Scorpios never say die, never say goodbye

Robert went on an adventure, Silas and Franco were arrested, and Sonny and Julian took their mob war in a new and interesting direction. Liz Masters takes a look at the twists, turns, and secrets exposed, which included a shocking bombshell from Victor Cassadine, in this week's Two Scoops.

I hope that Robert holds true to his word and does see us later because I love that Aussie hunk, and I'm going to miss him madly. However, I'm not surprised that he decided to help Holly get Ethan out of a sticky situation. My question is how much Victor Cassadine, the new director of the World Security Bureau, had to do with it. Chances are pretty good that Victor had a lot to do with it because the timing of Robert's departure and Victor's arrival is just a tad too perfect for it to be a mere coincidence.

With Robert out of the way, Victor will have a much easier time persuading Robin to cooperate. Now the question is what kind of incentive Victor is going to give Robin. It has to be big because I can't see Robin agreeing to bring Helena and Stavros back for anything, unless a loved one's life is hanging in the balance.

Robert already made it clear that he doesn't trust the WSB, so he's going to be on the lookout for trouble, while Anna is safely mishandling various investigations at the police station. The rest of Robin's loved ones are accounted for except for Maxie, but somehow I don't think it's Maxie. That's too obvious, plus how would you explain Maxie returning without Robin when Kirsten Storms's maternity leave ends?

It has to be someone who can stay off of the canvas with Robin for the foreseeable future but would be important enough to her to leave her family for. Very few people fit that bill.

The actress has already warned her fans that they won't be happy with how she is written off, but I suspect that it's going to be more about how Robin explains her departure rather than what is driving it. Plus, there is that whole thing about bringing Helena and Stavros back that might not sit well with some viewers, but more on that later.

I've received a ton of email from readers who were upset about the announcement that Kimberly McCullough would be exiting. Many felt that the writers should have just killed the character off two years ago in the lab explosion rather than bringing her back for brief visits and then reuniting her with her family only to turn around and send her away again. Most resented being teased with a happily-ever-after for Patrick and Robin only to have the rug pulled out from under them, but I confess that I'm not one of them. I dislike the idea of killing off legacy characters because it's the legacy characters that are the heart of the show and who carry the spirit of characters who can no longer be with us like Steve Hardy and, of course, Edward and Lila Quartermaine.

I'm actually grateful that Kimberly returned to wrap things up with Patrick because Patrick and the audience needed closure. Real closure. Robin being alive was a huge unexpected twist, and it showed all of us that the writers could still surprise us. However, in doing that, it left the door open for her return and kept a cloud hanging over Patrick that never allowed his romances to truly flourish. As a viewer, I didn't bother to get invested in Patrick's romances because I always knew that Robin was waiting in the wings to return and put an end to his grief and loss. Dead or alive, as long as Robin remained a strong presence in his heart, he would never really be able to move forward.

With Robin leaving on her own, not only is a legacy character spared, which is always a good thing, but it allow Patrick to really move on. He won't mourn for what could have been because he will know that it was ultimately Robin's choice to go. It will allow him to put that relationship in the past and find love again with someone else.

I believe that Patrick loved Sabrina, but not with his whole heart because there was always Robin, who became more and more saintly, as is often the case when a loved one passes, as time went by. It's why he picked Robin over Sabrina. Robin disappeared from his life but never his heart.

However, Robin choosing to leave means that she will no longer linger in splendored perfection in Patrick's heart because she will have crushed him by walking out on both him and their daughter. The anger and pain from that will allow Patrick to let Robin go as he was unable to do before, which means that he will truly be free.

I just hope that Patrick doesn't decide to pick up the pieces with Sabrina because I have really grown to dislike Sabrina over the past few weeks. Admittedly, I was never a big fan of hers because her transformation storyline just never really clicked with me. It was too kitschy and not relatable because Sabrina behaved more like a virginal teenager in the throes of her first crush rather than a mature woman who supposedly had "lots and lots of sex" before with, as it turns out, bad-boy Latin lover Carlos.

It sure doesn't say much for Carlos if his ex-lover was running around giggling, blushing, and practically swooning whenever Patrick so much as smiled in her direction, but that's another issue for another day.

At this point, I simply don't respect Sabrina or her decision to martyr herself for a man who never asked that of her and who deserves to be a father to that baby. It bothers me that Sabrina would rather lie and let a criminal like Carlos be a father to her baby instead of allowing the baby's real father, who is a loving parent and respected doctor, help her raise the child. I can't help but feel as if a part of her is doing it to punish Patrick for not picking her, and she's hiding behind the excuse of doing what's best for Patrick and his family to avoid admitting it to herself. I think that's why I didn't mind when Elizabeth inadvertently blabbed the news to Emma.

By the way, as a Liz fan, I'm tremendously relieved that my girl spilled the beans, thinking she and Sabrina were alone, which means Sabrina can't blame Emma's slight trauma from catching Sabrina in a lie on Liz.

Although it was a little hard to feel sorry for Emma at that moment because of her "Witch, please" attitude earlier when Liesl offered Emma that icky lime-flavored lollipop. Sorry lime-lovers, I prefer strawberry.

It irks me to no end when I see kids behave like that. I don't care if Liesl is the Devil incarnate, a child should not speak to an adult like that. It's not cute or amusing. The scene would have been far funnier if Emma had let out a blood-curdling scream and Liesl had have pulled back in shock.

I adore Emma, but not when she's bratty, and she was a bit bratty in that scene.

Luckily, we didn't have a shortage of laughs this week. I particularly enjoyed Britt and Liz's banter on Friday. Both women had me in stitches as Britt accused Liz of shoving her into the harbor and Liz denied it, but with an obvious smirk on her face that let Britt know that Britt was right. It was a fun exchange, made all the more hilarious because you could tell that the actresses were having a blast.

I love when Liz is sassy, and she was very sassy in the elevator as she teased Britt about having a little Britt voodoo doll at home that Liz jabbed itty-bitty tiny pins into every night for fun. I also loved how Liz pointed out that she didn't have to lift a finger to try to sabotage Britt and Nik's relationship because Britt would do a bang-up job all on her own. How right Liz is because Britt's baby secret is about to blow up in Britt's face in a very big way, if that scene with Lulu and Ben on Friday is anything to go by. We all know that a rash is never just a rash on a soap, so Lulu discovering a rash on Ben's arm is a portent of doom.

In this case, that doom is for Britt. I can't imagine that Nikolas is going to be able to forgive Britt for stealing his infertile sister's only child from her. It doesn't matter what the circumstances were, Nikolas' love and loyalty for Lulu should and better outweigh anything that he feels for Britt.

That means that Britt is going to be available just in time for Ric Lansing's arrival, which might not be a bad thing because it could be interesting to have a little quad-romance going on between Britt, Ric, Liz, and Nikolas. Ric and Liz have a very long and complicated history, and he's been known to become easily fixated on her. I wouldn't mind seeing what could happen if you throw Nikolas and Britt into that mix.

In many ways, Ric is probably a better fit for someone like Britt because he, too, has a very dark side, especially when it comes to Sonny, but there's always a part of me that roots for Ric in the same way that I root for A.J. and now Julian. Britt has a lot of redeeming to do at this point for her to deserve a new knight in shining armor to ride to her rescue, but there's no reason that she can't continue to go a few rounds with Liz while she's repenting.

Nikolas is going to have his hands full with Spencer -- the great-grandson that I'm sure soon-to-be resurrected Helena will be very proud of -- and his ever-growing family. It's getting so that you can't swing a dead cat without whacking a Cassadine upside the head. It's a good thing that Nikolas has a very large castle because it appears that Spoon Island will soon be bursting at the seams with Cassadines.

The thing about Cassadines is that you never truly know what you are going to get -- the romantic, charming prince like Nikolas, or the crazy-immortal prince like Stavros. However, good or bad, when they introduce themselves, you can't help but feel a chill of foreboding slither down your spine. Case in point, when Victor introduced himself to Robin.

"Pleasure to meet you, Robin, I'm Victor Cassadine." Cue the cold shiver.

Thaao Penghlis is positively sublime as the latest Cassadine at large, in part because it's unclear right now if he's crazy-mad like most of his family or fighting the dark force like his great-nephew. I hope it's the latter and that's why he ended up in charge of the WSB because I would love to see Victor and Helena go head-to-head in an epic battle of good versus evil, Cassadine-style!

Helena is one of the few soap villains that I absolutely adore because her evilness truly knows no bounds and she does it with such panache that she never fails to amuse me. It's also why I have a soft spot in my heart for Liesl Obrecht and Cesar Faison.

Heather, too, but I am starting to grow a bit weary of her, despite the touching story that she shared about her lying, cheating, Studebaker-driving, BLT-making father, who left his daughter and her crazy-mother, Alice, for another woman. I need a little bit of a break from Heather, so I want someone to hurry up and rescue Carly and then ship Heather back to Miscavige with a few WSB bodyguards to watch over her.

Folks, when exactly did the Corinthos and Jerome organizations turn into the Sharks and the Jets from West Side Story?

As I watched Sonny and Julian's showdown on the piers, I could have sworn that I heard the faint sound of Julian singing When you're a Jet, you're a Jet all the way; from your first cigarette to your last dyin' day, and Sonny replying, Tonight, tonight, the Sharks are gonna have their way, tonight.

There was even a moment when Duke took off his coat and handed it to Sonny that I fully expected Duke to start leaping and spinning through the air in dance.

What happened to all of Sonny's blustering about how he was going to take Julian down? For weeks, Sonny and Duke have been plotting Julian's downfall: discussing, strategizing, and kidnapping Carlos. Meanwhile Julian recruited Sonny's son, blew up a shipment, vandalized the warehouse, and pretty much ran circles around Sonny in nearly every encounter that they've had. I fully expected Sonny to capitalize on Morgan's betrayal by making a big move against Julian, but all we got was Sonny enlisting his mob moll, Olivia, to toss Julian out of the hotel and a beatdown on the docks that was decidedly unevenly matched with Sonny's three to Julian's one.

Where was the honor in that, Sonny?

If this were Game of Thrones, Sonny's head would be perched on a pike for all to see, and his loved ones would be scattered to the four winds. I hate to say it, but Sonny kind of deserves to have his territory taken away by Julian.

I'm happy that Julian also spilled the beans to Anna about Duke, despite Sonny's outrage and indignation. Did anyone else crack up when Sonny told Duke that at least the Zaccharas never went to the police? Yes, Sonny that's far more egregious than Anthony ordering the murders of innocent women and children. My dog, Max, watches GH with me, and even he snickered. I love Sonny, but sometimes it's hard to take him seriously.

My only reason for wanting Anna to know what Duke is really up to is that at this point, they shouldn't have any lies between them. I love Anna and Duke, and I think that Anna will be able to get past this because she pointed out herself that she wasn't in any position to judge given what she and Robert did to Faison.

I'm also rooting for Sam and Silas, and I'm hoping that Silas will stop keeping things from Sam. So what if Nina bequeathed her entire estate to him? That's what married couples do when they've been married for a few years and don't have any children. To my knowledge, Silas' only child is Kiki, so why shouldn't Nina leave everything to her husband?

Some readers have suggested that perhaps Nathan "Nate" West is Nina's son, which is entirely possible. We were never given Nina's age, so she could have had Nate before she met Silas, but no way is Silas his father because that would mean that Nate is Kiki's age. I'm still sticking to my theory that he is Nina's brother and that Nate's parents arranged for the pharmacist to accuse Silas of filling that prescription. Whether Nate was in on it or not remains to be seen, but I don't think that Ava arranged for the pharmacist to lie. Ava seemed genuinely surprised by Silas' arrest and the claims by the pharmacist.

Not that I think that Ava's hands are clean, by any means, but something else is definitely going on here because Silas is clearly being framed, and Ava seems as baffled as everyone else. Then again, Ava is a little preoccupied with Morgan these days and their on-again/off-again relationship that went from a red hot fling to a full-blown Romeo and Juliet love affair.

I'm not really feeling the Morgan/Ava thing because she seems more like a mother to him at times rather than a girlfriend. It's more Morgan's immaturity than anything else that gives me that impression. Regardless, it's just not working for me, and it didn't help that Morgan and Ava have suddenly declared their love for each other because it took the gag factor to the next level for me. I'm okay with an older woman/younger man relationship, but only when the man behaves like an equal. Morgan does not behave like Ava's equal.

Creepy scene of the week goes to Luke Spencer who was last seen sitting at Miscavige, drugged out of his gourd, in a straitjacket, and sporting a wig that looked suspiciously like the one that they once used for Laura years ago when she was in Shadybrook and shown from the back, rocking in a chair. A few things that tickled my fancy

Bruised and battered, Julian walks up as Sam tries to persuade Anna to set Silas freeJulian: "Well, what's going on, gang?"Anna and Sam: "None of your business."Julian: "Ah. Okay."Sam: "What happened to your face?"

Julian confronts Ava about framing SilasJulian: [Chuckles] "That is classic Ava -- a counterattack when threatened."Ava: "All I'm saying is that you have no reason to trust Sam."Julian: "Well, I find her more believable than you at the moment. Silas started seeing Sam instead of falling prey to you, again, so now you're getting back at him."

Lulu bumps into Nathan West at the Floating RibNate: "Hey, Lulu. It is Lulu, right?"Lulu: "Right. Detective North."Nate: [Chuckles] "No, West. Uh, please, call me Nate."

Britt is bitten by the green-eyed monster when she sees Nikolas and Elizabeth huggingBritt: "Elizabeth, not even noon and you already need your knight in shining armor. What's so dire? Spider in the bathtub?"

Franco is curious why Silas is in jailSilas: "That would be attempted murder."Franco: "'Attempted.' Well, it's hard to be good at everything."

Victor Cassadine introduces himself to RobinVictor: "Allow me to introduce myself, a man of wealth and taste. Sorry, I couldn't resist." [chuckles] "And people think that my family does not have a sense of humor. How could they not, given the things that they've done?"

Until next time, dear readers, take care. Liz Masters

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