Caray, Caray!

Mi Familia

Sonya Smith, as Dakota, with her lay about beer drinking style and her southern drawl, what a trip, you'd think they would be living in a trailer.

Anita (Estefany Oliveira) from Sangre is here, as Megan from the soccer club, Eddie thinks she is a lesbian.

Irma (Laura Flores) has a son from a guy who, well, needs his space, and won't even live with her, but knows her to be the best mother.

Francisca, (the maid in Sangre) has custody on the minors but gambles the money away the government gives her.

Rosa loses her job at a beauty parlor for, well, but meets an even better guy with a nice car.

Karla Monroig as Camilia, is the best neighbor ever, but they are thinking of moving for their kids sake.

Lili, the youngest, is precious.

Mauricio Hénao is Santiago the new club coach, touched by Marisol, but shows a hard face, he knows how to win and pushes.

Patas is like running in all direction at the same time, but he won't quit.

his wife Ashley, makes sure their son is safe, then gets her drug fix, and od's but manages to call Patas who saves her, they so love each other.

this story is a tragedy, so why do these guys make me laugh, they are all so full of life.

 

Lado

why does Joel remind me of the Mario brothers (video game)?

 

Enemigo

cancel the ride...

Luis is growing on me, snort, nose swish.

you go cubana!

so who were the cowboys that took out Marimar, mil Cumbres?

 

Al Otro Lado del Muro - Capítulo 37 - Parte 1/3

The episode opens at the DNA lab. The terrified doctor that Pastrana has found to do the DNA comparison between Alo and "Alejandra" has retreated to the bathroom. Joel appears, she makes a startled sound, and Pastrana opens the door [so much for bathroom privacy]. She explains that the sound arose from her nervousness and again asks him to give her some privacy. "5 minutes," he tells her. Joel then assures her that everything will be OK and that the FBI is protecting her sons. But the guy out there is an assassin, and the best thing is to do as he says and finish the DNA comparison. However, she should put this small bluetooth gadget next to the computer. She leaves the bathroom and follows Joel's instructions. The team in the car are pleased: they've gotten a signal from the device.

At Ernesto's, Paula says something flattering about Julian. Ernesto reminds her that Julian is a kid and his son. "Are you jealous of your son?" Paula asks. Ernesto accuses her of sleeping with him. She replies "You and I have nothing, and he's of age, so I don't see a problem." "That's perverse," Ernesto replies. [He should know.] Paula then assures him that she prefers mature men, she likes grey hairs (canas).

Julian appears and announces that he's off to Rodeo Drive [a very upscale shopping street in Los Angeles] to buy a gift for a friend.

Frida is at her recording session. We see her perform for several minutes, and even after the scene shifts to Tomás, we still hear her singing. I didn't pay attention to the words, but the song ends "Tell me a lie, or a half-truth." We see Tomás walking. He spots several gang members and heads in the opposite direction.

The scene shifts again, to the baptism of Andrés' grandchild, Maria. Max arrives. Eliza tells him to leave, the baptism is for Andrés' family, and Max isn't part of that family. Max says he didn't realize that the baptism would be taking place, he came to talk to Tomás. Tomás, however, doesn't want to talk to him and tells him to leave. Karina and Rodrigo greet Max warmly, and when Rodrigo learns that Max wasn't invited, he persuades the goodhearted Andrés to invite him. "My house is open to all," says Andrés, with just a bit of reluctance.

J-Lowest and Steve talk at J's house. She asks him why he kept quiet about knowing Eliza in the past. Steve confesses that the reason he has said nothing is that he's in love with Eliza. She's beautiful, sweet, complete, strong--the ideal woman. But she's Max's woman, and though he doesn't deserve her, I have to give her up. J-Lowest says that she doesn't think the relation has a future. Eliza is strong, she won't forgive Max for abandonning her and their children [she says hopefully]. But it's your decision, she tells Steve.

At the party after the baptism, Carmen does her usual badmouthing of Max to anyone who will listen, and some who won't. She asks Eliza whether she's already forgotten that Max abandoned her and their children for ten years. Carmen asks Eliza why she doesn't choose Andrés. "Tell me a single thing that's wrong with him."

Alo starts to talk with Karina about Alejandra, but their talk is interrupted. After Karina leaves, Alo takes out the piece of paper with Alejandra's phone number.

At the DNA lab, Pastrana asks some questions about DNA matching. The doctor explains to him and to Viewerville that a match of 80-90% indicates a close relationship. If there isn't such a relationship, the results would be closer to 0%. Pastrana tells her, "I'm rough, uncouth (bruto), not stupid (tonto)."
 

Lado - Cap. 37 - Parte 2/3

Max and Andrés talk at the party. Max thanks him for all he's done for Max's family and for saving his life. He says that Andrés clearly has a vocation for helping people. Andrés replies, "If you mistreat or deceive Eliza, you'll find out who I really am."

Max also finally talks with Tomás. Max tells him he wants to talk about Tomás's future and that of his siblings. He wants to recognize them legally. [I don't really understand the situation. Isn't Max's name on the birth certificates as the father? What more is needed?] Tomás accuses Max of doing this to impress Eliza, but Max insists that he's doing it because he cares about them--a lot. Tomás objects that Eliza would still be unprotected. Max responds: I'll get a good lawyer [Steve, most likely. Nothing like rubbing salt in Steve's wound].
Max asks Tomás to trust him.

Max proposes to Eliza that they escape for the night. He has a surprise for her. They arrange to leave the children at J-Lowest's. [Why, since Carmen is available to young-person sit?]

The doorbell rings at Ernesto's. Paula goes to the door, expecting the pizza she ordered. Instead, she gets a very angry Senator Cummings, who storms in waving a newspaper and demanding "What the heck is this?" The newspaper apparently had coverage of Alejandra's exhibition at the embassy. Cummings is upset that the exhibition and the coverage will call people's attention to Alejandra and her resemblance to Sofía, and the case will be reopened. That's the last thing Cummings wants. Paula explains that there is considerable reason to think that Alejandra is Sofía, and the DNA testing will either confirm or refute that. The doorbell rings again, and this time Ernesto goes to the door. While he's out of the room, Cummings glares at Paula and says, "If she's Sofía, she's already dead."

Julian presents Karina with a lovely, simple, and probably very expensive necklace. Karina proposes that they continue the previous discussion. Julian tries to talk about his mother, who died when he was only four, but he is clearly ill at ease. Karina says that if he'd rather not talk about it, that's fine. She doesn't want him to think that she's a gossipy, meddling woman (chismosa entrometida). Julian wants to continue. He remembers his mother as a lively, vivacious woman, but then she became ill, and she refused to go to the hospital. He remembers, or thinks he remembers, his father going into her mother's room and then suddenly shouting. Julian entered to see his father sobbing at her feet. Julian tells Karina that he thinks she died of some kind of cerebral attack.

Karina tells Julian she's very pleased to see his human side. She sees that he's sensitive, not superficial. She's glad she was wrong about him.

Pastrana calls Paula to say that he has set up a small camera in front of the computer, so they can all watch the numbers as they're being reported. Joel et al. are watching, too. Richard is nervous when the number reaches 70. The others try to calm him down and ask him to be patient.

Alo calls Alejandra [hmm...in spite of what happened early in the novela, no one seems to be paying any attention to the vulnerability of cell phones to be tracked]. She tells Alejandra that she's so astonished by the similarity between her voice and her mother's. Alejandra suggests using that, that Alo can use her to vent (desahogarse) as she would to her mother. Alejandra further suggests that the phone might not be the best way to do this. She proposes that they meet the next day. [Duh...]
 

Lado - Cap. 37 - Parte 3/3

Max leads a blindfolded Eliza to the surprise he has for her. He removes the blindfold and tells her this is the house he had bought for her. He has rebought it, and now it is hers. They spend the night.

Pastrana discovers the bluetooth device and asks what it is. The doctor very nervously tells him that it's a thing for the lab. He throws it on the floor, breaking the signal. The listeners then hear two shots. Did Pastrana shoot the doctor or merely shoot the device? Neither, it turns out, but we have to endure several minutes of commercials before we find out that the shots were warning shots into the ceiling to scare the doctor. Pastrana then calls Paula to let her know there's a problem. She tells him to leave immediately before the police arrive.

The Good Guys, meanwhile, are trying to get the device repaired and ask people to be patient, but Jumpy Joel objects that we don't know whether the doctor is down, so he needs to get in NOW, and off he goes.

A few seconds after Pastrana leaves, Joel enters the lab. He assures the doctor that Pastrana was lying, there's no sniper (francotirador) near her sons, the FBI is protecting them. She just has to do follow the directions she's about to receive over the phone.

Meanwhile, the number continues to climb. It hits 80% and Paula announces that Alejandra is Sofía.

Santiago tells Rachel how happy he is. She says she'd be happier if she weren't fearing deportation. He picks up the telenovela cliches-of-doom list and tells her, "it's only a matter of days until your residence document comes through. They won't find any reason to turn you down."

The Good Guys give the doctor the numbers to enter into the computer. The number goes up to 82--and then plunges to 30. "What's happening?" asks Ernesto.
[Sorry, Ernesto, you'll have to tune in tomorrow like the rest of us to find out.]
 

"LADO:

Juanita: You've really outdone yourself in this recap.

I believe Ernesto whacked his 1st wife!


 

Lado

I haven't paid too much attention to Santiago and Rachel. So....if she and Santiago are married and he's a citizen....she should be eligible for citizenship...right?

I try not to gag at the scenes with Max and Eliza...they are boring. He is such a dry personality and the character so undeserving of the immediate redemption he's received. So giving Eliza a house now....10 years later after abandoning her and 2 kids in a foreign country... after she's weathered 10 years on her own.....opened her own business and has a house...not impressed. A smarter stronger man would have found a way to help and protect all his kids...not just the sick one.

Given how strong and resourceful she's been....don't see how she still finds his weak dry character attractive. What happens when another bold challenge comes his way....what or who will be sacrificed the next time....

Nett
 

Lado

Steve...I too wonder if Ernie's 1st wife was wacked... but why? If Paula did it...well...she just wanted her out the way....but why would Ernie want her gone? Unless she wasn't good enough to help further his political aspirations.

So...will it be revealed? Will Julian find out? I'm sure that will drive a wedge between him and daddy. Don't know who said this earlier but I'm half expecting Julian and Alo to team up together and help bring daddy down.

Nett
 

Lado

Many thanks, Steve, for your appreciative comment. As for your idea that Ernesto may have whacked his first wife, normally I wouldn't take it seriously, since you so often predict that a character will be whacked, or should be whacked, or will whack someone else. But this time, it's possible you're right. Julian relates his early childhood memories to Karina very tentatively. He says he's not sure whether he actually saw something, or dreamed something, or was just told about something. And then he says, "My father wouldn't lie to me." Hah! Given what we know about Ernesto....

None of the above is conclusive evidence that Ernesto killed his first wife, and it's quite possible that the writers are just playing with us. But the way Julian relates his memories certainly does raise suspicions. I guess time will tell.
 

Lado

Nett, I'm glad you raised the question about Raquel's legal status. I too am not clear about laws regarding citizenship. (And I'm also still mystified about what legal maneuvers Jennifer [hiss here] has in mind re Rodrigo. She seems to want to gain legal authority over him, but since Eliza is alive and well, what grounds would she have? I suppose if Eliza is deported, Jennifer might possibly stand a chance, but I suspect that if Eliza were deported, Rod would want to stay with her. There's really not a warm relationship between Rod and Jennifer, nor between Max and Jennifer.
My guess is that, if Charlie stays alive, he will wind up with Eliza's family as well, especially if Max goes with Eliza. Then again, I'm not betting on Max's survival. My head's already spinning from these speculations. Nos veremos
 

Mi Familia

Thanks for the Rosa info. Last night was more about her so I was able to catch up a little (but never would have recognized her as Serena from Sangre). I hope Ashley's drug episode and spilling her abuse by the mother's boyfriend to TJ will help her realize the siblings aren't so bad. And maybe get TJ out of there too.

Is Megan the one who gave a gift to the neighbor friend of Marisol (just getting the main character names- need a couple more weeks for the side ones)? She's gay. But she seems nice enough so maybe the neighbor friend should give her a try?

Kelly
 

Lado

Fabulous recap, Juanita! I really appreciated all the details; it was like watching it all over again.

I get a big kick out of telenovela science. Last night I was wishing I had a hematologist by my side to critique the weird DNA testing and remote messing with DNA testing we were treated to.

Tomás softened a bit with his father last night. In an effort, I think, to make an analogy between Tomás apparently refusing his father's help on immigration status and his education, Max reminded him of when, as a small boy, he insisted on riding his new bicycle with no help and fell off. Tomás smiled at the memory.

Yep, the doom about Raquel is getting thick!

I kind of thought Julián was alluding to mental illness in his mother. There was something about his father wanting to take her to the hospital and her refusing to go. It would have been just like Paula to have figured out a way to off her prior to the search she made of better First Lady candidates.

Julián was quite likeable last night. Karina could be the way he redeems himself. He hasn't been really bad so far. The death of his girlfriend was his fault in the sense of his buying the drugs that unhinged her. But he was horrified at what happened, not just concerned about his own skin, as I recall.

Please, writers, please! Let's see Senator Slimy in a jail cell with a huge, tattooed convict who doesn't like him one bit. And, considering his connection to little girls being molested, he probably wouldn't last long in the pen.

We are all completely confused about why Eliza, the actual, legal wife of a US citizen and Raquel, the current wife of a citizen, are at any risk of being deported.

I think J-Lowest was trying to encourage Steve to make a try for Eliza in hopes of eliminating a rival.
 

Lado

thanks so much Juanita for another wonderful recap! you are so good at including the details.

the ex-Senator couldn't be more repulsive, I can't imagine him in a role where he would be a likable character.

hmm, I think that was sushi Paula ordered, but they didn't show us.

and was Julian telling the truth or just making things up about his mother, he seemed to be doing it for affect as taught by Paula.

Max, what an unusual character, he crashes Andres party and walks off with his girl, can't see Eliza moving to the new house since she now lives next to the bakery, what she could use is a car, and I'm thinking this place is a love nest, where Max can get his family away and under HIS roof, he keeps talking about THEIR starting anew here, Eliza just wanted to skip the heavy stuff and get to it.

Ernesto not being in Mexico anymore probably doesn't have the same resources as tracking cell phones and such.

nothing like a good drink and settling down in front of a computer screen to watch a DNA match, and the higher the number got the happier Ernesto was, of course wasn't he talking about getting Alejandra even if she isn't sofia.

in "Mi Familia" they brought up the point that if you entered the country illegally you probably would get deported before you got to make your case.

I agree novelera, Jen is working on getting Steve in the mix.

 

Mi Familia

Kelly, we don't know that Megan is gay, that's just what Eddie said.

let me see if I can help with the cast,

Patas Guerrero
Rosa
Julian
Marisol
Lili
Ashley and Maddox
and Francisca the aunt
Irma the mother

neighbors
Tito + Camilia, Pérez
Génesis
Eddie

Ashley's family,
Dakota Johnson her mom
Tiffany (TJ) Johnson her sister

Santiago the coach

 

Mi Familia

Deb- Bless you. I'm printing this for the next couple weeks until I get it straight. Now we just need the name of the secret brother still in Mexico. (Also, I'm pretty sure Eddie is right). I'm glad they addressed how the redneck crowd knows Spanish since they clearly aren't meant to be Mexican.

Kelly
 

Mi Familia

I think the younger brother is Daniel.

Erika is the social worker.

still working on the soccer crowd.

I sometimes have the cast list when I watch,
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt7885292/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast

how about the lawyer being a fake?

 

"LADO":

Deb: I believe Cummings is still in the United States Senate.

 

"LADO":

Novelera: I'm anticipating Raquel will get deported.

As for J-LOW: She's got more sinister plans for Rodrigo & whatever she's cooking up, it's NOT good at all.
 

Lado

Many thanks, novelera and deb, for your very supportive remarks and terrific comments.

novelera, interesting idea about Paula finding a way to get rid of Ernesto's first wife. I wouldn't put anything past that perra. And I'm glad to know that you, too, are perplexed about the status of undocumented people married to US citizens. Yes, I agree, J-Lowest was encouraging Steve to go for it in order to free up Max for herself.

deb, I never thought about the possibility that Julian was making up the story, but what you say about Paula's advice and instructions to him is quite convincing. You make a good point, too, about the convenient location of Eliza's present living space being near the bakery, though isn't she renting it? I have to confess I burst out laughing at your "nothing like a good drink and settling down in front of a computer screen to watch a DNA match." Loved it!
 

"LADO":

Juanita: J-LOW & DEADBEAT Max deserve each other! Steven being urged to go through with gunning for Eliza wouldn't surprise me.

However, what's up with Andres telling Max "You'll find out who I really am" ? Was he involved with a gang or drug cartel ?
 

Lado

What did you all think about Frida's recording session? Johnny said something when they went in about studio time being expensive and her needing to knock it out of the park. It seemed like she did. But I thought it was odd there were only two people there, Johnny and some other vaguely skeezy looking guy. Where were the musicians? Of course, by telenovela voodoo, there was a musical background to her song. And, if he sincerely was going to promote her career, he'd have arranged for as much studio time as required to get the right sound.

I can't help but think that the recording session might have been a sham to keep her in line. Telenovela writers love retribution for folly. So, it seems to me that her choosing playing along with Johnny to Tomás' offer to get out of Dodge together is unlikely to result in a quick successful career.
 

Lado

I thought Johnny's emphasis was on "after the session" so make it quick, and yes he probably wants the studio time short since he's paying for it, I thought she was great, a little over/under dressed.

 

LADO
MS.FRIDA is not so innocent...!!she is willing to jump on thecasting couch with Harvey Weinstein for a career..!!! really..??

Thomas,I know you are sucked up into the hustle game and you are slinging 'product'...

But, I am not feeling Ms.Fast-track/Fast-ass Frida..
how many ..'producers'can she sleep with for her mediocre career.
 

Lado

TEAM TOMAS..he needs to kick benny to the curb...

Fast-ass-Frida,where is her followers on Social media .... where has she trained for vocals, where has she paid her dues!! show me, the dives/weddings/school fairs,where she has performed , where she has public exposure and feedback and competition!!!... if Thomas had not pushed her on the Open Mike night , where has she stood /sang and had to be critique..by the public.!!
 

ENEMIGO #135

A STRANGE CONFLUENCE..AFRICAN BLOOD DIAMOND... AND THE AFRICAN GENERAL…Nlongo [ who beautiful Ms. Lupita’s family]
Back in the block:
Mamba is losing her mind because she can’t see her novella, so, she begs Puma and Ochun to let her plop her ass on their bunk and see the ultima semana in their cell...??!! they swear she ‘drawing’…hitting the crack pipe??

Sergio checks in with a pawn broker friends... abt the smoking-hot Blood -diamond trade….

Madre and Tilapia have another standoff, but all they do is ‘Grit’ [eyeball each other] and sell ‘wolf tickets’ [talk smack] …macho-growl at each other..

Madre corners Roxy, tell everybody to split and throws her on the table and tries to collect…. He is ready ... and he tells her: a -deal’s- a- deal-, time -to- pay up...!!’ It took the guards a lot of elbow…to get him off her...!!Nasty and deadly…you played with the devil… now he wants some of that cooche~.....

The discovery of the murdered DEA agent has the knights on alert and Peunzo worried...

Lula has Alex’s eggs in a vise, she has filed a formal compliant with Roxy’s testimony, the chain of command can’t ignore it and they are obligated to suspend Alex??!!pending investigation...

 

ENEMIGO# 135
Priamo is done, done, done… the Fed picked up on the 911 call, but too late,
Olivia relays the news to the jefe… but they keep it on the downlow...

Bauser is a devil…. Hates/hateful and hating.. he had to fish Tilapia out of the dungeon....Tilapia is out of the hole…but he is so close to having his cover blown it’s not funny...

Roxy and the girls are working on their Tats... and discuss how to kill Zoraida… it’s a very nice salamander!!

Alex get the news abt Priamo… nobody is buying the suicide set up!!
Peunzo hooks up with the Obscuros and Turks… thy have a check out a picture of Samson…on a wanted poster… and laugh abt Priamo… and plan baby present and shower parties…

Roxy has a flash back abt the BLOODY HAND MAN and the iguana that she had as a pet...Cubano tells her to find peace of mind ... and she also lets her know that Bauser is slave driving Tilapia…

Priamo body is moved and Alex is pissed!!but he checks the room and area and finds a clue..Alex relays this to the boss and asserts this is no suicide, the man had other options...
This all puts a clink in finding the professor...Olivia interviews the cops on patrol /watch and they tell her that Gibran Mendiola visited Priamo...

Tilapia is being worked to exhaustion…. Under Madre’s directive…it’s all making Roxy is very anxious. She keeps asking Madre to intervene... but it’s going to cost her soon??!!!

Tilapia falls on his cot and goes zombie!! Madre tells him he owes his ,half -dead- ass to Roxy’s intervention... but don’t get it twisted he is still on spot/sh#$%t list...


Alex is getting heat from his boss over the dead fed, agent…Penzuo accompanies Alex to where Peunzo killed the victim…

The kid talks to Tilapia abt the tension... when the jail goes into lock down??

Alex and the ratfink, rolls out to the ambush site and Peunzo is confident he is still in the game….
Because any evidence that is found he can destroy or fudge up…

Roxy calls her dad… while Alex and the Feds are catch up in a diversionary tactic…... that Peunzo probably set up… they almost killed an innocent CAB DRIVER? later score and score big!!!

But it’s a swiss connection and it pays off big!!… he is most likely a related to nemesis=Nesemio the capo…THEY FIND DIAMONDS…!!. BLOOD DIAMONDS…. ROXY’S PLAN TO LAUNDER DRUG MONEY IS VIABLE .. GIVEN THE AMOUNT OF CHAOS [ NATIONAL /WAR LORDS .]. and political groups anxious to acquire weapons...

 

ENEMIGO #136

Silvia the gamer, who played Pharisee [smooth play] walks in as an edict for the Attorney General is issued for Alex’s badge


Wanted DOA-Flyer /Bulletins for Samson are placed all over the district…

Olivia is trying to pin down the African transport route... and the cartel connection... just ask Boko Haram, who has been arms trading with them….!!

Poor pregnant [??] Mamba, finally gets to watch her story when Zoraida comes in and blocks her cop…

Sergio gets threatening message… and he calls Alexandro for cover…...


Peunzo stages a shooting and it serves as a diversion…so, he can fudge the DNA forensics…...

Madre has a recital and his opening act is Ochun…in the meanwhile, he is planning to get hubby /wifey time with Roxy and he sends Ears to get it done…

Roxy and Zoraida almost got into it…the ladies know it’s got to be handles ASAP... But Roxy sneaks off to meet Tilapia on the sly...

Alex runs into Goody-Two-Shoes and calls her on BULLSH#$%T’ BUT THE, FACE OFF IS POSTPONES DUE TO Sergio’s plea for help

Roxy and Tilapia is all up in the C#$%nt again... they meet like every 3 hours…...they are in a clutch when Bauser the rapist and Mambita are heading to their love nest…that girl has got to be Pregnant by now!! Roxy remind Bauser... that his lust could be grounds for dismissal…
Mamba has him [play my novella Husband: Gabriel Pounce] roleplay novella sex…just play along!!

Sergio messed up and he tried to get home and got killed…
Roxy called Nesemio to get help and he INSTRUCTED HER TO GO TO THE YARD... AS heliocopter hovers and..????? and he sends Psycho Luis……. I hope everybody in the yard ducks!!

 

LADO

Juanita, -- My gosh, a bang up recap. You outdid yourself! It's such a pleasure to read your snark interspersed with the dialogue.

-- I also remember that Max told Tomás he wanted to legalize all three children, "not" just Rodrigo and also pay for their education. Where was he during their formative years? Boring, boring, coward, coward......

Novelera, -- I agree that Julian alluded to his mother being mentally ill. Remember he said that she refused to go to the hospital. A mental hospital or "sanatorium" would scare anyone away!

-- I agree that Juanita's recap was so well written that one felt like they were watching the episode all over again!

-- Frida's recording session surprised me. She was much better in the studio than she was when she was singing in Mark's basement or at a karaoke bar.

-- Do you think the writers are using Frida's 'sex for a career boost' as a PSA in line with the current 'Me-too' movement?

-- Jennifer was definitely making a play to have Steve go after Eliza! I think it got too uncomfortable for her to have to say nice, complimentary things about Eliza to him. She must have been grinding her teeth the whole time.

Deb & Steve -- I also thought Cummings was an Ex-Senator, having left public (sex trafficking) office when Sofia and him got into "it".

-- How did Frida's dress/bustier stay up? Did she super glue it to her boobs? Do say!!

** Does anyone know if DNA test results would really climb that high (~80%) and then plummet back down?? From what little I know about graphing, programming, etc., it seems unrealistic that a computer program would give results that plunged back down after indicating that the test sample had reached a certain figure. I can see it stopping at a certain percentage point, but not plunging back down. I remember Patrick telling Joel that they had to wait to fudge the numbers so Pastrana wouldn't get suspicious.

Juanita, -- How did Max buy back the house for Eliza since he had signed it over to Jennifer before they left for NYC? That whole sneaking around thing made me sick.

Steve. -- Didn't the Republican Party say that if one came into the Country illegally, they would be deported and would be required to return to their native country to wait out a legal entry (Green Card) means?

Steve, -- I think when Andrés told Max that he would get to know his bad side, it was just Andrés being super protective of Eliza. I mean he's been the male figure in their families for a decade.

ENEMIGO

There really is a women named Talapia?? That's hysterical!
 

Lado

novelera, you asked what we all thought about Frida's recording session. In terms of her performance, I thought she did a terrific job. I wasn't surprised, since I thought she showed a lot of talent even when she was singing in the club and in the basement of Mark's house. What did surprise me a bit was that she didn't choke up because of nerves at the recording session. But the more I think about it, the more I agree with you that the recording session might have been a sham. Johnny's such a sleazeball, it's hard to believe that he'd really come through.

The role of Frida may turn out to be a career maker for the actress (whose name I haven't yet looked up). All the exposure is likely to be an enormous help. Unless, of course, she's already a well-known, celebrated performer. (Even if I knew her name, I probably wouldn't recognize it. Mexican pop culture is definitely not one of my few strong points.)
 

This comment has been removed by the author.
 

LADO

Y'all Check out this Google feed kink. It's very relevant to LADO's plotline.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/12/politics/john-carter-children-border/index.html

 

Lado

Victoria, thanks VERY much for your detailed, appreciative remarks and extremely interesting comments and questions.

As I've just mentioned in responding to novelera, I thought that Frida did a terrific job at the recording session, though I also thought she was very talented when she sang in Mark's basement and later at the club. But I'm not so enthusiastic about the recording session, other than her performance, for the reasons that novelera has already mentioned. I think it's quite possible that Johnny was full of hot air when he talked about booking her in all kinds of first-rate places, and that, as you suggest, the writers may be using this as a warning a la #MeToo.

I too was scratching my head over the DNA results, for the reasons you've explained. Indeed, hitting 80 (and at one point 82) and then suddenly plummeting to 30 is likely to arouse the Bad Guys' suspicions.

Good question about the house Max rebought. I hadn't thought about it until you asked. I suppose it's possible that J-Lowest sold it at some point to get the money after kicking Eliza out, but certainly we were never told that. Perhaps the telenovela real estate world is like telenovela medicine (and perhaps telenovela law).

I took Andrés's response to Max pretty much the way you did, though perhaps a bit more as a warning. After all, Max kept praising him for all the kind things he had done and said that he had a "vocation for helping people." Andrés wanted to make it very clear that he's no pushover, and that if Max hurts or cheats Eliza in any way, he'll see a much tougher side of Andrés. Which is perhaps a polite way of saying he'd beat the mierda out of Max.
 

"ENEMIGO":

HALIMACANDY: How long before Luis decides to kill Nemesio ?
 

Lado

Just now leaving the office! There will be a recap; it won't be that brief, but it won't be that long! I am my workplace's unpaid therapist. A fair amount of other employees, not me, are related to each other. Sometimes things heat up and I get to play peacemaker.
 

"ENEMIGO":

HALIMACANDY: Cannot believe they killed the sexy female prison psychotherapist.
 

Enemigo

hmm, tonight before the last segment they ran a promo for Monday that said "Capítulos Finales".

 

LADO – VIERNES – CAPITULO ? – Parte 1 de 2

We see the numbers on various screens go down. And then, in Ernesto’s house a message in red: NO SIGNIFICANT MATCHES FOUND. Paula calls up the doctor to chew on her about how the numbers went up and then precipitously down, while Ernesto, upset, drinks. The doctor reads from a script off her phone about how the software that does the DNA analysis works. Cummings grins.

Andy and Tommy are finishing up doing the dishes from the baptismal party. Andy (working on his sainthood) tells him Max is being sincere in wanting to help his children. Andy then asks Tomás if he’s mixed up with 66, and Tomás denies it. Andrés then begs him to try to get Benny out of the gang. Tomás isn’t buying it. If Benny’s found dead on a street corner, es su pedo (his problem).

I am up to my back teeth with the cliché of Cummings speaking in Spanish infinitives. Wow! Ernie refused a drink when Paula and Cummings wanted to toast.

Raquel tells Carmen her sad story. She’s Salvadoran. She and her father left because some bad guys in her village were grabbing up girls to prostitute them.

Julián tells Karina that his father did marry again, but she turned out to be a gold digger, and later on even a criminal.

Ernesto calls Alejandra and says: “Sofía?” She corrects him. He apologizes. He wants to invite her to the consulate about her work. She says she’ll have to touch base with her husband.

Paula calls off the guards and asks the microphones to be taken from “Alejandra’s” apartment. Ernesto looks Paula dead in the eye and tells her she’d have loved for it to have been Sofía so that she would have another chance to kill her.

We are back to Carmen and Raquel and hear the whole story. She calls the train they rode upon from El Salvador La Bestia. [This is what it’s actually called by the people who have left Central America on it. There’s a fabulous movie about this called Sin Nombre and a book entitled Enrique’s Journey.]

Raquel tells Carmen that what she might have heard about La Bestia wasn’t even the half of it. “If you could lograr treparse en el techo en medio de tanta gente desesperada. [manage to climb on the top of the train in the middle of so many desperate people], you would then be trying not to fall off. You'd get burned by the hot sun in the daytime. In the night you can’t really rest for fear of resbalarse slipping off or that they might steal what little you had brought with you.”

“We were about to cross the border when some narcos boarded the train looking for girls to use as prostitutes." Her father resisted, and they killed him. She escaped by some miracle. A woman helped her cross the border into Texas. She arrived in Los Angeles hidden in the back of a truck. If Andrés hadn’t found her lost in the street, she doesn’t know what would have become of her. Carmen offers her sympathy and assures her that her father is looking on from heaven, happy that she has such a good life.

We cut to Eliza and Max. [How come no one burns down the house when these protagonists light about a hundred candles to create a sexy mood?]

Richard comes back to the apartment and shows Sofía a note that the fake DNA test worked, because they still have to watch what they say because of the bugs.
 

LADO – VIERNES – CAPITULO ? – Parte 2 de 2

Joel comes home and finds Lorena passed out drunk. He tells her he wasn’t with Sofía [true].

Eliza isn’t quite eating out of Max’s hand, post-coital. She tells him she feels like the lover, not the wife.

Sofía tells Richard about the invite from Ernesto. Richard thinks he’s decided to settle for Alejandra now.

Eliza gets some breakfast crap from the family about not coming home. Tomás says she might be giving his sisters a bad example! Carmen, of course, is the most ruthless. [I liked that when Alo left she called Carmen abuela.]

Raquel gets a letter to come in to be fingerprinted. It appears she’s already applied for legal residency. Andrés and Eliza reassure her this is only a formality. [Gee, I hope so!]

Patrick and Richard are tuning into the bugs Joel left in Ernesto’s office. Ernesto greets Cummings. [Patrick appears to have just figured out who The Texan is.] We see a revolting request by Cummings that Ernesto do a census of “wetbacks” to find girls between 10 and 20 years of age. Ernesto looks nervous (perhaps thinking of Alondra). He thought they wanted them younger.

Richard tells Patrick that the problem is that the bugs in the consulate are illegal; they can’t be used to arrest these two.

Sofía goes to meet Alondra at a coffee shop.

Tomás meets Frida at the karaoke bar. [I didn’t realize she’d stood him up before; and, furthermore, how does he buy beers when he’s still in high school?] He’s pretty salty with her. She tells him about the recording session. Tomás: ”¡Y cuando te hagas famosa, me mandas por un tubo o que? (And, what if you get famous and then dump me!) Frida offers him $500 to help get 66 off his back, but Tomás doesn’t trust the way she got the money. She leaves in a huff.

Max shows up at his old house with divorce papers for Jennifer; who, of course, proceeds to lay on the “Charlie is dying and you’re doing this” yada yada.

When Sofía meets Alondra at the coffee shop, she screws up and calls her “Alo”, but manages to get out of it saying she must have heard Ernesto say it at the consulate. Alo tells her how much she loved her mother; how she let her be herself when her father was calling her marimacho (tomboy or sometimes even more vulgarly as “butch”) if she didn’t want to go to ballet classes. When Alo is saying how close she was to her mother, we can see Sofía suffer. Alo ends up telling her that her father showed her proof of her mother being a criminal and that, furthermore, Joel told her that her mother killed his sister.

Joel and Richard appear to be getting along for a change. Joel says he’s sure this picking out undocumented girls is why Ernesto was sent to LA. He says the parents of these girls, being undocumented, will be afraid to kick up a fuss when their daughters disappear.

Richard tells Patrick and Joel that Sofía shouldn’t be involved in this latest phase; she’s too impulsive. Joel says that she’s the only one who can infiltrate the Mexican consulate without anyone being suspicious.
 

"LADO":

Novelera: Cummings flexing his racism AGAIN. What's up with this freak ? I have a new nickname for this Slimy United States Senator from the Lone Star State: Trujillo 2.0!

How old is Raquel ? What are the ages of Karina & Alondra ?
 

Lado

novelera, MANY thanks for this excellent recap. I greatly appreciated the Spanish, which included several words/phrases that I once knew but had forgotten. And I loved some of your comments, such as "Andy (working on his sainthood)" and "[J-Low] proceeds to lay on the “Charlie is dying and you’re doing this” yada yada." I was also very impressed with your ability to express what happened so clearly and concisely. IMHO, you didn't miss a thing.

I might mention that when I first saw Joel return to the apartment, I thought perhaps Lorena had indeed called Pastrana, who came over, tossed the apartment, and perhaps knocked out or even killed Lorena. I was surprised that none of that had happened and what we saw was just more evidence of Lorena's despair.

I'm glad you mentioned the film Sin nombre. I saw it soon after it came out, and I found it very powerful.
 

Lado

wow, an excellent recap novelera!

La Bestia, El tren de la muerte, El tren de los desconocidos, (wiki) I had never heard of that, that was quite a moving story Raquel told, (reading about it is worse) and bless Andres for being Andres for scooping her up, getting her off the streets.

interesting that Joel wasn't present when we see Ernesto and pIrv talking, that is all the proof anyone would need that the human trafficking wasn't being done by Sofia, but they do fill him in.

Patrick and Richard get along so well (still shaking my head about Patrick making himself the boss) like a couple of professional cops, then along comes Joel with his weird english, "I hafta disagree", I think his point here is that Sofia was offered a job at the Consulate.

I think those were all booze bottles on the floor in Joel's apartment.

did Julian buy into all that was said about Sofia, as in did he believe all that he was telling Karina? no wonder Alo calls him a fool.

Tomas is such a good kid, but stubborn, he's walking the line but won't ask for help, and smart enough to see Fri is going for the money, I didn't get all that Andres told him, was it something like if you take the gang head on, they all break apart like a bunch of glass dolls, anyone remember?

 

Enemigo:

Thanks for the fun recap, Halimacandy!
Yes, it's últimas capítulos. This can still be 4 weeks, but at the rate characters are being killed off, they could finish in 4 episodes. First we had Sergio get killed, I think by the Oscuros, he may have been getting something on them. The cops find that some of the bullets used to kill that FBI Agent in the desert were Federal cop bullets. That's because they came from Puenzo's gun. How does he solve the problem? He has an Oscuro threaten the forensic guy who's analyzing the bullets, then Puenzo KILLS his own guy and takes the bullets for himself? This is the second time he's killed an Oscuro to maintain his cover (he earlier killed Turco's brother or cousin). It's working, his cover is secure, but geeeesshhh!

Nemesio is worried about Roxie, sends a helicopter with Luis to rescue her, but she runs inside, tells him to call Luis off, she doesn't want to leave until she leaves with no charges, no one chasing her. Which won't be so easy because the cops now know that she ordered the diamonds brought in from Zurich, the courier having confessed (this time Alex's methods worked). Alex loses his badge and gun due to the investigation prompted by Lula, and the testimony of Roxie that Alex tortured her and made her pee in her pants (true). But first Sergio gets killed, and Alex blames Lula, Alex might have protected Sergio. Then the Mil Cumbres kill Marimar, and Alex is REALLY upset. Nemesio and Luis thought this was a good idea, to pressure Alex, but Roxie isn't happy at all, and tells both her "Dad" and "brother" that basically SHE's calling the shots from now on! She also finds out Ochun is betraying her, still calling her boyfriend Turco, who wants Roxie dead. She has some sort of elaborate plan, which Nemesio, Luis, etc. have to follow to the letter, but I'm not sure what it is. Pharisees is working on this, too, and we THINK Olivia has tabs on him, so can she intercept the plan in time?

After Sergio and Marimar get killed, Alex is informed that the cops are now "at war" with the cartels, so Alex gets his badge and gun back, special circumstances, although the investigation isn't called off. He goes with Puenzo to catch Sansón, and the show ends with Alex pointing his gun at Sansón's WIFE, threatening to kill her if Sam doesn't put down his weapon. Usually this is a bad guy move, but Alex is writing new rules for the cops (and it's working).

Oh, and meanwhile Mamba sees Bowser being visited by his wife and two little kids, yells that he betrayed her, she's his girlfriend, which doesn't sit so well with the wife. Bowser has a one on one with Alex, and pretends to be this goodie two shoes, we're on the same side, Alex doesn't deny that Tilapia is a cop. So goodie two shoes Bowser corners Tilapia, says I know you're a cop, I'll tell unless you let me in on all the drugs in the prison, the cash, etc. Great guy, Bowser. But when he applies force, trying to choke Tilapia, Tilapia fights back, hits him in the throat, and Bowser is DEAD. Whoops! Tilapia has to dump him in the trash. This is the second guy Tilapia has killed now. He's also stupidly totally believing Roxana is innocent.

Things are starting to go crazy!
 

Enemigo

love your weekly summaries Hombre!

not sure what's with the Capitulos Finales, we are only at epi 38, and this is their best ratings getter, they're showing "Señor de los Cielos" promos but I thought they just started production only a few weeks ago, "Sin Senos Sí Hay Paraíso" did wrap last week though.

Luis is growing on me, what a dummy, loved it when Halimacandy ended one of her recaps with "AS heliocopter hovers and..????? and he sends Psycho Luis……. I hope everybody in the yard ducks!!"

hmm, I thought Nemesio broke up the Luis/Buitre death to Marimar party, telling Luis if he wants to do something right, kill Alex.

is it professor Roxy, odd that she tells (not asks) papa what to do, her plan is pretty simple I think, she gave Nemesio Turco's phone number that Ochún left on her phone, to pass along to Pharisee so he could locate where it is, so they will know where the Dark Knights are all the time.

am I getting this right, the Mil Cumbres have this big network for producing and selling drugs and the Dark Knights just steal their drugs and sell them?

hate to say it but Puma was right in wanting Ochún dead, even now Roxy won't kill her because she doesn't want any complications stalling her getting out clean, but I wonder...

Bauser is a tough guy to figure out, but now he's dead, I think he thought he was one of the good guys, he made a deal with Alex, he would protect Tilapia and Roxy, but in return he wanted an opportunity to better his position, I think he was hinting at being the warden, anyway the warden has been riding him so hard to find out who Tilapia was working with I though he would spill on Alex, but no, he goes looking for Tilapia, and I think his hate for drugs, since some of his family are dead due to them, he wanted to get the scoop so he could shut it all down, wow, and now he's in a dumpster.

if this season is wrapping up, I wonder (and this is just speculation) if Tilapia doesn't get pegged for killing Bauser and makes a run for it either with Roxy or to meet with her, and of course Madre might make a break too in order to reclaim his woman, and maybe next season we will be far away from this hell-hole.

nice tat Roxy! (much nicer than Puma's 5 big dots)

 

Novelera
Thanks for the tip about the Salvadorian train, Sin Nombre. When we lived in ES years ago, it was a beautiful, tranquil, and peaceful country. Residents didn't seem to want to flee, but rather make their living conditions better with what they had and with what they could earn. The beauty of the country influenced its inhabitants and, El Salvador was a popular retirement place for US citizens. We would never recognize the sad country it has become noe.
 

EL Salvador turned into another Venezuela.
 

"ENEMIGO":

Deb: Not shocked Bauser ended up dead in a dumpster.

The Cubana girl's days are so numbered too! She's a liability.
 

Enemigo:

Deb, thanks for the the corrections/clarifications. I think you're right about all of them. I still think we have 4 weeks left, which would take us to 58 episodes, just about the minimum for a show. My prediction for the last episode? Alex confronts Nemesio and Roxie, and Nemesio calls her by her birth name (Aleide?). Alex hears this, flashes back to his little sister, as they point guns at each other. I'm hoping season two is outside of the prison as well, which could be since they've already killed off a bunch of characters in the prison. And if, as you said, Madre gets out, too.......
 

ENEMIGO

DEB:
DANGGGGG!!! YOU may something with the phone...Roxy PASSED Ochun/ Turco PHONE NUMBER ON TO N
NESEMIO/CAPO DADDY!!???
OMG!! CLEVER!!

HOMBRE:
YOU presented a side of Bauser ,I didn't see and ..'the- heck -with-it'...cause he's -AS-DEAD-AS-A-DOOR-NAIL!!
 

"ENEMIGO":

HALIMACANDY: Cubana signed her death warrant a long time ago.

Hombre: I see that Alex got reinstated.
 

Enemigo

María del Carmen Félix who plays 'La Puma' is la sobrina nieta de 'La Doña' (original Doña Bárbara), María Félix!

looks a lot better with no tattoos and long hair!

 

"ENEMIGO":

Deb: I didn't know that Maria del Carmen Felix is related to the late Maria Felix.