It almost took too long.
As a general rule, I’m not a fan of love triangles. They rarely make sense, you always know which side you’re on, and the other person is almost always just there to be an obstacle, so it’s not even fun. Except everything in Grand Hotel is fun, and this love triangle is no exception!
But hey, just in case you need to know our allegiance, we’re 100% Team Danny. Sorry not sorry, Oliver. And when it comes to Jason/Ingrid/Javi, that isn’t even a triangle, sorry Jason, baby. She doesn’t care about you, and everything you do going forward is going to be a mistake.
Here’s a thing I just discovered about love triangles, though. When you care about absolutely everyone, when the show is intent in not dragging the plot along, when characters feel like real people, it isn’t as much something that makes you want to throw things at your TV screen, as much as something that makes you want more – one way or the other.
Who knew?
So let’s talk Oliver, Javi and the always fun mess that is Grand Hotel as we discuss “Love Thy Neighbor”:
WHAT WAS THAT GEOMETRIC SHAPE AGAIN? OH YEAH, A TRIANGLE
Usually I’m the one saying we don’t need love triangles, because love triangles always end up exactly the way you thought they were gonna end up – they’re just an excuse to keep two characters away from each other. But in this case, we actually needed something to get our boy Danny to realize that his feelings for Alicia are more than he wants to admit.
Or, well, our boy Danny isn’t that dim, so something for him to realize that if he truly cares for Alicia, he must put his money where his mouth is. Except, of course, he’s now too late. But is he?
I can’t wait to find out.
Javi, Jason and Ingrid stand on the other side of a love triangle that really isn’t, because Ingrid only cares for Javi. And yet, Ingrid also hurt Javi, deeply – though kudos to the show, and her, for actually coming forward. I’m still shocked this was resolved so soon, and yet, I don’t believe the Javi and Ingrid of it all is over.
There’s too much chemistry there to let it die.
NOT THE MOST RACIALLY SENSITIVE?
“Not the most racially sensitive” is the kind of thing white people can say about racists because they’re not affected by the racism. Now, I didn’t expect Grand Hotel, a show about morally grey characters, to give me an outright villain, but boy, if they were going to, they picked the right one.
Privileged racist white man seems right on point for our day and age, doesn’t it?
Besides, there’s only so much the show can do with the inter-relationship drama, especially as intent as it seems in not dragging things along. So hey, some corporate drama is the thing I didn’t know I actually needed. And with some espionage involved, too!
Again, I ask, if you’re not watching this show, why?
Things I think I think:
- The previously on is INTENSE.
- That’s how you know the show is intense.
- Mateo has no heart. Really. At least Santiago sorta feels bad.
- Not that Santiago is all that good.
- I love that Mrs. P knows all.
- You know what I want in my life? I want to have a job where I can dress like Alicia.
- Why do men want to set a meeting to discuss things that can be discussed?
- “What are you, Cuban?”
- Fucking. Racist.
- “I’m just trying to figure out where all this fire is coming from.”
- FUCK YOU.
- “No, I’m Mexican, WHY?” is the right answer.
- You know why Jason is my favorite? He asks the questions I want to know.
- You know my favorite thing about Danny? He’s such a softie. Plus, he’s got this “Alicia look.” Like, it’s 100% a look he has juuuust when he talks Alicia.
- Javi isn’t even smooth, but he is.
- I guess one out of two isn’t bad.
- Does anyone work at like normal times in this hotel?
- Look, I wanna like Carolina. It’s just HARD.
- Naming your hotel The Finn hotel when your name is Finn is the most pretentious shit ever.
- FREDDIE STROMA IS HERE.
- Alicia, honey, you should have invited the man to a gala. Just saying.
- “Yeah, but he’s a cute blob.”
- Aw, Javi.
- Gigi is my favorite kind of ruthless.
- SINCE WHEN HAS THAT STOPPED YOU?
- Oh, burn. What happened there? And was it more than one instance?
- Jason is literally the best partner Danny could find, everyone trusts him and he learns all sorts of shit he shouldn’t know because of it.
- I love how Javi’s spidey senses are tingling.
- Alicia can do compromise, but in this case, I’m with Santiago.
- P is never gonna leave, so what’s this about?
- I hate Finn so much, I can’t even tell you.
- And I knew as soon as he talked about the language barrier what Santiago was gonna do.
- Demian Bichir in Spanish is hot.
- Alicia and Javi together are still one of my favorite things about this show.
- The “Alicia face” is more attractive than the abs, I promise.
- YOU DON’T GET TO ASK ME THAT. BOOM.
- She’s right too, Danny.
- “You have a mom that loves you, no matter what. I don’t have that.”
- “We work at competing hotels, Dad. It’s not exactly West Side story.”
- OMG Ingrid told him. Now that I didn’t see coming.
- I swear, I thought she’d find a way to trick him.
- This show is blowing my mind.
- Oh, thank God Mrs P.
- Yoli, I’m so damn proud of you.
- And you too, Carolina. WHO KNEW?
- But mostly you, Yoli. This is hard and it’s not gonna get easier, but it’s you and I’m so proud you can show your true self to the people you love.
- This got tangled up, didn’t it?
Agree? Disagree? Share with us in the comments below!
Grand Hotel airs Mondays at 10/9c on ABC.
