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“Las Aparicio” recap: Episodes 14-17

It’s time for another Las Aparicio recap! This time we’ll cover the happenings from episode 14 through 17.

Rafaela

Lady Rafaela is really not a big fan of men. Particularly men that wander into her daughters’ lives. She hates Armando (with good reason). She hates Claudio (also with good reason). And she hates Leonardo (and while no one else knows it, we know it’s with good reason). The lady can smell a rat from really far away, even if she can’t prove it. Doesn’t stop her from trying to get close, though. Which is why her latest plan of action involves going into business with Leonardo (Alma’s boyfriend).

Alma

Alma, oh Alma. Your life is so complicated. It’s not enough that the ghost of your ex-husband follows you everywhere and that your daughter is the long lost offspring of Jerry Falwell and Dr. Laura, but your boyfriend is totally lying to you and has a private investigator after you and your family and now your Saintly and Virginal Daughter is dating one of your male escorts from that Top Secret business of yours. Drrrama.

I’m kind of glad I’m not you. But you’re still awesome because you spend all that time between ghost sightings and running a male prostitution ring, openly empowering women and making them feel good about themselves.

Mercedes

Mercedes, Lawyer Extraordinaire, grew closer to Claudio (her partner at the law firm), only to have him confess that he’d lied about the whole fraud fiasco. You know, the one that cost her her house and dragged her ex-husband’s name through the mud, and left her assets frozen, etc. As it turns out, some other partner committed the fraud and ran off with the money to some remote island and it was just easier to blame the dead guy. Mercedes was not happy.

In light of this revelation, she quits the law firm but takes some of her clients. Claudio, who’s grown fond of Mercedes and her hot body, promises to make things better again. He’s going to clear Cheating Husband’s name, and get Mercedes her house back, and everyone is going to live happily ever after.

Rafaela, who’s present for Claudio’s attempts at getting Mercedes to forgive and forget, tells him, “Bitch, you better keep that promise or I’ll cut you.” Only with different words and more sinister glaring.

Julia/Mariana (and Armando)

I’m confident they’re going to drag this storyline out until the end of time but it’s so delicious it’s got me at the edge of my seat.

When last we left these two ladies (and that guy) Mariana had admitted to herself and her girlfriend that she was in love with Julia. Lovely, forbidden Julia. Julia, for her part, was busy dealing with Armando’s sex addiction and trying not to lose her mind in the process.

In order to deal with her feelings, Mariana buries herself in a video project, revealing her feelings to the camera and talking about unrequited love, while simultaneously ignoring Julia’s phone calls.

Julia and Armando spend their time fighting and going to meetings and abstaining from sex. Although, Armando still puts in some secret alone time.

Mariana and Julia then start a film project together about infidelity and interview Alma and Mercedes on camera. Alma’s feelings about infidelity and sex lead Julia to wonder if Armando ever slept with Alma and she grows very paranoid about this until she eventually goes to talk to Alma. Alma is offended that Julia would think that she’d ever sleep with her sister’s boyfriend.

Let’s recall that during Armando’s Long List of Women He Slept With, Julia stops him before he confesses the last one. One that seems to be important. Eek.

Anyway, Julia apologizes for having doubted Alma and goes home and gets angry at Armando for making her doubt her own sister.

There’s not a lot of Julia/Mariana interaction in the first couple of episodes. Just a lot of Armando and Julia fighting and Mariana being alone and emo.

During the Mother’s Day episode (episode 16), Mariana wakes up (naked) next to some random girl she picked up.

And Armando and Julia get into a huge fight about the usual matter (the sex addiction). Armando storms off and Julia goes off to spend the day with Mariana.

So we get a scene with the two of them out shopping and talking about Mariana’s mother (who lives in the U.S. with her boyfriend Frank), and Julia tells her she needs a mother and that she’s happy to share her own because Mariana’s mother is not mother enough while Rafaela is too much mother. And they joke and talk and walk and look at flowers.

Later on, they hang out in Mariana’s apartment. Mariana asks Julia why she’s putting up with everything when Armando is the sex addict, not Julia.

Julia: Yes. He’s addicted to sex. And I’m addicted to him. That’s the problem.

Mariana’s reaction is this:

Julia goes on to say that she either puts up with the abstinence and all the craziness or she loses him. Mariana says she understands because that’s what happened with Dany. And now she’s alone. And the worst part is that she gave everything to the wrong person.

Julia: See? That’s what I’ve been telling you. Why does everything have to be so complicated? It’s like Russian Roulette. Because with sex you already know that if you touch here or you touch there well this happens or that happens. No? But with love? What? …

Julia: …Why so … so complicated? So chaotic? It’s like randomness and chaos.

Mariana: Randomness and chaos. Oooh! I’ve got it! Randomness and Chaos: A Post-Modern Love Story.

Julia: No! (laughing)

Mariana: Yes. Two aspiring actresses. One of them a lesbian. Lesbian, who can’t deal with it anymore because she doesn’t know how tell the person she loves how she really feels …

 

Mariana: (cont’d) … and another, heterosexual, who suffers from Sexual Abstinence Syndrome because she’s married to a sex-addicted soccer player. Ha! There’s our gold mine.

And even though Mariana’s kidding, Julia thinks it’s a brilliant idea.

Why aren’t they making out already? Oh, right. Soap opera.

Later on, the two of them are still hanging out in Mariana’s apartment, working on the script for their project. Mariana is the therapist and she asks Julia how she feels when Armando sleeps with other women. Julia starts to answer something sarcastic and Mariana asks her to honestly answer the question.

Julia: Honestly? Honestly, I don’t even know what I feel. At times it feels really awful and unforgivable. But then I ask myself what’s wrong with me and why do I get so upset? If he wants to sleep with the whole world, let him. After all, the only one he really loves is me, no?

… but all of this I think about when I start to want sex. Then my mind starts inventing all sorts of justifications so that I can just forgive him and for everything to be fine. But that doesn’t work. Monogamous and abstinent. I’m screwed.

Mariana: Nah, not at all. Because you know what’s worse than all of that?

Julia: Hmm?

Mariana: Being alone.

Julia: You’re not alone.

And then they look into each other’s eyes and Mariana looks all hopeful and then …

Julia: I have to go. There’s that dinner at my mom’s.

And she pulls away and gets up. And that sound you hear? That’s the sound of Mariana’s heart shattering all over the place.

Julia invites Mariana to the dinner but Mariana says no. Julia asks if they’ll talk tomorrow to which Mariana says yes. Julia blows her a kiss and leaves.

And we’re left alone with emo Mariana.

Being a lesbian is hard, but being a lesbian in a Mexican soap opera is brutal.

In episode 17, we start the Julia/Mariana/Armando fun with another fight between Julia and Armando. This time the fight happens because Armando refuses to go to the sex therapy session. And then it escalates because when Julia pulls the scarf Armando is wearing off his neck, she discovers a hickey. Yep. Indeed, Mr. Sex Addiction is back to his old ways. Which naturally sends Julia back to Mariana’s.

At Mariana’s, Randomness & Chaos: A Post-Modern Love Story is now in rehearsal mode. It stars Mariana as the therapist. Julia as the abstinent wife of a sex-addicted soccer player. And a break-out performance by a broom in the role of the sex-addicted soccer player.

Personally, I think they could just get rid of Armando altogether and keep the broom.

Mariana: Julia and I have been talking about your sex addiction and we’re wondering how your addiction and the abstinence affects you.

Julia’s like, Waaaaait a minute.

Julia: What do you mean how it affects him? He’s the addict. And the one that is abstaining is me. How is it going to affect him?

Mariana: Julia, please. Let Armando talk.

Julia: I’m not letting him talk. Today he doesn’t get to talk. Because to me, it’s like he’s made of wood.

Mariana starts laughing but then goes back into character and brings up the subject of love. They keep talking about sex and the addiction, but what about love? How come they don’t communicate about that.

Julia: We do communicate. It’s just that the only place where we communicate is in bed because outside of there the love becomes … how to explain … complicated.

Mariana: Don’t you think it should be pleasant?

Julia: What? Love? Ugh. Love should be deep. But the two of us live each day … like … on the surface. Because if we lived every day in the depths we would have already lost our minds.

Mariana: That’s what your love with Armando is like?

Julia: Yes. I think so.

Later on, Randomness & Chaos has been put to rest for a little while and the girls are getting ready for a night out. Julia is trying on clothes while insisting that she’s not returning to Armando’s house just so they can get into another stupid fight or so she can find another hickey on his neck or another woman in his bed. Tonight she just wants to dance and dance and dance and expend some of the sexual energy because all the abstinence is killing her. And she rambles on about what the therapist said, which forces Mariana to stop her.

Mariana: Okay, okay. You don’t need to explain anymore. I get it all. You want to go dancing? We go dancing. You don’t want to hook up with someone? Perfect. And if suddenly you get that guilty feeling and want to return to Armando’s in the middle of the night … whatever you want. Let’s get going though.

Julia teases Mariana for enjoying the therapist’s role so much and asks her to tell her, if she’s so wise, what it is she needs. Mariana says, “Well what you need might sound a little vulgar…” And Julia starts laughing and throwing things at her.

Why aren’t they together already?

Later, Armando calls Julia as Julia and Mariana are headed out for their night on the town. Julia ignores the phone call to Mariana’s surprise.

On the other end of the line, Armando gives up trying to contact Julia and instead calls up some random woman and asks what she’s up to that night.

And that, my friends, is were we leave things. For now.

Ingrid Díaz is the author of Alix & Valerie, a professional blogger and non-recovering coffee addict. In her college days, she was a purple-haired LGBT rights activist. These days, she aims to change the world one lesbian love story at a time. You can read some of her work at www.midnightisland.com.

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