Daily Updates

Subject:
Sent:        6/10/96 6:34 PM
From:        Jan Yarnot, jyarnot@netcom.com

THURSDAY MAY 30
There were two main storylines today, and both appeared to me to be
efforts to get out of corners the writers were painted into.  One, the
SIDAR (Stupid Idiotic Dumb Assinine/Annoying Rectangle) is entirely their
own fault, the other, Steve Hardy/John Beradino's death, was not, but
both had to be addressed.  Pity the SIDAR way was, again, writing by
consensus.  Be nice if there WAS one, but the writers, trying to please
everyone, have pleased no one (or very few).  See the Fairy Tale for more
on this.

1.  JOHN BERADINO, R.I.P., or TWO-THIRDS OF THE PSYCH STAFF IS PSYCHO
Looked to me like Steve was supposed to be at this dinner, which would
have made better sense if he had been.  At LUKE'S, Mike escorts a
celebrating (just because) Luke and Laura to their table, passing a
disconcerted Audrey as Tom and Felicia join her.  Seems Steve has stood
them up.  Mike shows them to their table.  Kevin and Lucy come in and
discuss making a break for it, but Audrey spots them.  Tom announces it's
a social gathering, conceived by Audrey to create fraternity among
co-workers with a little HMO thrown in, but like most things, it's not
all that clear--- there are powerful undercurrents here. "Here's", says
he, raising his glass, "to undercurrents."  Audrey gets into
spoil-the-baby mode (no wonder Simone does it too): "Can't we have a
pleasant evening for once?  You know, Steve isn't even here to defend
himself."  Tom: "Ah, but his spirit lives."
	Felicia and Lucy try to derail Tom's taking off on Steve.  Tom
says his not turning up is his way of slapping Tom on the wrist for not
showing up at previous peacemaking efforts.  Tom claims Steve is annoyed
because Tom is doing forensic work as well as hospital work.  Tom and
Audrey yell at each other.  Felicia comments that detective work and
psychiatry are similar, both about solving mysteries.  Tom is, she says,
very good about that.  Lucy looks like this has gone over her head but
suggests ordering.  Tom semi-apologizes to an upset Mommy.
	Carly comes in, looking for Luke.  She asks Mike if he's Luke,
and Mike says "Darlin', I'll be whoever you want me to be."  He
introduces himself.  She has a white wine and they chat.
	Laura looks over at the Table from Hell and wonders: "That's an
odd gathering.  What do you suppose that's all about?"  Laura wants to
hear what Luke is keeping for her.  They discuss Justus and Edward,
Harper and the videotape.
	Tom and Felicia get up to dance, Kevin and Lucy head for the bar,
leaving Audrey all alone.  Felicia wants to go play on the pool table in
back, but Audrey is watching.  Kevin comments to Lucy that he's
interested in Audrey and Tom and Steve.  Lucy says: "oh, yawn.  You know
Steve and Tom's battle is as old as time itself.  So's Audrey the
mediator."  Kevin remarks that this is exactly why it is fascinating.
Relatives tend to play out the same roles over and over again.  Family
dynamics.  Lucy is bored by this, as she prefers discussing sexual
dynamics, so they watch Tom and Felicia dry-humping while dancing.  [They
keep this up, *I*m going to send her poison flowers!]
	Audrey has had quite enough wine.  She refuses to tell Lucy who
the anonymous donor is.  Kevin comments that it's been an enlightening
evening.  He assures Audrey that Steve shouldn't worry:  he's sure
between him and Tom they can take care of things in the old "psycho"
department.  [Yep.  I agree.]  Audrey makes pleasant noises at Felicia,
who doesn't appear to be listening.  Audrey offers to take the kids to
the Zoo one day.  [Or to Felicia's apartment, I'm sure THAT will be
educational!]  Felicia finally achieves climax, or something, and rejoins
everyone.  She and Lucy leave for the ladies'.
	Luke has headed to the bar for champagne.  Mike introduces Carly.
She mentions Florida, which makes Luke very suspicious.  Jason comes in
looking for Lily.  He ignores Carly, as per her request.
	Tom and Kevin, alone at the Table From Hell, discuss psychiatry.
Tom apologizes, Kevin says: "If anyone understands a conditioned response
to family button-pushing, that would be me. [Kevin's use of English has
deteriorated since he got to PC]. I also understand anger.  At least I
thought I did"... he talks about his recent eruptions, how the time when
he nearly throttled Damian-the-Despised was good, but now he's worried
that he's losing control.  Tom listens, then responds "Who cares what
they think?" and says anger is GOOD [scary, he sounds like he needs more
help than Kevin!]  Kevin: "Are you listening to this conversation?  Our
department really IS in trouble!"  They clink glasses.  Lucy and Felicia
come back, and the group discusses Felicia's stalking.  Lucy offers her
apartment to F and the girls (maybe she hopes Felicia will clean the
bathtub?) but Felicia has Tom.  Felicia does tell Lucy that it's nice of
her, and Lucy beams.
	Luke and Laura talk to Jason a little.

2. DIE, SIDAR, DIE! or ALL THE WRITERS ARE PSYCHO
Brenda is running from Sonny (at least this time she didn't throw herself
on the ground).  He catches her.  "Brenda, you have to understand this
changes everything."  Brenda, whose mantra looked all right, but it
wasn't fixed with SuperGlue (tm) and is still very weak, tries it:
"Sonny, you love me [you've always loved me, you came to me at Kelly's...],
how can you ask me to understand that you're going to turn your back on Us
again?"  "Brenda, we're the grownups. [HA!]  How can you ask me to
sacrifice my child on any altar, even yours?"  The rain starts.  The
people of PC would be wise to make Brenda happy, so that their weather
would settle down.  "How do you know Lily's really pregnant?" [Bad move,
Brenda!] ... "Saint Lily wouldn't lie ... I was counting on us being
together.  I was living for it."  Sonny: "Don't you think I was?  But
'us' is not an option."  "How can you say that to me?  There's something
we can do about this.  We can figure this out... you can have both."  She
suggests joint custody.  "NEVER!"  He swore no child of his would ever
have to live with a big hole in his heart the way he did.  Assuming his
Gone With the Wind role, hs says: "I love you.  As God is my witness, I
love you with all my heart.  But I can't do that.  I won't."  "So I've
really lost you."  "I guess we have.  We had no choice."  "Don't talke
about us like we're in the past."  They kiss goodbye.  Brenda says:
"Be a good father.  Make it worth it."  She stands in the rain.  Without
ever moving, she is eventually standing in the rain in front of Kelly's.
	Sonny goes home.  Lily is not there.  The doorbell rings and it's
Jason, with a gummi bear delivery.  Sonny sends him looking for Lily.
Then he sees the rings on the piano.  He calls Harry, who isn't there,
and then the boss of the bodyguards, to find out where they went.
	At the airport, Harry is seeing Lily off on the plane.  (There's
also a suspicious-looking man reading a paper, looking like a Fed, but I
guess not.)  Lily says she has to stop living in denial.  Sonny and
Brenda are not going to burn out.  They just keep getting closer and
closer:  "I used to believe my love would take up all the breathable air
in the room and one day he'd inhale and he'd feel it too.  Harry, it's
not going to happen."  Harry says she's the toughest broad he ever met
and assures her that's a compliment.  "Sonny's a damn fool."  Lily makes
him promise not to tell her father she's coming.  Once she's on the plane
[the lurker looking really interested...] Harry calls Rivera and tells
him "The situation with Brenda Barrett has not gone away."  Rivera asks
if he's sure, then tells him that it's now in his, Rivera's, hands.
	Sonny runs to the airport, is told that he's too late, so he runs
onto the plane, is told to get off, but then Lily says it's all right and
everyone fades in the background.  Lily tells Sonny, again, that she will
not be his prison.  "I meant it, Lily, you're my HOME.  I know what I've
done to you.  I know what it feels like to have your love held cheaply as
if it has no value.  I know how it cuts, the wreckage it leaves behind,
the scars that never heal.  It made me an emotional cripple, Lily.  I
used that as an excuse to take advantage of you.  This child is the only
chance I have to make it right.  (He cries.)  Please.  Let me.  Please
let me."  "Sonny--- I have to let you go.  I can't be the reason you're
hurting."  "I hurt myself.  I want a family.  I want our future.  This is
all that matters to me.  Don't leave me."  "Don't you know I would never
leave you?  Even if I went away, I would still be with you in my heart."
To this updater's disgust, they go home.  [I'd have liked Lily to leave,
Brenda and Sonny to actually do the living-on-the-run... you see how she
really fits in with Jax, I think poverty would soon pall!]

3. Closing scenes.  Brenda is still courting pneumonia in the rain.  Jax,
on his way into Kelly's, sees her, carries her in, and up to her room.
Turns out he has no objection to necrophilia, and I say "Roo was right!
Less than 4 hours, this time!"
	To the song "Nobody Lives Without Love" we see couples: Tom and
Felicia, Kevin and Lucy, Carly and Jason, Luke and Laura, Jax and Brenda,
Sonny and Lily....