Lean on me, when you're not strong

Friends and foes put aside their differences during a turbulent week to help each other through dark times. As Jason and Curtis reached an uneasy truce and Finn raced to find a cure to save Hayden before her life is tragically cut short, Sonny and Carly said goodbye to their beloved son. We all need somebody to lean on -- especially in Port Charles.

I've never been more grateful for the escape from reality that soap operas provide than I was this week because I desperately needed a distraction. It was incredibly disheartening to watch the fallout of a contentious election as friends and acquaintances turned against each other with hostile rants on Facebook, blogs, and even Twitter.

I don't care who you voted for -- we are Americans first and foremost (well, maybe not so much if you're one of our international readers). United we stand, and together we will hold those we've put in charge accountable.

In the immortal words of Forrest Gump, "And that's all I have to say about that."

This week was downright riveting as Sonny and Carly came to terms with their son's tragic end. I can't sing Laura Wright and Maurice Benard's praises enough. Day after day, week after week, in scene after scene, these two have been knocking it out of the ballpark. Each performance sucks me in just a little bit deeper, and as much as I don't want to feel for Sonny, it's hard not to. He's absolutely devastated because he knows that his choices played a role in Morgan's death. However, even if someone else planted the bomb in Julian's car as Jason suspects, Sonny's family was still exposed to a world where something like that was a possibility.

I can't help but be touched when I hear Sonny's voice crack as he talks about his culpability in Morgan's death and see the tears of a heartbroken parent. It's raw and feels real. That doesn't mean that I think Sonny should get a free pass, because I don't. He still frustrates me, like when he showed up at the funeral with a gun and pulled it out as he talked about how he needed to make things right for Morgan because he wanted his son to rest in peace.

Is Sonny's solution to take his own life? I don't think so because I honestly can't imagine that he'd think shooting himself in front of Carly, Michael, Dante, and others would somehow spare them more pain -- even if he left Carly a note explaining that it was what he had wanted.

If it were up to me, Sonny would finally leave the mob. That would be the perfect way to honor Morgan and make his death count for something. My hope is that Sonny puts the gun in the coffin and promises to never pick another one up again. Anything less than that would make Sonny look like an ass for pulling that stunt in front of his son's casket that is only filled with memorabilia because there hadn't been any remains to bury.

While Sonny spent the past few weeks pushing everyone away and devising a plan to allow his son to rest in peace, Carly got a little help from her friends including Jax, who literally flew to her side as soon as he heard the news. I was a little surprised that Josslyn hadn't mentioned to her father that Nelle had been working for Carly for the last few months, but I easily overlooked that plot hole as he quickly got to work trying to figure out what Nelle knew about the circumstances of her kidney donation and -- more specifically -- if she had any inkling that he'd bought the kidney.

Nelle doesn't appear to know that Jax was involved, but that letter from her father suggests that it's only a matter of time before he shows up and blows the lid off of Jax's little secret.

I don't think that Carly will hate Jax for paying a man to have his child's kidney removed and donated to their dying daughter, but it certainly will secure Nelle's place under Carly's wing because Carly will have nothing but sympathy for Nelle. However, will Nelle deserve it?

A couple of weeks ago, I speculated that Nelle might be Carly's long lost daughter, but now I'm leaning toward possible younger sister. Perhaps Nelle's mother had an affair with Carly's father, John Durant, and the man who raised Nelle knew. It certainly would explain why he hadn't had any qualms about selling her kidney.

The bigger question is if Nelle knows the truth. After that letter from her father about her owing him, I'm thinking she does, and he's aware that she's hanging out with her rich big sister.

Then again, Nelle clearly lied about her parents being dead, which means that she wouldn't want anyone to know that, especially if her father was the kind of snake that sells his daughter's kidney and thinks the people who received it owe him a free-ride for the rest of his life. I can see it going that way because I suspect the writers intend to explore a romance between Nelle and Michael. They can't do that if she's closely related to his mother.

Meanwhile, Jason found an unlikely ally in the form of Curtis, who is on the hunt for the truth about the bomb that was planted in Julian's car. Curtis hopes to prove that it was Sonny and to give Jordan the evidence required to send Sonny to jail for life. Jason hopes to prove that the bomb was planted by one of Julian's other unnamed enemies. Despite their motivations, Jason and Curtis have found themselves sharing information and working together. Could they have a future together as a private investigating duo working for Sam? It certainly would be interesting and give both men a real purpose, especially Curtis, who seems slated to become a corner in a love triangle with Jordan and Andre.

In other romance news, Franco tried to turn up the heat with Elizabeth, but just when it looked like they were about to take the final step toward intimacy, Pentonville's parole board called to let Liz know that Tom Baker -- the man who raped her on Valentine's Day when she was a teenager, still one of the best storylines in the show's history -- is about to be paroled. Liz was given an opportunity to email a victim-impact statement, but it was in vain because the board decided to release Tom, since he'd served eighteen years of his twenty-year sentence for trying to blackmail Emily with skeevy pictures he'd taken of her and doctored.

Elizabeth is rightfully terrified that Tom will try to seek her out and torment her because he did so in the past. However, the interesting twist is that Franco had an epiphany when he realized that he'd put Sam through the same kind of pain that Elizabeth felt whenever she thought of her rapist. It doesn't matter that Franco never sexually violated Sam because she believed that he had and lived with that pain for years until she learned the truth. I was pleased that Franco finally acknowledged that because it was one of the few things that always bothered me about him. He never quite got why Sam despised him for what he did, since he hadn't raped her. Now he does, and I'm curious to see what he does with that.

One thing I hope Franco doesn't do is go after Tom the rapist. I like Franco and Liz together, and I love that Franco keeps growing as a person with her. Each has been unlucky in love, so I'm rooting for them. They both deserve to have some happiness, and more importantly, I'd love for Liz's boys to have a male figure in their lives that treats their mother with respect and kindness.

With any luck, Liz will have a full house by the time Christmas rolls around because not only does she have a blossoming romance with Franco and has made peace with Sam, but she's helping Finn save her sister's life, which might lead to a truce between the feuding siblings. The timing couldn't be more perfect for Hayden, since she's in need of a new place to live.

I have no doubt that Finn will find the cure for the virus before it claims Hayden's life because he already lost his wife to it under very similar circumstances, and he is currently dying a slow death from the same virus. Hayden's crisis is clearly the push he needs to develop the cure and finally let go of the past so he can embrace his future -- with Hayden.

Lastly, Alexis has plenty of people to lean on, but she prefers the company of a bottle of wine to dull her unrelenting disappointment and emotional pain. Her penchant for the sauce nearly ended in disaster when she passed out drunk and slept through the oven timer going off and smoke filling the house because a batch of cookies that Danny had baked burned so badly that the oven caught on fire.

My jaw dropped when Alexis decided to take a quiz to find out if she had a drinking problem. Here's a hint -- if you have to take a test to find out if you're an alcoholic, then you likely are an alcoholic.

I get Sam's concern, but why exactly was Danny with Alexis anyway? If Monica couldn't watch him, then shouldn't she have called Sam and Jason? If I recall, Sam and Jason were at home when Monica asked Alexis to pick up Danny.

Regardless of how Danny ended up with Alexis, I hope Alexis realizes that she does need help because even though things ended well, passing out drunk while watching a child is dangerous. Kids are inquisitive and can get into all kinds of trouble. That's why they require adult supervision.

I haven't wanted to slap Kristina in ages, but her staunch defense of Sonny annoys me to no end because she blames the intended victim -- Julian -- for not being convicted for his crimes. The blame for that lies squarely on Paul's shoulders.

Why would Finn be carrying around a great big syringe filled with epinephrine in his medial bag instead of just having a vial of the stuff for when it's needed?

I absolutely adore Haley Pullos' haircut. She's grown up to be such a beautiful young lady.

Once again the writers are making it a point to make Jordan look as inept at the job of commissioner as Barney Fife. Why can't the Sister be good at her job? She comes for Curtis (and his relationship with Val) on some obstruction nonsense, but then not only tells Jason -- the best buddy of the #1 suspect -- details of the investigation, but shows him the damn file! There is no way that I believe the writers are ignorant to how real police work is conducted. For whatever reason they want Jordan to look foolish in this job. And as the character continues to do dumb stuff in the commission of her duties, I dislike the character more and more. -- Stacy Logan

What about this theory -- Charlotte isn't Lulu's. The baby Sam is carrying is. She lost consciousness on the island in the house for a bit. Jason too. Remember?!?! -- Erin Zaborac

At least it seems that Michael is FINALLY taking off the blinders he's been wearing ever since Sabrina talked him into giving up custody of Avery, and forgiving Sonny for murdering his father, AJ, and once again, he's seeing Sonny for who and what he truly is... a murderer who is a danger to everyone around him, and a man who constantly brings pain into the lives of everyone he claims to love. A man who swears to protect those same loved ones, and who fails to do so, time and time again. Once again, Michael sees the TRUTH! -- Scrimmage

Now, I turn the spotlight over to you. Please share your thoughts about the show in the comments section below. I love reading what everyone has to say.

Until next time, take care.Liz Masters

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