Caray, Caray!

What really bothered me in that creepy scene with Vicky and Max was him addressing her as "tu", and she, humbly replying with "usted". Really made her seem more like a sex slave than a mistress. Ugh!
 

Judy- Your recaps just keep getting better, which is hard to believe since they are so excellent to begin with!

Why would Uni cut out that scene of Melissa showing Rosa her rightous anger? Kind of important to show that one of the young people in the family finally knows Rosa's deep dark secret, no?

I couldn't figure out if Max was referring to Aldo or Vicky either with the dog/rabies saying. I thought he meant Aldo, as he had just made the threat to Aldo to stay away from Vicky for her well being. So basically scaring them both by saying he'l hurt the other. But he might have also want to leave it vague for Vicky. No need since she's already scared out of her mind. I was scared when he demanded that she get in the car. Yipes!
 

JudyB- loved, loved, loved, this entire recap. I especially loved the title. You are so right. I hope Dead To Me doesn't cave, I really do. But with Rosa pushing him, he'll cave I'm afraid. Oh, The Horror of Rosa raising that poor innocent baby. Although Mati would be the one to raise the baby.

I'm with you Judy, about poor Vicky. I think she knows now she is stuck with Evil Max, until HE decides he's done with her. I hope she doesn't lose her job. Or nothing happens to her. It would be just like evil Max.

I love how Aldo is kind of stickin' it to Lastra, too funny.

I loved the comparison you made with Luci's life and family in Het Het and Gagme's with Julie in the D.F. There is so much love with Luci's family and loved how Paz told Lorenzo about how love brings a family together and not necessarily blood. This is a great family. On the other side of the coin, Gagme and Julie with Julie and her love of money. I feel so bad for that baby.

Melissa does have it bad for Claudio. He thinks of her like a daughter, she will have to tell him she is interested in him, cause he won't ever see it.

I am hoping Conny and Oscar get past this too. They are such a perfect couple.


 

Oh, that scene you are talking about is in Thursday's or what would have been Wednesday's recap.
 

We didn't miss that scene? Oh good. Thanks Mads. I wouldn't want to miss anyone telling Rosa off. It happens so infrequently.

Thanks also for the reminder that there will be no show tomorrow. Futbol will be on instead. Boooo!!
 

JudyB I hope you will permit me to stop by and tell you how much I enjoy your vocabulary lessons. I love that you include the context and I've tried to start doing it more when I do Amorcito vocab. Thanks for the inspiration!
 

Two funny moments from Ariche:
When Theo explained that the ghost appeared to drunks and disobedient kids, the first thing he said is, "Well I'm safe. I'm not a drunk." LOL! But then of course he admitted to being disobedient at times. And then when he told Luci that he knew they had Magda take him out to distract him so that he would hear what they were talking about. He points out that he's like family, so he should know what's up. He's a little kid, but he's not stupid.
 

Yes, that Ariche is a cutie. I don't get the fantasma story they're pushing at all. Seems a mean way to scare a little kid. Although Ariche didn't look too worried.

And while he contended that he was "family" and should know it all, Luciana sweetly (but firmly) reminded him that some discussions were just for "big people", family or no. Clearly she'll make a good mother.
 

Good work, JudyB.

This situation is beyond ridiculous. The idea of Rod caving to his crazy mother is even more insane. Can't he see she's out of her mind or is Patricio the only one in that house who sees the truth?
 

@Madelaine...good to know they'll include it in the next showing. Sometimes scenes are completely cut out, but looks like that will be included Thursday.

@Sara....what a nice compliment. Thanks. I've told this story before, but Sylvia is the one who got me started including vocabulary. As a brand-new arrival at CarayCaray (and understanding very little Spanish) I always looked forward to her recaps, because there would be some vocabulary at the end.
 

@Vivi...forgot to say also, when I was looking up possible interpretations of the "muerto el perro..." dicho, there was a lot of confusion, even among native speakers, as to what exactly it would mean. And odd English equivalents offered like "dead dogs don't bite". That one didn't seem very relevant to the scene!
 

UA...missed your comment when I was writing mine. Big ol' Rod still seems strangely cowed by his mother. When she was lecturing him in his office, he finally went and barricaded himself behind his desk, like he needed the protection of that big table and computer etc. to protect himself from her pressure. He'll cave for sure...only a question of when.

And yes, Pato is so wise. Kind, but not a pushover. Really has good boundaries. I didn't include it in the recap, but loved when Rod came into his room, stupidly asked "What are you doing?" (to a quadriplegiac!) and he just replied, "Killing time." How true. And how sad. For now. Can't wait for him to be mobile and to have more time with Luciana.
 

Thank you, Judy, for the excellent recap.
Contrasting landscapes, contrasting color palettes, and contrasting values certainly clash and drive the plot in this tn!
I think that if I could rewrite the ending, Max, Rosa, Rod, Gala, and Julie would all take a private yacht voyage and get stranded on a deserted island, where they would have to endure each other for the rest of their lives.
Max scares me. He appears to be as mentally unstable as Rosa.
 

And I agree with Sara. . . thank you for the vocabulary lesson!
 

@Sally...great scenario. A desert island and then let's see who would kill whom first! And I agree....Max appears seriously unhinged...like a "rabid dog" come to think of it. But he's especially ugly with Vicky.
 

Being fairly new to tns, I don't know if this outcome is plausible: Pato marries Luci? Or would this relationship violate an unwritten tn code of conduct?
 

Judy thanks for your recap. I loved your description of Gala tricking Rod - "No pressure on you, Rod. Just wanted you to know sweetheart. How do you feel?" She & Rosa live to manipulate others.

And yes Vicky's scenes w/Max were horrible. I was so mad at her for getting in the car and not running away. He'd have to park and car and run after her.

Pato continues to be the best. And though I hope Connie & Oscar get back together, I'm he told her she was an enabler.
 

Judy-I just noticed your title (I was in a rush to get to the vocab; forgive me)...HILARIOUS!!!
 

Sally- Good question, but it should be multiple questions.

-Would the heroine ever marry someone else other than the galan, but eventually end up with the galan?-- Yes. Either a civil wedding that can be ended with a divorce or a church wedding that ends in death for the other guy. The marriage would be sexless.*
-Would the heroine fall in love with another guy after the galan, and end up married to galan #2 and living happily ever after with him by the end?-- This is very rare. Most of us have only seen this happen once in recent years in Querida Enemiga where Gabriel Soto (Rod) was the galan. For this reason, most of us don't believe Soto would sign up for another novela where he (the main galan) doesn't get the heroine in the end.

*About the heroine marrying someone else but not having sex with him, I've only seen this rule broken once. The other guy was Gabriel Soto! The novela was La Fuerza del Destino which was on recently. He and the heroine remained married for a year, had sex, but over time she started losing her desire for him which was a point of frustration for him. In the end they divorced and she married the galan. And galan number 2 didn't die! That was a shocker.
 

Loved your recap, I really appreciate that you post the number of the episode, too!
I really don't like Rodrigo at all, what an idiot. I sure wish Luciana would wake up and marry Pato instead, he's the only one in that whole family worth a plugged nickel. Rodrigo is such an immature, selfish hothead. Ugh! I actually think he and Gala deserve each other.
In reference to the "muerto el perro" threat, Maximeano is saying he'll be in charge of Vicky until he's dead or decides to do otherwise. He's equally as unbalanced as Rosalena but it seems even more wicked somehow.
 

Great writing, Judy! I loved, "Luciana represents everything that is right about human love....'un amor limpio' as warm and yielding as the clay she fashions."
Your description of Gala and her game to get Rod, perfect.
No spoiler here, but you don't have to be psychic to see what will happen. Rod will cave to Gala, marry her in a civil ceremony before he will be able to find out that Luci is pregnant.


 

Went upstairs to read last night and missed all these wonderful comments. VIVI, glad you were still up to answer Sally's question....and bless you for your incredible memory...I wouldn't have known the answer!

@KAREN....even though I hate Gala, it's interesting to watch her as she manipulates clueless, impulsive Rod. The actress is very good at playing cold evil predators. But I think she could play someone good if they gave her a chance.

@CHISPA!....love that moniker. And thanks for giving us your take on the "muerto el perro..." Are you a native speaker of Spanish? That's always a help to us when we get tangled up in some of these phrases.

@EMARIE...great to hear from you. Yes, the contrasts here are so beautifully represented. In one way, I hope that Luciana doesn't move to the capital. I love the scenes in the pueblo, the easy, relaxed pace of life, that blazing blue sky, the warmth and texture of the buildings. That locale feeds the spirit in a way that the smog-filled streets of Mexico City never could....for me at least!
 

Oh and SARA...years ago I noted down that quote by Dorothy Parker and thought some day I'll use it in a recap. Then, after a while, I "retired"...but since I'm back, figured this was a perfect time to whip out good ol' Dorothy.
 

A masterfuyl JudyB recap. Always love the vocab lessons since it helps make sense of some of the scenes.

One of my least favorite lines in ALL TN's ? " “It wasn't my secret to tell". If it was a surprise borthday party, knock yourself out. But stealing a baby and other assorted nasties, no, don't buy it. But I do so want Connie and Oscar to make it thru, so hopefully he won't get as ticked as I do when hearing that.

OIne night we get Max the model father, another night we get Max the Manhandler. He needs a few anvils just for how he has treated Vik.

Dumbass, please listen to your mother carefully. SHE WHo Shall Not Be Named just offered to "raise your child". Yes, the certified nut job you've grown up with who has the snobby class ideas. Really want that and to be chained to the likes of Gala and, oh and just for added delight, you get the Champagne Queen as a mother -in-law....But alas, this is our hero of more braun than brain and I"m sure he'll be staring starstruck in front of the magistrate soon.
 

Judy-I'm glad you've come out of "retirement". I may not watch the show, but I can sneak in and check out the vocab.

Vivi-It's interesting how many "break the norm" TNs Gabriel Soto has been in.

I really wish I had started watching this one. I just didn't have the constitution for 2 hours episodes when it began, but judging from comments in other threads this one is very good.
 

PS: Daisynjay- I'm also not a fan of "it wasn't my secret to tell."
 

Ay yi yi, You were on a roll this morning DAISYNJAY...more bruan than brain, Max the Manhandler, Champagne Queen....no really, tell us how you actually feel about these folks!

How ironic that Roselena nobly wants to raise another generation of children. Mind you, Jana and Pato have turned out pretty well, thanks to their own native wholesomeness and that of Matilde. But Mati is getting older now and her influence on the next crop of babies would be lessened. Noooooo...don't let Roselena get her hands on that baby. Or Luciana's either.

Glad you're at the Oscar/Connie table with me. They bring out the best in each other so I hope the romance makes it through this period of disillusionment.
 

@SARA....I also missed out on the beginning of this one because of the 2-hour episodes and because it was summer and I expected to be outside more (not realizing that Ohio would be experiencing a torrid heat wave that made yardwork an Inferno and Infierno both! Gradually got sucked in because of the setting and some of the interesting characters. After Melinama left, Vivi and Madelaine kept this TN going for a long time, writing multiple recaps a week. Just amazing.
 

Okay Readers and Viewers....what's your take on "It's not my secret to tell."

We have seen Connie, as well as Padre Honesto, urge Roselena to tell the truth repeatedly. But without success. Padre Honesto can't reveal what he knows under the seal of confession. But should Mati, Max, or Connie have told Linares the truth while he was in prison?

Given the enormity of the secret (and the crime) I say 'yes'. For Connie, it would have meant the end of the sisterly relationship. For Max, the end of the marriage. But letting a man believe his child was dead, while grieving the loss of his wife and enduring an unjust (and long!) prison sentence, is unthinkable.

And yet....we "like" Connie. And we like the way Max interacts with his children (most of the time) but loathe the way he treats poor downtrodden Vicky.
 

Kudos and aplausos for the heroines of Refugio!

I might email you for a little catch up, Judy so I can at least keep up via recap. Refugio is actually in the perfect time slot for me (no recording conflicts.)
 

@SARA....we'd love for you to get on board for this one...Julie and Gala are bona fide "mean girls", but there are lots of lovable characters to make up for it, and the pueblo del norte scenes are wonderful (sorry you missed the pueblo wedding with the mountains in the background).

I blush to admit that I often eat my dinner in front of the TV and this is the perfect time slot. Since my husband comes and goes (and eats dinner) at very odd hours, TV is my dinner table!
 

I actually did catch the wedding and it was gorgeous! One thing I see in this show is chemistry. Granted I haven't seen much of it, but I find Rod and Luci believable.

I eat dinner in front of the TV, too. We live in a smaller home and the layout is more living room cum dining room.
 

We read the recaps for so many reasons - to learn, to ponder, to gain insight, to laugh, to cry and to revel in the amazing camraderie of Caray...

Judy, you accomplished all of the above and so much more. I think this is your finest summary - the quintessential recap. "It Serves Me Right For Putting All My Eggs in One Bastard"? I laughed out loud. Genius. Side bar worthy.

"Super studly Sperm Donor Rodrigo" and "Gala, as part of the cold gray stone and steel big city world of Rodrigo represents “un amor sucio”....self-interested, scheming, materialistic and ultimately destructive" were a few of my favorites.

Watching the pain and love between Luci, Paz and Lorenzo, divulging the truth yet fighting to stay together, to be the family whose bond cannot be broken, despite so many obstables. Contrast that with Gala's revelation of what should have been a joyful announcement - stated only to gain position and establish permanent ties to a man who never did and will never love her. What stark contrasts.

I'll join you, Vivi, Madelaine and everyone else who are disgusted with Max's treatment of Vicky. I also thought last night was the first time Aldo seemed genuinely frightened. As well he should be. daisy, let the anvils fall - no redemption in my eyes for Max.

As Karen and others noted, Pato is the best. The one voice of reason and unflawed logic. One who sees things and people for who and what they are.

I'm enjoying the vocabulary and dichos immensely. Learning and laughing. What could be better??

Diana
 

Daisynjay-loved your names for Max, Max the Manhandler, and Julie, the Champagne Queen. I have been racking my brain for an appropriate nickname for Julie, if you wouldn't mind, I'm going to use that nickname for her in my recaps :).

JudyB- I don't like it wasn't my secret to tell. Max didn't know about the baby 'napping until Rosa told him years later, when Claudio got out of prison, not like Mati and Conny knew at the time. I am not sticking up for any of them. I think one of them should have ratted Rosa out. They could have done it anonymously, at the least. A letter or phone call to the police would have worked. I see each of their reasonings too. Max, who is in legal trouble now and could,and I hope, does lose everything, Mati, who feels Rosa is like her child, and who would never rat her out, and Conny, who is Rosa's sister, who I think pities Rosa more than really loves her. But none of this excuses what each did. I don't know how they could live with themselves knowing what this was doing to Claudio. Wait till they find out Max defrauded Claudio too. I think that is when the conscience is going to kick in, when they realize exactly what this family has done to Claudio. Although this baby 'napping is beyond the pale. But on the other hand, if one of them had gone to the police at the time, the brunt of the punishment would have been given to Paz and Galindo. I am glad that didn't happen.
 

Somebody should have told Claudio. 20 years of his life was wasted. If someone had told him he had a baby daughter who was given away illegally the investigation he could have demanded could have led to Max as well and... we wouldn't have a novela.
 

Good morning amiga DIANA...."learning and laughing. What could be better?"

You nailed right there our healthy addiction to telenovelas...there is so much to learn in another language (and so little time!)and to see places and locales that many of us, me included, will never get to see in person is another plus.

And several people have noted that CarayCaray is a much friendlier, respectful forum than some of the others on the internet. That makes me very happy.

Pato is amazing. The writers have given us a very strong character who handles his paralysis with grace, but also determination to get better. But in the meantime, he still wields a strong rational and moral presence. Definitely the "sage" of this telenovela. More so than even Padre Honesto.
 

Good point MADELAINE about the brunt of the punishment going to Paz and Galdino. We have to be grateful that Luciana was raised by such good people in such a healthy environment (well apart from Don Aquiles). And as URBAN ANTHROPOLOGIST points out, if any of them had taken that morally correct step, we wouldn't have a telenovela. So....people have to keep on making wrong decisions, which we can comfortably criticize from our TV/Computer rooms, or we wouldn't have a story...and wouldn't be polishing up our Spanish.
 

Judy- I also come down hard on the "its wasn't my secret to tell" excuse. But I can empathize with how Mati and Connie felt/feel. It's doesn't make it right though. We hear about this in real life too, like the Penn State drama. I am just in awe that all of these people kept their mouths shut for so long about something so heinous. To me, that's actually worse than what our tn characters have done, and the Penn State folks were all "good people" too.

I think Oscar won't dump Connie over this, but he was right to chastise her. Now she'll also have to deal with Melissa. I think Connie is receiving her punishment in the form of the people she loves being appalled by her behavior and letting her know. Unlike Rosa, these things do matter to her and probably weigh more heavily on her conscience.

Mati gets on my nerves more because she continues to give Rosa info that she can use to hurt Luci.

 

And yes, I always worried that if charges were pressed against Rosa, Paz would be charged too. She and Galdino were just as guilty of child trafficking as Rosa is, legally.
 

Madelaine, by all means, use the moniker for Julie. I would personally like to drown her in a vat of the stuff. Way back in creative writing classes and working in advertising for a few years, use to work on coming up with nicknames or monikers for characters. Old habits die hard...also helps when trying to vent, as Judy said, "how I really feel" about some of our TN folks.

"And several people have noted that CarayCaray is a much friendlier, respectful forum" Judy I couldn't agree more. There are other forums I have tried to comment on, but just don't enjoy because there are always too many commentors that border on nasty, or want to get into arguments over opinions. Our little group is such a friendly, relaxing, funny and down-right educational gang.
 

Ditto VIVI about Matilde. She's not only keeping her mouth shut, she's weakly divulging information to Roselena, knowing full well how dangerous she is, and then refusing, per Rosie's request, to tell the people who really need to know. She's more than an enabler, she's a weak-kneed accomplice and her long-suffering woe-is-me face just makes me want to pop her!
 

Aha DAISYNJAY...creative writing classes and experience in advertising.. That explains it. Your comments always sizzle. Now I understand why.

There have occasionally been ugly confrontations in years past on certain lines. But Melinama steps in quickly to quash any unkindness towards other recappers or commenters. She is determined to keep this blog respectful and also gossip and spoiler-free. Occasionally there are glitches, but not often.
 

I was just about to add the comment about Paz being guilty too - no one seems to recognize that she took a baby & payment and allowed the father to believe she was dead. Paz is one of my favorite characters, but in real life she would be on her way to prison.

Also, a few things that keep bothering me:

1 - Could they have made they inferno look any more like a Middle School hang out? I mean seriously, it looks like they went to Dollar Tree for the decor. Bugs the crap out of me...

2 - Why oh why is Rod's office set up the way they have it? There is NO executive (or anyone with an office) who would have the door behind the desk and have to walk from the door all the way around the desk to get in the chair. Anyone who walks in the office can see what he has up on his computer. Bugs the crap out of me...

3 - The doors to the study at the TorresLanda home. Seriously, they swing back and forth as if they are hollow and cheap. Bugs the crap out of me...

4 - Gala's shoes squeak when she walks in her apartment. Can they not fix that crap? Bugs the crap out of me...

5 - Has anyone noticed that since they cleaned up Aldo's look, the makeup department is putting too much blush on him? This does not bug me, but makes me giggle.

6 - Melissa looks at CL like she wants to eat him. LOL... again, does not bug me, but make me giggle. She has a beautiful smile.

 

Ah the sweet refrain of "Bugs the crap out of me" NOLEGIRL. I'm especially with you on the Inferno decor. Very cheesy set. Actually, I've never seen an "antro" scene in a telenovela that looked realistic.

Never noticed that Gala's shoes squeaked, nor the cheesy doors or the poor placement of Rod's desk...but those are all good observations. And often, in table scenes, they have everybody sitting on the same side so the camera doesn't have to whip around.

Too much blush on Aldo! interesting. As for Melissa...yes, a beautiful smile but boy does she come on strong, sparkle-wise. Amazing that Linares hasn't picked up on it.
 

Yay, Judy! Thank you, thank you. Loved the recap, beginning with the title and I'm also enjoying the heck out of the comments. I totally agree with your assessment of Mati. One of those skillets needs to fall on her head.
 

Yep, Judy. Just call me a jack of all trades. European history major, who minored in English and French, got into advertising (WTH?), then from doing more and more of the budget side of things,headed down the slippery slope of Finance. And here I am in global corporate Finance.

I also have my bartenders license still intact for the state of Indiana. I look at it as my safety [parachute :)
 

Most excellent recap!

Out side the box here. Is Gala really preggers? This could be part of her strategy (fake preg) for getting Rod the dumb A back. Little does she know that Julie or Rosa loca or both together conspired to pay for the desired result, fooling Gala, too. Rosa loca didn't seem to be too confident in Gala's strategy.

Paz and Galdino only had the "dirt poor" and "powerless" choice. No accepto the bebe would have resulted in firing and probably bannishment from their occupation in that area.

Don't think that Lorenzo understands that his Taco stand is a grapevine for all the other maids that listen in on his conversations.
 

Anon 12:19- There's no harm hoping and wishing, but I'm afraid the Gala baby ship has set sail and is going full steam ahead.

Although I'm sure Paz and Galdino's motives for taking baby Luci were good pure--they likely felt Rosa would choose a worse fate for the baby if they didn't take her and it sounds like they fell in love with Luci as soon as they held her-- they still took a baby who wasn't theirs legally. Doesn't matter if Rosa threatened them. But it was VERY lucky that they were the first ones Rosa thought about. She could have dumped Luci at some third rate orphanage or worse! The money Rosa gave Paz and Galdino was probably what they used to buy their house and their farm land, I'm guessing.
 

@JudyB

No, I'm not exactly a native speaker of Spanish but I did live in Mexico for a few years. When I was a teenager my parents were in Matehuala, SLP, Mexico helping to build an orphanage and I went down to visit them and ended up in the hospital (that thing about not drinking the water is true...btw). My doctor during that hospital visit had a great bedside manner and I married him a couple of years later. We live in the States now, have 4 mostly grown up kids, and he still calls me Chispa.
Interesting fact, the village scenes for Luciana's village are filmed in Real de Catorce, Mexico, very close to where I lived when I met my husband. It's a gorgeous place and it sure has brought back a lot of memories seeing it again.
 

GREAT--GREAT JudyB. Your way with words is fantastic.
Your two paragraphs contrasting Luci's world and Gala's world should be award winning.

Luci's pueblo doesn't have many modern conveniences that we are all used to, but if given the choice of the little mountain pueblo or the luxury's of the D.F., I would choose the pueblo in a heartbeat. There's warmth, peace and serenity there.

Sally---I vote YES! for your yacht idea.
the gringo
 

Wonderful to come back from a difficult meeting and find these fun new comments. And I love learning more about the people who give their opinions here. DAISYNJAY....laughing about your backup plan, a bartender's license. You're right, no matter what the economy, drinking will never go out of stye. Glad the finance biz is going well for you though.

@CHISPA!...love your story. How romantic. Sounds like it could be a telenovela. And what wonderful parents you must have had to be down there building an orphanage. Our church does mission trips in various Latino countries, but nothing in Mexico at the moment. However, since you've lived there and are married to a native speaker, that makes you bi-lingual in my book! Glad to have your help with the idiom.
 

@ANONYMOUS...I like your insight that the taco stand is a funnel for chismes of all kinds. Wonder if that will play into the plot somewhere. We'll have to see.

@EMILIA...I've noticed your Iron Skillet cropping up on lines even where you and Mike are commenting. It's a CarayCaray staple. Let's whack Brigida too while we're at it.
 

@GRINGO...thanks for those warm words. And I'm with you, I'd gladly wash dishes again by hand,haul water and heck! even deal with outhouses if I had to (that's what my grandparents did)to have the beauty, peace and serenity that seems to reign in Luci's Het Het. Of course, having lived in small towns, I doubt that it's quite as serene as it seems in the story, but it's still far better than the Torreslanda House of Horrors and the equally Machiavellian place of business. Not to mention the cheesy and depressing Inferno.
 

I found this description of the scene the other week when Paz reveals the truth to CL. It's a site called We Love Soaps, and the writer writes about U.S. soaps and telenovelas (I was looking around for one of our Caraymates who wants to find a blog similar to ours for U.S. soaps). Here's what he said:
"It was beginning to look like an awfully bleak episode as Rodrigo later engaged in a booze-influenced re-coupling with his ex-fiancée Gala (Jessica Coch); but the episode ended on a high note as a major secret long known to the audience was finally revealed to a pertinent character: Paz revealed to Claudio Linares that she isn’t Luciana’s birth mother, that Claudio’s daughter didn’t die twenty years, that, in fact, Luciana is his daughter. It was one of those wonderfully torturous scenes as the revelation was doled out, bit by bit, and you’re not sure if the crucial information will ever actually get out. You begin anticipating all manner of delay, minor (phone call, knock on the door) and major (swoon, heart attack, meteor strike). The revelations of big plot secrets on soaps and telenovelas are tricky business, it’s necessary to build up anticipation for the reveal to be impactful, but wait too long and the audience will become restless or annoyed or lose interest in the secret altogether. But when the revelation is done well and the scene lands just right, it can be downright cathartic for the audience and is one of the things that make soaps great. Needless to say, this revelation on UN REFUGIO PARA EL AMOR was pretty great and set the table for what looks to be another eventful episode Monday."

I wonder if this writer is one of our Caray Caray contributers?
 

Wow. Don't know VIVI but that was a dynamite paragraph. Sounds like this writer is in a class all by himself though doesn't it. Awesome paragraph really.
 

By the way, is that the same site where somebody found a writer had lifted paragraphs and phrases out of Sylvia's Abismo recaps for their re-telling? Don't know how many of these sites exist, but it was clear there had been some plagiarism from Sylvia, Sara and some other people writing about Abismo.
 

Judy- It didn't look like the same site that someone pointed out for plagiarism. I looked at some of his/her other posts, and they don’t really give recaps like we do. Just an overview of episodes they liked or didn’t like, and general discussion of specific telenovelas, especially ones about to premier. They seem to like Refugio.

I am sure people must be coming to our site and lifting recaps though. Writing likes yours is just too good to pass up.
 

the title made my day!!!!I was laughing out loud!!!I am new in Spanish telenovela and started Teresa.. refugio and Abismo being my 2nd and 3rd respectively.I don't speak Spanish yet I read it fairly good. I rely on the recappers to confirm what I understand here in CC. You guys are so good helping me understand it well. I read all the blogs and like one said, this blogspot is the most well behaved one on the web. But what I do know, almost all of you recappers are in the wrong business. You are all so good psychoanalysts. You all perfectly interpret and evaluate all the characters in these TNS.Thsnk you all.Now to get back to our drama, My fear has been realized. I am losing hope. Woe, woe, woe.
 

Glad the title made your day VIDA2. I can remember when I was new to CarayCaray a few years ago and in the same boat, jotting down the cc's but needing the recaps to confirm what I understood. It's a fun forum where we all work together to decipher what's going on. Our readers help us as much as we help them. Carlos jokes about this being our Study Group and it IS. But a lot of good times as well, thanks heavens.

And yes, woe, woe, woe, the dark forces appear to be winning right now. I expect we'll all be biting our nails until the end. (which is guaranteed to be happy...for most everybody anyway.)
 

So relieved to hear you say that, VIVI. I really liked his paragraph...thought it was a smart and sensitive analysis of the writer's skill in this case. And I would hate to think there was plagiarism on that site. And sounds like it's another link altogether.

Thanks for "la flor" by the way. And right back atcha.
 

I think Luci and Pato should be together.
 

@ANONYMOUS...I think we all agree there. But I don't think it's in the cards...however I've never shown any particular aptitude for predicting where these stories will go. Querida Enemiga...where the first galan did lose out came as a total surprise to me. Who knows, maybe I'll be surprised again and Pato will win the sweet damsel. He's certainly the more deserving candidate.
 

Ditto!! i still remember when Pato visited Luciana at the vecindad/Estelita's neighboorhood how the driver asked him what he was thinking since he was sort of sad, and Pato just responded that he would give anything to be able to stay here with them. So you can tell once he is recovered, he would not hessitate to move out to Het Het with Luciana and live happily ever after continuing his charity work from there. But now with Luci expecting a baby of Rod's the chances of that are slim.
 

So true MARTA. Pato has loved Luciana, I think, from the very first moment he saw her on the road outside the pueblo. But she only had eyes for Rod from the get go. Destiny and all that.
 

JudyB, simply love your recap. This TN keeps getting better.Max takes his frustrations out on Vicky. One would think it's her fault his wife wears an iron girdle to bed. It's very risky behavior for someone with a dangerous wife.That said wife is so sure of her control over her kids,nothing gives her pause.What? did she think ordering "Dead to Me" to marry her evil twin Gala was all she needed? Wicked woman,can't even get herself to think of her children's happiness. if she can't be happy nobody else can.

Olive
 

@OLIVE....thanks. I agree,like you, this TN has completely sucked me in. I hadn't even planned on watching it at first.

Max is truly demented when he's around Vicky and Roselena is so warped, she's convinced that HER vision of happiness is what would really benefit her children.

They are stick figures in her fantasies, not real people with needs and desires of their own. A more self-righteous witch I can't imagine (although I understand there have been some even worse in other telenovelas).
 

Gala has to be pregnant by another man. Hopefully there is a secret that we haven't found out yet--that she got drunk in Columbia or something....
I am SO hoping that Gala, Julie and Rosalooney get their comeuppance soon!!!
 

@CATHY IN WYTHEVILLE.....Well, let's hold out that hope. But it's a long way away to the DNA test...if ever. By I like your idea...hope springs eternal.

Is this your first time commenting? If so, welcome. Great to hear from you. Hope to hear from you again.