Episode Discussion: TFGH

[dubbel zout]

1 hour ago, peachmangosteen said:

the NB needs a lot of heart to make it work

I agree. I think LH really tries, but there isn't enough focus on the NB itself. As we discussed earlier, we see the acts but have no idea why some of the groups are performing together. It's badly integrated into the show (no surprise). Aside from Lucy's emceeing, Robin's taped appearance at the end was the most heartfelt part. 

[ciarra]

See you next year, Felix.  Although I have to say you're a lot less annoying without your bestie, Sabrrrrina. 

Please, Jake, just open the Chimera.

Edited May 28, 2017 by ciarra

[Ladyrain]

I'm most likely in a minority here, but I thought "And So It Goes" was a beautiful number, well played and well sung.  And Nina's reactions kind of touched my cold black little heart.  The ball itself seems miniscule compared to the old days, but maybe that's just me looking fondly back at the past.  I actually liked most of the numbers and it's enjoyable seeing the actors in a different sort of realm.  Perhaps I'm just easy to please . . . .

[lor]

what the hell with this chimera? what happens when it's open? does a puff of smoke come out and everyone drops dead? 

why didnt anyone look in that stupid box the whole time? what made Anna jump out of her seat?

avas lantern should have burned up all of them. morgan,morgan over and over. morgan was a moron and jackass.

scott is guilty of helping ava. why does nt anyone know this?

[peachmangosteen]

1 hour ago, Ladyrain said:

I'm most likely in a minority here, but I thought "And So It Goes" was a beautiful number, well played and well sung.  And Nina's reactions kind of touched my cold black little heart.

I agree. I thought MSt did nice work during that performance.

1 hour ago, lor said:

what the hell with this chimera? what happens when it's open? does a puff of smoke come out and everyone drops dead? 

If only we were so lucky!

Edited May 28, 2017 by peachmangosteen

[yowsah1]

8 hours ago, Aymery said:

Why would they cut Liesl from the musical lineup when she is one of the few castmembers who can actually perform?

I presume because her character is so widely disliked.

5 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

As we discussed earlier, we see the acts but have no idea why some of the groups are performing together. It's badly integrated into the show (no surprise). 

Halfway competent writers would find a way to make the run-up to the Nurses Ball part of the ongoing plotline - like, say, beginning a scene by showing Kiki and Dillon leaving a rehearsal room, throwing in a few lines or dialogue about "the number really coming together" or some such, and then launching into the apparently legally-mandated discussion about Morgan.  Or having a brief subplot showing how the Val-Kristina-whoever foursome came together to do the number.  But, as has been well established by now, GH does not have even halfway competent writers.

[Perkie]

1 hour ago, yowsah1 said:

beginning a scene by showing Kiki and Dillon leaving a rehearsal room, throwing in a few lines or dialogue about "the number really coming together" or some such,

Actually, that did happen earlier in the week.  That's when Felix walked up to them and said since Kiki was the newest hire, she'd have to cover at the hospital and wouldn't be able to perform.

As for the Val/Kris/Amy/Emma performance, yeah, that group made no sense.  Though one line about how the three girls are roomates and decided to do this together and Emma begged to be included becuase she loves the song, would have worked, but they would have had to cut line eleventy eleventy of Morgan and his pills.  

[In2You]

37 minutes ago, Perkie said:

As for the Val/Kris/Amy/Emma performance, yeah, that group made no sense.  Though one line about how the three girls are roomates and decided to do this together and Emma begged to be included becuase she loves the song, would have worked, but they would have had to cut line eleventy eleventy of Morgan and his pills.  

Still wouldn't explain how Emma found out about their performance or was able to rehearse with them. The performance was built around her. 

[P3pp3rb1rd]

They wasted so much time on the Amy and Nathan story...so stupid...why didn't they use that time on the NB, Ava and the Corinthii, or the Chimera? BTW, the pacing in the Chimera reveal was really lousy! At one point the boy was on the verge of grabbing the Chimera out of the box but scenes of Laura warning Jason and other adult chatting intervened. And earlier, Jason promised Liz that any tiny hint of trouble would stop the magic show, but when they could see that Jake was acting strangely the adults spent time acting worried, coaxing him, questioning. Jason had no real plan for stopping the danger immediately. What did he plan to do--shake Jake by the scruff of his  neck like a puppy?

Jason should push Freako down on top of the Chimera as he pushes Jake out of the way. 

Edited May 29, 2017 by P3pp3rb1rd

[P3pp3rb1rd]

Wish the Chimera could turn out to be a big practical joke---Jake pulls the top off and a little flag with a puff of smoke emerges: "Bang"!

Edited May 29, 2017 by P3pp3rb1rd

[sunnyface]

Quote

but they would have had to cut line eleventy eleventy of Morgan and his pills.  

What is the justification of continually mentioning a dead Corinthos except to build up that Morgan is indeed alive?  Are the writers looking for new words that begin with 'M'?  Try 'misogyny', 'murderer', 'manic-depressive'; in other words writers - just continue to write for Sonny.  We don't need any additional spawn or scenes with MB.  I fear that the TPTB are betting that this new Morgan is going to take over from Sonny - as BM's portrayal of Jason Morgan (there it is again) lacks energy - except when Jason gets to kill, threaten or beat someone up.

[P3pp3rb1rd]

Ugh I suppose the confrontation between the Corinthii and Ava means that the Carson lovebirds are back together  again? Will Carly appreciate being saved from the fire by Sonny, or will she use it as an excuse to punish him more?

[TeeVee329]

By the way, I'm still really irritated how the Anna/Alex storyline played out.  And that Alex was really just an afterthought in the whole thing.  I don't get it.  Why touch on that character and that history and not doing some real with it?

[statsgirl]

To justify spending more time on the Corinthos mob?  See, you whiners, we gave you legacy Anna/Alex, now shut up  and we'll get on with our mob story.

5 hours ago, sunnyface said:

I fear that the TPTB are betting that this new Morgan is going to take over from Sonny - as BM's portrayal of Jason Morgan (there it is again) lacks energy - except when Jason gets to kill, threaten or beat someone up.

Or because they can't have Jason run the mob because then he wouldn't be St. Jasus any more.  This way he just takes orders from the Mob Conrinthos and like a good man, carries them out. He's not responsible for the evil deeds.

[Chairperson Meow]

I gotta ask.  Every episode I've watched has had Nina/Valentin or Sonny/lawyer/Carly in it.  Explain like I'm Morgan what the chimera is?  I thought that meant twins, like a disorder where your DNA makes you your own twin.  So... are there two Jakes or is Jake not Jake?

[Bill C.]

Jake is indeed Jake AFAWK, and thank God there's just the one, but he's most recently been hallucinating Helena urging him to do a "magic trick" involving opening the Chimera Project canister.  CP itself is a biotoxin combo platter of some sort, as per Anna, but exactly what it does has yet to be revealed.

And fter binging last week's episodes this morning--praise be, Hulu--I'm going to agree with the sentiment that the Nurses' Ball itself wasn't bad so much as kind of blah, the opening number and finale and perhaps Valentin completely hosing whatever evil side he had left by channeling Billy friggin' Joel aside (possible incoming legacy karma from Chimera notwithstanding).  That said, Thursday's episode actually was a surprisingly well-paced and overall pretty good episode...even if it led to Friday's episode, where Sonny and Carly were in full-on self-righteous mode and blasting Ava for her current lingering misdeed.  And in a bubble that worked, largely due to MW and LW, but it still bugged because (as multiple others apparently have said) they kept harping on how Kiki was an adult and didn't need to be protected while Morgan needed to be "protected"...which is both right and wrong at the same time, and damn you show for that.  At least Ava got to throw that in their faces, if only the once, before she apparently lost her natural damn mind and tried and failed to throw a lantern at them.

Oddly, the whole thing with Bizarro Maxie and the Tree and "Man Landers" came off as silly...but harmless, apart from Bizarro Maxie creeping just a little closer to stalker territory.  Which is bonkers, but so very TFGH.

Edited May 29, 2017 by Bill C.

[LexieLily]

The previews for tomorrow are silly. Jake STILL hasn't opened the canister or released the chimera, Jason/Anna/Valentin are trying to stop him, but Laura/Lulu are home at Lulu's and Lulu is already changed out of the Big Pink Dress? I find it hard to believe that Lulu would leave Charlotte when she is in danger.

[dubbel zout]

34 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

Lulu is already changed out of the Big Pink Dress? I find it hard to believe that Lulu would leave Charlotte when she is in danger.

Lulu is probably exhausted from wearing the Big Pink Dress. You know all that fabric had to weigh a ton.

[Bill C.]

I would've thought Dante would have just attached some wheels to the hoop skirt frame Lulu had to be wearing underneath the Great Pink Explosion of 2017, but hey...

1 hour ago, LexieLily said:

The previews for tomorrow are silly. Jake STILL hasn't opened the canister or released the chimera, Jason/Anna/Valentin are trying to stop him, but Laura/Lulu are home at Lulu's and Lulu is already changed out of the Big Pink Dress? I find it hard to believe that Lulu would leave Charlotte when she is in danger.

Oh, for the love of Sonny...that just figures.  OTOH, I'm assuming this is where the show shows its true colors: does it actually have a kid unleash an unidentified bioweapon on his own family, or go full Michael Bolton "Now back to the good part!" and hard 180 back to Sonny and Carly in a fire?

[dubbel zout]

24 minutes ago, Bill C. said:

a kid unleash an unidentified bioweapon on his own family

This part cracks me up. There will be, at most, what, half a dozen people affected? Pfft. Amateur hour! Even Spectral!Helena should want more carnage than that.

[Bill C.]

In theory Chimera is extremely contagious (again, as per Anna), so if it did get out it'd have a chance to spread...

Hah.  "If."

[LexieLily]

2 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

This part cracks me up. There will be, at most, what, half a dozen people affected? Pfft. Amateur hour! Even Spectral!Helena should want more carnage than that.

And at least three of them that are in attendance can die and I don't think anyone would care

[dubbel zout]

Seriously. Franco dies? Elizabeth will probably be not-so-secretly relieved he's out of her life. The rest of the town will throw Jake a ticker tape parade.

[LexieLily]

Sam, Jason and Michael will be at the head of the line. They have to leave room for Lulu if anyone is allowed to remember that Franco hurt her, too.

[Benji]

22 hours ago, P3pp3rb1rd said:

Wish the Chimera could turn out to be a big practical joke---Jake pulls the top off and a little flag with a puff of smoke emerges: "Bang"!

Or those fake "snakes" that pop out of a can to scare whoever opens it ?

[TeeVee329]

1 hour ago, Benji said:

Or those fake "snakes" that pop out of a can to scare whoever opens it ?

We're certainly getting that metaphorically with another lackluster reveal, why not make it literal?

[ulkis]

Can he come back? Chad can stay and be the fraternal twin no one knew about.

[Ambrosefolly]

Maybe he can dye his hair and be nuMorgan. He the right age.

[tvgoddess]

Well, I'm finally caught up. On the last six episodes, at least.

I liked JPS' song, I thought it was the only one that wasn't cringe worthy in some way, shape or form. The others had some good parts, but mostly it was just overblown and hastily thrown together, the opening number was the worst. Okay songs, though.

Chimera, schlimera. If I ever have to hear that word again, it will be too soon.  The culmination will be beyond anticlimactic, and we all know nothing is going to happen. Damn it. The only good thing about the entire story was Anna looked great in her dress and Helena egging Jake on. I kind of missed her.

NGL, I wouldn't have minded Liesl performing.

The Nathan/Amy stuff is stupid, boring and a waste of time. Great dress on Amy though.

MIA: Alexis, Julian, Hayden, Finn. Didn't really miss them. Who did I miss? Lucas and Molly/TJ.

LW was great on Friday, although I ran out of sympathy for Carly way long ago. I'm not a huge fan of the screaming, but MW excels at the quiet stuff. I liked them referencing that they were an actual couple. I really hate being told that what I saw on my screen was not what I actually saw. Sonny was just gross, especially when he put his hand on Ava's shoulder. I would have smacked him into next Thursday. MB was laughable, in particular when he was repeating himself. Pathetic.

[jsbt]

nvm answered above

Edited May 30, 2017 by jsbt

[Linny]

So many characters were in peril today, yet no one was in any actual danger from the chimera. They touted this canister as such a super deadly device, only for it to never be used because of the trite explanation of "Helena's evil is no match for true love!" How very lame. I did think that Jake did a good job acting with his eyes as he hesitated between listening to Liz or Helena. But couldn't he have opened the canister long enough for Franco to take a whiff? I don't think that's asking too much.

No way in hell do I believe Sonny and Carly would have saved Ava if they had the opportunity. Having Ava alive is not beneficial to them at all, and these two don't do anything that's not self-serving.

Poor Valentin looked more like the victim of someone smearing jam down his shirt than the victim of a gunshot wound. That was some awfully thick fake blood.

[TeeVee329]

I'm confused about something in the Nathan/Amy 2.0 stupidity storyline.  Is Amy 2.0's column supposed to be written BY Nathan or is she passing the column off as being written by a guy who LOOKS like Nathan?  Because if it's the later, isn't Nathan a public enough figure - including being on TV at the Nurses' Ball red carpet hours before - that her scheme wouldn't have worked from minute one?

It's not like I expected any different given how horribly written this storyline has been from the start, but what an unbelievably lame climax to all this chimera bullshit.

Oh c'mon, Sonny and/or Carly couldn't even get a little singed?

Edited May 30, 2017 by TeeVee329

[dubbel zout]

Carly falls because Sonny is too weak to catch her when she stumbles. LOL.

Edited May 30, 2017 by dubbel zout

[TheMediaHo]

With Jake dropping out last minute, they should have put Liesl back in the show. That way we would have had two decent musical acts (the other one, also evil, being Valentin).

[jsbt]

The story's actually not bad in concept: Brainwashing Jake to unleash a bioweapon and kill everyone. The kid does a surprisingly good job. Unfortunately he's doing it in a mostly abandoned room (not the full-on Nurses Ball with tons of people) and they keep doing these goofy cutaways to poor Constance Towers giving a thumbs up and going "bravo!" It could all be done much better.

Also: I thought Finola did a pretty good job differentiating Evil Alex this time. I did not, however, hear any mention of Dimitri or how Alex went evil again, not that I find it terribly implausible. Also poor: How this story revolves around Valentin, the unlikely least interesting and most wimpy Cassadine, including OG Kristina and de facto Cassadine Nathan.

Edited May 30, 2017 by jsbt

[tallyrand]

So so glad Liz got to talk Jake down and it wasn't Franco or anyone else.  The rest meh.  

[Vella]

Liz finally being allowed to play an instrumental part in her kid's life. Liz being the one to reach Jake so he'll turn the thing off. GOOD. I'm so sick of Franco and Jason, basically strangers to Jake, no matter what the show attempts to insist, playing a more important part in what's going on with him than Liz.

And of course Jason doesn't go to the hospital. What an asshole, Liz should have rolled her eyes at that "I got stuff to do here" bullshit of his. I hate it when Jason doesn't get called out for being a bad parent to Jake.

But I did love the contrast of LW coughing and wheezing and acting the shit out of the smoke filled warehouse bits while MB put his hand in front of his mouth and made ZERO effort to do more than rattle off his lines in that bored tone of his.  He doesn't try! Put him out to pasture GH!

[TeeVee329]

4 minutes ago, jsbt said:

The Also: I thought Finola did a pretty good job differentiating Evil Alex this time. I did not, however, hear any mention of Dimitri or how Alex went evil again, not that I find it terribly implausible.

But these writers seemed to retcon out the brainwashing altogether, by having Alex smirk something about joining the DVX for the money and lulz.  None of it made sense with what we saw on AMC.

And no, no mention of Dimitri, although Alex is still using his last name and The Merrick Clinic was the name of the place Alex had Anna stashed.

Edited May 30, 2017 by TeeVee329

[LexieLily]

Why was my poor Laura delegated to taking Lulu, Charlotte and Emma to safety? Laura Spencer has more direct experience and knowledge of Helena Cassadine than anybody in that room and she even had first-hand experience with Helena brainwashing a child.

[jsbt]

AMC 2.0 did establish that Dimitri and Alex divorced some years back. But I can see her keeping the royal name.

I don't have a problem with Alex staying evil after years of brainwashing and skullduggery. I do wish they'd mentioned she used to be a heroine. It was all very rushed.

Edited May 30, 2017 by jsbt

[TeeVee329]

5 minutes ago, jsbt said:

AMC 2.0 did establish that Dimitri and Alex divorced some years back. But I can see her keeping the royal name.

I don't have a problem with Alex staying evil after years of brainwashing and skullduggery. I do wish they'd mentioned she used to be a heroine.

Yeah, I do remember AMC 2.0 making note of that when Dimitri came back to Pine Valley, but who knows if these writers actually remembered that.  And they could have said that the divorce is what sent Alex sailing off the edge or whatever.

And the way they had Anna acting towards her - calling her a "heartless bitch" and the like - didn't really line up with what their relationship had been like on AMC.  A little exposition about why the sisters were estranged or whatever would have helped.

But the writers clearly didn't care what kind of hatchet they had to take to Alex, much simpler if Alex was just a heartless EVUL TWIN.  I still go back to what ulkis suggested - it would have been so much more fun having Alex and Anna be in cahoots.

Edited May 30, 2017 by TeeVee329

[Bill C.]

Yeah, the cutaways to Hels devouring scenery right at the camera were...okay, they were kind of hilarious early on, but they dragged on too long and just got stupid.  That said...

1 minute ago, tallyrand said:

So so glad Liz got to talk Jake down and it wasn't Franco or anyone else.  The rest meh.  

Honestly, considering the story, I'm okay with this too.  Cliched as it was, Liz saving her kid probably was the nicest--and second sanest, since Laura wasn't involved--way for all this to end (I'm discounting everything with Helena's henchmen showing up after that, because duh).

OTOH...Ava screaming bloody murder for Sonny and Carly to save her, and Carly being the one who waffled before the Scowl dragged her out of the warehouse, let alone "Our hands are clean"?  Subtle as a Schlitz Chimera can, show.

And how the fuck did Lulu change out of the Giant Pink Explosion so damn fast?

8 minutes ago, TeeVee329 said:

I'm confused about something in the Nathan/Amy 2.0 stupidity storyline.  Is Amy 2.0's column supposed to be written BY Nathan or is she passing the column off as being written by a guy who LOOKS like Nathan?  Because if it's the later, isn't Nathan a public enough figure - including being on TV at the Nurses' Ball red carpet hours before - that her scheme wouldn't have worked from minute one?

For all intents, considering what Bizarro Maxie said in-show IIRC, it's supposed to be (b)...but seems to be skewing hard towards (a).  Either way, the result's the same: people think the Tree is Man Landers and her fixation on him continues apace.

[ulkis]

15 minutes ago, jsbt said:

Also poor: How this story revolves around Valentin, the unlikely least interesting and most wimpy Cassadine, including OG Kristina and de facto Cassadine Nathan.

Damn, even Nathan? That's harsh lol.

[jsbt]

I said boring and wimpy. Bases covered.

[Bill C.]

If the show hadn't had to have Valentin get shot (legacy karma for his part in all things Chimera, IMHO) he could have counterbalanced his wimpyness by going DVX 4 LYFE and straight up necksnapping Henchman #1.  It's not like we needed that guy around anyway.

[TeeVee329]

6 minutes ago, Bill C. said:

Either way, the result's the same: people think the Tree is Man Landers and her [Amy 2.0] fixation on him continues apace.

I think she's still sprung on Dillon, didn't she make reference the other day to a crush on a guy from high school she still had?

I don't know what I ask, I don't care about this character, her advice column, her retconned history with Dillon and Maxie, any of it.

[dubbel zout]

The only decent part of the idiotic chimera story is that Elizabeth was the one who talked Jake down. I hope CT felt her return was worth it to renew her health insurance coverage.

And then there's the stupid Nathan/Amy story. I wish he had arrested her for using his photo without permission. Creeper behavior is gross whether it's done by a man or a woman, Show.

Ava, why didn't you check your escape route beforehand? 

[jsbt]

I'm a little disappointed. If I'd known they were going for Brainwashed Kid with Terrorist Superweapon I'd have been psyched to watch but they flubbed it. They could've gone full-on for months! Little Jake in Jason's leather jacket clubbing his brother Adam into a coma! Killing various useless characters with controlled releases over weeks of horrible plague death! Say goodbye, 50% of the cast!

Edited May 30, 2017 by jsbt

[Bill C.]

Have Jake hallucinate Hels way before the NB (unless it happened and I missed it?), just once or twice, urging him to do his "magic trick."  Maybe have him actively do something kid-nefarious to ensure he'd get to do it before he freaked out at the NB itself, and the story would have been improved threefold at least.

TA,AS.

3 minutes ago, TeeVee329 said:

I think she's still sprung on Dillon, didn't she make reference the other day to a crush on a guy from high school she still had?

I don't know what I ask, I don't care about this character, her advice column, her retconned history with Dillon and Maxie, any of it.

Hell, I actually like Bizarro Maxie and her story is a blazing hot mess.  But yeah, she did refer to some boy in high school...though that doesn't mean she can't still be crushing hardcore on the Tree.  It might be her one actual bit of relative sanity: "I can't be with Nathan, damn you Maxie, so I might as well see what Jeremy from Science is like now."

[dubbel zout]

"I don't understand your marriage." You don't have to, you nitwit!

Aaaand we've found the next story to give me a rage blackout. You never fail me, Show.