Daily Updates

From: rika@netcom.com (Melissa Martin)
Subject: GH: Update, Wednesday, 11/6/96
Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 08:25:06 GMT

                       GENERAL HOSPITAL UPDATE
                     Wednesday, November 6, 1996

This episode did not lend itself to being broken into several
distinct storylines; as a result, I have two multi-storylines
identified today (plus the Bobbie storyline, which felt totally
out of place in the context of this episode.  I am all the more
convinced that her presence is required by law, by some obscure
Supreme Court ruling, or by the malevolent influence of Adrian
Down-Under-Zeman, who is rumored to be in league with Stefan
Cassadine.)

I need to briefly offer homage and thanks to my guardian angel for
giving me *this* episode to update.  Big developments in the Jax/
Miranda story, Mac seemingly buying a clue about Kathy, a brief
appearance by Sidney the Bear, and a KEVIN/STEFAN scene!!!  It
doesn't get much better than this.

Today's Storylines:
------------------
* "Weddings in Port Charles can be Extremely Bizarre"
* "Fundamentally Kevin"
* Our Down-Under-Zeman-Mandated Daily Dose of Bobbie Jones

WEDDINGS IN PORT CHARLES CAN BE EXTREMELY BIZARRE
-------------------------------------------------
The wedding guests are all milling around and whispering while the
harpist plays various bridal marches.  Lucy, still wearing that
nobody-else-could-get-away-with-this-at-a-wedding shiny polka-dotted
dress, asks Mac what is going on.  He doesn't know, but he feels
it is something strange.  Lucy isn't so sure - maybe it's just a
problem with Brenda's mascara.  The problem is, the waiting is making
Lucy think too much.  She is imagining herself in Brenda's place
as a bride, and it is scaring her to death.  She starts to say
something, stops herself, and remarks that she wishes Kevin were
there.  During this speech, Mac has been looking around the room,
distracted and concerned, and has heard not a word of it.

Meanwhile, out in the garden, Brenda sees Jax embracing Miranda.
Sonny comes up behind her, and they watch the conversation which
follows, unseen by Jax or Miranda.

Jax can't believe Miranda is alive - her face is different but
her eyes are the same.  She wants to leave - after all, it is his
wedding day - but he insists that Miranda is his wife.  It took
Jax years, but he finally accepted that she was gone - that he
would never hear her or feel her touch.  Overcome with emotion,
he embraces her again.  Brenda leaves to go back inside, with
Sonny on her heels.

Miranda wanted Jax to forget her, but then Sonny showed up.  If
he could find her, so could "someone else."  She had to be the one
to tell Jax that she was alive, so she agreed to come to Port
Charles.  Now she is going to leave.  Jax tells her she can't.
She insists that what they had was a lifetime ago - they are
different people now.  His bride is waiting, and clearly Brenda
loves him.  Jax says there is one thing he must know:  "How?"
(The word, "Fried", popped into your updater's brain involun-
tarily).  We wait a while for the answer.

Back inside, the Q's are mildly bickering.  Edward thinks Jax and
Brenda ought to tell people if they are planning to cancel.  Alan,
apparently subscribing to the Lucy Coe view of things, figures
it's something like a run in Brenda's stocking.  Lila reassures
everyone.  Meanwhile, John Jacks eyes Mike Corbin, asking Lady
Jane who he is - he isn't sure why he recognizes him.

Keesha tells Justus that he is holding out on her about the fact
that he is apparently dating Dara.  Justus objects to the term -
he's not dating, and he thinks the entire idea is absurd.

Katherine is having fits about the problems arising - Lucy taunts
her because she has "lost the minister".  Kathy thinks he left -
Mac suggests he might have just gone to use the bathroom.  Kathy
objects to his sarcasm.  Lucy heaps coals on the fire by remarking
how much she is enjoying watching Kathy suffer; she figures it is
just what Kathy deserves for her attempt to spoil Brenda's promo-
tional tour.  Kathy flounces off (It is now official - TPTB have
given up on their attempts to make her a sympathetic character),
while Mac stays with Lucy.

Emily fears the whole thing is her fault - she tells Alan that she
tried to stop Jax from seeing Brenda before the wedding but she
failed.  Sidney the Bear (!) explains that the penalty isn't
that severe - the first-born just goes straight to the in-laws.
Emily doesn't think that is funny, and neither does Alan, when he
stops to think about it.

John Jacks approaches Mike, asking where they met.  Mike explains
that he works at Luke's.  John introduces himself:  "John Jacks,
father of the groom."  Mike replies with one of the two LOD candi-
dates, "Mike Corbin, father of the ex."  He then explains the line
to John, who apparently doesn't watch GH regularly.

Meanwhile, Brenda storms into the house, Sonny still on her heels
(I hope her shoes aren't getting damaged).  She is furious.  He
insists that she would never have believed Jax had a wife without
seeing it - as a friend, he had to let her know.  She tells him
angrily that he is not her friend - what he did was "mean and
wrong."  She wants to know why he's doing it - he doesn't want her
anymore, so it must be that he wants to make sure that Jax doesn't
get her either.  Brenda doesn't care if Miranda and Jax were married
once.  When this is all over, she and Jax will still be together,
and they'll have this wedding-disaster story to tell to their
grandchildren.  (Um, Brenda.... oh, never mind, you'll find out.)

At this point, Ned and John join Brenda and Sonny in the foyer.
She explains that Jax is outside, and he'll be right in.  John
is concerned - "this man" (referring to Sonny) wouldn't be here,
and Jax not here, unless something were wrong.  Brenda denies that
there is a problem, and indicates that "this man is an intruder,
and he was just about to leave."

Sonny says, fine, he'll leave, but he needs to take his "guest" with
him - should he go get her?  No, replies Brenda, while John demands
to know what is going on.  Ned suggests that it's none of their
business, and they ought to "chill out and do as Brenda asks."
Fine, says Sonny, should I go or stay?  John doesn't wait for
Brenda to answer - he hisses, "Go - now!"  (He's a scary guy when
he's mad - I would have been out the door in a heartbeat.)

Okay, back to Jax and Miranda, finally.  I'm going to transcribe
parts of this to avoid any misinterpretation, since the story is
still rather vague:
Jax:  "Everything was destroyed.  I searched for you with my crew.
  We searched for days and you weren't there."
Miranda:  "I don't have all the answers.  I don't really remember
  that much.  There was a loud explosion like thunder, and then
  there was fire everywhere.  When I woke up, I was not fine by
  any means, but I was safe."
Jax:  "Why wasn't I told?  Who found you?  Where did you wake up?"
Miranda:  "I didn't want you to know.  I wanted you to be free."
Jax:  "Free?"  (He flashes back to himself, sitting on the ground
  against a corrugated aluminum wall, watching a fire blaze.  He
  looks exhausted.  John Jacks tells him that 'she is dead'.)
  "Free?  What a joke.  I was as much a prisoner to your memory
  as any prisoner on death row."
Miranda:  "Could I have been wrong?  I thought the time passing
  would have forced you into acceptance.  Once you knew that there
  was no way I could have survived, there was nothing left."
Jax flashes back again - John is telling him there was no way
  she could have survived the explosion.

Back inside, John is becoming increasingly agitated.  Brenda asks
him to leave Jax alone to "deal with it."  This just upsets John
more - he asks Sonny, "What in God's name have you done?"

And we go back to the garden:
Jax:  "You must have had a long recovery.  That means doctors,
  around-the-clock care, well, at least for a while.  Someone had
  to help you.  Who?"
Miranda:  "It doesn't matter.  You asked me why I did it, and I
  told you.  I want you to move on with your life.  For me, that
  was key."
Jax flashes back yet again - to John, telling him he must move on
  with his life - it's the key.

Back inside, the foyer is becoming crowded.  Monica and Keesha
have joined the happy little group.  John can't stand it anymore -
he is heading outside to check on Jax when the bridegroom himself
walks in the door, and comes face to face with his father.  Jax is
angry, horrified, and hurt:  "You knew - all this time, you knew."
John mostly just looks scared.  VERY scared.  He demands to know
what Sonny told Jax, but Jax is more concerned with the lies his
father has told him, year after year.  Jax can't understand how
his father could have let him believe Miranda was dead.  John
tries to get Jax to go somewhere private with him, but Jax refuses
to move.  How could his father have taken away his life?  Brenda
is visibly shaken by this remark.  John insists that he did what he
knew was right - the only possible thing.  Miranda was horribly
disfigured, he explains - and just then, in walks Miranda.  She
and John look at each other, and John collapses in pain, perhaps
of a heart attack.

Monica takes charge of the medical problem, while Ned and Reginald
deal with the logistics.  Ned informs the guests of the medical
emergency.  Kathy, seemingly annoyed that someone had the audacity
to have a heart attack and screw up HER social event of the season,
asks, "So that's it?  It's over?"  Ned suggests that they "wrap
things up", asking the guests to exit out the side doors into the
garden.

Mike and Dara chat (HUH?).  He asks where Justus is, remarking,
"Nice date."  Dara, like Justus earlier, denies that they are
dating, and to prove it she asks Mike to give her a ride home,
on the condition that they stop somewhere to get something to eat.
Kathy suggests that they stay - there is lots of food.  Lucy strolls
up, sarcastically remarking, "We could just throw a picnic blanket
right over that poor man's body, and then we'll just ignore his
stricken face and enjoy our dinner."  Kathy tells Lucy to shut up,
or to leave, and Lucy does neither.

Edward nudges the crowd towards the doors, and Kathy sees Mac on
his way out.  He was going out for some air, he tells her.  Her
snippy reply:  "With Lucy?  So she can cry on your shoulder about
her poor, tragic Kevin, and how nasty Katherine is trying to do
her in?"  (Well, Kathy, you said it.......)  Mac is pretty fed up
with the whole thing, and doesn't know where all this is coming
from.  (We could try to explain to him about leopards who try to
change their spots, but he's starting to understand it for himself).
Kathy spews bile about Lucy for a while, until Mac gets disgusted
and leaves her alone in the Q living room.

The EMT's have arrived for John.  Sonny wonders where Miranda
went, and nobody is sure.  Keesha apparently sprained an ankle
or something (John basically fell on her when he collapsed), and
is limping around; Alan helps her.  Kathy comes flouncing through
the foyer; Ned stops her, asking where the fire is.  She's upset
because "this whole thing is a disaster."  She worked so hard, and
nothing came out right.  (Yeah, Kathy, this is all about you....)
Plus, Mac is mad at her again.  She wonders if it's possible to
love someone without liking them.  When Sonny re-enters the foyer
with Miranda, Ned herds Kathy off to the living room.  (Perhaps
she'd like to start in on all that leftover food.)

Sonny suggests to Miranda that she not think of it as stopping a
wedding, but instead as "breaking up a big party."  She is furious
with Sonny for using her.  She threatens Sonny - if John doesn't
recover, she will never forgive - or forget - what Sonny did.

Edward attempts to console poor, tragic Kathy.  He pats her on
the back and tells her she needs to develop a thicker skin.  What
happened today has nothing to do with her.  Ned puts an ice pack
on Keesha's ankle, and concludes that she needs to go to the hos-
pital to have it looked at.  Edward asks her to report back to
them on John's condition while she's there.  Edward thinks John
will be fine - John "ran into a bit of difficulty with his son,
so he reached into the old cardiac trick bag."

And the ER set gets some more use!  Jane, Jax, and Brenda look on
while Monica and the ER team work on John.  The cardiac monitor
doesn't look good.

Back to Sonny and Miranda in the foyer.  She starts to leave, but
then asks how far it is to the hospital.  Sonny offers to drive
her, but she refuses.  As they argue by the front door, Mac walks
into the foyer.  He hears Miranda's voice and turns, slowly, in
astonishment.  Miranda is about to leave when she sees Mac, and as
the episode ends, she calls him by his name.

FUNDAMENTALLY KEVIN
-------------------
Kevin is pacing about his hospital room, talking to Gail about the
fact that, since we last saw him about a week ago, he has evidently
been paroled.  He has to keep repeating it to himself or he will
begin to think it's only temporary, and they'll be back for him -
and in that case, he could fake catatonia all he wanted and it
won't do him any good.  Gail asks how he feels about the fact that
he faked catatonia to improve his situation.  Kevin hates that
question - he always felt like throwing up whenever he asked that
question of a patient.  The answer is always the same - terrible.
He used to consider himself an honest person, and he feels guilty
and isolated.  Except for Lucy, suggests Gail - he has told her,
right?  Oops - he didn't tell her - and he can't.

Much later in the show, he explains.  He's not going to tell Lucy
about faking.  Why? asks Gail.  He owes Lucy - she saved his life.
She walked beside him "through the fires of Hell," and then she
led him back out.  She worked to preserve "what precious little
sanity I had left."  She found him an attorney.  "She's done every-
thing but wear a sandwich board proclaiming me wonderful, and how
did I repay her?  By staring blankly into her fear while she begged
me to know her, to acknowledge her, not to slip away.  And then, in
the same breath, she reassured me.  'Don't be scared, Doc.  I'm here,
it's all right - everything's going to be fine, Doc.'  Terrified
that I may never find my way back, and yet there I was, present and
fully accounted for the whole time."  He doesn't think it would
make Lucy happy to know that.

Gail observes that he sounds afraid to lose Lucy.  He admits it -
and, yet, he'd let her go in a minute if she said the word.  Gail
asks if that's what he wants - it's not, he says, at least, he
doesn't think so.  But he's become a stranger to himself.  Now he
lies - he uses psychological knowledge for his own gain.  He may
not be done with stalking.  What if he starts stalking Lucy, or
even kills her "in the grand tradition of my brother"?  He's
confused and frightened - he doesn't know who he is anymore.
Gail tells him that he's probably still the same person, "funda-
mentally Kevin."  He knows "one thing about fundamentally Kevin -
he's a lousy liar." He realizes that he has to tell Lucy the truth.

Felicia and Tom (and, may I say, I LIKE his new 'do!) stroll off
the elevator, arm in arm.  He has a couple of patients to see,
which is holding up a cozy evening in front of a fire.  They
begin foreplay in the lobby, only to be interrupted by a smiling
Stefan.  He oozes charm as always, introducing himself to Felicia
and complimenting her courage.  He makes a remark about Kevin's
"miracle cure," based on the information that Kevin came out of
the catatonia.  Tom objects to the potential use of Kevin's
situation for hospital public relations, but Stefan tells him that
"positive press is vital."  He asks Tom to see him in the morning
about the "pending review board action against Dr. Collins."

Tom is dumbfounded - he knew nothing about this.  He asks if Kevin
knows.  Stefan explains that Kevin will be informed by registered
mail (to where?  his hospital room?), according to policy.  Tom
tells Stefan to forget that - Kevin needs to hear it from Tom.
He and Felicia leave, and Stefan looks (as usual) pleased.

Tom is still handling patients, so Felicia decides to go home.
As she's leaving, Gail shows up, and Felicia asks how Kevin is
doing.  Gail says he is "coming along."  Felicia asks if that means
he is going to be cured, because she is afraid for her family's
safety.  Gail doesn't like the word "cured" - Kevin has a lot of
work ahead of him, but he wants to do it and Gail is "cautiously
optimistic."  In the meantime, she doesn't feel that Filly is in
any danger.  Before she leaves, Filly asks Tom about Stefan.
She can see why Tom doesn't trust him.  Tom is glad - at least
*somebody* else "gets it."  Felicia remarks, "Well, there's always
Luke Spencer," which seems to be news to Tom.  Felicia leaves.

Tom talks to Gail about Kevin - he has figured out that Kevin
faked the catatonia.  Gail:  "No comment."  Tom advises her to
maintain her discreet posture in light of the upcoming review
board action:  Stefan will be "all over her" for information.
She hadn't heard about the review board.  She begs Tom not to
tell Kevin right away - he is very fragile right now, and it
would be better to wait a day or two.  He agrees, but reminds
her that the letter is already in the mail.

Kevin is in bed, reading a magazine.  There is a knock at the door,
which pretty well eliminates Lucy as a possibility.  It's - YES -
Stefan!!!!  Is this a bad time, asks Stefan.  Kevin:  "I'm not
sure."  Kevin recalls their previous meeting in the hospital
corridor (Stefan:  "You were kind to me"), and Stefan asks if he
may come in.  He introduces himself:  "My name's Stefan......"
(he and Kevin are shaking hands) "Cassadine."  Kevin ends the
handshake and offers up a Ryanish grin and response:  "How
interesting."

Stefan claims to have stopped by to thank Kevin for his "generosity
of spirit."  He explains that he is "financially involved with the
hospital," and offers to be of help if possible.  Kevin wonders why
Stefan would want to help him, and Stefan suggests that he has had
his own experiences with a "problematic brother."  (Hmmm.... not
only that, but Helena strikes me as a mother from hell in her own
right..... hmmmm.....)  Stefan then "casually" mentions that this
is why he asked "his cousin" to defend Kevin.  The Alexis-Stefan
relationship is news to Kevin, who is even more confused about
Stefan's motives.  "An impulse", Stefan casually remarks, hoping
Alexis was helpful.  "Well, it's a little more complicated than
that," responds Kevin.  Stefan casually remarks, "Well, then,
good luck with the review board."  Kevin:  "Oh, boy, you're full
of bombshells, aren't you?"  Stefan pretends to be surprised that
Kevin didn't know about it.  Kevin realized there would be a review
board, just not so soon, and remarks, "Well, there goes my life as
I knew it."  Stefan suggests that a door closes in order to allow
another to open, and suggests that perhaps he could "throw Kevin
a little consultation work."  (The mind reels.....)

Lucy bursts in at this point with the other LOD candidate, which
I used as one of the storyline titles:  "Doc, you know what, we've
got to be very careful because weddings in Port Charles can be
extremely bizarre."  She stops short when she sees Stefan, who
introduces himself to her.  She warily questions Kevin about his
acquaintance with Stefan, and Kevin and Stefan explain that they
were talking about the Alexis connection.  Lucy stays cool and
wary; Stefan leaves.  Lucy asks Kevin what *that* was all about.
Kevin:  "Not a clue."  Lucy:  "I am not loving it."  Good instinct.
Outside the door, Stefan looks pleased as usual.  Tom comes around
a corner in time to see Stefan leaving Kevin's room, and he looks
not at all pleased.

OUR DOWN-UNDER-ZEMAN-MANDATED DAILY DOSE OF BOBBIE JONES
--------------------------------------------------------
Bobbie calls the hospital to say that she would be out for a
couple of days, and that her shifts need to be covered.  Stefan
overhears the nurse talking to Bobbie and takes the phone away from
her to talk to Bobbie himself.  She assures him that she will make
sure her shifts are covered - he tells her not to worry about that,
but he is worried about her.  He can hear the pain in her voice.
She tells him she is doing the only thing she can do at this point,
and she tells him she has to go - she has other calls to make before
she will be ready to leave.  For where, we aren't told.

Next, Bobbie calls Betty the Ever-Faithful Babysitter to line her
up for the next few days.  She thanks Betty "for everything."

Tony arrives at the Brownstone, looking for Bobbie.  He finds
a note from her saying she has "gone away," and that Betty the Ever-
Faithful Babysitter will help with Lucas.

--------------------
by Rika, 1/2 of the Wednesday Update Team