Monday, March 14, 2011
La Fea Más Bella #251-252 3/14/11 A Day Which Will Live in Infamy
Read k-Fuego's original recap, then come back here to discuss it.
1. Aldo tells the judge he wants to pay off Conceptos’ debt. He won’t keep the company, but he’ll require that the families pay to the last cent, with interest. The judge doesn’t believe Aldo’s doing it for moral responsibility, and Aldo admits it’s for love, to free Lety from her commitments.
2. Lety tells Mama that Fern proposed and she said yes. Mama warns her to be careful. Lety doesn’t want to lose Aldo. Mama counsels that if she’s going to marry Fernando, she has to. Some win, some lose.
3. Fernando is bursting with happiness when he tells his parents he’s marrying Lety, but FrostyPop puts a chill on it. Mama says at least it’ll be good for Conceptos. Pop softens – if marrying Lety will make him happy, Pop supports him. He says it’s all because Marcia talked to Lety.
4. Lety writes Aldo what sounds more like a love letter than a “I’ve got good news and bad news” letter.
5. Then a bunch of filler. Ali’s rude to Tom. The cuartel gossips about Lety and Fern. Aldo buys a flower. Marcia’s harsh to Lety. They can’t pay their loan. Fern dances with the cuartel and evicts Tom from Lety’s office.
6. Fernando has a gift for Lety, a new diary, but they’ll both write in it so they don’t have any more misunderstandings (How romantic!). He gives her a big kiss. And then.. let me summarize the remainder of the episode this way.
Capitulo 252.
Read Alma's original recap, then come back here to discuss it.
1. Lety gets her braces off but gets headgear. Aldo tells Tom he’s going back to Acapulco.
2. Fern asks Tom what’s up with the debt. Tom says Aldo is essentially the owner of Conceptos. Fern tells Tom to find out Aldo’s intentions. Ali hears that Tom might go to Acapulco so she angles for an invite.
3. Fern has no one to help him think, so he calls Omar, who hangs up on him. So Fern writes in the diary. His wonderful day turned into a disaster. He is surprised that he was capable of such a sacrifice, to give Lety the freedom to decide. “I’m betting on my luck because I hope that in the end, Lety decides for me.” He has second thoughts about his sacrifice, but in the end, he knows he did the right thing. “Lety has to be certain that she’s in love with only me.”
4. Aldo tells Aldad he bought the debt to free Lety, and now she’s with Fernando! Aldad suggests that Lety’s not the one for him, and he needs to move on. Aldo says he’s going back to Aca to the life he left.
5. Roman’s gang picks on Lety and she cowers and pouts until RoboPop comes out and rescues her. The restaurant’s new owner (I’ll call him Garza) asks Aldo to cook for tonight’s grand opening.
6. Caro calls Omar to see how he’s doing. He tries to take her out, but she has the Anaís event tonight. He decides to crash the event.
7. Fern begs Omar to come back, but Omar kicks him out. Fern moons over Lety’s picture and makes his Lety shrine on his mirror.
8. Caro asks Lety who she really loves. Lety was completely sure she loved Fernando, but when she lost Aldo she felt a horrible pain. She wishes her life were simple like before. Caro says she can’t go back because she’s made two guapisimos crazy for her.
9. Anaís checks wardrobe with her stylist, Manuel. He’s looking for someone to showcase the 40’s retro look to Mexico. Caro asks if Anaís’s team can fix up Lety. the press and public swarm around the new diva, Lety. She hasn’t seen herself and she only wants to escape.
Labels: fea-2010
I love K's description (in the old recap) of Lety's letter to Aldo: "sorry I gotta dump you shell man."
If only!
How in heaven's name can you switch sentiments as fast as a light switch?
She was over the moon happy last night and this morning. She got everything she had ever hoped for. Then creepy Aldo shows up with "I sold my life for your Conceptos" and she starts bawlin'. What an idiot! First off, Aldo had no business giving the news to them at that time. He meant to stab them both with that folder. He knew he lost, couldn't he have been the man he always said he was, and walk out the door and leave Lety alone? Noooooo, he had to put on the puppy dog face, the "I gave all my possesions for you" , and let me fondle the shell painting on my way out. Creeeeeeep.
I am stunned at Fernando's maturity over all this. He has truly become a different Fern. So noble to step aside so she can decide. Lety doesn't deserve him anymore. Broke my heart to see him write in the new diary.
And what was with the ridiculous restaurant scenes? Aldo and the ball of dough? That was not kneading dough, that was caressing dough. He is so gross.
I have no idea how this show is going to torture us any further. But on the old board, many were giving it up and calling it quits. I can see their position.
There's less than 50 caps left. Do we have to be hit like a tennis ball during a game for the remainder of this thing?
I am not liking this AT ALL.
NO ME GUSTA NADA
Diann
Sad,
Diann
JULIE! Fernando wrote in his diary with a PEN!
Omar asks Fern if he doesn’t understand Spanish, then he gives his answer in what I think is a combination of German, and Spanish with a German accent. I heard “todo murió, entonces como huele (everything died, so it smells bad)” and “mich machen a ??. (it makes me ??).”
How dare they? some producers to kill a good show and I was so happy with the new Fern and now he is turning into a creepy stalker. What will Mama Bozo think of the Lety shrine on her front room mirror. though Camil is very agile jumping that couch.
Lety Lety Lety just get over yourself. flip a coin throw darts anything and decide at this point both men are now creepy and obsessive. Maybe that is the Lety effect!
One thing to look forward to, as the show heads south the recaps which are always great become priceless and Paula that picture is awesome is it from the challenger explosion?
Jenn
Ok I'll be back later...I agree the first ep had a whole lotta filler, but I loved the initial scenes with Lety & Fern so happy. That lasted all of 2 minutes and then back to the heavy stuff. sheesh.
I'm just wondering where he found a pen. I have the impression that Celso frisks everyone on their way into the building to ensure that no writing instruments (other than green pencils) get into the building.
Next sore point for me: Aldo’s big “sacrifice.” IN A PIG’S EYE! I’m sorry, I’m going to harp on it many times in future caps. To release money with a payback date and interest is not a sacrifice nor an act of love. If it were, it would mean my banker is lovesick over me. It’s called a LOAN. It’s not an act of love, it’s an act of business. If his plot had worked, how would his big “sacrifice” turn out six months from now? He would buy back a house, a restaurant, and the third thing (?), plus interest, plus Lety would be nailed down (pun intended) as securely his, at least until she doesn’t make him happy anymore, at which point he’d ship her out with the tide because he doesn’t believe in responsibility. Whereas Fernando sacrificed the only thing that matters in his life, Lety. And no, Fern does not have a contract where he’s guaranteed to get her back in six months! Every time I hear about Aldo’s sacrifice, I want to scream! For your sakes, I will shorten this rant to one phrase: A LOAN IS NOT A SACRIFICE! And when I say that phrase in the future, you’ll know this is what I mean.
Talk about regression! Remember how Lety swatted Roman like a bug when she returned from Acapulco? Now Roman and the boys harass her and she just cowers and pouts like when she was 10. She doesn’t even stand up to them like she did when she started at Conceptos. Pathetic!
Aldo told the judge that he wanted to pay the debt because he felt morally responsible for it. Gee! He didn’t feel much moral responsibility when he told Lety feelings of obligation will destroy her, or when he told her that trying to save Conceptos would ruin her happiness, or when he told her to run away with him, even if it meant the families would be left with nothing.
The thing is that Aldo may never get his money back. He may end up with the assets of a defunct business, which may or may not cover the whole debt, and could be a royal pain to get rid of.
I understand what you're saying - it's not a generous gift from the bottom of his heart with no strings attached. But in the meantime, he has no restaurant, no boat, no house, and no girlfriend. Just a tacky jacket that says "Academy of Jeans" on the back. So I'd at least consider it a temporary sacrifice.
But the main point of my comment about sacrifices is that I don't think Lety has made any gesture that's comparable to those of Marcia, Fernando, or Alpo, which is disappointing considering she's the title character.
OTOH maybe there's nothing that she can give up that would help anyone else anyway.
So, never mind. :-\
Jenn
P.S. Paula I am thinking 251 does not improve with time.
Aging of #251? The funny thing is that in my mind, somehow I forgot all of it. I remembered that Lety and Fernando got together for a while, but I thought it lasted longer and I couldn't remember why they broke up.
And I remembered that Aldo paid the debt, which caused much gnashing of teeth; but I didn't remember that it happened the very same day as the breakup.
All the bad parts of #251 became repressed memories!
I don't know if you recognized it. Friday was essentially the finale of the original BLF. There was some mopping up after the proposal - tell the parents, plan the wedding, wrap up other characters, and have the wedding. It was all handled in a two-hour finale. So the bright side?
1. So if LFMB had not assaulted us with #251, right now the series would be finished and we would have all been crying that we miss it and wish it had gone longer. So now we got our "would-have" wish.
2. If there had to be an extension, at least they respected the integrity of the story arc of BLF. They let LFMB roll smoothly to the end of BLF's story, gave us a weekend to savor the bliss, then hit us with the extension. Imagine if they had instead inserted 50 more episodes BEFORE the wrapping up (break up with Marcia, find the diary, beat up Omar, Tizi restaurant) and proposal from last week. That would've been awful.
3. If we try to look at it not as an extension but a sequel, it's not so bad. It's MUCH better than the BLF sequel that was a total disaster. The shift from original to sequel was abrupt to say the least, but if you can overlook that (other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?), the "sequel" is pretty good. There is a lot of really funny stuff, many heartwarming and satisfying moments, some good old gut-wrenching melodrama, and believe it or not, Fernando gets even sexier! So much so, in fact, that I recommend that you move all flamable objects at least five feet from your TV or they might spontaneously combust because he's that hot!
So all in all, I hate the way they transitioned to the "sequel," but there is a lot to like in the sequel. It does not have the spark of genius that marked the original, but that doesn't mean you won't enjoy it.
Marcia's white tam or whatever you want to call it needs to be burned. The lady is supposed to be a stylish dresser and today she looked like an overgrown school girl. Ugh.
I am so disappointed in Lety, but not surprised by the turn of events. Her parents made her a very needy person and Aldo came along and stepped into their shoes. I'm not sure Lety really understands what love is. She has a romantic notion but she'll learn as she watches Fernando love her from a distance. Aldo with the dough was disgusting. His thoughts were on Lety as he was kneading that dough, so I don't think I need to go further in this explanation. The guy is a few bricks short of a full load and I don't think it'll get any better.
I must admit, though, I had the greatest pleasure watching Aldo walk in on Fernando and Lety kissing. Unfortunately, Lety acted like she had been caught behind the bleachers at school by the principal or her parents. When are the writers going to let her grow up?
Jenn, you won't believe where I got that photo! It's fans at a Beatles concert! Julie's the one that tipped me off, that the fan screams look like horror screams. The picture expresses how I feel about Cap 251.
Someone on the old board mentioned another Full Circle item - Fernando is keeping a diary as he moons over Lety.
Julie, don't worry, my Sacrifices rant wasn't directed at you. It's that everyone on both the show and on the board talks about Aldo's big sacrifice, and it torques my shorts. Fernando is the one who sacrificed when he released Lety from their engagement.
About the restaurant. Garza heard about the deal yesterday morning, and closed the purchase yesterday afternoon. Now, 24 hours later, Garza has the grand opening event planned for tonight. Even though, as of yesterday, Sabor was not yet open, IOW no kitchen nor dining room staff, no food in stock, no advertising, no public awareness of its existence, and probably no menu finalized. Garza put everything together that quickly, but shucks, he forgot to get a chef, silly boy. Certainly with just 2-3 hours, Aldo can have everything ready for an important event. Including time for that bread dough to rise and bake. (Oh! I know! He has one of those magic TV-chef ovens. You put the cassarole in the top door, and three seconds later you take it out from the bottom door, full baked.)
Or maybe Garza did hire a chef yesterday. A chef who is prestigious enough for this high class restaurant was recruited, hired, and started work, all in one day. But today Garza will tell the chef, “Oopsie, you won’t be cooking at the showcase event, but come back tomorrow and we’ll find something for you to do.” Considering chefs’ famous egos, … yeah, right!
In fact, less than two months ago, this restaurant was a few footings and beams on a beach. Now it’s finished and already has shrubs and trees that are mature and well established.
Don't forget, Everyone! Today is International Pi Day, 3/14 because pi (π)is roughly 3.14. Pizza pie for dinner, and cherry pie for dessert! International Pi Day
And yes Aldo was trying to get Lety the heck away from Conceptos and from Fernando -- but he did give up the restaurant which was his life long dream -- and as someone said with no guarantee of ever getting his money back. He intended to whisk Lety away and leave the Mendiola/ Villareal clan indebted to him -- but the business could easily blow up in everyone's face and leave them AND Aldo with nothing. So it was a sacrifice. And he DID withdraw and leave Lety to her happiness with Fernando. So he was acting selflessly and nobly at that moment.
I also agree that we should be grateful for a ew plot complications or the show would be over.
Fern is way too good for her and I think it is sad that he has somehow put this mess on a pedestal even throwing away a life long friendship for some twit who hasn't got the faintest idea of what love is.
Lety totally deserves Aldo. He is exactly what she wants, someone who will treat her in the manner to which she has become accustomed a not very bright five year old. Think of her divinely happy life with someone who will tell her what to do and how to do it every minute of her life and when things go south they can just prattle on about el mar. Basta!
Poor Fern he so desperately needs Omar to bounce ideas off and just to talk to and he isn't there. I thought it hilarious when Omar hung up on him. Obviously Fern has been the top dog in the friendship and he is art a loss but at least he did go looking for him even if he didn't apologize.
I agree that friday should have been the end but now we have to endure more filler and bad cuts. When Omar threw Fern out of his apartment complete with the bar stool, we suddenly cut to that odd scene with the designer. i had to check to see if I had accidentally changed channels, it was so abrupt. It is odd because when I watched Mar de Amor this afternoon there was a really bad cut and i thought it couldn't get worse but Televisa is really sloppy sometimes
Why shouldn't Aldo expect to have his money re-paid? It is a loan and he's doing it for Lety - not the Mendiolas or the Villeorals. As much as we might think it - Lety is NOT a part of either of those families and you'd better believe if they could find a way to push her out (with the exception of Fern) - they would do it! So I have no problem with the terms he set up for the loan - in fact it was pretty generous of him to put the clause in that he's not trying to take over the company. What if they defaulted on that loan to him? He's royally screwed at that point!
He was heartbroken and I was actually surprised by how he went away...the first thing he does- goes to get a hug from his father. I thought that was a sweet scene personally. I felt bad for the guy, but then again - I've never hated him as much as some of us here on the board. I was quite surprised that he just went quietly away to Acapulco. In fact I sort of think that they may be stirring up the hornets nest by sending Tomas to go talk to him about business things.
I really really REALLY hated the scenes of Fern becoming a weird stalker. It seemed sort of pointless and odd. Yes we've seen him stroking that ugly picture of Lety before and staring at it on his computer screen, but wtf was that about putting all those fugly pics up on his mirror. So f'g weird.
I also HATED the scenes with Lety and the punk kid from the neighborhood. I agree - that regression seems pointless and maybe it was just a set-up for her big makeover or to make us feel sorry for her situation, but at some point you have to stand up for yourself.
I think that although it seemed VERY abrupt, I could sort of understand Lety's reaction to Aldo leaving. She doesn't want to hurt him and selfishly she wants to keep him around. She wants to have her cake and eat it too - as the expression goes. I don't agree with it, but it does happen. I think a lot of her mixed messages and wobbly behavior is probably related to the fact that she was indeed confused by the strength of the feelings she's had for Aldo all along. Again - Lety and Aldo went through some pretty intense situation(s) together. So I can understand how she can love both of them (as someone on the other boards said) in completely different ways. I've done it before - I've dated people at the same time and loved them for very different reasons. No one is perfect.
That said - I do hate what they've done to her character, but in some ways I think her downfall started with Fern. I think he was the one who sort of originally corrupts her...as great as we all think they are together, Lety gave up a lot of the morals and values her family raised her with for Fern.
It'll be interesting to see the big reveal tomorrow...
Also noted the Omar/Caro connection again today. Is there a romance brewing with them?
I didn't hate the caps today, but I certainly wish that they didn't have to take us through such trite storylines...I also wish they were brave enough to make the Lety character much more likeable...
You gave me some hope for the future caps. Just knowing there is a Smoking Hot Fernando in upcoming caps will give my rewind button a good workout! I just hope I don't break my DVR!
But still, storywise, I just don't know. Too much stupidness right now. And I foresee agonizing scenes that I just don't care to watch. Guess that's where my FF button will have its workout.
BarbaraM,
Love it when you said Aldo was one brick short of a full load. Stupid, stupid man. The only thing he is full of, is SH*T.
Things better get better quickly or else this is going to be one MAJOR let down. 250 caps = 250 hours = 125 air dates = 25 weeks = 8 months of our time into this show. Right now, I am tremendously dissatisfied.
Diann
Conceptos’ finances. We agreed, it was stupid to remodel the office and give Luigi an expense paid vacation during a financial crisis. But that’s not the worst of it! They still needed to make two more loan payments. Hard to generate income when your star director is off on vacation!
A fundamental difference between Fern and Aldo is that Fern believes Lety should be allowed to decide what she wants. Aldo is sure Lety will be happier with him, so he has made the decision for her, and now he’s trying to make her comply. Both talk about making a big sacrifice so Lety would be free. But Fern did it so she’d be free to decide for herself. Aldo did it so she’d be free to go with him.
Predictions:
Barbara, cap 243/244. I think Fernando will be in a quandary because of what he reads [in the diary] and I think his next step will to give Lety room to sort out her feelings.
Also Barbara, 219/220. Aldo, well he's not willing to sacrifice his feelings or walk away from Lety in order for her to clarify things in her heart and head.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. I just love our viewing community! Here it is, late at night, and four of us are posting! Different opinions, different angles, different focus, different perceptions, all tossed into the pot, and nobody getting ugly. Good, meaty analysis! And lots of sentence fragments! jiji.
But wait, there's more! Some time ago, I promised some Fernando hip shaking, and we haven't seen that yet, have we? NOW how much would you pay? And if you order today, we'll also include.. The Kiss, Vol. 2. LFMB has not one but TWO burninating kisses. One was the "Me dijo Don Fernando?" kiss. The second one is still to come. You get it all for the incredible low price of only ... Free! Satisfaction guaranteed or double your money back!
What can I say? It's late. I'm punchy.
Yes, Aldo has a selfish love for Lety. I can admit it, he didn't trust that she would choose him, but I still think giving up (or at least severely delaying) your lifelong dreams is a pretty huge move to make. It might not seem like it to you, but think about this she didn't choose him and now he's stuck with cooking for someone else in what would have been his restaurant perhaps for the near future (that has to be a blow to the ego! I certainly wouldn't deal very well with that at all...
I don't think yesterday's caps indicated in anyway that Aldo was going to use emotional blackmail to get Lety to come back to him. He saw her choice, gave the papers (I think he was sort of in shock because he was in no way expecting to walk in on Lety and Fern in an embrace). Aldo's going away, crying to his father and then returning to Acapulco immediately seemed to me like he was going away again to drown his sorrows in making sweet, sweet cooking love to the dough. ;o) (I couldn't resist making that lame joke - please forgive me ladies!)
I think that Tomas's visit might be a reason for Aldo to feel he has some hope with Lety though. We all know how helpful Tomas can be and I have the feeling that he'll say something that might not be the full truth to Aldo that will give him some hope...I just feel like that's coming given the history between these two characters.
I appreciate seeing the different points of view here, because it makes me question the way I see things. I come out of our discussions here with a whole new appreciation for a different perspective on most days. I'm looking forward to the rest of the caps...yes they are going to make us all suffer some more, but I've gone this far through more than a few bad storylines and I'm hooked. :)
Or maybe Lety did make one sacrifice, at the very beginning - she sacrificed her morals to cook the books for Fernando's love. She's been miserable or at least conflicted and uncomfortable ever since.
But sacrificing her morals was something that she did in exchange for Fernando's affection. For sexual favors, basically. Not exactly an unselfish sacrifice.
I am dissatisfied.
(Did Betty ever make any selfless sacrifices? Maybe she didn't need to, because without the Aldo extension Betty never got a chance to earn as much ill will as Lety has.)
Betty/Lety gave up a great deal in exchange for something that had no hope of lasting, but those sacrifices were still to get something that she wanted (even if only short-term). They didn't even really benefit Armando/Fernando - they only bought him some time to dig himself into a deeper hole. (Well, they benefited him in that he was eventually transformed; but that was an unplanned consequence!)
That's bargaining. You give up something and get something in return - possibly of lesser value or only temporary, but something that you want or need badly enough to justify the lopsided trade.
Aldo's "sacrifice" is bargaining as well. And a gamble too, because it may not work out as he hopes. But he clearly bought out the Conceptos debt with the expectation of getting Lety. He was bargaining for Lety's heart.
(Marcia/Marcela gave up Fernando/Armando in hopes of saving the business. Maybe that's bargaining, too; but perhaps trying to prevent a greater loss isn't the same thing as trying to gain a benefit. Dunno; don't even care. Just mentioning it here for the sake of having a complete list.)
But when Fernando gave up Lety, there was no benefit in it for him at all. It's not like he could see much of a future for himself with Conceptos in any case, so he wasn't doing it only to save Conceptos.
I am sorry for all this rambling - I'm just bugged because what Fernando did and what Aldo did can both be considered dictionary "sacrifices" even though one is clearly more of an investment than the other. Seems like there should be a special word for a sacrifices that are truly selfless.
Again and again, up until she finds the letter, she puts his needs first.
Oh! Here's another. She refused the bribe because she could not betray him like that. Remember, Pop had lost his job with no real hope for another, and Lety, the only breadwinner, was making minimum wage. I'd call that sacrifice.
up until the day she found the letter...
and even after that, eventually she gave up on her revenge, the night before the dreaded junta she was more than willing to doctor the books for him once again and leave/dissappear quietly, trying to negatively affect him the least possible and not taking anything for herself at all... but she had to hear that 'lets send her far away' final argument and she turned around into revenge mode again.
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