Stormy weather

A storm is brewing in Port Charles as Drew and Franco's past collides with their present, Sam finds herself torn between two lovers, and Anna's search for her son will lead her to a foe's front door. Who will fall and who will be left standing once the winds of change blow through?

Well, well, well, isn't Griffin just chock full of surprises lately? It's always the quiet ones.

This week, Griffin deftly figured out that his new patient, Peter August -- who had asked Griffin to test him for Huntington's disease because Peter's recently deceased father had been diagnosed with it -- is the long-lost son that Anna is desperate to find because she needs to warn him that his recently deceased father was diagnosed with Huntington's disease.

It doesn't take a neurosurgeon to figure out that the two stories are connected, but luckily for Griffin, he is one. By the end of the episode, Griffin had ordered up a paternity test, so unless the writers have a little surprise up their sleeve, the test will confirm that Peter is indeed Faison's son.

Now the question is, what does Griffin plan to do with the information? Will he share the results of the paternity test with Anna? I would like to think that he would, but I fear that the writers intend to drag this story out a little longer, if only to give Peter and Maxie more time to bond. I can already see Peter's feelings for Maxie deepening, and Maxie is leaning on Peter more and more for support.

I'm not sure what to make of Peter because everything that I've seen since his arrival in Port Charles suggests that he's a decent guy who found himself in an impossible situation. However, I can't forget that Peter was also the one who gave Klein orders to keep Jason heavily sedated and confined to a facility in Russia until Peter was ready to unleash him on Faison. Those aren't the actions of an honorable man. Jason lost years of his life and his family.

Until Peter can provide a reasonable explanation for that, I'm not too keen on him hanging around Maxie. I appreciate that Nina is questioning his intentions because I have the same reservations.

Meanwhile, the key to figuring out what Valentin is hiding is unlocking the mystery to his relationship with Peter. It's clear that Valentin knows exactly whose child Peter is, but it's not so clear how long he's known the truth. I want to believe that Valentin entered the picture, hoping to save Peter from Faison's diabolical machinations and apathy once he figured out that Peter was Anna's son, but I can't see Valentin being fooled by a lying midwife who, from all accounts, was a very nice woman and therefore probably not a very skilled liar.

Nothing Valentin has told Anna has been true. Not the gender of the baby, not the fate of the child, and not the whereabouts of Anna's son. Even now, Valentin is keeping mother and son apart, and he obviously hasn't told Peter the truth about Anna, since Peter believes that his mother was a random prostitute that his father had hired for a night. The only reason that Valentin would keep quiet is because he's hiding something that would be very damaging to him.

That said, I can't see Valentin handing any child, much less Anna's child, over to a man like Faison. At his very best, Faison wasn't fit to care for a pet rock let alone raise an infant child. I have no idea what Valentin is hiding, but I fear it will not go over well with Nina. She loves Valentin, and she's loyal to a fault, but there are limits to Nina's love.

Just ask Franco.

Nina loved Jay to her very soul, and she will never fully recover from losing him. Learning that Valentin was in any way linked to Faison's last stand will shatter Nina into a million pieces. She will feel betrayed and examine every moment that she shared with Valentin to see if there was any clue that he was hiding something. That's when she will recall the romantic getaway weekend with Valentin, while Faison was wreaking havoc on Port Charles and using Wyndemere's stables as his home base and private gulag.

Will Nina be able to forgive Valentin, even if his role in her brother's death was unintentional? Only time will tell, but I think it would take a miracle.

Speaking of miracles, I'm amazed that Aurora Media is still operational, considering all the personal woes that the people in charge are having.

After narrowly escaping certain death by leaping out of an exploding trailer that plummeted into a giant sinkhole, Sam realized that she could no longer lie to herself or Jason. She admitted that she had never stopped loving him and that she lived for daily glimpses of him, so she could assure herself that he was alive and well.

Jason blinked his joy and relief, but he was careful not to push Sam to make a choice. Jason assured Sam that he wanted what she wanted because he loves her, but the choice had to be hers. Sam tearfully smiled then decided to talk to Drew -- her husband -- about her epiphany.

At this point, I put my television on pause, went to the kitchen, and poured myself a glass of wine because I knew where this was headed.

Not surprisingly, Sam wasn't able to have that discussion with Drew. She spent the rest of the week chasing him down, bumping into Jason a few times along the way to rehash how she has to tell Drew that she loves Jason, squeezing in a visit with Alexis to confess the dilemma that she faced, and ultimately joining forces with Liz -- who overheard one of Sam's declarations of love for Jason -- when it became clear that Drew and Franco had vanished together.

The only two people who don't know how Sam feels about Jason are Drew and Franco.

Alexis was right when she told Sam that things like what happened at the construction site "only and always happen" when she was with Jason. Sam is a danger junkie, and a big part of the draw to Jason was his far too perilous lifestyle. She loved living life on the edge, but that was before she had two young children to consider - and Drew's wishes.

Drew might not have a say about Danny's life, but he does get a say about what happens to Scout, and it's clear that Jason has no intention of being anything other than Sonny's enforcer. I can't see Drew being okay with Scout spending time in Uncle Jason's home where there's an exponential risk of danger.

Truth be told, I was pretty annoyed with Sam all this week because I think she should have done all this soul-searching when she was given the chance -- before she insisted on marrying Drew. Everyone, especially Drew, encouraged Sam to take her time and to figure things out before deciding her future. Drew repeatedly offered Sam the opportunity to back out of the wedding because he appreciated that Jason's return had been a shock to her. Each time, Sam stubbornly shook her head and promised that she knew her heart -- she loved Drew and wanted a life with him.

Sam created this situation, so it's hard to feel sorry for her, especially since no matter who she picks, Sam will end up with a man who loves her.

While Sam is trying to figure things out, Drew is off on his own adventure with Franco. The brothers Frank are determined to get to the bottom (no pun intended) of Drew's fall down the basement stairs when they were just four years old. Both men are certain that Jim Harvey is lying about Franco deliberately trying to hurt Drew because Jim is a slimy fracker who has been conning everyone since he arrived in Port Charles.

Judging by Franco's reaction when he curled up into a ball, covered his ears, and repeatedly cried, "Go away," as Jim pushed his buttons and relentlessly accused Franco of being a liar, it appears that Jim abused Franco. Based on Franco's flashbacks, I'm guessing that Franco was trying to shield Drew from Jim's nefarious intentions when Franco desperately tried to get Drew to hide in the basement.

I like the budding relationship between Drew and Franco, especially since there's been a shift in Drew. It's almost as if his memories are right there under the surface because I get the sense that the feelings he had for Franco are breaking through. Drew's animosity toward Franco, once a bubbling cauldron of hate and rage, has subsided to a gentle simmer, and Drew appears to be entertaining the idea that Franco isn't quite the bad seed that he once believed him to be.

Drew might not exactly have an open mind, but there is a crack allowing for a sliver of possibility. That's tremendous progress.

My gut tells me that when Drew's memories return, he will not only discover tender feelings for the boy he considered his brother, but we will learn that Kim has been keeping a few life-changing secrets of her own. After her scene with Elizabeth, when they were talking about Franco's secrets, I was more certain than ever that Kim has been hiding more than Oscar's paternity. This is a soap opera, so people tend to have a closet full of secrets, not just one or two.

I doubt that Kim is going to be an exception.

I like Kim, but I'm a Julexis (Julian and Alexis) fan, so I'm not interested in seeing her friendship with Julian flourish into a romance. The same goes for Finn and Alexis. Besides, I think each could use a friend more than a fling.

This week, we learned that Finn has a younger brother named Chase, as in the newly minted Detective Harrison Chase. Chase is the product of their father's second marriage, following the death of Finn's mother. I have no idea why they don't share the same surname, but the brothers are not close. Finn was clear to explain that Chase had been a child when Finn had gone off to college, so they'd only sporadically kept in touch.

Obviously, since neither brother knew the other was in town -- or so it appears.

Despite Finn's claims that they were barely more than strangers, Chase slipped away to persuade Julian to drop the charges against Finn. Clearly, Chase cares more about his brother than Finn realizes. I thought I saw a glimmer of understanding in Chase's eyes when Alexis told him about Finn's support lizard, Roxy. It made me wonder if perhaps Finn's need for Roxy stems from life with Papa Finn. There's definitely a story there.

Moving on, Nelle is ramping up her campaign against Carly by ordering a replica of a scarf that Morgan had worn in a photograph taken shortly before his death. She was so giddy with joy when she received her Amazon package that she forgot to close the browser window on Ava's laptop, which pretty much spelled out what Nelle had up her sleeve. That's not the first time that Nelle has left incriminating information on the laptop for all to see, which makes me wonder if her mind is unspooling faster than we realize or if part of her plan is to frame Ava for everything if things should go south.

I wouldn't put it past Nelle to betray the only friend she has.

Ava sensed that Nelle is headed down a dangerous path and tried to persuade Nelle to reverse course before it was too late, but Nelle waved away Ava's concerns because Nelle is convinced that Carly is the root of all of Nelle's problems. Once Carly is out of the way, Nelle is certain that everything will fall into place and she will live happily ever after with Michael.

Ava is less optimistic of that outcome, but she wisely remained silent. It was a pleasant surprise to see Ava do the right thing. Unfortunately, her words of wisdom fell on deaf ears. Going after Carly seems to have given Nelle purpose and joy, which means nothing short of everything blowing spectacularly up in Nelle's face is going to stop Nelle.

Does anyone else have to keep a box of tissues handy when Max Gail is on? I've wept more since he joined the show than I have all of last year. Give that man an Emmy! It's well-deserved.

I'm confused how Oscar suffered severe hypothermia despite having worn more layers of clothing than Josslyn had on -- even with Oscar's borrowed jacket. Her legs were bare, and that skimpy dress was like wearing tissue paper. Meanwhile, Oscar had socks, shoes, slacks, t-shirt and a shirt on. Not to mention, he wore the jacket until Josslyn started turning blue.

If most of Charles Street was left in ruins after the quake, how did Charlie's Pub escape unscathed, with electricity and functioning sewage no less?

Where did Griffin get a sample of Faison's DNA? Did he take a slice out of Faison's brain? I ask because I doubt that Griffin told Brad who the paternity test was for, which means that Griffin provided Brad with blind samples.

I'm stunned that Jordan is letting Curtis dig up proof of Jim's illegal activity. Isn't she the police commissioner? I have no idea why the people of Port Charles pay to have a police department when the criminals and private detectives solve most of the crimes.

"DANCING DREW??" Who knew? Only Kim, apparently, but I have to draw the line at believing he ever sang "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" in his Navy dress whites. If that actually happened, I don't blame Drew for repressing that memory. Maybe he if he watched Top Gun he'd get his memories back. -- Scrimmage

Chase did the right thing but his boss, the worst commissioner EVER, is kissing her boyfriend through the bars and he was arrested! Cells are all monitored with video feeds. I would hope that the mayor finds out, Jordan is fired, and Robert Scorpio comes in and cleans this swamp up! -- Chunkles

Why is Andre out of prison so quickly? And why is Shawn still there and apparently Elizabeth's brother? It never makes any sense who pays for their crimes and who does not. -- Lisa Echerd

I do like Kiki; but dislike this character's back-and-forth hypocrisy when it's convenient. SHE & Morgan switched out Michael's [allergy] meds [to mess up Avery's custody hearing]. Ava switched Morgan's [bi-polar] drugs [in the hopes it'd free her daughter from him]. Yes, Ava's drug-switch ended with disastrous results [with Morgan's death], but no one could've predicted how Michael's might've ended. Michael & Avery could've just as easily been the ones in a car accident because his meds were messed with. Kiki got lucky. She has no right to throw stones when she tampered with somebody's meds just like her mother did. -- wide awake in sleepy eye

Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts. I love hearing from readers, so please feel free to email me or leave

Take care and happy viewing,Liz Masters

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