Darkness and Light: GH

Like many General Hospital fans, I watch the show everyday in a blissful state of denial, never acknowledging the fact that Sonny and Jason are criminals. I find it easy to denounce Mac when he is urging Maxie to stay away from Spinelli, and I cheer for Diane whenever she keeps someone from the Corinthos organization from going to prison. However, as I watched the events of the week unfold, knowing that they were inevitably going to lead to Dante's shooting, my rose-colored glasses came off and I quickly snapped back to reality.











I found myself repulsed watching Jason standing in the church during Josslyn's christening, knowing that he had just signed Dante's death certificate without giving it a second thought. I was even repulsed by Spinelli, whose detective work set everything into motion. Moreover, I was sickened by his cavalier attitude regarding Dante's imminent demise, and the fact that he never showed an ounce of remorse or regret until Maxie told him that Lulu had found love. This was particularly unsettling considering the reservations he had about finding incriminating evidence against Claudia. Of course even Michael seems more concerned by the fact that he killed Claudia, than he does about being responsible for Dante's death, a man who saved Morgan, Sonny, and Lulu, three people he is supposed to care about. Then again if these heroic acts do not warrant a free pass with Sonny I suppose I shouldn't expect Michael to care about them either.










I still find it hard to fathom that in light of everything Dante has done to protect Sonny and his loved ones that it would be that easy for Sonny to shoot him. This act was purely vengeful. Shooting Dante served no purpose to Sonny because Dante's superiors already had all the evidence against him. I must admit though, that there is a certain irony to all of this, considering that for the past few years Sonny has been blaming himself for Michael's shooting, and now he has to live with the fact that he deliberately tried to kill his other son. Over the next few weeks it will be interesting to see how this realization affects Sonny, and what it will do to his perception of the world he lives in.





Sonny and Dante Face-off[no copyright infringement intended]

Damsel Distressed: GH

If the scenes between Lucky and Liz were meant to give viewers a sense that Liz was getting everything she deserved, then the scenes between Lulu and Liz were meant to evoke sympathy for Port Charles's latest femme fatale. Between Lulu, Ethan, the onlookers at the hospital, Liz's wounded expression, and her injured hand, General Hospital produced the soap opera equivalent of bullying Tiny Tim in the school yard. Ethan even began to feel sorry for Liz, as he urged Lulu to leave her alone and later offered her a ride home.















I knew that this show was going to expect viewers to feel sorry for Liz sooner or later, I was just hoping it would be later...much later. Let's not forget that Liz has been the one walking around town the last few months with a smug look on her face, as she practically dared Rebecca to tell Lucky about her affair.




And now that everything has finally come crashing down around her everyone is expected to pity her. This really should come as no surprise since Liz always seems to come out of every situation looking like a victim, especially to men who always feel the need to protect her. In fact the few women, like Lulu, who have dared to expose Liz's selfish behavior, eventually have to defend themselves to these men. And even though Lucky finally seems to have gained some clarity I suspect it will not be very long before he feels the need to rescue Liz from this situation she brought upon herself.

Breaking Point: GH

Now that Lucky has finally let Nikolas and Liz know that he is aware they have been sleeping together, I can almost understand why General Hospital decided to postpone this confrontation...almost. It was definitely a great soap moment in that revenge-is-a-dish-best-served-cold kind of way, but I have to wonder what it says about Lucky that he had to spend several days drinking before he could ever confront Liz. This is just another reason why I continue to be annoyed by the fact that Lucky's reaction was not immediate, but I digress.




The Confrontation Part 1[no copyright infringement intended]



Sober or not, Lucky finally said everything to Liz that I had been hoping someone would say to her for weeks. Unfortunately, as Luke pointed out, Lucky will likely regret every word he let flow out of his mouth, which will allow for the possibility of Liz becoming a sympathetic character again. And even though this will undoubtedly happen at some point, I cannot say that I am ready for it to happen just yet. In fact one of my favorite moments throughout Lucky's speech was when Carly knocked on the door. Out of everyone in Port Charles Carly is the last person that Liz would want hearing about her affair, so the fact that Carly showed up when she did was nothing short of brilliant. My only disappointment was that she kept her comments to herself until she went to see Jason, but since she is not one to remain silent for long I suspect she will have something to say to Liz soon enough. Although she may have to wait in line behind Lulu who will likely have a few choice words of her own for Liz, especially if Lucky continues his downward spiral.




The Confrontation Part 2[no copyright infringement intended]



If I have one complaint about Lucky's tirade it would be when he said to Liz "What happened to that precious little girl I found trembling in the snow? I'll always love her." That 'precious little girl' had just been raped, which begs the question, is that how Lucky has always seen her, as a victim? And is that what he loves about her? I like the fact that he left Liz's house in a way that showcased his heartbreak amid all the anger, but I am not sure referencing her rape was the best way to do that.

Three's a Crowd: GH

It seems like I have been anticipating Lucky's discovery of Liz's affair for years. I have long awaited this revelation hoping that it would prompt some sort of resolution in which Lucky finally stopped making excuses for Liz and immediately called off their engagement. Once Lucky witnessed Liz's torrid affair for himself, this not only seemed possible but probable. Instead there was no confrontation, Lucky's only immediate reaction was to smash inanimate objects placed around his house before calling Laura to get her input on the Cassadine heritage. I certainly hope this conversation doesn't mean Lucky blames Nikolas for an affair that is only partially his fault. Lucky appeared to be angry at Liz as well, but since he didn't confront her about the affair it was difficult to interpret whether or not he actually blamed her for it. It seems odd that he could see her only moments after catching her with Nikolas and not say a word to her about what she did. I would have much rather seen him interrupt her "goodbyes" with Nikolas, letting them witness his anger firsthand, before going home to smash everything in sight. It would have made that scene seem more significant, and Lucky's actions in it less like a tantrum.




Lucky, Liz, & Nikolas scenes[no copyright infringement intended]


[no copyright infringement intended]

The Franco Factor: GH

When it was announced that James Franco would be joining General Hospital for a brief acting stint, my hope was that his presence would generate renewed interest in the show. And while he may have achieved this feat on some scale, his character Franco and the storyline attached to him seems to possess a polarizing quality that sparks either love or hate, with little room in between. For the most part I was intrigued by Franco's character and this storyline. In fact on certain days it was the only interesting part of General Hospital amid the sleep-inducing love triangles involving Robin, Patrick, Lisa, Lucky, Liz, and Nikolas. Overall though I would have to say that the Franco storyline failed to live up to my expectations. There were many disappointments along the way, not the least of which was the revelation that CO77X was only a booking number with no profound meaning. Perhaps the biggest disappointment though, and in my opinion a great oversight, was the fact that Franco had no real ties to Port Charles and no plausible reason for seeking out Jason. This storyline lacked the substance that these types of connections would have provided. Establishing meaningful connections between old and new characters is one of the fundamentals of quality soap writing. It ensures that viewers will be accepting of new characters entering the lives of established characters, and that should never be sacrificed for any reason. It is as if GH felt like they had to provide Franco the actor with a recycled movie plot in order to maintain his interest in the show.

"Some men just wanna watch the world burn."

- Michael Caine as Alfred in The Dark Knight

I am not going to delve into all the parallels that existed between this storyline and The Dark Knight because there were many and they have undoubtedly all been covered on message boards and by other bloggers, as they were not difficult to recognize. However I would like to make note of one parallel. It comes from a line in the movie that was said by Michael Caine's character Alfred. In it, he tells Bruce Wayne/Batman that "some men just wanna watch the world burn." This is an insightful description about The Joker, but I think it is befitting of the Franco character as well. Ultimately Franco's obsession with Jason was little more than a by-product of his own madness. Franco himself likely never fully understood his fascination with Jason because it is not as if Jason's skills as a mob enforcer were completely unique. If Franco had not discovered Jason it is likely that he would have focused his attention on someone else, surrounding them in a path of destruction before getting bored and vanishing. And perhaps that is just what Franco has done.

When All is Said and Done: GH

In the midst of all the chaos surrounding Franco's latest antics, more on that later, I could not help noticing Lucky and Maxie's reactions to the safety of his hostages. Neither one of them seemed at all concerned with Sam's well being. When Maxie thought someone might have died in an explosion her initial reaction was to hope that it wasn't Lulu. This made it seem like Lulu was the only one she was concerned about even though she and Sam were friends long before she and Lulu ever started speaking to each other. It seems rather strange to me that Maxie wouldn't at least be as equally concerned about Sam as she was Lulu. Still, I can kind of overlook a little insensitivity from Maxie, primarily because she has a tendency to be that way a lot, but also because Lulu has become like a sister to her since Georgie's death. In addition, Maxie feels guilty about letting herself be used by Franco, not to mention the fact that if that had never happened she would have likely been at Crimson when Franco came to kidnap her, thereby preventing Lulu from getting kidnapped instead.

Lucky's reaction to the hostage situation baffled me. In fact I was more than just a little annoyed by it. Let's forget for a moment how ridiculous it looked to see Lucky trying to beat Jason up when he thought Lulu was dead, and focus on his implications that Sam was expendable because she chose a life with Jason. I guess Lucky thought that since Sam knowingly put herself in danger by attaching herself to Jason, she should be prepared to suffer the consequences and so should everyone else...and this is someone Lucky supposedly cared about once upon a time. I understand that he was worried about his sister, but Jason sent Dante to rescue her as soon as he found out where she was, not to mention the fact that he had no way of knowing that Sam's bomb wasn't real. It is not as if Jason could have been in two places at once either, saving Lulu and Sam simultaneously, although Lucky seemed to think that Jason should have been able to do that, or at least be able to read Franco's mind. I must say I am really beginning to feel sorry for Jason. Everyone looks at him like he is some sort of superhero and has all the answers, but he is the first one blamed when something goes awry.

Lucky's logic implied that because Sam knowingly became involved with someone dangerous she forfeited the right to expect safety, and that anything that happened to her was her fault. I wonder if this same logic would apply to Lulu because she has certainly never found herself in a dangerous situation she had to be rescued from. Although I do seem to recall her having to be rescued by Dante and Johnny recently when she almost drowned because she was determined to find Carly in spite of the danger.




In conclusion, I find it ironic that Lucky would use Sam's relationship with Jason to point out that people who knowingly place themselves in situations where they might get hurt should be prepared to deal with the outcome. I wonder if he will feel so strongly about that when he realizes that he has allowed the same woman to cheat on him once again.









--Check back soon to read my thoughts on James Franco's unprecedented General Hospital visit!

All About Mia: DOOL

After months of allowing herself to be deceived and manipulated by Nicole and Stefano so that she could keep her baby's adoption intact, only to find out that said baby wasn't hers because her baby had died, one would think that Mia would have enough drama to last a lifetime. Instead it seems that she has picked up a few bad habits from Nicole because she has turned to manipulating Gabi in order to stake her claim on Chad, someone she didn't seem to want a few weeks ago. As if the Mia character wasn't irritating enough already, this newly calculative Mia is actually making me feel sorry for Gabi, which only makes her that much more irritating. I was stunned that she used Nicole's hearing as an opportunity to drive a wedge between Chad and Gabi, the same hearing that they were discussing her baby's death and the kidnapping of Will's baby sister. In doing this she not only undermined Will's importance in her life, but Sydney and Grace's as well...and people are ready to hang Nicole in the town square! I suppose one could make the argument that Mia is fighting to hold on to Chad because he is the only real connection she has with her daughter. And while this is entirely possible, at the very least her behavior denotes an overall lack of maturity, which proves that she was correct to assume her child might find a better life through adoption. It is just too bad those keen instincts have since dulled.

Dirty Little Secret: GH

From the moment Lucky began eavesdropping on Liz and Nikolas's conversation I knew that he would somehow miss the part where Liz admitted to having an affair. I assumed this would be for the same mysterious reason that everyone in Port Charles seems to miss important fragments of conversation on a daily basis, not because he couldn't bring himself to listen any longer. I would like to think that this was because on some level he knows that Liz has been cheating on him and he just wasn't ready to hear that fact out loud, but that seems unlikely considering how easily Liz seems to fool every guy she has ever been with. She possesses a certain vulnerability that makes it difficult for many people to see her as anything other than a victim, which makes men feel like they have to protect her. In this way she has become comparable to one of those high school girls that keeps getting boyfriends despite her reputation for ruining their lives. In addition she manages to retain female friends because the same vulnerability that makes men want to protect and defend her makes women feel sorry for her. And of course if any woman like Carly or Sam dares to point out Liz's flaws those women are perceived as being unnecessarily cruel and unfair, which only reinforces the idea of Liz as a victim. Over the past few months, however, it has become quite clear that Liz is anything but a victim, as she continues to do whatever it takes to keep her affair with Nikolas a secret. In the beginning it was easy enough to believe that Liz wanted to keep Lucky from finding out about her affair, in part, to protect his relationship with Nikolas. However, after seeing the way Liz allowed Lucky to blame Nikolas for upsetting her with his declarations of love it is obvious that the only person Liz is concerned with protecting is herself. This was particularly evident when she tried to convince Nikolas to help her lie to Lucky about their feelings for one another so that she could keep her life intact.

Innocence Lost: GH

Ever since Michael killed Claudia his behavior has been reprehensible and I have often wondered if this was the result of guilt or if he was simply using Claudia's murder as an opportunity to be more like Sonny. My suspicion was that after Michael killed Claudia he immediately felt out of touch with the rest of society so he gravitated toward the only life he thought he could possibly fit in, the life his father built. And while I think there will always be a part of Michael that idolizes Sonny, killing Claudia meant crossing a line that, for Michael, seemed to cement his fate into a life of crime.

I think that Michael always assumed he would follow in Sonny's footsteps at some point, given the fact that almost every male role model he has ever had has been connected to the mob in one way or another. And theoretically I think he always believed he could handle this lifestyle, even convincing himself and those around him, upon killing Claudia, that this is what he wanted. However, as I watched the scene where he was talking to his baby sister I became increasingly convinced that what he really longs for is innocence and a time before violence changed his life forever. The point of all this reckless behavior, whether Michael realizes it or not, is to evoke punishment. Deep down Michael wants to be held accountable for his actions so he can somehow get past what he did, but the adults in his life are so intent on covering up his transgressions that they do not recognize them as cries for help that no conversation with Sonny can fix.


Michael and Josslyn[no copyright infringement intended]