Grand Hotel Review: The Big Sickout (Season 1 Episode 4)
Grand Hotel Season 1 Episode 4, “The Big Sickout,” raises our temperature with some hot reveals.
Luckily, we can take the heat. In fact, go ahead and give me a fever, Grand Hotel!
Even though I am tickled pink by Yoli’s spa-tastic storyline on the episode, my favorite is actually Gigi’s.
Roselyn Sanchez shows more of her depth and skill on “The Big Sickout,” as we learn that Gigi’s past is just as complicated as the former Señora Mendoza’s. What I love about the arc is how it accurately unfolds some of the challenging layers of motherhood.
Javi calls out Gigi for expecting him to step up while allowing her daughters to live a freeloader lifestyle. Even though in the moment, Gigi seems a touch defensive, it also clearly gets to her.
Then we learn a bit into the episode that the girls’ father left them with nothing and Gigi had to protect them how she knew best. Her desire for them to “marry up” and live a life of leisure is tied to this past that she’d like to erase.
It’s not so simple as being spoiled.
The episode provides delicious context for how Carolina and Yoli have turned out. It helps to make the seemingly offensive remarks and views on Grand Hotel Season 1 Episode 2, “Smokeshow,” make sense as a reflection of Gigi’s fears.
Gigi’s parenting is less reality and more survivalism.
I especially love the difficult choice Gigi has to make regarding her ex and whether he can come back into her life to be a father for her girls. The show dips into that moral grey area.
Carolina and Yoli should be able to decide for themselves. Yet, at the same time, Gigi has so shielded them from the bad in the world that they are not armed against their father’s deviousness.
The way Gigi handles Victor, Santiago, and her daughters on the episode makes me gain miles of respect for her. She may not always make the right choice, but she has a wickedly sharp head on her shoulders, matched by the strength of her soft curves, and she is a force to be reckoned with.
I am officially #TeamGigi.
Turns out, I am also #TeamJavi.
Siblings know best and I trust Alicia’s assessment of Javi as having a heart of gold.
Tropes be damned, my heart warms as Javi start to get excited about being a dad. It makes me want him and Ingrid to REALLY get together and procreate.
Mateo has certainly had no such redeeming moments. It isn’t even clear what Ingrid was doing with him.
Ingrid and Javi together, on the other hand, is legitimately sweet. I think Javi can tame this bad girl, and I am very down for that ride.
I can’t tell the direction the show is heading, as far as the Javi/Ingrid/Jason/Mateo ships go, which is a relief. I don’t want predictable, and Grand Hotel is strongest when it’s veering into new territory and new reveals.
Speaking of which, DANNY HAS A SERIOUS GIRLFRIEND!
I am still fanning myself to cool down from the shock. This changes everything! Well, everything between him and Alicia! His feelings must be so strong for her that he kisses her despite having a girlfriend and confidante back home.
He isn’t estranged from the girlfriend. She is privy to all the sleuthing!
It could be that Danny is just getting so caught up in the sexiness and drama of the hotel, like his sister Sky, that he forgot himself.
But, still. Danny is not the hero. He’s got some serious darkness.
I dig it.
The only thing about the episode that I am really not on board with is Alicia’s character. She’s just five degrees to sweet and cartoonish for me. The laundry falling on her head, the giddy excitement, the pink outfit, it’s not the right tone for me.
I want to take Alicia and her relationships seriously. The juvenile little plot points and jokes undermine that seriously. I trust Yoli and Javi to take care of business and be the backbone of their families more than I do Alicia.
I hope the show dials back on her silly and dials up her savvy.
I clap with glee the second I realize Marisa is into Yoli, which is two seconds after she appears on screen. Teasing someone about their mopping style is flirty AF.
I’m disgustingly eager for this romance to flourish. Marisa says exactly what I am thinking, and Yoli reacts in a wonderfully charming way.
Not only does the Mendoza sister apologize for her entitled and snobby attitude, but she also acts courageously by asking Marisa out on a date!!
TEAM YOLI FOR EVA!
The episode is the strongest of the season so far. I am building trust in the writing team to build the emotional depth needed for this show to be fantastic. It is getting there!
What did you think of this episode of Grand Hotel? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Grand Hotel airs Mondays at 10/9c on ABC.
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Janelle Ureta
Janelle Ureta is equal parts Veronica Mars, Raven Reyes, and Rebecca Bunch, but she aspires to add some Tammy Taylor to the mix. An attorney turned teacher, Janelle believes in the power of a well-told story. She is currently exploring how to tell short stories, 140 characters or less, on twitter. She loves to talk about TV, and right now she can't shut up about Timeless, Dear White People, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The 100, or Younger.