The Cassadines: (cont.)

Helena: "Now, the one thing I can tell you at this moment is our destination once held great significance for me and your parents as well."

Helena: "The pilot informs me we'll be landing within the hour. Now, I realize that you had no choice in our destination. But if you could decide, where would you like to go?"
Lucky: "Port Charles."
Helena: "In good time, my child. All in good time."

I notice that the new Lucky does not have an earring. Lucky got that earring because his father had one, and somehow the fact that Young doesn't have a pierced ear--that Lucky's ear now bears no mark of that earring--is a nice touch.

IV. Helena and Lucky Arrive on the Haunted Star (3/9)

Helena: "You know, I went to a great deal of trouble to acquire this vessel. It once belonged to my late husband, my darling Mikkos."
Lucky: "Ok."
Helena: "Of course, that was long before your parents acquired it."

Helena: "This yacht was owned by my husband. But years ago, the people of Port Charles managed to confiscate it. Then they gave it to Luke and Laura as a reward for killing my darling Mikkos. It was called the titan. But your parents renamed it the haunted star. Did you know that your mother was once referred to as Miss Star Eyes? Well, they lived here for a while, Luke and Laura. That was before you were born. Laura used to enjoy walking out on the docks. And then your father eventually allowed the yacht to go to ruin, cast it away. But then Luke throws away anything that's no longer useful to him. Even people. No, he is a vain and careless man. And your mother, she's weak and indecisive. No, they don't value things or one another. Or you."
Lucky: "Why did you really bring me here?"
Helena: "Ah. You know the rules."

Lucky: "Check mate."
Helena: "Well, bravo."
Lucky: "Thank you."
Helena: "You've become quite expert at this. Of course, you've had a great deal of practice."
Lucky: "I won. I get an answer. That's the rule."
Helena: "Indeed. Now, what was the question?"
Lucky: "Why did you bring me here?"

Helena: "I brought you here to teach you, Lucky, to provide a splendid opportunity. I'll present your life the way it really is. Now, you'll be free of all the lies that your parents told you, all of the memories of things that never really happened. You've been so damaged by them, I don't know if you can recover. But I believe you can. Lucky, if you work hard, if you listen, I'll show you the person you really are. You'll see all the places that shaped your life--some you know and others you've only heard of. But when we finish our journey, when you know the truth--oh, Lucky, when you know the truth, you'll never see your life the same way again."

Helena says "my child," when talking to Lucky, and pats his knee.

V. Lucky Tests His Boundaries (3/14)

Helena: "How overwhelmed Luke and Laura must have been, being able to claim ownership to this magnificent vessel. Certainly, nothing in their dreary, middle-classed existence ever prepared them for such luxury. And that's being kind to Luke. Because Luke and his sister were really little more than street urchins. Can't you just picture them in this very salon, perhaps having dinner over a table much like this one? Carefree, reveling in their good fortune and lack of responsibility. Existing only to live out their hedonistic desires."
Lucky: "I know you don't like it when I'm literal, but they were carefree. They owned this yacht before I was born."
Helena: "Yes. And after the blessed event, they never made one single concession for you. A mere boy expected to adapt himself to their gypsy lifestyle? It's as shameful now as it was then."
Lucky: "You keep saying that."
Helena: "Yes. Because I believe it."
Lucky: "Ok. I just wonder why what happened to me matters to you so much."
Helena: "Because I find you remarkable in spite of your upbringing. Oh, Lucky. Lucky, you are intelligent, and you're charming. And you have enough of the devil in your smile to keep things interesting. Now, you have elegance and grace. It's as if you were born to royalty instead of to peasants."

Helena: "Lucky, I'm disappointed. Now, I thought we were past these silly escape attempts."
Lucky: "I wasn't trying to escape. I went to the deck for some air. You would, too, if you'd been cooped up in a gray room for months."

Helena: "Well, my apologies, Lucky, if I misread your intentions."
Lucky: "No problem."
Helena: "But in the future, you must ask permission to go wandering. It's for your own safety."
Lucky: "I'll remember. I know where we are now."

Lucky: "I can read the constellations."
Helena: "Well, my, my, my, my. You are resourceful. Well, in any event, I promised you that your cooperation would not go unrewarded. I have a surprise for you."

Helena: "Well. You are quite the swimmer."
Lucky: "It was something that I missed last summer. You were very nice to let me go."
Helena: "Oh, I told you, Lucky, your cooperation will be rewarded. Incrementally, perhaps."
Lucky: "I'm not complaining."
Helena: "No, you're not. And that tells me that we are truly starting to understand and appreciate one another. You know, I'm really beginning to regret the thought of letting you go. Perhaps I'll keep you instead. Unfortunately, that wouldn't do. Oh, we'll proceed as scheduled."

Throughout all of their scenes, Lucky didn't quite defend his parents, but he spoke well of their past together. Meanwhile, he was forever giving these enigmatic smiles, making you wonder whether he was up to something. At the beginning of this day's scenes, he looked serious, but put on one of those smiles as he turned to greet Helena. He held her chair for her, and I noted that it was French cuisine, rather than the BBQ ribs Faison had brought him. His face would change again as she left.

VI. Stefan Meets with Alexis and Nikolas Before Leaving to Go After Luke and Laura (3/14)

Stefan: "He's forbidden me to leave town. Staying is impossible. I need you to keep him at bay. I have to find Lucky Spencer and return him to Laura. You have to help me, Alexis. I can't lose her."

Not "I can't lose Lucky." No, Stefan was still talking as though he believed he could win Laura back, and it amused me when Alexis rolled her eyes as she said she'd help.

Alexis: "You want the benefit of my legal expertise? I will give it to you. Here it is. Don't leave town. Don't give the police what they will perceive as confirmation of your guilt. Now can I ask you something? What difference does it make who finds Lucky, as long as that somebody does? And then he'll be able to exonerate you and keep you from being--"
Stefan: "What difference does it make? What difference does it make, Alexis? This is about my life. I have spent nearly half of my life loving that woman. Everything I've done, I did to be with her. And now I could lose her. Now, I tried to explain to her what happened with Lucky. She won't believe me."
Alexis: "And that should gall you as much as it does me. You have sacrificed everything for that woman, and she went blithely on with her life with Luke."
Stefan: "That was a long time ago."
Alexis: "All right, then let's discuss more current events. You almost took a murder rap for her. Don't you get credit for time served? How dare she doubt you? And why are you sacrificing yourself for a woman who has this much faith in you?"
Stefan: "I won't deny Laura's lack of faith disappoints me, but she was reacting emotionally. When I bring her son back to her, she won't doubt me again. Now, I am going to find Lucky whether you help me or not."
Alexis: "I'll help you. You knew that or you wouldn't come here."

Here, his declaration is not, "I did it to make her happy," that insistence he has given Laura a thousand times. No, now it is, "I did it to be with her." The mask was cracking, and Stefan's real feelings were showing through the seams. Again, I took it as a sign that he could be vulnerable with Alexis, even if he wouldn't admit that. He could tell her exactly how it was, knowing that she would still help him. And when she grew frustrated, he patted her on the cheek.

Alexis: "This time I want something back. You are to keep in touch. If it's all the same to you, I'm not going to risk my career and my reputation on the altar of Laura Spencer."

Alexis: "You're--you're going to tell Laura?"
Stefan: "Yes."
Alexis: "Well, I'm going to strongly advise against that."
Stefan: "Why?"
Alexis: "Because she might go to the police."
Stefan: "No, she won't."
Alexis: "Are you sure?"
Stefan: "Either way, I won't lie to Laura. Not this time. Thank you."

Amy: "I have to note that Stefan's language changed in this talk with
Alexis. He said that he'd done everything to be with Laura. Before he said he was doing things 'to make Laura happy.' Funny how those two things really blur for him."

Joan: "Stefan is being dumb, dumb, dumb in all of this. He had a chance to do something noble, and instead he turned it into something entirely self-serving and base. Yes, he is technically innocent of holding Lucky, but he is guilty of withholding vital information, of attaching conditions and strings to his 'gifts,' and above all, he is guilty of hubris. He has been playing God, and God doesn't like others usurping His role. Laura may well tell him she misjudged him when she finds her son, with her husband, but she has nothing to apologize for now. Lucky is not Stefan's to give her, any more than Lesley was."

Stefan: "Laura left town with Luke? You know this for a fact?"
Nikolas: "Yeah."
Stefan: "Well, I can't say that I'm surprised. I just thought I'd have more time."
Nikolas: "Time? Time for what? The only thing that matters is finding my brother."
Stefan: "You think I'm guilty. I realize that. But once you and your mother hear from Lucky's own mouth that I had nothing to do with his kidnapping, you'll see that you've misjudged me."

Officer: "Well, I probably shouldn't be telling tales, but a couple showed up here today. Said they've been trying to buy her for over a year."

Terry: "This is not really about today's show, but Joan, did you notice that Gillian Spencer wrote Monday's show? (Or maybe Tuesday) Has she left AMC? I love her."

Joan: "Yes! She's been writing all along, for many shows--sort of like Mulcahey used to do, as a gun for hire. I hope she stays around."

Arda: "I'll have to look out for her name. I remember seeing it, but I can't associate it right now with specific episodes. I was surprised to see Michele Val Jean's name on a recent episode--she hasn't been writing individual episodes in a long time."

VII. Stefan v. Scorpio (3/16)

I believe that this was the scene in which I first noticed that Lucky and Helena matched their chess pieces. Rather, in this scene they contrasted them. Lucky was in grey and Helena in red, but she had the black chessmen.

It amused me that Stefan had all that money hidden in a box on his death, rather than in a safe. And it amused me also that he called Mac, "Scorpio," just as the Cassadines of yore used to refer to Robert. We were headed to the Cassadine island, after all.

Meanwhile, we had yet to see Stefan or Alexis mention the strike that was going on at the hospital by this time.

Terry: "We gotta stop with the leather already. Stefan's leather jacket looked as cheesy, to me, as some of those leather skirts we've seen lately. Is GH getting a kickback from the leather industry?"

Judy: "Ugh. That was awful! I usually like a man in leather, but that thing looked like it was the only thing left on the rack after Wilson's end-of-the-year clearance sale."

Terry: "And I hated that line about how he has to get to Lucky first, before Luke convinces him to 'say anything' to blame Stefan. Puh-leeze. I loved the Alexis/Stefan stuff generally, though. I like them together."

Joan: "Oh, Terry, you will hate me for saying so, but Stefan is sounding pretty pathetic with this stuff. Even if by some wild chance he did find Lucky first, he can never win this contest only he is entered in. Far better for him to wait applauding at the dock when the Spencers' ship comes in than to run after the pack like a limping beagle. He's better than that, and Alexis knows it if he doesn't."

Judy: "Do you think Lucky's been 'convinced' (brainwashed/whatever) to tell the cops that Stefan was his captor? That would be a logical 'step one' in Helena's plan. Of course, it'd also mean that it'd be up to my dear Andreas to clear Stefan, ultimately securing his position as 'loyal servant' at Wyndemere."

Arda: "I hate 'brainwashing' plots, but that's my guess too--that Lucky will say that Stefan captured him."

Judy: "By the way, I like the new Lucky. Now that he's doing more than just staring, I'm impressed."

Joan: "I like him, too. And I'm hoping he's well and truly brainwashed, since I live for the day when he cuts Elizabeth dead. Or back from the dead."

Amy: "Can't wait. I am getting a little tired of the 'he looks different' riffs. Luke's, at the club, didn't bother me (you could predict that, eh?). The comment to Roy that he looked different because of what he'd been through that year, grown up, etc. But the bit with Laura and Elizabeth where she noted that Lucky probably looked different now about 5 times drove me nutso."

Arda: "He's gorgeous--though not my type at all and definitely too young for my tastes. The only thing I'm having a hard time with is the quality of his voice. Something about it surprises me--the voice doesn't seem to be congruent with the body it's coming out of. But I'm willing to give him some time before I wail for Jackson. I've been dealing with him OK so far, though I'm half-dreading the first scenes with Geary. I can't imagine someone other than Jackson ping-ponging so perfectly with him."

Judy: "You were expecting Brad Pitt's voice? *G* I know I was. But the smart thing about the possible brain-washing/mind-control scenario is that he won't have to ping-pong with Geary. It's going to be an uncomfortable reunion, like that of a former cult member returned home to their family. Lucky's spent the past year with two of the greatest mind game players in the GH universe and he's not the same guy (yeah, I know, literally) that he was when he 'died.' No one who knew Lucky before is going to feel at ease right away with this quieter, dispassionate, chess-playin' guy."

"I suspect that Lucky's gone from being a do-er to a plotter, and has acquired an almost Cassadine-like taste for the long drawn-out, complicated, subtle plan. Imagine that! A Spencer who thinks before he acts! He could be a really dangerous guy *G*."

Terry: "I also love the way both Stefan and Luke trace Helena through her accounts. How would that work, exactly? Is she charging lots of stuff? I doubt it. Seems like she'd pay cash to avoid just such a problem. I know, they have to come up with some way for us to think the boys are able to track her down, but this one seems silly to me. Luke and Laura, this time at least, know she's in the Indian Ocean because the former boat owner traced the boat (yeah, right, but I'll go with it). Stefan, however, tracked her to Madagascar by following the money. On what is she spending it at the moment, pray tell? She's floating around on her boat."

Judy: "Yes. And they do it from their home computers! I guess nothing's secure on the web. (I'll have to rethink my online ordering *G*)."

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