General Hospital blog - September, 2021

September 1st, 2021

As expected, Josslyn recognizes the sauce and tells Jax it tastes just like Sonny's. Though Jax notes that it must be a coincidence, he finally remembers seeing Sonny in Nixon Falls, and he starts putting things together. Nina and Sonny take it to the bedroom, but before they can get naked, his watch gets caught in her hair. Seeing the inscription makes her realize that sleeping with him would be a really bad move. She tells him nothing is going to proceed with them until he looks into his past and his family. Finn and Elizabeth are juuuuuust about to kiss when an unconscious Scott parachutes into their campsite. (Not one word of that is made up.) Also, Wyatt is there for some reason. They get Scott to the hospital, where he reports that he was on his way to St. Lucia with Obrecht, whose current location is unknown. Finn and Jordan determine that he was probably drugged and pushed out of the plane. Cyrus suggests that Buscema use the wedding as an alibi while making a move against the Corinthos organization. Buscema wonders what's in it for Cyrus, but all Cyrus wants is good, old-fashioned revenge. Carly asks Brando if he might have any ideas which of the Five Families could be susceptible to working with Cyrus. Brando isn't sure, but he offers to ask some questions and see what he can find out. Sasha, whom he's just invited to move in with him, is understandably concerned. Gladys has a few drinks with Novak and tells him how she really feels about Sonny's "widow" and her fiancé. She lets him know that while Carly and Jason were supposedly developing feelings for each other, he was having a fling with someone else. As a thank-you, Novak invites her to the wedding. Britt runs into Carly and Jason and is so mature about it that Carly seems confused, because she's not familiar with the concept of voluntarily being the bigger person. Britt tells Jason she's moving on, and she even goes on a date with another guy, though it's boring and she comes up with an excuse to ditch him. Jason tells Novak that he's heard rumors about Cyrus working with one of the Five Families against the Corinthos organization. Novak promises that he would never team with Cyrus, and Jason can be assured that they're on the same side.

Freaking JAX is going to be the one to put this all together? Sigh. Also, I wouldn't put it past him to pretend he doesn't know anything so he can get back at Carly.

I don't get Nina's logic here.

I assume the writers put the brakes on Sonny and Nina hooking up because of what fans have said in the past about this kind of situation (namely, that it's technically rape).

That awkward moment when your kiss with your new love interest gets interrupted by your late husband's father. Who can't relate to that?

Why does Wyatt keep coming back?

Still waiting for Gladys to just...die. (Unless we keep getting funny, drunk Gladys. She can stay.)

September 2nd, 2021

Obrecht wakes up in some nice accommodations that she's not allowed to leave. She guesses that Peter is behind her abduction, but it's really another supposed-to-be-dead man: Victor. As far as he's letting on, his only motive is wanting to win back her affections. Anna and Jordan look into what happened to Obrecht and Scott's plane, but they just run into more mysteries. For starters, the plane has vanished. Plus, the conference Obrecht was supposed to attend in St. Lucia wasn't real. Britt knows her mom has enemies but she's not sure who would go to this much trouble to kidnap her. Jax tells Alexis about the two biggest mistakes he's made this year (blackmailing Michael and recording Carly), then asks her advice on what might be his next big mistake (getting involved in the Nina/Sonny stuff, though he doesn't give her any details). She tells him to stay out of it, but she doesn't expect that he's really going to do that. Esme plays mediator for Spencer and Nikolas, and surprisingly manages to make some headway. She reminds Spencer that he got what he wanted, since Ava and Nikolas are splitting up, so he should patch things up with his father. Also, if he doesn't, Spencer's stuck living with Laura and Kevin, and she knows he doesn't want that. Nikolas and Spencer make peace, giving the credit to Esme. Trina's upset to learn that Ava's leaving town (apparently with plans not to return, since she's selling Charlie's). Ava uses her mentor role to give Trina one last bit of advice: Try to steal Spencer away from Esme. When Trina mentions to Spencer and Esme that Ava's leaving, Esme comments that she obviously doesn't want Avery to suffer the same fate as her older daughter, only she calls her Lauren instead of Kiki.

WELL, WELL, WELL. LOOK WHO WAS RIGHT ABOUT VICTOR.

Anna and Jordan, let me help you out: The fact that Scott chartered a private plane isn't what's important here.

For once, I disagree with Alexis. This is the sort of situation Jax should definitely get involved in.

Why are we acting like Ava's leaving forever?

Kiki mention – drink!

September 3rd, 2021

Jax asks Ava for information on Nina's new beau, though Ava is hesitant to give any help to the guy who kept the truth about Nelle from her mother. Jax does learn that Nina's new guy is named Mike, and that at some point, Nina had a combative phone call with Carly. Basically, this is all just to stretch out the inevitable, which is that Jax is going back to Nixon Falls. Phyllis practically orders Sonny and Nina to live in the moment, but Nina won't budge on wanting Sonny to find out who he is before he decides he wants to be with her. Even after he confesses that he's falling in love with her, she presses him to get all the facts. Spinelli and Michael arrange a very small bachelor party for Jason, which gets crashed by Joey and some Novak goons. Joey baits Jason by making gross (though accurate) remarks about how he's hooking up with his best friend's wife. Jason ignores him and starts to leave, but Joey crosses the line and winds up getting beaten up...by Spinelli. Fast-forward to all of the Novak contingent on the ground and the police showing up to sort things out. (And by police, I mean Dante.) Olivia surprises Carly with a bachelorette party, complete with a stripper. Carly still feels weird about marrying Jason after all these years of friendship, like, WE GET IT. Let's move on already. Brando has some new side gigs, and Sasha's worried that one of them is mob-related. Carly overhears her sharing her worries with Willow and promises that Brando isn't working for the Corinthos organization. It turns out one of the side gigs is stripping, and in the least surprising turn of events ever, Brando is the stripper at Carly's party. Sasha tells him she's okay with it since it's safer than doing mob stuff. Sam gives Curtis an update on what she and Dante learned from Anna (while Curtis tries to rush her out of the Savoy before Jason's party). He recognizes the name Crichton-Clark and remembers that Phyllis worked there, so he gives her a call. She didn't work there long and probably doesn't know much, but she's recently been in contact with a former co-worker who worked in the records department, so he might provide some help. Dante and Sam hang out some more and are still cute.

"Tomorrow" is September 17th? So we'll only cover two days over the next two weeks? Fantastic. Can't wait.

Jason only has two male friends, and one of them is his nephew. Sad.

Does Nina know that Phyllis is on social media? She's probably posted pictures of Sonny.

Heh, Dante wasn't paying attention to Sam because he was thinking about Brando taking his clothes off. I also can't stop laughing at the fact that Dante had to stop flirting with Sam and go arrest her ex.

That little scene with Olivia, Josslyn, and Willow talking about strip clubs was cute. If you're going to have a low-stakes filler scene, that's how it should be.

September 7th, 2021

Nina has decided that she doesn't want Sonny to look into his past after all, and they should be together. They're using the L word liberally now, even though Nina knows this could all come crashing down at any moment. And that moment is probably right around the corner, because Jax is back in Nixon Falls. Monica surprises Carly by giving her blessing for her marriage to Jason. Monica notes how funny it is that Carly wanted Jason's love so badly 25 years ago, and now she finally has it. Let's just say that Carly isn't as happy as most brides are on their wedding day. Curtis has gotten in touch with Phyllis' former co-worker, and he's agreed to discuss Drew's files from Crichton-Clark. Since they're medical files, Sam and Curtis enlist Portia to tag along so no one has to forge any HIPAA forms. Then Curtis cuts Sam out of the road trip so they don't overwhelm the guy. At the same time, Shawn and Jordan get a tip that Naomi traveled to Port Charles with someone else. Jordan goes looking for that person and ends up at the same house as Portia and Curtis. Esme visits the gallery, supposedly to get some art, but probably because she wants to keep an eye on Ava. (Something to keep in mind because it will undoubtedly come back later: Esme's adopted.) Trina vents about Esme to Josslyn, who agrees that Esme's fake and they shouldn't trust her. When Trina runs into Esme later and hears her talking about Ava, she asks why Esme called Kiki by her first name the other day. She's rightfully suspicious of Esme's connection to Kiki's hospital ID. While waiting to be released from police custody, Jason reminisces about Sonny with Dante, like they're friends or something. Spencer might actually feel bad about breaking up Nikolas and Ava – so bad that he almost tells Nikolas he's the stalker. Esme cautions him not to, since, again, he's getting what he wants, and coming clean to Nikolas will just destroy their relationship again. Ava files a restraining order to keep Nikolas 100 feet away from her. T.J. makes it clear to Jordan how much he loves her and appreciates her as a mother.

Oh, now we're doing the SAME day for two weeks? Sigh.

I just thought about Monica getting Drew back and now I'm really happy for her.

Everyone needs to stop urging Shawn to move on. Let the man solve a mystery!

Now that we know Esme's adopted, I'm, like, 90% sure Ryan is her birth father. (I was already about 85% sure.)

Sam, sign Trina on as your partner in your PI business. She put Esme and the ID together in record time.

Why do I feel like something bad is going to happen to Jordan? The scenes with her and T.J. felt random.

September 8th, 2021

Jax lets Nina twist for a while, saying he'll leave her alone forever if she'll just let him meet "Mike." Nina tries as hard as she can to get rid of him, but it doesn't work, and Jax finally comes face to face with Sonny. He's not amused with everything Nina's been up to and announces that it's time for Sonny to know the truth. Curtis, Jordan, and Portia determine that they're all there to see the same person, Roger. Unfortunately, Roger's dead, and his killer is still in his house. He knocks Jordan out and leaves her in a basement that's filling with gas. While Curtis chases him outside somewhere, Portia gets locked in the basement with a barely conscious Jordan and no way out. She tries to reassure Jordan that Curtis will save them and they'll get home to their kids. Also, Portia has a secret she's been keeping from Trina about her father. Esme takes fake offense at being accused of being Ava's stalker, and to change the subject, she suggests that Trina has a crush on Spencer. Instead of siding with her, Spencer tells her to lay off of Trina, then later wants to check to make sure Trina's okay. Esme notes that they can tell her what's really going on (Esme set fire to Ava's car and left a duplicate ID behind), or they can tell her everything and see if she's still so into Spencer once she learns that he's been spending months breaking up his father and stepmother. She'll do whatever will make Spencer happy. In addition to the restraining order, Ava has gotten rid of the bodyguard Nikolas hired for her and replaced him with two ex-UFOUFC guys. When Nikolas keeps nagging her, she tells them to get rid of him. They misinterpret this instruction and beat him up. Ava feels bad enough to almost let herself fall for his charms, but she gets a hold of herself and tells him she's committing to the divorce. Carly leaves right before wedding prep is supposed to begin, so Jason has Spinelli track her down, like, she's a grown woman and she left on her own. Leave her alone.

Heh, amnesia can't erase 25 years of Jax hating Sonny.

See? I knew something bad was going to happen to Jordan.

Hmm, I wonder what "the truth about [Trina's] father" could mean. Could it mean...that I'm right?

Just to be clear: Ava's okay with murder but not fake attempted murder.

Kiki mention – drink!

I can't believe Jason and Josslyn didn't immediately assume that Carly had gone to Sonny's grave. That was my first guess.

September 9th, 2021

Sonny doesn't seem to care that Jax clearly knows who he is and claims Nina does, too. While Sonny thinks about various conversations with Nina and gets rid of his watch, Nina makes a bunch of excuses to Jax for not being honest with Sonny or Carly or anyone else. Jax makes a bunch of excellent points: Sonny deserves to make an informed decision about who he is, his family deserves to know that he's alive, there's nothing in the world that can justify what Nina's done, and Port Charles is actually safer with Sonny there. He insists that Nina tell Sonny everything, since his wife is about to get married to someone else. Jason finds Carly at the spot where the Floating Rib used to be, reminiscing about how she fell in love with him 25 years ago while hanging out with him at Jake's. She's worried that her returning feelings will continue to grow, he won't feel the same way, and she won't be able to handle being married to him. Jason gives her an out, but he also has returning feelings for her, so why not get married? Then they make out, and it's gross. Brook wants Maxie to get together with Austin, though I honestly don't get her logic, since she should want them to stay far apart from each other. Maxie gives in, for some reason, and agrees to invite him to the wedding. Austin tells Ned that he's observed some behaviors in Leo that he thinks should be discussed with a specialist. He dances around specifics, just saying that those behaviors have to do with communication, but it's a good guess that he's talking about autism. Ned reveals that he's noticed communication issues as well, but Olivia doesn't want to talk about them. Austin convinces him to bring up the subject with her again. Curtis saves Portia and Jordan, but Jordan's in bad shape. So I guess this isn't a good time for me to request more information on Portia's big secret.

Of all the things Nina's done, I'm maddest about her making me side with Jax about something. Oh, plus the emotional manipulation ("don't you want me to be happy?") and how she's playing the victim ("Mike's the only man who's ever been honest with me"). Shut up, Nina.

Find me one person who wants Carly and Jason together.

So we're completely erasing Robin from Jason's history? And after all his brooding over Britt, he's just over her? UGH!

I'm enjoying the dynamic Maxie and Brook are getting to develop. Both of the actresses who play them are so good at comedy.

Brook: "Austin!" Austin: "No, thank you." I don't know why but that cracked me up.

I figured we were going the route of Leo having autism, and I was worried about how they would approach that, but it looks like they're going to do it in a respectful way. None of that "with treatment, we can fix him" crap. Austin made it clear that there's nothing wrong with Leo, and that he just needs to learn different ways to communicate. I also like that Ned listened to him and didn't shoot the messenger. He could have easily blown Austin off and told him to mind his own business.

Why did Curtis take Jordan back to Port Charles? Aren't there hospitals in the Finger Lakes?

I can't believe that guy's house didn't blow up.

September 10th, 2021

While Sonny lets Phyllis know that he told Nina how he feels about her, Jax continues saying things Nina needs to hear. He finally wears her down and she says she'll tell Sonny who he really is, but on her own time, and not while Jax is hanging around. Then Peter returns. Jason and Carly once again commit to getting married (as if we would have gone through all of this only for them to call it off now), hoping to actually celebrate their relationship while putting on a show for the Five Families. Speaking of the Five Families, they're plotting to do something to a Corinthos warehouse during the wedding, pull a coup, and divide up Port Charles amongst themselves. Everyone's worried about Jordan, including people who never even interact with her, like Maxie and Brook. Curtis is especially worried, and if I were Portia, I'd wonder if he was really over her. Since Jordan only has one remaining kidney, her carbon monoxide poisoning is going to be tough to overcome. Today in Dumb Contrivances That Don't Make Any Sense, Jason learns of Jordan's hospitalization and thinks Cyrus might have hurt her. Portia tells him and Carly about the investigation into Roger and Crichton-Clark. Carly tosses out an obligatory reference to Drew before Jason says they have more important things to worry about. Brook and Maxie disagree over Brook's parenting techniques, and Maxie reminds her that she's not really Louise's mother. Brook asks if that means Maxie wants to claim her. Gladys continues to be annoying to Sasha and Brando (and the audience). She's also still palling around with Novak and is too clueless to realize he isn't really interested in her. Maxie invites Austin to the wedding, but he points out that she said she doesn't want to be around him because it makes her think of Louise.

NOT NOW, PETER!

Jax needs to extricate himself from this situation ASAP. He should call someone who won't let Nina back out of this, like Dante.

Morgan mention – drink!

Shouldn't Maxie be doing last-minute wedding stuff?

What was the point of Jason and Carly getting involved in Jordan's situation?

Gladys, never trust a man who calls you "doll."

September 13th, 2021

Thanks to a heads up (probably from Victor), Peter knew Obrecht was also going to St. Lucia and figured out Nina sent him into an ambush. He makes her call Valentin to ask for any leads he might have about Louise, but Valentin can't help. Nina's able to indicate that something's off without Peter getting suspicious. Phyllis arrives while Nina and Peter are talking, and she does get suspicious, enough so that she pulls a gun on him. Peter grabs Nina and threatens to shoot her if Phyllis tries anything. Despite having a two-against-one situation here, Peter ties up the two women and prepares to kill them. Meanwhile, Valentin and Anna decide they should go to Nixon Falls to check on Nina. Jordan's in renal failure, so her doctor sends her to Albany for treatment, and everyone acts like they'll never see her again. She remembers Portia saying something about a secret she's keeping from Trina about her father, but Jordan thinks it has to do with Taggert's undercover work, not anything about paternity. Trina catches Josslyn up on the latest Spencer/Esme news, then tells her that Victor is Spencer. Trina admits to liking Spencer and regretting that she let a boy talk her into keeping a secret from her best friend. Spencer and Nikolas are still far from having a great relationship, but when Valentin tries to make small talk with them, they team up to mean-girl him together. Now Spencer's willing to consider moving home, though he doesn't ask if Esme can come with him. Ava tells Carly that as soon as her divorce is final, she's leaving town for a while, and she doesn't think it's safe to bring Avery with her. Carly is sympathetic (!), and Ava congratulates her on her wedding (!), so when Sonny eventually comes home and gets his memory back, this might be what surprises him the most about what he's missed. Austin doesn't seem that interested in going to the wedding with Maxie, so she tells Brook that, while she's grateful for all Brook's doing to help her, there's a limit to what she'll do in return, and also, maybe Brook should find something to occupy her time other than stress over ELQ. But then Austin accepts the invitation, so who knows where that's going?

Phyllis! Even more awesome than we already knew!

I'm starting to enjoy it when Peter commits new crimes. It just adds time to his prison sentence.

I'm not seeing anything about Briana Nicole Henry leaving the show, so why is everyone acting like they're never going to do another scene with her? Edit: Yep, she's gone. I guess Jordan will never come back from Albany.

Aw, it just took mutual hatred of Valentin to bring Nikolas and Spencer closer together.

Kiki mention – drink!

September 14th, 2021

Nina begs Peter to leave the country and avoid any kind of punishment for all his crimes. Peter isn't about to leave any witnesses, so he decides to set the Tan-O on fire and let Nina and Phyllis burn to death. As a parting gift, he tells Phyllis that Nina has known who Sonny is the whole time she's been in town. Minutes after he starts the fire and leaves, Sonny shows up, so of course he's going to save Nina and Phyllis, who will just go to the police, which means Peter is once again an idiot. Jax tries to convince Sonny that he's been lied to and Nina knows who he is. Sonny doesn't believe him, and he's so focused on his present and future with Nina that he doesn't care that Jax knows who he is. Jax warns that no matter how much he wants to run and hide from his past, he can't escape it forever. While Drew's been working on an escape plan, Chloe is three steps ahead and has already worked one out. They're on their way out of wherever it is they're being kept when an alarm goes off. Chloe is able to make it outside, but Drew gets left behind for another beating. Dante and Sam flirt at a batting cage, like, I'm not complaining but maybe save this stuff until after you've found Drew? Dante mentions that Sam's parole is up, which leads to her wondering if Shiloh might have known anything about Drew's disappearance. Obviously they can't ask him, since he's dead, but his former partner in crime is still alive, so the two pay a visit to Harmony. Josslyn tears Spencer apart for the way he's treated Trina and tells him she doesn't feel sorry for him. Boo hoo, he has a bad relationship with his father, but that doesn't give him an excuse to treat people badly. Esme pretends she hasn't been involved in any of Spencer's schemes, but I'm not sure Josslyn believes her. P.S. Spencer is curious about how Trina feels about him and admits he likes her, but not in front of Esme. Harmony wants to be friends with Alexis (you know, the woman whose daughters she almost got raped) since they're both lonely. Alexis admits that they do have one thing in common: a history of being with horrible men.

I really can't wrap my head around how unbelievably stupid Peter is. If he ends up on trial, I want the judge to tack an extra ten years onto his sentence just for his stupidity.

Chloe is AWESOME. Let's just hope that, if she can't get back in to help Drew, she knows enough about him and where he's from to contact someone he knows for help.

I was dreading a cliché guy-teaches-woman-how-to-swing-a-baseball-bat scene, so I love how they subverted it by having Sam teach Dante instead (and then subverted it again by having him bust her for just making stuff up).

This episode had too much Shiloh talk for my comfort.

Trina might never know just how good a friend Josslyn is.

September 15th, 2021

Sonny and Jax take forever to get Nina and Phyllis out of the Tan-O, but the fire doesn't seem to be moving very quickly, so there isn't a lot of urgency there. Sonny ends up unconscious when a ceiling beam falls, and Jax won't let Nina go back to help him. Carly's happy and hopeful and everything, so there's probably no way things can go wrong with this wedding! Drew has heard some of the guards speaking Greek, so he thinks the Cassadines are somehow involved in his captivity. He tries to bribe a guard, Russell, promising him more money than he's being paid if he'll help Drew escape. Russell won't cooperate, so Drew points out that Chloe's already escaped and will easily be able to get help, so Russell should act now if he doesn't want to go down with the people he's working for. Sam suspects that Harmony might know something about Drew's plane crash, even though she was in prison at the time. Harmony takes offense but doesn't deny that she was involved. Alexis is able to convince Harmony that helping with the investigation will help with her quest for redemption, and Harmony provides the name of one of Shiloh's frequent co-conspirators, Dallas Kirby. Ned discusses Austin's concerns about Leo with Olivia, who insists that there's nothing to worry about, especially not anything Austin thinks might be wrong. Maxie wants to distract Britt from worrying about Obrecht and thinking about Jason and Carly's wedding, so she asks Terry and Elizabeth to invite her to do something. They come up with some work crisis that she can help them with, but I'm not sure what the point of it is. Spinelli and Michael are pro-Jason/Carly, and it's getting old.

If Sonny wakes up with his memories back, I will laugh SO HARD.

Ironically, the writers seem to have forgotten Drew's amnesia.

50% of this Drew stuff is just Cameron Mathison groaning in pain.

"There is an Eisenhower-era cupcake in that vending machine over there and I'll rock paper scissors you for it right now." Hee.

Excuse me, no, I suffered through multiple episodes of Michael and Morgan trying to Parent Trap Sonny and Carly back together, so don't try to sell me this crap that Michael wanted Carly to be with Jason.

September 16th, 2021

A semi-conscious Sonny sees Carly, then ends up in the same place he started this plotline: in the snow with Mike. Mike tells him that while he's found love and a home in Nixon Falls, it's time for him to go back to his real life. He gives Sonny a few memories, but they're bad ones (a manic episode, shooting Dante and Julian, Morgan's headstone), so of course Sonny doesn't want that life. Mike promises that there are good parts, too, and gives him a choice: He can die as "Mike" or live as Sonny. Carly joins him, and Sonny finally sees her face. He chooses life, and when he wakes up in the Tan-O, which is still on fire, he at least remembers his wife. That wife is in the process of marrying someone else, as the wedding is moving forward just as planned, with pretty much everyone in attendance supporting it. So unless someone shows up with a bomb or something, it might actually go all the way through. Jax and Phyllis chastise Nina for her various bad decisions, both the ones about Sonny and for not letting anyone know that Peter was hanging around. Jax tries to call Maxie, but of course she can't answer, since she's at the wedding. The Five Families are on track to carry out their plan, but it looks like Jason and Spinelli also have something in the works. Novak offers to help Brando find a new job to replace his income from Cyrus, but Brando turns him down, which of course disappoints Gladys. Olivia continues to refuse to consider the possibility that Leo isn't as fine as she thinks.

Nina yelled "Mike" so many times, she summoned the real one.

Nixon Falls' firefighters don't seem very competent.

Morgan mention – drink! (His headstone counts.)

I can't decide if Jax is calling Maxie to tell her to stop the wedding or to warn her about Peter. Maybe both.

I also can't decide if Jake and Danny aren't at the wedding because kids weren't invited or because Jason forgot to tell them about it.

I really love Monica's dress.

I assume Sasha being on bed rest means we won't see her again until Sofia Matsson is back from maternity leave.

September 17th, 2021

Since the firefighters can't get into the Tan-O and Sonny's been inside for a really long time with all the flames and smoke, Phyllis decides there's no way he could survive. Of course, she's wrong, and he manages to get himself out. Jax has spent the waiting time trying to contact Maxie (who ignores his call) and convince Nina that now that the truth is out about "Mike"'s identity, her plan to keep him hidden has to end. This becomes especially clear when Sonny reveals to her that he remembers everything. Nina seems to be delusional, though, since she thinks the two of them can still have something. The wedding proceeds as planned, and everyone is happy except Novak and Buscema. In the receiving line, Mrs. Wu whispers something to Jason, who later tells Carly she was just confirming something he already knew. Novak and Buscema have planted a car bomb, and as the bride and groom leave for the reception, it goes off. In case it's important later, Gladys took Novak's pocket square, and he's not happy about it.

Yay, the amnesia part of this storyline is officially over!

I think it's time for Nina to go. She's not going to be able to handle seeing Sonny go back to who he was before, especially if he goes back to Carly.

Ah, I see. They didn't blow up that guy's house last week because they were planning to blow something up this week.

Here's my theory: Mrs. Wu has been feeding information to the Corinthos contingent, and she warned Jason that Novak and Buscema were planning something. Thanks to her intel, Jason had the bomb moved from his car to theirs. If I'm right, Mrs. Wu might be awesome.

Novak and Buscema are idiots. They should have been at the reception with everyone else, clearly visible, when the bomb went off. How else do you establish an alibi?

Is this the first wedding Maxie's planned that's gone all the way through as expected?

If Diane did the probate for Edward's will, why didn't any of them ask her about the Jimmy Lee Holt stuff? Why didn't it come out before now?

They seem to be moving toward a possible Austin/Maxie pairing, but I don't see it. I'd like to see Kirsten Storms' chemistry with Cameron Mathison.

September 20th, 2021

Sonny makes it clear that he doesn't want to be with Nina, and he has no time to listen to her pleas for another chance. As soon as Jax confirms that Sonny's himself again, he sends him back to Port Charles, wisely not wanting to get in the middle of this mess. As I predicted, Novak and Buscema are dead, and Mrs. Wu provided the tip Jason needed to protect his loved ones. The wedding reception goes off without a hitch, even with the possibility that the police might show up to question Jason. The newlyweds head home, awkward because the wedding night usually means sex, and they haven't talked about that. As they're about to start getting romantic, Sonny comes home. Anna and Valentin finally make it to Nixon Falls, and Nina tells them all about Peter's latest crimes. Jax keeps her secret about why Peter was blackmailing her. As Nina calls Maxie to warn her that Peter might be headed her way, Anna finds him waiting for a ride out of town. Chase is annulling his marriage to Willow, but he tells Brook he doesn't regret marrying her, since she helped get him through his near-death experience. Brook admits that she's not that mad about him helping Austin because his instinct to get revenge on Willow and Michael showed that he's human. Speaking of Willow, she catches the bouquet, to probably no one's surprise, and tells Michael that if they ever get married again, it'll be for real. Okay, Olivia, we get it, you don't want to hear anything about Leo that isn't glowing praise and certified confirmation that he's perfect. Let's move on.

Sonny, hurry up and interrupt Carly and Jason, because I don't want to watch this.

In theory, it makes total sense that Sonny would want to go straight home. But when you think about it, it seems weird. This is the kind of situation where you want someone to call your loved ones and let them know ahead of time that you're alive so you don't give them all heart attacks when you walk in.

Also, Jax reaaaaaaaally should have told Sonny what was going on back in Port Charles. Like, "Hey, Carly might not be home, because she's supposed to be getting married right now."

As much as I'd love for Anna to just take Peter out right now and end all this, I don't see it happening in Nixon Falls.

Welp, that's two annulments for Willow. Anyone want to try to break that record?

I'm not at all surprised that Olivia thinks it's okay to lecture Ned about Brook but she won't listen when he has something to say about Leo. Ned should talk to Dante about this and see if Dante can talk Olivia into following up.

September 21st, 2021

Jason and Carly are so shocked to see Sonny that she faints. They quickly catch up, everyone holding back certain details from what's been going on (Sonny doesn't mention Nina; Carly doesn't mention that her "marriage" was about more than just mob stuff). Sonny approves of the marriage plot and the actions Carly and Jason have taken to keep the organization together and protect everyone. Anna demands Drew's location from Peter, who offers information for the right price. He has a hidden gun (good job checking him for weapons, Agent Devane), but she's able to keep the upper hand and put a bullet through his shoulder. Valentin, who's already tied up Peter's getaway driver, makes it two against one, and faced with the options of prison and death, Peter jumps in the river. No one's dumb enough to assume he's dead. Anna and Valentin also get the impression that Peter has an accomplice who's calling the shots. Maxie tells Austin she needs to go to the Quartermaines' and check on Louise, since Peter might take her to get leverage against Valentin. Chase buys this explanation, too, and hurries to help make sure the mansion is secure and Maxie has protection. Brook suggests that Maxie just move into the mansion, but Maxie knows she wouldn't be able to handle living with the baby she's pretending isn't her daughter. Maxie sends Austin to warn Britt that Peter's resurfaced, and he shares the news with a stunned Elizabeth and Finn. To distract themselves from the probability that their actions will come back to haunt them, they talk about their camping trip, which both would like to reschedule, and I don't think just because they want to hang out with their kids together again. Michael and Willow decide to live in the gatehouse together. Britt and Elizabeth are something resembling friendly now.

We've moved to my favorite part of a back-from-the-dead plot: happy reunions.

Ugh, of course Sonny cares more about the business than seeing his kids.

Not looking forward to the inevitable Sonny/Carly/Jason love triangle.

Good thinking on Maxie's part to say she was worried about Louise because Peter might take her to get at Valentin (since I thought months ago that might happen).

Please don't make us sit through ANOTHER plot where the villain might be dead but also might have gotten away.

I would like to know how Brook would pitch to Monica that Maxie should move in.

I liked the little detail of Chase confirming that the cops were from the PCPD and assuring Brook and Maxie that they were legit.

September 22nd, 2021

Carly and Jason try to avoid eye contact with each other while Sonny reunites with Dante, Michael, Kristina, and Josslyn. Nina seems to get that she and "Mike" really aren't going to have a future together, and there's no justifying what she did to keep him from his family. Jax is sympathetic, but I wouldn't be surprised if Phyllis never forgives her. Nina accepts that she can't change what happened, so now she needs to face up to her actions and move forward. Spencer smooths things over with Trina, Josslyn, and Cameron, but there's no smoothing over how Josslyn and Trina feel about Esme. Josslyn all but threatens to put a hit out on Esme if Esme does anything to cross her. Esme tries to make nice with Trina, who's pretty sure she's Spencer's co-conspirator. Ava continues making plans to leave town, handing management of Charlie's over to Kristina until it's sold. She finally gets her divorce papers, but Kristina thinks she's having second thoughts about signing them. She also thinks Nikolas and Ava make each other better. Ultimately, Ava decides not to sign the papers just yet. Chase is leaving the Quartermaines' when Michael and Willow get home, and it's super-awkward. Willow tells Chase that she's sorry that things happened the way they did, but she doesn't regret loving him. He tells her that he wants everyone to move on and not dwell on what's happened. He also feels bad for helping Austin because he didn't have the right motives. Then he invites Brook out for a drink, but it's not clear if it's just as friends or if he's showing he really is ready to move on.

Four things I really liked about this episode:

1. Dante and Sonny's scenes, which made me say, "Awwww" a lot.
2. Carly and Kristina both questioning Sonny's outfit.
3. Dante, Kristina, Josslyn, and Michael teasing each other like typical siblings.
4. Dante coming over to question Jason, Jason saying he had big news, Dante ignoring him, and Jason letting him talk, then asking, "Are you finished?"