Caray, Caray!

DYO lunes, part 1/3

Thanks to Sue and everyone else who stepped in to take over for me Friday night, I so appreciate it! I was on my way out of town when my vet called with news that my 16yo cat, whom I've had since she was 6 months, has kidney failure :( so I turned around and came home. Even though I wound up being in town, I wouldn't have been able to recap anyway between being on cat duty and running back and forth to the vet. So muchisimas gracias, my friends!!

OK, here goes...

Estela goes running away from topless Tomas, and from her lust.

More Marge whining about not wanting to do the extra tests, and Gina comforts her.

Lupita is squeaking because she left some school books at her house, but she doesn’t want to go get them, so AA sends Ruben to the vecindad to get them., because they love him there and will welcome him with open arms [sarcasm font]. Ruben goes after reminding her not to get used to this (twice) but not seeming all that bothered by it, she’s getting a little glowy.

Ruben’s getting too independent for Estela’s taste, so she asks Tomas to fire him so that he’ll have to depend on her again and will go back to his old life of leisure, to which Lupita will once again be an estorbo. Tomas is more than happy to teach Ruben this important life lesson.

At the car wash, Gema is losing her bounce, and her boss is complaining she’s not being sexy enough. She tries to fix it, but she’s not quite convincing. CreepyOgler #2 swoops in and grabs her, using some pretty subtle moves, and she sprays him with the hose. He approaches her to “teach her to respect men” and from out of nowhere comes CreepyOgler #1 (I think that’s him, altho I’ve kind of forgotten what he looks like) to put the beat-down on #2. Hmmmm. How convenient.

JM goes to see Ignacia at the obra and tells her he knows everything about her and Pedro. And he wants to help.

Mireya is sewing on the machine (it’s been a while since I’ve sewn, but isn’t there a foot pedal involved?), and Pedro comes in. As soon as he knows more about how Mamacita Santa is doing and her treatment, he’s ready to go abroad to start again with Mireya. She beams.

CreepyOgler1 pays for 20 carwashes to keep Gema from getting fired, and puts on the (sleazy) charm to flatter her.

JM tells Iggy that AA told him everything, and he agrees with AA that she should “start over” [implying divorcing Tomas and being with Pedro]. She says she can’t, because Pedro hates her now, since she fired him against her will.

Mireya is thrilled to hear that they’re going to London, but then she gets suspicious. What are you running away from? WHO are you running away from?? Merrinche in 5, 4, 3… enter Marge and Gina from the doctor. Marge cuddles with Pedro, she’s tired but relieved to have the tests over with. She feels that a great weight has been lifted from her shoulders… famous pre-anvil words. Mireya is looking daggers at Pedro.

Claws are out and the fight is on at Casa Villano-mayor between Karaña and Estela. K says Tomas is HERS, and vieja Estela can’t hold a candle to her. Estela tells her to go get medicated.

Iggy tells JM about Pedro’s attack, and she suspects that either Tomas or Estela is behind it. She’s afraid that if she left Tomas for Pedro, someone would kill him. So that’s why she fired him… to save his life. JM is the best comforter ever. Sigh.

Angel shows up at the obra for a job, all “I’m kind of a big deal because my sister is the boss’s secretary”, but Olegario isn’t impressed.

 

DYO lunes part 2/3

Pedro accepts Gina’s propuesta to go to London. She’s happy.

Neto’s not. He tells Mireya he hasn’t heard from La Mary (but we all know that’s not the reason for his grievin’). Mireya warns him that things aren’t so happy around here with Marge’s illness and Lupita leaving. Neto disses Ruben as he walks up behind him.

Pedro thanks Gina for helping him, and of course the gushing starts… I care for you like you were my own hijo. He says he wants to wait until the results for Mama Santa come back, and then they will leave. They find out the results will be back in two days.

Olegario approaches JM about Angel, who introduces himself as Isabel’s brother. JM leaves the decision up to Oleg who will have to pass it thru Iggy. Was this scene really necessary? That was 30 seconds I’ll never get back.

Ruben wants to talk to Mireya (per Lupita’s request), but Neto isn’t having it, and a war of words turns into punching faces and wrestling around. Mireya shouts for help and the family comes running out, Pedro breaking up the fight. Ruben says Lupita has a message for Mireya, she has a favor to ask.

Tomas is looking for Ruben at the constructora, but Isabel says he’s already left. JM walks in, and T wants to talk to JM about Karina for a minute.

Being surrounded by the Perez gang, Ruben admits that Lupita just wanted her school books and told him only to talk to Mireya. He was just following orders. Everyone goes back into the house except Pedro and Mireya, who asks how Lupita is doing. Ruben replies she’s fine, and Pedro gets all alpha male, ready to defend his territory.

Tomas tells JM that Karina was at his house last night, armando un escandalo, and she was all aggressive with Ignacia and Estela. JM says he doesn’t know anything about it… Karina ended it with him and doesn’t want to see him any more. Tomas says he’s going to have to “tomar cartas” to resolve this (I had to flip over to English captions for this, they translated it as “I’m going to have to get involved in this myself”). This seems to worry JM… What do you mean, get involved?? Tomas brushes him off. What’s this guy up to???

Mireya is raining on Rupita’s parade big time. “You kids have no idea what you’re in for. You’re so irresponsible. You’re not going to be able to handle it. If only Lupita had just taken my advice…” Ruben is looking concerned. “What advice?” he asks. “You know, to give your baby to me so I can validate my sham of a marriage,” she DOESN’T say. Instead she just says, “Forget it.”

Oleg brings Angel to Iggy for approval, and our thug-version of Eddie Haskell tries to charm her (bleck) but she’s not really in the mood. She approves him absent-mindedly and lets Oleg figure out the rest. Olegario is super-excited to be working with such an upstanding young man [sarcasm font].

Lupita gets the books and is super-excited to do her homework [NOT sarcasm font]. She thanks Ruben and he claims everything went fine with her family. AA is so proud and tickles him, and then listens from around the corner gleefully as Ruben and Lupita have one of those conversations only tn teenagers have… He was glad to get her books for her so she could study, just because she’s going to have a baby doesn’t mean she has to throw away her life. “You mean WE are going to have a baby,” adds Lupita coyly, and Ruben agrees… “Yup, WE.”

Gema is gushing to Candy about her knight in shining armor.

Olegario lectures Angel about the high moral code of construction workers, and he better not have any manchas on his record or he’s outta there. Angel assures him in his slimy Eddie Haskell way that he’s clean and kisses his Virgencita necklace. How’s he gonna pull that one off?

 

DYO lunes, part 3/3

Mariano finds Gina at the vecindad and is panicking… Lupita suspects you were pregnant! She’s at the point of finding out your secret! (Ummm, apparently you don’t know Lupita very well, do you?).

Tomas calls Ruben to his office and fires him.

More panicky dialogue between Gina and Mariano. I’m really tired of this particular secret. AND in which he claims that Lupita is so much more mature than her age (Um, have you even MET Lupita??). They get dreamy about what their lives could have been if she hadn’t fled the country. Mariano thinks it’s never too late.

Ignacia finds Lupita at the departamento and learns that Lupita is living there. Pedro walks in. Puppy dog eyes between Iggy and Pedro, and he tells Lupita without looking at her to pack her bags, she’s going home.

Tomas offers the “reduction of personnel” excuse to Ruben, and he gets desperate. He needs this job! Tomas says he needs to study in order to have a life as a professional which is the most important thing. “You sound like my mom!! Wait a minute… who told you to fire me?”

Angel wants little sister to help him “clean up” his criminal record.

“Did my jefa force you to fire me?” Tomas of course denies this and offers to pay him for daily reports on Ignacia, but Ruben refuses to be a puppet like Tomas. T loses his cool as JM walks in. Ruben is connecting the dots… Tomas is giving Estela money to buy off Lupita, and then when Lupita moves in with Ruben, he gets fired. CLAAAAAARO!! JM is surprised to find out Ruben has been fired.

Tomas is glad not to have a bum working for him anymore, and Ruben is glad not to be working for Mommy’s Little Puppet anymore. Never thought I’d say this, but YAY RUBEN!!! Finally someone puts the pieces together and doesn’t allow themselves to be manipulated out of it!! He storms out, JM scoffs at Tomas and follows Ruben.

Mariano kisses Gina to remind her of how they were together. She breaks away and runs off in a panic.

Pedro tells Lupita she needs to come back home, because he’s leaving the country and she needs to be there for Marge. Iggy opens her foot-shaped mouth (god bless her) and says “So I see Gina convinced you to go.” Pedro wants to know how she knew it was Gina’s idea.

Fin del capitulo

 

GENERAL

By the way, I like Vivi's suggestion about separating SANTA with its own thread, and keeping DYO/MARIDO together if it's doable. I think it might make the recaps and comments of all three novelas much easier to navigate.

UNIMAS

Stumbled on Zuria Vega's new miniseries CLOROFORMO on Unimas, and love it! I think it's super short (only 13 episodes?), but she's fabulous in it as a rebellious spitfire who starts training to become a boxer. It also tells the stories of 4 other boxers who have the same manager, played by Don Napo from TdA. Good stuff!

MARIDO

Someone in the last thread mentioned how Ivan looks like Marc Anthony, and I have to say I have thought that since day one!! Only Ivan is better looking in my opinion :)
 

Thanks for the fabulous recap Another Amy!


I'm behind with all novellas presenty so the recaps are highly appreciated. Next week we'll have a national holiday on Mon-Tues and hopefully I'll be able to catch up.

So, Iggy put her foot in once again.. so much for hiding something when she's around... :) she really is a clear example of the good intentions and the road to hell...

 

MARIDO:

Did anyone understand what was going on with those tough guys in New York intimidating that woman?

We had another Diosa sighting yesterday. I wonder if she'll ever be more in the story than just eye candy.

Did Barbie actually blame Max's stomach pains on the motorcycle? I think she said he had no pains before he bought it, they should just return it, and his pains would go away!
 

SANTA DIABLA:

I'm enjoying this show. What will happen at the wedding? BTW, I plan on recap tonight's show and tomorrow's (Tuesday and Wednesday).
 

Marido

Is it okay to comment before the recap is up? I'll try to keep my comments general. I like Griselda when she's being severe and sensible. (I probably like her at all times, but this is what made an impression on me today.) This is the first thing I've seen Sonya Smith in, but I might end up liking her only to Silvia Navarro (who I can imagine playing this same role).

I also like the way they filmed Reinaldo talking on the phone in his car. (OK, not general, but not a plot development.) From the side rather than in front, and so you had a real sense of him driving, looking from side to side at intersections and so forth. A tiny thing, but it pulls you into it just a bit more. This TN has good production values, and I'm seeing that better now that I'm watching on Telemundo rather than YouTube.
 

Marido

I meant to say that I might put Sonya Smith second only to Silvia Navarro, in my rankings of TN actresses. Which is kind of premature on my part, since I haven't seen that much of her yet.
 

DyO

Amy - thanks for getting this terrific recap out. I'm so sorry to hear about your kitty. I know what you're going through and how stressful it is, having experienced it with two older cats. I hope you and kitty won't suffer. And I appreciate your taking the time to do these recaps.

I loved your snarky asides and the "sarcasm fonts": "Mireya is sewing on the machine (it’s been a while since I’ve sewn, but isn’t there a foot pedal involved?)" - hilarious. I guess you could get a hand control - they make cars with hand controls for the disabled. But I don't remember seeing hand controls on Marge's machine.

I'm liking Ruben more and more. Lately he's showing more maturity and thinking things out. He put 2 and 2 together and came up with ESTELA + NOMAS in a NY minute. Maybe Iggy will hire him….

AA continues to be my favorite character. She's so cute when she's eavesdropping.

I still can't get into the carwash babes story.

Maybe Estela And Karana will sting each other to death.

Beth
 

MARIDO

Hombre - That scene in the NY apartment looked like a different tn. Was the woman TC's Tia? Maybe we're getting the set up for Tia to suddenly appear in Miami asking TC for money. If so, the secret surrounding the murdered woman should be exposed.

I think it's a given that Max will lose the fight. He won't seek medical care because of Barbie's hissy fit. Her comments about the motorcycle being the cause of Max's pains were almost bizarre.

Beth
 

Marido

I do think the NY woman was Tia Iris, although I haven't gone back and compared her looks with the flashback. She needs $120,000 (if I understood correctly) fast. She's earning a lot of money by renting out apartments under the table (presumably neither paying taxes nor observing rent control), so she's in the criminal economy where the gangsters can take their cut. And they know where she lives.
 

MARIDO

Wow, Utah - thank you. I hadn't gotten the part about the $120 k or the under-the-table rent. Tia should be arriving in Miami this afternoon!

Beth
 

Mun2 is rebroadcasting Niños Ricos, Pobres Padres, and Relaciones Peligrosas if anyone is interested.
 

MARIDO

Yes, that was definitely Tía Iris shown in NYC. I didn't get that those guys were mobbed up until almost the end of the scene. I thought they were Rent Control Bureaucrats or tax guys for NYC, or even cops. But apparently they normally take a cut of any such under-the-table rental arrangements, sort of like they show mobbed up guys showing up to collect a "protection" envelope from a small deli.

They showed a not-very-clear shot of Tía Iris observing TC right after she killed the person in the wheelchair. And I recognized her as Willy's mother from Corazon Valiente - can't remember her character's name.

I am officially furious at Juan Pablo. What kind of twisted machismo is jealous of the other guy's sperm as part of the embryo implanted into his wife? And, of course, he admitted that he will surely be jealous of the child and has never even wanted one. He needs to become her FIRST husband!

Barbie is truly, truly despicable. And Máximo apparently has sesos mínimos for allowing her greed to keep up the good life to damage his health.
 

MARIDO lunes 12 de agosto Part 1

In which we finally meet the oft-mentioned Tía Iris…

On the road

Gris gets a call from Reinaldo who is driving somewhere. Can I say that before "Don't text and drive" there was "Don't drive distracted"? Cellphones are a blessing and a curse. Back to the show…Gris thinks she shouldn't finish the job because of TC and now Pati. Reinaldo says she spoke to Pati and she understands that he was just trying to console her re: Antonio. He needs her to finish the job. "Don't fail me."

Tacos Bar

Gabe asks K if Gris returned got home late from her job at the restaurant. K tells him she came home early, even before he went to bed. Gabe seems relieved, "You know how it is when you're in love." and says he wouldn't want to lose Gris. K asks him how he can lose someone he hasn't won yet.

Chez Palmer

TC asks Elsa where Manuel is. She reminds her that at the appointed time her staff should be in their places, ready to wait on her. Elsa said he will be a little late. TC is not amused.

Casa de Manuel

Celeste is helping Manuel with his tie. "I called Elsa and told her you would be a little late due to health reasons." Celeste doesn't think he should go to work at all and says he hit the floor pretty hard after the blow…she almost lets the cat out of the bag about Sol hitting him with part of a broken boom box. Manuel says he can't remember anything about the fall. Before he leaves he kisses Celeste. Sol comments that he kissed her like a true husband would. Since this is Manuel, Viewerville is already suspicious that he knows more than he's letting on. Celeste calls Gris, who as the voice of reason tells Celeste he could be faking. Celeste doesn't think so. She is very happy with kinder, gentler Manuel.

Casa Carrasco

Gris hangs up as Amalia walks in. She tells Amalia she is home to rest a bit. She is not used to working all night. And, she has never had to throw a son out of the house. Amalia starts to say something but Gris stops her, telling her she doesn't want to hear it.

University

Pati is seated at a table with a friend. Antonio and Daniel approach them. Pati turns away.

Training

Max is not having a good practice. His trainer asks if he is distracted by Babs being there. Babs says she will leave. "Happy?" She leaves the gym but turns and takes one last look through the door. She can see Max isn't up to form and has a very concerned look.

Fina Estampa

Ester arrives and wants to know where JP is. Marcia says he is meeting with his brother-in-law. Ester tries to call him but his cell is turned off.

Palmer Gourmet

JP tells Reinaldo that Ester has changed her mind and wants to pursue in vitro fertilization again, using egg and sperm from donors. JP is horrified that Ester would want to be pregnant with a child that is not part of either of them. "It would be like an extraterrestrial in her womb for nine months." He asks Reinaldo what he should do. Reinaldo thinks he should support her. He also thinks JP is jealous. JP admits to some jealousy because they have the perfect life and a baby would change all that.
 

MARIDO

Thanks, Sue, for your great recap. I couldn't watch all of last night's episode so this helps me fill in the blanks.

Finally Kike said something intelligent: "K asks (Gabe) how he can lose someone he hasn't won yet." Maybe there's hope for K's brain in life after Barbie.

Barbie is just horrible - she supposedly loves Max, but she cares more about the fight money than about his health.

I fear that Manuel is playing some cat and mouse game with Celeste, and it's going to lead to his beating her badly for attacking him. And she's living in denial.

Novelera - Loved your comment about JP. He's thinking with his little head. (There's a lot of that in this tn). Didn't the doc allude to husbands sometimes having issues with in vitro with donor sperm or eggs?

Beth
 

MARIDO lunes 12 de agosto Part 2

Fina Estampa

Ester tries to call JP again and gets voice mail. She tells Marcia it's very important that she talk to him and she won't be able to concentrate on work or anything until she does.

Departamento de Alba

Beatriz presses Alba to let her be inseminated with Guillermo's sperm. Alba tells her (rightly so!) that for now they should mourn and them move on before any important decisions are made.

Palmer Gourmet

More talk between JP and Reinaldo re: relationships. Reinaldo says that marriage is like a recipe. I didn't exactly get his explanation.

Casa Carrasco

Amalia is trying to make sense of Doña Olga's notebooks. She feels she won't be able to reproduce the creams. Gris tells her to "just do it." She can learn what works and what doesn't along the way. Why do Gris' children call her "Doña"?

Blue Dolphin Posada

Diosa sighting FF>>

Beach

Leo buys Penny her favorite juice, pineapple and mint without sugar. She's pleased when he tells her he got a job. Victor spies on them from atop his lifeguard chair.

Tacos Bar Pantry

K has Clara feels his improved abs. They get all hot and heavy and then realize Gabe is standing right next to them. Awkward! Clara says she's a respectable woman and Gabe launches into a chewing -out I didn't even try to understand. After he leaves K breaks out laughing and we see Clara threaten him with a rolling pin.

Training

Max meets Babs–he thought she went back to the hotel. She can sense something is wrong. He confesses that the pain he had in Dubai has returned and now it's worse. She thinks it could be psychological. Now she knows why they went to the gym in a taxi–he was afraid to ride the new motorcycle. She squeals that this will mess up the fight. The trainer, whose name is Clinton, tells them to take their dispute home.



 

DyO
Amy, you are a very skilled capper, and thanks! Especially with the extra stress of your cat's kidney failure.
Iggy opens mouth, inserts foot. Could that be a new DRINK signal? Happens often enough.
Angel in the Obra, what could go wrong there? I would say he's gonna set up Pedro for something, but wait, that's already been done. And Pedro was "fired" anyway. Spying on Iggy? That's been done too.
Beth, I am with you, car wash tine I switch away.
Clara
 

MARIDO lunes 12 de agosto Part 3

Fina Estampa

Ester asks JP what he discussed with Reinaldo. "Guy stuff." She's offended that he won't share because they are one of the few couples who don't keep secrets from each other. JP says that they are join down two different paths and that this is her doing.

Casa Carrasco

Amalia tries to make the creams. FF>>

Fashion Motors

Gris pays Ivan an installment for the deductible. Ivan doesn't want to accept it but Gris reminds them they had an agreement and if he doesn't accept the payment she will be offended. He asks her to go for coffee but she has to tend to her clients. Seems Ivan has got one in every port. Gris walks outside and sees a taxi…with Babs. Gris yells, "You're a demon!" while Babs basically tells her to go to hell.

Chez Palmer

Marcela arrives and the amount of luggage suggests this isn't a temporary stay. She and TC toast her visit which TC wants to be short and Marcela wants to last forever. Marcela reminds TC that if she's there then Tía Iris can't stay with her. I agree with all of you who commented that surely a mansion the size of Chez Palmer would have more than one guest room.

New York, New York

We leave Miami for the Big Apple and we finally see Tía Iris. Let's see if the captions can clarify what is going on. Iris is showing an apartment to a couple when three shady-looking men show up and ask the couple to leave. She thinks they are from the government but one says they are not. He is from a private company. This guy discusses the fact that she owns four apartments. He says that she owes "taxes" to his private company to the tune of $120,000. She asks if they are mafiosos. He gives her 72 hours to deliver the money. This is still not clear to me.

Hotel

Max wants to see a doctor. Babs says the press is all around and if they found out about this…She starts to think. Don't think Babs, your head will blow up. In some sort of twisted logic she connects Max's chest pains to the motorcycle he bought. "It's psychological! So there's no need for a doctor." He goes along with her. Stupid Max.

Casa Carrasco

More whining from Amalia re: the creams. FF>> Amalia gets ready for the party at Fashion Motors. Gris and Celeste discuss Manuel's new attitude. Celeste has her doubts but hopes it's for real.

Outside Chez Palmer

Manuel is sitting in TC's car listening to music. Ro warns him that if TC catches him, he's dead. Manuel mutters that he'd like to pluck that bird (Ro) and fry him with the two chickens he's got at home who think they've fooled him with their story. The leopard doesn't change it's spots, Celeste. There must be an equivalent proverb in Spanish. Spanish has a "dicho" (saying) for every situation.

Palmer Gourmet

Gris arrives and tells Reinaldo they have to talk. She explains that the last few conversations they have had have left her confused. She is impacted when he tells her he is attracted to her but then he backpedals by saying he likes to talk with and spend time with her. Gris suggests that they end their friendship. "Your wife hates me and my son deceived your daughter." She goes to finish the Palmer Gourmet renovations. I don't see anything renovated. And I thought her original estimate was for three weeks.


 

Chez Palmer

TC is yakking on the phone about the renewal of vows ceremony. Marcela comes in and says she's going to work. TC asks her if she wants a story about a couple who have been married for over twenty years and are going to renew their vows. She agrees. TC calls Reinaldo to tell him. He isn't crazy about the idea but agrees as long as they mention the restaurant in the article. During this conversation Gris walks through the kitchen and looks a little sad at hearing about the renewal of vows.

Fashion Motors Party FF>>

Fina Estampa

JP and Ester were supposed to go out to dinner but JP would rather eat at home. Ester asks him what's wrong. He denies anything is wrong–he's just tired. He asks how her appointment went. She says fine and he abruptly leaves her to go out to the car.

Departamento de Alba

Alba thinks Beatriz' idea to be inseminated with Guillermo's sperm is crazy and unethical. Beatriz is willing to wait until Alba thinks she's serious. Alba tries to convince her that she could fall in love with someone else and have children with him but Beatriz is convinced that won't happen.

Chez Palmer

TC calls Reinaldo to tell him she misses him and to find out when the all-night renovations are going to end. Gris mouths "Hoy" and he tells TC. Gris goes to leave and says that the work is done and that he shouldn't call or come looking for her anymore. Reinaldo's face tells us his heart is broken.

 

DYO

Amy I hope your kitty will be OK. {hugs} My kitty has been keeping me company while I recap Marido.

I was also wondering how Mireya could sew if she can't move her legs. But I love your line about Iggy's foot-shaped mouth!

MARIDO

What a boring episode to recap. The only thing of consequence was finding out that Manuel knew what happened.

Oh maybe the stuff with Tia Iris since we know she's going to wind up in MIami.
 

MARIDO

Many thanks, Sue455. I had company yesterday evening, and I couldn't get to watch Marido when it was being shown. By the time I watched the tape, I was so exhausted I fell asleep in the middle. So your recap was especially helpful.
 

Santa
No recap today, I guess.
 

MARIDO:

Thanks so much Sue! I felt so bad to Rei. But Gris is doing the correct thing. They both know they are attracted to each other, and his marital status makes that a huge no no.

Alright! Tia Iris is coming to squeeze some cash out of TC, and she's bringing the mob with her. Should be fun!
 

DyO
AnotherAmy--I am so sorry to hear that your kitty is ill. Many of us who have had older cats have been through this, and it's never easy to concentrate on other things while we worry about them. So, my hat is off to you for continuing with the great recaps for our enjoyment. Big hugs to you and your kitty.
J in Oregon

 

MARIDO - Tuesday

Part 1/4

We begin where we left off, with Gris and Rei’s farewell.
Gris doesn’t think they should remain friends, especially after everything that happened between their families. Rei doesn’t fight this, but you can see that he’s sad. He gives her the rest of her money and Gris congratulates him for his vow renewal – he’s the first man she knows that wants to marry the same woman twice, his wife is very lucky to have him. Rei thanks her and assures her TC will find out she was the one in charge of the restaurant repairs.
Gris wants to shake hands before she leaves, but Rei has a gift for her – a bottle of the special aceite that he uses to cook at the restaurant.
In the car, Gris is sad, her dream was beautiful while it lasted, now it’s time to go back to her real life.
At the restaurant, Rei is a little blue, too, he finds one of Gris’ gloves and puts it in one of his desk drawers.

Fast forward a few days: Ivan is running on the beach - he’s dressed, but K is running on the street half naked and Max is training the same way, too (say thank you, ladies!).
Tony is studying, Amalia is trying to find the good cream recipe, Gris is working, TC is preparing her party, Gabe is at his Taco bar…

And we’re back with Amalia, who fell asleep in the living room, but apparently she found the missing ingredient for her creams: hard work and determination. Gris is very proud of her.

It’s the day of the vow renewal (here we go, should we start a drinking game for all the things that will go wrong, wrong, wrong at this party – hey, we might as well have our own fiesta, right?).
TC, aka La Reina del Nilo, has called an entire army of people to do her make-up, mani-pedi, hair, etc, etc…

K is still training, Paloma thinks it’s great that he’s so committed to staying in shape (in the shape of lusting over Barbie is my guess); she doesn’t like K’s friendship with Ivan, though, because that guy is a womanizer (somebody’s got a crush…)

Max is talking to the press, the fact that he’s not exactly at his 100% is now public knowledge. Alone in their hotel room, Barbie puts even more pressure on Max, reminding him that he needs to win the fight, otherwise they’ll be ruined.
They kind of start to fool around even if doing this the day of the game is a big NO NO, but the coach walks into their bedroom, catching them almost in the act and isn’t happy that Max is not saving his energy for the fight, not focusing as he should; so he’ll stay with them for the rest of the day. He takes a chair and sits down – no nooky – nooky for Barbie before the fight.

 

MARIDO - Tuesday

Part 2/4

At Paloma’s posada one of the guys (can’t remember which one) asks her what she’ll do with Olga’s house (apparently she’s the owner). Paloma has no plans for now, she feels the house will soon have a new owner, so she’s in no hurry.
Tony wants to hurry to the University, to talk to Pati, but Daniel tells him that she won’t even be at school today, she’s getting ready for tonight’s party.

Sure enough, Pati is home and the entire house is in a fuss. Simon comes by with the food and the drinks, he and Pati have a quick “Hello”. After a chat with Elsa, Pati gets a call from Tony, but she hangs up immediately (good girl!).
With Tony, Daniel warns him about pushing too hard, even that kiss was a forced one. But Tony is in the select group of men who think that what a woman says and what she really means are two different things (even if that was true, how about giving her some space, you moron?)

Pati goes to the kitchen, where her dad has one of his omelets ready for her to eat. I so love their relationship, my dad loved spoiling me like this, too, when we lived in the same house. Men love to have boys to pass on the family name, but the bond between a father and his daughter has got to be one of the most special things in the world (and I’m making myself weep, thinking about my dad, that I’ll get to see in only a few days – yey!)

Paloma came for the party, too, she’s in charge with massaging TC. But she sees something that she takes as a bad omen and makes the mistake of telling TC that maybe she should cancel the party because she has a bad feeling about it (could this be the time for our first drink? I guess so).
TC is her usual hysterical self about it, asks Paloma to get out, even calls Ro to throw her out and warns her that if anything goes wrong with the party, it will be HER fault.
After she gets rid of Paloma, TC locks herself in the bathroom, but Ro finally manages to calm her, promising a good massage.
Paloma is loading her massage table onto her car, when Rei comes by, makes her promise she’ll be at the party and is all smiles (the poor guy has no clue about TC’s latest crisis, which is quite a blessing, really).

Gris and Amalia have a talk about Tony, Amalia wants to know if her mom will ever forgive her brother, if he apologizes. Gris is not yet sure, she knows about his life from Paloma, knows that he’s focusing on his studies, because he wants to evolve through hard work – so Gris thinks Tony is not a bad boy, he’s just desubicado (has misplaced ideas).
Anyway, she has other kids to worry about….so… how about that relationship with Rafa, how is that going?
Amalia’s face lits up, so things must be going well. The actress is very very pretty, she has a distinct sparkle in her eyes.
Gris reminds Amalia of the mistakes she’s made when she had the same age, she fell in love and got pregnant at 15. Amalia asks her mom not to worry about her, she’s 18, and her mom agrees, as long as Amalia takes all the necessary precautions. She can do whatever she wants with her novio, she’s not against it, but be sure to use a condom. Amalia laughs, assures her mom that she’s well aware of this stuff. Gris suggests they should also go to the health center, make sure that everything is ok.
I loved this talk, is was so natural and realistic – unlike most tn mothers, Gris didn’t have a crisis when thinking that her daughter might be intimate with a man, she just asked her to be smart about it; and, unlike ALL tn muchacitas, Amalia seems to be prepared for the world she lives in – could this mean there will be no pregnancy in her future? One can only hope.

The good novio, Rafa, is up to no good, though. He sends Leo to deliver a moto to a rich kid, but not before making a stop over at Cardoso’s place!
Who is that? As it turns out, Rafa and this Cardoso guy have a deal: changing some of the moto parts with cheaper, less efficient ones, I’d guess. And Leo is the driver in all this mess that will surely explode in their faces.

 

MARIDO - Tuesday

Part 3/4

Esther sets up another appointment with Alba, and JP gets furious because she hasn’t talked to him about it before. For the record, Esther did try to do it once, but he wouldn’t listen. I still think she should have tried harder, though.
Anyway, JP lays it all out, he doesn’t want his wife carrying a baby that doesn’t belong to either of them; he doesn’t want to raise a stranger’s child. And the fact that she just went ahead with the plans behind his back is only making him more mad. Esther tries to explain that she wanted to have all the details clear in her head, first, but JP simply doesn’t want a baby.

At her office, Alba gets another visit from Beatriz, but this time it’s not about the insemination. Beatriz wants to become a donor, just like Guillermo was. Alba doesn’t like the idea, but Beatriz insists, she knows how hard it is to find donors.
And I think I know where this story is going…

At the university, Daniel, Vanesa and Pati’s other friend say they’re all going to the party, Tony is the only one not invited. He’ll go anyway, he jokes, but he has a naughty, “up to no good” twinkle in his pretty eyes (start drinking, guys, this is gonna get good).

Gris is buying another lottery ticket. So the lost one truly was a big red herring, so big that I’m thinking that maybe she won’t win the lottery after all…. No, she has to, tn rule!

The Taco Bar is filling up, a lot of people came to watch the fight on the TV. Gabe is happy for the good business, K is pouting like always, Clara tries to reason with him, same old, same old.

Max is warming up for the fight, he’s very tense (a thing that his opponent is well aware of); the coach asks Barbie to leave, Max needs to be calm and concentrate. She throws a hissy fit, but ends up agreeing.

Tony comes to the Taco Bar, has a chat with K, asks about the family and about Barbie, K is his usual grouchy self about that.
Later on, Tony goes to buy a tux (or is it renting? it would definitely make more sense). He’s still not brave enough to go to the party, though, so he asks his Posada mates for some alcohol. Paloma keeps none in the house, but Diosa has whiskey in her room.
She invites Tony to drink with her, they flirt a little, Tony asks for the bottle to go and he’s already drunk by the time he gets down the stairs of the Posada (are you all dizzy, yet? if not, drink up, Tony is not only crashing the party, but he’s doing it in grand style; never a dull moment at the Palmer-Ibarra shindigs).


 

MARIDO - Tuesday

Part 4/4

The fight is about to start, Barbie is in the first row. The fighters are introduced, we find out Max only lost one fight in his career and now he wants to get his title back. Am I the only one who’s sure he’s gonna get the beating of a life time? Poor Max, I really feel sorry for him. But, hey, at least K will have something to not pout about. Although he’s such a Debby downer, I’m sure he can still find something to whine about.

The party is also close, Ro is taking care of some last details. He hopes the garden lights don’t shut down again, there is no way they could call Gris to fix them. One of the guys from the Posada (is Fernando his name?) is the Chief of security. TC talks to him, warns him about not letting people without an invite at the party. She’s still wearing the night gown and robe she had all day and Fer kind of fancies what he sees, he decides he’ll have her one way or another… I’d laugh at his delusions, but this being a tn, one can never know.

After that TC goes to get her make-up done. Rei looks dashing in his suit, even Ro looks very fine, but TC cuts off his wings, by asking him to change into something that will not make him look like one of the guests, since he’s only hired help. Also, Ro has the task to inform Vanesa that she’s to stay at the entrance, make sure the people coming in are on the invitation list.
Vanesa gets mad when she hears that, she feels humiliated and wants to leave, even if Ro thinks she should be honored that TC allowed her such an important task (gotta love this Ro, how he likes to spin things). Before she gets to leave, though, Vanesa sees Rei and decides to stay, she has the motivation she needs, stealing the handsome king away from the bruja. Ro is scared only to hear about it, imagine how he’d feel if he actually saw half of the things Simon sees daily.

The guest start to arrive, the press is also present. Fernando has to intervene for a moment, giving Tony the time he needs to sneak in. He still has the bottle with him, and it’s now half empty. He takes another sip for courage (haven’t sipped enough courage, yet, Tony?), stumbles a little and goes in (are you all wasted, yet?)


And I need to make a tiny announcement: I'll be out of town starting Monday and until the beginning of September, so I won't be able to do the recaps, so if anyone could take care of them, I would greatly appreciate it.
Maybe some mini recaps if nothing else, just to get the talk going?
 

MARIDO:

Thanks so much Adriana. We'll find a way to fill for you while you're off vacationing and being pampered by your dad. I also have that kind of relationship with my dad, so I can relate to you and Pati. :)

Somehow I don't see his crashing her parents' party drunk, endearing Tony to Pati. I hope this pushes her further away.

Loved the frank and sensible discussion about sex and birth control Gris and Amalia had. I love that Gris was lighting candles at her Catholic home altar while doing it, without feeling the least bit of Catholic guilt.

Looking forward to tonight when things don't go as planned with the fight or the party.
 

SANTA

Hola! Can someone please explain to me how marrying Humberto is going to accomplish payback for Willy's death? While you're at it, what possible advantage will this be for Santa's son Willy? She says she's doing this for him. How is being apart from him and married to murderer going to help her son.

Paula is really one piece of work. She has no regard for anything but her own need for revenge...for which she is really paying very little, if anything.

Unless this all begins to make some sense, I'll be tuning out.

Gracias!
 

SANTA:

Marta, I'm not a big Paula fan, either. The sidekick is supposed to be wise, loveable or funny, or a combo of these-i.e., Lucho, gaston, Francisca in la patrona. Paula is just annoying with her thirst for venganza. Marrying and sleeping with your hubby's murderer as a form of venganza is a bit much for me, as well.I'll keep watching because this tn is not a refrito or remake and I want to encourage originalty.
 

Marido,

thanks so much Adriana!

Max and TC both getting ready for their big events,
and their worlds are aflutter about them,

I worry that Max has chest pains,
and that he might have more problems than losing the fight,
I like this guy,

I'm loving all of the splash that Barbie brings to the table,
Kike probably hasn't had an exciting day since she left him,

you kind of have to admire Antonio's determinism,
his BIG mistake with Pati earlier was that he didn't make her part of his plan,
I wonder if things have changed...

 

SANTA DIABLA

Marta, J desde NYC, I share your opinion about Paula. All she does is demand, demand, demand, but she never does one thing right.

First, she managed to get herself caught by Humberto in her first day of "work" and, what I found even more idiot from her part, when Barbara came to snoop around the second time, instead of calmly telling her the family that used to live there moved out, she had a very suspicious mini crisis and threw Barbara out - she should have been prepared for this meeting, Barbara had already been there once.

So she's not even able to say one tiny lie, but she expects Santa to marry, sleep and live with Humberto.

And I predict a lot of other grating moments coming from her, especially when Santa starts to soften up, mainly because of Santiago.

I don't find Santa's mom all that normal in this situation, either. I get it that Willy was a great guy, but way to push your daughter in the Devil's arms when you see she's having such a hard time dealing with the situation.


 

SANTA

J desde NYC - Thanks for your comments. Glad to know I'm not alone in mis sentimientos.

You make a good point about this TN not being a refrito and I too like to encourage originality so I'll hang in there for a while:)
 

LA SELECCION

has anybody else been watching? i don't understand what proposal escobar made to rene. i caught it had something to do with a cousin. and that there were 5 or 6 boys involved. is he having rene mentor a development squad?

another possibility is that pablo invited rene to choose 5 or 6 guys to enjoy the same perks that he was willing to give rene?


and if you didn't think this was a real novela, carlo's wife fainted, and guess what--preggo!
not to mention rene might be dating his half sister without knowing it.

also, in terms of teams, are the azuceros the same as the red devils? and i've been assuming the red devils are different from the red express.


-mai tai
 

SANTA -

Adriana Noel - You're so right about Paula not doing even one thing right. Her meltdown at the door when Barbara arrived the second time was truly ridiculous.

Also agree that Santa's mother doesn't seem normal that she would want her daughter sleeping with her son-in-law's murderer for revenge!

But what I really don't get is how any of this makes sense as payback. It seems to me that Santa marrying and sleeping with Humberto just adds to all he has taken from her. Is she planning to kill him off and inherit his assets? Big risk when you have a young son who lost his father and now won't be seeing much of his mother.
 

Santa
I thought Santa's plan was to prove that Humberto & family were murderers. Ruin their reputations & finances.

The 1st avoidance of sleeping with Humberto is fainting I guess.

I can't say much about any of the characters or actors. I keep watching to catch locations that I recognize. Last night when Santa jumped out of the car, it was on Las Olas Blvd. It was in front of a new place that I just saw last wk, American Social which I thought was an odd name for a S FL restaurant.

I think I recognize the law office bldg too. I think the expensive homes are around the Coral Ridge Country Club.

Just wish it had some of my favorites in it.
 

SANTA DIABLA, Martes, Part 1

Ah, Inéz. Played by Ximena Duque, she’s a young, impulsive, bratty girl. A troublemaker. She spies Santiago talking to a tall brunette, and thinks, Damn, I wanted that hot guy for myself. But he’s got a girlfriend. The tall brunette is, of course, Santa (Amanda). Inéz thinks they’re kissing, when they’re really just having one of those heart to heart talks where Santi says don’t marry my brother, and Santa just sort of stares. Inéz rushes inside, tells her father Vicente (who appears to be maybe the family accountant or law associate of the Canos), that she’s pissed that Santiago has a girlfriend. When she points out Amanda, Vicente goes no, daughter, that’s the girl HUMBERTO is going to marry tomorrow. Whoa! Inéz didn’t see that one coming, but knows something funny is going on. We then find out that her BROTHER is Pancho! So Pancho is the son of Vicente, the brother of Inéz, and the novio of Lucy the maid. Okaaaaaay.

Anyway, Inéz has the hots for Santiago, and since that Amanda wasn’t his girlfriend, the field’s wide open. She convinces Vicente to hire Santi as her music teacher. Later she tells Santi, who is a little surprised, but accepts the job.

Most (but not all) of the family is at the hospital, seeing how Gaspar is doing. Apparently, he’s better, so Humberto is determined to have the wedding tomorrow.

Arturo is destroyed that his little puppy died. He doesn’t know that his mom Hortensia killed the pup, feeding him something nasty. Hortie fakes compassion, Art doesn’t want to hear it. Later, Art tells Mara he’ll never be a good father if he can’t even care for a little doggie. She comforts him, saying he’d be a great Dad, and he’s got the right woman in front of him. But as usual, he isn’t “ready” for that.

Just about everybody is going to the wedding tomorrow. Mara’s going, because she’s Humberto’s partner, in that he’s invested in her café. Lisette is going because, well, just because. Santiago thinks he’s not going. Yeah, right.

One person who was NOT at the hospital is Bárbara. She’s come to make trouble at Santa and Paula’s house. Paula turns her away, saying no one named Delgado ever lived here, get out! Bárbara leaves, but isn’t totally convinced. When she gets back to the mansion, she sees written on the wall of her and George’s bedroom in big red spray paint something like “You’re a thief”. Not good. George gets home, and Barb says it’s because of George’s gambling debts, or something he’s involved in. He says it’s nothing to worry about. Hmmm.
 

SANTA DIABLA,. Part 2

It’s the next day, the day of the wedding. Santa is beautiful in her white gown, but she doesn’t know if she can go through with it. She flashes back to when Willy surprised her at a picnic with the engagement ring. Ah, the good times. She tells little Willy sometimes grown-ups do things that don’t seem to make any sense (as in most telenovelas), but one day (the gran final), this’ll all be explained. And she’s doing it for HIM. The kid ain’t so sure. The fake parents have arrived, and are ready to escort Santa to her wedding. The limo driver calls to her, it’s time. But just as she’s about to leave, little Willy speaks! He says Mommy, don’t marry a man who’s not my father! Wow, Santa is bowled over that the kid talked. It’s a miracle. But a few more pep talks from Paula, and Santa is on her way, in the limo.

At the wedding, everyone’s looking good. Humberto is wearing a grey tux, very Edwardian. Bárbara looks statuesque in an off the shoulder dark green gown. Even Francisca looks sleek and chic in a blue or purple suit. But where is Amanda? And also, George was supposed to bring Gaspar from the hospital, where are they?

A bit earlier, Santa had called Begoña, her Mom, and said she couldn’t go through with it. Begoña says something like, you’re not going to stand up that guy, are you? And guess who OVERHEARS this? Yep, Lucy. She knows something funny is going on, and calls her boyfriend Pancho, who tells his Dad Vicente, who tells Humberto that Amanda is not going to show up. What? Things are getting tenser and tenser, as the preacher is ready, and everyone’s gossiping. Riding in the limo, Santa thinks she sees Willy on the street! She orders the driver to stop, runs out, but no, it was just some random guy. Her fake Dad ushers her back in the limo.

 

SANTA DIABLA, Part 3

George has picked up Gaspar, fully recovered, at the hospital. He snidely asks if Gaspar ever found out what caused his stomach problems, and Gaspar just says I’m not ready to leave this world yet! And I’m not giving you the inheritance while I’m alive. It looks as if someone’s watching as they leave the hospital. They drive along, and a car is following them. It crashes into the back of them, then crashes into the side. George won’t let Gaspar call the cops. The mystery car finally speeds off, and Gaspar tells George he knows those guys were after George, he’s involved in something shady again.

Just as Humberto is about to give up hope, everyone arrives, Santa, her fake parents, George and Gaspar. Mara arrives, too, and Horti is indignant, what’s she doing here? Arturo tells her Mara is Humberto’s partner, but Horti can’t believe Humberto would have a black person as a partner. Lisette is also sitting right there. Earlier, at the boarding house, she had introduced Iván to Santiago, telling Santi who Iván’s father is. Lisette says she is unfiltered, just speaks her mind. Santi doesn’t tell Iván he is Humberto’s brother, later is sad he doesn’t even know his own nephew.

Victoria has gotten the computer to work, and Iván and she continue with their budding mutual attraction.

Apparently Santi finally decided to go to the wedding too, wearing a dark suit, not exactly a tux. While he’s gone, scumbag Carlos searches his bag, takes a picture of an ID, he’s going to get to the bottom of this. And Inéz also thinks she recognizes Santi from somewhere (seems weird she would read a newspaper account of a murderer and recognize him without the long hair, actually weird she even knows how to read, but oh well).

Santa walks down the aisle, but the groom is Willy! No, no, she’s back to reality, it’s Humberto. The priest does the vows, she flashes back to her first wedding, when she and Willy happily said I do, forever, the usual. This time, it’s your typical novela thing, when she’s asked do you take this man as your husband, she hesitates a LONG time, finally speaking out, yes, sure, I accept. Not too convincing.

Santiago is destroyed, why did she have to marry my brother? He puts on dark glasses, takes out his sax, and plays the Santa theme in the back of the church. I KID YOU NOT. Santa gasps out a barely audible “Willy”, and faints dead to the ground.
 

MARIDO

Wonderful recap, Adriana, with great snark. I'm going to miss your amazing recaps while you're on vacation, but I hope you have a fantastic time.

My take on the PSA relationship/sex talk is that Gris is loving and nonjudgmental in wanting Amalia to go to the health center and use protection. Isn't this the first time we heard that Gris was 15 when she got pregnant? She clearly does not want her daughter to repeat her story. I wonder, though, if the physical exam will reveal a pregnancy.

Esther shouldn't have set up that appointment with Alba before further discussion with JP. Whether he's being bull-headed or not, he is justified in his anger about Esther's presumptive move. Oddly enough, I think his macho stance may soften if/when he finds out that the sperm donor is dead.

I just want to smack the sh!t out of Antonio. What an ego - crashing a party when he knows TC doesn't want him there. But I predict (no spoiler) that Francisco will rough up Tony, and Pati will soften and forgive him - or at least start talking to him again. Ugh!

Adriana, I think you're right about that red herring lottery ticket K has. Maybe this week Gris will win.

I loved the trainer pulling up a chair in Max and Barbie's bedroom. He has Barbie's number and knows she can derail Max's career. It's too bad he doesn't know the truth about Max's abdominal pains.

Front row Barbie - eye candy for the guys!

I'm waiting for Tia Iris (and her entourage) to arrive. Should be a treat.

Beth
 

DYO martes, highlights

Pedro puts the pieces together and realizes that Iggy fired him to help Gina get him out of the country, and that Gina just wants to separate him from Ignacia. He’s ticked at both of them.

Poor Neto spends the episode depressed and lonely, “I always screw things up.” Olegario takes him under his wing, and in the process convinces himself to take another look at Marge. They have a romantic dinner of hot dogs together after he tries to cook dinner and chars it.

AA keeps encouraging Ignacia to leave Tomas and find happiness with Pedro.

Isabel doesn’t want to help Angel hide his criminal record, and Mama lays on the guilt thick. We learn that Mama has a heart condition, which will surely be the impetus to push Isabel to cover for her brother after all. Mama and Angel are the newest nominees for "most annoying duo."

Isabel tries to warn JM, kind of, about Angel, but JM is in a hurry. So I know Isabel is kind of young for him, but wouldn't mind a Jose Manuelabel pairing in the future... both are sweet and would be good for each other I think, at least now that Gema doesn't seem to be an option.

Ignacia, upon finding out Tomas has fired her brother, hires Ruben as her personal assistant. Ruben is grateful. Estela not so much.

Mireya has the foot pedal to the sewing machine on the table and uses her arm to press it… a very important loose end tied up.

Gina struggles to resist Mariano’s smooth moves once again. She gets Mariano to promise that he will ensure Ignacia doesn’t impede Pedro’s viaje.

JM warns Karina of Tomas, who is apparently “taking matters into his own hands” regarding KAraña.

Ignacia and Pedro flashback to elevator tenderness.

Neto and Ruben almost come to blows again at the obra.

Lupita gets suspended from school for hitting someone who was bullying her about being pregnant. She doesn’t want to go back to school, ever. Bullying PSA alert. Mariano shows up to pick up Lupita who has texted him to come get her.

Lupita links Gina to Mariano after seeing a painting of Gina in Mar’s apartment.

Most sadly comic scene today: Ignacia wants KAraña to help her with establishing the teen mom foundation, now that supporter Gina wants her to stay away from the family. K is SO not interested.

Estela wants to know from Tomas whom he would choose if he had to choose between Karina and herself. Tomas makes “evil psychopathic grin” face. Interesting how wifey Ignacia doesn’t even come into it.

Fin del capitulo.

 

Santa
Tks so much Hombre

Santa signed a pre-nup, maybe Paula can find & destroy it. She's not that good at undercover work though.
 

MARIDO:

Thank you, Adriana for the super recap. We'll definitely miss your recaps after this week until you get back.

Yes, the security guard is Fernando. The other guy from the beach, his friend, with the washboard abs, is Gigante. And the fight manager is Clinton.

Barbie's outfit definitely had me on the lookout for a wardrobe malfunction.

Should be a lot of excitement tonight!
 

Marido

Thanks for the excellent recap, Adriana! I'm not sure if Griselda is going to win the lottery (and I'm not sure if I want her to), but I predict that Amalia is going to be successful with a line of creams based on Doña Olga's recipes.

So will there be just one disaster at the party or multiple disasters? We know Antonio is going to make an ass of himself--unless someone intercepts him at the last moment. (Perhaps Reinaldo grabs him and pulls him aside? And this gives Reinaldo an excuse to call Griselda to come and pick up her son? Or is this just wishful thinking on my part?) Several days have passed, so perhaps Tia Iris could show up in the middle of the party. (I'm sure she could accidentally make it past Fernando, probably while he's self-importantly announcing to actual guests that he wouldn't let the pope in if he wasn't on the list.)

The restaurant barely appears in this episode, but I've been meaning to make a comment about its name. Palmer Gourmet? (or Gourmet Palmer, whichever it is.) Are you serious, writers? The name is beyond tacky. You don't use the word "gourmet" around serious food. Why not simply "Chez Palmer," as at least one recapper has called it? Or use Teresa Cristina's and/or Patricia's names? Every time I hear "Palmer Gourmet" it grates on my nerves.

I like, by the way, that Reinaldo talks about the importance of the olive oil. But I'd like to hear him mention that he only uses oil from the latest harvest. Or to hear him say something about how he prefers an oil with grassy overtones or one with a peppery aftertaste for certain dishes. (Rather than just some nonsense of using the "best" oil.)
 

SANTA -

Thanks, Hombre, for the recap. Will read it later as I have to run off to work. I'm sure it's fabulous, as always.

Variopinta - It makes more sense to me, now that you've explained, that Santa needed to get close to the family to destroy their reputation, finances, etc. Still seems extreme and risky given son Willy, but hey, this is the TN world, afer all:)

I'm curious. What part of S FL are you talking about?
 

Santa
It was filmed in & around Fort Lauderdale. I thought the law office was supposed to be in Miami but now I don't think so, unless it's in name only.
 

DyO

great highlights, Amy!

I don't know if it was ever actually said, but I'm assuming AA knows the whole story, that Pedro and Ignacia aren't related, although Estela was being pretty tight with this, but Gina, Margarita and Mariano definitely don't know about Ignacia, and Mariano doesn't know that Pedro is his son, but he seems to be working the angle that Pedro and Ignacia shouldn't be together, hmm, and he seems worried that the next generation, Lupita and Ru-ben are getting close to discovering the sins of their parents...

and Margarita's biggest trauma in life still is if Pedro should ever learn that she is not his mother,

elsewhere,
did JM put out the possibility of hiring Angel to fill Ru-ben's old office job?
much to Isabel's surprise/dismay,

Ru-ben sure is a big boy, he towers over most of the cast,

ahha, no wonder Margarita was impressed with Mireya's sewing,
Mireya actually does the wheelchair thingy pretty well,
maybe it helps that she gets up and stretches now and then,

did Karina's mom have a young pregnancy and... she was abandoned...
I didn't quite get all of that,

interesting, as you pointed out, that Tomas' lovelife discussions don't include Ignacia,
other that her doing what she is told.

 

Santa,

great recap Hombre,
you really captured the mood,

mild mannered George is a bit of a trip,
going from some nice graffiti on his bedroom wall,
to picking up a guy who should be dying,
to having his car smashed by unknown assailants,
and he arrives at the wedding with a...
we'll worry about that later,

this writer (José Ignacio Valenzuela), is good at keeping things off just enough so that the viewer gets to share in the anxiety,

did I miss something or did the fake mom get lost along the way,

I wasn't sure if that was actually Santi playing the sax at the wedding,
because Santa wasn't really have a good day keeping everything straight,

a couple of those scenes last night and I was wondering if Inés (Ximena Duque) wasn't hanging out with TC (Maritza Rodríguez) from "Marido", hmm, I imagine the reason she doesn't already have a boyfriend is because they start running as soon as they see her,

I can sympathize some with Paula, this revenge was 2 years in the making, so they all must have done some deep thinking before committing, (I guess the main line of thought here is that Santa died the same day as Willy, and only Amanda exists now),

but now that the day has come, Santa's waffling is really putting everyone at risk,

and could someone throw Lucy out of an airplane.
 

SANTA

Thank you, Hombre, for a terrific recap that is so much better than the actual episode. I found myself tuning out during Santa Amanda's ambivalent digressions. Couldn't believe her wandering around downtown Merrero in her wedding gown.

I'm not sure what the concern about signing the pre-nup is. "Amanda" is a false/fraudulent identity so her marriage is not legal anyway. If Humberto decided to have her arrested or to sue her for damages, the pre-nup might be the least of Santa's problems.

I so agree with all you folks about Paula's involvement in the venganza plan. She is making Humberto and Barbara suspicious. I think there's more to Paula's motivations than we (or Santa) know.

George is evil. I'm guessing his "creditors" will eventually collect on his "debts".

Arturo is despicable, and Mara is stupid. She needs to kick his a$$ to the curb and get on with her life. She's way too good for him.

Lucy and Santi deserve each other. She's obnoxious, and he's annoying. Couldn't believe his playing the sax at the church.

Begona needs to be careful. Larcenous Lucy (didn't she steal the candlesticks?) doesn't miss much.

Beth
 

DYO

Deb, I am SO confused with who knows what as far as Iggys/Pedro's possible sibling-dom. I was trying to figure this out last night as I was watching AA push Ignacia toward Pedro, and from what I can remember (which could be totally wrong), I don't think AA even knows that Pedro is Mariano's son, which would leave her out of the "possible siblings" loop. I think Mariano still has his suspicions about Pedro (Gina is a TERRIBLE liar) and is trying to get Gina to admit it once and for all, which is why he's on board with "Operation Squash Pednacia".

I was thinking JM said something about Angel working his way up to office boy, but Isabel didn't love the idea.

I didn't catch the Karina being abandoned by her mom bit! I'm going to have to go back and rewatch!!
 

DyO

Amy - thanks for excellent recap. Great take on the Isabel/JM possibility. I hadn't thought of it, but you're right - they could make a sweet couple.

I think JM did suggest that Angel might take on Ruben's old job.

I think AA knows the truth. She seems to know most of the secrets and her eavesdropping fills in the gaps for her.

Deb - Best comment today: "Mireya actually does the wheelchair thingy pretty well, maybe it helps that she gets up and stretches now and then".

Beth
 

SANTA

Beth, I have to agree with you about Santi being annoying. I've never seen Aaron Diaz in a tn, so maybe that's just something that he does all the time, but why does Santi always look like he's about to cry? He frowns, gets all watery eyed...that is no galan!!

And, btw, is anyone else bothered by the fact that Santi appears to be just a copy cat of Willy? I know he's the hero, but in Santa's life Willy was the first and she loved him very much. He was an artist, too and whenever I look at Santi I can imagine Santa feeling drawn to him because he reminds her of her dead husband.

In real life that might be ok, but a tn hero needs to be alpha enough to sustain the story... and Santi ain't all that!
 

MARIDO

Utah Desert wrote:
"The restaurant barely appears in this episode, but I've been meaning to make a comment about its name. Palmer Gourmet? (or Gourmet Palmer, whichever it is.) Are you serious, writers? The name is beyond tacky. You don't use the word "gourmet" around serious food. Why not simply "Chez Palmer," as at least one recapper has called it? Or use Teresa Cristina's and/or Patricia's names? Every time I hear "Palmer Gourmet" it grates on my nerves."

I refer to TC and Reinaldo's home as "Chez Palmer" because TC is a type who thinks everything sounds better in French. I can't decide what the name of the restaurant is either. They speak of Gourmet Palmer but the sign says Palmer Gourmet.

I'm considering recapping another day while Adriana is away but if I do will have to be Friday.


 

SANTA

Thanks for the fine recap, Hombre. You snarked in all the places that had my eyes rolling like a pair of marbles last night. Really? Really? Playing the sax in church right over the wedding march?

How the heck did Inéz know where Santi lives in order to show up and strong arm him into being her music teacher.?

I agree 100% about Paula. She's on the hysterical and obsessive side.

This revenge plot might make sense if Santa didn't have a disturbed 8 year old child. So she's going to sneak away for a half hour a week with him? The first sign of odd behavior on her part and Humberto is going to have a private detective on her tail.

Aaron Díaz does absolutely nothing for me. I was surprised Kate del Castillo married him at all and not surprised when she dumped him.

I surely hope there will be karmageddon for Horrible Hortensia for poisoning that adorable puppy.

I can't stand Lisette. Of course the character is a cartoon of greed and self-interest. But she's got a very odd looking mouth and she overacts enough so that I find her unwatchable. When she and Hortie are together I can almost envision a cauldron in front of them [double, double, toil and trouble].

He's a good person; but, if Gaspar is going to be offed, I wish they'd hurry up and do it! I was sure George was going to kill him somehow on the way to the wedding. And, for a minute, I thought the guys who rammed the car were his accomplices in doing so.

Anyway, this TN, for me, is a huge letdown after El Señor de los Cielos.
 

Santa
Really hard to beat El senor de los cielos.I place it at #1 best, with Amor bravio 2nd, Amor real & Alborada 3, Pasion 4, por ella soy Eva 5
 

SANTA:

I like Santi's looks, but the emo attitude belies it. I like beards/stubble on me-it makes them varonil to me, but Santi's attitude, meh. Adriana, it's obvious that Santi is supposed one a Willy replacement.
 

SANTA

I don't really watch any TMundo tns right now, but lurk here occasionally just to be entertained. Thanks, everyone.

Adriana - you crack me up! "gets all watery eyed...that is no galan!!"
 

MARIDO

Terrific recap, Adriana. Thanks!

I am going on vacation myself September 7 through September 23.

But I would be willing to do two days a week of very low-fat recaps of Marido until I leave. What I mean by that is one comment's length of major events that would serve to kick off other comments.

Monday and Friday would be good for me. I could do Tuesday, but Wednesday and Thursday are definitely out. So - I'm offering two days a week.

If anyone else would like to do longer recaps, well that would suit everyone better I'm sure.
 

DyO

Thks for the recap Amy, I so agree with you about 'the most annoying duo', I especially can't stand the mom. Despite feeling bad that Isabel has to deal with them, she's not a character that I really care for & I hope the writers don't pair her up with JM. He has only been professional with her and there haven't really been any significant looks or romantic music when they're together so hopefully Mrs.JM is still yet to come.

In my mind I have offically named JM & Iggy 'Team Awesome'. I love when they have conversations about what's going on & how they have each other's back. When I see them together I think 'ok what is team awesome gonna share now'. Like yesterday when JM told Iggy about Rueben being fired. It's cool to see how their friendship is platonic, because as hard as I tried to find another example, I don't think I've seen that yet in a tn.

As to who knows what about Iggy/pedro, I think only Marge and Gina think they're half bro/sis while maybe marino suspects. I think only estalla knows who Iggy's real father is. I do wonder how that will come out since making everyone believe they are related works for her benefit.

jlk

 

SANTA

Adriana, Novelera and J_NYC - I've never seen Aaron Diaz in a tn or movie before so I had no idea of what to expect from him. Some producer or casting director obviously thought he'd make a believable galan, but either the script or the director (or his own acting) isn't doing the part justice. I don't see any chemistry between Santa Amanda and Santi. In fact, the only male in SD with chemistry right now is the evil Humberto!

Variopinta, I think you're spot on about El Señor being hard to beat - or follow. It's a tight story with well-developed characters, even if they are evil. That may be why I'm feeling hyper-critical about SD today - my expectations of SD may have been too high.

Beth
 

MARIDO

Novelera: I already recap Marido on Monday but if it's helpful to you I'd be willing to switch days for those two weeks. If I do an additional day I'd prefer Friday so that I can start the recap after the show and finish on Saturday. I can't do that M-TH because I usually go to bed early. Sometimes I watch some of Marido but mostly I watch On Demand.
 

SANTA

Novelera, I agree that Santa Diabla is a letdown after El Señor de los Cielos. But, to be honest, El Señor was a letdown for me after La Reina del Sur.
 

SANTA

Terrific recap, Hombre! Muchísimas gracias.

I'm still not really caring about most of these characters. Santa's vengeance plan, which I think involves finding and publicizing evidence proving that Humberto et al. were responsible for Willy's death, seems immensely short-sighted, given her love for her son. He needs her presence, not her vengeance.

As for Santiago, I agree with you, Hombre, QTF was he doing playing the saxophone in the church at the end of the wedding?

I'm still confused about the car that kept ramming the car George was driving. I thought perhaps George was trying to find another way to do in Gaspar, though how ramming the car would do in Gaspar without doing in George isn't clear.
 

MARIDO

Adriana, thanks so much for the great recap. Others have already made the points I would have made, so I just wanted to say thanks.
 

MARIDO

Sue455, how about if I do Monday and Tuesday starting next week. That will give you Friday, as you wanted.

And, sorry if I'm confused, but will Friday then be your one day per week or have you been doing another day?
 

SANTA

Juanita, I'm pretty sure the car was ramming George's car because he has gambling debts or drug connections or something sinister like that.
 

SANTA:

Maybe Santi is supposed to be a hipster? He's rich but slumming it, a musician who knows obscure music the Santa song he plays is not well known? He fits all the Hipster stereotypes. Unfortunately for telemundo we aren't ready for a Hipster galan. Galans are supposed to pine away for the protag's love, not cry, unless she's dead or dying. See JLP as Alejandro in LP. Even when he went to Gabriela's house and looked through her window, he admitted it wasn't normal, he chided himself for doing it, that he was acting like a schoolboy in love. When santi stalked Santa's house, it looked methodical as if he was surveilling her like a cop. It wasn't romantic-but creepy.
 

TELEMUNDO

It looks as if DyO, Marido, and Santa will all be pre-empted Thursday by the TN Premios Tu Mundo program, which starts at 8 p.m. EDT
 

MARIDO

Novelera wrote:
"Sue455, how about if I do Monday and Tuesday starting next week. That will give you Friday, as you wanted.

And, sorry if I'm confused, but will Friday then be your one day per week or have you been doing another day?"

I was thinking about doing two days but I'm not going to. I will do Friday until Adriana gets back. So the next time I would recap is the 23rd.

 

SANTA

Before Santi slips completely into the Quicksands of Wussville it would behoove him to dig up some of those manhole-sized belt buckles he sported so proudly in El Talisman. He also made a huge mistake using Nick Nolte's photographer for his mug shot.
Frances Ondeviela looks fantastic and should get tapped for a Neutrogena or Oil of Olay commercial. Her evil cop brother is an imbecil for entrusting his precious sister to a bodyguard with a testosterone blood level of 98%, and ready to spring a leak at any moment. Finally it is obvious that the lovable little klepto-maid never went to novela acting school, but instead got her coquettish moves from the audiences of the old Rikki Lake Show.
 

SANTA

So, I've been thinking about this since last night - what is Hmmberto up to, bringing a pre-nup on his honeymoon and then smugly saying to himself "I did it!" after tearing it up? Was that to get back at Mama? Or does he suspect something is going on with Santa Amanda?

Beth
 

SANTA

I'm trying to get back to prime-time novelas having been basically taking a rest since Corazon Valiente ended although I did watch most of Pablo Escobar.

So I started watching this novela - not at the beginning, of course. I missed the first few episodes but fortunately I had Hombre's and Novelera's excellent recaps.

So far - meh. I have never liked Gaby Espino and Aaron Diaz does nothing for me. I'm still having trouble remembering who is who.

Santa/Amanda's plan of vengeance seems pretty half baked if she didn't figure on having to have sex with Humberto. But it's early days. I'll see how it goes and I look forward to participating in the discussions, which is most of the fun anyway.
 

SANTA BARBARA, Miércoles, Part 1

Yes, Santiago really started playing sax in the church, while wearing sunglasses. We never saw him carry the sax in, must have pulled it out of his ***. Amanda faints, Humberto (whom I’m going to call Bert) scoops her up, and she wakes up back at the family mansion. Francisca is outraged. How DARE she faint in the church at my son’s wedding! Fran wants Amanda to come right down to the reception, who cares if she has medical problems. Bert is more understanding. After he shoos his Mom out, and Amanda complains that your Mom hates me, Bert promises things will be different, Fran will have to respect Amanda.

Downstairs, George gets a call from his underworld connections, takes it in the other room. Gaspar follows him, threatens him again, you’d better solve your problems NOW, or you’re leaving the house. And without my daughter and my granddaughter!

Mara and Lisette have a little confrontation, Lisette knows everything, and threatens to tell Horti. Mara WANTS her to tell. But of course she won’t, for now. Lisette has to use this info. That night, Horti sets up a rendevous at her house where Arturo and Lisette can be alone. When Arturo doesn’t respond to Lisette’s romantic overtures, she shifts gears, goes for the money, how much is it worth to you for me to keep your little secret quiet?

Back to the mansion. As soon as Bert leaves Amanda to freshen up, Santi sneaks in, goes back to his puppy love face, sort of threatens he could tell all, but really, can’t you just tell me, what is your secret? You don’t love Bert, but you hired these fake parents, you married him, what’s the deal? Please tell me. Before Samanda can answer, Inés pops in! Hey guys, how come you’re always together? The little troublemaker leaves to go downstairs with Santi. So Amanda can come downstairs now, which she does, although she’s still upset about things.

Of course, Inés isn’t the only troublemaker, this show is FULL of them. Lucy overhears something else (can’t remember exactly what), and you know she’s going to make waves. But the real metiche is Lisette. She flat out tells Bert that Amanda came to meet with Santiago at the boarding house where both she and he live! Bert isn’t happy about this one bit. What’s going on with Amanda and Santiago?

Speaking of the boarding house, yesterday, when Iván helped Victoria with the computer, they felt a growing attraction. He asked if she was ever in love. She got all teary, ran out. He goes to find out what’s wrong. Vicky said she was in love just one time, when she was about the age Iván is now. She was saving her virginity of course. But she loved the guy totally. So one night, she “gave” herself to him. And that’s the last she ever HEARD from him, as apparently the bum just wanted to use her! Iván comforts her, and they KISS. She pulls away, that can never happen again. Later, she thinks to herself, this is crazy, he’s a child.
 

SANTA DIABLA,. Part 2

Carlos (another troublemaker) enters, tells Iván he has something important to ask him about his sister. Iván gulps. But Carlos says, my sis is like a child, I need YOU to keep an eye on her, don’t let her out of your sight. And I’ll even pay you! Deal? Deal, says Iván, smiling. He doesn’t smile as much when Carlos repeats that Iván is going to have to go to the whorehouse soon, and sample the babes.

Carlos also takes the photo of ID to the police station (the next day), and Pancho (who’s related to just about everybody, we may have to do 6 degrees of separation with him) takes one look at the photo, says it’s Santiago Cano, haven’t you heard of him? Well, Carlos has been too busy selling women into prostitution to read the society pages, and never heard of him. But a rich guy living in a boarding house? Carlos’s police sense tells him something is fishy. And that afternoon, when Santiago gets home, Vicky shows him an unopened letter. Santi opens it, and it says “I know the truth!” Uh oh. Santiago starts packing.

So, it’s time for the honeymoon. Begoña gives Samanda some urgent last minute instructions, so she won’t have to have sex with Bert. I think this is what Lucy half overhears, wonders why Begoña and Amanda are so close. Bert and Amanda arrive at their hotel, and he tells her “finally I’m going to make you mine.” Let’s have a show of hands. Does anyone really SAY this? Please. And if they did, the girl would probably burst out laughing. Yes, but sensitive Bert “charms” Amanda with the clever line. Earlier, he had told her he needed to have a serious talk about her and Santiago. So she chooses this opportunity to complain, saying, why don’t you trust me? I’ve done everything I can to be honest, you KNOW me, I’m the girl you fell in love with. Bert still wants sex, when Amanda drops the bomb. If you want sex, and you REALLY trust me, just tear up the prenup (which is conveniently here in the room). Bert doesn’t like this one bit, but that Amanda is just SO SEXY. His eyes narrow, he eyes her narrow waist, the curves, and he’s a goner. He tears up the pre-nup. Nookie time!

Or not. Amanda’s Mom gave her some magic telenovela powder, and while Bert goes to pee, she puts it in his champagne. This’ll knock him out. She had told her Mom and Paula it might only work for one night, how could she ever avoid sex night after night? But at least tonight is set. Except that rascal Bert has the idea to pour his champagne onto Amanda’s breasts! Looks like she’ll have to think of England!
 

SANTA

Hombre, thank you. Absolutely delightful recap - "she’ll have to think of England!" Love it.

I'm betting Carlos got rid of Vicky's bf some time back. Carlos is a real sob, and for whatever reason he won't allow Vicky to have a man in her life. Wait till he figures out Ivan's the fox in the hen house.

Ines just grates on my nerves! I use the mute button for her scenes.

Francisca was pretty fun to watch, first having her snit about the bride staying up in the bedroom, then calling Horti from the reception.

And what was with Barbara not wanting Bert, Santa Amanda and Santi to talk?

Horti gets Evil Mother of the Week award for setting up Lisette's romantic dinner with Art.

So who slid the note under the boarding house door - Barbara, Lucy, Lisette, Ines or PAULA?! Too many suspects!

I like G-Cano and don't want him to die, but he's so confrontational with George that he's got a target on his back.

Beth
 

SANTA

Hombre: Excellent!

No time to say much this morning, but I loved your recap. Maybe a less than wonderful novela gives more opportunities for withering sarcasm!

And: Bert telling Amanda things would improve with his mother and she'd be happy living at Casa Cano: When pigs fly!
 

SANTA

Great recap, Hombre. I love your mix of details and snark. Among my faves: "Carlos has been too busy selling women into prostitution to read the society pages, and never heard of him," "tear up the prenup (which is conveniently here in the room)," and "Amanda’s Mom gave her some magic telenovela powder." It's good to know that she has time to watch telenovelas.

So is Bert a telenovela watcher as well? His avoiding the magic champagne by pouring it on Samanda's body suggests that he has learned from any number of novelas. I'm hoping, however, that that's not the case, and that he'll try to lick up the champagne on Samanda's body and wind up in dreamland, or at least Unable to Perform.

I guess we'll have to wait until Friday to find out.
 

TELEMUNDO

I've been experiencing an increasing number of "Whoops" error messages when I try to submit my comments on this page. Sometimes refreshing the page (as the error message suggests) works, but more often it doesn't. Thank goodness for the Lazarus add-on for Firefox! It has saved my bacon countless times, since it has copies of everything I type while in Firefox, and I'm able to retrieve what I've tried to submit and paste it into a new message.

Have other people been experiencing errors when trying to submit comments, or is it just my magic touch?
 

TELEMUNDO

I have a problem posting comments in Firefox. It tells me I have to do something about cookies.

So, I just use Internet Explorer. Problem solved.
 

MARIDO - Wednesday

Bank Holiday in France today, so my day was a little crazy.
So, here is a run down of what happened.

The FIGHT

- Gris and Amalia watch the fight from home, Gris falls asleep while Amalia is massaging her feet
- Kikito is playing with the new lottery ticket, we should starts a Ticket Watch
- At the Taco bar, K is still pouting and looking like his usual miserable self, while everybody else is enjoying the fight
- Rafa, Leo and employees watch the fight at work

- Max starts out pretty ok, he's better than the other guy, but he can't manage to knock him out
- so the fight drags on, Barbie is very nervous, Marcela is also there stressing her out
- Max gets knocked out in the third round; and not only that, but he also faints and everybody around them is very worried because the hits hadn't been that hard to begin with
- so I guess teh other guy won by K.O., Barbie is hysterical, Max can barely open his eyes, he looks like he's dead, everybody is scared, except K, who screams like a mad man when Max drops to the ground

The PARTY

- just after TC makes her triumphal entrance, TIA IRIS shows up (with a friend playing the quitar, that Ro kind of fancies - he tells him that he plays the "flute", get it?)
- TC is furious, fires Vanesa (who whines about being fired the entire night) and then runs to her bedroom, Tia after her and Rei and Pati are left to take care of teh guests, who start talking
- Paloma had no idea her mom was coming, Esther and JP think things are going to get explosive
- Rei tries to keep the party going
- TC and Iris talk, apparently the 4 apartments Iris had in NY are from TC
- Iris wants money, she reminds TC about their little secret (it's hinted at that TC killed her mom!)
- at first TC refuses to give her more money, but Iris threatens to reveal the truth in front of the entire party
- TC and Iris both come down pretending to be the best of friends; nobody is fooled
- the actual vow renewal is very nice and heartfelt, but TC's grating personality ruins her otherwise very nice speech

- before Tia's arrival, Vanesa had seen Tony outside and Ro goes to talk to him; he makes all the sense in the world when he tells Tony he won't win Pati back by crashing her parents' party, Tony pretend to agree
- after the vow renewal, just as the cake is being served, Tony shows up, so probably tomorrow TC will have another crisis.
 

TELEMUNDO

Novelera, thanks for your response. The error message I get says nothing about cookies, so I think it's a different problem. And since Lazarus is not available for Internet Explorer, I'll continue to post (or try to post) comments with Firefox.
 

MARIDO

Thanks very much for your recap. There are so absurd characters in this telenovela, my poor beanie is exhausted. I'm actually glad there's not an episode tonight. My beanie is happy, too. :-)

I used to think that Reinaldo was one of the few truly sane characters, but I'm beginning to wonder. How could any sane person stand being married to TC? Or even being in the same room/town/country/planet with TC?
 

MARIDO

Oops, sorry, Adriana, I accidentally left out your name, but obviously my comment of thanks for the recap was meant for you.
 

MARIDO:

Thanks, Adriana, I enjoyed your quick recap.

I also enjoyed Tia Iris. The actress played a completely different character in Corazon Valiente, who started as a hardened prisoner named Madrina, later turned into a nice good person named Nora. She's far crazier here.

I liked the little half kiss TC gave Rei after the vows. Don't want to mess up that makeup!

Tony is kind of funny as a drunk. Of course this isn't the way to win back Pati, but as some have pointed out, if he gets beaten up by security, Pati could feel sorry for him.

K was a bit over the top in ripping off his shirt when Max lost the fight and looked dead. I know it's not Gris's fault, but despite her good example, both of her sons have major problems with their character. Amalia is wonderful, though.
 

MARIDO

Thanks so much, Adriana

I enjoyed last night's episode a lot. It was a bit like an English farce. I loved Ro's talk with Bonehead Tony. This guy is going to have to develop some judgment before he starts a medical practice!

Yes, Hombre, the actress playing Tía Iris was so very different in Corazón Valiente. She wore almost no makeup and was an earth mother to half the cast. I get a kick out of her "look" with the heavy makeup, fire engine red lipstick, and dramatic clothing.

OK, I am officially fed up with their jerking us around with close-up shots of lottery tickets.

I am disgusted with Kike. Other than being an occasionally good father, he's a waste of space. He had an interaction with Máximo when Barbie was trying to get Max to beat him up. He saw the kind of reasonable person Max is. Gloating over his defeat is just awful.

Yep, TC was, as usual, out of line firing Vanessa from the restaurant, but it did get old watching V whine about it. I actually enjoyed her sour face when TC and Reinaldo said how they felt about each other.

I was wondering. They called what they were doing renewing their vows. But I thought you actually repeated the "for richer, for poorer..." that you said the first time around. And I thought you did the renewal of the vows in front of a clergyman. Last night they just said nice things to each other and said that was renewing vows.
 

DYO miercoles, part 1/2

Tomas assures Estela he would choose her over Karina. She grabs him and plants an unsexy kiss on his slimy mouth.

Iggy’s suggestion box is empty and is disappointed at first until random worker Sanchez assures her it’s because everyone is very happy with their work.
Lupita is accosted at the ATM, and Angel appears from out of nowhere to fight off the attackers, who still got away with her money. He’s interested. Ruben has a rival.

Estela wants AA to get Lupita out of the apartment, and blackmails her by threatening to tell the kids the truth about “everything you did.” This involves a demanda and the carcel, but that’s all the info we get for now. Could AA have been involved in forcing Mariano to leave? Or has AA been in prison herself?? AA is visibly upset and flustered.

Karina confronts Tomas in the parking garage… what did he mean when he said he was going to have to take care of the Karina problem himself? They take the conversation upstairs to the office, where it continues with seemingly Invisible Isabel sitting right there at the receptionist desk. Karina wants to know what happened to “You’re the perfect woman, the woman of my dreams?”

Iggy has more tender flashbacks involving Pedro. She shows up at the vecindad, and there, in the courtyard, confesses she has feeling for him and hasn’t been able to forget him ever since their time in Malibu. She tells him she feels safe in admitting this since it’s a done deal that he’s leaving the country with Mireya—who just so happens to be listening from around the corner.

Pedro is caught off guard and emotional. He admits he feels the same, and Mireya is PITHED. She calls Tomas to tell him what’s going on. Tomas answers the call in the middle of his “define-the-relationship” talk with Karina. Karina is suspicious about the woman he is talking to on the phone .

Tomas leaves en route to the vecindad as JM walks in. He asks her what happened and she gets snotty. He lectures her… I told you to be careful of Tomas, and what do you do? You go right to his office! “Stop controlling me!” she storms off, and Invisible Isabel gives JM a sympathetic look which he doesn’t see because she is, well, invisible in this scene.

Pedro thinks Iggy should leave Tomas, and she asks him if he would leave Mireya for her. He admits it’s more complicated than that (WHY?), but then says “What if we both did it at the same time?” (How does that solve the “complications” again?) Mireya rolls up and confronts them, as if she didn’t hear anything they just said. Iggy uses her weak “just checking on Pedro to see how he’s doing after the accident” excuse. Mireya apologizes for how she’s been treating Iggy and tries to keep her from leaving until Tomas can get there. Just as Iggy starts to leave, here comes Trouble with a capital Tomas.

 

DYO miercoles, part 2/2

Things get heated between and Tomas grabs Ignacia. Pedro starts to jump in, but Mireya, who apparently has quite the iron grip, holds him back by grabbing his shirttail. “Don’t you dare get involved in this!” Tomas goes for Pedro, and Iggy screams that if he doesn’t leave right now, he will never see her again. He goes for Pedro again, and Iggy says “If that’s the way you want it, fine! Good-bye, Tomas!” and storms out. Tomas calls out to her but hangs back to warn Pedro, “You don’t know who you’re messing with!” and Pedro responds, “I have no problem with finding out!”

Gina encourages Neto to keep busy so he doesn’t get in trouble. He takes her advice by getting on her tablet, which she has left on the table, after she leaves the room.

Margarita visits the apartment and informs AA that Lupita has decided to quit school forever. Ruben walks in and hears this. Then, GET THIS, he proceeds to lecture Lupita on the virtues of finishing her studies. It’s his job to work and support them even though he has to wear this stupid tie every day, and her job to finish school because their child is not going to have a mother who didn’t finish high school. Wow. NAILED IT! Marge is liking this Ruben kid now.

Dumb car wash scene, lots of gratuitous bikini scenes with our two car wash girls washing cars, riding on the hood of a car with the blower blowing their hair, flaunting their “talents.” CreepyOgler1 shows up and invites Gema to dinner. I’m watching the Chilean DYO episodes parallel to these, and I’m sorry if I’m not allowed to say this, but this plot shows up NOWHERE in the original (which are 25 min episodes). The carwash/prostitution ring is pure Telemundo genius at work. FF>>

Mireya subjects Pedro to a Merrinche of apocalyptic proportions, demanding to know what is going on between him and Ignacia, and playing the “I’m in a wheelchair and it’s all your fault” card. Surprisingly, Pedro bites back!! He tells her to stop manipulating him, and she screams at him for calling her manipulative. He leaves. Pedro has SEEN THE LIGHT.

Tomas is have a Terrinche in his office and throws something at Isabel when she comes in to check on him.

Ignacia is hyperventilating in her bedroom, repeating to herself, “I did it, my God, I did it!” Less talking, more packing Ignacia. Let’s get this show on the road.

Neto has found a NewAgey type website that he doesn’t really understand but thinks might help him solve his problems. Olegario comes looking for Marge but she’s not there, so he leaves. Unnecessary filler scene, apparently.

Isabel, back in visible form, delivers papers to JM’s office, ready for him to sign. He complements her efficiency, and she informs him that she will be his eyes and ears in the office, and he can count on her for whatever he needs (awwwwww). He asks her to get him something for his headache, and on the way out the door she looks at him dreamily saying to herself, “He’s a saint.” Yes, he is, Isabel. Yes. He. Is. I’m officially shipping these two.

Pedro shows up at Casa Villanomayor and demands to see Ignacia to make sure she’s okay. Shouting match between Estela and Pedro. Ignacia interrupts, tells Estela to back off and leave them alone. She assures Pedro she’s ok, Tomas didn’t hit her, but she needs to go talk to someone impartial and make some decisions. He tells her he loves her and kisses her. She runs off to get impartial advice.

Mireya is muttering to herself in her house. If she can’t have Pedro, she won’t allow anyone else to have him. She gets out of her chair, throws a picture of her and Pedro on the floor, and stomps on it. Olegario walks in with his back to her (she’s one of those silent-stompers I guess), drops something, picks it up, turns around, and we see a look of shock on his face.

Fin del capitulo.

How much you want to bet Olegario still hasn’t discovered the truth about his daughter?? I’m wondering if she threw herself on the floor under the pretense that she tried to walk but failed. Hmmm.

 

Marido

Thanks for the recap, Adriana! Did anyone catch Tia Iris's last few lines as she was talking to TC upstairs? What clues do we have so far as to what the big secret is? (Besides what we see in the flashback, that is.)

novelera, I agree about Quique. I'd go further and say he made an utter ass of himself, what with the tearing his shirt off. He's got a lot to learn before he reaches his happy ending. I predict some kind of renewed hook-up with Barbie, possibly when she's drunk and in despair over Max, and then some kind of extended crawling on his knees back to the no-nonsense woman he's been making out with (whose name escapes me but whom I like).

And I also agree with you, novelera, about Vanessa's reaction to the vow-renewing. I was cheering TC and Reinaldo on just to see Vanessa's face fall. I was wondering, by the way, if the reason Reinaldo's alarm bells aren't set off by Vanessa telling him that she would do anything for him was because he's used to women telling him that all the time. (After all, Paloma said something similar--that she showed up at the party for his sake, not her cousin's.)
 

thanks Amy, great recap!

Estela is definitely on the hook, Tomas is pretty clever playing his women, except for his wife, who I guess is supposed to be more of a slave, and secretaries don't fare too well either, must be about time to go to the club and spank the imaginary 'Ignacia',

since the badguys got off with her money, I was wondering if Angel might have been part of all of that, either way I wouldn't tip the cab driver, or even pay the guy,

oh my goodness, is AA an ex-con,

ah yes, the cute but "invisible" Isabel, she seems pretty nice considering that she is handicapped,
as in her mother and brother,

they should start showing everything in Tomas' office with little dings, scratches, broken parts, missing pieces..., that place sure takes a beating,

yea, there was plenty of time for Mireya to hit the floor, but was she saying earlier that NO one knows what she IS capable of.

 

DyO

opps,
that was a DyO post above,

 

MARIDO:

Utah, the sensible woman who likes K is Clara, who also the mother of Leonardo, the young guy who may be getting in trouble working with Rafa.
 

SANTA BARBARA:

I just figured out Santa's plan. Come back as a rich girl with a fake identity, and see what happens. Okay, I know it's not that developed, but what happened in La Patrona? She came back as a rich girl with a fake identity, and just sort of hung out for a while, while all the bad guys destroyed each other. My son says there's an English language program called Revenge. The plot? Some young lady who was dumped on comes back as a rich girl with a fake identity, and eventually destroys whoever ruined her life. Simple!

If Santa really had a plan, and we knew it, there wouldn't be any suspense. With her poorly conceived plan, anything can happen. Hopefully the writers will come up with enough drama to keep us guessing. So far, I'm enjoying the show (mainly for the beautiful women and fashions, but also because of all the crazy interrelationships between the characters). What a tangled web they weave!
 

Santa Diabla

Hombre, I'm watching revenge and I can tell you IT IS the same plot.
In Revenge the girl's dad was set up by a rich family, sent to prison and killed there.
The girl came back years later, became engaged with the rich family's golden boy, all the while she was in love with another guy and that was her only weakness. And, of course, she had some faithful helpers.
Does the plot sound familiar? :)
 

MARIDO

I didn't have the time to comment to much before, But I wanted to post a short recap to get the discussion started.

I liked the episode, too, even if I'm not into fighting of any kind I kind of wished to have more scenes in the ring, I was truly on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happens. I knew Max will lose, but I was more worried for his general health. I hope he's ok on the long run.
K is just HORRIBLE! Enough said!

Novelera, whenever you have Ro in a scene, talking with someone and Ro is the sensible one, you know the other person must be a lunatic. In what Universe does Tony think that crashing that party will make Patti take him back??
I was wondering about those vows, too. Because TC spent half the night locked in her room, I even imagined there was no actual ceremony planned. Then they both said their speeches and I think they were really nice, if you try to forget how grating TC is - I. too, loved Vanesa's face, this girl should use some of her paycheck to buy a clue one of these days. But a sort of a priest shoudl have been there, right?

Utah, all we know so far is that TC inherited the money of the person she killed, Iris saw the whole thing and started her blackmail...TC wasn't rich before that (she was probably a heiress and her murder put a speed on things), she was already married to Rei and had Patti.
Also last night it was hinted that she killed her mom (!!), when Iris mentioned the lips and TC started screeching.
I'm sure K and Barbie hook up again, she seems to hate him, but she has a certain look in her eyes sometimes... and if Gris wins that damn lottery before we get to fed up with all the teasing to actually care about it...Barbie will be back in K's willing arms faster than we can say "Can Max rebound with Clara?"
I think Rei started to realize something is wrong with Vanesa, but he just can't bring himself to believe it, yet. Or he has the galanitis, too, he's oblivious to all things that shoudl he be aware of, his life would become much easier.
 

SANTA

Thanks for another fabulous recap, Hombre...which for me was better than the episode itself.

I watch Revenge as well and agree it's the same plot, although la protagonista has a better conceived plan than Santa, whose real name, by the way, is Amanda:)
 

SANTA

I don't think I worded that right! The Revenge woman's real name is Amanda.
 

Santa
Hard to imagine a man like Humberto marrying a woman that he never sampled. Amanda is not a child so he would think she had never had sex, I don't think so.
The prenup was a little weird but I bet there is another copy.

Think about this one
rich man with children marries a young chick. He makes a will leaving everything to her, which satisfies her. He immediately has another will drawn up leaving everything to his children.
 

MARIDO

My parents renewed their vows at their 50th anniversary Mass. We had a party afterwards.

Tía Iris also said that TC inherited her as yet unnamed mental illness from her mother.

DYO

I tend to FF through the car wash scenes. Can anyone tell me if this is connected to one of the main characters yet?

¡Mi Abuela! Jail and a lawsuit. Made me think of OJ Simpson who won his criminal trial but lost in civil court. I hope she's really innocent because I love Abuela.
 

DYO

Sue, so far there's no connection between Gema, the car wash gal, and any of the main characters.

There has to be one sometime. We thought Gema might end up working at the strip club, but then her carwash gig is going well. Because of their bathing suit tops and cutoffs, the tips are rolling in! If she worked at the strip club, she'd meet Tomás.

That slick looking older guy that's asked her out to dinner has to be up to no good. Maybe he's recruiting for the strip club??
 

MARIDO

Adriana - great recap and comments. I loved, Ro tells the guitar player "that he plays the "flute", get it?"

We all sensed that Max was going to lose the fight but it was disappointing to watch. Maybe now we'll find out what's wrong with Max, and he'll get treatment.

K's acting like a neanderthal was so disgusting. What a jerk!

Even though he deserves it, I don't want Tony to get a beat down from the security guys. I do not want Paty to have a scintilla of sympathy for that a$$.

Beth
 

DyO
Thanks AnotherAmy! I, too, enjoyed seeing both Ru-ben and Pedro stand up to the annoying women in their lives, woo-hoooo!
By the way, Creepy Carwash Crawler (CCC)looks like Steve Martin and has some of the same exaggerated facial expressions, watch and see. I think he is in cahoots with CarWash Girlie #2, who was looking awfully interested when CCC was asking Gema out. He is up to no good.
J in Oregon

 

MARIDO:

Thanks Adriana. ITA with that's been said. I enjoyed this episode and the stir caused by Iris. Hated Quique acting like such a jerk when Max collapsed.
 

MARIDO

WRT no priest/minister at the vow renewal. I got the sense from La Patrona that if a man and woman aren't 'meant-to-be' in a novel a, they don't get a church wedding or a priest to officiate since a church wedding is considered more serious/legitimate that a civil ceremony. Ale married Irene a lo civil, a civil marriage by a judge where they just agreed to accept the other as a spouse but no religious 'for sickness and health in the sight of God' promises. He married Gabriela, though, with a priest at La Fortaleza and had a singer singing Ave Maria, an obvious religious 'serious' ' marriage commitment. It kind of explains totally the Rosa fps weddings in novel as. Only truly in love people according to this meme get church weddings. By the way, was the Humberto wedding religious or civil?

Long story short, since REI and TC aren't really meant-to-be in this novela, there can't be a priest or minister at the vow renewal since TC is a murderer and REI doesn't know. And since he doesn't know this, he can't really 'commit' to TC since he doesn't know such important info about the woman he married. The priest will be present if and when he and Gris end up together.
 

SANTA

Was Humberto and Amanda's wedding religious or civil? I didn't watch Tuesday's ep and caught only 60secs of Wed's because Santi's sax serenade with shades in the wedding aisle traumatized me...my Beanie exploded. The writers/Aaron Diaz have done some reprehensible things to Santi's character.
 

SANTA

J desde NYC, I think Humberto and Amanda's wedding took place in a church with a priest officiating, so I guess it was religious, not civil. (Actually, relatively little of the ceremony was shown, except for Amanda's continued hesitation each time the priest asked her a standard question.)
 

So no one is watching Cachito?
The question was asked about what you want to see in a telenovela. What I want to see is something different -- no more 2 brothers after one woman, 2 sisters after 1 man, 1 actor playing twins, whore-mongering male protag w/ evil novia, pursuing cinderella. No more mistaken / unknown parentage. And I want to see some other subject beside romance & sex driving a story.

At least Cachito has an unusual angel line in the story. And it is the most through-going comedy I have yet seen in a telenovela.

-Enoch
(I'm not sure I know how or if I still can post under the name I registered with here, long ago.)
 

Marido

I actually liked the vow renewal. I was afraid the thing was going to be more like a wedding, which seemed tacky, and I preferred the heartfelt and honest things that Reinaldo and TC said to each other.

But remember--according to what they said in the vows--they were originally married in a church, so either this TN law has to be broken or TC has to die. Or could their marriage be annulled on the grounds that TC was crazy even back then and so did not have the mental capacity to make such a commitment? (Seems like much too much a stretch for a telenovela.)
 

MARIDO:

Considering Gris's husband is most likely going to come back from the dead (not a spoiler, but when you have Miguel Veroni in a picture, you know he's going to show up), I don't think they'll stick to tn rules about church weddings with our main couple. Telenovelas often break these rules with older couples who have already been around the block, so to speak. I see divorce in both of their futures.
 

DyO

Amy - wonderful recap. Thank you so much. I just loved:
- Tomas is having a Terrinche
- Less talking, more packing Ignacia. Let’s get this show on the road.
- The carwash/prostitution ring is pure Telemundo genius at work

Estela kissing Nomas - yuk! But I LOVED the smirk on his face afterwards as he left the house.

Our boy Pedro was amazing! First he told Nomas off, next he confronted and refused to be manipulated by Mireya and then he stood up to Estela's insults.

I think Mireya threw/carefully positioned herself among the pieces of broken glass so it looks like she toppled out of her wheelchair.

Beth
 

DYO

I'm still betting that CreepyCarwashCrawler (love that!) is El Duro, the sicko that has the "private parties," and that he will recruit (by threatening the brother) Gema into working for him. Im also still wondering if El Duro is Lupita's and/or Isabel's father, although he looks a lot younger than Marge, so not sure that's plausible. Being Isabel's dad might be a possibility though, since the Angel-apple didn't fall far from the tree.

Since the original was only half-hour episodes, which seem to follow pretty closely with our hour-long ones, I'm guessing TM invented some plot points and characters to fill in the extra 30 min. What better filler than a prostitution/sex trafficking plot? Seems to be working for Santa Diabla...
 

SANTA

Anyone think Willy Sr. might still be alive? Do we know if anyone ever saw the body? I'm half wondering if they'll bring him back after a while, with some flaws that Santa didn't know about, thereby complicating the revenge scheme. Just thinking out loud here... Not so good with remembering details though so I could have forgotten something that would negate all this.

PREMIOS

By the way, I caught a little bit of Premios Tu Mundo tonight, emceed by Santa and Santi :) Aaron was so different, more relaxed and had much more personality, than when he is acting. Weird.

Shalim O, Ana L, and Carmen V were presenters and GORGEOUS.

Yay, Jencarlos! Protagonista favorito!!
 

PREMIOS TU MUNDO – Part 1

OK, I decided to write a bit about the show. I liked this premios better than any other I’ve seen on any Spanish language network. It helps that I DVR it, though; it’s loaded with commercials.

Started off with a literal bang with a performance by STOMP.

The hosts were Gaby Espino and Aaron Díaz. Aaron is much more charming in person than he is on Santa Diabla! I also noticed his perfect English pronunciation when an English word was inserted. It refreshed my memory that his mother is Irish-American and his father Mexican. He graduated from Palo Alto High School!

BEST VILLANA

Christian Bach as Antonia Guerra in La Patrona
Sorry, didn’t write the other nominees down

BEST ACTOR DE REPARTO (less than leading part???)

Gonzalo García Vivanco – our Lucho from La Patrona

BEST MOMENT OF BAD LUCK

Gabriela Suárez trapped during the fire at the nuthouse

PERFORMER OF THE DECADE

Daddy Yankee

EL MERO MERO

I got a kick out of this. This Mexicanism sort of means someone at the top of the heap, or the big boss. And it was given to Rafael Amaya. What was funny is that he seemed to stay in character and accepted the award speaking that clipped Norteño accent that he used as Aurelio Casillas. He certainly didn’t speak that way in Alguien te Mira. He was accompanied by his novia, Angélica Celaya, the late, lamented Eugenia in El Señor.

MUSIC BY VICTOR MANUEL

Really good performance with Aylín Mujica showing off her fabulous body in a body stocking with discreetly placed fabric flowers.

NOMINEES FOR PRIMERA ACTRIZ

Rebeca Jones, Cristian Bach, Lupita Ferrer and Surya MacGregor and CRISTIAN BACH won her second award, thanking her “hombres”, her husband Humberto and her two acting sons.
 

PREMIOS TU MUNDO – Part 2

ALMA DE TU MUNDO

Eva Longoria for a long list of charitable projects. She said she was born in the US but with a Mexican heart (in Spanish, of course).

TELENOVELA THEME SONGS SUNG BY ACTORS IN THEM

Gabriel Coronel (Tony in Marido) sang Desnudo Estoy. Good performance, and he looked handsome enough to be forgiven for his role in the novela.

Aaron Díaz and Carlos Ponce sang the theme song from Santa Diabla, alternating verses.

Aracely Arámbula sang the theme song from La Patrona

MOST TWITTER (????)

Maria Celeste

PRIMER ACTOR

Henry Zakka (evil Guillermo in Pasión Prohibida; Saul Lisazo in El Rostro de la Venganza, Roberto Vander in PP, and Javier Díaz Dueñas – Tigre in LP and Don Cleto in El Señor
WINNER: Saul Lisazo

PROTAGONISTA FAVORITA
Aracely Arámbula, La P; Mónica Spear, Pasión P; Ximena Herrera, El Señor; Carla Hernandez, Rosa Diamante
WINNER: Aracely

BEST REALITY SHOW MOMENT (Really?)
Winner – two guys fighting on Caso Cerrado

PAREJAS PERFECTAS

Aracely Arámbula and Jorge Luis Pila - La Patrona
Cristian Bach and Diego Soldano – La Patrona
Maritza Rodriguez and David Chocarro – El Rostro de la Venganza
Rafael Amaya and Ximena Herrera – El Señor
WINNER: Aracely and Jorge Luis

FAVORITE PERSON ON THE SHOW TONIGHT
(I guess people are tweeting this during the show)
Gaby Espino

OK, my recording cut off before the end, but I’m guessing La Patrona was probably La Novela del Año, and there may have been another prize. If anyone else watched to the bitter end, chime in please.
 

PREMIOS TU MUNDO – Part 3

I liked all the music. Voz de Mando I had not heard of, and they played some norteño music, which I really like, with the accordion.

The number with Daddy Yankee and Natalia Jiménez was very good as well.

Cristian Castro performed twice, the second number a salsa that I liked a lot.
 

PREMIOS

Amy - I also saw parts of the Premios tonight. La Patrona received a number of awards when I watched: - best tn, best female lead (Aracely Arambula), best female villain (Christian Bach), best supporting male ("Lucho" our duende - can't remember his name). Don't know about the other awards. Aracely sang La Patrona theme song.

Aaron Diaz and Carlos Ponce sang Santa Diabla theme song, and they sounded great.

SANTA

Santa Amanda and Bert were married in a church. I thought it was a tn rule that if a protagonist is married in the church, the only way out of the marriage is death or annulment. Either option is still open to Santa Amanda. Her marriage isn't valid in the eyes of the church (fraudulent motive and false name), and Bert could be killed off.

IRT Willy Sr., I tend to think he's dead, but you do raise the possibility that Bert used his considerable influence to have Willy's death faked and Willy put in isolation under a different name (so he would not be available to testify). If this tn was set in Mexico, that scenario might be possible, but this is south FL so I'm guessing Willy is truly gone.

Beth
 

MARIDO/ SANTA/ WEDDINGS

It's true, the tn rules says no wedding in a church unless the bad spouse dies by the end.

In Amor Bravio they did this with a twist: when Daniel, the hero, got married the first time, his wife being a Jew, they got married in her religion.
She was a good person, too, so they kept her alive (even if she was presumed dead half the tn) and Daniel was able to marry the heroine, Camila, in a religious ceremony after divorcing first wife.


In Marido I believe it's very likely that both TC and Griss husband end up dead by the end. Brazilian tns are very long and plenty can happen. Or, at teh very least, they can send TC to the sanatorium and Gris and Rei settle for a civil ceremony - as someone already said, being older, I don't think that would count too much for them.
And with all of TC' crazy, there is no way the Church would ever annul a 20+ years marriage, with a child, too.

Santa and Humberto got married in church, so he either dies by the end, or the union is not good in the first place because SHE IS NOT Amanda Brown.


SANTA

I like th idea of Willy being alive and Humberto hiding him away; that would mean that he's not a complete monster... Santiago is so lame, lame, LAME, I still wish for Humberto to end up with Santa, even if I know that's not possible.

PREMIOS

Thank you for the recap, Novelera, I was looking forward t hearing how it went. I love Carlos Ponce and Aaron Diaz in their duet, I can't wait to see their bit on line.
 

PREMIOS

Ok, just watched Ponce&Diaz.
I already have 2 tn novios, but there is a tn rule that says that i need to have 3, so Carlos Ponce is my number three.
If Cristian de la Fuente or JenCarlos Canela ever refuse me, he will be number one :)
 

SANTA

Ok, I managed to watch Wednesday's episode and since we had no show on Thursday, I guess I still have time to comment.


Hombre, I laughed out loud at your recap, so many good moments!! "Think of England" - that was truly priceless, I still laugh out loud while typing this.

I really enjoy the story, beanie moments and all, but there was something bothering me and until now I wasn't sure, but it is Santiago - his little speech to Samanta in the house was really pathetic.. Could he just go away?

I must be really twisted because I was cheering for Bertie when he poured the champagne all over Amanda's body... why postpone the inevitable, she knows she has to do it eventually... if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen, Amanda!

The line "Finally, I'm going to make you mine!" is as ridiculous as it's twin, said by tn women all over the world: "Me hizo suya" - "he made me his" - who talks like this, truly!

What was that thing from Bertie in the bathroom, after he tore up the prenup? He said: 'lo logre'- I succeeded! - It can't be the fact that he convinced Amanda to have sex with him, that was already a given in his mind; or is it the fact that he went against his mother's wishes?
OR, OR, could it be that he knows who Amanda really is?? I am doubting all the time that Santa's cover is good enough to trick him, would Humberto Cano not investigate her before marriage? Would a man like him accept no sex before the wedding if he didn't have hidden reasons, too? Could the messer become the messy?

I don't think anyone that we know sent that letter to Santi; they are all pretty oblivious about his recent past. It could be someone who shows up later.

Beth, Barbara didn't want Bertie and Santi to talk because she knew they would end up fighting, like they always do, she wanted to avoid a big conflict in the middle of the wedding.

Mara is an idiot, why in the world is she still clinging to Art?

Where was Amanda's luggage? In Bertie's room they said they were getting ready for the honeymoon, then downstairs they said they were only going to the hotel for now...

Ivan and Vicky kiss - kind of nice, but she is so much older and it shows (no offense for the actress, she's gorgeous, but Ivan still looks like a boy and my guess is he's a virgin).

 

Premios
This is a list from People en Español
http://www.peopleenespanol.com/article/premios-tu-mundo-2013-los-ganadores?xid=pespdaily08162013

I've never seen Aracely Arámbula in anything but a little of Corazón salvaje. Do you think she should have won?

Robinson Diaz won best villain
Cabo, El señor, I'm happy about that.
 

SANTA

Adriana, you're really on a roll this morning. And you hit on something I've been thinking - that Humberto might not be as bad as we've been led to believe. The Willy-is-alive possibility could speak to Bert's not being as cold-blooded as his mother and Barbara. Also, I was interpreting his "I succeeded" comment to have more to do with his going against his mother's demands for a pre-nup and trying to please his wife.

I so agree with you about the wedding night champagne shower, "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen, Amanda!" You made your bed, now get into it. And Bert did promise her the best night of her life!

Beth
 

PREMIOS:

Varia, yes, Aracely deserved to win her premio. I'd only seen her in Abrazame muy Fuerte where she was really annoying, and heard that she was especially awful in the CS remake, but loved her as Gabriela Suarez/Veronica Dante's in LP. She was especially amazing in the manicomio section of the TN. I think when they remake LP in fifteen years they should cast her as Antonia Guerra and some young, strong actress ingenue as Gabriela. Aracely does anger and ticked off well, and she was really good as a mom in LP as well because she's a mom to young boys, irl. It would be ironic to see her do a role Christian Bach made iconic and she'd be great at it.
 

Adriana, you wrote that there is no way the Church would annul a marriage of twenty years, with a child as well. Let's qualify that to say that in a telenovela there's no way the Church would do it. In real life, it could happen. Since annulments are irrelevant to the legitimacy of any children, in real life it's certainly possibly to get a church annulment even when the marriage produced children. And likewise for the length of the marriage, since the key thing for the annulment is something (psychological incapacity, absence of a proper intention, insufficiency of judgment) keeping the contract from being real.
 

WEDDINGS :

With the Catholic Church, I think if you have enough influence or money, you can get an annulment, as Utah hinted. Rudy guiliani got one from his wife Donna Hanover, even though they'd been married twenty years and had two children. I think the church nullified his marriage on grounds that they were cousins or some such, or maybe this was with his first wife, the one before Donna Hanover.
 

PREMIOS

Adriana - this was the time when I really loved Carlos Ponce.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lmb2DTyERR4


 

WEDDINGS

Utah, J desde NYC, I thought getting an annulment, especially for Catholics, it's next to impossible. But it's also true I only know tn people having their marriages annulled, with the guy unable to perform (we've gotta have that virgin 30 years old heroine, after all) or the woman finding different tricks to postpone the event (like Santa is trying).
I had no idea you can annul a marriage that has obviously been consummated (re: kids).
You learn something every day.... Thanks!
 

SANTA

Shallowgal, thanks for the clip, he was younger then, in his prime. He's a little older now and it shows, but he's still fiiiine.

Beth, yesterday I didn't have the time to watch at all, and today I really needed to vent A LOT :))

I truly hope Humberto is not 100% evil, too, but that's mostly because I don't like the Santiago type of guy - musician, hipster (or however they're called), with more product in their hair then a woman (only JC Canele can pull that off for me).

Here is why I prefer bad boy Humberto:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXqMMckLgV4
- especially the black and white part at the end -

If he was happy because he won one against mom, then it must mean that he's nit the perfect son, which gives me hope that there is something redeemable about him.

Of course, this is just wishful thinking, because of Carlos Ponce, but O found that one line of his in the bathroom more intriguing than all of Santiago's blood filled flashbacks.

PS: I do hope Humberto gets lucky on his wedding night :)
God, I really must not be the good target for this tn.


 

SANTA

Adriana - not really into this show, cuz I too prefer CP over AD; unless somehow, something changes where Ponce's character is redeemed.
 

The church has definitely annulled a church marriage.
One of the Kennedy's had the marriage annulled after many years & 2 kids.

 

WEDDINGS

Variopinta wrote:
"The church has definitely annulled a church marriage.
One of the Kennedy's had the marriage annulled after many years & 2 kids."

That was Congressman Joe Kennedy and his former wife Sheila wrote a book about annulments called "Shattered Faith." They had twin sons and the marriage was annulled after 12 years.

 

SANTA

Adriana, thanks for the Humberto clip - I enjoyed it. I too like Humberto's self confident, more cosmopolitan looks and demeanor. He looks more like a galan than Santi does. However that could be part of his evil, bad boy character. We know that he went ahead with Willy's prosecution even after he found out Barbara and her daughter were lying about the assault. And whether Willy is dead or alive, Humberto completely ruined his life.

I expect that Humberto, being a very thorough, sharp attorney, knows more about Santa Amanda than he's letting on and that he'll spring that on her some time in the future to keep her in line.

I've never seen Carlos Ponce or Aaron Diaz in anything so I started watching SD with no biases about either of them. It does look like the producers are setting us up for a Santa-Santi pairing.

Beth
 

DyO
AnotherAmy-I am so sorry to hear about your kitty. It's hard when a pet is ill.

I am seriously behind and I have a marathon planned for the weekend.

I'm sure all the recaps are wonderful, but I'm avoiding reading them since they would be spoilers for me. ;-)

SANTA
I'm behind on this too, but WOW it is good.
 

SANTA:

I prefer AD looks-wise over CP, but AD's acting is awful as if he's just starting out. The galan in Corazon Indomable is better, and televisa novelas are notoriously cheesy, but galan Narvaez and Maricruz/Maria Alejandra are more believeable than Amanda/Santiago. And Carlos voice is butterific. So, yeah, down with the Hipster galan.


WEDDINGS:
I looked up info about Rudy Guiliani's Catholic annulment since I wasn't sure about whom he'd gotten the annulment. It was his first wife, who was his second cousin. They'd been married 14 years and had no kids. I'm guessing the annulment happened because she couldn't have kids? He got a regular divorce only from the second wife, with whom he had kept two known mistresses. His third and current marriage was to his second mistress in his second marriage, who is Jewish. They had a civil ceremony officiated by the current NYC mayor because when he divorced the second wife w/o a Catholic annulment, and his blatant adultery during the marriage, the NY church hierarchy was upset with him.
 

SANTA

CP's voice - butterific - love that and yeah, his voice is really charming, J desde NYC
As idiotic as Corazon Indomable is, they got the couple right, Octavio/ Maricruz are very believable together. Santi/ Santa not so much, yet.

Your story about Giuliani's marriages and wives could make for a great tn.
 

Premios Tu Mundo,

thanks so much novelera for your timely rundown and your comments,

La Patrona, well deserved the honors, this was a well written and produced novela, Aracely Arámbula was fantastic in all her incarnations,
(would you call her first dress, frontless)

but where was Macario, (Francisco "Pakey" Vázquez)

I missed the part where Jencarlos Canela won Favorite Protagonist,

ok, lets move on to this award show in a parallel universe,

best pair,
Robinson Díaz/Tommy Vásquez
El Cabo/Tijera in el Señor de los Cielos

most dysfunctional family, "Pasion Prohibida", 'cough', the whole cast happily accepts the award,

favorite protagonist – female, Carla Hernandez in Rosa Diamante,
she could find good in all novela characters,

best/worst (but good) villain of all time, Tony Dalton as Don Rafael Urrieta in Flor Salvaje

best villain – female, Fernanda Castillo as Mónica Robles in El Señor de los Cielos

best supporting actor, Manuel Balbi, as Fernando in "La Patrona"

best new actor, Anderson Ballesteros as "El Chili" in Pablo Escobar, El Patrón del Mal

best bad luck moment of all time, Flor Salvaje, when Abel (Jonathan Islas) confronting Rafael (Tony Dalton) shoots the pilot...

 

PREMIOS TU MUNDO

Deb, your picks were great! Thanks for reminding me how great Tony Dalton was in Flor Salvaje.

I didn't see Jencarlos win anything either. I didn't see him even on the show.
 

MARIDO - Friday

part 1

When TC sees Tony she starts to scream “Ladron” and calls the security. Tony tells to a shocked Pati that she is “bonita” and he is a future plastic surgeon and her future husband. This prompts TC to scream even louder, a fight starts and obviously, Tony falls on the cake.
Pati runs upstairs with Tony following her and the security not far behind.
Manuel, Fernando and the other security guys give Tony a good beating in front of Pati (at TC’s orders); Tony won’t go, though, he wants Pati to say that she still loves him first. Finally, to get him to leave, she admits her love and Tony is carried out, with a swollen, bleeding face.
Why is Reinaldo so passive during all this mess? Tony was beyond drunk and he went after Pati, why wasn’t he there, too? Modern father or not, she is still his daughter.

Everybody at the party is in shock. Ivan thinks that maybe Gris was right when he asked him to send Tony to jail. Esther is trying to put a bandage on a cut that JP got during the fight downstairs, when Tony ruined the cake.
TC is sure “la bigotuda” set up this entire plan.
Simon makes the mistake to reveal to TC that he knows Gris, and TC forces him to tell her the truth about Gris’ work at the restaurant (first she threatens to fire him, but when that doesn’t work she threatens to close the restaurant). Then she asks Ro the address of Gris’ house.

So TC leaves and nobody except Simon and Ro know where she is. Simon is trying to build up the courage to tell Rei that he spilled the beans to TC, while Rei is trying to keep the party going – but considering the Tony fiasco, shouldn’t the guests want to leave by now?

While Tony is thrown out of the house, Pati is in her room, crying. Her girlfriends come to keep her company, but their presence doesn’t help much, because they want to know if she meant it when she told Tony she still loved him. Yes, she did, but she will deny it all the next day, she wants to be as far away as possible from him.

Iris and Paloma have a brief chat about Iris completely ignoring her daughter during the party.
It is obvious the party didn’t end up how TC carefully planed it. JP can sympathize with his sister, he doesn’t like it when things go unplanned, either (burn, Esther!).
On his way to the bathroom, JP is almost assaulted by Marcela, who tries to kiss him several times. He pushes her away, but with the tension between him and Esther, I’m starting to worry.

Later on Iris gets into it with Marcela, too. Marcela has her bedroom locked, Iris tries to occupy it, they scream… Paloma asks her mom to stay with her, but no way is Iris leaving TC’s house.

The guests are finally gone and Rei has the time to ask about his wife. He is almost choking Ro into revealing the secret, when Simon tells him all about it, instead.


 

MARIDO - Friday

part 2

In the meantime, while driving to Gris’ house, TC and Manuel bond over their shared hatred of all things having to do with the Carrasco family and the fact that Gris loves to meddle in other people’s marriages. At first TC is reluctant to believe him, but eventually, she gives him a vote of confidence.

The real, official fight, that happened in a ring, is over, Max lost. He tells everybody that he hit his head on the floor and that’s why he fainted, but nobody really believes him, because the other guy hadn’t even hit him when he fell. Barbie tries to cover for him, but once at the hospital, the doctor says there is nothing wrong with his head. Barbie thinks that means there can be plenty more fights to come, but the coach demands to know what is wrong with Max.

At the taco bar, Gabe is having his whine of the day, when Clara advices him to change his attitude, his hairstyle, his clothes – women like pretty men (I told you so, Gabe!) so maybe if he shows up in front of Gris with a different appearance, she’ll notice him. Gabe takes the advice to heart, let’s see what he does next.

Seeing Max lose the fight is a powerful aphrodisiac for K, who wants to take Clara to her place and do the nasty. To my disappointment, she accepts, even if she’s seen him go all Neanderthal during the night and she knows he’s still hang up on Barbie. Oh, well, the woman has needs. They run to her home and later on we see them all snuggled in her bed (apparently naked); she tells him that, unlike Max, he won his fight; K is very proud of himself. This relationship is now tainted for me.

Celeste worries about Sol not getting home before her dad again. Sol is at a club, dancing and singing. Celeste goes to see her, and she likes the music.

Amalia and Gris are at home, commenting the fight, too. Gris is happy Max is alive and well, she’s sure that if a free Barbie would ever want to get back with K, the big idiot would jump to the chance (ain’t that the truth!). Rafa comes for a visit, while Gris takes Little K upstairs.

Rafa and Amalia make out in front of the house when TC and Manuel arrive. Manuel puts the car lights on the two love birds, making them uncomfortable. Rafa suggests they go to the shop again, and Amalia agrees after little resistance – but, the shop, really?? The first time they just happened to be there, but what is the excuse now? Doesn’t Rafa have a place where he leaves? Didn’t Ivan warn him about stuff like this?

Tony has managed to arrive home; one of the guys at the Posada tries to make him see that others would be more than happy having the family he has, but even drunk, Tony is a jerk. He dozes off for a while in the living room. Daniel wakes him up to take him to his room, but Tony leaves the Posada instead.
He goes to his mother’s house, just in time to see TC knock on the door.


Gris is sleeping, when she hears the knocks. She thinks at this time of night it can only be a client. She checks up on Amalia and K, neither is home, and then she goes to open, just to find TC on her door steps.
I think the night is not yet over when it comes to punching being thrown. We still haven’t had our cat fight.

That's a wrap for me in the next 2 weeks. I'll try to get on line, to keep in touch and not lose track of what happens, because I'm sure I won;t have the time to actually watch the show. Take care of that lottery ticket! :)


 

SANTA

I posted this another time, but I must have done it wrong, because I can't find the message anymore (and it's not the over 200 comments trick).

Anyway, what was that huuuge blue-stone ring Santi was wearing during the kiss at the end? How long before we see his leather & beads bracelets?

 

MARIDO:

Thanks Adriana. Have a great vacation back home!

More later on the show. I have to run now.
 

MARIDO

Many thanks, Adriana. I wish the show were as good as your recaps!

Like you, I wondered why Reinaldo did nothing when Tony went rushing upstairs after Pati. It's all well and good to be calm under pressure, but....

For me, the person who behaved best in this whole episode was Simon. He refused to cave in to TC's threats to fire him and to make sure no one in the town would hire him. Only when she threatened to close the restaurant, which would affect a lot of other people, including Reinaldo, did Simon tell TC what she wanted to know about how he knew Gris.

Have a great time these next two weeks. We'll miss you!
 

Premios
I saw a picture of Fernanda Castillo
(Monica, El Señor), she is a knockout.
I have seen her in Destilando Amor & Amor Bravio, & thought her nice looking but nothing special, but she sure found her mojo. We never saw her gorgeous long legs before.

I didn't see any of the other TN's but thought El Señor should have received more than it did, it was so well done.
 

PREMIOS

I didn't see Jencarlos win either, but read it in an article online. It was on the internet so it must be true, right??

Love deb's picks for most dysfunctional family and best pair!

SANTA

Speaking of Tony Dalton, maybe Carlos Ponce is destined for a Rafael Urrieta style Villain-to-Protag conversion Flor Salvaje style. Just for you, Adriana :)

At this point, I don't really like CP or AD (although CP's tattoo was a point in his favor). I'm kind of hoping for a WD return, unlikely as it is. I liked Aaron in Teresa, but his acting is generally so wooden, which is why I was surprised he was so charming as himself at the premios.

DYO

Friday recap coming soon!

Robot word: ublertic
I'm totally using this word in conversation somehow.

Sara C, we've missed you!
 

SANTA

Amy, I'm totally rooting for SD to do what Flor Salvaje did(without the death at the end, that is) or better yet, what they did in La que no podia amar with Rogelio... but I won't be too disappointed if that doesn't happen.
By the way Santa took the first night of amor, I don't see her falling for the guy too soon. And that's fine, I can root for the bad guy :)

I think I would like Aaron D. more, if Santi didn't look like just a copy of Willy Sr - that is not a romantic tn story for me.

Today, as I was packing for my trip, I started watching Milagros, an older tn of Sonya Smith's. And who do I find there, with a special appearance in an episode: Carlos Ponce, looking 13 years younger (the tn is from 2000), singing one of his older songs.
I love thus type of coincidences :)
 

Premios

Jencarlos won

Protagonista favorito: Jencarlos Canela

 

MARIDO:

Thanks for another great recap, Adriana, and enjoy your vacation!

Manuel sure is bad. He's not even a security guard, really, but he was the first of the guys to attack Tony, with a kick to the gut.

Sol apparently is not just a dancer, but also a singer. Is there any chance Manuel will change and back her career? Not for a while, I'd guess.

Marcela sure is brazen, both with her reporting, and with kissing JP. Also with the way she got TC to give her a room. Does she have any real feelings? Haven't seen any yet.

I think Paloma likes Ivan, but Ivan is such a ladies man, he doesn't notice her at this point.

That scene of K and Clara in bed was very daring.

It's terrible TC can just threaten to fire people to get her way. One would think there would be some employment law recourse, but I guess not in this show.
 

MARIDO:

OK. I'm back. Thanks again Adriana.

I was surprised Rei didn't do more too, but when someone tried to follow Pati and Tony up the stairs, he said Pati could manage the situation on her own. So I wasn't surprised that he didn't follow at first, but I was surprised he didn't follow once TC gave the guards the order to beat Tony up.

Hombre- I agree that the Quique-Clara bedroom scene of them lying naked together in the bed (not strategically placed sheets) was very daring. I didn't lose any respect for Clara though. I get the sense it has been a VERY long time since she got any action (Quique too), and she needed a release. I just hope she realizes she can't expect anything more from him because he is still hung up on his ex.

Actually, I do think Ivan notices Paloma. His eye has wondered to her many times, and while he could not remember the names of his dates (he called one by the name of the other), he did remember Paloma's name, and said farewell to her specifically when he left the party.

Max, please ignore Barb and tell your trainer and the doctors what has been happening to you!

 

DYO viernes, part 1/2

As Oleg turns around, Mireya is back in her chair and he sees the broken vase on the floor. She’s crying and Oleg is worried, but she tells pa not to worry, everything is fine. When he leaves, she talks to Pedro’s picture… “you won’t ever be free from me, Pedro.”

Marge returns from her visit to the departamento, and she’s giddy that Ruben “dotted the I’s” for her in getting Lupita to go back to school. Oleg and Mireya come in with food for dinner and surprise Margarita with a sign for her sewing business to put outside her door. They decide to (gasp) celebrate!

Gema’s mourning over her lack of wardrobe for her date with CreepyCarwashCrawler (Emilio), who sends a tacky green dress for her to wear just in time.

Angel’s hangin with Guey (don’t remember is name), and they’re tossing around ideas so he can make some money. He doesn’t want to get back into dealing, because he doesn’t want his mom to find out and he’s got her convinced he’s changed. But he owes El Duro some serious lana. Isabel is listening from around the corner (DRINK).

Ignacia is meeting with her impartial advisor, Father Somebody. She tells him about her terrible marriage, and how she used to love Tomas but he was different then and now he’s aggressive, even when he’s not drunk. She’s afraid that by leaving Tomas she’ll have to leave behind everything she’s worked hard for. He advises her that marriage is sacred and should be a bond of love, and it’s Tomas’s fault for not giving her what she needs (…because he held a gun to her head as they walked down the aisle??). I don’t know much about Catholicism, but this priest seems pretty progressive to me…

Gina invited Lupita to Casa Perez for the celebration of Marge’s new business. She’s not sure at first, but then asks Ruben to take her. He’s kind of flattered she asked him, I think.

Tomas storms into Casa Villanomayor and finds Iggy packing to leave.

The party is underway at Casa Perez, and Olegario is reciting a poem he wrote singing Doña Margarita’s praises (so cute!). AA shows up.

Tomas forbids Ignacia to go, and tries to physically force her to stay. “So now you don’t even have to be drunk to be aggressive?” says Ignacia. Estela tells Tomas to let her go, and Iggy flees. Estela comforts Tomas saying that Iggy will be back.

Abue Alfa has come to say how glad she was to see Marge at the apartment, and she wishes they had had more time to talk (?). She meets real Gina for the first time, and then helps herself to champagne to soften the blow. Pedro shows up, and things are icy between him and Mireya.

 

DYO viernes, part 2/2

Emilio and Gema wind up at the restaurant that rejected Gema earlier, saying that she didn’t have the “look” to work there. She excuses herself to give the snotty restaurant guy a piece of her mind, and he better treat her like a queen all night, because LOOK who she’s with.

Gina tells AA the Berta story, and AA asks if the story about her hijo being alive is true. Gina assures her that it is. AA reiterates that they are going to take charge of Lupita’s education. Then she notes, “Your son is so good-looking!” and Marge and Gina simultaneously respond, “Gracias”, with Gina stumbling to correct herself.

Lupita arrives, Ruben wants to wait outside because her family doesn’t like him. AA and Marge reminisce about playing cards all afternoon (huh??), and Abue invites Marge to play a little hand right now, but alas, there isn’t time. She leaves, and Mireya finds out that that was Ignacia’s abuela. AA finds Ruben waiting outside.

Isabel’s mama is having a pity party, and whines to Isabel that she is worried that Angel will go back to the streets, and her poor weak heart couldn’t take it. Angel comes in to join in the “guilt-Isabel-into-forging-papers” party.

Ignacia bursts into the departamento wanting to talk to Abue, but she’s not there. Ignacia is near hysterics.

Neto walks up to Ruben waiting outside, and offers him a peace-beer.

Emilio tells Gema he is in imports/exports. Uh-HUH.

Iggy calls JM to come to the apartment.

Isabel tells Angel she’s onto him. He better stop hanging out with his old buddies, she saw him. “If you’re not going to help me, then my amigos will,” he says.

Ignacia calls Pedro and tells him she left Tomas. Mireya wants to know who is on the phone. Pedro tells M he wants to talk on the phone privately and asks her to leave the room. Oooooooooo boy…. She wheels out angrily.

Neto and Ruben are three sheets to the wind and enjoying each other’s company in the courtyard. Alcohol… the great icebreaker. Lupita is ticked (don’t worry, Ruben is an expert at driving his moto drunk).

Iggy tells Pedro she’s at the apartment to talk to Abue, and he tells her he’s there for whatever she needs. Mariano walks in and she hangs up. AA has met JM on the way and he has filled her in on what happened. She’s ready to hear more.

Estela thinks it might not be so bad for her and Tomas to have some time alone together, but Tomas disagrees (looking suitably ominous in the egg-chair, Dr. Evil from Austin Powers called and he wants his chair back) and demands that she get Ignacia back as soon as possible. Later, she goes to comfort him passed out upstairs.

Gina confronts Pedro in the kitchen. This would be a GREAT time for him to announce that he and Mireya are going overseas. He doesn’t look so sure.

Fin del capitulo

So it seems Marge and Abue were buddies way back when. Did I miss something, or is this a new revelation?

Robot word: smshipsy (yiddish, maybe?)
 

Marido,

great recap Adriana!
and good comments Hombre and Vivi,

there seemed to be a lot of little quirks in this show,
like the apprentice, "you're fired",

interesting that the knife wielding TC cuts Simon as she is subdued,
later as he goes it's ok, she doesn't even notice,

I think Ivan notices Paloma, but not as a conquest, now where is his other date, what's her name,

wow, it did look like Kike and Clara were both nude, are we to look forward to the day when everyone is nude for the whole novela,

Sol's dancing is pretty provocative, but where are her suitors, or friends,

yes, Manuel had to get in the first punch, no wonder he and TC speak the same language,

I thought it odd that Marcela was back at TC's before the cage fight was actually finished, I thought she was interested is watching the gladiators, and the Barbie story, maybe she felt a strong draw for JP, this lady should not be allowed to have a camera or a recorder, and everyone around her should be on their guard,

I would have thought Fernando would have been a bit more professional extracting Antonio, since they both live in the same place, right?, or does he just hang out there during the day,

I'm still working on Iris being Paloma's mother, hmm, now who was the dad,

was that Diosa, tucking in Antonio,

and so TC, dressed to the nines, meets Griselda in her pjs, without even her favorite pipe wrench, if only Manuel knew both Sol and Celeste were at the club, or will Antonio even the odds.

 

Marido

Thanks so much for the recap, Adriana! Some odds and ends of comments:

I think Max's trainer needs to be asking one of the medical personnel (clue: the people wearing white coats) about Max's condition. Would anyone standing around in a hospital be pressing the spouse for a diagnosis? Would anyone in their right mind ask this of Barbie?

Wasn't it such a surprise to see a couple who look as if they've actually had sex? No "for some kinky reason she kept her bra on," no "L-shaped sheet," no "they needed the sheet for protection against the Miami chill." It looked so natural.

Simon has such class. He definitely needs a worthy love interest.

Poor Griselda. All of her children are being fools right now. I liked the naturalness of her checking their bedrooms as she got up to answer the door--even her talking to herself about them seemed realistic to me.

So that was Sonya Smith in Milagros? I hadn't realized I'd seen her before. I remember watching the first few episodes many years ago, rebroadcast on Polish TV.

Reinaldo should have stopped the beating. I think the worse of him for that.

Ivan-Paloma has the potential to be interesting.
 

DyO

thanks so much Amy,

so AA hasn't met Gina 2 till now, and gets a quick rundown on Gina 1, and now I can't remember what AA knows or not, everything went blank, she must have known the original Gina way back when... and here I was thinking she was the one character that knew all and would be keeping everyone else straight,

I'm sure Dr. Evil wants his chair back,

it was amazing, that Lupita shows up at Marge's and EVERYONE is happy to see her, what?
why is it that between Lupita and Gema, Lupita looks/acts so mature and worldly,

and what perfect timing for Pedro to go off to London,
with Ignacia, aaa....

 

MARIDO

Utah, yeah, Sonya Smith stars in Milagros. The tn is quite good, actually.
And talk about reasons for revenge!! The hero had his entire family slaughtered by the heroine's aunt.
What would Maricruz Olivarez do with something like this if she holds such a crush basically for a boy hurting her feelings?

Ivan truly likes Paloma, but he's such a player and so used to treat women like objects, he has no clue how to behave to one he actually likes.

One of the things I love about Telemundo is that sometimes they give us "real" love scenes - the after scene from K-lara was truly something, but I didn't like the dialog. Like someone else said, if they keep it fun, it's pk, but I hope Clara doesn't fall for him.
 

MARIDO - correction

In the above post I meant to say that Maricruz holds a grudge, not a crush. A crush is what I hold for Tony's pretty eyes,when he keeps his mouth shut!
 

DyO

Really terrific recap, Amy! I also loved the positive signs of Pedro having a spine where Mireya is concerned. Of course, her shenanigans to hang onto him have likely only begun. I was wondering if she'd EVER stop screeching at him when he is speaking to someone on the phone. At last he told her to bug out.

Yes, I was impressed by that priest and his counseling of Ignacia. Were they married by a priest? Can't remember. I know it was at Tomás' new house.

I work with a guy from Argentina who got married 3 times! He and his wife did a civil one at San Francisco City Hall because her medical plan is better than ours! They discovered that the priest would not marry them for realz at the country estate in Argentina where they'd arranged to have the wedding. So they had a quick and dirty one without even the wedding dress at the local church. And then the priest, I guess, did a re-run at the country estate.

Ana was quite good in her hysterical scene at Mariano's apartment. I hope she warms up to him soon. He's being very understanding of her unwillingness to let him comfort her, but I hope we see her getting close to him soon.

Estela is beyond contemptible. She wants to drag her mother back to the house of horrors so she'll having someone to rant to when Tomás is passed out drunk. Plus, she can't stand the idea that Rubén, Abue, and Mariano (not to mention Lupita) are quite content living together. Anyone else being happy appears to drive her nuts. And she practically gets into bed with Tomás again. Eeeewww!
 

MARIDO

Adriana, have a wonderful vacation. You're coming to the US? Or going somewhere else?

Wow, that "fantastic party" TC planned sure blew up in her face, didn't it. The thing that amazes me about this novela is that lots and lots of people see TC behaving like an escapee from an asylum and no one ever does anything about it.

Monday's confrontation between TC and Gris should be epic. I don't think Gris is going to take her insults lying down. I'm fantasizing a scene where Gris opens the front door and plants a firm kick on her hindquarters that sends her sprawling on the driveway.

What was up with Marcela taking phone videos of the fracas at the party? If those show up on TMZ, she's going to be back at the hotel instead of freeloading at TC's house.

I'm predicting a recovery from Don Juanism for Ivan and his really falling for Paloma. Only in TNs, of course! I don't think womanizers really ever change.

I suppose we're meant to believe that Sol needs to follow her artistic path. But her constant pushing the boundaries seems extremely thoughtless to me. She's risking her mother getting beaten up every time. Manuel doesn't seem to ever hit HER, just his wife.
 

SANTA DIABLA

Everyone in this novela is annoying to me. I like at least some sense of realistic behavior in a TN.

Begoña behaves more like Willy Sr's mother than like Santa's. She has the same obsessive desire to get the Canos as Paula. She confronts her own child with a stone face at the hospital.

Inés is just plain awful. What real human being throws herself at a guy and follows him around that way 15 minutes after meeting him?

Santiago walking right in to the room where the bride is supposed to be "refreshing herself" to confront her about having married the brother he knows she doesn't love? Risking Humberto coming back? Why wasn't the door locked?

Lucy, the maid, walks around in her maid's uniform and six-inch high heels! I'm surprised she can even get to all those doors to eavesdrop without the sound of clacking heels alerting those within.

Carlos the cop obsessively watching every move his OLDER SISTER makes? And offering a perfect stranger money to do that when he's not around? Please.

And last, but by no means least, Mara not kicking Arturo to the curb.
 

SANTA

Novelera, thank you, thank you, mil gracias! I cannot get into this TN, much as I've trying, and you have summed up the reasons perfectly. I can add nothing more. These people are all driving me loca.
 

DyO
Thanks once again AnotherAmy, there was alot going on in Fri episode and you hit it all. I am delighted to see that Ru-ben is in "Redemption Rehab". Wonder if they will do the same for Angel?
By the way, I think the priest whom Ignacia was counseling with was the same one who dropped by the barrio for the blessing of the engagement rings at Pedro's house. Maybe he has a moto.
One final note: Haven't the two days gone by yet, where are Marge's test results?
J in Oregon

 

SANTA DIABLA ... Friday, (epi 8)

this writer is pretty good at throwing things out there, and even if they aren't always tied in, it does keep it exciting,

I guess Santi did the deed, this would make more sense if Humberto was so drunk/drugged to not notice her unparticipation in all of this, and of course a shower just won't wash it all away,

(is Carlos' tattoo real, I see the original one of the salamander is it, with the initials of his kids, in the center of that cross),

as the ripped up pre-nup that Santa never read lays on the floor, or whatever it was since Santa never stopped to see,

so Santi packs, says his good byes to the Victoria extended family and leaves, I guess that letter slipped under the door, that someone knows the truth, has spooked him, or is it because Amanda got married,

little willy is sick, Paula can't reach Santi, calls Begoña, later gets ahold of Santi, they all meet at Paula's place, including Santi who has come to say goodbye, huh, is he going door to door saying goodbye to everyone in town, and off to the hospital,

we see Pancho and Inés living in the same place, and not with Lucy,

Arturo has made a decision, he walks in on Mara, guess he has a key, and waltzes her outside to make love under the moon, (Mara must be the nicest person on earth to put up with this guy),

George actually cracks me up, I've never seen such a mild mannered clueless evil guy before, so he must have rented a car to pick up the father-in-law since it was going to be banged up, but off to illegal gambling with his nice ride, as if gambling with crooks could ever end well, so he bets the farm on 4 kings, and is beat by 4 aces, darn, but slugs the guy and grabs the keys back to the car he also lost and makes his get away, so they know where he lives anyway, and didn't this happen in La Casa de al Lado with a guy and his motorcycle, so they went to his house and clubbed him and took the bike back, we'll have to wait and see about George and his nice car,

Arturo, with that perpetual smirk on his face, (I just know if he has a son he will look just like Lucas on "La Patrona"), comes home to his mother who demands to know where he spent the night, he announces he will marry Lisette,

another note has come for Santi, Ivan gives it to Victoria who is off to church and Ivan tags along,

Humberto awakes and wonders where his bride is,

Paula and Begoña are back at work, Santa sleeps by willy's side, Santi stalks about, gets her phone when it rings and announces Humberto's on the line, so Santa is off to the honeymoon suite on a promise by Santi to stay with willy,

Paula at work hits up a suspicious, but well alive, Gaspar, as to where Humberto's files are, and makes a beeline to them, nothing subtle here,

Victoria chats with the padre, when Hortensia rushes in and announces Arturo's intent to marry Lisette, who lives with Victoria, and she gets to meet her son Ivan, who is just happens to be there, ut-oh,

I guess Humberto's honeymoon is just a one night stand as Francisca is prompting Lucy to get the house in shape for his return, and where is my box... and... and... all of the things Lucy has been carting off because no one would ever notice,,,

as Santa rushes off to her new husband, Santi says seeya, with a kiss....

[I have to say I'm not really getting the part where Humberto, a successful lawyer who has never married, fell for Amanda as if it was a gran amor, when there is no gran amor and Amanda's whole existence is so full of holes, and as for the Willy clon...]

 

SANTA

Thank you for the recap, Deb, while I'm away they will be of great help.

I thought calling Amanda about little Willy was stupid. These broads really have no clue how a real venganza should be accomplished.
I agree about Begonia, Willy Sr. might have been a saint, I still wouldn't want my daughter in bed with his murderer.

Novelera, I agree with your reasons for annoyance, I'm especially bothered by Mara...when will women stop being portrayed like that in tns? Well, maybe when they stop acting like that in real life?

Right now I'm mostly watching for Carlos Ponce but I could never get completely into a tn where the hero was so lame.... so, we'll see.
 

MARIDO

Novelera, no US for me, yet, I'm going home, to Romania, and we plan to road trip back to France, we're not yet sure how much it will take, it depends where we stop and how lazy we get.
When I do come to the US everybody and their mother will get fed up with my questions about the place we end up visiting. So, be warned!:)

I think TC's family think she's eccentric, with a few highs of real crazy - like when she went to the Posada, but who could ever convince her to get treatment? Not Reinaldo, of that I'm almost sure.
I think Iris is the only one who knows she truly is sick, and if it's something that came from the family and her mom had it, too, I hope Pati will be spared.

I'll try to squeeze in the show while I'm back home, I really don't want to lose the big confrontation Monday. I'm sure Gris won't take it lightly, but I wonder how will Tony interfere - will he be there for his mom, once in his life, or we'll he try to win points with TC?

If Amalia doesn't end up pregnant soon, then who will? Somebody has to, tn rule. And there is plenty of fornication going around for that to happen. Amalia, Barbie, Clara, Pati (the first epy, before Tony's lie exploded)... everybody but Esther.
It could be because I like JP so much, but I think Esther handled the whole baby thing badly and I totally get his point about not wanting a baby. I find her all of a sudden obsession more aggravating.
 

Marido

I think that the way people act around TC is actually more realistic than the way most telenovelas present over-the-top characters who act in bizarre ways. Her family members cope with it and compensate for it, they occasionally whisper about it, they treat it as an untreated disability.

Compare this to, say, Lucia on Corazon Indomable, or the hero's mother on Refugio para El Amor, where the crazy character with power and money really does get to run things for quite a while. TC is basically humored and worked around, and outside of her presence people speak openly of that.
 

SANTA DIABLA:

Thanks for the recap, Deb, I always like the way your comments (and recap) seem like poetry.

I think one big theme that runs through novelas is all conquering love. In real life, it may be stalking, obsession, illegal, but in a telenovela, it's a good thing, at least if done by the "good guys". So Mara may keep forgiving Arturo, but that's because of her deep love for him (which I can't begin to see, but oh well). Santiago does every inappropriate thing possible, but it's because of his "deep love" for Amanda (whom he's known about three days).

BTW, I used to know a guy who smirked all the time like Arturo. I think he's locked up now (just kidding, but he definitely had mental issues).

Hortensia doesn't seem to like the idea that Lisette has a son. Wait til she hears it's Humberto's!

I hate the fact that when characters don't have a good answer in this show, they just remain silent. Samanda does this all the time, but I saw it with several other characters. C'mon writers, get creative!

I'm a guy, so who am I to judge, but I think Santiago is very good looking, with penetrating eyes. His soulfulness could be very attractive to Santa, certainly in comparison with the controlling, pompous jerk Humberto (whom, I also admit, is super handsome).
 

Santa

I wouldn't be surprised if Ivan turns out to be her beloved Felipe's son, hence the grandchild she so desperately wants. jaja, this is a telenovela after all.

Briana
 

Santa

sorry, I was referring to Hortencia and her fixation on having a grandchild.

Bri
 

DyO and SANTA
I'm trying to catch up and maybe I'm seeing things but am I seeing the same actor? The guy George plays poker with looks just like the creepy car wash guy who's hitting on Gema.


 

SANTA

Brava, Novelera! You've done a magnificent job of highlighting the many things that are wrong/dumb/crazy about this telenovela. Almost nothing about it is believable or engaging. I may just bail out--I'm not yet sure. But the more I watch both this one and Marido, the more I think that one hour of tn estupidez per day is (more than?) enough.
 

SANTA

Thanks for the recap, Deb. Lots of good snark.

Yeah, Santa's obvious lack of interest in great lover [in his own mind, at least] Humberto during "the act" SHOULD have caused some concern on his part. Instead, he wakes up with a smile until he notices she's not there.

I'm thinking, like others have commented, that Iván could really be Arturo's son, passed off as Humberto's due to his magnificent qualities as a father; i.e. Big Bucks.

But they have mentioned that it was 20 years ago that Lisette and Arturo dated, and Iván is 18. But tn writers are not always especially good at math.

Hombre, I agree that Hortensia isn't going to love discovering Lisette has a child. But that's probably a false cliffhanger, and Lizzie will wiggle out of it somehow.
 

SANTA

Deb - excellent recap with all the high points nicely covered. It looked like Humberto did not give Santa Amanda the best night of her life - maybe his best night, but definitely not hers. I really love your snarky "I just know if he (Art) has a son he will look just like Lucas on "La Patrona". I so agree - Art's a bit gopherish - or woodchucky, or some sort of rodent with squinty eyes and funny teeth.

Paula is definitely the weak link in the venganza plan. I couldn't believe she called Santa Amanda on the wedding night (even if was about Willy-boy), especially when Begona had told her not to. And then asking G-Cano where the files are - way to raise red flags.

George totally pithed off the crooks by grabbing his keys and taking off with the car. Since we already know the bad guys can get into Casa Cano, I'm guessing someone's going to be kidnapped and held for ransom until George coughs up a whole lot of money.

Novelera - I love your 6 annoying, mind numbing characters, especially Lucy in the 6" heels. I keep expecting her to go "splat!" in those shoes.

Hombre - Santi is very good looking, and as you pointed out, he has those penetrating bedroom eyes and the soulful 1000 mile stare. Maybe the writers or director have a good reason for making him so annoying right now.

Adriana, Santi has had that blue ring on since the beginning. I noticed it because it's on his index finger and very prominent. Maybe it will have some special meaning in the story. It looks like lapis to me. Santi is already wearing a leather necklace.

Intriguing thought you had about LQPDA and Rogelio. At this point, I'd like to see remorse and redemption for Humberto, but we know there's a lot more of this story to come.

Beth
 

DyO

Amy, thank you a wonderful recap. I was away this weekend and just got caught up. There was so much happening Friday evening, and you captured it all.

Boy, was I wrong about Mireya. I thought she'd play the injured cripple on the floor to get attention from Pedro, but she hopped back into that wheelchair quick as a bunny. I loved the sullen look on her face when she found out AA is Iggy's Abue.

Now if Estela will just stay away, Lupita and Ruben may have a chance at becoming responsible parents.

Imports/export business? I fear Gema isn't going to get far enough away fast enough.

AA certainly has some secrets. She knew Gina way back when, and she played cards with Marge back in the day. I wonder if they know about AA's secrets - jail and whatever else Estela was talking about.

Nomas in the egg chair - just cracks me up.

You said: "Robot word: smshipsy (yiddish, maybe?)" Yup! Goes by the name Neto!

Beth
 

SANTA
Didn't Aaron Diaz wear that ring in El Talisman?

I think he looks great in this. I was tired of the slick hair.
 

Slightly off-topic but perhaps of interest --

Here is an article on telenovelas that some of you might enjoy:

http://chronicle.com/article/Teaching-Telenovelas/140017/

It appeared last month in The Chronicle of Higher Education and was written by scholar of Latino Culture, Ilan Stavans. Prof. Stavans happens to be the son of 50-year veteran novela actor, Abraham Stavans, so he knows a thing or two about the soft white underbelly of the genre.

I was intrigued to see the same Ilan Stavans quoted in a piece in the New York Times a few days ago in a discussion of law, religious freedom, personal names and culture.

http://tinyurl.com/lpfzzgn

[You may, perhaps, have been following the saga of the Tennessee judge who changed a baby's name from "Messiah" to "Martin" and is now being challenged by the ACLU. It turns out, by the way, that there were 762 babies named "Messiah" in this country last year, putting it between "Scott" and "Jay" in popularity.

Anyway, Prof. Stavans weighs in on all the boys named "Jesús," for example, in the Latino world.

And in the same article, I learned that in the Anglo world, it was considered sacrilegious to name your baby girl "Mary" up until the 12th century.]
 

SANTA

Deb, I loved your recap. I am such a fan of your poetic style and it is a perfect fit for this show.

I understand your frustrations, Novelera, but I don't really share them. I like this show just as I liked La Casa de al Lado -- inconsistencies, 2-D beautiful people, tricks of plot suggesting a "making it up as you go along" approach.

I may not be following this one closely and will always be a few days behind because it is on so late. But I am definitely hooked.

[I could do without the fake behinds, though. They look like deformities, not enhancements. But then I'm not the intended audience for them.]
 

Interesting stuff NovelaMaven, tks.