Saturday, August 26, 2006

La Fea Más Bella #87-89 8/23 -8/25/06 A lot of talking

A dialogue-heavy episode takes forever to recap. Here were three dialogue-heavy episodes, so here is a long recap, preceeded as usual by corrections and a boring preamble from me.

Corrections:
  • Alicia's pepper spray turned out not to be illegal (she would have been in a lot more trouble if it had). However, it was still illegal for her to use it since the gang did not attack or threaten them (but it's perfectly okay to get into someone's car uninvited?).
  • The false name Fernando gave at the hotel was Alberto Moradia. I'm not sure if that's significant or not (maybe a joke or pun of some kind). "Morar" means "to dwell."
Boring preamble:

In the Comments, someone said she needed assurance that Lety won't be ugly for too much longer. I can't give a specific answer, but I will say that you'd better not hold your breath. It'll be a while. Long enough that you need to get used to her the way she is. If Fern can do it, you can too!

This comment reminded me of something my mother said when we went to see ET many years ago. She said, "I guess it was a cute movie, but why did they have to make him so ugly?"

Sigh. Totally missing the point.

Now, who wants a recap? I do!


Main story

Lety greets Fernando and Marcia. She awkwardly asks how they are doing. Marcia, bemused to be addressed by this impudent creature, says they are doing about as well as they can, or words to that effect. Marcia excuses herself, and Fern tells Lety "we need to talk." He throws his car keys at Celso, but Celso misses. Fern scolds him for letting a hangover interfere with his work. He also asks if he has alcohol in his coffee cup (not that Fern ever drinks on the job, LOL). Lety giggles. She self-consciously walks several paces behind Fern as they go into the building. Fern sarcastically praises PM for being on time.

PM wants to know how Lety's date went. Lety said it was divine, and how was PM's? PM said it was horrible. Just then, Saimon comes in. PM greets him. He replies cheerfully... to Lety. He says what a beautiful day it is, as opposed to last night, which was horrible.

Up in the exec suite, the feas want to know how Lety's date went too. They are interrupted by Marcia. She tells Lety to say where Fern went last night. Lety is speechless. Marcia says she knows what they did last night. She slept with Fern! The feas all clap in support of Marcia, who waves triumphantly.

Lola is clapping in Lety's ear, trying to snap her out of a daydream. Lety excuses herself and goes to Fernando's office. Fern tells her that he's concerned that Lety must think he lied about going home by himself. She tells him it's okay, but he wants to explain. He got home and Marcia was there, because she had worried about him when he didn't answer his phone, but they didn't do anything. Again Lety says don't worry, and goes into her office. She mutters happily, "he's mine, and only mine."

Marcia summons Lola into her office and tells her to keep their conversation to herself. Marcia wants to know if Fern got any calls last night at Lety's party. Lola says no. Marcia asks what did he do at the party? Lola tells how RoboPop occupied Fern for a long time with a story about his Uncle Lazaro. Lola laughs, remembering, but Marcia is not in a sociable mood. She asks if, at any time, he (??) at Lety's party. Lola says no. Marcia says thank you and dismisses Lola abruptly.

The feas beg Lola to explain what that was all about (Juana even fakes a heart attack, saying that her heart is breaking because Lola won't share her gossip). Lola uncomfortably refuses.

Fern is wrapping up a phone call with Luigi when Omar comes in (he is wearing a striped shirt with a striped tie; this bugs me). He says he's been waiting all night for this moment. He wants to know about last night. He's being crude. They go into the boardroom so they can talk without Lety hearing them. Omar says "tell me everything. Was it horrible?" Fern says no, it wasn't horrible. Reluctantly, he adds, it was romantic - for both of them.

Omar doesn't pick up on Fernando's pensive mood. He tells Fern that he's his hero. What an effort! He's like the Karate Kid! Fern is offended. He says it was nothing like being with a model or a casual friend. He talks about his assistant, and his right hand (I don't think that was supposed to be as funny as it sounded), the woman who can save his life. She is so in love with him. He says lots more that I don't understand. He says it affectid him deeply. Omar says fine, don't tell me everything. He is still flippant. Fernando said it was without jokes or lies. Or he wished it was without jokes or lies. Or Lety deserves no jokes or lies. Something like that.

He describes how it went. He had whiskey, she came out of the bathroom and sat on the bed, looking fragile. He couldn't do it. It was a terrible moment, and he felt like he was dying. He describes how she cried and she kissed her, etc. (Not much about the "etc.") Omar is still rude, asking did he have to look at the photo of Patty Manterola, or think about Sharon Stone. Fern says nope, it was all Lety.

Omar is horrified. He says something about Halloween. Fern is angry. Omar keeps joking, but Fern said it wasn't so bad, except for the way it's hurting his conscience. That woman is truly in love with him. He could feel it. And he says it was sweet.

Omar is worried about the way the encounter has affected Fernando. Fern says the idea of love is important to him. He's been with lots of people who meant nothing to him, but "yo quiero a Lety" (platonically, of course).

Meanwhile, in Lety's office, PM wants to hear every juicy detail, but has to settle for Lety's little giggle, which tells PM all she needs to know. Lety adds, "he said he loves me." PM seems sincerely happy for her. Lety says, "it was magical." She adds that it was sweet.

PM speaks enthusiastically about all the hard work Lety must do to maintain the relationship. Fern walks in behind her, and PM does not see Lety warning her to be quiet. She says she must seduce her boyfriend everywhere - in the car, at home, in the living room, in the bathroom. Fern excuses himself sarcastically. Paula is mortified. She gives Lety a hug and leaves.

Fern pretends to be concerned about what he has just heard PM say about Lety and Tomas. Lety giggles. After all, it was his idea that she should pretend to be seeing Tomas, and PM is interested in these things. She puts her hand on his arm.

Just then, Luigi bursts into Fern's office. He is wearing an unbelievably flattering muscle shirt. Wowiee!! Lety and Fern hurriedly step apart. Luigi asks if he is interrupting something. Fern tells him he should knock if he's so worried about manners. Luigi mischievously asks what they were doing. Fern says they're looking at reports, that's all. Luigi just came in to continue their earlier discussion about Bella Life. (He waves his hands around in a certain way whenever he says "Bella Life." It's funny.) He says he's sorry. "Excuse me," he says in English, and leaves. Fern is flustered by this near-miss. Lety sits at his desk to do something on his computer. They discuss the big huge meeting that's coming up - I believe this is the meeting that will make or break his future as president of the company. They agree they're not prepared.

Marcia gives Alicia a gift - a bag of makeup to replace that which was destroyed by Luigi's dog. Alicia whines that it's not her brand, but generously agrees to accept it. (I don't hear a "gracias.") She says something about the 15th, and Marcia says she's not going to give her any money. Alicia changes the subject - what time did Fern get home last night? Marcia says 3 AM. Alicia's loud exclamation gives Marcia a headache. Al tells Marcia to inspect Fern's clothes for perfume or other evidence. Marcia says that's not necessary, she's sure he had "relaciones" last night. "You mean he told you?" Al asks in horror. Marcia says no, but he didn't want to be with me. "Oh, that's normal," Alicia says knowingly. She describes how Mauricio was like that all the time (sounds like he couldn't stand her). Marcia says that's not normal for Fern. In fact, arguing just seemed to increase his passion. This time, he was cold and distant.

Lety is still at Fern's desk a while later when his phone rings. She answers the phone. Fern, who seems to be telephone-challenged, reaches for base of the phone and holds it to his ear. It's the publicity person from some big company. Fernando panics. She hands him the phone and he takes the call very suavely. (They switch seats so he can feel more presidential.) This company wants Conceptos to do the ads for their line of sports apparel. YES!!! They hug spontaneously. He's crazy with happiness. He wants to call a meeting right after lunch.

Fern tells Omar the good news. Then Fern tells Omar and Lety that their numbers may still need "restructuring" for the big upcoming meeting (not the one this afternoon). He wants this information kept from Marcia. He says something about Filmo-Imagen and putting on makeup (I don't know what this is about). She very reluctantly agrees to cook the books for them. After she goes back to her office, Omar warns Fern of the danger of Lety's involvement. He needs to keep her happy.

During lunch hour, Omar goes out and buys some flowers (peach-colored tulips) for Fern to give Lety. (Alicia and Marcia see Omar bring the flowers into Fern's office.) Fern wants to talk about business, but Omar wants to talk about giving Lety a card and gift for last night.

The feas have gone out for lunch. Several feas are angry and I'm not sure exactly who's mad and why. I think the gist is that Lola hopes Saimon will lure Yazmin away from El Cheque, while PM was hoping to lure Saimon away from Yazmin - in any case, Martha is grumpy from hunger, and angry with Lola for not sharing her gossip about Marcia. Lety is intrigued to know that Lola has had a secret meeting with Marcia. They vote that Lola should tell. Only Irma disagrees.

Finally Lola relents. Lola says that Marcia asked about Lety's party. She wanted to know if he got any calls, etc. They ask Lety some questions, and she gives nervous answers. Juana says something about Lety's boyfriend. Lola says Marcia seemed very emotional. Confirming that he has a lover, and he was with her.

They go back to the office. PM goes with Irma to Luigi's studio, looking for Saimon and/or Yazmin(??). Luigi complains to Irma that this impromptu afternoon meeting is inconveniencing him. He asks where is Yazmin. PM excuses herself, unhappy that Yazmin and Saimon are apparently out together. Later she intercepts them as they get off the elevator, and they have an unfriendly but probably irrelevant exchange.

Alicia answers the phone. It's Roman, looking for Alicia! She tells him that Alicia no longer works for Conceptos. She's gone to Jakarta! Alicia goes whining to Marcia, who is feeling pretty moody. She says she doesn't have time for this, she's getting ready for a meeting. Alicia mentions Jakarta, and Marcia kicks her out.

Lety scolds Fern for skipping lunch. She finds the flowers and mushy card in her office, and is delighted. The card says "our night confirmed that you need me" (or maybe "I need you" - I don't remember). It also says something about the US which I don't get. She gets all swoony.

Lety and Juana prepare the boardroom for the meeting. They have a conversation that I don't understand at all. Juana seems to have a problem of some sort. They talk about cleaning, and something about money, and Lopez (the HR guy).

Fern is mad at Saimon for being so late. He asks, where were you? Saimon says please yell at me. Fern says something about Yazmin, and she mistakenly thinks he's paying attention to her. He quickly disabuses her of this notion. :-) He says they are the West Side Story of Conceptos. She keeps trying to get Fern to look at her boobs.

Omar flirts with Carolina before the afternoon meeting. He asks when she will go out on a date with him, and she says something about the apocalypse, and something about his teeth. He laughs, and they all clap. Carolina greets Lety warmly. Luigi comes in and greets Carolina warmly. Kiss kiss kiss. Something about the new Bella Life (swishy hands) commercial.

Luigi wants the meeting to begin ASAP. Fern says not yet - one of their executives is missing (Marcia). Luigi rudely suggests that the fly (??) go fetch her. Fern and Carolina scold him. Lety calls Marcia's office, but Marcia doesn't answer, so she goes to look for her. Luigi says more mean things about Lety. Omar laughs, and Lopez begins laughing until Fern and Carolina give him disapproving looks. Then he frowns!

Marcia and Alicia are talking about Fern's lover. Alicia asks if Marcia thinks Lety could be his lover. Marcia says he'd more likely be gay than get with Lety. Lopez's name is mentioned too for some reason. Alicia says something else about the "tlacoyo bigoton" (corncake with a mustache) and they laugh. Lety hears all of this. They are still laughing when Lety comes in and says everyone's waiting in the boardroom. After Lety leaves (but is still listening outside), Alicia asks Marcia if she thinks the mustached corncake was listening. (There's more, which I don't understand, but I assume it's bitchy.)

Back in the boardroom, Lopez is attempting to flirt with Carolina. He says something about how she likes her coffee. Luigi makes a condescending remark. Lopez says he was just trying to be nice. Luigi says the men of Conceptos are all dogs. (He holds up his wrists and pants.) Lopez scratches Luigi's arm in a suggestive manner (accompanied by that sound effect from when he rubs his forehead). I have NO idea what that's about, it's gross and Luigi brushes his arm off. He says something about cookies and sugar while Lopez regains his composure.

Marcia finally gets there. She apologizes for being late and practically shuts the door in Lety's face. Luigi does the dog thing again. Fern shakes his head. Luigi says something about English setters and rottweilers. Marcia agrees with him and keeps glancing at Lety.

Fern steers the conversation back to business. He talks about the ads for the Bella Life jewelry line. Luigi invites them to applaud their great director. Only Lety claps. Marcia just looks pissy. Fern sarcastically suggests that they applaud each person in the company - Marcia, Omar (Omar applauds himself), Lopez, Lety, Carolina... he asks Lety how many employees they have. He suggests applauding each one. Most in the room clap, including him, except he's being sarcastic. Marcia's still being pissy, so she doesn't clap, and Carolina just sits there looking amused and detached. Marcia tells Lety not to encourage Fern. She also scolds Fern.

Fern says fine, let's talk about work without any further interruptions from Luigi. He talks about the sports clothing deal. Luigi is excited by this - little shorts, etc. Fern says something about a Fifi. He says the Bella Life contract is for one year, those commercials will be important, and the upcoming Big Meeting is going to be VERY important. To his family, Marcia's family (even Ariel, he adds in a jesting tone), their friends... so they need to be very well prepared.

Luigi mentions the wedding. You know, between him and Fern. ("Un 'jokey,'" he explains apologetically.) Lety looks grim. Luigi says this man is not just in love, he's REALLY in love. He reviews the publicity of their engagement. M and F seem awkward. Carolina asks about the timing of the wedding vs. the Big Meeting.

Luigi goes on and on about the incredible event, which will be bigger than any Conceptos project. Lety looks sick. Fern looks depressed. Carolina asks about the preparations.

(Carolina, Lopez, and Luigi are at one end of the table, looking cheerful. Fern, Marcia, and Lety are at the other end of the table, looking unhappy. Omar is seated between these two groups and never gets to be in frame, so I have no idea what kind of face he's making!)

Marcia tells Fern to talk about the preparations. He stammers and tries to steer back to the business conversation. Lopez excuses himself to do HR stuff. Fern angrily gets up and says the meeting isn't done yet. Marcia stands too and says he doesn't like to talk about the wedding... EVER. He has no interest in it. Everyone looks horrified. Luigi's mouth is in an O. Fern tries to lighten the mood and talks about Lety preparing the reports for the Big Meeting and Luigi doing the jewelry ads for Bella Life. Luigi wants to show off his work and invites them to his studio. Fern says they have to wait for Ariel. This annoys Marcia (I don't know why). She leaves the boardroom, followed by Lopez. Carolina says something about business worries and priorities and weddings and love. She tells Luigi to invite her for coffee, and they leave.

Lety remains morosely at the table and Omar and Fern stand behind her, gesturing to one another. Omar indicates that he wants to leave, Fern indicates that he wants him to stay. He isn't ready to deal with Lety. Lety startles both of them by getting up and saying she's going to her office.

Omar flippantly tells Fern that it was a complicated meeting. "Ya think?" Fern replies sarcastically. They talk for a long time, I miss most of the details but it appears to be yet another rehash of all that's going on. The upshot is that it's now even more important for Fern to keep two potentially dangerous women happy. He also suggests that Fern postpone the wedding. Fern responds with more sarcasm and strangulation. "I'll be back" he says in English, imitating the Terminator.

Lola and Sara have overheard Alicia having a conversation with Tomas (more about that later). They tell PM. PM blames herself (I don't follow her reasoning). The agree they have to help Lety. They tell Lety that her boyfriend is cheating on her. She is momentarily confused until she realizes they mean Tomas. They say yes, with the airhead. They describe the conversation and assure her they're going to take care of it. (Sara's solution seems to involve a lot of violence against Alicia.) Martha, who's been ostracized for cheating on her diet (more on that later), balls her fists too, although it's not clear whether she's angrier with Alicia or with Sara.

Lety says she wants to take care of it herself. PM says she needs their combined experience to deal with this boyfriend-thief. They discuss this some more, and Luigi bustles up to tell Irma they have lots of work to do. She says no, the Bella Life stuff is all ready. He says no, he means Marcia's wedding dress.

Carolina and Luigi check out the gorgeous dress or fabric (it's in a box, we don't get a good look). Carolina sadly says something about a disaster with "tus novios" - I'm not sure if she means Luigi's boyfriends or if she means Fernando and Marcia. She says it's a shame.

The feas discuss the wedding too. Lety says it'll be around the time of the Big Meeting so Fernando's parents can be there for both. Then she either says their wedding will be a compromise, or it's been compromised... I'm not sure. The whole thing seems to be in doubt, and the feas wonder if the wedding and/or relationship is a bad idea. Lety says she doesn't know.

Lety takes a break from moping in her office to call Tomas to yell at him for flirting with Alicia. He is surprised by her ambush and I think he asks if she has bugged his phone! She says no, she has a much more primitive system in place - gossip. Everyone knows about him and the airhead. Tomas protests that Lety had asked him to give the impression that he's rich and handsome, and Alicia is fascinated by that. He promises to cut the relationship off, though. More talking, and they hang up. Tomas complains to himself that she's ugly and irritable.

In Fern's office, Fern and Omar hear most of this and wonder if Lety is more serious about Tomas than she admits. They don't know who the "airhead" is. Fern thinks Tomas is not a threat. He tells about the serenade at her party (I'm not sure how this supports his claim). Omar is not convinced.

Lety interrupts them with some Filmo-Imagen info. Fern asks her what's going on. She says it was just a problem at home and retreats to her office.

Marcia comes in and Omar makes himself scarce. Marcia confronts him about the wedding. He doesn't want to talk about it here. She says he doesn't want to talk about it here, there, or anywhere, at any time. Marcia either issues an ultimatum or cancels the wedding outright. Lety does a happy-dance in her office.

Fern panics and tries to weasel. Lety's name is mentioned. I'm not sure exactly what they say about her. I think Marcia is tired of Lety always being around and hearing everything they say. She says it's black or white - either they marry or they don't.

The littlest mermaid and king of bad timing, Ariel, interrupts them. (Lety hurries to her desk to look busy, just in case he wants to check on her.) Marcia takes Ariel away to the studio.

Fern goes into Lety's office. He asks, doesn't she want to see Luigi's presentation? (I think he just figures Marcia's less likely to confront him if Lety is there.) She says no, she's too busy. He offers to help her, then. (Plan B - avoid confrontation with Marcia by hiding out in Lety's office. This is just the sort of behavior you want in a company president.) She says no.

(During this conversation she has been pulling heavy binders off the shelves and piling them up on her desk. Then she starts loading them all back onto the shelf. She is blatantly giving Fern the cold shoulder.)

He bows and "con permiso"s about a million times on the way out of her office, as she often does to him. After he leaves, she mutters, "what is he, Oriental?"

In Luigi's studio, Luigi and Carolina have an incomprehensible conversation about novios, someone named Alexis, and danger. Ariel and Marcia join them. Ariel is obviously hot for Carolina, and it's not mutual. He flirts with her. She's polite and charming, but at this point we know her well enough to read the look on her face - she'd just as soon kiss a Wookiee.

Meanwhile, Marcia stares vacantly into space.

Yazmin and Saimon

Rewinding to the beginning of the day...

Outside the Conceptos building, Yazmin and El Cheque argue about Lola's house. He says it belongs to Lola - it's Lola's family's house. He doesn't want it. Yazmin is very angry with him. Saimon watches from a distance - I don't know if he hears what they're arguing about, but he sees that El Cheque has disappointed Yazmin. His heart fills with hope.

Later, shortly before lunchtime, Yaz is on the phone with El Cheque. She tells him she wants to be alone. From the look on her face, she wants to be alone with Saimon. She turns the phone off.

Two actress/models hang out in Luigi's office while he argues with El Cheque on the phone. No, Luigi says, you cannot speak with Yazmin, and stop calling her on my phone. Call her on that cell phone. Uh-oh, you're breaking up! Hiss [that fake static noise]! He hangs up on El Cheque. The models giggle.

Yazmin and Saimon are walking around in a beautiful park. He says something about 24 hours per day, 365 days/year sugar. She is pouty and irritable.

Saimon tells her how much he likes her. She allows him to hug her, and he says he's dying of joy. She pushes him away, pretending to be flustered. Then she kisses him on the mouth, big-time. (Obviously, she's read the chapter in her high school psychology textbook that talked about intermittent reinforcement.)

Yazmin checks her watch during their embrace and pushes him away again. She says it's late - they need to get back to the office. Saimon says they'll have to do the rest of their kisses on another day. She tells him no more kisses - it was a mistake.

After lunch, Luigi scolds Yazmin for her chronic tardiness. He reminds her that Conceptos is a place of business, mentions the constant phone calls from El Cheque, and adds that everyone dislikes her. She doesn't seem to believe this, but the loafing models smirk in agreement. He says lots more, including the word "cuckoo," but evidently gives her another chance. (Backstory: he hired Yazmin mostly out of spite, because so many people in the company didn't want him to, knowing it would cause problems for Lola and lots of disruption. He hired her as a way of throwing his weight around. If Luigi fires Yazmin, it'd be like acknowledging that he was wrong about her. He needs to find a way to fire her without losing face.)

Yazmin is thrilled that Flaquito has been worrying about her. Irma warns her not to push her luck.

Tomas and Alicia

Lety's mom brings a snack and some orange juice to Tomas, who is working in his Les Nessman-like office. He asks her to please open and close the "door" when she goes in and out of his office. She gamely asks whether the door is currently open or closed. :-)

Tomas needs to call Lety, but she's not answering the phone (she's at that meeting). He decides this is a great excuse to speak to Alicia!

Alicia has been crying in the hallway about her misfortunes. Might she have to sell the jewelry her mother gave her? No, forget it! No one will help her. If someone does help her, (I don't catch this).

Her phone rings. It's Lety's mom, posing as Tomas's secretary, asking to speak to Lety. Alicia snottily replies that this is not Lety's line, it's the president's. Mom says Lety's not answering her own phone, and this is important. Alicia says they're all busy in a meeting and mustn't be interrupted. She asks who is calling, and Mom says she is calling for Tomas Mora of Filmo-Imagen.

Predictably, Alicia makes nice after hearing this, offering to take a message. Mom and Tom confer loudly so Alicia can hear them. Tomas plays the bigshot, trying to decide which of his many phone lines she should route the call to. Mom refers to Alicia as "the secretary," and Alicia looks offended.

Mom hangs up, I'm not sure whether on purpose or by mistake. Tomas calls Alicia back himself. At this point, Mom discovers that this horrid woman is Alicia - Lety's enemy. Alicia tells Tomas she's not really a secretary. (Lola and Sara are eavesdropping on Alicia's side of the conversation.) Alicia says she's very close to the Mendiola and Villaroel families, and has had six semesters of finance at an excellent university. (Tomas replies, "wow, six whole semesters" without a trace of irony.) Alicia says, "I don't know if Lety has told you this, but..." and goes on to describe some of her highfalutin', mostly fictitious duties at Conceptos. Lola and Sara stifle their laughter.

Tomas tells Alicia that he and Lety don't talk much about Conceptos. Mom looks shocked by this lie. Alicia asks if he and Lety are novios, because the whole world knows about that relationship... or was that all just lies? He downplays the relationship, saying it's in early stages. Al asks if it is serious, and Tomas tells her it's not formal at all, so there's no reason he and Alicia can't have a nice chat on the phone.

Alicia wants to meet with him in person. Tomas takes a break to compose himself and order Mom around (just to make sure Alicia knows what a bigshot he is). Mom is offended, and slaps Tomas and scolds him. Alicia hears all of this, and tells Tomas he should get a new secretary. He jokes that she could help him modernize his equipment. Al says that she can't leave Conceptos - she's too important, and too beloved. (Lola and Sara laugh some more.)

He says he has no time to meet. He has meetings, business meals, trips (actually he first says "viejas," which elicits an ugly look for Mom, then corrects himself "...viajes"). Alicia suggests meeting at his office for coffee and a chat.

Tomas says, "you want to meet HERE??" Mom is incredulous. She tells him to hang up the phone, that woman is not coming into her house. She yells into the phone that Tomas is needed in a meeting. They exchange friendly goodbyes and hang up.

Mom twists Tomas's ear and yells at him for spending the afternoon (actually about five minutes) talking to that woman, Lety's enemy, and flirting with her. He protests that she flirted with him, and he couldn't help responding in kind. Mom says how could he invite her over. He says no, she invited herself, but Mom says "and you accepted." He says it's all just negotiations and diplomacy, but Mom is not impressed.

He doesn't want her to tell Lety. She tells him not to fool himself.

Martha's "diet"

Alicia is whining to her father (on the phone) that no one will help her with her financial problems. Her car, her apartment, etc. She is crying. She quickly ends the call when the feas come into the lobby on their way to lunch - she tells her father she doesn't want everyone to hear all of her personal business.

While waiting for Martha to come out of the bathroom, the feas taunt Alicia - she should try Martha's autosuggestion diet. Instead of imagining that she has food, she could imagine that she has money, a boyfriend, and gas for her car.

When they get back from lunch, Martha goes into the bathroom again. Sara and Lola harrass her about her frequent bathroom trips. They have another run-in with Alicia later - Paula Maria and Alicia exchange comments about Omar and Saimon (I'm not sure what they say, exactly) and then they trade insults about hair color. The feas mock Alicia's hair-stroking and her whiny "Aaaaaaaaie, Maaaaarcia." (Alicia strokes her hair self-consciously while they do this.) She waves her makeup bag at them. She tells them she can fix herself up in five minutes with the help of cosmetics, but there are no tools that can fix their lives. They all clap sarcastically at her maudlin cliche.

Alicia hears moaning coming from one of the stalls. She drags a bench across the floor and peeks over the wall - Martha is pigging out on a bag of chips! Alicia hurries to fetch the feas. She tells them she wants them to see the autosuggestion diet at work. Sara says don't bother us, airhead, go do some work. Alicia again invites them to see a cow (something about a cow).

Sara, PM, and Juana follow Alicia into the bathroom. Martha is still moaning over her illicit meal. Sara peeks over the wall to confirm Alicia's claim. Juana yells into an imaginary bullhorn, come out with your hands up.

Martha comes out of the stall with her arms raised. There's a big sandwich in one hand and a bag of chips in the other. Alicia strokes her hair in satisfaction, gloats, and leaves. Paula Maria looks in Martha's locker, and it's full of food. They say no wonder she's been gaining so much weight!

The feas emerge from the bathroom with armloads of Martha's stash of food. Lola arrives, and they update her on the situation. Martha complains they have no right to seize her personal stuff.

Alicia tells Carolina (who has just come in for Fern's meeting) how pathetic all these people are. Sara interjects that that's nothing compared to getting stranded because you can't afford gas. She offers some food to Carolina, who graciously refuses.

Martha is treated like an outcast for the rest of the episode.

Up in the executive lobby, the feas inventory Martha's mini-bodega. Yazmin, passing through, tells Lola she shouldn't be stealing other people's food (I think). Lola replies something about El Cheque and food for her kids. Martha is crying. Lopez tells them to stop. Yazmin gets all teary and says they're picking on her. Lola says something about her private life. Yazmin complains that Lola is always so aggressive with her. Lopez says he doesn't want to witness any more personal problems between them.


Does Marcia see something interesting on the ceiling, or is she just averting her eyes from the horrifying spectacle of her brother flirting with Carolina? Will Yazmin suffer a disfiguring accident (I'll keep asking)? Will Tomas's secretary pencil Alicia in for a visit to Filmo-Imagen? Will the feas forgive Martha for eating? Tune in next week to find out!

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Comments:
Can someone explain exactly who is Carolina? I missed that somewhere. But I assume she is important to the company? Also what is the time difference between the recaps on esmas and the shows on univision?
Thank You Thank You for the recaps!
 

I believe Carolina is in charge of PR--mostly coordinating PR events for the company. Fernando and Omar had to BEG her to come back and work for them as the relationship had apparently soured at some point. Carolina appears to be the only sane character on the show--She is well aware of the craziness of the various characters and, to me, she is a very welcome addition- and quite beautiful!
 

Julie. I had posted previously the question about how long we have to wait till Lety fixes herself up so we can watch some love scenes with two good-looking characters. You replied indirectly that I was missing the point: Well, I do understand that Jaime is showing amazing fortitutde and integrity, etc etc by falling in love the beauty inside Lety, BUT BUT BUT, there is good reason why movie and tv studios pick beautiful people for romantic love scenes. It's because they know that is what sells, that we humans like to witness attraction between really sexy, beautiful characters. Now, I think we are finally ready to get past this business of Jaime falling in love for the right reasons. It is so insanely unrealistic that her loyal, loving cuartel does not drag her to some ELIZABETH ARDEN salon a nearby Marshalls, an optician's shop and eventually to her orthodontist and get her some behind- the- teeth braces (OR, alternatively take the d....braces off since her teeth are perfectly straight).
 

I don't agree about wanting to see two beautiful people together, Lety is beautiful in her own way and that is what Fernando is starting to recognize.
Of course it doesn't hurt that Fernando is gorgeous enough for both of them!
Thanks again Julie for the great recap!!
 

I agree that there is something about La Fea Mas Bella that is attacting viewers that has nothing to do with watching beautiful people making love. The original Colombian telenovela, Betty La Fea, was amazingly popular, and is now dubbed in other languages and making the rounds of countries all over world. The latest TV Y Novelas magazine had the Nielsen ratings, which shows that La Fea is the most watched program on hispanic television, with 19% of the audience, with Barera at 16.9% and Heridas at 14.3%. The people who watch these programs are mostly people who aren't that beautiful, and maybe its charm is that in it even those who aren't raging beauties can find love. Plus it is a comedy that is often quite funny. It will be really interesting to see how popular the United States version is going to be. I think it starts in late September. There is some reason why the producers picked this particular telenovela for its crossover experiment rather than one that features beautiful people making love.
 

Yes, Kay. I agree that we also enjoy watching those who are not beautiful ( in the classical sense) find love. But Lety's physical characteristics are too extreme, too unrealistic. I know that is part of the comedy and necessary to the plot but you don't need to ADD acne and mustaches and clothes that nobody wears, etc etc.
Someone can be very physically plain, without being SO ugly in a contrived way. Look at the Devil Wears prada. I mean that worked very well without the extremes.
I mean look at the cuartel--those ladies are cute but they are not gorgeous like the models that work there and walk through there.
I guess I am just agreeing with the other ANONYMOUS that it woud still be nice to see a little effort with the glasses and the hair.
 

I too am a very recent newcomer to this unusual Mexican show because of Lety's character. I have for years flipped through the Spanish TV stations because they all seem to show the same endless soap opera. Flipping through the channels one day, I came across La Fea mas Bella when Lety's character came on. She was so unusual looking that I stayed on the Univision channel. It doesn't hurt that she plays opposite Jaime Camil (Fernando). If it wasn't for Lety, this would be just another Latin American soap opera. I wish one of our own American soaps would pick up on this theme. They too only seem to have characters that are very unrealistic (i.e. they never seem to work anywhere or if they do have jobs, we never see them at work). What I like about La Fea is that the show is centered around a place of work. This I can identify with.
 

Carolina must have joined the company sometime after Chris stopped recapping and before I watched (along with Alicia's pregnancy scare). I really like her.

There's a little more than three months' difference between the Esmas and Univision recaps.

Yes, Lety is extra-harsh on the eyes - worse than a "regular"-looking person, worse than average. That's the idea, of course (and to be honest, I've seen a lot worse in person). Having her be average-looking might still be rough on Fernando, but not nearly as rough as it is now. You wouldn't look at her and say "wow, she's ugly." You'd say "wow, she looks like me (or someone I know)" and that still wouldn't be enough for a story where the cosmetically-challenged can be seen as a metaphor for birth defects, handicaps, etc.

I MUCH prefer this to movies like "She's All That" where you can tell the girl is very obviously pretty, if she would just upgrade her wardrobe and take off her glasses.

Realistically, of course, it makes no sense for her friends not to drag her to a halfway-decent salon (not the one her mom took her to) to do something about the facial hair and maybe explain about the sideburns. But that's nothing compared to some of the other plot-convenience dumb things on this show, like Omar being in charge of the cards and gifts.

I'm glad she doesn't look like everyone else in the world of soaps, or even like everyone else in real life. I think there's room enough for one fea in the entire telenovelaverse.

By the way - YES Sarah, I love that most of the action takes place at an office and all of the women have jobs. That's a nice change of pace. Alicia. Marcia, etc. may seem to gossip all day long but at least they're supporting themselves (or trying to) and not sitting by the pool whining how bored they are!
 

I also feel good about seeing all these women who go to work everyday and deal with some of the realities of office life (though a bit exaggerated, of course).
I also enjoy this Carolina character who displays such confidence and seems so non-judgemental--I love her warmth toward Lety.
Tomas cracks me up but boy is he ever the perfect example of how men do most of their thinking below the belt!
One of my very favorite scenes so far in this show is when Sara, Lola and someone else are imitating Alicia complaining to Marcia-- with AHWWW MARCIA
So....I gather from these comments that Lety will stay this way throughout? Don't you just love the way she puts her elbows up and dances in the promo video- so cute!
 

I doubt that she will stay this way all the way to the end, because the Colombian one didn't. But she will be looking like this for a long time - long enough to convince everyone that she's adorable. :-)
 

Boy first Saimon couldn't get anywhere with anybody, now he's getting a little action from two chicks. Yazmin I know is just using him for kicks, I don't know yet if PM really likes him or is just missing the attention from him.
 

I honestly can't tell. Marcia urged PM to give Saimon a chance, and she does seem to be doing that. They still don't seem like a good couple to me, but maybe it'll work out somehow.
 

I also just noticed the episode numbers - have there really been that many already? I think Alborada only had 80 episodes total. This show will never end I think. How are they going to do it as an American show? It will have to go 20 seasons to tell the whole story.
 

Great job Julie! I love reading these Lety recaps, even when I'm able to watch. It's like watching the best parts all over again! Just wanted to clarify that Fern is not admitting to himself yet that he loves Lety. When he said "Si! Yo quiero a Lety!" I just about jumped for joy, but then he went on to explain that it's purely in a plotonic sense. Bummer! But I don't think I would have understood that if I wasn't a native speaker.
 

Yes, it's been 18 weeks!! But only about 6 weeks for me I think. I believe the full run is 18 *months.*

Thanks for clarifying about the quiero thing, Alma - I didn't think he meant that the way it sounded, but I wasn't quite sure what he did mean. (He loves her, but he doesn't love her love her.)

I haven't a CLUE as to how the US version is going to work; Selma Hayek (or someone other involved person) did say that it was going to be "its own series." That means it probably won't be a blow-by-blow copy, but I don't know if they're even going to attempt to replicate the Lety-Fern-Marcia-shadow company stuff.

I sure hope there's going to be more to it than just "ugly girl gets a fashion job." And I hope there's at least a similar cast of characters (Alicia, Tomas, and Luigi at least).

We'll find out in a month. :)
 

A couple of weeks ago, there was an 2 page article in NYT Arts section about DESPERATE HUSEWIVES being done in spanish (filming in Argentina). A lot of the article explained why there were roles, attitudes, action that could just not be duplicated in the spanish version because there were many cultural differences. A very insightful article. When I read about Betty the Fea, I thought about so many reasons why the humor, the fun, the reparte, the interesting nuances could never come through in an American version. I think so much of the beauty of our FEA show comes from the Mexican culture itself. Too much of what goes on in this show could never be translated- literally or in any which way.
 

Hey sorry to disagree...but having a part-time job at the "World's Largest Retailer" I'm here to tell you there are a hell of alot more Letys out there than there are Fernandos....so give the Fea a break...
 

That is a good point, Carole. There are a lot of things about the basic Fea storyline that might not be acceptable to viewers in the US. Especially the gender issues. But I'm going to keep my hopes up because there are plenty of other brilliant things they can do with Ugly Betty.
 

I love the feas! I think their personalities and quirky behavior are what makes La Fea so good. I can't imagine that the US version will be anywhere near as good.
I'm enjoying this as much as I did Alborada! I'm so glad it will be on the air longer than Alborada was.
Julie your recaps mean a lot to someone like me who knows so little Spanish! Thank you!
 

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i really dont know why lety stands all the shit they talk and do to her.if i was her iwoould deffend my sefl or do something about it.

much love irai d.
 

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