Episode Discussion II: The TFGH

[dubbel zout]

2 minutes ago, jsbt said:

they eventually had Ava waxing on about her dreamy childhood fantasies of being a fairy tale princess

Which was so wildly OOC, especially because it carried no status or power. Dark Ava and Nik were a really good counterpoint to the other couples on the show, who were boring and/or conventional. And they were interesting.

[Bringonthedrama]

Maxie telling Blaze's mom that BLQ is "my best friend" makes me think the Lulu character will not wake up/be re-cast.

The flirt/vibe Drew is giving both Nina and Willow is so very icky. Willow's obvious crush on him is embarrassing.  I assume Willow will somehow find out from Maxie that Drew and Nina have been having sex? And then her 'considering forgiveness' of Nina will evaporate?

Olivia telling Cody and Sasha there will be no sneaking into Sasha's room and that she'll have her eyes on them...UGH.

Valentin took Charlotte to boarding school in Switzerland which made him readily available to do business for Pikeman - than turns around and wants to suicide Anna again, knowing quite well she and Charlotte are still dealing with being traumatized from the shooting? Ew and ick doesn't even cover it. I rolled my eyes that Anna is teary over Valentin's lies. Seriously?

Eye rolls over Jason/Anna/ Dex, too esp. Anna personally handing him the acceptance letter.

 

[jsbt]

If they have CM go full early Ryan Lavery and two-time mother and daughter with each other it would be something out of classic Y&R and very soapy, and I'd be open to it though I also really like Drew/Nina together period. I'm not sure this show (or modern Y&R, for that matter) has the balls for that kind of triangle though. It has been deeply risk-averse and even conflict-averse between most characters for years, even though soaps are built on stories like that. Even when Griffin and Kiki got together and shocked Ava, it was not played for fun or scandal IIRC. We'll see if that changes, because I do think the energy between Drew and Nina is very different to anything this show has attempted in a long run of very milquetoast years.

I don't have a problem with Anna getting emotional over Valentin vs. other recent situations. She was inexplicably in love with that weirdo.

Edited April 30 by jsbt

[tessaray]

1 hour ago, jsbt said:

Even before Tyler left, in that pairing's earliest beginnings after they'd gone on the run together, they eventually had Ava waxing on about her dreamy childhood fantasies of being a fairy tale princess, and this kind of inconsistent and often schmoopy approach to the couple continued with Coloma in the role. Sometimes they were dark and dysfunctional, other times they were trying to be Jack and Carly from ATWT.

I didn't realize they went that far back. Sounds extremely cringey.

[dubbel zout]

Tetrazzini isn't exactly duck à l'orange. Casseroles in general are pretty foolproof. At any rate, I'm sure anything non-red-sauce-based will be a new experience for the Q household.

Why is Natalie being so shirty with Maxie? If Natalie is so unhappy with the Deception deal, she shouldn't have had Blaze sign the contract in the first place. Due diligence should have been done before now. Some manager Natalie is.

All that said, I liked how Maxie stood her ground and defended BL and Deception.

Valentin lied to Anna. Who'd've thunk it?

[jsbt]

34 minutes ago, tessaray said:

I didn't realize they went that far back. Sounds extremely cringey.

Yep, they started hinting at the pairing with Tyler shortly before he made himself unemployable by the show and was briefly replaced by Nick Stabile. I knew they had the heat with her and Tyler then, but yes the writing got a bit soppy even in that short interim. I actually wonder if the sillier stuff might've come in only after Stabile arrived as White Soccer Dad Nikolas, but I really can't remember. The characters were only linked in that period for what, a couple months?

Edited April 30 by jsbt

[ciarra]

Why is Blaze's mom still getting airtime?

[nilyank]

The Q household is a mansion and not a convent. If Sasha and ugh Cody are discreet and are together behind closed doors during their off hours, it is none of Olivia's business. 

Is Sasha going to be placed in a guest room or in the servant quarters?

Was Olivia this concern about midnight visits when Brook was still living at the mansion and Chase stayed the night?

Also aren't Wylie and Amelia living in the gatehouse which is no where near the main house. The only child who may see Sasha/Cody after late hours would be Leo and frankly as his mother she should have that conversation with him and not Sasha/Cody.

I could see a bunch of triangles from today's show. Nina/Drew/Willow but also Michael/Sasha/Cody (or else why stick him in the middle of Sasha audition to be the cook).

Finally while Blaze's mom is annoying, I agree with her for thinking Brooklyn is a dilettante especially as she flitters around at Deception where she never wanted to be there in the first place.

[tessaray]

I don't know why Natalia has a problem with BL being a music business nepo baby. Connections are a big part of any industry and the more you have, all the better for your client.  

6 minutes ago, nilyank said:

Finally while Blaze's mom is annoying, I agree with her for thinking Brooklyn is a dilettante especially as she flitters around at Deception where she never wanted to be there in the first place.

 

Blaze as the face of Deception doesn't make much sense. Maybe as one in a series of interesting women on the rise but she already has a full-time job. Still, Natalia took the money, so why balk now and insinuate that BL is the problem?

[dubbel zout]

1 hour ago, nilyank said:

Finally while Blaze's mom is annoying, I agree with her for thinking Brooklyn is a dilettante especially as she flitters around at Deception where she never wanted to be there in the first place.

I think Natalia is miffed that she's not Blaze's music manager, so she's looking for any reason to ding BL. 

[Cheyanne11]

Olivia practically begged Sasha to come be the Q cook and then acted like she was making Michael/Wiley/Leo eat something she found in the garbage behind The Floating Rib.  Insufferable.

Newsflash Willow and Drew: Nina didn't "send" Drew to prison.  he did that all on his own. 

 

Edited April 30 by Cheyanne11

[Auntie Velvet]

I know it would be tacky, but it would have served Blaze's mother right if Maxie had informed her that the reason Brooklyn "just walked away from performing" is that her throat literally got slashed. (Of course, it really doesn't make sense that the mother knows every other minute detail of Brookyn's life EXCEPT that.)

[tessabq]

"I would use some basil and more oregano." And then, Olivia, it wouldn't be Chicken Tetrazzini, whose base is a simple garlic cream sauce.  If nothing else, Sasha will broaden the children's palates. 

I realize it's a small thing to bitch about, but they were looking at their plates as if Sasha had served them Soylent Green.

[YaddaYadda]

I don't even know what to make of Anna anymore.

Olivia is a complete headcase. She auditions Sasha for a cook's position, has had her food before, thought it was excellent, acts like Sasha was serving cyanide for dinner. She's scared of eating the food. STFU, Olivia.

I'm shocked that Wylie dirties himself when he eats. I thought the robot child was perfect.

Willow deciding not to hold on to her anger with Nina was never about her being angry for that long at Nina. It was about Drew and his feelings. Now that he's cool with Nina, Willow can be cool with Nina. I'm assuming Michael's head will explode over this. Look what happens when Willow is allowed to be out on her own.

[dubbel zout]

1 minute ago, YaddaYadda said:

She's scared of eating the food. STFU, Olivia.

I got intense satisfaction from Leo's comment that the tetrazzini was better than Olivia's spaghetti. Suck on that, Liv.

2 minutes ago, YaddaYadda said:

I'm assuming Michael's head will explode over this. Look what happens when Willow is allowed to be out on her own.

It's not as if Willow has an independent thought about this. She's still basing her behavior on someone else's. So gross.

[YaddaYadda]

36 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

It's not as if Willow has an independent thought about this. She's still basing her behavior on someone else's. So gross.

She wouldn't be Willow if she wasn't.

[Auntie Velvet]

After Willow tossed out a few crumbs, I'm just super relieved that the writers didn't have Nina stick around the office and try to get Willow to come over for a sleepover or something, only for Willow to say, "Ugh, why do you always have to push your agenda on everyone?" 

[Melgaypet]

1 hour ago, YaddaYadda said:

She wouldn't be Willow if she wasn't.

So true, and I think there's a seed of a potential story there. Willow, the girl who grew up in a cult and automatically conforms to the thoughts and opinions of the most powerful* man in her orbit. How does she break free of that and discover herself? Hell, how does she realize that she needs to?

* "Powerful" isn't really the right word, but I'm blanking on a better one. Forceful? Determined? At first I started to say "alpha male" but I can't take that phrase at all seriously. I hope you guys can get what I mean.

[Daisy]

22 minutes ago, Melgaypet said:

So true, and I think there's a seed of a potential story there. Willow, the girl who grew up in a cult and automatically conforms to the thoughts and opinions of the most powerful* man in her orbit. How does she break free of that and discover herself? Hell, how does she realize that she needs to?

* "Powerful" isn't really the right word, but I'm blanking on a better one. Forceful? Determined? At first I started to say "alpha male" but I can't take that phrase at all seriously. I hope you guys can get what I mean.

Dominant. that's the word I'd use. (I'd also say charismatic but Michael isn't that at all. but he is the most dominant man in Willow's life and he knows how to pamper her and treat her well, so she conforms to it). 

before they completely destroyed Harmony - Harmony had Michael all sussed out because she constantly told Willow to not let Michael take away her voice. and honestly that's what Nina should have been doing too - seeing what Michael was doing to Willow and saying the same things. but nopers. 

But we've been screaming this for ages - Willow of all people needed to be alone . not to say she couldn't have relationships but she needed to know exactly who she was, what she wanted to do and what her voice was before she got involved with anyone else. because she left Dawn of Day, and instantly glooms onto Wiley [i know for other reasons] and with Wiley comes Michael and family and security what she didn't really have - but it's still very "cult-ish."  Michael doesn't allow her to do anything that she wants to do, talks for her, constantly states how he'd "hide things from Willow,".  and truthfully knocking MIchael 100000 pegs, and making him the actual scum would be a great storyline (imo). but they'll never do it. 

[Cheyanne11]

14 minutes ago, Daisy said:

Dominant. that's the word I'd use.

I'm gonna go with manipulative.  But I'd be shocked if that's where the writers are going because that would put the golden boy Michael in a bad light.  Unless they frame it that Michael was just doing his best and didn't realize poor Willow's fragile state.

[Bringonthedrama]

12 minutes ago, Cheyanne11 said:

I'm gonna go with manipulative.  

Yes. She actually was in a healthy romantic relationship with Chase, but her attachment to the baby she thought was her biological child was her downfall. After Sasha and Chase pulled that stupid stunt to break up their two relationships for "Michael, Willow and Wiley's own good," Willow felt alone. Michael's family surrounded her, just like a cult, and Michael knew how to use his money and his son to a) manipulate her into believing she would be the luckiest woman in the world to have him by her side, and then b) use both again (+ now Amelia) to control her in their marriage. 

Willow never got into therapy to heal from growing up in a cult and getting pregnant from what was essentially rape by its leader, therefore she wasn't capable of recognizing how deeply unhealthy her fixation on Wiley was or how unhealthy her relationship with Michael is.

[TVbitch]

...I see no one has mentioned to perfect golden child Wiley that he should chew with his mouth closed. 😬

[Melgaypet]

1 hour ago, Daisy said:

Dominant. that's the word I'd use.

Yes! That's the perfect word, thank you

[ciarra]

2 hours ago, Bringonthedrama said:

Willow never got into therapy to heal from growing up in a cult and getting pregnant from what was essentially rape by its leader, therefore she wasn't capable of recognizing how deeply unhealthy her fixation on Wiley was or how unhealthy her relationship with Michael is.

And she never got to find out what Dream!Harmony was trying to her warn about.  I was hoping "Michael".

I know it's a charity, and Willow doesn't need a salary, but to offer a job and expect her to do it for free?  Tacky, Drew.

Edited May 1 by ciarra

[Sake614]

59 minutes ago, TVbitch said:

...I see no one has mentioned to perfect golden child Wiley that he should chew with his mouth closed. 😬

Olivia did the same and it really bugged me!

[graight]

Best line of the day goes to Maxie (said to Nina):  "A therapist would have a field day with you."  Her delivery was perfect.

They may be trying to paint Wiley as a little scamp but the fact that he fed gum to the horses makes me question his mental capability.  And then we hear all the splashing -- are we supposed to think he's playing in the water trough?  They might want to have him tested.

I've always had a soft place in my heart for Valentine simply because JPS is Chad Stuart's son (big British Invasion fan here).  They have never done the actor justice with his character. I liked him the most with first Nina and speaking French to Charlotte.  Then his stories were alll over place.  Now he's running Pikeman.  It's so hard to take him seriously since I really don't understand his character.

[dubbel zout]

9 hours ago, ciarra said:

I know it's a charity, and Willow doesn't need a salary, but to offer a job and expect her to do it for free?  Tacky, Drew.

Even UNICEF goodwill ambassadors get $1/year.

[YaddaYadda]

11 hours ago, Daisy said:

before they completely destroyed Harmony - Harmony had Michael all sussed out because she constantly told Willow to not let Michael take away her voice. and honestly that's what Nina should have been doing too - seeing what Michael was doing to Willow and saying the same things. but nopers. 

Nina did do that or at least tried for a hot minute.

[ljr]

Why is Olivia hiring a chef? Why isn't it Tracy or Monica? 

Who is sasha cooking for? Tracy, Monica, Olivia,ned and Leo?

[Sake614]

27 minutes ago, ljr said:

Why is Olivia hiring a chef? Why isn't it Tracy or Monica? 

Who is sasha cooking for? Tracy, Monica, Olivia,ned and Leo?

Don’t forget Michael, Willow, Wiley and Amelia. We all know neither Willow nor Michael cooks.

[dubbel zout]

Sasha has unwittingly become the Q kitchen slave.

[nilyank]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

Sasha has unwittingly become the Q kitchen slave.

Where she is not allow to have sex in her own room during the hours that she is not working.

Edited May 1 by nilyank

[Bringonthedrama]

26 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

Don’t forget Michael, Willow, Wiley and Amelia. We all know neither Willow nor Michael cooks.

Is Amelia old enough yet to eat regular food? Well regardless, Drew lives there too. Since Danny has his own room, I assume Scout does too. It seems likely they eat meals regularly with the family. They are both the late Alan's grandchildren after all, not to mention that their live-in father figure's mom, Olivia, lives there because she is Ned's wife and has appointed herself responsible for hiring a cook since she has made it clear she considers the kitchen to be "hers." 

[CeChase]

2 hours ago, nilyank said:

Where she is not allow to have sex in her own room during the hours that she is not working.

I cannot get over this.  Especially from Olivia who was a ho in her day.  Who's she kidding?  They take a beautiful, successful business owner and make her a cook for her ex boyfriend.  Very progressive stuff here GH!

[dubbel zout]

40 minutes ago, CeChase said:

Especially from Olivia who was a ho in her day. 

I don't think this was true; she got pregnant with Dante when she was what, 15 or 16? After that I'm pretty sure she stuck with being a mostly celibate teenage mom.

[luna1122again]

52 minutes ago, CeChase said:

I cannot get over this.  Especially from Olivia who was a ho in her day.  Who's she kidding?  They take a beautiful, successful business owner and make her a cook for her ex boyfriend.  Very progressive stuff here GH!

Seriously. And don't the Q's notoriously just call their cook... Cook? They don't even bother with remembering their names. Good call, Sasha. From cover model and business owner to Cook. Who can't have sex in her own home. 

 

[perkie1968]

Only 20 minutes in so far but

 

Line of the day: Kristina to TJ: " I've got to go. I wouldn't want to rush or stay out past my bedtime. "

Love me some snarky Kristina. She should also have kicked him in the family jewels and told him where he could shove his mysogenisitic comments.

[jsbt]

3 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

Sasha has unwittingly become the Q kitchen slave.

And under the stairs she should go, like Harry Potter or Dobby!

[Bringonthedrama]

30 minutes ago, CeChase said:

Very progressive stuff here GH!

It's way worse today.  TJ questioned Kristina how much sleep she got "after a fight." That's right, jackass, she's getting into a brawl while pregnant. 🙄 Then asks what Sonny's been up to that they need to be concerned about and asserts that they need to keep her away from her family. Then tells Molly he won't back down with the woman "carrying our child." So now he doesn't even see Kristina as the beloved sister of his domestic partner?! Glad to see Molly finally get mad and hurt. That was a good disgusted reactionary look when her beloved domestic partner said Kristina is someone they have no choice but to tolerate in their lives at this point. 

Blaze's mom tells Alexis that Kristina's pregnancy is "a disruption" in life and that she is worried about the public thinking that "star" Blaze and "bartender" Kristina are lesbians having a baby together. Elizabeth is worried that Aiden is being bullied in school. Way to have an anti-LBGTQ+ episode, Show. Wow.  

Drew and Curtis practically twinning, aww how cute. The WTF look on Curtis's face at Drew flirting with Nina represents all of us, in my opinion. 

Good lord, shut up Lucy. No explanation on where Scott has been. He's such a wuss with her, too. 

 

[dubbel zout]

2 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

TJ questioned Kristina how much sleep she got "after a fight."

FFS, TJ, why didn't you just grow your baby in a lab?

[jsbt]

I don't see how any of that is anti-LGBT from the show when both T.J. and Natalia are clearly painted as being overbearing and in the wrong. And as a gay viewer I'd just as soon bully Aiden for being a terrible actor.

Edited May 1 by jsbt

[perkie1968]

23 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

The WTF look on Curtis's face at Drew flirting with Nina represents all of us,

DT played that perfectly.  Just the right amount of slightly gross but also confused but also WTF!!

[Bringonthedrama]

1 minute ago, jsbt said:

I don't see how any of that is anti-LGBT when both T.J. and Natalia are clearly painted as being overbearing and in the wrong. And as a gay viewer I'd just as soon bully Aiden for being a terrible actor.

TJ is just being an asshole. I meant Natalia re: the entire conversation with Alexis in which she was not told off (I understand that Alexis didn't think it was in her pregnant daughter's interest to do so), and Aiden clearly being ashamed (not telling Elizabeth) that he's being bullied.

I think you were trying to be funny about the actor in the role of Aiden. However, I don't find jokes about bullying teenagers/young people funny for any reason, ever given the truly horrible things that go on in our society today regarding bullying of young people. YMMV.  I love Becky Herbst's chemistry with all the actors who play her sons, including him. He was cast a few years ago because the cute kid actor who had been playing Aiden since the toddler years got a new gig. 

[jsbt]

3 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

TJ is just being an asshole. I meant Natalia re: the entire conversation with Alexis in which she was not told off (I understand that Alexis didn't think it was in her pregnant daughter's interest to do so), and Aiden clearly being ashamed (not telling Elizabeth) that he's being bullied.

I think you were trying to be funny about the actor in the role of Aiden. However, I don't find jokes about bullying teenagers/young people funny for any reason, ever given the truly horrible things that go on in our society today regarding bullying of young people. YMMV.

My point was, I don't see how GH is being anti-LGBT or non-progressive just by portraying Natalia with a stealth homophobic attitude in a negative light, and doing the same with much of T.J.'s behavior towards Kristina.

I'm sure IRL the boy playing Aiden is a nice kid, and as someone who grew up bullied of course I am not advocating for actually bullying a child. But he can't act, and I'm going to joke about it just as we would any other performer on this show.

[CeChase]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

I don't think this was true; she got pregnant with Dante when she was what, 15 or 16? After that I'm pretty sure she stuck with being a mostly celibate teenage mom.

She slept with numerous men she wasn't married to, onscreen.  Sonny and Johnny come immediately to mind, but there were others.  By her own now stated principles, yep she was. 

47 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

It's way worse today.  TJ questioned Kristina how much sleep she got "after a fight." That's right, jackass, she's getting into a brawl while pregnant. 🙄 Then asks what Sonny's been up to that they need to be concerned about and asserts that they need to keep her away from her family. Then tells Molly he won't back down with the woman "carrying our child." So now he doesn't even see Kristina as the beloved sister of his domestic partner?! Glad to see Molly finally get mad and hurt. That was a good disgusted reactionary look when her beloved domestic partner said Kristina is someone they have no choice but to tolerate in their lives at this point. 

Blaze's mom tells Alexis that Kristina's pregnancy is "a disruption" in life and that she is worried about the public thinking that "star" Blaze and "bartender" Kristina are lesbians having a baby together. Elizabeth is worried that Aiden is being bullied in school. Way to have an anti-LBGTQ+ episode, Show. Wow.  

Drew and Curtis practically twinning, aww how cute. The WTF look on Curtis's face at Drew flirting with Nina represents all of us, in my opinion. 

Good lord, shut up Lucy. No explanation on where Scott has been. He's such a wuss with her, too. 

 

I have NO idea what they are doing with TJ.  I would kick his ass to the curb so fast. 

[dubbel zout]

1 minute ago, CeChase said:

She slept with numerous men she wasn't married to, onscreen. 

That doesn't make her promiscuous, IMO, just a healthy, sexually active woman. She was in relationships with those men.

[ciarra]

I still say surrogate #1 had the baby, since she went to Mercy hospital to confirm her "miscarriage".  

[CeChase]

1 minute ago, dubbel zout said:

That doesn't make her promiscuous, IMO, just a healthy, sexually active woman. She was in relationships with those men.

Of course not, I've slept with far more.  My point was her behavior is first of all, incredibly classist, demeaning, degrading, and hypocritical.  I'm disgusted by this entire Sasha storyline, by Olivia's behavior, and by the way the actress portrays her.  

[PatsyandEddie]

I might be the only one but I’m liking Nina and Drew. The actors play really well off of each other. 

[CeChase]

17 minutes ago, PatsyandEddie said:

I might be the only one but I’m liking Nina and Drew. The actors play really well off of each other. 

You're not the only one.   I do too.