OLTL Recap 1/29: Look but Don't Touch

Courthouse: Nora sits in a red prison jumpsuit next to Tea and the judge sentences her to life for blowing another one of Todd's cases. Nora protests and a guard comes to take her, and then Tea and Todd sit at the judges bench and sip champagne. It is, of course a dream sequence, but it was a very, very good dream. Unless you are Nora, I guess.

Piney Cafe: Tea and Todd strategerize about what to do next to take over the world.

Exterior Set: Bo has a pizza and suggests Marty just stay home tonight, but Marty says she has to do something.

Hotel Room: Talia is guarding Lee in a hotel room, awaiting the trial. She assures Lee that Todd could never find this place. Talia, NEVER say never. Bo shows up with the pizza and asks Lee to come out of hiding. Lee cautiously stares at Marty.

St. Anne's: Jess tells Brody that she's leaving.

Credits

High school: Dillon gently distracts himself from Starr's sobbing hug. She apologizes for acting this way, and he says it's okay, but he needs to understand why she went to a teacher instead of a friend. Starr says she doesn't think Langston would understand how someone you love would try to hurt themselves, "like your mom, and my dad."

Piney Cafe: Tea has a flashdrive about Lee that says Lee has a long list of aliases. I wonder if she ever wore a hot pink wig when she was "undercover" like that dopey Syndey used to do. Cole shows up to mock them both for messing up his mom.

Hotel: Talia asks Bo to meet her outside and asks if it's kosher for Marty and Lee to meet. Bo lies that it is, but I can't fathom this is true.

Inside Marty immediately lays into Lee and says she's not here to dissuade her guilt The only way to do that is to bury Todd on the stand. Otherwise, Marty is going to bury her. pssst, Lee, Marty totally mind effed a man into killing himself a few weeks ago, so I highly recommend doing whatever she says!

Commercials

St. Anne's: Jess and Brody discuss her leaving. He wants to be as whole as possible before leaving, and he still clearly looks distressed by his conflicting memories of the boy in Iraq. She says she's worried b/c there are still pieces missing for her too.

Motel: Marty yells at Lee for never really taking care of her. Lee swears she really did care, even t hough she took money from Todd. Marty lambasts her and asks what Lee thought would happen, "I'd skip off to Neverland?" Her lips curl in tears and anger and she asks exactly how Lee expected it to end. Lee says even if she'd known Todd had raped her all those years ago, she still may not have been able to tell Marty because it was so clear they were in love now.

Piney Cafe: Tea cautions Cole that acting like this won't make his life better. He leans towards her and says "um, you are going to have to excuse me, I don't speak Bitch." omg. Todd says as any decent adult would that this is not acceptable. Cole just snears and asks if he offended the rapist. He leaves to score more pills.

Courtroom: Nora is not in orange anymore, and Bo shows up. He thinks she has a lot going on, what with raising their son who didn't get SORAS'd, thus she missed out on the 3 year boarding school break that most soap moms get. He asks how strong her case is, and she thinks it's workable.

High School: Starr says she treated Todd like he was dead to her, but she never dreamed he'd try to kill himself. Dillon interrupts and says it's not her fault. She says she saw him after he tried this, and she thinks he wants to make things right. She wonders if he deserves a 2nd chance...that maybe she shouldn't testify against him.

Commercials

St. Anne's: Brody tries to reassure Jess by saying they wouldn't send her home if she wasn't ready, and there are follow up visits. He quotes one of the nuns saying getting better is a lifelong process, and Jess jokes "she's a nun, everything for her is a lifelong process." and then they laugh, and it's lovely. He bids her a good night and leaves as Romantical Music swells sadly.

High School: Starr says that Todd loved her enough that he couldn't go through with kidnapping her baby, so how can she send him to prison. Geeze, Starr, someone needs to send her to a profoundly talented psychiatrist. Starr talks about her baby, and the time they were together when she was pregnant. She says she promised her baby that she'd never let Todd mess with her, and that testifying against Todd is Starr's way of saying her baby mattered. Wow, that's so sad. Dillon asks if anyone has said anything about his mother's involvement. She tells him Nora said it can't be brought up. He says knowing his mom didn't help Todd is like Starr knowing Todd didn't actually hurt the baby. She laments that she has to testify b/c people are counting on her, and her brothers love their dad. He says she has to stop beating herself up, so she can make the right choice.

Motel: Lee repeats that Marty was so in love with Todd. Marty disgustedly says "and what? Todd loved me back?" Lee sobs that Todd thought he did. Marty angrily says she trusted Lee and Todd with her life, and Lee stood by and watched while Todd violated her again. She she growls bitterly "again!" Lee sobs that she knows she's been wrong and has to live with that, and she's going to get on the stand and tell her story. She knows it won't make up for all she did to Marty, but she hopes it's a start. Marty growls that it better be enough to put Todd away for good. Then she rattles a chair, causing Lee to jump out of her skin, and leaves.

Piney Cafe: Douchehatted Drug Dealer only has a few pills. Cole wants DDD's connection, but obviously he doesn't give that info out.

High School: Dillon tells Starr he'll be in the court room tomorrow.

John's Bar: McHairdo greets Marty. She tells him she saw Lee and says she's not okay. He asks if she wants to talk, and she seems conflicted, but then Wes shows up and breaks the spell.

High School: Dillon reads a letter from his mother explaining that she entered into a shameful agreement to help Todd kidnap Starr's baby. She writes that it was wrong, and she wants Dillon toknow in case it ever came to light. She writes that Todd learned that Dillon had stolen drugs from the hospital and b/c Dillon had just gotten his life back on track, she agreed to Todd's blackmail. But then the baby died, and she couldn't live with that. Dillon and Violin Guy are very sad about this.

Courtroom: Bo cautions Nora to get a nap b/c she will need it. Bo leaves, and Nora rehearses her statements to the jury. She has a picture of the Family Manning and how happy they look, but a year made a big difference (meanwhile, Starr tears this same picture down off her locker) Nora talks about how Todd planned to get revenge against everyone who hurt him (we see John starely maudlinly at his bar) Nora continues that TOdd planned to make a new family, and also wreak havoc on two teenagers (we see Cole downing pills) He says he planned on kidnapping their baby, and one woman won't be here b/c she commited suicide (Dillon reads his mother's letter) but the other woman will be here (Talia goes back into Lee's motel room) Nora continues that his daughter will tell the jury what he was planning (Blair finds Starr at school and holds her) as Nora finishes "because Todd confessed it all to her"

Suddenly it is the day of the court proceedings, and Nora has just finished actually saying all of that to the jury. She shows the jury a photo of the baby we all call Chloe and that the baby died b/c Dr. Joplin was too busy dealing with Todd to notice a small medical problem that would not have been fatal if treated. Todd is lucky Nancy Grace doesn't know about this case!

The judge asks if the defense is ready, and Tea, dressed in black with a flouncy white collar purrs that she is. Look out, jury! When Tea purrs, it will lull you into doing her bidding! Vaya con Dios, y'all!

Commercials

Courtroom: Tea begins her opening remarks. She says Todd's history is in the past and over. He's not the man the DA's office has claimed he is. He's incapable of those crimes. She calls the charges flimsy and that they are trumped up to exact revenge and that Nora is the opposite of Perry Mason in Todd's regard. (I paraphrase) Tea says she will show the witness's testimony are lies. (is lies?)

Motel: Why would Lee still be in her motel room? Guard Guy brings her lunch and the paper, but for some reason Guard Guy didn't bother to notice that the headline is a LAMBASTING of Lee, calling her Lee KaChing Halpern. I love The Sun. I wish I had one in my town.

Courtroom: Tea basically repeats that this case is a personal vendetta on Nora's part. Judge calls recess. Tea whispers to Todd that the case is about managed expectations, and he smirks "as long as you don't manage my kid away"

Wes tells Marty he has to go, and Marty accurse John of doing that. heh. Dillon winks at Starr that it's going to be okay. Nora angrily tosses The Sun at Tea. She tells the judge that this was a blatant attempt to use the tabloid against a witness, and she whines a bit about it. It was a dirty trick...But SERIOUSLY Nora, how have you not ALREADY had an injunction to stop Todd and The Sun from doing this very thing? Worse lawyer ever.

Commercials

Courthouse: Judge tells Nora to blow it out her ear. Nora asks for the jury to be sequestered, and he agrees. She calls Antonio to the stand.

Motel: Talia tries to calm Lee, but she explains that she's swindled a lot of people, and now they might all come after her. Well, maybe don't be a dirt bag swindler in the next life, Red Shirt!

Courtroom: Antonio and Nora have a scene which is basically like serving me brussel sprouts and monkey brain for dinner, so I'm going to assume that Antonio tries to be helpful, and Nora is smug. Something about Antonio seeing baby stuff in Todd's home.

Tea gets back to purring, so I can pay attention again. She, of course, rips a giant hole in Antonio's smug testimony. She has a tax return or something that shows Todd was going to give a truckload of stuff to orphans. Antonio smugly asks when Todd signed this, and Tea indulges him by saying it doesn't matter to the orphans. I need an Evil Tea in my life to get in people's faces like that.

St. Anne's: Jess and Brody continue their flirty (in a healthy way) goodbye. She tells him to call him when he's out, so they can breath non crazy air together. He says he looks forward to it. Me too!

Courtroom: Nora calls Starr to the stand.

Commercials

Switchback between Courtroom and Motel Room:

Lee and Starr are both having second thoughts....because the Awesome Evil that is Tea's Jedi Mind Tricks is pervading the air.

Nora gently prods Starr to testify like they planned, but Starr is clearly having a struggle with this.

Meanwhile, Talia tries to assure Lee that she's under police protection, and she just has to be cool like Fonzie and patient. But Lee smashes Talia over the head and says she can't take that chance.

Other meanwhile: Nora is doing an admirable job of stalling to figure out what is up with Starr's obvious change of heart without getting Tea's ire up and objecting. She dances around a bit but finally asks bluntly if Todd ever said he planned to kidnap her baby. But Nora must have known the show is almost over...because it is...so now we have to wait. (for the obvious conclusion that Todd gets away with this too)

the end.