Caray, Caray!

conde

I apparently posted the following message on Page 1, which had just been superceded by Page 2 (the present page). Here is the message I posted on the outdated page:

Wow, dondi, you continue to create wonderful recaps. I can't thank you enough!

I'm not sure I understand Ale's plans for David. At one point, he says that David will have to kill Gerardo. Surely Ale doesn't expect/want David to literally kill his father, but I can't think of how else to interpret his words.

It's interesting that Ale again feels that there's "something special" about David. Like you, dondi, I wonder about "the call of the blood," even though the likelihood of David's being Ale's biological son still seems to me exceedingly small.

Also, like you, I had the feeling that Amaranta was flirting with Pau. Most telenovelas I've seen tend to be quite conservative about sexuality between same-sex couples. I'm wondering whether this novela will be different.

I suppose we're not supposed to know yet what kind of scheme Ale has in mind concerning "Francisco de Mendoza." If we are supposed to know what he's planning and why, please let me know.

Finally, I don't understand why Ale feels that Mari has somehow been unfaithful to him by marrying Gerardo. Give me a break! Ale has been sentenced to 99 years in prison. Does he expect her to wait for him?? Moreover, isn't he aware that Alejandro Gaitan was reported to have died in a fire in prison? So in spite of the fact that Alejandro is either dead or in prison for 99 years, Mari should not have married someone else??
 

Conde

Novelera, maybe for Ale it is not about the fact that Mar married but rather the person she married ...Gerardo , the devil incarnate.
Susan
 

conde

Susan, I’m not sure if Ale is just plotting against Pedro or using him for revenge against Gerardo. Maybe it’s a case of killing two birds with one stone. But Lucrecia loves Pedro, and she will be devastated if anything bad happens to him. I can’t believe Ale would do this to her.

“Are Cay and Mar going to be friends or foes?” Good question.

Juanita, Ale said David will be “responsible for destroying his father”. I took that to mean exposing all his dirty deeds. That would be a fate worse than death for Gerardo.

I know we can’t discuss the original novel, but we see the parallels. I wonder how closely they will follow them.

I can do the Friday recap. It will be up on Saturday.

 

I missed something....who is Francisco Mendoza?
Beth S
 

conde

Hi Beth S. Francisco de Mendoza is a part of Ale’s revenge plans. He could be a fictitious person or someone who once existed. Ale sent Ric to set up Pedro with a story he’s looking for the missing Francisco to give him a huge inheritance. According to plan, Ric “finds out” Francisco is dead and greedy Pedro (a Francisco look alike) wants to impersonate him to get the inheritance. Subsequently, Ale goes to Gerardo to ask for help finding Francisco so he can give him the inheritance. And Gerardo takes the bait.

 

conde

Guys, I'm back. I am close to catching up and hereby commit to recapping Monday's show. I now have 3 left to watch and presumably four, with the last one on at 10PM tonight.

I've been reading the recaps as I catch up. It's my thing, but I don't like to read the recaps until I've seen the episodes. Thanks to dondi and to Steve for their recaps.

I sort of feel like I'm on a merry go round. I was at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland and saw 5 performances: Much Ado about Nothing, Born With Teeth, Jane Eyre, Macbeth, and Virgins to Villains. The last is a one-woman show performed by an actor who's been performing in Ashland for 30 years. She's played Bianca in Taming of the Shrew (a virgin) and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, a villain who comes to a bad end.

Yesterday was my birthday, and my dear friend Kathy took me to see Mother Road by Octavio Solis. It's a modern retelling of The Grapes of Wrath by a very well known Latino playwright. I've seen many of his plays over the years in the San Francisco Bay Area.
 

Thanks@ I thought he might be fictitious, but the more he was mentioned, I wasn't sure.
Beth S
 

Happy Belated birthday , Novelera ; ) and wishes for many more.
Susan
 

Novelera - what fun! Sounds wonderful.
Beth S
 

"CONDE" HIGHLIGHTS DISCUSSION
EPISODE#13:

I'll post my personal thoughts on tonight's episode sometime tomorrow. 😎

 

"CONDE" HIGHLIGHTS DISCUSSION
EPISODE#13:
Howdy from the Alamo City CarayCaray Family. Here's my super-short recap of last night's episode.

*Blabbermouth Mariana still blabbing to Paulina about Alejandro/Joaquin when David & what's her face walk in on the conversation.

*David's getting suspicious about who's this Alejandro fellow. Blabbermouth Mariana brushes it off with some story or whatever.

*Blabbermouth Mariana begs Paulina & what's her face NOT to say anything to anyone & keep it between the three of us.

*Buji Spoiled Bratty Dolores getting all hostile to her biological mother, Carmen ugh. Teresa seems interested in knowing the scarred-faced woman AKA her biological mother.

*Scumbag Pedro still a Scumbag. Kill this jackass off ASAP.

*Cayetana kisses Alejandro/Joaquin.
 

Glad to have you back, novelera. I wish you a belated happy birthday.

Recap coming shortly.
 

conde #14 part 1

Slight rewind from last episode. Ale gets very close to Mari. It looks like they are about to kiss, but Pau comes back into the room. Pau thanks Ale for having them over as she quickly pulls the smiling Mari away. Ale is still under the spell of Mari’s perfume.

Josie and Antonio make out in her office. [IMO, the barn is more suitable for them.] She interrupts briefly to complain about Pau’s insubordination. Josie’s passion is fueled by her anger and Antonio is turned on by it.

Unfortunately, Josie’s American partner, Harrison, shows up with flowers. Josie introduces Antonio as an employee in the liquor store who has come to bring her the monthly report [is that what they call it now?] Antonio clearly is ticked and rudely takes off.

David comes to the Diario to ask a special favor. Under no circumstances can you reveal my identity. Linares tells him that Gerardo asked to talk to Silvestre Davalos. He says don’t worry, the newspaper respects your decision. We will continue publishing your reports and stories under the same name.

Linares offers David a contract so he can keep working for the paper. [a contract that Gerardo might find?] David happily puts the contract in his bag, and he will get back to Linares after reading it.

Harrison has made a dinner date with Josie. Ha, ha, Josie rolls her eyes in annoyance after he leaves. Enter Antonio who is still steaming over being called an employee. Josie asks, did you expect me to introduce you as my lover to this gringo insípido? Antonio replies, he’s not so insípido if you are going to have dinner with him.

Are you jealous, Josie asks. It’s just a business dinner. She is ready to continue where they left off. The thrill is gone for Antonio. He snarks, I have to go back to my job at the liquor store. But I’ll bring that gringo back if you need affection. He has money, you won’t be ashamed to go out with him, señora. He leaves and Josie does another eye roll.

Cayetana is plying Violeta with liquor on her quest to extract information. She tells Cay about Vic partnering with a rich man from the Capital. The owner of the Altamirano Hotels. Cay wonders how Vic put up the money for that. Violeta doesn’t know. All she knows is they became friends, and he taught him everything about the hotel industry. Shortly after, the man died, and Vicente kept the hotels.

Cay asks if she knows how the man died. Violeta says she doesn’t like talking about such stuff. Cay thinks Vic must be very intelligent. Vi calls Vic astute.

Ric brings Pedro to Ale. Pedro introduces himself as Francisco Mendoza and says, my father spoke a lot about you. Ale replies, your father? Pedro answers, the Marquis Federico de Mendoza. Ale says, I thought you haven’t spoken in years. We had differences, Pedro responds, but the last time we talked he told me about you.

Ale asks, where have you been all this time? Pedro says he was kidnapped. He escaped and had to change his name. He hid in Guanajuato for years. He asks, do you have a message from my father? Ale tells Pedro that Federico has passed away. Pedro puts on a show of surprise and grief.

Violeta is very drunk. Cay calls for water and a driver to take Vi home. Vi has something to say about Vic. Sometimes I feel that strange things happen, she says. Strange people go to Vic’s office. They pay him in high denomination bills. Our house is like a bank. I didn’t think hotels make that much money. Vi tells Cay she is her first friend. They hug.

Pedro continues to act and composes himself. Ale tells him they need to confirm he’s Federico’s son. There is a huge inheritance at stake. Memo enters the room. Ale says Memo will help with the certification process. Pedro gets nervous—I thought you would want to know about my family.

 

conde #14 part 2

Ale says official documentation is more important. Tomorrow you will meet with my lawyer. In the meantime, Ale hands Pedro a wad of bills and says he reserved a suite for him at the Altamirano hotel. All expenses covered.

Violeta comes staggering in and Vic is pissed. You’re a socialite, not a whore. The mother of my child, my wife. Jealous Vic grabs her, who were you with? Vi says she was at the Count’s house. She pours herself a drink. I was with Paulina Zambrano, Mariana Villarreal, and diva of divas, Cayetana Carra.

Vic takes her drink and warns her to control herself. Luisito and the girls are upstairs. Vi complains about her boring life. Vic admonishes, don’t forget you left that brothel for a life of luxury! You don’t seem bored of shopping and spending money at the jewelry store. Vi runs out of the room to vomit.

Memo brings Pedro to his suite. Order anything, the Count will pay. Let me know if you need anything else. Pedro is overjoyed.

Pau tries to calm Mari. Going to the Count’s mansion really affected her. I can’t take it anymore, Mari gasps. Pau says Adela (Nanny) is bringing tea and you will feel better. You’re like this because you saw the count? Mari says yes, being near that man really upsets me. I can’t help it. I can’t stop thinking that the Count is Alejandro.

Once again, Pau tries to dissuade her from that idea. Ale is not the Count. He’s dead. Mari cries, you don’t get it. I’ll never forget him. I had resigned myself to keeping this secret, but I can no longer do so. It’s burning inside me.

The door opens in the background. Mari blurts, David is Alejandro’s son! There's Nanny, who drops the tray she’s holding. David walks in a second later. Mari and Pau jump up and turn. [we didn’t have that feeling for nothing, Juanita!]

David rushes to his mother. He has good news but stops when he notices she’s upset. She says it’s a migraine. They can talk tomorrow. David leaves.

Nanny quickly closes the door and asks if what she heard is true. Mari confirms, it’s true. I can no longer bear the weight of this secret. David has been my reason to survive because he’s the son of the only man I’ve ever loved. David is Alejandro’s son.

Memo returns to Ale. He calls Pedro shameless. Ale says he can’t find out about the trap. Memo says Ric did a good job, it takes one to know one.

Ric comes to Pedro’s suite. Pedro excitedly welcomes him. He’s ordered the most expensive French wine. Ric and Pedro toast to their pending windfall.

Memo is worried about Lucrecia crossing paths with Pedro. Ale says he will try to prepare her.

Meanwhile, Lucrecia has prepared a special broth for Cayetana. It’s one she used to prepare for her nephew after a night of partying. Cay asks, your nephew? The smile fades from Lucrecia’s face and she apologizes. Cay says don’t apologize. Friends appreciate and love each other. She takes Lu’s hands and adds, they are confidants.

Memo asks Ale what he expects from Lucrecia. He replies, I want her to decide if her sacrifice and love for her nephew are worth it.

Mari explains, when Ale died, I found out a part of him was growing inside me. That baby was a miracle. [standard for a TN.] Knowing I would have his child eased the terrible pain of his death. Pau says she understands and is glad Mari doesn’t have to bear the secret. It’s hard to hide something, fearing it might be discovered [is Pau is referring to her own secret?]. Nanny also gives Mari her support. Mari asks them both to swear to keep the secret. Gerardo must never find out.

 

conde #14 part 3

David secretly meets Lorena. He tells her the good news about the newspaper. He shows her the published article and tells her he signed a contract. He’s using a pseudonym. She congratulates him. He thinks he deserves a hug. She gets a bit flustered, then gives it. He relishes it. Then he moves in for a kiss. She giggles afterwards.

Now Pau gets it. The Count does resemble Ale. Mari says David is the living reminder of her great love. He is determined, independent and hates injustice. Pau says it fits perfectly. Mari continues, when he speaks, he reminds me so much of his father.

Pau says it looked like the Count was about to kiss you yesterday. Mari shushes her. She says she tries to accept that the Count is not Ale, but her body doesn’t understand. She can’t control herself. Pau is sorry that Mari has suffered so much. She gives her friend a hug but retreats when her arm hurts.

Mari questions Pau again about her run in with the door. She reminds Pau that she can tell her anything. I feel like I’m not the only one keeping secrets, she says. Pau denies, Mari worries.

Very nervous Pedro is meeting with the lawyer. The lawyer wants to hear his story, but first he asks for Pedro’s signature so he can compare it to official documents. Pedro stalls. He fears he’s caught. He signs and Memo and the lawyer take it out of the room.

Lorena is worried her mother will find out she met with David. He wishes they could meet openly. Lorena says her parents cling to the past because of her grandparents’ death. David doesn’t understand. She’s reluctant to speak about it but she starts to tell him the story.

David vaguely remembers hearing about it. He asks, what does it have to do with my family? Lorena replies, I’m sorry to tell you, but… my parents always suspected that Leopoldo Villarreal was involved. He’s stunned.

Mari and her children are at the cemetery. David asks Mari, how well did you know Grandpa Leo? Someone told me something and I can’t stop thinking. Remember the Aguilar crime? Some people think the Villarreals were involved. Grandpa is one of the main suspects.

Mari wants to know who told him. David says it’s not important. Do you think grandpa could have done it? Mari says she doesn’t think Leo is guilty, but she is sure the person they blamed was innocent.

Pedro is sweating bullets. Lucrecia is about to bring a tray to the room when Ric intercepts her. He takes over and finds Pedro stealing something. Pedro panics that they found out. Ric tells him to put it back, calm down.

Memo and the lawyer return. The lawyer confirms that Pedro is Marquis Francisco de Mendoza. Memo says, congratulations, you will get your money.

David meets with Lorena again. He asks for her help. He wrote about his grandfather but now he wants to write about Miguel Aguilar. He needs info. She agrees to help him.

Pedro is wildly spending his advance. Ric warns him not to go crazy. Ric says as soon as he gets the money, they will split it and then they will both have to disappear before the scam is discovered. Pedro tells him to relax, he’s a man of his word. He’s never betrayed anyone. [betrayal loading…]

Mari goes ghost hunting at Lupe’s house. She replays Ale’s words about the gypsy’s predictions. She thinks about their first kiss. His marriage proposal. Don Alfredo enters. Why are you here?

Josie is thrilled. The Count’s European friends have ordered 600 bottles of whiskey. She tells Felipe the Count did them a great favor. [I wonder if Mexican whiskey could ever be better than single malt Scottish whisky.]

 

conde #14 part 4

The Garcia sisters come to Leticia for dresses. Dolores says they saw her advertisement. But Teresa says Sofia Zambrano recommended her, and they know her son, Javier. Leticia smiles. Snooty Dolores makes the introduction—we are Dolores and Teresa Garcia, daughter of the owner of the Altamirano Hotel.

Leticia lessens her smile. How can I help you? We want dresses, Dolores says. Leticia is ready to show them the catalogs and take measurements. Carmen walks in. Leticia introduces her as her seamstress. She asks Carmen to start with the measurements.

Dolores looks horrified. She says at the atelier in the Capital, only the dressmakers take measurements. Leticia says her seamstress is the best and more renowned than all the dressmakers in the world. She asks Carmen to continue. She introduces the girls—Dolores and Teresa Garcia. Carmen is shocked and stares at them.

Gerardo gets word that Francisco Mendoza has been found. He shares this with Felipe. If this is true, he says, not only will we have a count, but we will have a marquis in SJ. Apparently, he has huge fortune, too.

Violeta sings a sexy rendition of Happy Birthday to Antonio. He’s hot to trot, but she has a gift for him first. A thick gold chain with his initial. They start kissing and there’s a knock at the door. It’s Josie. Why did you lock yourself in, she shouts, open up! She bangs on the door and continues shouting for him. Uh, oh.

Cayetana is practicing her lines. She’s not feeling it, she needs someone to respond to her. Ale comes in and he volunteers to read with her. He reads and she responds. The script sounds similar to a triangle that is developing between Cay, Ale, and Mari.

Cay says, leave her, end it with her. That’s the only way you’ll stop hurting her, yourself, and me. You know I can’t, Ale replies with no emotion. Cay: I just know your words don’t hide what you feel for me. It’s me you love, not her. Ale: please don’t humiliate yourself anymore. Cay: humiliating myself would be giving up on seeing myself in your eyes. Forcing my lips not to yearn for your kisses. Killing the desire of my body to meld with yours.

Cay is really feeling it now. Love me, she says, even if it’s just one last time. Ale looks up from the script and she moves in and kisses him.

And we are out.

 

"CONDE" HIGHLIGHTS DISCUSSION

Dondi356: The sooner that Scumbag Pedro gets killed off, the better. As for Dumbass Ric: I do NOT feel sorry for that idiot because once he gets framed by Scumbag Pedro......

Violeta & Antonio both will NOT be among the living. Just saying!
 

conde

THANKS VERY MUCH, DONDI, for this terrific recap! It has helped me a lot, but it has also made me realize how much I still find confusing. For example, at the moment, much to my embarrassment, I don't recall who "Lupe" is, nor why Mariana goes to Lupe's house. I did recognize Don Alfredo, and he asks the same question: "Why are you here?"

What you said about David entering the room a second or two after Adela/Nanny. That might explain why he didn't hear Mariana say that he was Alejandro's son, but I actually thought he and Nanny entered at pretty much the same time. It's clear that David didn't hear what she said, but.... [And yes, dondi, our feeling about David was on target! Though I still don't see how Mari could have been pregnant without people (and especially Gerardo) noticing.]

I loved your comment at the end of the scene where Pedro assures Ric that he's a man of his word. And then..."[betrayal loading]" Yes!

We now have more evidence that Dolores is a nasty piece of work, while her sister Teresa again seems not to share her sister's nastiness.

I enjoyed the scene at the end between Caye and Ale. Caye has shown herself to be no dummy, and I have a strong feeling that she wrote the script she's asking Ale to go over with her.
 

Conde
David being Ale's son I thought was pretty obvious. I think not as much time passed between Ale's "death' and Mari's marriage as we thought. Perhaps it was as little as a month.

Steve, Ric is working with Ale and Meno. He probably is a bit of a liability but at this point he is one of the good guys.

The fact that Lupe's house is uninhabited and looks just the same is weird since 17 years has passed. Some cobwebs and dust at the least, at most someone else should own and live in it now. When I watch this show after it has been recorded, the default cc is in English. I haven't decided if this is a good or bad thing! I switch it back to Spanish, but then something is said that confuses me so I switch back to English.

So far I am liking this TN.
 

conde

@Kat in SC, I agree that in many ways David's being Ale's son was obvious, but what made me doubtful was the timing. IIRC, it was at least several months before Mari reluctantly married Gerardo, and then it was quite a while before the marriage was consumated. We saw one scene (right after the wedding) where Mari didn't want to have sex with Gerardo, and at that point he agreed to give her time. Except for that, everything pointed to David being Ale's son, but that's a big "except."
 

conde

Thanks for the comments.

To clarify, Lupe was Alejandro’s mother. I think it was empty all those years because once Alfredo sold the ranch to Gerardo, he had no intent of working it. He fired all the workers and diverted the river to the Villarreal and Zambrano lands. Now that it’s back in Alfredo’s hands, that will change.

Kat I often switch back and forth between Spanish and English caps for accuracy. I get a kick out of the translations at times.

Juanita, I’m still with you on David’s paternity. Some fuzzy math is going on. Mari and Ale made love and some short time passed before the Aguilars were murdered. Ale was quickly railroaded and jailed but that took another week or so. He spent some time in the first prison and then he was moved to La Isla.

Then came “Meses Despues”—months later. That’s got to be about 3 months total before she married Gerardo. And Gerardo held out for a brief time. I know babies can come late, especially first babies, but 3 months? Was Mari deliberately starving herself to conceal her pregnancy and possibly prolong it? Still, 3 months?

Dolores is nasty, she takes after her father. Tere is sweet, she must take after her mother.

“I have a strong feeling that she wrote the script she's asking Ale to go over with her.” Lol, Juanita, I wouldn’t put it past her.

 

Conde

Donde, I always love your snappy, detailed recaps. I have missed them. You cleared up some things for me. I am sorting out the characters , but I still can not figure out Ale's revenge plans. I don't understand why he is setting up tricky but dim Pedro.

I, too, thought it was obvious that David was Ale's son because I didn't do the math and I have watched a lot of telenovelas.

I love Fernando, his voice, his demeanor . It is so odd watching him in this show while watching him in Alborado and Amor Real and Pasion when he was in his 40s.He was el Rey of kissing and romance .

Juanita, that is an excellent thought you had that Cay wrote that scene to rehearse with Ale . She wants him. We always have to have a triangle . How soon is Ale going to realize that Mar did not betray him and married because she was pregnant .

So...Vic found Vi in a brothel. Sounds right. Susan
 

conde

The true explanation is that David is a "beanie" baby.

I'm happy to share another patio with you, Susan. Your comments are insightful and delightful.
 

OT..Donde ..I hope I get to watch a dizi soon . I miss those looks into life in Turkey. Perhaps Telemundo will have one soon.

Susan ;)
 

Conde
Dondi, loved the Beanie baby line! Susan, I started watching Amor Real, it's in my DVR library. Fernando has a broody Heathcliff (Wuthering Heights or the Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice) look to him. I found no recaps of it though so it is on hold while I gain more proficiency in Spanish. Duolingo is my friend, though the verb tenses really trip me up. I just want to increase my vocabulary. I decided to really scramble my brain and am also doing French. That was my HS and college foreign language over 40 years ago, but it is coming back to me pretty easily.
 

OT..Kat, I studied Latin and French in high school and French in college . I still remember French words, but I cannot speak or understand it. I know a little Arabic that I learned from my students . I can understand and pronounce better than French or Spanish. I used to teach the twelve verb tenses in English , but I think Spanish has even more verb tenses . I can't understand much Spanish and don't know why grammar .
I dont know why the Amor Real recaps aren't listed on the sidebar . Melinama, the original blog mom ,did them all herself . If you have any questions about Amor Real , I can try to answer them . Portraying Manuel, FC is not his typical hero . He turns cruel and unforgiving when he thinks Matilde cheated on him with her former love . I had a hard time watching him behave the way he did for the middle part of that novela, but I loved that show. Susan