AMC Recaps Week of May 9, 2005

Friday, May 13, 2005
Greenlee expressed to Jack that she and Kendall are sincerely behind his wedding to Erica. “I get that she’s right for you, just like Ryan’s right for me,” she shrugged. Greenlee advised a beleagured Jack to sweep Erica off her feet to get the nuptials back on course. Lily arrived and seconded Greenlee’s insistence that Jack find a way to make the wedding happen. When Lily divulged that she and Sam had shared a kiss, Jack tried not to pass out. Greenlee was amused that Jack had to field this mini-crisis without Erica’s help and made her exit. Jack then had a heart-to-heart with Lily, who had an eye-opening impact on her dad….

Erica showed up at Zach’s with an offer he “couldn’t possibly afford to refuse.” Marry me instead of Kendall, suggested La Kane. The arrangement would be a busines one, of course, Erica elaborated, and preferably they’d maintain homes in different states. Zach wondered what Jack thought about all this. Erica sniffed that his opinion no longer mattered, as she’d called off their wedding. But she cautioned Zach not to bad-mouth Jack to her and held forth about how Kendall should be grateful to her for offering to wed Zach herself. “I have to decline your selfless offer,” smirked Zach. “It’s Kendall or no one.” Zach speculated that Erica’s pride was stopping her from doing what she really wanted to do, which was become Mrs. Jack Montgomery. Erica left after one last threat to Zach, but didn’t go far: A man rushed up to her, threw a blanket over her hair, and carried her off as she squealed in protest….

Sam returned to Wildwind, having been nabbed by Aidan. Maria begged the kids to sit down with her and explain why they’d run away. They refused. Sam then demanded that Maria reveal to him the identity of his birth parents. Anita tried to talk Sam out of forcing a disclosure, but he wouldn’t back down. “Tell me or we are done for good,” he fumed. Maria reluctantly revealed that Sam’s birth father is his uncle Bobby, Kelsey Jefferson his mother. Sam was psyched to learn that Tad is his great-uncle. Maria suggested they table their conversation until the family counselor Maria had summoned was able to join them. The counselor showed up, but just a bit too late: Sam had run away again… Jamie ordered JR out of Phoebe’s will reading, but he smugly pointed out that he was there at Phoebe’s invitation. Jamie, Babe and JR then did another round of battle about Tad. Brooke and Tad showed up with Phoebe’s lawyer, who intimated that Phoebe’s will was an unusual one. The reading got underway. Phoebe had heartfelt messages for Brooke and Tad, then turned her attention to Jamie. She left the bulk of her estate to Jamie so he could fulfill his dream of becoming a doctor. The lawyer was about to drop a bombshell involving JR when there was a knock at the door. Tad excused himself to attend to his visitor, who turned out to be Sam. Sam stunned Tad with this request: “I want to live with you.” Back inside, the attorney continued his narration of Phoebe’s will, revealing the caveat to Phoebe’s bestowal of cash and influence on Jamie, which is that “the poison must be leeched” from his life — meaning that if he married Babe, for whom Phoebe had more than a few choice insults, he’d forfeit his inheritance forever. JR chuckled and mouthed a thank-you to the heavens….

Kendall tore into Ryan for having planned to undergo a vasectomy behind Greenlee’s back. She tore off to tell Greenlee, but he blocked her exit and, to persuade her not to blab to Greenlee, explained his reasons for being so passionately committed to not having kids. Kendall tried to make Ryan see that he’s not a monster, but he disagreed and pointed to his behavior in the cave as evidence. He also made an ominous reference to how Kendall has no idea where he goes or what he does when he takes those midnight rides. She got a wee bit freaked out when Ryan said he was close to punching her. She recommended a heart-to-heart with Greenlee; he wanted nothing more to do with talking, or with talk therapy. Ryan was making a last push to extract a promise from Kendall about her keeping quiet to Greenlee when his wife walked through the door.Thursday, May 12, 2005
Brooke was having a flashback about Phoebe when a man grabbed her and planted a big kiss on her lips. She lit up when she realized who it was: Benny Sago, Phoebe’s former chauffeur and dear friend. Benny reported that Phoebe had given him detailed instructions for running her memorial service. “I should have known,” smiled Brooke. Benny said that once the funeral was over, Phoebe could concentrate on pushing Langley around, “up there.” They then reminisced about Phoebe and Mona’s battle over Charles. Brooke noted that Phoebe was always up for a good fight. Enter Erica, who relayed her sympathies to Brooke. Brooke reported that she’d heard about Erica calling off the wedding, then excused herself to greet Linc and Kelly….

Jack insisted to Reggie that he could handle Erica on his own. “Are you kidding me?” Reggie scoffed, pointing to Jack and Erica’s many near-nups. He advised his pop to stop messing in other people’s business, pointing to his interference in Maria and Sam’s conflict. Jack failed again in his attempt to get Lily to disclose Sam’s whereabouts, so he called in Aidan to help. When Lily slipped out of the apartment with goodies for Sam, Aidan followed her and phoned Maria to report that he’d located her son. Inside Greenlee’s old place, Lily and Sam went over her plan to get him out of town. He then told Lily of his desire to kiss her: “My face is saying that it wants to kiss your face.” Sam explained his reasons for wanting to smooch Lily and she agreed to give it a try. “I liked it,” she beamed after they shared a brief lip lock. “You’re the only person I’m going to miss,” shared Sam. When they emerged into the hallway, Aidan was there and insisted on bringing Sam back to Wildwind. Lily requested, and received, another kiss. Aidan wasn’t thrilled….

As Babe and Jamie were getting ready for Phoebe’s funeral, there was a knock at their door. JR burst in, accusing Jamie of using Phoebe’s death to screw him over: He had received an invite to the service and assumed someone was trying to stick it to him. But he agreed to attend the ceremony with Jamie and Babe. Tad noticed the three arriving together and asked JR when the world was coming to an end. Brooke received condolences from Tom and Livia while Jamie exchanged hugs with Chuck and Joe. “Grandmother was really proud of you,” said Chuck to Jamie….

Erica was having a quiet moment by Phoebe’s casket when Jack arrived. Opal saw them together and assumed the wedding was back on, leading to an awkward moment. Jack and Erica agreed that now wasn’t the time to get into their discord….

Myrtle told Linc how sorry she was about his mother’s death, then dissolved into a flashback about fighting with Phoebe about Linc and Kelly. Myrtle winked to Linc and Kelly that she was always a better gossip than Phoebe, she just never told that to Phoebe. Benny interrupted to announce to the crowd that he was running today’s show on Phoebe’s orders. “She wanted a hell of a send-off,” he grinned. Benny warned Brooke that he’d kiss her again if she shed any tears; they hugged. Adam walked in and was affected by the sight of Brooke in Benny’s arms, so he swooped in on the two. “Oh, Brooke-y. You and Grandpa Warbucks again, huh?” sighed Benny. Tad then taunted Adam with how much Brooke seemed to be enjoying her reunion with Sago. The priest began a traditional service (with Agnes Nixon, AMC’s creator, among the mourners), but Benny cut it off (again following Phoebe’s instructions). “Oh, Aunt Phoebe, what have you done now?” wondered Brooke….

Back at Jack’s, Reggie and Dani started to get hot and heavy on the couch but she pulled back and reminded Reggie that she wasn’t ready. He lost his cool and stormed out after declaring that he was ready even if she wasn’t….

Kendall showed up at Ryan’s, and demanded that he take her to bed. This was just a way to get his attention, and once she had it, she conveyed that she was there to convince him and Greenlee to be happy to ensure the happiness of everyone in the extended Kane/Montgomery clan. Losing Ryan would kill Greenlee, claimed Kendall, who asked Ryan if he really wanted to toss away the love he shared with his wife. Ryan responded that he wasn’t divorcing Greenlee, so everything was cool. Kendall didn’t buy it, given that Ryan is still refusing to have a baby. She assured Ryan that Greenlee would not give birth to a “three-headed mini Lavery monster.” The discussion grew heated, with Ryan insisting he doesn’t want to be a father, ever. She left after learning that Ryan is visiting a doctor, which she took to mean that he was on the right track. But when she realized what kind of doctor he was going to see, she stormed back into his pad to confront him….

At Phoebe’s service, some of the mourners had letters from Phoebe. Phoebe had written them in the voice of “Aggie,” her advice-columnist alter ego. Benny instructed Linc to read his first. Linc’s note set up a flashback about Phoebe paying Eddie off to wed Kelly, in order to keep Linc and Kelly apart. Chuck’s note led to a flashback about Phoebe using Billy Clyde Tuggle to meddle in Chuck and Donna’s relationship. Palmer’s recalled a heated showdown with Phoebe. “Phoebe Wallingford was a damned exasperating woman,” said Palmer. “But she was an original.” “I’ll say,” nodded Brooke. Kelly thought back to Phoebe’s drunken meltdown at her wedding to Linc and planted a loving kiss on Myrtle’s cheek, as it was Phoebe who (however unintentionally) brought them so close together. Myrtle’s letter led to a flashback of a classic Phoebe/Langley moment; Benny’s to a memory of Phoebe at his hospital bedside. With Adam gazing lovingly at her, Brooke got so emotional when she began her letter that Tad took over oratorial duties. Phoebe encouraged Brooke to “Remember the good, the bad, and for laughs, the unspeakably strange.” So Brooke thought of when Edmund went undercover as “Eduardo,” Phoebe’s Latin lover, to expose scam artist Giles Westfall. One by one, to the strains of “I’ll Be Seeing You”, the people of Pine Valley placed roses on Phoebe’s casket for a final farewell. After one last montage of classic Phoebe moments, Linc proposed a toast: “To an extraordinary woman.” “To a great dame,” added Benny. “We will love you and we’ll miss you, Aunt Phoebe, but we will never, never forget you,” concluded Brooke as everyone raised their glasses.Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Greenlee and Kendall discussed the pros and cons of Jack and Erica not making it down the aisle. Kendall shuddered at the thought of a single Erica focusing all of her energy on her kids and dissolved into a fantasy of Erica showering her with far too much attention (complete with mom and daughter in matching outfits, Erica planning joint bikini waxes). She pointed out the dangers to Greenlee, who had a fantasy of her own, a take-off on the Von Trapp clan’s adventures, starring Jack, Reggie and Lily. Once out of her reverie, Greenlee agreed that she and Kendall needed to make sure the wedding happened….

Ethan dropped in on JR at the Chandler mansion. JR gloated about having lured Kendall into his bed. Ethan reduced JR’s fling with Kendall to a “one-night slap in the face,” but JR smirked that he was far from done with her. Ethan offered to turn Chandler Enterprises over to JR if JR left Kendall alone; JR tore up the papers with which Ethan had presented him. Ethan retaliated by authorizing a deal that stood to lose Chandler millions of dollars and assured JR that he would continue to flush the company down the toilet if JR didn’t comply….

At Jack’s, Erica admitted to her groom that she was having second thoughts about the wedding. Jack supposed he should be grateful that she was finally honest. Erica pleaded with Jack to sit down with her to hash out their differences. Reggie’s return home was ill-timed; he requested quality time with the ‘rents, refusing to grant them alone time. “Isn’t this cozy?” he beamed, sitting between them on the couch. Reggie finally agreed to hang out in his room, but Jack nixed the idea of speaking to Erica one-on-one. He advised her to resolve her doubts, then get back to him….

Amanda stopped by to visit Jamie and raced into his arms. Babe walked in and had a warm introduction to Amanda, who lobbied for JR and Jamie to call off their battle. After Jamie was called away on an emergency bike-fixing job, Amanda conveyed her sympathies to Babe over what a jerk JR has been to her and how difficult it must be for her to be separated from Little Adam. The gals also bonded over having moms who’ve been in the slammer and their mutual dislike of Jamie’s cheesy necklace….

Lily, who had installed Sam in Greenlee’s old apartment, stopped by to see him, bearing snacks and the next part of her plan to help him get out of town. Her suggested destination: New Zealand. Sam was surprised to learn that Lily was adopted by Jack and shared that he too was adopted. Lily left after Reggie summoned her home by cell phone; Sam watched her go wistfully. Back at Jack’s, Lily refused to disclose Sam’s whereabouts, then retired to her room, leaving Jack and Erica to bicker about his children, her children, and Maria’s children — and Jack made a particularly cutting remark by throwing Erica’s kidnapping of Maddie in her face. The argument was at its most heated when Opal, Myrtle, Palmer, Livia, Joe, Danielle, Greenlee and Kendall arrived to join Reggie and Lily for an impromptu bridal shower. Myrtle picked up on the Jack/Erica tension, but Erica denied that anything was wrong. Kendall and Greenlee proposed a toast: Greens choked out that she would find a way to love her new stepmother and told Jack that she loves him; Kendall’s heartfelt speech touched Jack and Erica deeply. But when Kendall requested some words from the happy couple, they froze. Lily, meanwhile, had sneaked off with the cake to visit Sam and also brought him a frame for his picture of Edmund. She also volunteered to track down Sam’s biological father. Sam tried to kiss Lily, but she panicked and ran back home — just in time for Erica’s speech. “The wedding’s off,” she declared, then rushed out.Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Greenlee begged Ryan to table the topic of divorce. After an emotional interchange, he agreed, but got one of those “I’ve got a plan” glints in his eye. Ryan then told Greens that he’d decided to see someone, a doctor. After she left the apartment, he scurried over to the phone book and then made a call to inquire if he could get an appointment for that night with Dr. Cooper. He could. Later, at the doctor’s office, Cooper noted that he’d never received an emergency call about a procedure like this. The doc tried to convince Ryan to give it a little more thought, but Ryan was adamant that he wanted the vasectomy and fast. Dr. Cooper agreed to schedule the surgery as soon as possible….

At the Valley Inn dining room, Jack reeled from Erica’s proclamation that she would go through with their wedding if Kendall agreed not to wed Zach. Zach explained that he couldn’t elope with Kendall because Sam is missing. Zach noted that Lily might know where Sam is, but Jack ordered Zach to keep his distance from her daughter — and from Maria, too. Zach asked the group to let Maria know if they learn anything, then strode off. Jack turned to confront Erica about her wedding-related comments. “Suit up for round two,” sighed Kendall. Erica accused Jack of taking her words far too seriously; Jack suggested calling off the nuptials. Kendall sent them back to their separate corners, or tried. But the fur continued to fly between Jack and Erica. Things were going from bad to worse when Greenlee expedited matters by flying into the room and accusing Jack again of trying to orchestrate the end of her marriage. When Greenlee reported that she and Ryan were staying together, Erica stepped in to amend her previous comment. “I’ll go through with our marriage,” she declared, “as long as you stay the hell out of Greenlee and Ryan’s.” Jack told Erica and Greenlee that they would not succeed in intimidating him into retracting what he’d said to Ryan. Erica and Greenlee continued to lay into Jack; Kendall hailed the onset of Armageddon, since her mom and business partner were in agreement about something. After more sharp-tongued banter, Jack stormed back to his place. Erica followed. Greenlee spat to Kendall that if Erica did dump Jack, he’d have no one to blame but himself. She also expressed to Kendall her hopefulness that Ryan’s new shrink will be able to help him….

Maria and Maddie’s squabbling continued at Wildwind. Maddie stormed off after accusing Maria of taking Zach’s side over hers. Brooke showed up, having heard from Tad that Sam was still AWOL, and Maria asked her to stay. They sat down in the living room, where Brooke conveyed her sympathy to Maria over everything she’s been through and apologized for not paying closer attention to Sam and Maddie. “Will you help me bring my kids back?” Maria asked. “I’ll try,” promised Brooke. Maria left Maddie and Brooke alone to chat. Brooke tried to make inroads with Maddie and compared Maddie and Maria’s dynamic to her own with Phoebe when she (Brooke) first came to town. When Brooke expressed her gratitude for the years she had with Phoebe, it made an impact on Maddie, but only a slight one. Brooke tried a different approach, assuring Maddie that if she leaves Pine Valley, Brooke will make her life on the run a living hell. Finally, Maddie agreed to stay, but nonetheless made it clear to Maria that she’d never forgive her….

Tad and Aidan were in a car, searching for Sam. Aidan gently pointed out the significance of the date (the anniversary of Dixie’s death). “Every year, the same thing happens,” Tad sighed, recounting the grief he experiences on that date. Aidan brought up the subject of the Jane Doe that Tad commissioned him to investigate and reported the new info he’d uncovered: the woman, an American, underwent three reconstructive surgeries, appeared to be suffering from amnesia, didn’t offer her caretakers a name, and made no mention of pregnancy or a baby. Tad struggled against getting his hopes up. Minutes later, Tad and Aidan arrived at the woods, but instead of Sam, they found Zach. “Tell me I’m hallucinating,” groaned Tad. Zach explained that he, too, was looking for Maria’s son. Aidan got hot under the collar and accused Zach of feigning care for the children to get back into Maria’s bed. Zach made a move to leave, but Tad blocked him to try to persuade Zach to butt out of the lives of the Wildwind crew. Aidan then found the photo scrap of Maria that Sam had left behind, which he invited Zach to keep as souvenir….

JR was in full brooding mode while looking at the date on his computer. Amanda walked up, having been summoned by JR. While Di looked on, JR lit into Amanda for inviting Jamie onto his property. JR made it clear that if Jamie was on the grounds again, he’d toss her out. After refusing to answer Amanda’s questions about why he and Jamie are at odds, Di intervened, taking JR to task for his rude tone. Her comments got to JR, who apologized to Amanda and Di for his behavior. Amanda took her leave after promising JR she’d never invite Jamie back to the house. Shortly thereafter, JR was struck when he overheard Di warbling Dixie’s favorite tune, “You Are My Sunshine,” to Little Adam. Unsettled, he grilled Di about her song choice and explained that his mom, who favored that tune, died three years ago today. Di asked an increasingly sad JR if there was anything she could do to help. “Keep singing,” he replied. She complied….

Babe came home overloaded with snacks from the bar and found Jamie in a foul, sulky mood. Babe asked what was up: “You look like you could give Godzilla a run for his money.” Jamie barked that life in a dump above a garage was getting to him, along with the pathetically limited amount of time Babe got to spend with her son, Tad’s destined-to-be-disappointing quest to find Dixie, and JR’s unrelenting smugness. Babe tried to boost Jamie’s mood with some college brochures she’d picked up, but Jamie said it was no use: JR had gotten to those schools, too, making sure they wouldn’t consider applications from him. Later, he apologized to Babe for getting so grumpy and assured he that he didn’t regret at all the way his life had turned out, because he had her.Monday, May 9, 2005
Greenlee laughed off Ryan’s divorce suggestion, but he assured her that he was serious. When Jack showed up, a distraught Greenlee tore into him for meddling. “Your dad had nothing to do with this,” Ryan interjected. Greenlee commanded Jack to leave after getting in a good dig about how he’s worse as a father as Roger was, then declared to Ryan that she refused to divorce him. Ryan explained that he loves Greenlee but can’t make her happy. Greenlee made a heartfelt plea for Ryan to stop pulling away from her. “I can’t,” he cried, adding that it would be impossible to go on as they did before: “I can’t pretend I didn’t kill my brother.” She continued to insist that with time and togetherness, they could heal his wounds. Ryan, convinced he might do real damage to Greenlee, wouldn’t listen. She tried a different tactic, entreating him to go ahead and hurt her. Ryan got the point, but Greenlee reiterated that not only did she not think Ryan was capable of hurting her, she’d bail at the first sign of trouble, unlike Maggie when Jonathan originally hit her. The two then tearfully embraced….

At the police station, Maddie tried to convince Maria that Zach physically attacked her and Sam. Maria saw through it and ordered Lt. Perry to take the handcuffs off Zach, but Maddie threatened to run away again. Zach asked to speak one-on-one with Maddie. Tad advised against it, but Maria gave her consent. Tad reassured Maria that Aidan would find Sam. Zach then pleaded with Maddie to give her mom a break, insisting that Maria never betrayed her family with him. “Don’t hate your mother because she was confused,” he urged….

Sam ran into Lily in the forest, where she’d gone to decompress after Jack and Erica’s blow-up at the wedding rehearsal. When Sam noted that he needed a new plan to get himself and Maddie out of town, Lily volunteered to help and began to outline Sam’s options. He was impressed and tried to hire her; she pointed out she didn’t have a real license, so couldn’t charge him. He reached into his wallet nonetheless, and a picture of Edmund and Maria in happier times (hey, we have that same picture of them here at Digest!) fell out. Sam ripped it up, then followed Lily’s lead in executing the next stage of the plan….

In the dining room at the Valley Inn, Erica confided in Kendall about her reservations about marrying Jack, who, she feared, had gone too far overboard in his interference in Greenlee’s marriage. Ethan showed up and asked to speak to Kendall alone. “Take your poison somewhere else,” instructed Erica. Kendall’s curiosity was piqued when Ethan claimed that he’d proposed a truce with Zach. But when he explained that he’d offered up only half of Cambias Industries, she was unimpressed. “So much for the peace talk!” chirped Erica. “Love is all or nothing,” Kendall said to Ethan. “You don’t get that, so we’re done.” Ethan warned Erica that if Kendall weds Zach, she’ll lose Kendall forever. Once Ethan was led off by hotel security, Erica turned her efforts to talking Kendall out of marrying Zach. Jack then returned and announced that Ryan and Greenlee are getting a divorce, which alarmed both Erica and Kendall. Erica and Jack then did another heated round of battle. Kendall interrupted it by faking a choking spell, flailing her body on the ground. They were too busy arguing to notice. “I could have died ten times over!” she complained when she got back on her feet. “No one’s relationship is ending today,” Kendall insisted. Zach then materialized and beamed, “I can’t wait to be part of this family.” Erica then declared that if Kendall promised not to marry Slater, she promised that she would go through with her nups with Jack….

Jamie lost his temper when he saw Adam and Brooke sharing a close moment. He tried to toss Chandler out, but Brooke assured her son she was more than capable of holding her own against Adam. She requested a private chat with Adam, who reported that thanks to her insistence that he see a doctor, his health was now back on track. When Brooke made reference to an even bigger crisis facing his survival, he sighed, “Brooke, I have survived the Carey women, Hayward, Martin, tornados, takeovers and market crashes. I can survive anything.” That proved her point, said Brooke, who pointed to her ex’s diet of anger and revenge as corrosive. “You keep this up, your days are numbered,” she cautioned. Adam agreed to give being a better man a go, but she was skeptical. “Don’t play me,” she advised — then signed on to serve as Adam’s life coach….

Jamie stormed over to the Chandler mansion to confront JR but ran into Amanda instead. Amanda was psyched to reunite with her girlhood buddy and suggested that she, Jamie and JR celebrate that night. Jamie broke the news that he and his brother “can’t seem to be in the same room without trying to crush each other with a motorcycle.” Amanda thought they should go out anyway. “I’m engaged,” he explained. Amanda pressed for details and got a better picture of Jamie and JR’s estrangement when he acknowledged that his intended used to be JR’s wife.