Saturday, May 09, 2009

MEPS 05/08/09: Opportunity Knocks for Eduardo


Capítulo 59

First, a bit of repetitious review.

At Las Animas Eduardo tells Estev, aka, Dewey Duckworth, that he’s fighting a battle against time. He’s got 24 hours to save himself or go belly up.

Meanwhile, Damian the Damned is on the phone with Bitch-Barbie. She is taking perverse pleasure in snidely telling Damn how she screwed him out of the $3 mil, that the transaction was done under his name, and that the Elizalde’s will be pursuing him the rest of his life looking to take it out of his miserable hide.
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A bit later, Dewey and Ed are finishing din-din when there’s an unexpected knock on the door. Ed goes to answer it and finds Fernanda standing there, the perfect damsel in distress.

Back at Grupos Lactos, Bitch-Barbie explains to Damn that she put the $3 mil in an account with his name on it and Gonzo and the others all think he stole it. “So, don’t even think of showing your face around the hacienda or the business again because you’ll end up spending the rest of your life rotting in jail!” Damn is in denial. He stutters that that wasn’t what the two of them had agreed to. BOW sneers. “Just because people agree on something doesn’t mean they have to go through with it. Otherwise you wouldn’t have let yourself be used for the embezzlement scheme, would you have? Find a hole and burrow deep. That’s the best advice for a rat like you!” Click! The Barbot cracks a small smug smile. One down, 4 to go…..

Fr/Ed introduces Estev to Fer. She apologizes for barging in on Fr/Ed like this and asks to speak with him. The two of them go into the study and Estev tells himself he understands why his best bud is head over heels for Nanda. “Whew! She is gorgeous!”

At the same time, Babs walks back into Gonzo’s office and tells him, AB, and Cad that Franco Santoro called to say they authorized the first payout, the $3 million, and that they should have it in their account within 24 hours. The Gullibles are relieved that the sum will cover the gap left by Damian’s theft. Babs tells them that now the partnership is a done deal they can go ahead and report Damian Gallardo to the authorities.

Damn hangs up. “No puedo creerlo!” He starts screaming that he can’t believe what the damned despicable witch did to him; and that she definitely deserves the nickname “La Hiena” cuz that’s exactly what she is. For emphasis, in a fit of temper, he knocks at least a dozen crystal bar glasses of Vlad’s onto the floor and a floor lamp is knocked over. Shards fly everywhere. (Much better than just slamming a cell phone to bits.) Vlad walks into the living room and placidly stares at him. (Excuse me? No cursing? No questions? No “WTF, Damian?”)

Back at Las Animas, Fer races through a harried apology but Fr/Ed tells her not to bother, that there is no reason to apologize. She will always be welcome there. He takes her hand to help her to the couch and asks why she’s trembling. All she can do is instinctively embrace him. He reels from the feel of her body against his. It takes all his strength to control his desire. (Yowza!) She realizes it’s a bit too intimate, considering she’s a married woman, and quickly pulls away from him, totally mortified. He offers a much needed shot of tequila and she accepts.

Back at Vlad’s: Vlad is a bit worried about Damn. (Not a fricking word about the expensive breakage or the mess on the floor? Darn! This guy is gonna make some gal a wonderful Stepford-style house-hubby some day! He cooks, he cleans, and he takes crap off everybody but never complains! Muy peligroso or muy estupido. Maybe just wimpy.) Vlad quietly starts picking up the mess and listens to Damian’s line of bull. Damian screams that Barbara Greco hasn’t got the money she owes him and is making him wait for it. Vlad asks what all this money is for. Damn sidesteps and tells him he’s going to repay Vladimir’s friendship.

Again at Las Animas, Fer slugs down the tequila. Fr/Ed asks what the problem is. He says he thought she’d be on her honeymoon by now. Nanda confesses to Fr/Eddie that her honeymoon is permanently cancelled and, in between sobs, says that the future of her family is now in his hands. (Heavy…..)

At Grupo Lactos, Gonzo calls the police. He leaves word for a Comandante Lozaya to come speak with him personally about an urgent matter. AB screams that he wants Damian to get his just deserts and Cad agrees. Gonzo gets angry at Anyballs and complains that his sons prefer vengeance over regard for their sister, Fernanda’s, feelings. They’re turning the situation into a family duel, he complains. Barbie thinks to herself, “This is nothing compared to the Hell that’s waiting for you, Gonzalo!”

Meanwhile, Fr/Ed feels a bit awkward with what he’s heard and tells Fer that she’s overestimating him. She tells him that it’s obviously only a bit of business for him, but it’s a matter of survival for her and her family now. Nanda says it’s embarrassing for her to have to ask, but she wants to know how long before they will have the payout available and in their account? He tries to get her to explain, but just then he has to take a call on his cell. It's Martina wanting Ed to speak with the matamentes, Dr. Dement-oh! He asks Eddie to come talk with him personally. He says he is definitely breaking off his ties to Barbie (like he had any choice) and says his fate depends on Ed. Ed says not now. Martina gets back on the line and he tells her that he’ll come later, not to worry. She goes back into Lili’s room and tells the sleeping Lili not to worry now, that that dog, Obregon, finally understands who his master is.

Back at the Mud Wrassler’s Cantina, Jairo is sharing a beer with Lucio. He’s happy as a pig in ...mud cuz he thinks that they will be making a nice wad of cash by keeping tabs on Las Animas and helping Rene nab Franco. He’ll love seeing the guy thrown into jail for dealing in illegal narcotics. Suddenly Venus appears at his table and asks for her old job back. She tells him that nobody else will give her a job because of her problems with him. She swears that she isn’t covering up for Martina, either. He says since she caught him in a good mood he will take her back. Kiss, kiss. Hug, hug. FF>>

Fr/Ed finally tells Nanda to stop beating around the bush and come out with what’s bugging her. She says she understands that they scarcely know each other but she has nobody else to turn to. It’s that her husband disappeared. Fr/Eduardo is speechlessly impactado.

Vlad is folding napkins for the evening meal as he and Damn talk. (Is this guy for real? I’ll take two!) Damn tells Vlad that he will make him and Prissy millionaires if they will only help him out. (Uh, isn’t Pris already a million-heiress? Maybe that’s where having the kid fits in.) He plans to sue Barbara Greco for his money, he says, and then he’ll be loaded. He’ll be able to give them a chunk—provided they lend him a hand. Vlad only has to do a few simple things for him: some phone calls, getting him a few documents, and above all, getting Pris to fall in love with him. Vlad wonders how he’s going to sue Barbie if he’s got to hide out in his apartment.

Damn makes up a story that the Barbot threatened him with sending somebody to kill him if he ever tried to sue her. That’s the reason he got a little excitable (a LITTLE?) and he knows that she’ll do it, too. For that reason nobody can know that he’s staying there with him. This gets Vlad’s attention. “The woman is that dangerous?” “—You can’t imagine; that’s why they call her La Hiena!”

Cad tells the comandante that his inexcusably offensive BIL has run off with $3 milion dollars. AB comments that he discovered the embezzlement and that Babs found out it was Damn who did the deed. The comandante says he’ll put out an APB out on him so the proper authorities can keep him from leaving the country. Any Balls wants to give the guy a photo of Damn for the press but Gonzo draws the line at that, thinking about the scandal it would cause for Fer. AB asks him how else he thinks they’re supposed to find him.

Babs sides with Gonzo. “You’ve heard my husband. We don’t want to air this problem publicly.” Lozaya says fine. Gonzo gets ready to fill out the paperwork but Babs stops him and says it would make things worse for Nanda if she knew that her daddy had been the one to report her husband to the authorities. Gonzo should let her be the one to handle it all instead. Gonzo is a bit relieved. “Well, I hadn’t thought of that, so thank you!” Babs smiles sweetly back at him. (What a dear.)

Nanda continues to explain to Fr/Ed what happened earlier in the day. “It wasn’t till this afternoon that we realized that Damian had run off to who knows where. Obviously we think he’s left the country.” “—Is this confirmed?” “—Well, yes, probably because…(choke, sob, sniff)… $3 million dollars was stolen!” Fr/Ed is dumbfounded. Fernanda slugs down the last of the tequila and asks for another. Fr/Ed obliges. “That’s why I’m begging you to firm up this deal as soon as possible. PLEASE! Otherwise, Grupo Lactos inevitably will be ruined financially.” Fr/Eddie is majorly impactado. Fernanda tells him that her brothers blame her for her husband’s defrauding the company. “But then, I suppose, it is my husband who committed the fraud, isn’t it?” She grabs his hand (OMG!) and tells him that only he can help them now. “You have my life in your hands,” she tells him. Ruh-Roh!

Eddie is suffering from a major league conscience-overload at this point. “First, I want you to know I am deeply sorry for what you’re going through. I can’t imagine what you’re feeling. Feeling that we are left alone without those we love is seemingly the worst kind of Hell, especially when it’s the result of a lie.” (Major conscience-overload—and, just in case you weren’t paying attention, the writers have just hit us over the head with the story’s major premise.) Fr/Ed says he is curious about something, but adds she isn’t under any obligation to answer him. Fer says she’s in no condition to answer him, but go ahead. “Do you love your husband?” he asks.

Viewerville must hold its breath for her answer because we are shunted back to Vlad’s apartment where Damn is asking for Vlad’s answer to something. Vlad says what Damn’s just suggested sounds like blackmail and he’s not going to hurt the woman he loves. “Look, Vlad. Do you believe that demonstrating to Priscilla that she is married to a cretin who has been stealing from her for years is harming her? “

As Vlad takes time to process we beam back to Grupo Lactos where Babs finishes filling out the complaint against Dam. The comandante promises to advise them all as soon as Damian is located and he leaves. Gonzo is distraught because he is worried what Fernanda is going to think. Babs rubs his shoulders and commiserates, then pretends that Comandante Lozaya has carried off a favorite pen that Gonzo gave her as a gift. She runs out of the office to catch up to Lozaya in the elevator. Cad, who knows one when he sees one, tells his papi not to worry, that the opportunistic hustler is going to learn that nobody makes fools of the Elizalde’s.

In the study at Las Animas Fer admits to Fr/Eduardo that she’s not sure whether what she feels for Damian at this point is love or hate. Fr/Ed says, “This is now, but what about before he ran off?” “—If I hadn’t loved him I would not have married him.” “—It’s not always that way. The majority of people get married for reasons other than love. Surely though, that isn’t the case for you.” She wonders what he’s getting at. He says that she might be looking for a way to make amends for the harm Damn did to her family, or perhaps she might be looking to protect her husband and says that does make a difference.

Fer insists angrily that of course she’s trying to find a way to repair the damage Damian has done to her family. That’s not good enough for Eduardo, though, and he forces the issue. “You still haven’t answered me! Do you love him or not?” “—I love him, alright? I love him!” Eddie winces. (Well, you asked for it, sucker!) She adds it doesn’t necessarily mean that she’s going to become an accomplice to a criminal act committed against her own father, though. Suddenly his attitude changes and he becomes cool towards her. Fr/Ed says great. “Happy to hear it.” (Like Hell, you are!) He tells her the negotiation between the two companies will go through. However, he doesn’t want a soul to know they’ve met like this. He wouldn’t like her step-mother or Anibal to think he’s overlooking anything. They can thank her for closing the deal for them. Then he summarily dismisses her saying he’s got to get back and entertain the vice president of his company. He won’t even look in her direction. Nanda gets ready to leave.

By the elevator, with no one around, Babs now tells the comandante that Gonzo has just changed his mind and now prefers confronting the social scandal to losing the business he’s dedicated his entire life to. They can’t afford the luxury of a $3 million loss, she explains, and so she wants him to notify all the media and appropriate law enforcement agencies and to put Damian’s photo everywhere possible to ensure his immediate capture.

Dewey tells Eddie that now he understands why he is so in love with Fernanda. (The audio tech in charge of editing the CC has taken a powder here, so the rest is translated without the proverbial safety-net. A-gain!) She’s a beauty, and only a girl like her could win the likes of Eddie over says Estev. Ed’s overcome with the little green monster inside him at this point, and he swears to his BFF that he doesn’t love Fernanda anymore. “--Uh, come again?” Eduardo says he hates her now. He hates her with all his might. (Yeah, right. The guffaws in living rooms throughout Viewerville are, shall we say, loud, long and legion.) Estev says hang on just a minute here. He’s known Eduardo for the last six years, some 2,190 days-- and the entire time he’s heard nothing but how much he loves Fernanda Elizalde; that she was perfect, beautiful, intelligent, honest and just so-o-o fine. All of a sudden he’s telling him he hates her?

Eddie pouts then finally manages to spit out an immature “Well, then I’ve idolized her too much! Now I hate her!” (His beautiful lower lip pooches out.) Estev says, “A-hah! That’s a bit different. Just because you are hating her now doesn’t mean you do hate her. (Doncha just love these male heart-to-heart’s? The logic is so piercing.) Can I ask just what it was, exactly, that makes you hate her now?” “—She loves her husband! I asked her and the cheeky broad confessed it.” “—And why did you ask her?” “—Idiocy.” (Here, here! I mean, just what was she supposed to say? He’s an oaf and a bore who snores in his sleep and belches like a pig after every meal, in addition to being an embezzler, and so she hates the slug and wishes she’d never married him?) Estev just shakes his head in disbelief.

Back in the reception area at Grupo Lactos, Babs thanks Comandante Lozaya who has just pulled out all the stops for her, and he assures he’ll do the impossible to make sure they find Damian Gallardo’s whereabouts. He leaves. The Barbot allows herself a smug smile.

Estev wants to know where this question came from. “Fernanda comes to do business and the best you can do is to come out with a marvelous question like that?” “—Yeah, I know there was no reason to, but I did.” “—so what were you expecting to hear? ‘I married the guy but I hated him’? Who am I speaking to here? Franco Santoro? Do you think she would have answered the same way to Eduardo Juarez?” “--I’ll never know the answer to that.” Duckworth tells him it’s no big news that there’s no difference between love and hate in a situation like this. Ed responds with something sensible finally. “Eduardo loved her, but Franco Santoro cannot love her.” “--Now that’s sensible, and that’s your mistake, Eduardo. Franco Santoro has no emotional tie with her. You’re accusing her because she treats you like a stranger and, really, she has no reason to treat you any other way.”

Ed gets frustrated. “Ok. So what now? Do I reveal my identity after everything that I’ve done to her? Do I tell her I’m really Eduardo?” “—I’m just telling you the way things are, not how they ought to be.” Ed apologizes but is still frustrated. “You’re right, but I cannot take back the lie now.” Estev reasons that there are only two options for Ed: either he follows through to the end and suffers the consequences, or he disappears immediately. “Fernanda could forgive everything you’ve done and you two could be very happy together… if it weren’t for the existence of Barbara Greco.”

Speaking of Barbie, she goes back into Gonzo’s office and lays it on thick now. “I can’t believe that Damian could do something so despicable and to such a wonderful girl like Fernanda.” Gonzo swears he’ll make Damian pay for this for the rest of his life.

Santiago is now back home in his room at Hacienda Elizalde and finishing a preliminary sketch of Aurora on his easel. Nanda walks in for a heart-to-heart with her bro. They hug. He’s like manna from heaven for her right now. The feeling seems to be mutual for the heartbroken Santi. She asks what happened between him and Rory, but he’d rather talk about what’s happened to her and Damn. He’s impactado to hear that Damn left her and took a cool $3 mil while he was at it.

Speaking of the Wretch of Rome, Damn and Vlad are swilling beers and munching manwitches for supper. He tells Vlad that he always behaved like a gentleman around Fernanda. (I’m not sure about all of the rest of this conversation here. The audio tech is still out taking a toke.) Damn says he saw to all the little details and paid attention to all the formal courtesies. He gave her and the family his all. Once he’d married her, though, he realized that he’d made the biggest mistake of his life. He’d scarcely put on the ring when he noticed that he was a total idiot and was being taken advantage of. “You do for them and they take advantage of you!” He starts giving Vlad a bit of advice to the lovelorn then. Damn tells Vlad that he’s got to make Pris a bit jealous. When Vlad disagrees he tells him that’s why women don’t pay attention to Vlad. “You have to make them suffer a bit and the more you hurt them the more in love they become with you.” Vlad considers this.

Back at Las Animas Estev continues with his own advice to the lovelorn Eduardo. “Well, you could say that Fernanda is pretty much a single woman again.” Ed says she’s going to be a shattered woman. Estev says Franco will be there to help her through it. One way is by going ahead with the business deal. Ed says, yeah, by giving her the start-up money… $3 million dollars. Dewey says the other way is to have Franco Santoro woo Fernanda. Eddie takes a minute to masticate on the implications of this tasty tidbit.

Meanwhile, Fer tells Santi that Anibal and Cad blame her for Damian’s deceit and he has a hard time with that. He says he’d rather talk about how she’s feeling right now, how she’s holding up. She says she’s completely shattered by it all. She simply cannot understand how Damian could have deceived her the entire time all for $3 million dollars. (¡Qué ingénua eres, Fernanda! I sure could! What naivte! It’s not like the guy exactly came from money. Ursula is all the proof you need, dearie.) She thinks back to the mariachi serenade, the beautiful meal with a pair of pearl and diamond earrings as dessert, and his telling her that he’d wait for her a lifetime --and three more-- if need be to consummate their marriage vows. (That’s real crap! Who puts off sleeping together on their wedding night, let alone begs off for a full week after? And lest we forget, the dude didn’t make a move without Barbie’s approval. Everything, down to the last detail was all Babs’ doing –not that naïve Nanda could know this, of course.) “Can you imagine how painful it is for me to realize I’ve been tricked, that I’ve been used and how I wish it were only a nightmare?” Santi tells her that although Damn was never one of his favorite people, she shouldn’t jump to conclusions. She must give it all time to play out and just see if he really is to blame. (All right, so Santiago isn’t a total loser.)

Ed tells Estev that there’s no doubt what he feels for Fernanda is love, but the idea that Franco Santoro should make her fall in love with him—well, he’s not sure he’s quite ready for that at the moment. Estev wants to know what he has in mind instead. Ed says right now he wants to put the Elizalde family in their place, to make them understand that they cannot humiliate others the way they do, then to free Lili from that asylum she’s in, and to make sure that Barbara Greco pays for her crimes, but most of all to find out who his mother’s enemy is. Dewey says that all sounds reasonable. “But the problem is that to continue with my plans I need that $3 million by tomorrow morning.” Duckworth chokes. (No help on that end, I guess.)

When the rest of the Elizalde family finally gets home, Fer overhears AB and Cad griping to Gonzo and Babs about her scheming. Cad accuses her of throwing up a smokescreen at them in order to protect her hubby. “Otherwise she wouldn’t be hiding,” says Any Balls. Fer comes out of the shadows on the balcony above and defiantly yells down at them all, “I am NOT hiding!”

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Comments:
I haven't read the recap yet, but I just had to comment on Damian's sandwich. How many times did he put that thing into his mouth? Eight? Fifteen? Did he ever actually take a bite? Too funny.
 

Great recap, Jardinera. I especially liked "Eddie takes a minute to masticate on the implications of this tasty tidbit."

I still can't understand how Barb can show the money's in Damian's account, but Damian doesn't have it.

Also, a bunch of people know secrets that could speed things along. Fernanda told Jacinto that she wrote hundreds of letters to Eduardo, so maybe one day Jacinto will tell this to Fr/Ed (I'm not holding my breath, tho.) And Gardenia saw Damian and Barb getting busy in the car, and I think she told Margarita, but no one told Fr/Ed or Fernanda. Course we don't want the story to be over too soon, so I'm ready to forget all that, and see if Fr/Ed now tries to make Fernanda fall in love with Franco Santoro.
 

Nope, Damian never munched, it looked like he was about to take a huge bite, tho. I thought that it was a great bit of acting.
 

OOPs, my manners, thanks, Jardinera.
Hombre- Babs only said that the money was transferred to Damian's account, and as usual, no one questions her. It's probably in her account, maybe she even put his name on it, with her name attached somewhere, so that she has access. I think that her plan is to sneak out just as soon as she is certain that all the intended damage has been done, which she anticipates being very quickly. We all know that she is wrong. I'll bet that the walls will be closing in on her soon. From Franco, Damian, Matamentes, with pressure from the family, and especially Cigarman..
 

Loved the recap Jardinera. I was thinking the same thing Paula. Each time Damian put the sandwich to his mouth he would make another comment to Vlad never taking a bite. I was in stitches watching that scene. So Damian will have to outsmart Babs since she threw him to the wolves. He should've known she was going to make him the fall guy and blame the embezzlement on him. So Esteve tells Eddie to woo Nanda as Franco. I don't see him passing up that opportunity since now she's available. I chuckled at him getting mad at her confessing to love her husband when he kept pushing her for an answer. What else was she supposed to say LOL. So Dr. O wants to be on team Eddie. No surprise there. It seems everything is coming to a head with Lucio and Jaira scheming to help get Eddie/Franco in trouble with the drug trafficking. Eddie better cover his tracks.
 

Thanks, Dorado Dave and Hombre. Hombre, for what it's worth, I believe that Jacinto told Eduardo a while back before the wedding that Denia told him she'd seen BOW and Dam going at it like minks in his convertible one night. What irks me is that he has a chance to take Damn's place now as her romantic interest and won't, but of course, he really can't because unless he can come up with $3 million the ruse is up and/or she'll think Franco Santoro was playing her not to mention let her whole family down. He needs a Hail Mary pass.
 

Pirate Babe: LOL! That scene with the sandwiches was great. Damian was just this side of crazy explosive again, and so full of B.S. I half expected if he took a bite the food would just come catapulting back out.

I couldn't help but wonder how the two of them ever got to be friends in the first place, either.
 

Great recap and super-duper snarky, as usual, Jardinera.

I was laughing out loud at how many times Sendel put that sandwich almost into his mouth without taking a a bite.

Boy, this novela takes the cake for giving us only parts of plotting conversations. We don't really know what Damián's plan is. Of course he can't sue Barbie for the money; if he'd gotten it, it would have been embezzled money in the first place. I get that he plans for Vlad to get Priscilla on his side and against the Elizalde's. But I don't see how that helps Damian.

This has to be one of the few times a writer has given Colunga a stupid thing to do. He's trying to pretend to be a Power Milk executive, but he fixates on whether or not Fer was in love with her husband before he ran off. Hello?

I hope Fer gets a chance to rip Cad and Anyballs new ones on Monday. Their blaming her for Damian's treachery is low even for these two. And the height of outrageous for Cad who doesn't seem to do any work at all at that company.

It sure seems to me that the only thing that's going to move this situation off the dime is for Esteve's company to cough up the $3 million. How else can "Franco Santoro" explain that the money he pretty much told Babs she would have doesn't appear?

Still liking Silvia Navarro a lot. Her emotional scene with Freduardo was very well acted. She sort of does that gasping thing people crying really do, trying to control themselves. She cries better than any telenovia I've seen.
 

Comadre Jardinera, wonderful recap as usual. It's as good as watching because you capture the humor and the sexual tension in the room.

The actor who is Damian really knows how to play the audience. Looks like the sandwich has replaced the cell phone antics. He never took a bite...
jb
 

Wow, Jardinera, that was awesome. On weekends I use the cell phone to keep up. After the first screen, I laid it down and went and poured a Scotch and water and settled in to enjoy. I was not disappointed. I realized when we first saw Vlad at the wedding that he would be a joy, but how was I o know that he would become the Felix to Damian's Oscar. I predict much entertainment out of these two. Esteve excedes my expectations. Who woul have guessed, a voice of reason as well as an incredibly loyal friend? Let's hope Eddie heeds his advice. Happy Mother's Day to all of you delightful women. Thanks for allowing me to listen in. Carlos
 

too damm funny paula h.... i thought the same thing....never took abite bn in ca
 

Thanks Jardinera for another of your gems. I'm comming back later with comments after I run some errands but wanted to add a couple quickies to the comments left so far. Yes, Damian is such a likeable villian. I died laughing when he had the nerve to tell Vlad that he needed privacy - in Vlad's house no less. I can easily see how they can be friends. Damian might be able to do something to expose Babs in some way, but don't expect too much. It seems the villians in these novelas are allowed to do their dirty work right up to the very end. Someone mentioned Esteve in a youtube the other day and I looked it up. Here's the link. It's obvious that English is his first language.
http://video.aol.com/video-detail/like-water-for-chocolate-english-11/126169738
I agree that Nanda's crying is award worthy - real tear jerkers for me. OK, gotta run, more later.
 

Hi all:

I think the captioning has become as bad as it was a month or two ago. Maybe we should try another mail in campaign to see if it can be improved.

I posted to yesterday's blog, after most folks had moved on - about Cayman Islands currency.

The Cayman Islands has its own currency, first issued in 1972, whose basic unit is the Cayman Island dollar.

The CI dollar has a fixed exchange rate with the US dollar of CI$1.00 equals US$1.25. Or, the US dollar equals CI $.80.

So, $100,000 in a Ci bank account would be worth $125,000 US Dollars.

I have to agree on Fernanda's crying. That hyperventilating that she did seemed really real.

Eduardo really blew it - turning emotional when he should have been thinking. First of all, he doesn't seem to have realized that $3 Million embezzled just coincidentally is equal to the $3 Million that Babs asked for. Hello - somebody ring the telenovela bell - wake up, Eddie!!

Over and not quite out - The Fox
 

Awesome recap! Love Ed doing the same overcome moment in the hug that he did in the childhood kiss. So sweet.

Wanted to let everyone know our friend Cremelo is about to become a grandma!
 

great recap jardinera.....Carlos what a great way to enjoy this delightful novela...scotch and water....ummmmm......so now what?
Damian is shit out of luck.....can't leave the apt....counting on Vlad for alot of help....vlad no work...lets see how this works out.....bn in ca
 

I found this information about the actor playing Esteve:

http://www.marioivanmartinez.com/inicio.php?c=cvingles

His English is so good that it's hard to tell he's not a native speaker, but apparently he's from Mexico.
 

Novelera, very interesting article on our Esteve. I was surprised that he was born in Mexico. But seems he studied a lot in the US and England. Thanks for sending.
 

BTW, I enjoyed Dr. Matasanos from FELS playing the cop Lozaya, still being bossed around by the stuck up rich ladies (there it was Crabiela, here it's the Barbinator).
 

Jardinera - thank you for the recap! I enjoyed reading it.

I recognized the cop, too.

Santiago didn't just get a hair cut --- he got rid of the bad wig. This is his natural hair. The texture and color are totally different. Now if Esteve could just lose his wig . . .

Isn't Barbinator driving Crabiela's old SUV?
 

Carlos: Ha! The Odd Couple! Takes me back.
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Novelera: Thanks for that link.
I was thinking the same thing, that Dam can't sue Barbie. However, he does know where most of the family's financial skeletons are and he can probably do some major damage to her I bet, if he can just figure a way to hack into their computer system and screw with the files. That would be rich!
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jb: Sergio Sendel is one of my favorite villains because he is such a master of comedic timing. You're laughing all the way despite his evil ways!
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Alice: Thanks for the link. That was one a great movie. I think I saw it after Amor Real and was surprised to see Mario Ivan Martinez in it. He's not that great looking, but he sings terrifically and his character roles are generally done well because he always manages to make them unique somehow. His mother, BTW, is a well known telenovela star, also. Can't remember her name.
 

Doris: At least Santiago didn't cut off his ear like Van Gogh. Better the scuzzy scruffy ponytail than the ear....
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Silver Fox: Yeah, Ed blew his cool, but I sort of wonder if Fernanda was too emotionally blitzed to make much of it. Two tequilas when you don't drink much and you're emotionally blitzed can blur a lot of things for a gal.....
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Molly: great to hear about Creemelo! I miss her comments. Will she be able to get Uni again with her new provider? I would be totally honked being cut off in the middle of a good novela like MEPS because of the change in coverage or offerings like that.
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bn in CA: Damian may be down, but he ain't out! He has got to get even, somehow, and I'm sure it's got to be written in one of Silver Fox's telenovela rules somewhere. Once Damian gets over the initial shock of being duped, I bet he'll be able to scam Barbie and get her back double! I can't wait to see what he comes up with and how it plays out, either. !8 ?)
 

Thanks, Jardinera! Great recap.

I hunted around on IMDB and discovered that Esteve's mom is Margarita Isabel who played Tia Alejandra (Leonora's aunt) in Amarte es mi Pecado which I'm getting during the day on Televisa now. I've grown very fond of Esteve. I think he's trying very hard to stay in "Gringo" Spanish and doing a good job, but sometimes speeds up. If his English is perfect, he might have been raised in a bilingual home.

Molly, I also noticed the look on Fr/Ed's face when Fer gave him the big hug, just like the childhood kiss! Very sweet!

Jane
 

I meant to say I'm getting Amarte es mi Pecado on Telefutura, not Televisa (I'm with Comcast in Northern California), and the show also features Sergio Sendel and the actress who plays Margarita, in a much sexier role. I didn't see it when it first aired, and I don't get a chance to watch everyday now, but I love seeing the actors in different roles.

Jane
 

I was listening to my Latina playlist on my iPod today and hearing a few of Lucero's tunes.

It's very hard after that experience to get back into the mindset that she is "la hiena".

She really is a great singer.


The Fox...
 

Wonderful recap Jardinera...sardonic and delicious. Yes, next to favorite scene, Sendel with his roller coaster sandwich, up down up down up down. But the big treat...as you said YOWSA, when Fernanda threw herself into Eduardo's arms and his eyes closed and he held her close. Oh my....we had what was supposed to be a super romantic scene on Tontas where the Candy/Santiago romance was consummated and it didn't have one-tenth the electricity generated in that awesome hug. Yowsa indeed.

Vlad is the perfect co-dependent for Damian. They will make a lovely couple, I predict. Good call, Carlos.
* * *
Molly! Thanks for keeping us posted on Creemelo. Can't wait to hear about the new arrival.
 

PS The actor playing Esteve is really good at languages. In Amor Real, he was always "lapsing" into French and also sang in French and his accent was perfect...dead-on. Sings well too. My experience has been that people who are musically talented pick up the nuances and melodies of other languages very easily. Their voice is their instrument and they play with a skill the average person doesn't possess.
 

What part did Esteve play in Like Water for Chocolate, I can't place him.
 

He played Dr John Brown - the man who loved Tita but who couldn't have her.
 

Jardinera, you leave me falling off my chair laughing. I just came in to MEPS at about Chapter 30, so I'm not quite up to speed but you're helping me get there. Maybe I'm really dense, but I still don't get why Eddie just can't say to Fernanda, "Yo soy Eduardo". BTW, Steve was in Like Water For Chocolate.
 

Fun recap, thanks Jardinera!

Ha! JudyB codependent is right, Vlad and Damien are making a very entertaining couple! Those scenes are becoming my favorites. Seems like Damien has plenty on Barbie and the Elizaldes, once he re-groups if he can stay out of jail for a bit.

Yeah, I swooned a bit too at the embrace and the heavy eyelid moment...this guy is good, he made me feel it, the embrace that had been 15 years coming.

So does Esteve really have 3milliones to save his friend's hide??

Has anyone seen a telenovela this good? I'm thinking it's the best I've seen so far.
 

Well now that Esteve has arrived I'm eagerly anticipating his meeting of Jacy. I wonder if he will be as thrilled as Gardenia. I expect there may be a bit of jealousy develop. Perhaps not, but I sospect that each fancys himself as Eddie's best friend. Also, so far Eddie has given Jacy the less pleasant tasks and I can't picture Esteve picking up any of the slack n that front. Carlos
 

Thanks, Jane for reminding me! Margarita Isabel as Tia Alejandra! She was so terrific in that role, too! AEMP is one of my all time favorites. Sergio Sendel was a heart throb and a half himself in that telenovela and those piercing blue eyes wore no glasses. Sexaaaaay!
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RandySeattle: "the embrace that had been 15 years coming" --you nailed it!
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JudyB: I could feel his knees go wobbly and his stomach take a leap myself with that one look of FC's. Super sigh. Fernanda has got to be lying to herself about loving Damian after getting to know "el hombre misterioso." Can't wait for that romantic cat and mouse pursuit to begin. Let's just hope that the next time there's a Nights in White Satin set-up that at least the lighting matches the supposed mood.
 

Anon. Sun. 11:33 AM-- Welcome! I hope you'll take advantage of the link on the orange side bar at the left and start reading the earlier recaps. It's impossible for me to explain well enough in 100 words or less why "Franco" can't let Fer know that he's really Eduardo, her childhood friend and first/true love. He mistakenly thought she'd lied to him about keeping the flame for him till he returned and then, that she was complicit in all the nasty things that happened to him and his mother the fifteen years he was exiled from Hacienda Elizalde. So he wrecked her wedding reception with the knowledge that her nana (his mother who raised her like her own) died two days before, broke her heart by faking his death, and then set out to destroy her family's reputation and business by lying to them about Power Milk's intentions to partner financially with them as he's been setting them up for a financial fall. He also had intentions of seducing her initially. Too much baggage and too many nasty tricks at this point to admit who he is, which is really too bad since she's soon to be a free woman again. Hope it helps, but am sure my condensed version is about as clear as mud....
 

Jardinera, once again many thanks. I do love this novella, nothing boring here.

I think the first thing on Damian to do list should be to purchase a bullet proof vest, I have a feeling he is going to need it.

I love Esteve, the voice of reason!

I recently read an article from Patricio Wills, head of development at Telemundo, where he joking described the basic format of telenovelas as: "The plot is always the same. In the first three minutes of the first episode the viewer already knows the novela will end with that same couple kissing each other. A telenovela is all about a couple who wants to kiss and a scriptwriter who stands in their way for 150 episodes."

Happy Mother's Day!
rsk
 

Thank you Jardinera. Loved the hug, loved reliving the hug through the recap. Yowza! to the nth degree! Barbara
 

"My experience has been that people who are musically talented pick up the nuances and melodies of other languages very easily."JudyB - I will offer up my dear husband as proof that this theory is not 100% foolproof. You have not heard him try to speak Spanish. OMG.
 

So sorry Doris. Sounds painful. What are his musical skills?
 

anan 3:39 In passion, the first few episodes were about a man and woman in love, ready to marry and separated. She tries to find him and he her, finally she finds Colunga and falls for him. I thought for lmost of the novela that she and the other man would get back together in the end, so this through me off track. All the others showed the two main actors in love, separated and reunited. Passion, to me, was confusing, regarding your theory.
 

Jardinera, a great recap as always--thanks. I enjoy reading every recap...we have a great group here--recappers and commenters. Jane, thanks for mentioning Tia Alejandra...I loved that character (loved that novela!). Sergio Sendel was a real good looker in that one (Amarte es mi Pecado)--that curl on his forehead. What character was portrayed by the actress who is Margarita?

LR
 

RSK/Barbara: I'm with you. This one keeps me coming back and is a nice one to get to recap.
==============
LR: Welcome! Amarte was my second telenovela and the first time I saw Sergio Sendel. Didn't care for him in La Esposa Virgen, or maybe it was the telenovela itself that was so bad. Anyway, I would love to see him as a full-fledged galan again. He can carry it off as well as FC when he's given the chance IMO.
 

Jardinera, this, as always, was a great recap, Eduardo seemed like a petulant child while he was complaining to Esteve about Fernanda's answer as to wether she loved her husband, you were right, what was she supposed to say? I also liked that Esteve pointed out that Franco Santoro is basically a stranger to her, that kind of questioning on Eduardo's part should be reserved by the time when he has gotten to know Fernanda better.

I don't know if you know this (because most of the time you guys already know everything!)but Silvia Navarro was supposed to be the lead in Pasión with Colunga, her contract with TV Azteca was coming to an end, and Carla Estrada wanted her, they even had a meeting to talk about the story, but TV Azteca demanded another novela from Navarro, saying that she still had an obligation to them, in the end they won but Silvia never did another novela she just used that time to make movies, and she was vetoed from any TV Azteca channel, radio station of publication for a year, and since Televisa doesn't promote anybody who isn't signed with them it was the same from their end, when the time was up, she signed the contract to Televisa and she got the role in MEPS.

Jarocha
 

LR, the Margarita actress played Diana in AEMP. Her name is Dacia Arcaraz. Coincidentally, the actor playing Jacinto (Alejandro Ruiz) played Sergio Sendel's best friend, Diego, in that show.
Jane
 

Jardinera, I, too, did not like La Esposa Virgen, so I didn't follow it too much. I think it was my dislike of Adela Noriega (I gave up on FELS after only a few weeks), though she was OK in El Privilegio de Amar.
Jarocha--I hadn't known that Silvia was supposed to be the lead in Pasion--interesting.
"the Margarita actress played Diana in AEMP. Her name is Dacia Arcaraz."
thanks, Jane, but I am still lost--who was Diana in the story? Yes, I remember that Diego was Arturo's best friend and co-worker as a pilot (played by actor who is Jacinto).

LR
 

Thanks for the recap Jardinera. Very snarky as always. The sandwich drove me crazy! Is he going to bite? Maybe, maybe..No. That was a great scene. I don't know how Vlad can let him wreck his place. It was almost better than a cell phone though. I'm still holding out for the cell phone.
 

Jarocha: Thankyou again for your insightful backgrounders on the innerworkings of the Mexican tv networks. I always appreciate your stamp of approval as a bilingual reader because when the CC goes on the fritz I am flying by the seat of my pants so any corrections of anything missed or misinterpreted would be most appreciated!
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LR/Jane: I don't remember the Diana character at all, either. Please give me a hint?
===========
Connie: definitely better than a cell phone!! I had the feeling though that maybe the lamp wasn't expected and they left it in. Either way I got a hell of a belly laugh out of it.
 

Molly, that's great news about Creemelo! Be sure she sends you a picture to post of the new baby.
 

Hi all, I have not heard back from Cremelo since she was rushing off to get to her daughter. I'm sure I will in the next day or so and will pass on all the details. I will pass on everyones good wishes!
 

Jardinera, your recaps are delicious 5 course meals. Thank you. I'm so glad you can continue to do this because I look forward to Monday mornings with Jardinera.

Those male buddys sessions were precious.
 

Jardinera, wonderful recap - thank you. Silvia and Fernando have such intense emotional chemistry. Love Esteve and Sergio is stealing the show with his "will he or won't he" dining. :)

Diana in MA
 

Thank you for your great and snarky recap, Jardinera. Your recaps are invaluable.

I can only repeat what others have said.... the sandwich eating/not eating scene was classic. Sergio has a flair for comedy and no one does nasty angry better...smashing anything handy. Vlad is a saint as his apartment gets trashed. GinCA
 

I like your point about the major premise: "... alone without those we love...when its the result of a lie."

What keeps surprising me is they don't know anybody's history. Damian appears in Fern's life but who introduced them - of course Barb would have planted him for her to find but still. Everybody has been so consumed with self that they never questioned where did Barb come from. Their daughter/sister Lili is hospitalized and for 15 years of continued care without improvement no one questioned the doctor's history of success? Why?
 

I wonder if $3,000,000 is the magic number of what you'd need to retire in the telenovela world. I'm also (sort of) watching Sin Senos No Hay Paraiso, and what's the amount of cash that these drug guys left, which is being chased by everyone else? $3,000,000.
 

Some please help me out with a reality check:

Does Vlad seem to be getting more sane? Or is that just an optical illusion because he's standing next to increasingly crazy Damian?

The sandwich scene really was funny. There have been a few dinner scenes in this telenovela, but usually there's not a close-up of an actor with food. I wondered how Damian was going to manage to eat and talk at the same time!

Yet another way for Sendel to tease us. I hope he's enjoying himself! ;-)
 

bonney churros

I don't even think anyone visited Lili in 15 yrs until Fernanda wanted her to come to the wedding. Of course, she's better off w/o most of la familia.
 

On the one hand we have Dam eating/not eating a sandwich and on the other we have Vlad who is taking dainty bites but still manages to get it on his face. I was wondering how long it was going to take for him to wipe it off.
 

Actually, Barbara didn't really appear out of nowhere. Gonzo had a job opening for a personal assistant. (Anyone else remember if there was another person in the job before Babs?) Cigarman set Babs up with a perfect resume, apparently credible references, and she interviewed like the golden girl. Once she got the job she proceeded to become indispensable to the dim witted Gonzo. She organized Fer's first communion party. Monserrat thought she was fabulous and never smelled treachery. Cigarman kept telling her in those ominous phone calls that she needed to get rid of Monserrat and marry Gonzo.

Variopinta, I got the impression that Fernanda had visited Lili, not often, but sometimes, after returning from abroad. Naturally she would not have seen her during her school years out of the county.
But Demento had her so injected with drugs that she was catatonic when anyone visited.
 

Vario- I've had the impression that Fer had been visiting Lili, but that's really just been a feeling, rather than knowledge. Other than Babs, no one seems to have been there at all. Seems a bit odd, since the manicomio and the hacienda are so close to each other.
 

One thing that has always disturbed me was that the family would take the word of a new employee whom they know nothing about over the word of Lili. And like Variopinta said why didn't anyone ever visit her?
 

I believe they took her word over Lili's because Babs had set it up so well. She put the cocaine and (I think) cigarettes on Lili's dresser. And Lili had been a somewhat rebellious teenager. I also felt that Lili was the only one in the family who was suspicious of Barbara. The conservative (and dumb) Gonzo was prepared to believe that cocaine makes you kill your mother.
 

LR, Jardinera -
Diana in AEMP is a hottie with a crush on Arturo (Sendel). He's in love with Nora, but Diana talks him into going out with him one night and they are in an accident after some thug messes with their car. Diana is seriously injured, but recovers. Later, she's still in the picture, apparently jealous of Nora. I'm only occasionally watching the daytime airing of this TN, so I could be off on the details. The Diana character has a short flippy hair-do and fairly heavy on the make-up, especially compared to her Margarita character.

Jane
 

I forgot about that. They should have had her tested or something. Oh, wait--beanie adjustment.
 

Novelera, actually Lil had her own cigarettes and copped to smoking but denied the other stuff to no avail. One thing I don't remember, was Dr.O the guy who helped Babs set Lil up, or was it someone else?

Carlos
 

While we're reviewing, Gonzalo seemed astute and capable; running the company, head of household before his wife died. So possibly it was superwoman Barb who put a beanie on him! AB was the distant child, away at college, maybe never really a warm involved family kind of person. He did say that Lili stopped being his sister after she killed his mother.

Seems to me that Fernanda wouldn't have to move very far to get away from her family.
 

Carlos, I think Dr. O was the one who performed the "autopsy" and then also had Lili taken away.
 

It's about time that televisa gave us a review program, that happened a few times on DA & FELS
 

There have been a number of comments here(mostly unflattering) about Esteve"s hairstyle. I've been watching Betty la Fea (very good) and I noticed Fri. that Freddy (Simón in LFMB) and he has the same style though not the same color. A new trend?

Carlos
 

Maybe they all go to Salon de Esteve.
 

On hindsight, I wonder if Babs engineered that 'opening' for a personal assistant so that she could fill the position. We were never told what happened to the last one.

OT - JudyB - DH's musical talents are with the guitar. He has several, each different, and plays beautifully as an amateur. (must keep his day job!) Singing voice is gone with old age, but the playing . . . aaaaaaah.
 

Thanks, Jardinera~~~I've been out of the country since Thursday and didn't get to see Thursday's or Friday's episodes. BOOHOO...I missed the hug between Fr/ed and Ferd, Esteve's and Santi's continuing bad hair days, and Dam eating/not eating his sandwich. Que lastima. Happy Belated Mother's Day !!!
 

Bonney Churros: "Their daughter/sister Lili is hospitalized and for 15 years of continued care without improvement no one questioned the doctor's history of success? Why?"
//Darned good question! Maybe Babs pacified gullible Gonzo by telling him Dement-oh! was the best in the country, yadda, yadda, yadda?
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Variopinta: I was thinking the same thing about a couple of re-run episodios since so much has happened since the beginning I'm having a hard time remembering some of the important connecting details myself.
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Diana in MA: I agree that FC and Silvia keep the sexual tension high and are great on screen together. I would have really liked her as the female lead in Pasion. It was a great telenovela and seeing her instead of SG might have taken it to an entirely different level.
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GinCA/Julie: Vlad's calm acceptance of Damn's bad habits make me start to see why he doesn't mind being Prissy's doormat, either!
 

Susanlynn: I'm going to be out of the country for an extended period of time and if I can't find MEPS on YouTube anymore I'm going to suffer some major withdrawel symptoms. Arrgghhh!
 

No problem with MEPS on you-tube, just key in MEPS & whatever chapter you want.

I'm in the middle of MEPS 61
 

Maybe you have laurisgar bookmarked, she is not longer on you tube
 

Variopinta: Glad to hear you're still able to find them listed. Who's are you watching if not laurisgar?
 

Judyb~~~I remember Esteve in Amor Real speaking a lot of French. I studied French in high school and college, but I wasn't very good. [In high school, the same teacher Miss Grace Moore taught me English lit, Latin, and French. I can still sing Adeste Fidelis and Sur La Ponte d'Avignon.] The actor who plays Esteve is talented in so many ways...singing, multiple languages, a keen sense of humor. There does seem to be a connection between musical talent and a talent for speaking new languages. I've noticed that my students who like music and dance are often good at figuring out syllables and stress.
 

Jardinera. Thank you! Love Dewey Duckworth, man, that is poifect and Hilarious!

Vlad: "Darn! This guy is gonna make some gal a wonderful
Stepford-style house-hubby some day!" All your Vlad comments were fun-ny.

And I like Santi. He got my vote for having La-Bitcha figured out. He's gonna be vital in hangin' that 'ho'.

Khalilah
 

Regarding musicians, they also say that the best crossword-puzzle champs are musicians and mathamaticians. I saw a fascinating documentary on the NY Times crossword puzzle editor and heard it there.
 

Jardinera,
It's esnovelas & I think it's the only one, at any rate I click on the first one I find & it's always esnovelas.
 

A great and entertaining recap, Jardinera. Thanks, especially in light of the missing captions.
Paula and others who noted the sandwich flirtation by Damian. I know actors may have a bucket under the table, so they can spit their food and not interfere with a speech, but never taking a bite solves that problem very neatly. I love me some Sergio Sendel. He was wonderful in Amarte Es Mi Pecado. He cracked me up in La Virgen Esposa, because he was on horseback sometimes, in a wheelchair for part of it, as well as on foot. He also got to sport a uniform, which makes him look so fine.
La Paloma
 

Can I also add that I can't stand that soppy song they always play for Aurora? Seriously, I liked her and Santi as a couple, and I don't dislike her as a character, but I wish they would have given her a less wimpy song.
 

It's not just that the food can interfere with speech, mess up makeup and get stuck between teeth - but also, sometimes it's been sitting around for a while and doesn't smell as good as it looks! (I read a horror story about a roasted chicken, or was it a turkey, that graced the Brady Bunch dinner table far longer than it should have.)

Best not to even take a bite in those cases - bucket or no!

But that sandwich looked pretty fresh and nice.
 

julie: "Can I also add that I can't stand that soppy song they always play for Aurora?" If you hadn't, I would have.
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Khalilah: On top of everything else, or despite it all, Vlad is too cute by half.
 

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