Episode Discussion II: The TFGH

[methodwriter85]

8 hours ago, TVbitch said:

I have mixed feelings. I had a friend with ALS and have read a bunch of memoirs to better understand the experience. I did not come across anyone who died peacefully in their sleep while still in a relatively high functioning state. I think if you choose to do an ALS storyline, you should maybe not sugarcoat the reality of it like that.

It would be funny if a heart attack is what actually took him out. Kind of an irony- everyone's ready for him to die of ALS, but a heart attack takes him out. Kind of like the movie A Single Man, where he's expected to die one way, but he goes out another way.

I wish this show actually had the balls to do euthanasia though if they wanted Gregory to go out before his condition really deteriorated. 

In any event, we'll miss ya, Greg! 

Edited May 21 by methodwriter85

[methodwriter85]

13 hours ago, Bringonthedrama said:

Do the actors and the Show realize that BLQ being wrapped up like wintertime when it's spring, and reaching several inches to kiss her husband, makes it seems like she's not actually attracted to him? It's a noticeably odd wedding night. 

Amanda Setton is a conservative Jewish person who doesn't believe in doing love scenes or dressing immodestly. The show and Josh S. have been accommodating of her beliefs. Although in all honestly they really should just do the fade aways where they walk into a room and close the door and "do not disturb goes" up. There are ways to do this without feeling awkward. 

Edited May 21 by methodwriter85

[sas616]

2 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Amanda Setton is a conservative Jewish person who doesn't believe in doing love scenes or dressing immodestly. The show and Josh S. have been accommodating of her beliefs. Although in all honestly they really should just do the fade aways where they walk into a room and close the door and "do not disturb goes" up. There are ways to do this without feeling awkward. 

 When she was on One Life to Live, I'm pretty sure she did some "steamy" scenes with Jerry verDorn where she wasn't fully covered like she is now.   I read that she doesn't want to do love scenes because she's married and wants to respect her marriage.   That's wonderful.  Still, she's an actress on a Disney owned network show.  It's not like she's on Bridgerton.  

[YaddaYadda]

2 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Amanda Setton is a conservative Jewish person who doesn't believe in doing love scenes or dressing immodestly.

Wrong business.

[MarciNJ]

1 hour ago, YaddaYadda said:

4 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Amanda Setton is a conservative Jewish person who doesn't believe in doing love scenes or dressing immodestly.

Wrong business.

tell that to Mayim Bialik (Amy Farah Fowler Cooper)

[Sake614]

When did AS become so modest? Wasn’t her OLTL.character a stripper? Personally I blame wardrobe. There are lots of ways to dress a woman modestly without looking boxy.

[CeChase]

The Facebook Frannies love it.  They go on and on about how much they respect her for not being one of those actress sluts who does light sex scenes.  That's the audience GH caters to which is why the ratings have bottomed out, so...

[Asp Burger]

Setton has done some steamy scenes on GH. 

Oh, never mind. I was thinking of the time she was in the steam room with Chase, wearing the blazer.

[dubbel zout]

12 hours ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Back to the end of the line for you, Danny.

Danny has always been at the end of the line.

[GHScorpiosRule]

Good Lord. Just HOW DUMB is Dex?! Wait, don't answer that.

He seriously thought, being a mob lackey, spying on his boss, and then leaving said mob, would sit right with Mooby? And they could remain friends? Or whatever that nonsense he was telling MiniCujo. He clearly doesn't know how the mob/mafia works. His ass should be DEAD.

Clearly, they did away with the original reason he was trying to get in with Mooby-didn't he tell the SLS he had an axe to grind/get revenge? or something?

Even if Mooby were on his proper dosage of medications, this dumb as a box of rocks piece of wood thinks that Mooby would think kindly upon his stupid ass?!

And MiniCujo-Dex joining up to be a cop doesn't NEGATE or CHANGE what he attempted to do to Cyrus-so what's changed that now you wuv him again? Not that I care. Because I don't.

Oh, I really loved those pictures of Josh and Michael as wee! And Gonzo!!!!!

*sniff* I'mmagonnamiss seeing Gonzo on my screen.

[Daisy]

1 hour ago, MarciNJ said:

tell that to Mayim Bialik (Amy Farah Fowler Cooper)

but to be fair. Mayim Bialik isn't on a soap. 
 

1 hour ago, CeChase said:

The Facebook Frannies love it.  They go on and on about how much they respect her for not being one of those actress sluts who does light sex scenes.  That's the audience GH caters to which is why the ratings have bottomed out, so...

then why are they watching a soap?  I mean.. I've seen some people here say they don't like the romance scenes etc and i respect that (and I respect Amanda's choice not to do them). but to me it's like working for a butcher but you're a vegan. why are you putting yourself in a situation where you are expected to do things that you aren't comfortable to do. 

I do remember her on OLTL doing love scenes with Jerry van Dorn. I personally dont have a problem with how she dresses. like. i always say beauty/style is in the eye of the beholder and that's what makes her feel comfortable then cool. (i'm her age and i've been harped on i dress like a gramma so whatever). but Josh is the same way (not wanting to do love scenes) so i really just feel that's why they put them together. they can be all chaste together and not kill off two other people based on their decisions. 

6 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Although in all honestly they really should just do the fade aways where they walk into a room and close the door and "do not disturb goes" up. There are ways to do this without feeling awkward. 

that would be a better way to do it. 

[Cheyanne11]

Conservative dressing is one thing.  The giant, three-sizes-too-big robe loosely belted over the full coverage pajama set?  I admit I rolled my eyes.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I said it before and I'll say it again: if actors and actresses don't want to do love scenes because they feel it's "disrespecting" their real life marriages or real life partner/wife/husband, etc., then they are in the wrong business.

This show isn't HBO, Starz, or Cinemax, for goodness sakes'.

Back to the show. I agree that throw away line about why Jackie wasn't at Chase's wedding was the lamest of the lame. Oh, let's not let it be uncomfortable for Finn?! Like, Da FUCK? And the way Chase spoke-his vows, and his words to Gonzo, one would think that he had been a single father who had raised him.

I've never liked Violet, and there's nothing I've seen (and I forced myself not to fast forward except for that song), that convinces me why she's still there and not in offscreensville. She's no Kimberly McCullough, that's for damned sure. Or Amber Tamblyn.

As for Monica? Well, if Leslie Charles isn't up making appearances, then recast her. They had a temporary recast, played my Patty McCormack, and she did a decent job. They recast Edward with Jon Ingle after many years, and David Lewis was a hard act to follow, but Ingle made it his own.

[nilyank]

The only time I truly had issue with Brooklyn’s clothing (or lack of it) was when they were locked in the steam room. Chase was dressed in nothing and she never took off her blazer despite both of them saying it was too hot in the room.

The blazer would be the first thing off. The whole point of the scene was to show how much they were attracted to each other while they were locked in. It would have been better if they had been locked in the locker rooms and Chase’s clothes were accidentally misplaced. That way they don’t look weird with one overdressed and underdressed in the same setting and still make sense logistically.

[ljr]

When will they soras violet? Her cuteness is wearing thin.

Why didn't dex just take a swing at Sonny?  Sonny will probably be forgiven 

[Ambrosefolly]

On 5/21/2024 at 4:37 AM, methodwriter85 said:

Amanda Setton is a conservative Jewish person who doesn't believe in doing love scenes or dressing immodestly. The show and Josh S. have been accommodating of her beliefs. Although in all honestly they really should just do the fade aways where they walk into a room and close the door and "do not disturb goes" up. There are ways to do this without feeling awkward. 

 

On 5/21/2024 at 7:33 AM, YaddaYadda said:

Wrong business.

This is FV's fault. He knew this about her, but still casted a person that couldn't sing and now refuses to do any loves scenes in a role that should require both because she was relatively in the same age range and was a friend of his. When they accommodated Jonathan Jackson's religious conservatism in the late 90s, he was the originating actor & hugely popular in the role and was still very young. AS wasn't associate with Brooklynn like that. 

On 5/21/2024 at 9:12 AM, MarciNJ said:

tell that to Mayim Bialik (Amy Farah Fowler Cooper)

She largely plays nerds and more prudish characters. She was stepping into a role that did not require love scenes, considering she was paired with a character that was nearly asexual from the jump on the Big Bang Theory.

 

Edited May 26 by Ambrosefolly

[Bringonthedrama]

20 hours ago, driver18 said:

They tried them briefly. They don't have the chemistry, not that kind. Finn and Alexis work as friends. 

For goodness' sake, Elizabeth has history with dealing with an addict in a relationship!!! There is STORY here. But heaven forbid any regime write for this pair. Heaven forbid any regime write for Elizabeth!

So. Frustrating!

I remember them being good friends and I remember a ONS. I don't remember actual dating. I recall Finn holding her hand and they seemed to have real potential. Then she went off to jail and he was moved into the beginning of a relationship with Elizabeth.

Yes, there is story that relates to Elizabeth's relationship history. I just don't want to see yet another love interest lying to her about struggling with addiction. Time will tell. I definitely want to see Elizabeth get a great story!!

[Daisy]

51 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

As for Monica? Well, if Leslie Charles isn't up making appearances, then recast her. They had a temporary recast, played my Patty McCormack, and she did a decent job. They recast Edward with Jon Ingle after many years, and David Lewis was a hard act to follow, but Ingle made it his own.

that's the thing i don't understand either. I know Leslie isn't doing so hot - but there are scenes that need monica. just recast her and bring in Leslie when she's able to come in

 

[YaddaYadda]

42 minutes ago, Daisy said:

that's the thing i don't understand either. I know Leslie isn't doing so hot - but there are scenes that need monica. just recast her and bring in Leslie when she's able to come in

This is going to sound really bad, but I get the impression that they're waiting for LC to die to have a tribute episode. Can't do that if they recast the role.

[KittyQ]

4 hours ago, MarciNJ said:

tell that to Mayim Bialik (Amy Farah Fowler Cooper)

And Neal McDonough.

[KittyQ]

9 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Although in all honestly they really should just do the fade aways where they walk into a room and close the door and "do not disturb goes" up. There are ways to do this without feeling awkward. 

Very old school for TV and movies - why reinvent the wheel when there are tried and true ways to convey the situation?

[Blackie]

When my MIL was deemed "palliative" the nurses and Dr told us a million times that when she dies do NOT call 911/police. We were to call the DR directly. I was surprised that Finn had to be interviewed by the police.

DZ is such a fantastic natural actor. He should be the lead male on this show. ETA: When he was talking about the lemoncello shots I think he was talking from RL experience

Edited May 21 by Blackie
eta

[Bringonthedrama]

DZ did a wonderful job acting Dante's anger and hurt at Sonny's utter self-absorption as a father, regarding himself and Kristina. I'm glad someone who knows what Kristina witnessed is concerned about her.

ME did a wonderful job acting Finn's sorrow and love for his dad. I kept thinking, 'when are you going to call your brother?!' as he stared at the bottle, began drinking, and walking around his home. The drama of him finally calling Chase, as they're excited to board the plane and so touched at the "thank you" gift that Gregory left in his luggage. The newlywed couple crying in each other's arms. Heart wrenching. 

Michael and Kristina both suck. And CD shows again his limits as an actor. Michael is just such an unlikeable character.

Josslyn and Dex are both dumbasses. 

The only fun/ny line of the day was Alexis to Diane: I'm neurotic but scrappy.

 

 

Edited May 21 by Bringonthedrama

[Bringonthedrama]

10 minutes ago, Blackie said:

 I was surprised that Finn had to be interviewed by the police.

DZ is such a fantastic natural actor. He should be the lead male on this show.

I thought that was a paramedic interviewing Finn? I'm confused why he didn't mention ALS to the paramedics.

So true!

[Blackie]

3 minutes ago, Bringonthedrama said:

I thought that was a paramedic interviewing Finn?

I think if there is a death in the home the police have to come just to make sure it wasn't anything suspicious. Not sure who that guy was talking to Finn, I assumed police.

[dubbel zout]

Violet should have asked for wedding cake for breakfast, not lunch.

"Take a breath! Don't make me slap you!" Hee. Sometimes Diane is a lot of fun.

I thought ME did a really nice job with Finn finding Gregory. I liked the subtle change of expression after he first called out for Gregory and realized something might be wrong, then you really got how he was expecting the worst outside Gregory's bedroom door and didn't want to open it and be right.

Petulant Sonny is my favorite Sonny. Nothing is ever his fault, and people just need to get over it. I'm impressed the show has been consistent with that part of him, because it's deeply unattractive. I guess because it's Sonny and not Jason, whose behavior is always above reproach. /s

I'm surprised no one has suggested to Sonny to get his meds checked. It's not unusual that they could need an adjustment, is it? 

5 minutes ago, Blackie said:

When my MIL was deemed "palliative" the nurses and Dr told us a million times that when she dies do NOT call 911/police. We were to call the DR directly. I was surprised that Finn had to be interviewed by the police.

Gregory hadn't been deemed palliative, though, so Finn did the right thing by calling 911.

In NYC, at least, if someone dies in an apartment, it becomes a crime scene and gets sealed until there's an autopsy and official cause of death. That's happened a few times in my building (there are a number of aging tenants), and it takes a few weeks for the apartment to be legally cleared.

 

[DanaK]

I’ll miss Gregory Harrison. He did a nice job with his character as did the people around him, including Tracy. I’m a little surprised the writers didn’t take the character further with his ALS; it almost seems like a cop out to have Gregory die in his sleep. On the other hand, with the turmoil in the writers room, that might end up being a good thing

[KittyQ]

32 minutes ago, Blackie said:

I think if there is a death in the home the police have to come just to make sure it wasn't anything suspicious. Not sure who that guy was talking to Finn, I assumed police.

I have experienced this both ways. My mom had in-home hospice care, and when she died, we called the hospice people first and then the funeral home. No police. When my aunt died, she was sick but not in hospice, and we called the police for lack of any other idea. When they arrived, they did ask us questions and then they called someone to confirm her death and called the funeral home. A death at home is a confusing situation for most people. 

[dubbel zout]

13 minutes ago, KittyQ said:

My mom had in-home hospice care, and when she died, we called the hospice people first and then the funeral home. No police.

Same for my mom. That's one of the benefits of hospice care—the nurse or doctor (depending) can officially pronounce a death, and you don't need to involve any other authorities.

[YaddaYadda]

So is Jackie going to show up for her ex-husband's funeral or is she going to stay away because it might be too awkward?

I said it before, I will really miss Gregory, I will miss his scenes with both Alexis and Tracy. I thought the character had this quiet dignity to him.

I thought Finn's scenes were very touching. Him not wanting to go in because he knew something was wrong. The drinking. If there was something that was going to push him over the edge, it was that.

One thing I hated was all the post mortem scenes.

I actually liked the Sonny/Dante scenes. Sonny is always all about himself. Kristina is pregnant. She doesn't need this.

Skipped over the Joss/Dex scenes. I just don't care about them.

[tessabq]

ME had me in tears today, from stroking his father's hair to struggling a bit to find the words to tell Chase their father was dead. 

Finn's taking a drink was rough, but, damn it's hell when you are the one who has to tell family and friends that a loved one has died. Been there, done that. 

I agree about Dante. I would rather see a Dante-centric storyline than a Michael or Cody or Dex or Sonny-centric storyline any day of the week. I always buy what he's selling.

[Blackie]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

Gregory hadn't been deemed palliative,

 

He wasn't he palliative, he had a terminal illness? Or does palliative have a time limit?

[KittyQ]

24 minutes ago, YaddaYadda said:

I actually liked the Sonny/Dante scenes. Sonny is always all about himself. Kristina is pregnant. She doesn't need this.

I did too. Regardless of his medical condition and whether he's medicated or under medicated, Sonny has always been narcissistic, and it is typical that he expects that he can just "explain" away how he beat up Dex (and Cyrus before that) and justify his job and behavior for years as the result of being misunderstood.

[tessaray]

20 minutes ago, Blackie said:

 

He wasn't he palliative, he had a terminal illness? Or does palliative have a time limit?

In my state palliative care doesn't have time limits, unlike hospice care. You just need to have a diagnosis that falls into their guidelines. (Which ALS obviously would.) There tends to be alot of close communication and eventual crossover between the two, around here anyway. 

My husband was in palliative care for 3-ish years. They offered home visits and much easier access to pain meds, so that was helpful.

Edited May 21 by tessaray

[Bringonthedrama]

38 minutes ago, YaddaYadda said:

So is Jackie going to show up for her ex-husband's funeral or is she going to stay away because it might be too awkward?

I think the excuse will be she is the ex wife and she thinks Finn should have the space to grieve his father without her presence being a distraction.

Remember this is a woman who said if Finn had showed up at her and Gregory's wedding and wanted to fight for her, she would have called off the wedding. She all but said she settled for Gregory when she couldn't have Finn and didn't actually want to know if "Harry" was Gregory's child or Finn's.

I will be shocked if she actually shows up to pay her respects and to support her only child in his grief. Chase seemed to indicate on his wedding day in his tribute to Gregory and in his private conversation with BLQ that his dad raised him while Jackie mostly prioritized her career over family. Jackie missing her only child's wedding day is just more of the same of what he expects of her. 

[ciarra]

I thought Finn's addiction was drugs from self-medicating for Blackwood's disease, not alcohol?  If you're a drug addict, are you also an alcoholic?

Edited May 21 by ciarra

[jacourt]

Man this is a rough day. Two of my favorite characters die:  Gregory and dr Glassman (the good doctor). 

[TVbitch]

14 minutes ago, ciarra said:

I thought Finn's addiction was drugs from self-medicating for Blackwood's disease, not alcohol?  If you're a drug addict, are you also an alcoholic?

Substance addicts are supposed to refrain from alcohol and drugs. Main reason being that is very easy to overlap/substitute substances and/or make poor choices if you are high on anything. 

All Chaste and BLQ do are gaze at each other and tell each other how great and wonderful and sexy and gorgeous each other are. I find them insufferable, sex or no sex!  Glad they had ME do the heavy lifting for the death scene, he was great. If I was GH, I would not have been able to remain that still throughout. 

[ljr]

Dex couldn't go home and change out of his bloody clothes?

[Sake614]

4 hours ago, Bringonthedrama said:

I kept thinking, 'when are you going to call your brother?!'

Me too. When I got the call from the hospital that my dad was gone, I was fairly hysterical crying but immediately called my mother, my eldest brother and my middle brother who had just flown back to Denver the night before. Then I had to call my uncle to tell him that his baby brother had died. THEN i had to figure out how to get to the hospital in a Nor’easter when all the roads were flooded. 

I truly felt for Finn the moment he walked into the room and realized Gregory was gone. I was bawling my eyes out with him, remembering my father’s passing. And yes, if a person dies at home, 911 is called and the medical examiner comes along with the ambulance. They also have to perform an autopsy to accurately determine cause of death. In this case they may skip it since he had ALS. I was impressed with how calm Finn was when making the calls and talking to the EMT/coroner. When I finally made it to the hospital I was railing at everyone and anyone within earshot. 

WTF kind of booze is called Tire Track and why would ANYONE want to drink it??????

[KittenPokerCheater]

15 hours ago, methodwriter85 said:

Amanda Setton is a conservative Jewish person who doesn't believe in doing love scenes or dressing immodestly

With respect, I can’t help remembering Setton on Gossip Girl, where her clothing was quite less modest- I mean, Gossip Girl.  Of course people grow and change, but I still find it curious that she has changed so much.

[YaddaYadda]

18 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

WTF kind of booze is called Tire Track and why would ANYONE want to drink it??????

An addict.

In this case, though, this whole falling off the wagon is very selective. 

[Sake614]

Well yeah, an addict will drink anything but this was a gift. I can’t imagine it’s any good but I’m more of a wine drinker myself so I wouldn’t know. 

as for the addiction, if anything was going to send him spiraling, it’s this. I’m perfectly okay with it being the catalyst. I thought it was contrived that he was twisting himself into knots over one sip of champagne st the wedding.

[sas616]

9 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

said it before and I'll say it again: if actors and actresses don't want to do love scenes because they feel it's "disrespecting" their real life marriages or real life partner/wife/husband, etc., then they are in the wrong business.

This show isn't HBO, Starz, or Cinemax, for goodness sakes'.

Maybe AS should consider Hallmark.   There you only have to do a chaste kiss at the end of the movie.

[Auntie Velvet]

If Amanda Setton's boundaries are OK with the producers, it's OK with me. Not every character has to be frisking around. I'm just glad the endless saga of the wedding is over. 

ME was really great today, and Gregory Harrison was a good sport for playing a corpse the whole episode. Only a pro could handle both being cried on and also being rolled over by responders so impersonally.

[sas616]

5 hours ago, DanaK said:

I’ll miss Gregory Harrison. He did a nice job with his character as did the people around him, including Tracy. I’m a little surprised the writers didn’t take the character further with his ALS; it almost seems like a cop out to have Gregory die in his sleep. On the other hand, with the turmoil in the writers room, that might end up being a good thing

I watch the British soap, Coronation Street, and on there one of the characters has been suffering with MND which is very similar to ALS.   The storyline began with the diagnosis, and it's been heartbreaking to see the character's (Paul) decline over the past year.  At this point, he's in a wheelchair and is speech has been affected.   The actor has been amazing in the role.  It's such a sad storyline and I'm glad GH didn't go this route with Gregory.  

[CeChase]

Easton was really good, he was.  But Dom...damn.  He had me riveted.  

Just now, CeChase said:

Easton was really good, he was.  But Dom...damn.  He had me riveted.  

Maybe I should say "and" instead of "but".  

[jsbt]

Yeah, I have no interest in a Monica recast. There are ways to handle her absence which they've been doing (both well and not so well) without putting us through that and then looking back on it and cringing later should the worst occur. If it was not a long-term illness situation and just a temporary blip, and if Monica was more active in recent years then I would say sure, bring in someone as they have before. This is clearly different and serious, and Monica is not a hugely active part of the cast so I say leave her where she is until Leslie either is well enough (God willing) or something else happens.

Edited May 22 by jsbt

[Artsda]

Dante ending up at the after-party and hung over was great and his taking nothing from Sonny. 

Does Kristina have amnesia about the car bomb planting? 

Finn finding Gregory scene was heart breaking. Calling Chase and telling him. 

[DanaK]

33 minutes ago, sas616 said:

I watch the British soap, Coronation Street, and on there one of the characters has been suffering with MND which is very similar to ALS.   The storyline began with the diagnosis, and it's been heartbreaking to see the character's (Paul) decline over the past year.  At this point, he's in a wheelchair and is speech has been affected.   The actor has been amazing in the role.  It's such a sad storyline and I'm glad GH didn't go this route with Gregory.  

Thinking about it, I’m kind of glad they didn’t do a long drawn out thing for Gregory like they did with Mike. My mom had passed about a month before Mike’s last few weeks played out and it was hard to take and I was almost to the point of not watching