This is the first of two Nuke episodes of As the World Turns that I'm late in blogging about. It's last Friday's episode.
The show started with Luke showing up at the hospital to talk with Dr. Oliver, who immediately started in about all of the whiny hypochondriacs that populate Oakdale. Luke reminded him that there was one case in town that was 'worthy of his genius'. Reid sneered that he doesn't do charity cases but Luke offered to put in a good word with Bob Hughes if he'd take Noah's case, maybe get him out of Oakdale early and cover his legal fees.
Luke also pointed out that Noah's surgery wouldn't bore him (Reid: "You bore me") and would fill the time in which he was basically under house arrest.
Dr. Oliver told Luke that while Noah may be the only blind guy in a hundred mile radius, there were other patients he needed to see. Luke sarcastically replied that he was sure the guy with a wicked case of Athlete's foot would enjoy having a world class neurosurgeon helping him relieve that burning itch. Ha!
Reid let Luke know that he'd been doing his research online about Luke's family and that Luke himself was certainly living up to the reputation, what with all the bribery and blackmail. Luke said that he didn't want to do those things, he just wanted Reid to operate on Noah, that's all. In other words, Luke isn't bad, he's just (badly) written that way!
Reid, who has already earned my undying love several times over, was mock surprised, saying "That's it? Why didn't you say so? Here, call my office in Dallas, schedule yourself an appointment, I should have an opening this time next year if you're lucky. You can wait in line like everyone else. No? Okay."
He then told Luke that he couldn't be bought or pushed around, so Luke all out of luck.
Meanwhile, the latest episode of The Blind and the Rageful was starting. Oh, no, sorry. That's just Noah. He was sitting in Lily's living room, listening to the DVD of the ceremony in which Luke's version of his film was winning an award. After throwing the DVD across the room, Noah called his ex girlfriend Maddie and asked her to come over.
This was good news for me, since Noah is far more watchable when he's in scenes with someone besides Luke these days. Plus, I just flat out love Maddie. Any scene with Alexandra Chando is enjoyable and I love the way that Maddie just refuses to feel sorry for Noah or let him feel sorry for himself.
Noah asked Maddie to take him to the hospital so that he could talk to Dr. Oliver without Luke around. He filled his ex in on how Luke was responsible for the doctor refusing to take his case and Maddie said that if Luke did give Reid 'the hard sell', it was because he loved Noah. Noah said that this was one time where Luke loving him had chased away what he needed and now he had to help himself.
Before they could leave, Luke returned. When Noah told him where they were going, Luke said he'd just been there and that Reid was impossible. Noah said that he had to try for himself, since he was the patient. He did soften enough to thank Luke for getting Dr. Oliver to Oakdale in the first place.
Reid, meanwhile, was at Java, where he ran into Katie and her crying infant. Katie was asking baby Jacob (who is Luke's cousin, by the way) if he had a fever and Reid told her that unless the baby was the next Mozart, he wouldn't be answering her. When Katie asked "You're a doctor?" to this stranger in hospital scrubs, Reid said "Clearly you're not the next Mozart either."
Katie asked Reid to look at her sick child, saying that he was bound by an oath to do so, and he pointed out that they were in a coffee shop, not the hospital. After Katie made some snide comments of her own and told her baby that she'd find him a real doctor, Reid relented and checked out the baby, saying it looked like an ear infection.
As much as I loved seeing Reid be snarky to Katie, I'm seriously worried. Are they going to make Reid straight?! Why else do they have him in a scene with Katie, who has had just about every other straight man in town that she isn't related to and who lost her most recent husband just a short time ago?
This isn't the type of well written soap where characters just run into each other and talk. If you have a scene with someone and it's not a Holiday episode, they're in your storyline bubble for the foreseeable future.
Their whole vibe, after Reid examined the baby, was a bit flirty. After Reid talked about how much he hated staying in hotels (a.k.a Germ Farms), Katie offered him a chance to be her new roommate, which he accepted. Damn it!
While all this was going on, Luke got a desperate call from Damian, who had just strangled Luke's crazy Aunt Meg nearly to death, held Luke's dad Holden at gunpoint, and accidentally hurt his mom, Lily. He told Luke that he had to see him at the office right away.
When Luke got there, Damian told Luke that he was leaving the country on a freighter and that he couldn't do so without saying goodbye to Luke. He then asked Luke to take over Grimaldi International, saying that it was always his plan for Luke to take over one day. You know, because it makes sense to turn over a huge international company to a young college drop out who has worked for the company for less than a year and who is hardly ever in the office.
Luke at least had the intelligence to point out how insane this was and then asked Damian just what he'd done, since he was running away without his wife and his son.
Damian told him that he loved him and that he had to know that everything he'd done was out of love for Luke and for Lily, and to remember that when he heard what people said about him.
Luke said that it sounded like they were never going to see each other again, but Damian said that they would one day, when the time was right.
Van Hansis totally broke my heart in this scene when he tearfully called out "Dad! Be careful." Luke never calls Damian 'Dad' so it was a big moment, one where Damian turned around and came back long enough to hug Luke.
Of course, I really haven't liked the way they've written Luke since he went to work for Damian, so I'm kind of glad to see Grimaldi go. Still, it made for a really great moment and Van knocked it out of the park.
At the hospital, Noah told Maddie that it was as if Luke had two sides: the grounded guy with solid parents, and the Grimaldi side that cut corners and took risks. Maddie spotted Dr. Oliver and made herself scarce.
Reid tried to blow Noah off, but Noah told him that Luke didn't speak for him. Reid realized that Noah didn't like the way Luke had blackmailed him (except, of course, that Noah hadn't really minded when he thought it was going to work in his favor!) and asked if that was the problem between him and Luke.
Noah told Reid about how the accident might not have happened if Luke had just listened to him and said that Luke was acting the way he was out of guilt. Reid seemed surprisingly understanding about that. Noah asked what Dr. Oliver wanted more: to get back at Luke, or to add Noah to his list of success stories? Reid said he hadn't decided yet.
Shortly thereafter, Reid was examining Noah and told him that he'd decided to go forward with the surgery as long as Noah responded well to the therapy and on the condition that Noah kept Luke out of Reid's orbit. Noah agreed and shook on it.
Luke, who'd called Holden to tell him what had just happened with Damian, showed up at the hospital to see his mother. He spotted Noah, who was by himself waiting for Maddie, and was overjoyed when Noah told him that Reid had agreed to take his case.
Luke wanted to drive Noah home, but Noah said that he'd wait for Maddie and that since Dr. Oliver didn't want Luke around him at all, it meant that Luke and Noah had to stay away from each other, starting now.
Um, what? Noah can't keep Luke out of Reid's orbit without cutting Luke out of his own life? What, is Noah moving in with Reid and Katie? Way to jump at any excuse to ditch your boyfriend, Mayer. My dislike of Noah (or, of the way Noah is currently being written) continues to grow every time he's in an episode!
I'm fine with Luke and Noah taking a break, as long as it means the chemistry between Luke and Reid is explored (and Noah could certainly date someone else, too), but if they're pairing Dr. Oliver with Katie and just leaving Luke and Noah broken up and single, I'm going to be very upset with myself for believing, yet again, that this story was about to become enjoyable.
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