Jake and Sam screaming at Jason. 

[ffwbe]

I think Ava is getting feelings for Sonny but she’s also manipulating him hard for something else. She was very neutral when Michael was in the room but the moment he left, she was in Sonny’s ear about how Sonny shouldn’t trust Jason because he betrayed him by getting with Carly so quickly after he died and how she’s the only one he can trust. She was also pushing the theory about how Jason was going after him during the last time we saw them alone. I don’t think she needs to turn him against Jason if her only intention is getting with him. If that was the case, she’d be focusing on how he can’t trust Nina, Carly or any other woman he knows.  

[rur]

35 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

 

Carly's hostility at learning John/Jagger knew Jason Quartermaine before she knew Jason Morgan was hilarious. I'm surprised she knew anything of the Jason/Karen past. I don't recall Jagger and Jason being friends in high school; I remember Jagger had a fling with Brenda while being in love with Karen, Jason's girlfriend. I could have sworn Jagger worked a little bit for Jason/the Qs.

 

I had been wondering if the fact that Jagger and Jason Q knew each other would ever be brought up, so I was pleased that it was acknowledged today. 

I don't remember if they were friends, but they were friendly. 

I will never forget the scene where Karen, Jagger and Jason were in a boat and it began to leak. To plug the hole,  Jason told Jagger, "Quick! Take off your shirt!"

In an interview even Antonio Sabato laughed about the contrivance to get him shirtless. 

Edited March 26 by rur

[JMO]

1 hour ago, jsbt said:

It helps the show tremendously that PM has evidently got the pull to let scenes breathe and run longer again. Many segments are not just the typical Valentini 50-90 seconds, character-based conversations are actually had, monologues are given. Like Trina's very good stuff about grief yesterday IMO both with Stella and the excellent extended segment at Spencer's grave. 

The graveyard scene felt odd to me at first, but I realized that it was only because it was taking place weeks later than it should have, and thus felt a little disconnected.  But if it gave us a sample of what we have to look forward to with the new team, I'm all for it. The quality of the writing was excellent, and I agree that TA showed real depth with it.  Looking forward to more, with a greater number of characters, and more seamlessly woven into the overall arc.  

[dubbel zout]

I wish Wagger hadn't apologized to Carly—she might not have been technically harboring a fugitive, but she lied to law enforcement when she said he wasn't there. I can only hope he decided to take the long view and realized there was no point being antagonistic toward Carly.

3 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

The Curtis and Laura friendship is one of the very few times I find Curtis tolerable.

I'm ready for Curtis to get his legs back. I'm tired of everyone bending over backward to make sure they don't make him feel bad. Also, Curtis, you are not important enough to Sonny to want him to shoot you.

Ooh, interesting that Jason didn't know John Cates was Jagger back in the day and the Karen connection. That adds a nice wrinkle. And delightful to see the great Jason Morgan realize he got played. Ha!

31 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

Carly's hostility at learning John/Jagger knew Jason Quartermaine before she knew Jason Morgan was hilarious.

Also delightful. It's about time someone one-upped her there. Also, Carly, Jason is a liar, but it's usually to your advantage, so of course you think it's not a problem. And her diatribe about conflict of interest. When it goes against her, it's the worst. Otherwise? No problemo.

What exactly does Michael think Sonny can do for Jason when Jason is in custody? That's what Diane gets her gigantic fees for. It also cracks me up that Sonny is still holding his grudge against Michael and Michael thinks Jason's predicament will somehow override that.

 

[ffwbe]

Jason is a huge liar and Carly only values honesty when it’s directed at her. She lies constantly, even to people she claims to care about, when it doesn’t serve her agenda. 

[YaddaYadda]

I hate that everyone must apologize to Carly. Carly lied to Jagger and Anna. Jason was in her house when they showed up, so she can have a tall glass of STFU over her faux outrage.

Please don't taint Jagger over this. He's been great so far, the actor is very capable. Let's not ruin that.

Sonny basically kicking Michael out was gold. 

Yeah, Ava is the "devil" on Sonny's shoulder right now. She sure seems to be working to isolate him from his people.

Jason telling Anna about his work as an informant for the FBI because Jagger left out that he knew Jason Q. Also, Anna . . . wake 👏up 👏 Jason 👏is 👏 a 👏 hitman 👏 for 👏Sonny👏 

If you see Sonny clearly now, then you should see Jason clearly too. Plus he confessed that the FBI had an incriminating recording that forced his hand into cooperating. This whole I respect you business is utter bullshit. I know I have a hard time mustering any respect for the character that Anna has become.

Edited March 26 by YaddaYadda

[Bringonthedrama]

46 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

I wish Wagger hadn't apologized to Carly—she might not have been technically harboring a fugitive, but she lied to law enforcement when she said he wasn't there. I can only hope he decided to take the long view and realized there was no point being antagonistic toward Carly.

Also delightful. It's about time someone one-upped her there. Also, Carly, Jason is a liar, but it's usually to your advantage,

I got the impression he realized there was no point. Carly walking around throwing tantrums about him because she was "provoked" (what I assume she'd claim) certainly wouldn't help him motivate Jason's cooperation.

Yes, Carly has a history of not reacting well upon realizing someone (usually a woman) knew Jason as well as, or for longer than, she has. I have always believed that at least part of Carly's hatred/jealousy of Robin and then Elizabeth was a) they knew Jason and his family, the wealthy Quartermaines, years before Jason ever knew Carly existed and b) they both became close to him by really connecting, over time. Carly can never erase that her connection to Jason was just sex, which turned into decades of neediness and co-dependence when she found out she was pregnant with Michael but wanted to "protect" her kid from Tony and AJ/the Quartermaines. 

It's so ironic to me that now Michael lives on the Q property with his wife and kids, and Jason's younger son has spent so much time at the Q mansion as he's been growing up that he has his own room there.  

Edited March 26 by Bringonthedrama

[KittenPokerCheater]

I was glad that we got to see Jason hear about Britt's death.  I mean, for the actor/Jason, we saw a moment of him sitting with the news.  Too bad that's the last we'll see/hear of him and Britt.

I'm liking the longer scenes as well. And since she hates him, I think I want Carly to hook up with Jagger/John.  

 

[DanaK]

Dang, I missed the last half due to a local preemption on further coverage of the Baltimore bridge collapse. I’ll have to pick up the latter half via Hulu or ABC.com later

[Bringonthedrama]

1 hour ago, KittenPokerCheater said:

I was glad that we got to see Jason hear about Britt's death.  I mean, for the actor/Jason, we saw a moment of him sitting with the news.  Too bad that's the last we'll see/hear of him and Britt.

I'm liking the longer scenes as well. And since she hates him, I think I want Carly to hook up with Jagger/John.  

 

I want him to find out that Britt died saving Josslyn from Heather Webber. 

I assume(d) the show would hook up Jagger/John with Lois, because she was Brenda's business partner/best friend (he and Brenda had a fling in high school) and also because she and Sonny are good buddies. Cue more drama, conflict between John/Jagger and Sonny. 

[Sake614]

So Jason finds out that John/Jagger knew Jason Q in HS and is Stone’s brother, and that causes him to spill everything to Anna? Seriously? And Anna, just because a professional assassin tells you he didn’t shoot your cop, doesn’t mean it’s true. I mean, we know he didn’t do it, but why is it impossible to believe? No one knew where Jason was or what he was doing for 2+ years. PLEASE stop with the teary eyes and wanting so desperately to believe the mob guys are good, upstanding citizens who would never hurt anyone! 

at least the desk sergeant didn’t let Snarly waltz into the interrogation room to see Jason. I’m sure Anna will be more than happy to let her in, but I’m glad someone said no.

Ava is definitely playing Sonny. I just haven’t figured out to what end. 

Just now, Bringonthedrama said:

assume(d) the show would hook up Jagger/John with Lois, because she was Brenda's business partner/best friend (he and Brenda had a fling in high school)

I hope he has more brains than that. Would she really date an FBI agent when she believes Sonny is an honorable man?

[dubbel zout]

19 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

And Anna, just because a professional assassin tells you he didn’t shoot your cop, doesn’t mean it’s true

But Anna knows what kind of person Jason is, and he never lies. /s

[Sake614]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

But Anna knows what kind of person Jason is, and he never lies. /s

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

But Anna knows what kind of person Jason is, and he never lies. /s

 

[Auntie Velvet]

In the scene with Anna and Jason, there seemed to be a lot of focus on both how long Jason had been working for the FBI, and the exact date that Britt died. Is it possible that Britt still had other things that could have gotten her jailed again, and he's just now finding out he was protecting a dead woman?

[jsbt]

5 hours ago, ffwbe said:

I think Ava is getting feelings for Sonny but she’s also manipulating him hard for something else. She was very neutral when Michael was in the room but the moment he left, she was in Sonny’s ear about how Sonny shouldn’t trust Jason because he betrayed him by getting with Carly so quickly after he died and how she’s the only one he can trust.

It would not be the first time Ava has been dickstruck by a mark (Morgan) or the worst man possible (Ryan Chamberlain). She has done everything she is (possibly) doing to Sonny now before: Isolate him from family and friends, get him drinking and unstable, and next presumably is sleeping with him. If they make it explicit he's back off his meds we'll know she's doing a rerun.

Ava had no feelings for Sonny the first time, but these days they share a young child and she's occasionally seen the 'softer' side over the years. I can see her catching her typical brand of twisted, dysfunctional feelings for him even after beginning a scheme to destroy his business empire and ruin him - that's all typical Ava to me. Would I rather she's playing him in full though, of course.

[jsbt]

8 hours ago, ffwbe said:

Kristina’s rant to Sam in 2020 about how Jason would never put her and the kids ahead of Sonny and Carly and would die for them but doesn’t want to live with them were probably my favorite scenes from that character to date. She had him pegged and tbh, I don’t think her relationship with Sam was ever the same after that. 

Completely true and I'm going to have to look those scenes up. It was obvious long before they had a child that Jason could and would never put Sam or his own family before Sonny, Carly or Michael - who will always, in his heart, be his first son. That is fucked up but it is also a very true and organic character beat IMO because Michael was Jason's life when he was first born. So it always baffled me when the show decided they just had to give the Jasam fans their cake too and make her pregnant, because the show had long since established the hierarchy in Jason's life, that the mob life was his central world, that he was not fit to raise a family, and that Sam was along for the ride as his supposed 'perfect mate'. That changed for her to her credit, but he has never changed and IMO never will. (The only time he came close I think was when he and Elizabeth finally got together after Jake, and it didn't last long.)

Edited March 27 by jsbt

[methodwriter85]

4 hours ago, KittenPokerCheater said:

 

I'm liking the longer scenes as well. And since she hates him, I think I want Carly to hook up with Jagger/John.  

 

I keep thinking Wagger should have been an AJ recast. 

[jsbt]

4 hours ago, YaddaYadda said:

If you see Sonny clearly now, then you should see Jason clearly too. Plus he confessed that the FBI had an incriminating recording that forced his hand into cooperating. This whole I respect you business is utter bullshit. I know I have a hard time mustering any respect for the character that Anna has become.

Judging by her interviews, Finola has had some difficulty with the new normal reverting back to Anna vs. the mob, which is a shame because it's the kind of thing Anna excels at.

It seems to me that Anna has been more fragile ever since coming back to town just after Robin's shocking 'death,' and that trauma has never fully left her. She then had to deal with Duke's return and demise, Faison, the horrors of her DVX past and Heinrich, and I think those things have left her more and more raw. That's how I explain her constant emotional reactions to Sonny, etc. anyway. As Finola has said Anna was able to unburden herself about her past with an equally dark character in him, and I can buy that that meant something to her. I also think that Finola fears that if she plays Anna too hard and cool people will only see a caricature superwoman and not the humanity. But the weakness has been here for too long, it's time for Anna to find her steel and more devil may care resolve again. If that means she starts seeing Kevin onscreen I'm all for it. But while I bought her wonderful horrified reaction to Wagger's initial speech a couple weeks ago, I'm done with the teary eyes in these scenes even though I think Finola always does excellent work.

Edited March 27 by jsbt

[Artsda]

Jason reacting to Britt's death has been best part of his return. 

Sonny needs to never forgive Michael. Michael deserves everything he gets from him. 

After all the drama over using Lila's dress she's just now going to get a new one? 

Ava seems to something.  Michael points out he has nobody to trust while she lurks around. 

[Bringonthedrama]

2 hours ago, Sake614 said:

So Jason finds out that John/Jagger knew Jason Q in HS and is Stone’s brother, and that causes him to spill everything to Anna? Seriously? And Anna, just because a professional assassin tells you he didn’t shoot your cop, doesn’t mean it’s true. I mean, we know he didn’t do it, but why is it impossible to believe? No one knew where Jason was or what he was doing for 2+ years.

I hope he has more brains than that. Would she really date an FBI agent when she believes Sonny is an honorable man?

No, he spilled to Anna because he's angry that John/Jagger knew him from a time he can't remember and targeted him for this job using his loyalty to Sonny/Carly/Michael as well as his brain damage/memory loss against him (to the FBI's advantage).  He trusts Anna much more than he trusts John Cates after Anna brought up Robin and disclosed the history.

Anna knows Jason is a criminal who gets into shoot-outs with Mob rivals, etc. but she doesn't want to believe that Robin's second great love and friend when not presumed dead, would try to kill a good man like Dante. Also having that conversation with her daughter would be hard.

 

It has nothing to do with brains. The writers have given characters like Robert and Anna plot-point stupidity in the past to extend drama. I could see the show testing the waters on a romance for drama, with Lois saying, "We're just goin' out on a date. Brenda said he was fun back in the day. What's the hawwwmmm?"

[TVbitch]

Laura asks Curtis for his playlist! 😂 I really can't see them having the same taste in music. Hey I could be wrong and she and Kevin could be getting their groove on at home.

Carly to John:  "Jason is the best man I know, while you sir are an ammoral piece of shit corrupt FBI jerk who I shan't deign to let eat in my five star establishment!" I was so mad at him for apologizing to that delusional harpy. 

[ciarra]

1 hour ago, Artsda said:

After all the drama over using Lila's dress she's just now going to get a new one? 

ITA.

Maybe they realized how dated it looked?  Or it's easier to find something off the rack at David's Bridal than to alter.

The quickie wedding also reeks of "Let's save a few bucks." (so we can afford SBu's salary).

 

[Grinaldi]

 

3 hours ago, TVbitch said:

Laura asks Curtis for his playlist! 😂 I really can't see them having the same taste in music.

Between that and her video game talk with Rocco the other day they are going hard on the "fun mom" vibes with Laura and I can't say I hate it. She's always been a pretty cool lady

Edited March 27 by Grinaldi

[Asp Burger]

8 hours ago, jsbt said:

It seems to me that Anna has been more fragile ever since coming back to town just after Robin's shocking 'death,' and that trauma has never fully left her. She then had to deal with Duke's return and demise, Faison, the horrors of her DVX past and Heinrich, and I think those things have left her more and more raw.

Don't forget the polycythemia vera! 

Quote

I also think that Finola fears that if she plays Anna too hard and cool people will only see a caricature superwoman and not the humanity. But the weakness has been here for too long, it's time for Anna to find her steel and more devil may care resolve again. If that means she starts seeing Kevin onscreen I'm all for it. But while I bought her wonderful horrified reaction to Wagger's initial speech a couple weeks ago, I'm done with the teary eyes in these scenes even though I think Finola always does excellent work.

I've seen this kind of thing before in long-running shows, both in daytime and in prime time—regrettably, usually with "strong" female characters. The character starts out one way, and then some combination of the writers' room, the producers, and the network decide that "beleaguered" and "emotional" are the character's best suit, even if few viewers feel that way. Then the weepy version of the character, if not the only one we ever see, is seriously overexposed. It's like, "Uncle! We get it! She can be 'vulnerable' too."  

[luna1122again]

15 hours ago, KittenPokerCheater said:

I was glad that we got to see Jason hear about Britt's death.  I mean, for the actor/Jason, we saw a moment of him sitting with the news.  Too bad that's the last we'll see/hear of him and Britt.

I'm liking the longer scenes as well. And since she hates him, I think I want Carly to hook up with Jagger/John.  

 

I do NOT want Jagger wasted on Carly. I'll have to hate him if he falls for her. blech. 

Why does Jason have no idea about current events? He's out and about, with a phone...does he never look up anything about anyone from his hometown? Why wouldn't he already know Britt is dead? Does the FBI deny him internet?