Caray, Caray!

Emilio tells Thelma not to try any of her dirty tricks to keep him around. He stomps out and she runs after him calling him "imbecile." Angel looks like this scene just gave him a bad case of heartburn.

Orlando, in military prison, pokes at his mashed potatoes in a desultory fashion and flashes back to when he discovered the truth that Gaspar is Emilito's father. He says Emilio is in for a big surprise when he finds out. Yummy Frank shows up and Orlando complains about being stuck in prison for like forever; he wants out. Frank advises him that he can get out sooner by earning merits for good conduct, but he knows that's not Orlando's style. Orlando harrumphs, glares at another panful of mashed potatoes and thought bubbles maybe it wouldn't be so bad to act good if it gets him out of jail sooner.

Emilio picks up the baby while Thelma the harpy shrieks at him. He says she's a crap mom and he's going to hire someone to take care of the baby. She yells, cries, and hits him but he ignores her. Auntie Rebecca volunteers to watch the baby day and night. Emilio-how-could-you-be-so-stupid agrees to let auntie babysit and orders her to never leave the baby alone with Thelma.

Luba gets tested to see if her kidney will be compatible with Gaspar.

A shocking thing, Alina is actually smiling. She tells Rodrigo that she's excited about becoming a nurse and helping others. They plan to go to Gaby's school the next day to have lunch together, just the three of them.

Malena and Mariana are hanging out in the hotel room in their nightgowns. Malena is twittering with plans for Mariana's wedding. I fully expected her to break into her rendition of "My Favorite Things" at any moment. Mariana pulls the plug on the fun; she wants to have a simple wedding. She looks forward to a happy life with Ricardo, a life free from dangers and obstacles to their happiness. Anybody else hear the Acme anvil creaking overhead?

Cut to Alfonsina and Hugo in the bus headed back to Puebla. He asks if she wants to go to Puebla to see DonLoco. She tells him to keep his nose out of her business but then admits she has unfinished business with Mariana the cripple. He asks her if she plans to give her watercress? eh? (Piensas darle mastuerzo? Has anyone heard this phrase?) Alfonsina says she's already dispatched one christian and it costs her nothing to dispatch another.

DonLoco is in solitary and hallucinating like crazy. His injured and rotting father tells DonLoco he's a gross caricature of his former self, Soledad says she hates him, Alina asks why...why..., Elias says he loves Soledad ha ha ha. DonLoco freaks and yells at them to leave him alone. He drops to his knees, broken and completely bonkers.

Thelma is alone with the baby (?!? Where the heck is Auntie?), she paces, curses and vows that she will find out if it's true that Alina is engaged to Rodrigo.

Dra. Loca is in the process of telling Rodrigo that she doesn't want to hurt Mauricio when she gets a phone call. She has to leave immediately; her patient DonLoco is in crisis.

Alina and Soledad are on cloud nine, happy and free in Coral's house and on the verge of realizing their dreams. (I hear that creaking anvil again.) Elias arrives and tells them DonLoco tried to escape from prison that afternoon. They are going-to-commercial impactadas.

After the commercial Elias gives them the skinny on the jailbreak. A guy died but not DonLoco. Soledad panics but Elias assures her that they are still safe. Puebla isn't like Escondidaville where DonLoco controlled everything.

Cut to DonLoco spewing blobs of whipped cream out of his mouth. The guards restrain him as he foams and shouts "that bastarda is not mine!" Dra. Loca rushes in and tranquilizes him. I think his white frothy sputum is yogurt, not whipped cream, it's getting runny and dribbles down his chin. Dra. Loca orders the nurse to draw his blood and then thought bubbles "only the truth will cure him." The truth never worked too well before. She's in for some nasty surprises.

Thelma shows up at Rodrigo's house and rudely demands to see Rodrigo. Tina the nanny instantly dislikes her but reveals that he is at Gaby's school. Thelma stalks out and Tina frowns.

Angel is at the boutique and tries to give Claudia some lame-ass excuse as to why he stood her up. She reminds him about that invention the telephone. He promises next time... She cuts him off, "No promises, don't look for me again," and walks away.

Alina and Rodrigo drop Gaby off at school after lunch. Alina tells him she's preoccupied because her dad tried to escape. Rodrigo tries to comfort her with a kiss but she pulls away and says she's not good company for anybody today. She grabs a taxi and leaves him forlorn on the sidewalk. Dude, you should SO get free of this albatross right now.

Thelma, spying on them from a cab across the street, witnesses the above snub and finds it hard to believe they're engaged. She follows Alina.

Dra. Loca brings the prosecutor/warden/whatever (his name is Vargas) DonLoco's blood sample and insists that due to his insane and dangerous outburst he should be freed from his cell immediately.

Rodrigo gets home and Tina tells him Some Woman came looking for him. Thelma strides in (oops, guess she followed him, not Alina) and gives him a hard time because he lied to her about his friend Alina, when Dra. Loca pretended to be Alina Montellano. She tells him Emilio is determined to get back with Alina.

Emilio meets with his divorce lawyer Mauricio (Dra. Loca's novio) and asks what are the worst things he can accuse Thelma of to win a divorce from her. For example, what if she held her son over a raging river, threatened to drop him, then later used suicide in order to blackmail him? Lawyer Mauricio says cruelty to children is the numero uno good reason to dump the skanky ho. Emilio tells him to file the papers ASAP.

Vargas tells Dra. Loca that DonLoco stays in solitary as he was the mastermind behind the escape. When he tells her to stop defending Loco's actions she reverts back to her "I am a professional" speech that we're all sick of. She tells Vargas she will go over his head.

Angel is hang-dog and follows Claudia around while she works. She tells him to stop bugging her and he finally gives in, "OK, but only for today." Claudia gets sad and tells Coral it's not Angel's fault but rather hers; she fears love.

Gen. Ochoa divulges to Alina the story of how Rodrigo's wife died. Thanks to Alina, Rodrigo and Gaby have a new zest for life. He knows Alina will be happy by Rodrigo's side and will help them forget all their past pain. He has confidence in her. She smiles wanly. How can the entire world not see that this girl is a terminal wet blanket?

Rodrigo keeps asking Thelma to leave and she keeps haranguing him about Emilio not resting until he conquers Alina. She suggests that she and Rodrigo form an alliance. Dude, you SO do not want to go there.

Rodrigo tells the rat-faced harpy that he knows Alina doesn't love him but he will deal with his problems himself. He tells her to worry about her own pathetic life and leave him out of it. She sneers that whoever is not on her side is against her. She kisses her finger and waves it goobye to him. Rodrigo looks like he might be having second thoughts about getting mixed up with these wackos.

Dra. Loca visits DonLoco. He tells her he hoped all day that she would visit him. He says he's doing badly. "The voices...it's the voices in my head, the voices of all the traitors who are making fun of me." He says he has nobody but her and he kisses her. Ick!! Her big head tells his little head that she'll do everything she can to get him sprung from solitary. Just think, all that time and money spent on an education only to end up a complete asshat.

Auntie Rebecca loudly tells Emilito that he'll be strong like his father whom he will never know because mama has denied him the opportunity to know his true daddy. Nasty old Thelma gets home and tells Auntie that stupid idiot Rodrigo will pay. She has a plan and it won't be she (Thelma) who carries it out but someone else instead. Auntie thinks whatever it is it's gonna be bad. She tries to get Thelma to reveal the details but Thelma won't ante up the info. Even stubbornly stupid Auntie is concerned about Thelma's evil wretchedness.

Orlando works on his merit badge by disconnecting the gas line to the stove. He sneaks out as some guys come in to clean the area. Orlando locks them in and remarks that thus begins his good deed for the day.

Dr. Love and Mariana make out on the hotel steps. Malena runs up and the happy trio jump into a cab. The driver turns around...it's Hugo the Horrible. They are impactados, especially when Alfonsina pokes her head in the window and points her big gun at them. She jumps in and Hugo drives away.

Back at the military prison the unlucky recipients of Orlando's heroism are gassed up and coughing. They yell for help, hear Orlando on the other side, and tell him to call the firemen. Orlando yells "no time, stand aside" and pretends to break the door in. He runs in, pushes them out, quickly reconnects the gas line (leaving the grate askew), and carries a passed out victim to safety.

Dra. Loca gives the prison guard a written order to release Don Loco from solitary confinement. An angry Vargas storms up tells Dra. Loca she doesn't understand how dangerous DonLoco is. She says she has the papers ordering his release so open up. DonLoco listens at the door.

Angel, mooning over his dreadful portrait of Alina, says her love wasn't for him. He covers it up and throws it aside.

An unhappy Vargas tells DonLoco that he is a great manipulator. He leaves in disgust. DonLoco and Doctora smile at each other in triumph. She asks him not to try to escape because she is solely responsible for him. He tells her not to worry, right now he wants to visit his good friend Sergio to tell him no hard feelings.

Emilio tells Angel that since Rodrigo the Righteous is his rival he will fight clean in the war for Alina's love. Tonight he wants to do something that he should have done long ago. Does Angel remember his friend Chuco...?

Alina studies in her room. She tells herself that if Emilio divorces Thelma then nothing will keep her from his side. On the other hand she doesn't want to do "that" to Rodrigo. "That" being hurting him I suppose.

DonLoco pays a visit to Sergio's cell. Sergio jumps from his bunk, says he knows DonLoco has come for vengeance, and whips out a big knife that he brandishes in a dim beam of light.

Hugo parks the cab in front of a shack out in the country. He pulls Dr. Love out and beats him unconscious. Alfonsina orders the women out of the car and pushes them into the shack.

A Dr. tells Sra. Lopez (AKA Luba) that he has bad news. Her kidney is not compatible with her son's. Luba is impactada and weeps over her beloved Gaspar. As the camera goes in for a close-up I'm thinking this would be a good time to go at him with the eyebrow tweezers.

DonLoco and Sergio circle each other. Sergio says DonLoco was the boss in Escondidaville but here they are equals. DonLoco taunts Sergio, tells him to proves he's wearing the pants, then promptly disarms him and kicks his ass, just like in Escondidaville.

Yikes! Cut to blaring Mariachi horns and the smartly-dressed TWELVE piece band plus Emilio in the center. A sleeping Alina dreams of happier days with Emilio. Her eyes pop open as he begins his song: "Wait until the moon rises, wait until the sun sets, wait until night falls, because then our love begins. Wait until the little stars fill me with inspiration, to tell you the beautiful things in my heart..." Alina runs to the window and swoons, "I love him and I can't stop. I have to tell him I can't live without him!" Emilio brings it home with the crescendo: "It's growing moooore and mooooooore." (No kidding, that's what he says.)

This is where I'm supposed to make fun of Emilio, but I have to admit the band sounded incredible and Pablo Montero did a very respectable job with the song. Even at the end when he over-emoted and we saw his tonsils.

Advance - Alina comes down to kiss Emilio and Rodrigo sees the big face-suck.


tullida = cripple
mastuerzo = watercress, also oaf and oafish
bomberos = firemen

Labels: duelo